Chapter 23: Immune, Maybe.
CLASH!
Steel met steel before anyone could even react.
The clash between Daito Greyhell and Zachia erupted instantly.
Their blades collided again and again.
CLANG!
CLANG!
CLANG!
Sparks exploded into the air as the two moved in a tightening circle around the center of the ruined hall.
SKREETCH!
SKRAATCH!
Every impact scraped against the stone floor and shattered loose debris beneath their feet.
Neither fighter gave ground.
But Zachia had something Daito did not.
Raw physical power.
His frame was massive, closer to the build of Brandon than any swordsman Daito had faced recently.
SLASH!
SWOOSH!
Every swing carried brutal force.
Daito attempted to meet him head-on.
CLING—CLING—CLANG!
For several exchanges, they fought toe to toe.
But something quickly became clear.
Zachia wasn't fighting at a constant level.
He was climbing.
Each clash made him faster.
Each strike made him stronger.
Daito's eyes sharpened.
"Is he getting stronger…?" Daito thought.
"Or is he simply holding back and raising his level as he fights?"
Either way, the growth was alarming.
Suddenly Zachia shifted his grip.
SWITCH!
SWOOSH!
His sword moved into his left hand.
CLIK!
Without warning, he swung.
SLAAASSHHH!
With everything he had.
Daito's instincts screamed.
SWOOSH!
EVADE!
He vanished from the path of the blade a split second before impact.
The slash tore past him and past Aerin.
The edge missed her hair by less than an inch.
Then, the blade carved a glowing line across the floor.
SLING!
The slash continued straight into the far wall.
A heartbeat later—
BOOOOOOM!
A massive explosion blasted through the building.
Stone shattered.
SWOOSH!
Dust exploded into the air.
"!!"
Everyone in the room instantly shifted into high alert.
Zachia rested the sword on his shoulder again.
"That," he said calmly,
"is the aftereffect of me swinging with all my strength."
He lifted his left hand slightly.
"And that was with my non-dominant hand."
His grin widened.
"Imagine what happens if I use my right."
But what Daito heard…
Was something entirely different.
"Imagine if I used both hands."
That single thought flipped a switch inside him.
SWOOSH!
This fight must end quickly.
Without hesitation, Zachia suddenly removed the upper half of his clothing.
The fabric dropped to the floor.
FRRTLH!
Underneath, his body was a sculpted wall of muscle.
Perfectly defined.
His skin glistened faintly under the sunlight pouring through the broken roof.
Then he reached into his pocket.
A small object appeared.
A smoke bomb.
He crushed it in his palm.
PSSSHHHHHH!
Thick smoke erupted instantly, filling the entire hall.
Visibility vanished.
Daito reacted immediately.
SHWIING!
FWOOSH!
He spun his blade.
The rotation generated intense wind pressure.
WHOOOFF!
A sharp circular current blasted outward.
The smoke began tearing apart under the force.
Daito's eyes tracked the densest part of the cloud.
That's where it started.
He moved.
SWOOSH!
DASH!
But Zachia was already running through the fog.
Constant motion.
Changing direction repeatedly.
Trying to outlast the clearing wind.
But Daito suddenly accelerated.
SWOOSH!
ZAP—ZIP—ZOOM!
In a blink, he was everywhere.
Dashing.
Zipping.
Reappearing around Zachia from impossible angles.
SLASH!
Each strike aimed at a lethal point.
PAUSE!
A cut that could end the fight.
STOP!
A thrust that could cripple him instantly.
EVADE!
Yet every time, Daito hesitated.
He wasn't fighting seriously.
He was holding back.
And because of that, the fight became harder.
Zachia noticed.
His grin returned.
"You're not trying to kill me."
SWOOSH!
He slid back out of range.
"That's your problem."
Daito paused for a moment.
Then an idea came to him.
A different solution.
He lowered his sword.
CLANG!
And dropped it.
The blade clattered against the stone floor.
"I have a better idea."
Zachia blinked.
"What?"
"Hand to hand."
Zachia stared at him.
Then burst out laughing.
".....Have you lost your mind....?"
But after a moment, he tossed his sword aside as well.
CLANG!
Across the room, Wei-Wan Lou leaned toward Aerin.
"Who do you think wins?"
Aerin didn't hesitate.
"If it's pure fists?"
She crossed her arms.
"The answer is obvious."
