Chapter 40: Maiden Of Blossoms
Sayuri Kinako, the Maiden Of Blossoms. An S rank hero who was commonly known for being the first Hero in mind when Dignitas thought about a certain country in the west from his old world.
That country was well known for having a certain period of time in the year when a plant known as the cherry tree begins to blossom and the leaves turn pink.
These leaves would fall off the trees after a short period of time, and as such many people would head out to watch the process unfold.
Sayuri Kinako was modeled that way.
Just as the Sakura Trees put up a beautiful sight for a short moment, The Maiden Of Blossoms would end her battles in an instant, and as elegantly as possible.
The very concept of elegance was created by Sayuri, and as such, she was the pioneer of many martial arts that revolved around the sword.
Among those many battle styles, one stood out, particularly for its elegance.
This was the Art Of The Sakura Dragon, a martial art that Sayuri herself created.
"Tell me, demon. Are you elegant enough to survive the full strength of the sakura blossoms?"
"What now?"
"You will know soon."
In an instant, Sayuri disappeared from her spot. Kano quickly braced himself for an attack by conjuring a shield around him, but it never came.
"Did she attack, or did she really retreat?"
Kano could not feel a single trace of Sayuri's mana signature. It was as if she had completely disappeared.
"Shit, she's still her–"
That momentary slip in Kano's guard was exploited by Sayuri, and a single click was heard.
"I'm… unhurt?"
At first, it would look as if Kano had not been hit.
But if one were to look at the battle from another point of view, one could see that Sayuri had merely lifted her sword out of her sheath slightly.
That was all she needed for an invisible force to slice through Kano's chest, and blood spurted out.
"Not enough." Sayuri cursed.
Her timing was perfect. The only problem was that Kano had far too much of a strong body that she could not cut through.
Instead, a deep but not fatal wound was left on the demon's chest.
Sayuri reappeared behind Kano once again, this time unsheathing her blade a little wider. However, Kano was prepared for it this time. He merely jumped back into a portal and appeared a dozen meters away.
"That move… I didn't even see the sword move from its sheath, and yet I was damaged this much?"
This was the Art Of The Sakura Dragon. It focused on winning one's battles through a single move, or rather, slash. Although the martial art itself believed that one cut was enough to kill someone, there were more deadly moves that Sayuri could access as the creator of said martial art.
"I need to be wary of her. The moment I let my guard down, I'll lose my head!"
Kano focused his Ashra into his fingers and fired multiple high-energy spatial beams at Sayuri. The beams were faster than a speeding bullet, and yet were no match for Sayuri, who disappeared into the air the moment they were fired.
Kano immediately went into defensive mode, enshrouding himself with Spatial magic. The result? Multiple fluctuations in space that followed him around and that would immediately send away any attacks that targeted him.
"Shoot!"
This was also futile, however. Kano felt something cut through his spatial armor and tilted his head to dodge. His reflexes were no match for the beam of sakura petals that were fired from the edge of Sayuri's sword.
*woosh*
"GAAA!"
Like a dancing fountain, blood began pouring out of his face, spilling onto the desert sand below.
"Where is she–my eye?!"
Still somehow conscious, Kano turned his head to anticipate Sayuri's next movements, but was shocked to find that half of his vision was gone!
The beam of sakura petals had fired straight through his eye, leaving nothing but a gaping hole!
"Your "victory" against Cendria Macador must've been a fluke, demon. I do not recall the Strongest Hero ever losing to someone of below-average reflexes."
"You… if I was only in my mana-home…"
That was when Sayuri pieced it together. The reason why Cendria lost, the reason why this demon boasted of his strength.
Was it dumb or something? Anyone the least bit knowledgeable about mana would know the anomaly known as mana-home.
Basically, it was the place where a certain mana type reigned.
"I see… if Cendria really did take you to space, then I can see how she would've lost."
"Putting herself in danger just so she can keep you away long enough… that sounds just like her."
Just as how the Spatial mana was its strongest in outer space, Water mana was the same when near a large body of water.
This was because the caster did not have to take in mana from the air and instead do so from a more sustainable body of that particular mana.
But now that Kano was in a land populated by Earth-type affinities, his power was greatly weakened.
"No matter. Now that I know that you had a huge advantage against Cendria, I am now assured of your defeat in this battle."
Uttering no further words, Cendria instantly disappeared.
It was then that Kano's danger senses went crazy. An attack of unparalleled strength was coming directly towards him.
He raised his hand in response and manifested the most durable shield he could in that short amount of time. Three, four translucent wall-like barriers stretched out in front of him.
But unfortunately for him, these were nothing compared to the sheer power of the attack aimed at him.
It was subtle, but Kano felt as if the world itself had changed. A vision of an island in the middle of a golden lake, with a large, sakura tree in the middle of it.
The tree's petals seemed to slide off its branches endlessly. No matter how many fell, the tree still sustained its beautiful pink color.
With a stunned expression, Kano stood there, unmoving. Unbeknownst to him, the world really had changed.
From an endless dispatch of sand stretching on for god-knows-how-long to breathtaking scenery of endlessly falling sakura blossoms.
"What…"
"Welcome. Did the cherry blossoms scare you? Don't worry, they don't bite."
Kano turned his head and spotted Sayuri sitting on top of the highest branch of the sakura tree.
Her body was stretched out as if she was sleeping, causing the kimono she was wearing to slightly reveal a portion of her luscious body.
"This place…" Kano murmured, still aghast.
"Oh, this? Did your Majesty not tell you of Mana Expansion?"
As she said this, a single sakura blossom fell onto the tip of her finger.
"That's okay."
"I'll just have you experience the sheer elegance of the Sakura."
"But don't blink, lest you miss the moment my sword pierces your heart."
Sayuri raised her sword as if she charging an attack. Kano steadily applied more mana to his shields and braced for it. However, Sayuri did not move.
*snap*
She snapped her fingers, and the sound echoed throughout the entire domain. A single snap, and yet everything could hear it.
And at that very same moment, Kano felt a sharp pain emanating throughout his entire body.
"And…die elegantly." Sayuri snapped her fingers once again.
*purrsssh*
"Wai–" Kano raised his hands, possibly in an attempt to surrender, but it was too late.
Blood burst out from all of his pores. His entire body was drained of its insides and flung outside.
"Are these… petals?"
Kano looked at his bloodied body and noticed thousands of sakura petals floating out.
"Precisely!"
Those were the last words Kano heard before he succumbed to his injuries and began to pass out.
Until he didn't.
His falling body was stopped by something holding onto it. Somebody was preventing him from falling to the ground. With the last of his strength, Kano turned his head.
The pressure was unlike any other. It exceeded Sayuri's and Cendria's by many degrees, and then some more.
Twelve figures stood. Their bodies were oddly humanoid, and their appearances of flesh.
But Kano knew. Just from the Ashra they carried, he knew who they were.
The Twelve Generals Of Hell, and that person's most trusted attendants!
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Lorelliad
Lorelliad Chapters for this week will be every two days, save for Saturday and Sunday. Got stuff to do at school and I don't want the stockpile to get eaten through quickly.
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