Copy Skills with Affinity!

Chapter 35

Crushing

In a situation that looked strange no matter how one saw it, the masked man immediately flung open the window. Light poured into the dark interior, which had no natural lighting whatsoever.

Aiden squinted and looked outside. Judging by the scene reflected, it was unmistakably a super high-rise building—almost reminiscent of a tower.

And despite being at such a high altitude, the masked man who looked down toward the ground let out something akin to a groan.

"...Lionhearted?"

Even from this distance, there was something immediately visible.

Amid the dull, low buildings, a single woman was walking—her presence unmistakable as she scattered a dense, fog-like, pure-white aura that made her seem like a mist herself.

It was an ability no one could fail to recognize if they had ties to the Empire. Pure white qi. The symbol of the Lionhearted.

And then.

-...

With each step that woman took closer.

-......

The size of the mist-like aura spreading around her grew larger and larger.

Now, it had spread out so widely it nearly covered the surroundings, and that alone exuded an overwhelming pressure.

With every step, an entire city block trembled. The framework and cladding of buildings crushed under the ability wailed and shook violently.

"...Mom."

Someone unconsciously let those words slip, so dizzying was the sight.

A walking supernatural power plant. A one-person army. The Empire’s first striker who always leapt into any battlefield.

When one saw a person who carried all those titles appearing like that, it was impossible not to understand why.

"...You just looked at her and called her your wife. Don’t tell me you’re the Lionhearted’s husband?"

"Isn’t it obvious? That’s why, even now, could you just listen to me—"

"But."

The masked man who had posed the question spoke again, this time with triumph.

"Even if she’s the Lionhearted, she won’t be able to rescue you so easily."

"......"

As Aiden let out a sigh close to despair, another triumphant statement followed.

"This building has been reinforced and protected using every possible means. Even if a giant beast came, it wouldn’t be easy to bring it down."

From his voice, one could even hear pride. If he said that, then surely it wasn’t carelessly defended.

Well, these were people who had been pulling in all sorts of goods into the capital under the protection of a prince and the Minister of Administration. It wouldn’t be strange if all kinds of systems were set up at their base of operations.

However.

"That’s because it would be a giant beast."

Aiden continued to hold a skeptical stance on their claims.

And for good reason.

"That’s the Lionhearted, I said."

The events that followed clearly did not deviate from those words at all.

▣

In the original game, the combat power of a person named Noel Astrea Simus was always described as reaching the top tier of strength, no matter the time or environment she appeared in.

It was hard to call her the strongest outright in a world teeming with such monstrous beings that even daring to reach for the unrivaled top position seemed laughable—but it was equally undeniable that she was a monster respected no matter where she went.

And that also meant—

…at least in this current situation, there was clearly no way to properly stop her.

“Hey, what’s a woman doing coming here alone—Hiiiiiik—!”

One thug, who seemed ready to pick a fight, clammed up in terror.

The Imperial Capital’s black market was crawling with all kinds of vicious folks, but the moment they saw Noel walking slowly along the main street, not a single one dared approach her. Instead, they scattered and fled in panic.

If one thought back to how Katya had been treated when she came here before, this would seem like an astonishing sight—but just seeing the aura she radiated right now, anyone would likely react the same.

It was like facing a massive, clearly enraged beast. Even sensing a sliver of that feeling would be enough to paralyze someone.

And Noel’s gaze was locked on one of the tallest buildings in the Imperial Capital’s black market.

The place Katya had told her Aiden was being held.

“……”

Noel came to a stop.

And with just that, a loud boom—like a bomb going off—resounded through the surroundings.

“-Ha-”

As she regulated her breathing technique, her pure white qi clung to her vocal cords.

Anyone nearby would have heard it as though she were whispering to someone. But for those inside that tower, it would have sounded louder than a megaphone.

An exquisitely refined use of qi.

“-I don’t know who you people are.”

And when someone like her spoke with an edge so sharp it felt like her words could tear skin, it carried something beyond simple fear—something that stirred a deeper, more primal dread.

“I don’t know what your purpose is.”

The air rumbled. Just by speaking, she unleashed a pressure so lethal that the faint of heart could easily lose consciousness.

“But I do know who you have. Return my husband. And then—”

And with that—

“—I’ll let you live.”

Her words fell like a blade of frost.

“……”

“……”

The people inside the tower exchanged glances.

Then followed a swift exchange, hard to criticize for any lack of urgency.

“…Winning?”

“Absolutely impossible.”

“Then stall for time. Throw everything we’ve got at her.”

Honestly.

Considering the atmosphere Noel was exuding, the nerve shown in their response deserved some recognition.

The moment her ultimatum fell, instead of a reply, dozens of iron pillars flew straight toward her—that alone said enough.

Subjugation Pillars. They were the same tools used on Katya before. Items that weakened the supernatural abilities of those within a barrier.

Their effectiveness had already been proven by how they had suppressed the monstrous power Katya wielded.

The problem was—

The Empire’s strongest knight standing before them had that title for a reason.

-...

-...!!

The qi drifting near her body condensed into a single point in an instant.

And before the Subjugation Pillars could even begin resonating, the pure white qi that gathered around her took form, wrapping around the iron pillars.

Then, as if wringing something out, Noel clenched her fist. The pure white qi began spinning violently in response.

And at that very moment—

The treasures, refined multiple times by top shamans using sacred wood—

-!

