Alnea urged the Aspects within him, long bubbling with restlessness, clamouring to protect him at all costs, to surge out of his body, and wrap around his sword. And his legs, of course. He did not understand how he could step on the dark, empty void of the world, or how he even moved in a place devoid of any concepts except Red and Black, but that did not stop him from rushing towards his red robed self or slashing his sword at the latter.

  Yet, he was not alone in his eagerness to get rid of his other self. The red robed Alnea was doing the same. And that too, with the same moves. Even the sword and Aspects that he used were the same as his. The only difference between them was that of shade. The red robed Alnea’s Aspects carried an extra red hue, while his had an extra edge of black. It looked like it was not just his memories that had been split apart. Even his Aspects…

  Slashing through the unnecessary thoughts, Alnea swung his sword, shining in a red light with a black edge, at the red robed Alnea, only for the latter to meet his sword with his own, shining in black and red lights, creating a shockwave that sent both of them tumbling back by about five to ten metres. Ungrateful bastard. Using the powers of the Origin Sea against the same man who made it possible for him to wield those powers…

  Allowing the robe on his body, with its borders glowing in a golden light, to absorb the impact from the shockwave created by their clash, Alnea reoriented himself in the void, and rushed towards the red robed Alnea once again, leaving another streak of red and black lights on his path. Even the lightning he summoned was flickering in the shade of red and black.

  Then again, Red and Black were the only two shades that could exist in the world around him. That was the Rule. Primitive Golden Lightning of Life, on the other hand, was just a type of lightning intertwined with the Mysteries and Concepts of Lightning and Life. Of course, it would have to bend to the Rules of the Origin Sea. That would also explain why the red robed Alnea had a similar red and black lightning flickering around him. Truly an ungrateful bastard. He was even beginning to steal his Concepts.

  “Stealing?” the red robed Alnea said, just as their swords clashed with each other, creating another wave of shock, that spread through the world of Red and Black like ripples on water, pushing both the Alnea back by more than ten metres. Reorienting himself, the red robed Alnea turned back towards his black robed counterpart, and added, “Hardly. After all, what is yours is mine.”

  “Shut up!” Alnea said, allowing his Aspects to rage, as he rushed towards his red robed self once again. This time, even wrapping his Concept around his sword. But the end result was the same. Maybe a little more devasting, with the ripples from their clash being three to four times more intense, but the result was the same. In the end, both of them were sent back flying from the clash once again.

  What was even more infuriating was that just like thorns on his robe, the thorns on his other self’s robe were also glowing, protecting him from the shockwaves. Or any damage for that matter. Truly a bastard. He even stole the robe given to him by his master.

  “She is my master too, you know.”

  “Shut up!” Alnea roared, and rushed towards his other self once again, sill wielding his sword like a Blade of Slaughter. He would not, could not tolerate anything trying to steal the people he loved from him. Even if the one stealing was a part of himself.

  “So, you agree that I am a part of you?”

  “I agree to kick your face,” Alnea cursed, but slashed his sword instead. He was angry, not stupid. Only fools would risk losing their legs just to satisfy their vanity. Unless his red robed counterpart was selfless enough to stretch out his face, which clearly, he was not. The man was selfish through and through. Maybe even more so than him.

  “I would beg to differ,” the red robed Alnea said, as the two Alnea clashed once again. “I am not even half as selfish as you.”

  “…Then why don’t you just let me slash you?” Alnea said, reorienting himself, before rushing towards his red robed self once again, only to be pushed back once again.

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  “Because I still want to live,” the red robed Alnea said, changing from lighting to the winds, matching perfectly with the black robed Alnea’s moves. “And because I am stronger than you.”

  “You wish!” Alnea said through his gritted teeth, before Streaming through the Red and Black, clashing with his red robed self, creating another wave of ripples. “The sword you are using is mine. The moves you are using are mine. Even the Aspects and Concepts you are using are mine. And you think that you are stronger than me?”

  “…It is precisely because everything that I am using is yours, that I am stronger than you.”

  “Are you trying to kill me with your jokes?”

  “Jokes? Why would I need jokes to kill you, when my sword can do the job?”

  “You mean my sword!”

  “It is the same thing. Besides you do not even know how to wield your sword, how to listen to its voice, and guide its edge. And you dare call yourself a swordsman?”

  “…I never called myself a swordsman, and I know my sword well enough to cut off your head.”

  “Stop living in your delusions. You…”

  Unwilling to give in, the two Alnea kept clashing, creating one wave of shocks after another, each more intense than the ones before. It did not matter if they could not hurt each other. From the moment they began fighting, they both knew what kind of battle they were getting into. A long, tough battle, that would end only with one of them getting exhausted or revealing his flaws. But that would take a long, long time. Time that they did not have.

  Thus, the two Alnea could only try to rattle each other each time they clashed, hoping for the other to make mistakes. Neither did. There were not many places they could make mistakes to being with. After all, theirs was a battle of pure strength and speed. There were no fancy moves, no techniques, just pure, raw strength. Of their Aspects and Concepts, of course. Not their own.

  After his battle with the Heterodox Wanderers, Alnea had lost most of his Blood Crystals, losing most of his brute strength. And it was bound to reflect on his other self too. Only when they borrowed strength from their Aspects and Concepts, could they land blows devastating enough to send shockwaves through the world of Red and Black. But not enough to get past the defences of their robe.

  Then again, it was not as if they could use their techniques and superior moves to break through, or even fool each other’s robes. Not to mention that they both knew each other’s moves. Countering each other came almost as an instinct. If they relied on just their useless, fancy moves, then their battle would never come to an end. Only if they pushed themselves to their limits, forcing the other do the same, would one of them show their flaws. And that was the moment they were waiting for.

  “…You use your Aspects like tools…”

  “…You know nothing about Concepts…”

  “…That is not how…”

  “…Unlike you, I was taught by the best…”

  “…Just give up…”

  “…It’s useless…”

  “…I…”

  Round after round, the two Alnea kept crossing their swords again and again, sending waves after waves of ripples through the world of Red and Black, each more intense than the ones before. It was only a matter of time before they became intense enough to shake the world itself. Or at least the strange space they were rushing around in. But the two did not care. Rather, they did not even notice. In their eyes—

  No, not just their eyes. They were focussing all their senses on just each other, not caring about how the world fared. And the more they fought, more engrossed they became in their battle. Enough for them to completely forget about the Purplebud woman watching their battle from the side. Soon, they even forgot themselves. The only thing they cared about was the man in front of them, and the sword in their hands.

  One urged golden lightning, and so did the other. One urged the red wind, and so did the other. No matter what methods one Alnea used, the other responded in almost exactly the same way. The only difference they had was in their shade. But as time passed, even that difference was slowly melting away. What was Red became Black, and what was Black became Red. Or maybe they just changed their positions. It was hard to tell. Even for themselves.

  How long had Alnea been fighting? He did not know. He did not even know if he was Red or Black. Was he the Alnea of the world of Wanderers? Or was he the Alnea of the world of Attuners? Did it even matter? At the moment, he had only one job. To take down the man in front of him. And so, he moved. He moved along with the world. Just as the world moved with him. But he was not alone.

  On the other end, the other Alnea also moved. And he too moved with the world. In a mix of Red and Black. Just as the Alnea in front of him. And when they clashed, so did the Red and Black. In perfect synchronisation. And not just once or twice. It was almost as if certain force… or certain Rule and Concept was bringing them together, creating a symphony. And not just any symphony. The symphony they made… it was a symphony of the end. A symphony of the beginning. It was the Symphony of Red and Black.