Ryuen wait at the gate of the city and how he killed the guards goig at theuniversity and then the crimson light appers at the sky and then real fights.
A mysterious man sat on the deck of a carriage, his face concealed beneath the shadow of his cloak. Before him lay a gruesome scene—blood smeared across the wooden floor, scattered weapons, and the headless bodies of guards who had dared to stand in his way.
"Tsk… When will I get my chance?"
He spoke with a tone of utter boredom, as though the slaughter surrounding him were nothing more than an inconvenience. He lowered his head and examined the remains of one of the guards, his expression hidden beneath the hood.
In the distance stood a massive gate—the main entrance to the city.
The mysterious man turned his gaze toward the gate.
"Are we there yet?"
Ryuen leaned backward, adjusting his crooked cloak as shadows gathered beneath its hood, concealing his face from view. With the dark claws of his right hand, he picked up the severed head of one of the guards lying beside him, turning it idly as though it were nothing more than a plaything.
His expression remained calm, utterly devoid of disgust. Instead, a faint smile curled across his lips.
"It feels nice to return after you've already died, doesn't it?" he murmured, his voice carrying a strange mixture of amusement and resentment. "But the dominance I had transferred to her… I suppose things didn't turn out quite as I'd hoped."
He let out a quiet sigh.
"Well, it doesn't matter. Judging by the way she's handling things, her downfall is approaching anyway." His smile widened slightly. "Still, it would've been nice if I'd been resurrected in my own body, man."
He tossed the guard's head aside and leaned back against the carriage, letting his complaints trail into silence.
Then, his attention shifted toward the distant horizon.
Toward the University of Torminas.
Seven faint lights illuminated the sky above the distant university, their radiance piercing through the darkness like beacons announcing the arrival of something extraordinary.
For a moment, Ryuen remained still.
Then his smile changed.
The boredom vanished from his expression, replaced by a glimmer of genuine interest. Beneath the shadows of his hood, his dark right eye twitched.
"Guess my boredom is finally over."
The moment the words left his mouth, his figure began to disintegrate. His body dissolved into the air, breaking apart into faint particles of dust that scattered into the surrounding darkness.
A dark purple aura lingered where he had been sitting, twisting in the air for a fleeting moment before fading away.
And just like that, Ryuen was gone.
✧✧✧
"Shall we begin the real battle?"
Ryuen stood before Draves, his long white hair flowing gently in the turbulent air. His bangs framed his face, their pale strands catching the scarlet glow of the surrounding flames. Beneath them, his expression remained perfectly composed, a faint smile resting upon his lips.
There was something unnerving about him.
He did not carry himself like a man who had come to fight. He carried himself like someone who had already decided how the fight would end.
Draves stood opposite him, his expression stern and unwavering. Had anyone else found themselves in his position, standing before a man whose very presence seemed to distort the atmosphere, they might have collapsed from sheer terror.
But Draves was no ordinary man.
His fingers tightened around the hilt of his black blade. Mana circulated through his body, reinforcing his muscles, hardening his skin, and sharpening his senses until even the slightest disturbance in the air became perceptible.
He wasn't planning to hold back.
From the very beginning, he intended to give everything he had.
Around them, scarlet flames erupted from the ruined grounds. Chunks of shattered stone tumbled from the broken structures overhead, while the heat made the air shimmer like a distorted reflection.
Neither man paid the slightest attention.
Their entire worlds had narrowed to the opponent standing before them.
"Shall we?" Draves asked.
He lowered his stance and drew his sword backward, angling its black blade toward the white-haired man. His posture was neither extravagant nor wasteful. Every movement served a purpose, every muscle was prepared to respond.
Yet, even as he focused on Ryuen, something about the man's appearance continued to bother him.
A white marble occupied one of Ryuen's eye sockets, while the other seemed to contain nothing but endless darkness.
What kind of existence was this man?
Draves suppressed the question before it could distract him further. Speculation could wait. Understanding his opponent's abilities was far more important.
And then—
The world changed.
The scarlet flames froze.
The falling debris seemed to lose its momentum.
Countless mirrors emerged from the darkness, materializing throughout the space around Draves. They floated at different angles, their reflective surfaces covered with strange symbols that shifted whenever he attempted to focus on them.
Some mirrors were cracked. Others contained unfamiliar eyes, twisted weapons, or images of places that did not exist.
Every mirror represented something.
A possibility.
A future that might become reality.
Draves's left eye separated from its socket, floating silently through the mirrored space. White light radiated from it, illuminating the surrounding reflections as it moved from one mirror to another.
Then it stopped.
One particular mirror caught its attention.
A thin slash ran across its surface.
Draves recognized the possibility it represented.
He chose it.
"Sigh…"
A quiet breath escaped his lips.
