The environment was suffocating.
The air felt heavier with every passing second, as if the Pride Ring itself rejected the presence of everyone there. The ground still vibrated faintly from the recent impacts, and the silence… it wasn't empty, it was filled with threat.
Raydillon remained still for a moment, analyzing everything around him.
His eyes moved across the group surrounding him, one by one… evaluating, measuring, judging. Then, slowly, he shifted his gaze to the environment.
That place.
Rotten. Distorted. Inferior.
A faint expression of discomfort crossed his face.
He then lifted his gaze… and saw the portal still open above them.
For a brief second, everything aligned in his mind.
— I need to get out of here now… staying here is an unnecessary risk.
Without hesitation, Raydillon tensed his body and jumped.
The sheer force of the leap alone shattered the ground beneath his feet, opening a crater that spread into violent cracks. His body cut through the air at absurd speed, heading straight toward the portal.
But…
It wasn't that simple.
The moment he got close…
Martin appeared beside him.
No warning. No sound.
— You're not getting out of here that easily, you worm!
His fist was already in motion.
Raydillon reacted by instinct, crossing his arms in front of his body, but the impact still hit him head-on.
The sound of the blow echoed like an explosion.
In milliseconds, Raydillon was thrown back to the ground, colliding with brutal force. The impact created a massive crater, raising a dense cloud of dust that swallowed everything around.
For a moment… only silence.
Then, among the wreckage, he moved.
— …Damn.
He slowly stood up, brushing the dust off his body, and looked up.
The portal… was closing.
And when it finally shut completely, an uncomfortable feeling ran through Raydillon.
He was trapped.
Before he could react—
Raphaella appeared behind him.
Without hesitation, she formed a katana of energy in her hands and advanced in a precise movement, aiming directly at his neck. Her speed surpassed light… an attack almost impossible to react to.
But not for him.
Raydillon turned his body at the last moment and grabbed the blade with his bare hands.
The impact of the energy tore through the air around them, but he remained steady.
A faint smile appeared.
— Well, look at that… you've gotten more electrifying, haven't you?
Without giving her time to respond, he spun and hurled Raphaella away violently.
Her body shot through the air and crashed into a massive rock, splitting it in half like glass.
Pain shot through her body, but she didn't stop.
The moment she stood up…
Raydillon was already there again.
But this time…
She was ready.
She dodged his punch by centimeters and counterattacked, landing a direct hit on his jaw.
The impact was clean.
Precise.
But…
Raydillon barely moved.
Further away, Daytona watched everything.
Her eyes didn't blink.
Every movement. Every reaction. Every pattern.
She wasn't fighting.
She was studying.
— They're way too fast… — her voice came out low, but tense — I can't jump into that without getting destroyed…
Saravia, beside her, gripped the chains of her anchors tightly, feeling the metal vibrate faintly in her hands.
— We need to do something… — she said, keeping her eyes fixed on the fight — …but first I want to understand how far he can go.
On the battlefield, Raphaella advanced again.
The two entered direct combat, exchanging blows at absurd speed. The air around them distorted with every impact, and the ground cracked beneath their feet.
But there was a clear difference.
Raphaella was trying.
Raydillon… wasn't.
He observed every movement she made with almost bored coldness.
— Your attacks… — he caught one of her punches with ease — are too repetitive.
Before she could react—
He counterattacked.
A direct punch to her abdomen.
The impact was devastating.
Raphaella's body was launched kilometers away in less than a second, flying through the air until crashing against the massive stone wall that marked the ring's limits.
The rock trembled.
She coughed blood.
Her body hurt.
But what weighed more… was the realization.
— We can't defeat him like this…
She forced her breathing.
— Then the goal isn't to win…
Her eyes hardened.
— It's to survive… until the antidote takes effect.
A blur.
Raydillon was already there.
Before she could move—
Another blow.
A punch to her jaw.
Her body was sent upward, smashing against the very wall, as if being crushed into the sky.
Raydillon watched… and slowly raised his hand.
— Let's see how you look… inside out.
Energy formed.
Dense. Divine. Absolute.
— Kami no Chitsujo… Third Element… Divine Arrow.
A colossal bow appeared behind him, adorned with wings. The accumulated energy distorted the space around it.
He fired.
A beam of pure destruction tore through the air, disintegrating everything in its path.
But at the last moment—
Martin appeared.
He grabbed Raphaella mid-air, pulling her out of the trajectory in a fraction of a second.
The beam passed.
Destroyed what was behind.
But not them.
He landed with her on the ground, still feeling the strain of speed in his body.
— You okay?
Raphaella breathed heavily, still dazed.
— …Almost.
Martin placed her down, his gaze now fixed on Raydillon.
No fear.
But awareness.
— I'm going to test him… see how far I can go.
Before anyone could respond—
He advanced.
His body cut through the air as he aimed a hook straight at Raydillon's jaw.
But Raydillon dodged easily.
And then…
The two entered combat.
Fists colliding.
Movements at the limit.
Martin was at his maximum.
Every blow demanded everything from him.
But… he was keeping up.
— The training with Saravia… — he thought, feeling the impact in his hands — was totally worth it…
He adjusted his rhythm.
