He didn’t need any reminder that she was not like her sister– an alternate sentence to tell Minato that anything that worked against Elizabeth wont be the same story against the elder sister. What did register in his mind, however was the heed that Margaret voiced out– that anything less of his full strength would be nothing short of offensive towards the denizen. And it’s there where the problem lies for the former: the matter of holding back.
As much as he’s utilized the power he’s forged all those years ago, there wasn’t much knowledge about the depths that the Universe Arcana has. Thus far, the only techniques he’s utilized with it was the more frequent summoning of two or more Personae at the same time, being able to wield weapons of particular Personae, and use elemental attacks without the need of physically manifesting them. The only guide the former Foll had was Igor’s words just shortly after the creation of this immense power– the power that can bring about a new beginning or the ultimate end; that nothing was outside the realm of possibility for him.
If that was the case, then so far he’s only barely scratched the surface of his potential. And Margaret has called him out to go all-out, when he’s already decided to pull his punches a bit. At least match whatever blow she dishes out with equal power.
He witnesses her smash the card between the pages of the book, bringing out Odin and unleashing a lightning storm over their heads. Maziodyne, clearly. Lightning strikes were always unpredictable, but in the controlling hands of an avatar of power they’re sure to hit their mark (so much for lightning not striking the same place twice). In retaliation, he decides to take the fight to close quarters, rushing towards Margaret whilst drawing the swords that were holstered on his back. No Persona summoning yet; he’ll unleash that part when the time is right.
Swings of his blades were repetitive, but ferocious. His Kendo knowledge evolved from way back then, having been experienced with a sword already thanks to his tenure with SEES. While recently did he start picking up a dual-wielding style of combat (his original sword resonated with his soul, and split up into two– something he’s yet to find an explanation for other than the names it already had), he made sure to be proficient as much as he could, practicing day and night in his lonesome to balance offense and defense. Nonetheless, he continues his dance, moving to another open area if one blow was blocked.
Immediately, his proficiency with combat is made quite clear. This is not a shock to the Empress, of course - awareness of his past achievements was enough of an indication that he would be a formidable opponent, and if she had not believed that he would offer something worth her time, she would not have extended her request. He darts forward, zigzagging in order to dodge the bolts of lightning locking onto his location. Static fills the air, crackling ominously in the background long after the bulk of that initial storm has passed.
Absently, Margaret acknowledges that she is impressed with his strategy - the lack of a clear weapon aside from the Compendium suspended at her side indicated that the best way to proceed was at close quarters. His assessment was, for the most part, correct; her specialty was indeed in long-distance magic, though this was not to say that she was not also quite capable of meeting him in person.
Floating in mid-air allows her to sweep from side to side with an elegance not incomparable to ice skating, dodging the heavier blows and deflecting others with either the Compendium or the enchanted deck of tarot cards shooting as projectiles at the flick of her delicate wrist. All the while, her eyes glint with glee and concentration in equal amounts.
Still, as the physical onslaught continues it becomes more difficult to continue matching his speed, so the Empress decides to have someone take over. Pushing off from the floor and opening up a small distance between them, she takes a brief second to bring a card forth and crush it.
“Yoshitsune!” In an instant, another armour-clad warrior dashes forward, meeting Minato’s blades with a pitched metallic clang. Sparks fly from the swords with the sheer velocity of the defence, and the resistance allows the platinum woman to retreat enough that she’s entirely out of reach once more.