The deafening sounds of Vergil's sword clashing with Sapphire's relentless blade echoed through the mansion, each strike reverberating like thunder. The demon maids kept a safe distance, wide-eyed and filled with apprehension.
"Are you... really sure this is okay?" Novah asked hesitantly, turning to the small maid beside her, Viola, who watched the fight with an amused gleam in her eyes.
"Well… if you want to go in there and stop those maniacs, be my guest," Viola replied, sarcasm dripping from every word. "That is, of course, if you've got a death wish." She chuckled softly, not tearing her gaze away from the duel that dominated the hall.
In the center of the room, Sapphire intensified her attacks, forcing Vergil to block and dodge in an exhausting sequence. With every strike, she smiled, testing the young demon's limits and pushing him to react instinctively.
"Show more focus, Vergil!" Sapphire shouted, spinning to deliver a downward slash with the precision of a deadly blow. Vergil raised his sword to block, feeling the impact pulse through his arms. Sweat trickled down his face, but he stood firm, determined not to falter.
Viola watched the scene with a nearly proud expression. "Looks like Sapphire has finally found a challenge she's willing to break instead of coddle," she whispered to Novah, who simply shook her head in a mix of concern and fascination.
As they exchanged glances, the sound of clashing tal continued to echo forcefully. In the midst of it all, Sapphire was a force of nature. She moved with calculated precision, spinning, advancing, and striking without rcy. With each thrust, there was a slightly disturbing smile on her lips, as if savoring the sweet pleasure of every blow.
Though she'd promised herself to only use 1% of her power, Sapphire couldn't resist the growing excitent at seeing Vergil panting, sweating, and gradually absorbing the battle.
He struggled to defend himself, and even with his quick reflexes and the strength he was developing, Sapphire's attacks were far too fierce for his experience.
His mind began to pulse with flashbacks of his ti at the Lake of Viviane.
There, he had experienced combat sensations on a spiritual plane, and surreal as that had been, he started to recall the lessons etched into his soul, the way he had begun to kill the shadows of his own soul. Even though he had no real technique, sothing was explicit—his battle instinct, his natural ferocity…
mories of movents, techniques, and fierce determination ford in his mind, but none of it mattered more than his instinct, and that's exactly what Sapphire had wanted from the beginning.
To hell with poor techniques, to hell with techniques he'd created, learned, and mastered…
'The plan is perfect, everything is going smoothly... I'm finally realizing my long-awaited destiny…' she thought playfully, smiling as she noticed the focused gaze and faint glint in Vergil's eyes. Sapphire's smile grew even wider. "Well, well… looks like we've got ourselves a dedicated apprentice, don't we?" She tilted her head, easily dodging Vergil's next strike. "This makes even more excited."
Katharina and Roxanne, who had been instructed to join in the attack, stood frozen, watching the fight with a mix of fascination and trepidation. The intensity of the battle was such that every attempt they made to step in felt insufficient; Sapphire completely dominated the scene.
After exchanging a glance with Katharina, Roxanne whispered, "She… she's having way too much fun, isn't she?"
Katharina nodded, her eyes fixed on her mother. "Yes… I've never seen her fight like this." The admiration and unease in her voice were palpable. She knew Sapphire was powerful, but seeing her toy with Vergil like this made it clear just how much her mother relished combat. With every spin of her blade, the lethal precision and predatory gleam in her eyes revealed her true nature.
Even with all the confidence she possessed, Katharina felt a chill run down her spine. "Are we really safe here?" she asked, half-joking, half-serious.
Out of breath, Vergil continued to absorb each strike and movent, attempting to anticipate and respond to Sapphire's relentless assault. He recalled the lessons imprinted on his soul during his ti at the lake. He began to move instinctively, and slowly, the knowledge resurfaced. Each defense beca sharper; every dodge, more calculated. In a mont of clarity, he nearly managed to counter Sapphire with a quick move, but she evaded effortlessly, a look of pure delight on her face.
"So, you're finally reacting?" Sapphire taunted, her tone laced with undeniable glee. The pressure of her demonic aura grew, filling the hall like a suffocating, pulsing presence that challenged anyone who dared to stand near.
Roxanne and Katharina's legs trembled slightly from the aura radiating from her, but they held their ground, watching with expressions that shifted by the second. They both realized that, despite Sapphire's raw power, Vergil was absorbing every mont of the battle. He was beginning to grasp the lessons imprinted in his soul, applying them as if… dancing. Every move and strike had a rhythm; he was starting to follow the dance of combat.
