The white fox mask, adorned with three sakura-pink magatama, danced in mid-air before erupting into ethereal blue flames, reforming into the figure of the sakura-colored shrine maiden wielding her pink spirit katana.
Her hair, as brilliant as cherry blossoms, swayed gently, and the long, slender pink fox ears atop her head were incredibly eye-catching.
As Yae Sakura, obeying Ren Amamiya's summons, landed lightly in the crimson desert...
Ren clearly observed that the Palace Ruler Kallen, wearing the black bird-beak mask in the distance, finally showed a flicker of undeniable emotion in her eternally ice-cold eyes.
Yes, that's what I wanted to see!
Ren hadn't chosen Arsene; he specifically used the Yae Sakura Persona to fight Kallen precisely because he wanted to see Kallen's reaction upon seeing Sakura again.
Unfortunately, Kallen composed herself too quickly. Before Ren could properly appreciate the reminiscent look in her eyes, she had already reverted to her previous cold state.
"Joker, I'll help too..."
Seeing the imminent battle between Ren and Shadow Kallen, Hare prepared to summon her dream projections to assist Ren.
However, the moment the thought arose, her entire body felt plunged into an icy abyss, stiffening from a profound chill. Kallen Kaslana's gaze, cold enough to freeze the soul, locked firmly onto Hare.
"You are not human. As another power of Stigma, you are not qualified to undergo the trial. If you insist on assisting him, you will not only cause him to lose the qualification to inherit the power of Kaslana, but... you will both face the most terrifying truth."
Kallen Kaslana's stare seemed to hold the terrifying power to freeze all creation. Just being watched by her made Hare feel as if her body was freezing solid, unable to move.
Kallen's meaning was crystal clear: this was a one-on-one duel between her and Ren Amamiya. If Hare dared to interfere, Kallen would unleash her full power without restraint, defeat them both, and expel them entirely.
This Stigma space was incredibly unique. It felt as if the Stigma spaces of all individuals sharing a certain trait were interconnected. Not only was it astonishingly vast, but the power possessed by the Stigma Will residing within also surpassed Hare's imagination.
As the Stigma crystallization of Schariac, Hare's power should theoretically be at the apex among Stigma Archetypes.
Yet, this Kallen Kaslana appearing within the Stigma space possessed terrifying strength that even Hare could only look up to.
Stigma power that could definitively surpass the Schariac Stigma, combined with the bloodline flowing through Kallen's body...
Hare gradually realized the truth of this Stigma space... This must be the collective Stigma space constructed by the entire Kaslana knightly family!
The being Ren was currently facing—whose personality and strength were vastly different from Kallen's—was naturally not the real Kallen Kaslana.
Just as Hare had instinctively chosen Cecilia Schariac's body as her template, this was the Kaslana Stigma Will, manifesting before Ren Amamiya in the guise of Kallen Kaslana!
"So you want a one-on-one fight... That's fine. Hare, you just watch from the sidelines."
Ren waved a hand towards Hare behind him, signaling her to just observe the battle.
Back in the game, Ren wasn't unfamiliar with attempting solo Palace runs without teammates.
However, that was usually when he had the invincible Izanagi-no-Okami Picaro, allowing him to skip teammate turns and end battles instantly with a single Myriad Truths.
Ren didn't have Izanagi-no-Okami residing in his heart right now.
But the current situation wasn't as dangerous as in the game, either.
No matter how distorted the Palace Ruler's heart might be, Kallen was still Kallen. Since she had already made a pact with Ren, she wouldn't completely turn hostile without reason.
Ren could tell that although Shadow Kallen spoke of trials and burdens, maintaining an icy, aloof facade and creating a tense atmosphere, she didn't harbor any real malice.
Saying things like "face your first defeat" sounded like she was giving Ren multiple chances, allowing him to fail and challenge her again.
However—
"I'm not planning on facing any kind of defeat. Watch me clear this palace in one life!"
The instant Ren's words fell, Yae Sakura, receiving the command to attack, shot forward like a cannonball. The spirit katana Sakura Fubuki in her slender hand traced a brilliant arc of light through the air, its sharp edge slashing towards the unmoving, mountain-steady Kallen.
Seeing Kallen stand motionless, seemingly unresponsive to her attack, a flicker of hesitation crossed Yae Sakura's blue eyes.
Her previously fierce and swift sword strike suddenly faltered, the blade's trajectory instinctively shifting towards the golden cross standing beside Kallen's hand.
"Too slow, Yae Sakura. I don't need you to hold back. Just attack me with your full strength, like Ren Amamiya does."
Just as Yae Sakura's light, slender form neared the space before Kallen, Kallen's utterly cold voice reached her ears.
Clang, clang, clang! The sound of rattling chains suddenly erupted.
From the opened inner compartment of the Oath of Judah, a golden Soulium chain, swift and nimble as a snake, shot out instantly, binding Yae Sakura's wrist that held the pink spirit katana.
After immobilizing Sakura, Kallen swung the chain like a whip, launching Yae Sakura's body like a cannonball towards Ren Amamiya, who had silently appeared behind her.
Facing the sakura-colored shrine maiden hurtling towards him like a projectile, Ren showed absolutely no sentimentality.
He gripped the mechanical katana Raikiri, wreathed in deep purple lightning, with both hands. His body, agile as a black falcon soaring through the sky, lunged forward in a piercing thrust.
Just as the blade of Raikiri—crackling with dazzling purple lightning and emitting the sound of a thousand birds chirping [Chidori]—was about to pierce Yae Sakura's back...
Sakura's slender form instantly dissolved into scattered ethereal blue flames that dispersed in all directions.
