During the decapitation, Viers had tried to wrest Anne’s soul out. This was Viers’ clearest way of determining if someone was really dead or not. If he could take their soul out, it meant he’d won. However, this time he could not. Not only was it still firmly rooted, but it also scalded Viers’ own soul when he was trying to do so.

Phoenix's forte of resurrection was well known even to those without a doctorate in monsterology like Viers. It wasn't surprising if Anne could rise again from the ashes. Aravin was the one that Viers didn't account for possessing a second life.

That was why he kept some trump cards back.

“You called me Mary Sue. What does it mean?” Anne asked.

“A flawless woman who can do anything and have everything. She sits at the peak of society with legions of adorers. She achieves this with little to no effort at all,” Viers said.

“Do you think I reached this far without struggle or hardships?” She hid it well but there was a hint of irk. Viers had ruffled her feathers. “Is this why you hate me?”

Left foot forward, knees bent slightly, black sword pointing forward at eye-level. This was Viers’ basic sword stance.

“Our fight will determine the truth. Shih!”

Viers closed the distance with a dash. Anne jumped above his head to evade and counter.

“Phoenix Down!”

Viers rolled to the side, away from her downward blaze.

Sacrilege! That’s not how Phoenix Down works! It is a resurrection item!

Anne’s answer to Viers’ sword was her own sword. It was magical in nature, a high-quality fire-based item, but Anguish was the greater weapon.

As Paina completed the Combat Overture buff and went on applying another strengthening, Viers started to pressure Anne. Each time their swords clashed, chilling frost energy would be transmitted to Anne. The hand that gripped her sword started to show signs of frostbite.

“Burning Palm Strike!”

She let Viers’ sword tip graze her cheek before switching her sword hand and striking out with the chilled hand before it got any worse.

“Khh…” Viers grunted while unsteadily stepping backward, only to stop after hitting a headless Xerg with his back.

The battlefield was riddled with corpses. With the crystals on both sides destroyed, the armies were rendered inert.

“RAAAAAAA!”

“TANAEEEL!”

“Valiant Charge!”

Khalmar, Max, and Eugene joined the fray despite their injuries.

“Guys, stop!”

Anne’s plea was too late. Viers invoked Blithe Lich Robe’s ability: Heartstopper Aura!

The three were sent flying back by Viers. The aura made all beings within a thirty meter radius receive damage. It was soul-based, therefore the penalty from Moonlight Sonata Funeral earlier made it worse for the already injured trio. Viers didn't want to kill Eugene the Squire. Boram survived until Stage 5 because Eugene lent a hand. Viers even gave some benefits to Squire during Stage 3, but since he chose to fight, Viers wouldn't hesitate.

“This is?!”

“Damnit!”

The three realized their predicament but before they got the chance to act, someone else did.

“Phoenix Saving Grace.”

Anne emitted an aura that warmed their souls, a stark contrast to Viers’ sinister aura. The two opposing auras canceled themselves out.

“Nice! Now we can fight-”

Anne interrupted Max. “Everyone, please leave the trial immediately.”

“What are you- Mm!?”

Khalmar saw a patch of ice on Anne’s cheek.

“My first aid can only prevent this from worsening. A single graze from Tanael’s sword is very likely to be a death sentence for you three.”

“NO! I won't leave you!”

Eugene put a hand on Max’s shoulder. “Ivory Flame, I know how you feel but if we stay, it would only further burden Anne…”

Max bit his lip until it bled.

“...I understand,” he obeyed.

“Thank you, Squire,” Anne gave a look of gratitude.

“May fortune be with you,” Squire said.

“...Give ‘im hell,” Khalmar nodded.

“Lady Anne, I’ll be waiting on the outside. Defeat him! You can definitely do it!”

Max left first, followed by the other two.

“Finished saying your goodbyes?”

Normally, Viers would have attacked instead of waiting for the cutscenes to play out, but with Anne being vigilant, it would be a waste of effort. He used the time to heal up the damage from the palm strike earlier instead.

“Then take this!”

Viers let loose a triple slash of frost energy from afar while he closed the gap between them. Anne knew close range combat was unfavorable to her, so she tried to keep him away, but Viers brute-forced his way through.

The auras on both people hadn’t stopped. This was another way for Viers to deal with Anne. Keeping them up was not without cost, it used Victa. While Anne was killing Aberrants in the front lines to make up for their gap from the lack of resources and soldiery, Viers had been piling up his Victa for the past six months.

Viers reckoned he had the upper hand in Victa right now. If Anne ran out of Victa before he did, he won. He knew it and so did Anne.

Anguish, the soul and ice enchanted sword, was a very good match against Anne. From the first wound on her cheek, there were many more patches of ice on her body now. Her breath started to quicken.

“...What an ominous sword. How many souls are inside, Tanael?”

“Not much.”

Viers dared to say that two million human souls were ‘not much’.

Anne grimaced from Viers’ lie. “I feel Troy from that sword.”

How Anne -who was not a soul Pathseeker- could sense that, was what Viers dubbed as bollocks.

“Their souls are not toys!”

Anne shouted and her aura Arte changed. Phoenix Saving Grace’s surge of power overwhelmed Viers’ Heartstopper Aura. Anne’s aura was not for attacking, so it didn't harm Viers, but it did something else.

A soul came out from Anguish: Troy’s. Viers’ eyes widened in surprise.

“Evil always loses,” said Troy with a smirk before disappearing.

Somehow, Anne pulled Troy’s soul out from the sword’s confines.

That takes great mastery in soul arts to pull off. As expected of Mary Sue. She became a soul expert in an instant!

“More evidence of you being a Mary Sue,” Viers said.