"You think we can just keep watching?" Roxanne whispered to Katharina, still uncertain if their plan was a good idea after all.
"Maybe… it's best to let her fight him alone," Katharina replied, a calculating glint in her eyes. "He needs to get stronger. And who knows… it might make him even more… interesting… and she… well… she'll kill us if we interfere." Her tone carried a mix of admiration and perhaps a hint of pride.
Suddenly, Sapphire struck with a particularly intense blow, causing Vergil to stagger backward. He managed to stay on his feet, his eyes shining with determination. Sapphire laughed, amused. "Well, if that's how you want it, then I'll give you my best." She raised her sword, and her aura intensified even further. Her expression radiated a mix of sadistic pleasure and respect, acknowledging his resilience.
The demon maids, still watching from a distance, kept an almost reverent silence. Viola glanced at Novah with a mischievous smile. "See that? This is what we call… intensive training." She relished the look of pale astonishnt on Novah's face, who could hardly comprehend how soone could find pleasure in such brutality.
anwhile, Vergil, feeling every muscle in his body burning from exhaustion, decided to focus on the clarity of the teachings his subconscious offered him. He began to anticipate Sapphire's attacks better, dodging more efficiently and occasionally even managing to counterattack.
Sapphire noticed, her eyes sparkling with renewed enthusiasm. "Yes! That's how you fight, Vergil!" She lunged with a swift, sharp move, but this ti Vergil blocked the blow more firmly, his arms shaking from the strain, but his eyes unwavering in focus.
Katharina, seeing Vergil's progress, murmured to herself, "He's… growing." Roxanne beside her, sensing the sa, smiled. "Yes, at least his death seems a bit farther away…"
Sapphire, noticing the attentive gazes of Katharina and Roxanne, laughed sarcastically. "You two over there, if you're so attached to him, why don't you join the party? Thought you wanted to help him!" She tossed a sword toward each of them, and they caught it instinctively, as though they already knew they had no choice.
The two exchanged glances, silently asking each other, "Uh, thank you, but no, we'd rather not have her kill us!" Katharina volunteered with her hand up, "Exactly!"
"Alright, then, my son-in-law is all mine!" she shouted excitedly.
The impact of Sapphire's words echoed throughout the hall, and her smile grew even more feral. Vergil, still panting and tense, realized that Sapphire was only beginning to unleash her true combat energy, and a twinge of apprehension struck him. Though he was gaining more confidence, he knew he was far from her equal. But sothing inside him drove him to keep trying.
Sapphire looked at him expectantly, twirling her sword with an ease that made it clear how at ho she was in combat. She cast a brief glance at Katharina and Roxanne, who held their swords with expressions of mixed relief and dread after narrowly escaping the confrontation.
"You two are really lucky," Sapphire laughed with a teasing tone. "But that's fine, the show is all mine. I'll make sure he understands everything about combat today."
Vergil swallowed hard, but kept his eyes locked on Sapphire, determined to endure. Her intensity was overwhelming, but, strangely, he was beginning to find a kind of rhythm in the chaos. Sapphire charged again, this ti with a rapid, lethal sequence of strikes. Vergil, relying on the instinctive reflexes that he was starting to recognize as his repressed combat mories, dodged the first strikes and managed to block so others with his blade, his arm muscles burning with the effort.
"Now you're really getting the hang of it," Sapphire said, a hint of pride and sadism in her voice. She increased the force of her next blow, pushing Vergil back a few steps, but he didn't avert his gaze.
Katharina, watching the scene with a touch of pride, couldn't help but smile. "You know, he's doing much better than I expected," she murmured to Roxanne, who nodded in agreent.
"Yes, if he survives this… maybe Sapphire will really consider him a good match," Roxanne said with a satisfied smirk.
"You two are still thinking about that?" Viviane questioned, appearing beside them.
"What do you an?" Roxanne asked.
"Well, maybe the sweets have sohow affected your cognitive ability to grasp the basics of a woman in love…" Viviane said, leaving Roxanne puzzled as she turned to Katharina for clarification.
"She ans that my mother is already completely taken with him, even if she hasn't realized it yet," Katharina clarified, a fierce look in her eyes.
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