Crunch.

Were crushed entirely, like snapping twigs.

“……”

“……”

…My god.

The people inside the tower gaped, mouths hanging open, staring at the scene.

They had poured in at least twice the amount they’d used during the ambush on Katya, and seeing it all neutralized in a flash, it was only natural to feel like they were losing their minds.

‘What kind of output does she even have…!’

Even if qi was generally easier to produce high output compared to other supernatural powers, doing something like that would still require physical force on the level of uprooting an entire small house.

And she did that—

Without any vow offered to the gods, without any elaborate movement?

“Tha-That’s f-freaking—”

“—Stop gawking and throw everything we have at her!”

“But these are all the items the client specifically requested…!”

“If we don’t make it out of here, we’re dead anyway. This isn’t the time to worry about cleanup!”

“We can’t even use them right away! We need time! We have to stop her from getting closer somehow…!”

The screams alone made it obvious just how monstrous her display had been. People who had kept their cool were suddenly thrown into chaos.

And as always—

People in chaos were prone to the worst decisions.

“Let’s use him. That guy’s her objective anyway, isn’t he?”

Someone pointed at Aiden and spoke.

“…No, no, wait. That’s seriously a terrible—!”

“Use him. Tell her if she gets closer, we’ll kill him!”

But before Aiden could even finish objecting, someone dragged him—still tied to a chair—over to the window.

“Come any closer and I swear I’ll slit this bastard’s throat—!”

But before that sentence could finish.

Noel’s eyes caught sight of Aiden, bloodied and a complete mess.

“……” 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Ah.

It was over.

Though she was far away, the moment Aiden saw the murderous intent fill Noel’s eyes, he instinctively thought it:

It looked like a crimson flame had flared to life—a vicious aura now burning in her gaze.

“Law.”

The Vow of the Guardian was softly murmured beneath her lips.

The pure white qi, which had already been radiating out around her, grew even stronger.

Then—

The entire landscape seemed to collapse in an instant.

Or at least, it looked that way.

It felt like the whole visible world had sunk downward, so overwhelming was the presence of the woman standing there.

Even those who weren’t directly targeted screamed and collapsed on the spot. Their legs had simply given out.

“I swear.”

And the moment those words ended—

The qi surrounding her condensed into a single point. The supernatural force that had felt like it was crushing the world gathered toward the sword at her side, creating a momentary vacuum.

“To bring fear upon my enemies.”

Then, she drew her sword. With a light movement, she scattered a strike through the air.

—The entire space warped.

“-Huh?”

Someone watching from inside the tower let out a dazed sound.

It must have been because their mind couldn’t catch up. Like they were still wondering, What is she doing?

One couldn’t really blame them.

What followed was beyond what any human should be capable of.

The next moment, the ceiling tilted.

Dust and debris trickled into the room.

Then—

“...Ah.”

As someone let out that dying breath of a word—

“Ah, ah, aaahhh—!”

People screamed and tumbled about. The whole room was tilting.

Only then did everyone finally understand what was happening.

—The entire tower—

Was twisting and collapsing.

A giant spire, the same one they had boasted about reinforcing with every possible defense just moments earlier.

With a single light swing from where she stood, as though slicing vegetables with a kitchen knife—

It had been neatly cleaved on a diagonal.

“……”

What kind of woman am I even engaged to?

That thought surfaced in Aiden’s mind just as chaos erupted all around.

Because it was a high-rise, people rolled and clawed to keep from falling out.

Grabbing onto window frames, steel beams, anything—everyone struggled to hold on.

-!

The person who had caused all of this flew toward them in a single bound.

Noel landed on the still-precariously tilted floor, and the faces of everyone nearby went pale.

To their eyes, it must have looked like the Grim Reaper herself had descended.

…Which, frankly, wouldn’t be that far off.

“-”

Noel, her eyes glowing with red flame, looked around and raised her sword again. The murderous aura swirling around her was enough to feel like one’s skin was being torn.

Everyone who saw her must have been reflecting on their lives, fully aware they had crossed the line.

“Lady Noel, Lady Noel! You can’t! You mustn’t kill them!”

Had someone not rushed in and desperately latched onto her, things would’ve ended there.

The moment Noel recognized the man clinging to her like a piggyback ride—Aiden, who had somehow freed himself—she flinched and turned toward him.

“…Mr. Aiden?”

“Please, just hold back a little! I’m seriously okay!”

“……”

The murderous aura instantly dissipated.

The red flame blazing in her eyes vanished without a trace.

In fact, contrasting her earlier terrifying demeanor, the color drained from her face.

The atmosphere immediately softened, as though she had become frail and delicate. Anyone watching might have thought she looked like a teenage girl witnessing her first love in a tragic state…

“…A-Are you alright?”

…Ah, the mysteries of married life.

That the same woman from earlier could become this—the transformation was enough to make the masked men feel like they were watching their life flash before their eyes.

“Ah, yeah, it’s just that the wounds are kind of serious.”

At those words, Noel’s gaze briefly swept across Aiden’s face.

His blood-soaked face was dripping onto his clothes, soaking through.

“……”

And once again, red flames surged in Noel’s eyes.

Seeing her reach for her sword again, Aiden clung to her with all his strength, horrified.

“I said I’m fine—!”

…It took several dozen minutes for Noel to finally calm down.