“You saw the result. I have been preparing countermeasures against you for months, just like you did. A person’s effort is invisible.”

Viers replied to Anne's jab. “I’ll leave it at that. Now that we’re on topic, how many people have you killed?”

“...It is not nice to kill.”

“So none… or very few. Only those who deserve it, no doubt. I expected as much. How nice of you to stay clean, eh!?”

Viers attacked with a flurry of high and low slashes. Anne was unable to defend against them all.

“By walking the thornier path! Not taking the easy way like you!” Anne’s leg sweep sent Viers to the ground.

Anne’s sword tip was going straight at his chest before it went off. Viers swept Anne’s feet too and the position was reserved.

This is it!

The opening was here. Viers met the fireball Anne shot at his face without compromising his own downward stab towards Anne’s heart.

Anne sacrificed her left arm, putting it in Anguish’s path before her heart was pierced. With a pained scream, she pushed Viers’ away.

Her wound is heavy. If I keep go… What?!

The wound on her arm was bleeding greatly but the deadliest effect was the chill energy from the strike. It was something that even troubled Viers who had a healing factor. It also proved effective to Anne.

But no more.

Not only did the necrosis from the frost not happen, the wound on Anne’s arm was healing rapidly. The patches of ice on Anne’s skin from the earlier attacks also receded. Viers’ Euryale Sight saw the flow of energy. The frost was healing Anne instead!

Anne’s shock was greater than Viers’. She looked at her own arm with confusion.

“...Your mother is a Phoenix, right? Who is your father?”

To Viers’ unexpected question, Anne replied honestly.

“I don’t know.”

Hmph! Immune to fire and can absorb ice. She has a fire phoenix for a mother, so her father could be a frost dragon. Hell, her grandparents might be other exotic beings for all I know. This is just like Kurosaki Ichigo’s parentage: part Human, part Shinigami, part Quincy, part Hollow. Entirely possible!

He forged the ice blade specifically for fighting Anne. To think she could be immune to frost when the necessity demanded it, made Viers quite vexed.

“Another point to you being a Mary Sue,” Viers said in annoyance. “Hm?”

Anne’s Phoenix Saving Grace was getting stronger. The souls bound to Anguish were seeping out! One or one hundred every few seconds. Viers’ aura was already at the max. It minimized the release of the souls, but only slightly, a hundred could still leak out.

Viers was on the clock!

The air around Viers changed. He hoped to be able to drain Anne’s Victa by prolonging the fight but this was no longer possible. If he lost here, he would suffer great consequences. He didn't forget his sacrifice to Aletro.

Anne picked up Viers’ seriousness and replied in kind. He was not an opponent she could win by taking it easy.

“...I didn't want to use this, but you gave me no choice.”

Anne traded her sword with a red feather fan. It was the divine item from Stage 2’s fire world, Phoenix Plume Fan. Last time she was only using it as a medium to boost her power but Anne wielded it in her hand this time.

Viers felt her power increase. The temperature rose as if she was a human-shaped volcano.

Based on her reluctance to use it, there might be a downside to using it. Or maybe not. Hard to tell with a Mary Sue.

The ice sword was no longer effective, so Viers stowed it away. From the Thousand Treasures Casket Viers pulled out the Spear of Leonidas. No matter what her elemental affinities were, Viers could still stab her heart or brain to win.

Anne’s opening act with the new weapon was a wave of blazing hot fire created by a swing of her fan.

Viers ran as if a flaming reaper was behind him.

Evading, dodging, defending, Viers reduced the damage done to him as much as possible, seeking an opening. Anne’s attacks were not crude clumps of fires but an art of flames. She favored the type that created firebirds to attack.

Viers patiently waited for his chance. Fortunately, the souls inside Anguish no longer leaked out from the storage item. Even then Viers’ burn damage was accumulating. Her fire was of a much higher quality than before. Viers would be a fool to jump right in without a plan.

Viers' broken spear had no special features. Any ability it once had was lost from the wear and tear of battle, very different from Anne’s fan. However, it remained very sturdy and sharp, capable of piercing most enchanted armors or magical shields. That was why Viers counted it as one of his secret weapons. Sadly, that advantage in simplicity didn't play much of a role in the current battle.

At this stage, Viers’ six months of planning bore fruit.

Anne didn't continue this method of attack for too long.

If she continued, it might be able to render Viers powerless from afar. Viers’ ranged repertoire was subpar.

But she didn't continue.

Her Victa tank!

So had Viers guessed. She could grind Viers down with attrition otherwise.

With all-encompassing AoEs reduced in frequency, Viers had opportunities to exploit, bringing the fight to a melee.

Bending the laws of physics, the feather fan of Anne could block the slashes and stabs from the Spear of Leonidas without breaking in any way. The tip of the feathers were also capable of cutting. Viers’ Blithe Lich Robe that was capable of withstanding metal was cut like scissors on paper.

There was a weapon called tessen in Japan, which meant iron fan. Anne used her Phoenix Feather Fan like that.

Next card!

Viers braved the cone of fire from Anne with his soul shield at full power.

“Caught you–!”

Viers grabbed her hand, making direct contact. The burned, smiling face of Viers that Anne saw blurred and a whole different world appeared before her.

This is?

Anne found herself somewhere else. She was in a vast desert. There was sand as far as the eye could see.

And a woman with the lower body of a snake in front of her.

“You're really strong. Might be greater than me if we were on the same Level,” Clarissa assessed.

“And you are?” Anne asked.

“Apologies. He said no talking. I am your enemy. This is enough introduction. Ready yourself. Blazing Snake’s World Immolation!”

Clarissa turned the desert into a sea of fire and it swallowed Anne whole.