* * *
Back in the center of the ruined hall, both warriors stepped forward.
SWOOSH!
The sunlight beam fell between them.
Dust floated slowly in the air.
Fwoosh.....
Daito raised his fists.
Crack.....
Zachia cracked his knuckles.
Two monsters.
No weapons.
Just strength.
Swoosh...
They lowered into their fighting stances.
And prepared for a bare-knuckle fight.
The moment both men heard the stone pebble fall.
SWOOSH!
They exploded forward.
Boom!
The fists of Daito Greyhell and Zachia Grancumber collided as the fist fight began.
No weapons.
No restraint.
Just pure physical combat.
Daito struck first.
POW!
A straight punch toward the jaw.
Zachia answered immediately with a hook aimed at the ribs.
THUD!
THUD!
Both hits landed.
Neither man stepped back.
BANG-POW!
Another exchange followed.
Daito's fist slammed into Zachia's chest.
THWACK!
Zachia drove a knee into Daito's stomach.
POW!
The sound of flesh striking flesh echoed through the ruined hall.
CLAP!
Both of them were taking hits.
THWACK—BAM—POW!
KICK—POW—BAM!
Heavy hits.
But Zachia quickly realized something.
Daito moved too much.
Too fast.
Too fluid.
Landing a clean finishing blow on him would be difficult.
So Zachia changed tactics.
SWOOSH!
FWOOSH!
As Daito stepped in for another punch, Zachia suddenly stomped down.
STEP!
Right onto Daito's jacket.
Pinning it to the ground.
SWOO!
Daito's movement halted instantly.
Zachia's grin widened.
"Got you."
Then the punches came.
POW!
One.
THWACK!
Two.
PAW!
Three.
BAM!
Four.
Heavy blows rained down.
Daito blocked several with his forearms.
But others slipped through.
TWHACK!
A strike slammed against his cheek.
Another crashed into his ribs.
KA–POW!
The pressure was relentless.
Daito realized the situation immediately.
If I stay here…
Either I go down…
or the jacket tears anyway.
SWOOSH!
So he ducked down sharply and pulled the jacket off in one motion.
SHOOFFF!
The cloth slid free from under Zachia's foot.
Zachia paused.
Then raised an eyebrow.
"Well."
He looked Daito over.
"I'll give you this."
"You actually look more stylish without it."
Daito rolled his shoulders lightly.
"Thanks."
He stretched his arms slightly.
"Honestly…"
"I needed the freedom."
JUMP–JUMP!
He hopped lightly from foot to foot.
SNAP—SNAP!
Cracked his neck.
Rotated his shoulders.
Warmed up his joints.
The small motions looked casual.
Relaxed.
But then—
SWOOSH!
He moved.
Daito accelerated.
Faster than before.
His fists began striking Zachia from multiple angles.
POW—PANG—PING—PANG!
BOM—BAM—BANG—POW!
Left ribs.
Right shoulder.
Lower abdomen.
Solar plexus.
Each punch landed with precision.
Zachia swung back with brutal hooks and heavy strikes.
SWOOSH!
But Daito was too fast now.
Too flexible.
Too fluid.
He slipped past the blows.
SWOOSH!
SWIISSHH!
Bent around them.
Struck again.
And again.
And again.
POW!
KA-PANG!
Each strike faster than the last.
Each motion carrying more energy.
Soon....Daito stopped holding back.
The assault intensified.
That's when Zachia noticed it.
Something inside Daito.
Something dangerous.
He looked into Daito's eyes.
And saw it clearly.
Focus.
Heavy focus.
Unbreakable focus.
Daito wasn't just fighting.
His mind had locked onto something deeper.
Zachia.
His weak points.
His joints.
His blood vessels.
His muscle strain.
His fractures.
PANG!
POW!
PLOW!
Every strike Daito threw was aimed at a place that could break him.
Zachia realized something terrifying.
Daito's mind wasn't wandering.
It wasn't enjoying the fight.
It was analyzing him like a machine designed for destruction.
Every motion had purpose.
Every movement calculated.
Daito wasn't fighting a man.
He was dismantling a structure.
SWOOSH!
And yet, Daito's speed continued to increase.
His mind had slipped somewhere else.
Somewhere deeper.
A place warriors rarely reached.
A state known as "The Moment."
A flow of endless motion.
A state where the body moves without hesitation.
Where thought and instinct merge.
Where the outside world disappears.
