The Vixen's Gambit: Tonight We Hunt

The 4th Herrscher was way tougher than Lee expected. She could control the air, attacking nonstop from every angle. Even with the powerful Seven Thunders of Retribution, Lee couldn't block everything.

So, she ditched defense and went all-out offense, trading blows like a berserker.

Luckily, the Herrscher's defense wasn't as good as her offense. Lee tanked the wind blades like a champ, finally slicing off the Herrscher's head with her Divine Key.

Since Lee wasn't blocking, she was pretty messed up, covered in cuts like she'd been through a meat grinder. She was basically a walking blood fountain.

But thanks to the Divine Key and her healing, it wasn't life-threatening. It looked bad, but she'd be fine in no time.

Still, this was a perfect chance to fleece some energy, so Lee dramatically collapsed and played dead.

…

Kevin finally dropped from the sky long after the planned start time.

He'd been itching to join the fight, but the higher-ups insisted he wait for the perfect moment to strike. They wanted him to be the finisher, swooping in when the Herrscher was distracted.

Kevin knew it made sense, but the wait was agonizing. He couldn't even see what was happening below, and Lee had told him to follow orders, so he just stewed in frustration.

When the order finally came, he bolted from the ship without hesitation, diving towards the ground like a missile.

Lee's super strong; she wrecked the last three Herrschers no problem. This time she's just holding the line, so she'll be fine… He tried to reassure himself, but a nagging worry gnawed at him. The closer he got, the more the wrecked city freaked him out.

And then he saw her, lying in a pool of blood.

"Lee?!"

He wanted to rush to her side, but didn't want to hurt her with debris, so he landed further away and sprinted over.

The closer he got, the worse it looked.

Her usually perfect white hair was now a matted, bloody mess. Cuts covered her body; it was obvious where all the blood came from. But the bleeding seemed to have stopped… or had she already bled out?

It's my fault. If I'd gotten here sooner—!

"Lee, can you hear me…?" His hands trembled as he reached for her, afraid to touch her wounds. He whispered her name, praying she was still alive.

"Kevin…?"

His call seemed to work. Lee weakly opened one eye, looking at him. "You're… so late…"

"?! – I, I'm sorry, Lee, I…"

Her words choked him. He wanted to say something, anything, but nothing came out.

She's right. It's my fault. If I hadn't been so late, she wouldn't be like this…

Was all he could do now watch her die?

"Medics, right, I'll call them—" He frantically searched for his communicator. She was still conscious; if they got her treatment…

But Lee grabbed his arm, her voice barely a whisper. "Kevin… next time, be faster… or else… I'll… I'll just have to… beat the Herrscher… all by myself… again~"

"I – huh?"

Kevin stared blankly as Lee suddenly jumped up, sounding perfectly fine. He was still kneeling beside her, tears welling in his eyes.

"Lee, you're… okay?"

"Of course, no Herrscher's taken me down yet." Lee patted her blood-soaked hair, deciding she needed a shower ASAP. "Just messing with you…"

Seeing Kevin's teary eyes, she felt a little bad. "Sorry, maybe that was a bit much."

Didn't I pull this on Otto once? Years ago… or was it in the future?

The timeline's so messed up; it's hard to keep track~

"Doesn't matter, Lee, you're okay!" Kevin stood up, rushing to her side. "But the blood, the wounds…"

"Ah, it's fine. They'll heal." Lee glanced at the cuts on her arm. They were already closing. Right after the fight, it had been way worse.

"The fight's over. Call the cleanup crew for the Herrscher core and body. Oh, and Kevin, I found a fun kid here. He reminds me of you~"

Lee stretched, heading towards the edge of the battlefield. She needed to dig Kosma out of the basement and find somewhere to wash up and change. Her combat suit was ripped to shreds… she wasn't about to give out free fan service.

This fight was rough, but the payoff was great. Kosma's goodwill is at level seven, and I got 800,000 energy from Kevin. Totally worth it.

As Lee tallied her gains, Kevin's serious voice came from behind her. "Lee… I'll never be late again."

"…Then you better work hard." Lee stopped, turning back to Kevin with a smile. "My hero~"