A tall, dark-haired woman wearing a dark countenance appeared from the shadows.
She then wordlessly stepped out and kneeled in front of Michael.
"Thank you, Alpha."
And at that moment, the Shadow Knight released a wave of pressure as its entire body tensed. Its ghastly red eyes underneath its helm flashed fervidly as it stared at this newcomer.
There was something within the Unity Clone that seemed to have garnered the ire of this soulless piece of Diva.
In the next instant, the Shadow Knight disappeared from everyone's sight.
Before anyone could react, he and Alpha reappeared in the center of the convoluted staircases, their fists crashing together and creating a thunderous collision that shattered the very ground they stood on.
This confrontation sent the entire castle trembling erratically.
"WHAT?!"
Platinum couldn't believe his eyes. This placid, taciturn woman was able to react and withstand the Grandmaster's Diva head on! Sure, it was only a small sliver of the true thing, but the fact that it even remained unharmed was a terrifying revelation.
Was this woman another Nascent Spirit cultivator?!
Where did she come from?!
Just then, the two reticent figures disappeared and reappeared up in the air, with the Knight having performed an uppercut while Alpha defended with her hands.
Before the booming tremble of their clash reached Michael and Platinum, the two disappeared again and reappeared in another spot, having engaged in an equal brawl.
This happened multiple more times in the span of a second, each one ending up in a neutral position where neither was winning or losing.
This was even more surprising to Platinum. The Shadow Knight was the Grandmaster's Diva. It inherited his unbeatable fighting style, albeit a little bit more basic.
Yet, Alpha was fighting with it head on, giving no ground against the shadow Diva.
With a final clash, the two separated, each with their backs against the wall.
The Shadow Knight looked down on the ground, seeing its own shadow elongated along the spiraling staircase.
With its hand, it reached down into its own shadow and grabbed it from the ground, turning it corporeal.
His shadow morphed into the shape of an Estoc, a two-handed edgeless sword with a pointed tip.
With this new weapon in hand, the Shadow Knight lunged at Alpha, blurring and leaving no trace of itself behind.
The Unity Clone tried to move, but found its feet fettered by its own shadow. Unbeknownst to her, the Shadow Knight had used its Aubility Power!
With her feet tied, Alpha bent her back, with the Estoc barely grazing past her head.
The Shadow Clone returned to its position, having readied another thrust.
But just as it was about to lunge forwards, it suddenly lurched forwards, its armored face falling head-first into the ground!
It immediately looked to its feet, seeing a similar shadow manacle binding its feet to the ground.
"WHAT?! THAT'S GRANDMASTER'S AUBILITY POWER!"
Platinum was shellshocked to see Alpha using the same techniques as the Shadow Diva.
How could this unknown woman suddenly manifest the same power as the Grandmaster? This was no coincidence! After all, this was the first time that Alpha had shown any type of Aubility Power at all!
Before Platinum could get answers to his question, and before the Shadow Diva unfettered itself from the manacles, Alpha extended her hand and grabbed at seemingly nothing in the air.
And at that moment, the Drone shimmered into existence, its [Invisibility] dropped and its shadow now forming on the ground.
Alpha wrenched the Drone's shadow, holding its corporeal form in her hands.
With a single command, the amorphous gaseous shadow began to condense and form into an object that fit squarely in her hand.
To Platinum and the Shadow Diva's piercing red eyes, this object was completely unknown.
But anyone from the modern world would know it immediately.
It was a handgun.
A prismatic light emanated out of the handgun's barrel, before a beam of Unity shot out and hit the Shadow Diva's helm, perfectly squeezing its way through the slits in its helm.
The Shadow Diva staggered for a second, before its shadowy figure became even more fuzzy than before.
Stygian, gaseous mist flowed out of the Knight's body, its corporeal form starting to become translucent as it lost its energy.
Right before Platinum's eyes, the Shadow Knight Diva that he'd been so proud of, suddenly dissipated into nothingness.
The oppressing aura of a Nascent Spirit cultivator diminished, finally allowing Michael to breathe a sigh of relief.
Alpha, having done its job, turned back towards Michael and curtsied.
Without another word, she descended back into the shadows.
"Wha…. wha…"
Speechless, Platinum felt his whole world turning upside down. All the energy, excitement, and vigor inside him drained out with the blood.
He fell back on the ground, his face as pale as a ghost.
Michael suddenly appeared from the corner of Platinum's disappearing vision.
"Thanks for the info."
Those were the last words Platinum heard before a Unity Saber pierced through his skull, ending the fight.
Michael, having survived an encounter with a Nascent Spirit Diva, plopped into the ground, with his limbs sprawled.
Then, he heard the sound of footfalls echoing in the room.
He turned his head, seeing Katarina standing there with an awed look at her face.
…
…
…
Katarina took in everything in sight.
She saw Platinum's dead, the hole in his skull still smoking as part of his brain turned mush.
Then, her eyes gazed at the golden pendant on the ground, with the pieces of shattered midnight gem still spread everywhere.
She knew what had happened.
Platinum had died, even as a Nascent Spirit Diva protected him from harm.
Then, she looked towards Michael, who was hurt, but looked largely unaffected by the whole ordeal.
She didn't have to be a genius to figure out what happened. In fact, she'd have to be a dunce not to connect the pieces.
But she just couldn't comprehend it.
How could Keo have defeated a half-step 9th stage Body Formation Maugnetic and a Nascent Spirit Diva at the same time?!