MIGHT AS WELL BE OP

Judith stared at Vega with an expressionless face as her arm regenerated, while Vega simply gazed back with a smile. Vega made no move to end the battle immediately, she was enjoying herself.

This was her first true battle, and she desired to see what her opponent could truly do or offer, hoping it would further enhance her personal growth.

Judith raised a hand, and in an instant, twenty spectral beings appeared like ghosts conjured from thin air. Then, just as suddenly, they vanished, as if they had become invisible. Vega's eyes narrowed as she observed the occurrence, yet she remained still, unmoved.

Suddenly, Vega's head twisted sharply to the right. In that exact moment of evasion, she sensed another attack coming from the side. Her body reacted instinctively, bending at an impossible angle.

Anyone observing the scene would have thought Vega had gone mad, her movements erratic, as if she were dodging phantoms. Yet no visible attacker pursued her.

Still, her body continued to move in erratic but calculated motions, weaving from one direction to another as she carried out her evasive maneuver. Her purple eyes shimmered, allowing her to trace the movements of these spectral beings despite their invisibility.

Their attempts were futile beneath her gaze.

A spectral claw, pale and ethereal, lunged toward her throat, but Vega effortlessly performed a backflip, creating distance between herself and the ghouls. However, the moment her hand brushed the sand mid-motion, Judith materialized like a phantom.

Her broadsword gleamed menacingly as it slashed toward Vega's waist with deadly intent. Yet Vega remained calm. Using her planted hand as a pivot, she propelled herself skyward in a fluid motion, her body inverted as it ascended.

With a resounding boom, Sword Intent exploded from Judith's swing, annihilating everything where Vega had just been. The ghouls didn't hesitate, they gave chase, charging after Vega.

But Vega had grown tired of these weaklings.

With a simple wave of her hand, space twisted violently under her command, then compressed inwards, erasing all the ghouls from existence in a single instant.

Her gaze shifted toward Judith, who now stood with unwavering poise, her aura thick with killing intent. Yet before Judith could react, Vega did.

Black flames bloomed across the sky, spreading outward like an ominous river. Then, they began to swirl, folding into each other, gradually taking form, each flame forging itself into a weapon: hammers, swords, halberds, arrows.

The heat radiating from these constructs was so intense it seemed capable of melting through reality itself.

Without a word, Vega pointed forward, and with that gesture, the arsenal of flames surged forward with blinding speed.

Judith reacted swiftly. Darkness surged from beneath her feet, rising into a dome of protection. But she wasn't finished. The sand around her erupted as numerous skeletons emerged, clad in thick armor and wielding massive shields like living tanks. They positioned themselves defensively around the dome.

Dark energy began to emanate from these skeletons, reinforcing their defense even further.

Then came the apocalyptic impact.

The black flames collided with the skeletal army, and a thunderous explosion followed. The flames raged wildly, consuming everything in their path. Within seconds, the skeletons were reduced to nothingness, even the death energy that had bolstered them was devoured.

The flames then slammed into the darkness dome with full force. The shockwave that erupted shook the terrain, and the sand beneath them began to crystallize into glass under the overwhelming heat. Still, the darkness dome held strong, refusing to break, until at last the black flames dissipated from existence, unable to pierce through.

Through the swirling dust and smoke, Judith emerged, shaken but composed. Her broadsword remained firmly in hand, her stance perfect, her jet-black eyes calm and focused as she stared across the field.

But Vega had no intention of turning this into a mere staring contest. One moment, she was floating high above in the sky, the next, she was before Judith in a flash, her fist hurtling toward Judith's head with enough power to fold the very air around it.

Judith was taken aback by Vega's sudden appearance inside the dome, but her surprise did not dull her reactions. She immediately raised her arm to block the strike, but Vega adjusted mid-attack. Her body shifted like flowing water, and her elbow snapped outwards, crashing into Judith's shoulder with a deafening shockwave.

The impact launched Judith backward, slamming her into her own protective dome with explosive force.

'Did she just use my own feint technique against me?' Judith wondered, disbelief flashing across her mind. But she had no time to regain her balance.

Vega was already in front of her again. A fist filled her vision, growing larger with every passing instant. Judith dove to the ground instinctively, rolling through the sand as Vega's blow crashed into the dome above with a bone-rattling impact.

Judith quickly regained her footing. Sand clung to her body and hair like a child who had been playing in it too long. Wasting no time, she snapped her fingers, and chaos energy pulsed violently from her core.

Instantly, all light vanished within the dome, plunging the interior into absolute darkness.

This was her plan, to blind Vega and cripple her vision.

Judith moved without hesitation. Darkness coiled under her feet, silencing her movements and concealing her presence. She blurred forward within the veil of night, her vision unaffected, seeing just as clearly as she would in daylight.

Her hand shot forward like a spear, aiming for Vega's throat with chilling intent.

But then — she felt it.

A warm, powerful grip closed tightly around her wrist, stopping her strike mid-motion.

'How?' Judith thought in disbelief.

Vega had caught her attack effortlessly and was now staring directly into her eyes through the darkness.

"These eyes are far too special to be rendered useless by a little darkness," Vega stated, her voice calm and smooth, the first words she had spoken since the battle began.

The smile on her face remained calm, persistent, almost as if it were carved into her features. But to Judith, that smile felt like mockery.