"Well, that was even easier than I expected."
Rover surveyed the annihilated Fractsidus forces with a quiet laugh.
Any enemy that couldn't get past his Echo legion no longer warranted his personal involvement. And for those who somehow clawed through every last Echo? They'd discover, with dawning horror, that the Rover himself was the deadliest killing machine on the field.
Still... commanding an entire army of minions while also being absurdly overpowered on his own?
It was getting genuinely impossible to tell which side was the boss encounter.
"I've never seen Fractsidus in such a sorry state," Yangyang murmured.
"Young hero, what exactly are you?" Jianxin breathed.
Both women stared at the aftermath, slightly numb. Yangyang handled it better; having met Rover a day earlier, she'd already built up some tolerance for the sheer absurdity both Rovers brought to the table.
Jianxin, though, looked like her brain had blue-screened.
She was a hidden master in her own right, a martial prodigy who'd spent years honing her craft.
And none of it mattered against a player with cheat codes.
"Right, they're dealt with. Time to head back."
"Agreed, but..." Yangyang glanced around the warped space. "How, exactly?"
No visible exit existed. This pocket dimension was a product of Scar's Forte, a sealed domain where entry and escape both hinged on his will alone.
Rover wasn't worried in the slightest. The way he saw it, solutions were plentiful.
For instance... the butterfly on his right shoulder.
The Shorekeeper, present here as a second instance, commanded spatial powers of her own. In that domain she was every bit Scar's equal, and in certain respects, far beyond him. She was the one who'd teleported both Rovers from the Etheric Sea, thousands of meters overhead, down to the Gorges of Spirits. And right now, she was perched on his shoulder.
But the Shorekeeper hesitated.
What should I do? I could teleport them out instantly, but that would break our agreement. Unless he gives the order, I'm not supposed to reveal myself to... them.
The butterfly's wings fluttered with indecision.
It didn't last long.
The agreement matters. But they matter more.
Resolve settled over her. She prepared to shed the butterfly form, manifest fully, and carry all of them out of this space. But before she could, a fingertip pressed gently against her wing.
"Don't worry. Getting out is my problem to solve."
Rover said it casually, as if addressing Yangyang and Jianxin. The way he stroked the butterfly looked perfectly natural, a man soothing a frightened pet, nothing more. Not a single thing about it seemed suspicious.
Except, perhaps, for the knowing look in his eyes at the very end.
If we're going to meet properly, I'd rather it not be in a pocket dimension with the aesthetic taste of a serial killer's basement. I want somewhere romantic. After all, a certain someone is my own personal Mona Lisa.
The beauty of a first real encounter shouldn't be wasted in a place like this.
The thought made his eyes narrow, something warm kindling behind them.
...
Back in the present...
"Well now. This is a bit of a problem."
Scar, self-styled card master, arrived at an uncomfortable realization: he couldn't put the female Rover down. Forget putting her down. She was about to put him down.
She'd adapted completely. Every pattern, every trick, every feint he threw, she read it clean and punished him for it. The momentum had shifted, and it kept shifting. If he didn't play his trump card soon, this canyon would be his grave.
What a terrifying combat instinct. Do I use that move here? The cost seems... steep.
He wavered. Play the card, or hold it.
Without it, he couldn't beat her. Period.
With it, every plan he'd laid for later would crumble.
After a few agonizing seconds, he swallowed his pride and decided to cut his losses. Withdraw. Use his spatial ability to teleport away before things got worse.
He'd already "captured" one Rover, at least. That was enough for today.
And then...
Crack. Crack.BOOM.
"What?!"
The sound of shattering glass tore through the air. The sky above fractured like a broken mirror, and through the rupture, three figures and an entire horde of Echoes came pouring out.
"Surprise!"
Scar's eyes went wide. "?!"
Rover didn't hesitate. The instant his feet touched ground, he swung his blade straight for Scar's throat. The Overseer's breath caught. Again?! Are these two Rovers just walking guillotines? It's always the neck!
Mercifully, having been slashed at by the female Rover too many times had honed his reflexes. He threw his head back at the last possible instant, and the blade kissed only the surface of his skin, drawing a thin red line across his throat without biting deeper.
"Huh. You dodged that pretty smoothly."
Rover blinked, mildly impressed, then immediately followed up with a full-force spinning kick that connected squarely with Scar's face, launching him across the battlefield like a ragdoll.
And with that, a certain Fractsidus Overseer had successfully collected matching shoe prints from both Rovers. On his face. He was starting to question every life decision that had led him here.
"How... how did you get out?"
"How?" Rover shrugged, his tone light as air. "Pretty simple, really."
Behind him, Yangyang and Jianxin exchanged a look, scalps tingling.
Simple? In a manner of speaking, sure.
His method had been brutally direct. He'd used Flight to soar to the boundary of the pocket dimension, channeled the Temporal Mandate into his fist, and punched Scar's personal reality until it shattered.
"I'm back, Rover."
"Welcome back."
Warmth softened both their faces as they found each other again, that easy familiarity settling between them like it had never been gone.
Then their gazes turned to Scar in unison.
The warmth vanished. What replaced it could have frozen steel.
"I'm guessing you were about to run," Rover said, his voice flat and cold. "Too bad. That door's closed."
"Fractsidus Overseer Scar. You've got nowhere left to go."
Two Rovers stood shoulder to shoulder. The pressure radiating off them saturated every corner of the space, and with an Echo legion circling like wolves, any sane enemy would have surrendered to despair.
But Scar wasn't sane.
"Ha! Hahaha! Impressive! Truly! I'd expect nothing less from you two!" His grin split wide. "If it were just the two of you, sure, I'd be finished. But you brought all these lovely Echoes along, and that... changes things."
The memory of his partner's ability sparked through his mind like a lifeline. The heavens hadn't abandoned him yet. This was his reversal.
So he threw his arms wide, tilted his head to the sky, and bellowed:
"Phrolova! You're up!"
Silence.
A few seconds crawled by. Somewhere overhead, a crow drifted past and let out a mocking caw.
No one named Phrolova answered.
Scar blinked. Then blinked again.
"What is he barking about?" the female Rover muttered.
"Who knows." A grin tugged at the corner of Rover's mouth. "Get him."
And the Echoes answered.
A wall of roars erupted as the Lightcrusher and the Impermanence Heron led the charge, the entire legion descending on Scar like a tidal wave.
"Oh no... Phrolova!! PHROLOVA!!!"