The Gacha machine glows.
Boone stares at its two banners.
777 SOVEREIGN.
LETHAL ODDS.
Rokuro charges forward, his staff raised.
"STOP PLAYING AROUND!"
Boone raises one finger.
"Hold on. I'm making a very important decision here."
The machine begins spinning.
Katsu notices something strange.
"Wait..."
He looks closely at Boone.
"His aura..."
Ryosen turns toward him.
"What about it?"
"It's disappearing."
Boone's usual presence, the strange feeling of fortune that seemed to follow him everywhere, is gone.
Katsu narrows his eyes.
"His Heart. It's not active."
Rokuro swings his staff.
BOOM!
A wall of ice erupts beneath Boone.
But the Gacha continues spinning.
Boone doesn't move.
The machine suddenly stops.
S-TIER!
Boone's grin widens.
"YES! THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!"
The Lethal Odds banner flashes red.
A crimson glow surrounds him.
CRITICAL DAMAGE MULTIPLIER: ACTIVATED.
"Exactly twelve minutes."
Boone stretches his arms.
"Now, where were we?"
Rokuro's eyes narrow.
"You're dead."
He thrusts his staff forward.
A massive wave of ice races toward Boone.
But Boone moves.
He slips past the attack, stepping through the narrow opening between the ice formations.
Rokuro turns.
"What?!"
Boone appears beside him.
"Too slow!"
He strikes.
BOOM!
Rokuro is thrown backward, crashing against the ground.
"ROKURO!" Shichiro shouts.
Katsu steps forward.
"Everyone, don't approach him carelessly!"
Boone laughs.
"Carefully? That's no fun!"
Shichiro's whips ignite.
"Solar Break!"
He lashes both whips toward Boone.
Boone ducks beneath the first and jumps over the second.
The attack tears through the ground behind him.
"Nice moves!"
Shichiro follows up, swinging his weapons in a wide arc.
Boone narrowly avoids the first strike, but the second catches him.
For a moment, the group thinks they've landed a clean hit.
Then Boone grins.
"Almost!"
He counters with a powerful strike.
CRASH!
Shichiro is forced back.
Katsu's eyes widen.
"That multiplier..."
Ryosen steps forward, golden light gathering around his hands.
"Then we cannot allow him to keep attacking freely."
He brings his palms together.
"Seal of Serenity!"
A golden formation spreads across the ground, attempting to restrain Boone.
Boone looks down.
"Oh?"
His smile fades slightly.
"That's troublesome."
He leaps away just before the formation closes around him.
But Katsu is already moving.
"Second Verse!"
Time rewinds.
Boone's movement snaps backward by a second.
Katsu appears in front of him.
"Eon Breakers!"
A punch connects.
BOOM!
Boone skids across the ground.
For the first time, his expression changes.
"...Okay. You're interesting."
Katsu doesn't respond.
He looks toward Kentarō.
Shichiro is still beside him, keeping him safe.
"Kentarō!"
Kentarō raises his head slightly.
"Ugh... I'm starting to hate that guy."
Shichiro looks relieved.
"Don't move. Just stay there."
Boone dusts himself off.
"Aw, is the bounty hunter still awake?"
Kentarō glares at him.
"Shut... up..."
Boone chuckles.
"Well, I suppose I should finish what I started."
Aegis steps forward.
"Not another step."
His armor forms around his body.
A protective barrier rises between Boone and Kentarō.
Boone looks at it.
Then at Aegis.
"Ah. You're the one with the barrier."
Aegis clenches his fist.
"And you're the one who broke it."
Boone smiles.
"Correct!"
He rushes forward.
Aegis braces himself.
BOOM!
The impact shakes the Haven.
Aegis's barrier holds.
Boone takes a step back.
"Huh. That's pretty sturdy."
Aegis pushes forward, forcing Boone away.
"You're not getting past me."
Boone looks at the barrier.
Then he looks at the timer on his Gacha.
09:41 REMAINING.
He laughs.
"Nine minutes and forty-one seconds..."
He looks back at the Haven.
"I've got plenty of time."
Katsu finally understands.
"He's not trying to escape."
Ryosen turns toward him.
"What?"
Katsu closes his fists.
"He's trying to defeat all of us."
Boone raises his hand.
"Give that man a prize!"
The crimson aura around him intensifies.
"Now, let's see how many of you can keep up."
And for the first time since Boone Fortunato entered the Haven...
Nobody was laughing.