The moment his decision was made, the selected mirror trembled. A thin line appeared across its surface, extending from one edge to the other as though an invisible blade had passed through the reflection itself.
But before the image could stabilize, flames erupted around Draves's left eye.
The fire was not the scarlet blaze consuming the university grounds. It was a different kind of flame, one that burned with an intense white radiance, swallowing the eye's outline until it became a brilliant point of light.
Draves had selected a future.
But selecting a future did not guarantee that he could survive it.
His right eye began to glow.
A second world unfolded before him.
This time, the mirrors were different.
Countless reflections emerged, each displaying a possible sequence of movements, attacks, counters, and outcomes. In one, Ryuen's claws pierced his chest. In another, Draves's blade struck empty air. In yet another, the entire exchange ended before either man could complete his first attack.
The possibilities multiplied.
Then they began to shatter.
One after another, the mirrors cracked and dissolved into fragments of light. The remaining reflections followed, breaking apart before Draves could properly examine them.
His right eye continued to glow, but the futures refused to settle.
For the first time, he encountered something he could not reliably calculate.
No.
It wasn't that there were no futures.
There were too many uncertainties within them.
Ryuen was an unknown variable, and the moment their abilities began to interact, the possibilities became increasingly unstable.
Draves's expression tightened.
He could keep searching, but every passing instant was an opportunity for his opponent to strike.
So he stopped looking.
He would move forward without knowing the outcome.
Across from him, Ryuen watched the spectacle with a smile.
His dark claws slowly curled inward.
A deep-purple aura seeped from his fingertips, gathering around each claw like living darkness. The energy thickened, becoming a rigid coating that distorted the light around it. Thin wisps of shadow curled from the surface, twisting and stretching as though the darkness itself were struggling to escape its confinement.
Behind him, something emerged.
A long, black tail materialized from the surrounding shadows, its surface shifting like smoke beneath a solid exterior. It swayed once before settling behind him, responding to the smallest movement of his body.
Ryuen glanced at Draves.
"Well…" he began, raising his chin slightly. "If we're going to follow etiquette, I suppose an introduction is in order."
His smile widened.
"I am Ryuen Chals, a Stratum Four Transcended and a swordsman of the Origin Sword Style."
He extended his right hand, the dark-purple aura around his claws intensifying.
"I hereby challenge you to a duel."
For a moment, Draves simply stared at him.
Then he chuckled.
"I am Draves, professor of the University of Torminas and a Stratum Six Exalted."
He raised his black blade.
"I accept your challenge."
Their laughter overlapped briefly, carried away by the violent winds sweeping through the ruins.
Then the laughter stopped.
And the world held its breath.
Both men moved.
Draves surged forward, mana exploding through his body as his boots crushed the fractured ground beneath him. His sword swept backward, its black surface absorbing the darkness around it until the blade seemed to swallow the scarlet light itself.
Within his mind, a single word emerged.
Cut.
His left eye flickered.
Behind Draves, a thin line appeared in the air.
It was not a physical object, nor was it a mere trail of mana. It resembled a ray of light striking a surface, accompanied by the faint shadow of its reflection.
The two lines extended behind him, forming a narrow angle.
As Draves advanced, that angle began to close.
His sword was not simply moving toward his opponent.
He was bringing two lines into alignment, forcing the distance between them to approach nothing.
At the same time, his right eye flickered.
For an instant, another mirror appeared before him, showing Ryuen's claws sweeping toward his neck. Draves saw the movement, understood its consequence, and watched the reflection fracture before he could determine how the exchange would end.
The image vanished.
He had no time to search for another.
He continued forward.
Ryuen's expression remained unchanged.
The instant Draves entered his reach, the darkness coating his claws dispersed, scattering into thin strands that vanished into the surrounding air. Ryuen's marble eye caught a faint distortion in space.
His smile deepened.
"Let's see what you can do."
His Stratum Four Blessed Authority activated.
The distance disappeared.
The space between the two men folded inward as though an invisible mouth had swallowed it. Ryuen did not accelerate in the conventional sense. Instead, the distance he needed to cross was abruptly reduced, allowing him to appear far closer to Draves than he should have been.
Behind him, an immense darkness opened for a fraction of a second.
It resembled an endless void, a place where distance had no meaning and direction had ceased to exist.
Then it vanished.
Ryuen was already within striking range.
Their eyes met.
Draves saw the faintest glimmer of amusement in Ryuen's dark eye.
Ryuen saw the unwavering focus in Draves's gaze.
Neither hesitated.
Ryuen thrust his claws forward, aiming directly at Draves's upper body. The rigid purple aura surrounding his fingers sharpened into narrow points, each one carrying enough concentrated power to tear through reinforced defenses.
Draves tightened his grip.
