But even so, it didn't mean she would agree to her foolish sister doing whatever she pleased.
Hmph... she's not taking my previous words seriously, it seems she hasn't been bullied enough before...
"Gulp?!"
Ying's body suddenly trembled, and a chill surged through her heart.
Before she could even think, several slashes suddenly attacked. Ying had no choice but to follow her previous plan, covering herself and her sword with the elements of Geo and Electro, and retaliating with elemental slashes of equal power, nullifying the mechanism's attack.
This action, in turn, stunned Gongzi once again.
"She could have dodged, but she chose to expend more energy trying to block. Doesn't that seem like a disadvantage no matter how you look at it?"
Lumine, standing nearby, shook her head.
"No, if you only dodge, the initiative will always remain with the opponent. When facing an opponent stronger than yourself, merely dodging only delays the inevitable defeat. To win, you either need to catch them off guard or concentrate your strength and find the flaws they inadvertently reveal."
After listening to Lumine's explanation, Gongzi nodded in agreement.
"Indeed, but the possibility of that is very slim. After all, if you confront the opponent head-on, for the weaker party, it's no different than cutting off one's own arm. It would be better to keep dodging, wear down the opponent's patience, and wait for them to reveal an opening."
Then, Gongzi added.
"Of course, while that's the logic, if it were me, I would choose the method you mentioned. After all, opportunities to fight someone stronger than me are not so easy to come by."
Lumine shot a glance at the battle-hungry individual and continued to watch Ying's performance inside the room.
Meanwhile, Ying, within the energy shield, couldn't help but reveal a triumphant smile as her plan was successfully executed. She then began to ponder her own strange reaction just now.
"Hmm... strange, I was clearly prepared, so why did I still feel scared?"
Could it be that she had lingering trauma from being defeated by the Electro Archon?
No, no, she had already reviewed it. While she was indeed powerful, it shouldn't be to the point where seeing an attack would make her instinctively tremble. That terrifying chill, she had only ever felt it when Lumine bullied her...
Uh... wait, being bullied by Lumine...
Ying's body suddenly trembled as she looked at Lumine outside the energy shield. Although Lumine had a smile on her face, Ying could still sense the dissatisfaction deep within her.
Shit! I forgot Lumine doesn't like it when I do whatever I want! Aaaaah! (≧﹏≦)
Distracted for a moment, Ying didn't notice the warning that had appeared at her feet. Completely unprepared, she was hit by the subsequent energy slash in the chest and sent flying backward, crashing heavily to the ground.
"Ying?!"
Gongzi: "Oh no?!"
Lumine gasped in surprise, quickly stood up, and was the first to run to the energy shield, looking anxiously at Ying, who was motionless on the ground.
"Oh?"
Yae Miko waved her hand and deactivated the mechanism, not having expected the cute girl to suddenly freeze in place. However, seeing that Ying wasn't seriously injured, she didn't rush over but instead smiled at Lumine, who was the first to reach Ying.
"Hehehe... As expected, when someone you care about gets hurt, you unconsciously lose your ability to observe calmly~"
Seeing the energy shield disappear, Lumine immediately ran to Ying's side, pulled her into her arms, and anxiously checked her condition.
"Ying?! Ying, are you okay?!"
Shaken by Lumine, Ying groggily opened her eyes, painfully rubbing the spot where she had been hit.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch... N-no... it's fine... I just got distracted for a moment."
Lumine angrily punched Ying on the chest, though without any force.
"Idiot! How can I not worry when you're like this?!"
"Cough, cough... Sorry, sorry, it was just an accident."
Ying quickly brushed it off with a flimsy excuse, not daring to admit that she had been hit because she was thinking about being bullied by Lumine.
If she said that, she'd be mortally embarrassed on the spot!
"Hmph..."
Lumine pouted, clearly dissatisfied with Ying's explanation.
Just then, Gongzi, who had caught up, widened his eyes in disbelief upon seeing Ying chatting with the Honorary Knight as if nothing had happened. He asked incredulously,
"No, Ying, weren't you just hit by those slashes? How are you acting like nothing's wrong?"
Hearing this, Paimon, who had just flown over, also asked curiously,
"Yeah, Gongzi almost choked when he used his weapon to block. Why did you only faint for a moment and feel a little pain?"
"Ah... that's because..."
Ying wanted to explain about elemental powers to them, but it seemed too troublesome. She had already told Lumine, so she vaguely fumbled her way through.
"That's because I have a trump card~"
"A trump card?"
Gongzi and Paimon wore identical confused expressions.
Lumine, however, had already realized. Her gaze fixed on the layer of elemental power on Ying's body. She couldn't help but reach out and touch the spot where Ying had been injured.
Indeed, there was no wound... Was this that change she mentioned? It could strengthen her to this extent. She truly is my sister...
"Uh... Lumine, are you done touching?"
Ying asked shyly. Although she knew Lumine was checking for injuries, it was still in front of so many people, and it was impossible not to feel embarrassed.
Seeing Ying's demure expression, a spark of mischief ignited in Lumine's heart, and she couldn't resist kissing her cheek.
"Mmph?! Σ(|||▽|||)"
Ying was startled and quickly struggled out of Lumine's embrace, standing up. Seeing that Lumine didn't stop her or make any further move, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"Phew..."
That scared me so much. I almost thought Lumine's concern would make her lose control of her rationality...
Well... she did lose some control, but not completely...
With that thought, Ying waved at Gongzi and the others, who had witnessed what happened and were wearing knowing smiles.
"Alright, alright, since I'm fine, let's get out of here. I still have training to do."
She then turned to Lumine, who had just stood up, approached her, and whispered in her ear,
"Cough, cough... Um, could you please wait until there are no people around next time you kiss me..."
Lumine smiled, pinched Ying's cheek, and replied with a mischievous grin,
"Okay, but as punishment for your distraction just now, it won't just be a kiss on the cheek then~"
Ying: ...........
Damn it! (t^t)