'This entire dimensional is as large as a universe by ordinary standards…' Kuzon thought to himself as he spread his senses far and wide.
'Without Leo's complete power, I can't control all of it, but if I use my Original Magic as a binder, I should be able to come close.'
That meant he had to substitute—or rather, reinforce—the unstable [Authority] of his Constellation with [Marrionette].
It was a difficult task, but Kuzon was up for the challenge!
'Let's go!'
Instantly controlling the gravity, friction, and resistance of everything around him, Kuzon felt completely absolved of anything that would have offered at least some measure of pull to him. That meant only one thing.
'More freedom!'
~WHOOOOSH!~
In a flash, he closed the distance between him and Legris, who still hadn't noticed Kuzon's appearance thanks to the vast difference in speed between the both of them.
'Fo safety, I won't attack directly.'
Thankfully, he didn't need to. The prime reason for moving so close to Legris was to investigate the plausibilty of the action.
And he had just confirmed it.
Plus, now that he was within striking distance, that meant his attacks would reach Legris much faster than before.
'[Golden Execution]'
The Axe by Kuzon's side instantly vanished from that position, instead manifesting above Legris' head.
Using his [Authority] and [Marionette], he forcibly held Legris in place, using threads to control space while also constructing an actual gulliotine for his target.
The axe served as the executioner's blade, while everything served as Legris' restraints.
Of course, all of this occured within a second, making it too fast for anyone to perceieve… not even someone as powerful or skilled as Legris.
~WHOOOOOOOSSSSHHHHHHH!!!~
The Axe descended on the target, cackling energy rushing from it as soon as it began its fall.
However…
~FSHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU~
Right before the axe reached Legris, it rapidly began to rust at the tip, with blackness seeping into its golden form.
Before long—or any time at all—the darkness had completely wrapped itself around the axe until it became as dark as night.
The same applied for all of Legris' restraints.
All of them crumbled into darkness, returning to him as if he was ther owner.
"Haa…" Legris whispered, turning to Kuzon, who was now miles away from him. "... I thought you wouldn't want to kill me."
Rather than being flusterd, like Legris would want, Kuzon gave a confident smile and responded with words of his own.
"I had to see if I could. It seems I cannot, huh?"
'So this is what Jared was talking about, huh? The black stuff…'
It was going to prove problematic, especially now that Legris was covered in the stuff. According to what Kuzon had observed, the darkness absorbed anything it came into contact with, rendering it a part of Legris.
That made attacking Legris virtually impossible since he could render all attacks null.
'I don't even want to begin to imagine what would happen if that stuff came in contact with me.' Kuzon narrowed his gaze on Legris.
Usually, his Absolute Emperor's Transfiguration guaranteed him no harm or interferece, but with something like this in the equation, Kuzon wasn't so sure anymore.
He had to operate with the assumption that he could be damaged by Legris.
'And not just that, there seems to be another problem…' Kuzon sighed internally, focusing his senses on the areas around Legris.
As expected, he couldn't successfully analyze or control it.
'That black stuff negates my abilities. I can't use [Authority] or [Marionette] around his immediate vicinity at all.'
Using it on Legris himself was also out of the question.
'It has to do with that strange black power of his. Just what is that thing, for it to be interfering with even a Constellation's Representation?'
Kuzon did not have the answers.
All he knew was that it wasn't Aether, Nether, or any other kind of energy he had ever dealt with before.
That made Legris all the more dangerous.
'He probably used that, or some variant of it, to ensure the Constellations can't interfere beyond their dimension.'
Kuzon reckoned that if he learned more about the black energy, he would perhaps be able to figure out more of Legris' power, or even how to free the Constellations early.
He wasn't going to push his luck, but that was certainly a possibility.
'Let's observe some more. It can't be absolute, ri—?'
"My turn!" Legris' voice sharply echoed in the air, interrupting Kuzon's thoughts as soon as it proceeded from his lips.
~WHOOOOOOOOSSSSSSHHHHHHHH!!!~
Legris swiftly extended his dark claws towards Kuzon, quickly eating through space and every energy in its way as it made its way towards prey.
"Tch." Kuzon was able to quickly teleport from his position, allowing him to easily avoid the strike,
In an effort to counterattack, he used his golden threads to generate several arrows from multiple directions. Their golden forms covered the expanse, like tiny dots in a vast stream of a blank canvas.
They numbered a billion at least, and Kuzon summoned all of them in a mere instance.
'Their offensive capabilities aren't too impressive, but they're fast, and they can cover multiple locations at once…'
Kuzon thought this was the best way to achieve the desired result of chipping at Legris' defenses… at least to see how far it could go.
'Does it recover quickly? Can it encompass him entirely? What of resistance?' He had to know the full details.
"Descend."
~WHOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM!!!~
The moment Kuzon said the word, the golden arrows began to lunge at Legris at such speed that it defied explanation.
Slicing through space, enough to create distortions all around, they all centered in the direction of the lone man.
Kuzon watched as Legris covered himself in a cocoon of darkness, and he watched as the arrows pierced the darkness a million after another.
They kept falling and piercing.
Over and over… and over again!
"Let's see just how much you can take." Kuzon whispered, now wieling a golden staff in his hand.
"I'm just getting started."
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[A/N]
Thank you all for reading!
The battle continues! Who will win… who will lose?
We can only wait and see!
