“Die, you fake!” Elia slammed her fist toward the fake Elia across from her, but the other instantly threw a punch that met hers.
At that moment, an unusually powerful gust of wind exploded outward, shaking the barrier slightly—proof of just how strong the impact was.
Then both Elias stepped back a full pace and faced each other down.
Outside the barrier, Kiz gripped her scythe tightly, staring hard at the real Elia.
She couldn’t help her now, so all she could do was trust her.
Beside her, Vian stood on tiptoe, peering inside worriedly. “That fake looks exactly like the real one… how is she supposed to fight that?”
No one answered her.
Inside the barrier, both Elias charged at each other at the same time.
Elia threw a straight punch toward the fake Elia’s chest.
The fake sidestepped to dodge and simultaneously drove a knee into her stomach.
Elia twisted her waist, executing a midair flip to avoid the hit, then lashed out with a kick aimed at the other’s head.
The fake quickly ducked to evade.
A moment later, they both retreated three steps. The fake Elia spoke up: “Heh. Every move you know, I know. And right now, I understand you one hundred percent. So there’s absolutely no way you can beat me…”
Elia didn’t reply. She was thinking.
After those few exchanges, she had confirmed one thing—this fake had indeed copied all her combat techniques, even her muscle memory. So any conventional attack would be perfectly countered.
To win… she’d have to change her approach.
So what should she do? Hmm… hmm… Oh, for crying out loud?
Elia quickly dodged a kick the fake aimed at her, then shouted, “Hey! You’re fighting dirty, aren’t you? Attacking when I’m not paying attention? Can you at least let me get ready first?”
“Oh? Isn’t that just how ‘I’ am? What’s ‘dirty’? Besides, who says a villain has to wait for the hero to figure out a way to beat them?” The fake tilted her head and shot back.
Ugh… well, it was true that this was also her style. Then she’d just have to think of a counter while fighting!
With that in mind, Elia took a deep breath and yelled, “Take this!”
[Tenth Step: Radiant Holy Word]
A massive amount of Holy Light gathered in the air, forming countless specks of light—each one like a sun radiating terrifying heat and brilliance.
These specks swirled together into a single magic circle that enveloped the entire battlefield.
Seeing this, the fake Elia cast the same spell, and an identical magic circle spread open above her head.
The two arrays collided in midair, specks of light annihilating each other, followed by a continuous roar of explosions.
“I told you, everything you know, I know. Whether it’s a magic clash or close-quarters combat, you’ll never win,” the fake said coolly.
But the corner of Elia’s mouth lifted slightly. “Is that so?”
She suddenly dispelled her magic circle.
This caught the fake off guard for a moment—she wondered why the original would cancel her magic—but she canceled her own array as well.
“Giving up?” she asked.
“No. I just confirmed one thing.”
She had indeed confirmed one thing—how to defeat this imposter!
Raising her right hand, she pressed her five fingers together, and a surge of Holy Light condensed into a light blade.
This blade was thinner and longer than a normal sword. Honestly, it wasn’t really a sword—it was more like a light spike.
“You copied my magic, my techniques, and my strength. But there’s one thing you absolutely can’t copy~ And that is… the intuition I’ve honed through life-and-death battles.” Elia spoke slowly.
The fake Elia’s face was expressionless. “Intuition? What’s that?”
“Heh… this!”
Before the words even faded, Elia vanished from her spot. The next second, she appeared behind the fake, driving the light blade toward the back of her neck.
But the fake’s reaction speed was no slouch—she spun around instantly, conjuring her own light blade to block the strike.
Elia didn’t stop.
Stab, slash, slice, flick. Every attack was merciless, and her angles were bizarre. Her movements were no longer standard or perfect; instead, they shifted into an erratic rhythm…
Sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes changing direction mid-strike.
At this point, the fake began to struggle.
Even though her blocks were still flawless, each one was a fraction of a second late—mainly because Elia’s attacks followed no pattern at all.
“I get it now. Your combat techniques come from copying me! But you can only copy the past—you can’t copy the future. I learn during a fight, I evolve and get stronger… but you can’t. Got it, you stupid AI? Nyah nyah nyah nyah~”
Toward the end, Elia even put on a playful grin and stuck out her tongue, looking absolutely insufferable.
Of course, she never stopped attacking. Suddenly switching from a thrust to a slash, she swung her light blade horizontally toward the fake’s throat.
The fake ducked to avoid the near-fatal blow, but Elia’s knee slammed hard into her stomach. The fake coughed a few times, stumbling back several steps, a trickle of blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.
Elia didn’t give her a chance to catch her breath—after all, this was an enemy. She pressed forward, relentlessly attacking with the light blade.
The fake defended desperately, trying to analyze all of Elia’s combat habits.
But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t keep up with Elia’s complete lack of a pattern!
To put it nicely, Elia was showing off a flashy display; to put it bluntly, she was flailing around chaotically.
Finally, Elia thrust her blade straight through the fake’s right shoulder, then pulled it out and kicked her flying across the ground.
The fake slammed heavily into the wall and slid down.
Elia walked over and looked down at her. “You lose.”
At those words, the fake lifted her head. For the first time, an emotion called confusion appeared in those blue eyes that were exactly the same as Elia’s…
It truly was the first time. Until now, the tone of her voice—nearly indistinguishable from Elia’s—had been purely imitation.
But that confusion only lasted a moment before the fake exploded, releasing a massive burst of Holy Light that forced everyone, including Elia, to close their eyes—it was just too blinding.
When the light faded, all that remained in the spot where the fake had been was a gem the size of a fist.
Inside that gem flowed light of seven colors.
Red, blue, yellow, cyan, black, gold, and white.
“Yeah… yeah! That’s it! The Elemental Heart!” Lisa exclaimed joyfully.