lovenovelstory Chapter 89: A One-Sided Battle
Chapter 89: A One-Sided Battle
The meteorite was moving much faster this time than before.
"Tch..." Noah clicked her tongue.
The clock reappeared in her right eye.
The world fell silent.
— 1.8 seconds.
The instant time resumed its flow, Noah continued to retreat, once again dodging the meteor's powerful attack.
"It's not over yet!"
Her attack missed, but the meteorite didn't stop in the slightest. Her body shot out again like a cannonball—
Time stops again.
— 1.3 seconds.
Noah's figure "flickered" and appeared in another location.
The time-stop quota has been used for 4.6 seconds.
As Meteorite stated, while its time stop can be used multiple times in a short period, the cumulative duration cannot exceed 5 seconds. Once 5 seconds are exceeded, time stop will enter a cooldown period and will be unusable for a time.
Although in the future, most people know that Noah can stop time, they only know that she "can stop time." They don't understand the specific mechanisms involved.
As for Meteorite... he clearly understands the weakness of time stop. It can only be said that he is truly worthy of being a former teammate.
Only 0.4 seconds remain. Even if time were to stop, that wouldn't be enough time to dodge her attack.
"—It's over, Captain."
The moment the meteor's sound faded, she rushed towards Noah's last remaining foothold.
Noah didn't dodge; instead, she used up the last 0.4 seconds of time stop.
She extended her right hand.
"Oborozuki Byakuya!"
A flash of light, and an astonishingly long katana appeared in her hand.
Now that her time-stop quota is used up, her combat abilities are no different from those of an ordinary "Eternal Radiance" level magical girl.
However, even now, I am confident that I can exchange a few blows with Meteor in close combat.
clang--!!!
Noah, wielding her swords in both hands, deflected Meteor's iron fist, and the collision of their magical powers sparked a burst of light.
Her own attire is a long katana, which allows her to use the length advantage of her weapon to maneuver against her in close combat.
However, in such close proximity, he was already affected by the meteorite's "spell-banning aura" and couldn't use spells. But that didn't matter, because when the meteorite's heart image was activated, it was basically immune to control spells, so there was no difference between being banned from using spells now and the current situation.
Meteor didn't dodge Noah's sword, but instead blocked Noah's slash with her fist.
Unlike typical close-quarters combat, long weapons should normally have an overwhelming advantage over unarmed combat. However, Meteorite, with its near-immunity to physical attacks, can ignore the distance advantage of the longsword and take the initiative to attack.
Noah's feet instantly unleashed magic, kicking forward and using the recoil to push her body backward, creating another two meters or so between her and Meteor.
Then came the constant clashes of longswords and fists and feet—
Noah could barely keep up with Meteor's movements at this point. But after a few rounds, Noah felt she couldn't keep up anymore.
First of all, Noah isn't a typical "melee magical girl." Generally speaking, melee magical girls aren't bad at close combat, but Noah's tactics are more about stopping time and then killing with a single blow. If her time stop is on cooldown, she'll also create distance and use magic to buy time.
Therefore, Noah is not proficient in close combat. Her understanding of close combat relies entirely on the combat instincts brought about by her background as an "Eternal Radiance" level magical girl.
Meteorite, on the other hand, was forged through countless close-quarters battles, one strike at a time.
Therefore, the result is obvious.
The moment Noah swung her longsword horizontally, Meteorite's leader caught the blade.
Completely unprepared for this situation, Noah was taken aback. She immediately realized what the meteorite was about to do—
Time to let go!
However, action was a step slower than thought.
After her longsword was seized, Noah lost her ability to block Meteor's fist. If Noah had dropped the sword at that moment and used both hands to defend, she might have had a chance, but Meteor didn't give her that opportunity—
A heavy punch landed on Noah's chest, sending her flying.
However, at the moment Noah was knocked away, Meteorite saw a strange smile appear on Noah's lips.
A sense of foreboding suddenly arose in Meteor's heart, but she still felt that her advantage was too great and that she could not possibly lose.
However, I absolutely cannot be careless.
This punch sent Noah flying, also knocking her out of her "spell-suppressing aura." Meteor quickly followed, sticking close to Noah to prevent her from using magic, while simultaneously intending to deliver a fatal blow—
Although that attack injured Noah, it was far from enough to render the "Eternal Radiance" level magical girl unable to fight.
Noah's body traced an arc through the air before crashing heavily to the ground. The meteorite arrived swiftly, its iron fist aimed directly at Noah—
Noah stretched out her hands to block, and although she managed to deflect the meteor's attack, the direct impact caused her to suffer even more severe injuries. However, Noah seized the opening after the meteor threw his punch, and with a powerful kick to the meteor's chest, she pushed off to regain her balance.
Meteorite saw through her intentions and gave her no chance, delivering another powerful punch that sent Noah flying once more.
This time, Meteorite watched as Noah was blasted more than ten meters away, but instead of rushing after her, it slowly flew over.
The outcome is already decided; there's no need to rush.
"Cough...cough..."
The essence of a magical girl is the embodiment of her soul in her body. Therefore, the attack just now caused Noah to feel the excruciating pain of her soul being struck, making her cough involuntarily.
The meteorite slowly approached from the sky, standing not far away, looking down at Noah lying on the ground.
"It's over." Meteor's voice was devoid of any pity.
Noah didn't speak, but simply looked back at her quietly.
"The cooldown of time stop... is it over by now?" Meteorite didn't rush to act, but instead started talking to Noah. "Captain, you are indeed very tenacious. You actually managed to hold out until the next time stop."
"You... don't seem to be in a hurry." Noah didn't panic when she was forced into a corner, and started chatting with Meteorite.
"Because there's no rush." The meteorite slowly drifted closer.
"In your current state, even if you were given another 5 seconds, where could you run off to? Once you've used up these 5 seconds, I can deliver the fatal blow."
"...Do you think you'll have another chance to stop time?"
At this moment, Meteorite was absolutely certain of its victory.
however--
"That's not necessarily true."
Noah's face once again revealed that sly smile.
Then, in the next instant, Noah vanished.
Meteor wasn't in a hurry—Noah had only activated her time stop for the last time to buy time; five seconds wouldn't take much.
She immediately flew high into the sky and began looking around for Noah's whereabouts—
however--
No.
Noah was nowhere to be seen, neither in the sky nor on the ground.
Eh?
The meteorite stood frozen in place.
Even with five seconds of full-speed escape, in Noah's current state, it would be absolutely impossible for her to instantly escape his sight. Moreover, high-speed movement would leave magical traces. Although such a presence would disappear quickly, it certainly wouldn't be as completely undetectable as it is now.
Meteor clenched his fist.
How is that possible?