Controlled his strength better.
Adapted.
Survived.
Seconds later—
Saravia arrived.
She saw the scene… and for a moment, was surprised.
— He's… holding Raydillon?!
But there was no time to admire.
— MARTIN! I'M HERE!
Martin heard.
And understood.
Without looking directly, he changed his rhythm.
The patterns.
The pauses.
Subtle.
Precise.
Raydillon didn't notice.
Then—
Martin suddenly pulled back, jumping away.
The opening appeared.
And Saravia didn't hesitate.
— Shinkai Jakusari… Sixteenth Element… Mob-Leviathan!
Her anchors moved almost instantly.
Irregular cuts appeared across Raydillon's body, as if space itself was tearing his form apart.
Raydillon stood still for a brief moment.
The silence around them felt heavy… almost artificial.
His eyes moved slowly, analyzing every detail of the battlefield, the debris, the dust in the air, the deep marks in the ground… and especially… them.
Saravia.
She was there.
Standing.
No visible movement.
Not even the anchors vibrated… not even her muscles showed tension.
Nothing.
That… didn't make sense.
Raydillon narrowed his eyes slightly.
His mind worked with absurd precision.
— It wasn't Raphaella… — he thought coldly — she's too far.
His gaze shifted to Martin.
— It wasn't that boy… he doesn't make cuts like these.
Then, slowly, he looked at Daytona… still for a moment.
— The one in red didn't move either…
A silence formed within him.
Then…
He turned completely toward Saravia.
His eyes gleamed as he reached a conclusion.
— Then… it could only have been you.
The air grew heavier.
Saravia felt it.
His gaze.
Absolute focus.
The next target… was her.
Her body didn't move… but inside, everything tightened.
A chill ran down her spine.
She knew.
If he came… it wouldn't be a normal attack.
Without warning—
Raydillon vanished from the ground.
The force of his jump shattered the surface beneath him, cracks spreading like webs.
He appeared in the air, rushing straight toward Saravia at brutal speed, nearly impossible to follow.
But—
Before he reached her—
Martin appeared.
Pure instinct.
He wrapped his arm around Raydillon's neck from behind.
Rear choke.
His muscles contracted with maximum force.
Veins bulged.
The ground beneath them cracked from the combined weight.
— I won't let you touch her! — Martin's voice came strained, full of effort.
He tightened.
More.
More.
As if trying to crush Raydillon's very existence.
But…
Raydillon didn't panic.
His eyes simply shifted slightly to the side.
Cold.
Then—
CRACK.
He stomped down on Martin's foot with absurd force.
The dry sound echoed.
The ground sank.
The impact shattered bones.
Martin's face twisted in pain… but—
He didn't let go.
Not even for a second.
— I won't… let… go… — he growled through clenched teeth.
Raydillon slowly raised his arm.
His fingers aligned… like a blade.
Precise.
Deadly.
He aimed straight at Martin's skull.
— It's over.
But the moment his finger moved—
The air tore.
A red blur cut through space.
Daytona.
The Beast Mark ignited in her eyes.
Her irises glowed with an intense red… almost alive.
Her presence distorted the environment around her.
— Kōken Akakagami… — her voice came low… but powerful —
— Tenth Element… Sidereal Point.
A single movement.
Clean.
Perfect.
Raydillon's arm separated from his body before the strike could land.
Time seemed to freeze for a microsecond.
Blood, or something beyond it, spread through the air.
Martin was saved.
Raydillon looked at his severed arm… falling.
For the first time…
Something changed.
Not fear.
But… interest.
His eyes locked onto Daytona.
— This girl…
Before Martin could react—
Raydillon launched upward.
A violent leap.
The air exploded around him.
Martin was thrown back by the force.
Raydillon ascended.
Fast.
Very fast.
He pierced through layers of dust still hanging in the sky, remnants of the chaos caused by Nina Baphomet.
The sky wasn't a sky.
It was suspended ruin.
He stopped for a moment up there.
Watching.
Small.
But dominant.
— I think that's enough… — he murmured, with a faint tone of disdain —
— …playing with you.
Then—
He dived.
The descent tore through the air.
Particles were violently pushed aside.
His speed surpassed sound.
The impact with the ground created a crater.
The earth trembled.
A shockwave spread.
Dust rose, covering everything.
And then…
Slowly…
Raydillon stood up from the center of destruction.
His cold gaze pierced through the dust.
— Kami no Chitsujo… — his voice echoed —
— Fourth Element… Golden Bullets.
Five massive spheres of energy appeared around him.
Floating.
Heavy.
Charged with absurd power.
The air vibrated.
Space itself seemed to reject that energy.
He looked at the group.
One by one.
Analyzing.
Learning.
— Interesting… — he said, tilting his head slightly —
— Each of you fights in a different way…
His gaze stopped on Daytona.
More intense.
More focused.
— Maybe… I'll adapt.
The battlefield fell silent again.
But this time…
It was the silence before the massacre.
But… Raydillon felt something in his veins.
Something unusual. Almost incompatible.
He looked at his arms and said to himself. — I'm abnormal… what is this in my blood?