His black blade swept upward.
Behind the sword, the two faint lines continued to converge.
The angle between them narrowed.
Ten degrees.
Five.
One.
Until—
Zero.
A voice emerged within Draves's mind.
Cut through the self.
His sword moved.
Cut through the self that stands before you.
The black blade vibrated, and the darkness clinging to its surface began to shift.
Cut through his madness.
The surrounding air trembled.
Cut through the darkness itself.
For a fleeting instant, the entire world seemed to narrow into the space between the sword and the claws.
Then the two weapons approached one another.
And stopped.
A violent force erupted between them.
Their weapons had not touched, yet an invisible barrier of repulsion had formed at the point of their collision. Mana crashed against mana, each force refusing to yield even an inch.
The space between the weapons warped.
The air compressed.
A deafening pressure spread outward, tearing through the surrounding ruins as though an invisible giant had struck the battlefield with its fists.
The winds became hurricanes.
Scarlet flames were ripped from the ground and scattered into the sky. Chunks of stone rose into the air, spinning violently as the pressure swept beneath them. Cracks raced across the ruined courtyard, extending away from the two combatants in every direction.
Neither man retreated.
Ryuen's claws pressed forward, his smile still visible despite the turbulence.
Draves's sword remained fixed before him, his muscles straining as mana poured through his body.
The repulsion intensified.
For one impossible instant, it seemed as though reality itself refused to allow the two weapons to meet.
Then—
BOOM!
The accumulated force erupted.
A colossal explosion swallowed the two figures, sending a shock wave across the university grounds. The remaining windows shattered, the surrounding flames bent away from the blast, and a towering cloud of dust rose above the battlefield.
For several seconds, nothing could be seen.
Only the roar of the explosion remained.
Then the sound faded.
The dust began to settle.
And two silhouettes emerged from within it.
Everything was over.
Ryuen stood several paces away from Draves, his white hair falling across his shoulders as the last remnants of the purple aura evaporated from his claws. His black tail swayed lazily behind him, and his crooked smile had returned to its original shape.
He looked almost untouched.
There was no sign of exhaustion in his posture. Not even the slightest hint of urgency.
He tilted his head, examining Draves with an expression of mild curiosity.
"Well?" Ryuen asked. "What do you think?"
Draves stood opposite him, his black blade pointed toward the ground. His shoulders rose and fell once as he steadied his breathing.
His left eye continued to flicker with white light.
Fragments of mirrors appeared around him and vanished almost immediately, as though his authority were still attempting to understand what had just occurred.
Ryuen glanced at the sword in his hand.
"Honestly, I expected a little more from a Stratum Six Sovereign."
He lifted one claw and examined it.
"But I suppose I shouldn't complain. You're stronger than most people I've encountered since my return."
His gaze shifted back to Draves.
"Still, the difference between us should be obvious by now."
He smiled.
"You see? I'm strong."
For a moment, Draves remained silent.
Then a thin line of red appeared on his cheek.
A shallow scratch had formed just beneath his eye.
Blood trickled down his face, following the curve of his cheek before dropping onto the ruined ground.
Ryuen's smile widened.
"There we go. At least I managed to leave a mark."
But before he could continue, something caught his attention.
A faint sound came from his right hand.
Drip.
Ryuen lowered his gaze.
A thin line had appeared across one of his dark claws.
For a moment, he did not understand what he was seeing.
Then a bead of blood emerged from the cut.
It slid down his finger and fell into the dust.
Silence followed.
Ryuen stared at his hand.
His smile disappeared.
He slowly turned his claw, examining the narrow wound as though it belonged to someone else. The rigid purple aura that had covered his fingers was still present, yet the cut had passed through it.
Something had reached the darkness itself.
Something had cut it.
Ryuen raised his head.
For the first time since his arrival, genuine surprise crossed his face.
Draves was watching him.
Then the professor began to laugh.
It started as a quiet chuckle, but quickly grew into a full laugh that echoed across the ruined courtyard. He straightened his posture and lifted his sword slightly, the black blade catching the scarlet light.
"What's wrong?" Draves asked, still smiling. "You seemed so confident a moment ago."
Ryuen's gaze moved between the wound on his hand and the sword in Draves's grip.
Draves tilted his head.
"You see, Ryuen…"
He raised the blade, allowing its dark surface to face his opponent.
"My blade is special. It was made to cut through darkness."
For several seconds, Ryuen said nothing.
Then his eyes narrowed.
The faint smile returned to his lips, but this time, it carried a different meaning.
Interest.
True, genuine interest.
He flexed his injured hand, watching the thin wound reopen slightly.
"So that's how it is…"
His black tail slowly rose behind him.
"Interesting."
Ryuen looked directly into Draves's eyes.
"Very interesting indeed."