And only combat exists.
Some called it…
"The Lost Point."
A place where fighters lose themselves entirely inside battle.
Daito pulled his arm back.
His hands began to tighten.
TIGHTEN!
Hardening.
CRACK!
Preparing for the kind of strike that could shatter bone.
One punch.
One decisive blow.
Fwoo...
Then suddenly, Zachia raised his hand.
"Alright!"
Daito's fist stopped inches away from his face.
SWOOSH!
Zachia exhaled.
"Fine."
"I'll join you."
Silence filled the room.
Daito slowly lowered his hand.
The flow state faded.
His breathing steadied.
On the surface, he looked calm.
Controlled.
But deep down, everyone knew something.
He didn't actually want the fight to stop.
Not when the battle had reached that point.
Not when the thrill had finally started.
The exhilaration, the rush.
The rare opportunity to strike something strong enough to endure him.
Across the room, Champagne folded his arms.
He glanced toward Aerin.
They had both noticed it.
Before anyone else.
Even before Daito himself realized.
Something had been building inside him.
For a long time.
"Stress."
And during this fight, against someone who could actually withstand him.
Daito had finally released a small piece of it.
* * *
The ruined hall slowly settled back into silence.
Fwoosh...
Dust drifted through the broken sunlight as the fight finally ended.
Zachia rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck as if the brutal exchange had only been a warm-up.
"Alright," he said casually.
"I'll join your little adventure."
Aerin raised an eyebrow.
"Just like that?"
Zachia shrugged.
"You're interesting enough."
But then he lifted a finger.
"There's one condition."
Everyone looked at him.
"I'm not alone."
Daito crossed his arms.
"Explain."
Zachia nodded.
"My partner."
"Avenor Yakisa."
"She's also a Savage."
"But unlike me…"
He tapped his head.
"She's the brains of the operation."
He began walking slowly around the room, as he explained.
"We met years ago in the NBA."
"Been working together ever since."
"At some point, we were sanctioned under Ragnarock."
Their job had been simple.
Contain the Freaker Hives.
Keep the Whaley Saw Red Zones from spreading.
Prevent outbreaks.
Stop Freakers before they could rampage through the town.
Zachia stopped walking and looked back at them.
"Also…"
"I should warn you."
"I have a weird temper."
He scratched the back of his head.
"People don't usually like associating with me."
One of the team members leaned closer.
Something had caught their attention.
"Hey…"
"What's with the teeth?"
They pointed slightly.
Zachia's sharp canines were very noticeable when he spoke.
Zachia shrugged again.
"Nothing special."
"I grew up in a village deep in the forests."
"We ate a lot of raw meat."
"That tends to sharpen them."
Nearby, Fah-jin stared at him quietly.
Then she touched her own teeth.
Her eyes widened slightly.
She had canines too.
Zachia noticed immediately.
"Oh."
He tilted his head.
"Then you might be from the same clan."
Before Fah-jin could answer—
"Heh..."
Brandon chuckled.
"Maybe distant cousins."
Fah-jin instantly turned away.
"Absolutely not."
Her voice was sharp.
"I wouldn't call him anything."
She glanced back briefly.
"It's obvious he fights without honor."
Zachia blinked.
Completely confused.
"Honor?"
He looked around.
"Where exactly did honor appear anywhere in our conversation?"
Wei-Wan Lou sighed and waved a hand.
"Don't mind her."
"She's just like that."
After a moment of silence, Daito Greyhell spoke.
"There's something I want to ask."
Zachia looked over.
"Go ahead."
Daito's eyes sharpened slightly.
"Why did you hold back?"
The room grew quiet.
"You had nothing to lose."
"You could have treated us like enemies."
"You could have gone all out from the start."
Zachia stared at him for a moment.
Then smirked.
"And you're asking me that?"
Aerin's eyes widened slightly.
Because suddenly something clicked.
She turned toward Zachia.
"You didn't use your Savage Power."
That realization hung in the air.
Zachia had fought that entire battle, without activating the core ability of a Savage.
And yet, he had already pushed Daito that far.
Daito, on the other hand…
Had shown something different.
Extreme speed.
Unnatural vitality.
A frightening flow state.
Aerin slowly crossed her arms.
"Just imagine…"
She looked between them.
"…what would have happened…"
"…if both of you had gone all out."
Everyone got shocked instantly.
"!!"
To be continued....