Ren, wielding Raikiri, charged unstoppable through the curtain of blue flames. His dazzling purple sword slash, carrying brilliant lightning, descended upon Kallen Kaslana, whose eyes revealed a hint of surprise.
"Good combat awareness. Unfortunately, your own strength is too weak."
Though the battle had just begun, Kallen nodded slightly, praising Ren.
However, in the next instant, the golden Soulium chain shot out from Oath of Judah's inner compartment again, employing the same tactic, snaking towards Ren's right hand holding Raikiri.
"Don't think you can use the same trick on me twice!"
The powerful electromagnetic shield surrounding Ren instantly erupted outwards. Bird-shaped lightning swords burst from his body, knocking away the golden Soulium chain attempting to bind his right arm.
With all obstacles cleared, the deep purple blade in Ren's hand, wreathed in shining lightning, finally slashed down towards Kallen before him.
Kallen, who had stood motionless since the start of the fight, finally moved to evade under the force of Ren's lightning slash.
Her figure gracefully leaped backward. The lightning-infused sword strike crashed down with immense force, kicking up a violent cloud of sand from the ground.
"..."
Kallen landed silently, steadying herself with the Oath of Judah in the desert. She quietly lowered her head, glancing at her right shoulder.
The special material of her Schicksal nun habit, known for its excellent defense, was torn, revealing a long, narrow slit. The wound on her right shoulder bled slightly, and a numbing sensation spread through her body from the impact.
"Well done. Although I only used Kallen's..."
The Kaslana Stigma Will didn't intend to make things overly difficult for Ren Amamiya, this human visitor who had entered the Kaslana Stigma space seeking to take away Kallen Kaslana's Stigma power.
Although it was true that humans without Kaslana blood needed to undergo a trial and gain approval to enter the space...
When the Kaslana Stigma Will took the form of Kallen Kaslana, it also limited its own strength to the level Kallen herself possessed.
Using its full power against this human successor who did not inherit Kaslana blood would be bullying, plain and simple.
Just as the Kaslana Stigma Will was about to praise Ren, she suddenly saw him raise a crimson-black katana horizontally before his left palm. The Honkai energy wave radiating from him instantly intensified to an extreme degree.
"This is... a Divine Key's Zeroth Power? And it's... the Twelfth Divine Key, the Key of Corruption?"
Feeling the power of Corruption—a presence so familiar it stirred revulsion—wafting on the approaching wind, Kallen's delicate brows slowly furrowed. The aura around her quietly grew deeper, colder, more intense.
"Persona! —Come forth, Arsene!!"
Ren pushed the power of Jizo Mitama in his hand to its absolute limit, unleashing all the magic contained within it in one go.
Ominous, dark red flames instantly surged around Ren's body.
The figure of Persona Arsene—clad in a bright red dress suit, with pitch-black falcon wings sprouting from its back—materialized distinctly behind Ren.
As the power of Jizo Mitama surged, crimson-black streams of light began to boil and roil across Persona Arsene's body as well.
Ren had noticed Yae Sakura's hesitation when attacking Kallen earlier. So, after recalling Sakura to his heart, he decisively summoned his most reliable Persona, Arsene.
Persona Yae Sakura was just for fun; when it came to a real fight, the invincible Arsene was the one to rely on!
Although using this secret technique of Jizo Mitama would normally cause it to enter a dormant state for at least two hours...
This was Mementos (the Stigma Space). Ren could summon Personas directly without relying on Jizo Mitama's power here.
Moreover, within the Mementos environment, Jizo Mitama recovered many times faster than in the real world, regaining its full power in less than ten minutes.
Kallen Kaslana held no killing intent towards Ren; this was just a normal trial, a spar.
Even if Jizo Mitama became temporarily unusable, it wouldn't affect the overall situation. Maximizing Arsene's combat power by applying Jizo Mitama's Berserk enhancement was the most strategically sound choice.
"...Huh? Why do I suddenly sense killing intent?"
The very instant Ren applied the Berserk enhancement to Persona Arsene, he suddenly felt a deep, terrifying killing intent flash from the distant Kallen Kaslana, chilling him to the bone.
Though fleeting, the intense discomfort, like needles prickling his back, was definitely not Ren's imagination.
"Losing your cool seeing the Treasure weapon formed from Higokumaru? Didn't expect the real you to have such a stern and scary side."
Higokumaru, Yae Sakura's Shadow, had inflicted significant psychological trauma on Kallen Kaslana five hundred years ago. It was only natural for her to be affected by the "Treasure weapon" [Jizo Mitama] formed from Higokumaru [Ren's incorrect assumption].
"Prepare yourself, Kallen! I defeated Higokumaru and turned it into my food source [EXP/Power source], constantly growing stronger! I'm even more powerful than Higokumaru now!"
Ren gripped the fully powered Jizo Mitama katana tightly in his right hand. His red-gloved left hand swung sharply, issuing a command to Persona Arsene behind him.
"Arsene, use Agidyne!"
A massive ball of roaring flame, like a blazing sun, instantly appeared above the desolate desert. Boosted by the Berserk enhancement, the brilliant fireball Arsene hurled burned with an ominous crimson-black glow instead of its normal fiery red.
"Is this your full strength? Commendable... but still not enough."
The Kaslana Stigma Will slowly raised her head. Facing the Agidyne, like a blazing sun falling from the heavens, her eyes shone with a certain determined will and resolve.
As the Agidyne, like a black sun, crashed down and engulfed Kallen's figure...
Despite being in a desert made even hotter by the scorching waves of fire...
Ren suddenly felt a profound, deep chill.