Huff... Huff...
Kane gasped for air, vision blurred and body battered. Blood trickled down his face, and his once-proud iron skin was falling apart. Through the haze, he caught sight of Tony and James lying motionless on the ground, their bodies slowly soaking in pools of their own blood.
"This is my fault," he thought, teeth clenched as he forced himself to stand.
"Oh my? You can still get up? Is this what they call the indomitable spirit?" Charles taunted, a twisted grin on his face.
"What if I'd stayed with Mikage and his group… would they still be standing?" Kane staggered forward, each step more agonizing than the last.
"No… as their leader, it's my job to keep them alive. I can't fail them. Not now."
Iron began to creep across the wounded bodies of James and Tony, encasing their injuries in a protective layer. He poured what remained of his mana into the act.
"Do you have something up your sleeve that'll save you?" Charles asked, amused. "You look like you're about to go all in."
"What I have isn't enough to beat him," Kane admitted to himself. "Begging for mercy would only feed his ego… and even if by some miracle I win, there's that monstrous energy lurking inside the museum. No… I'll buy time. I'll fight to protect what's left."
He clenched his fists.
"Iron Tank!!"
A surge of mana burst from him. His iron skin warped, thickened, transforming into full armor that enveloped his body. Twin bucklers formed on both arms.
"Oh my, now that looks durable," Charles mused. "Let's hope it's not just for show."
Kane didn't reply. He slammed the shields together—CLANG!—fusing them into a massive, solid wall of metal. With a roar, he charged forward, bulldozing through debris. Charles responded with a flurry of blood spikes, but they bounced harmlessly off the shield.
Kane closed the distance—but Charles caught the shield with one hand, halting him instantly. Kane detached the shield, letting it drop, then launched a fierce punch to the gut, followed by rapid left and right strikes.
"I'm sorry, brother… I may not make it back. If only I hadn't let my arrogance blind me… If I'd trained harder, mastered more iron forms, maybe they wouldn't be lying there like this…"
"But if this is my last stand… then I'll go down protecting them. As a true Ironclad should."
With a final roar, he charged again.
Inside the Museum
Dracula stood in silence, eyes cold, posture regal.
The last remaining vampire knelt, trembling. "P-please… have mercy…"
Dracula tilted his head. "Strip."
"…What?"
"You're my size. My height. I need clothes."
Outside, in the Phantom World, they waited in silence.
A golden crack suddenly appeared on Trixie's cheek.
Akira turned his head toward Trixie, catching sight of the golden crack forming on her cheek. She hadn't noticed.
"Yo, Trixie....your skin's cracking," he called out, drawing the group's attention.
"Huh?" she blinked, confused—just as another crack appeared, this one black and snaking across her forehead. She winced in pain.
"Damn… It shouldn't be acting up this early," she muttered. Yukiko rushed to her side.
"Did you take your meds from Mr. Simon?" Yukiko asked urgently.
"No… I was supposed to go tonight, but since we had a mission, I pushed it to midnight. I didn't expect it to trigger so soon..." she replied, glancing around for a place to sit.
"So that's what it looks like…" Akira thought, forming a stool beneath her.
"What's going on…?" Mikage and Edward exchanged confused glances.
Suddenly, a portal opened beside them. Two figures stepped out.
One was a pale man, wearing glasses and sporting grey hair. He looked to be in his 30s. The other was a dark-skinned teen with dreadlocks, piercing blue eyes, a single earring in his right ear, and four short staffs strapped to his back. Both were dressed in sleek black jumpsuits, each bearing a golden tree emblem—though their suit designs were noticeably distinct.
"It's the Divine Visionaries," Mikage said aloud, stepping forward.
The older man scanned the group before smiling faintly. "You must be Mikage—student of Mr. Oliver and heir to the Magata family. A pleasure. My name is Luke, and this is Lyon."
Luke offered a handshake.
"The pleasure's mine," Mikage replied, shaking his hand. "B-tier, I presume?"
"Not me," Luke corrected with a smirk. "Lyon is the B-tier Divine Visionary. I'm just C-tier. I'm here to override the Phantom World."
"Oh?" Mikage raised a brow. "Someone our age made it to B-tier? Why does that name sound familiar…?"
"Hi, I'm Akira," Akira stepped forward with a friendly hand extended.
Luke ignored it entirely, walking past him with a disgusted look, sparing only a sidelong glance at Edward—who glared back, unwavering. Luke clicked his tongue in irritation and continued.
"This must be the Phantom World," he said, stopping before the veil.
"That was rude," Akira thought to himself, eyebrows twitching.
"Yes, it is," Mikage confirmed, moving beside him. Akira started to follow but was stopped by Edward.
"What is it?" Akira whispered.
Edward didn't answer. His gaze remained locked on Luke, sharp and unyielding.
Luke raised a hand toward the veil. Intricate magic circles flared to life—then immediately turned red and shattered.
"Oh my. This one's a nasty piece of work," Luke said, amused.
"So… you can't override it?" Mikage asked.
"I didn't say that. I can—but it'll take time. I can open it for just a few seconds. That's when Lyon will slip in before it closes again."
"And after that? How long before you can open it a second time?"
"Twenty to twenty-five minutes. Whoever made this knew what they were doing. It's built to persist even after the caster dies."
"Good thing there's no urgent threat inside," Mikage thought with relief.
Luke suddenly added, "One more thing."
"What is it?" Mikage asked.
"Tell those two creatures to stop glaring in my direction. It irritates me."
The air tensed. Akira's eyes narrowed. Is he talking about us?
He felt Mikage and Edward's mana rising.
"I don't appreciate what you said to my friends," Mikage said calmly. "I'd like you to take it back."
Luke glanced at Mikage, then at Edward—still glaring—and finally at Yukiko, whose hand now rested on her katana. He let out a dry laugh and turned back toward the veil, pretending not to notice the rising pressure in the air.
Lyon said nothing, simply watching.
"Get ready, Lyon. The veil is about to open!" Luke shouted.
"Tch... I really hope this is worth my time," Lyon muttered, cracking his neck as his pupils sparked with blue lightning.
Inside the Phantom World
A severed arm lay on the ground, blood pooling beneath it. Kane was on his knees, his body riddled with holes, right hand missing, breaths ragged.
"How you're still breathing in that condition is a miracle," Charles smirked. "You're resilient, I'll give you that. If it were your friends in your place, they'd be dead already. But it's over. You'll die... and they'll follow." He grinned. "Or—how about this? Become a vampire. Serve me. A second chance at life as my underling."
Kane let out a broken, lifeless laugh.
"Go fuck yourself," he croaked, spitting on Charles' foot.
"I'll take that as your last words," Charles said coldly. His arm morphed into a sharp tentacle as he lifted Kane by the neck with the other hand, ready to pierce his chest.
Suddenly, the veil split open—
A wave of dark mana blasted out of the Phantom World like a tsunami. Everyone froze. Sweat poured from their bodies.
"W-what… what is this power?" Trixie gasped, eyes wide. "It's crushing… like I'm drowning at the bottom of the ocean!"
Akira stood at the threshold, body trembling not with fear, but rage. His eyes locked on Kane hanging in the air, with James and Tony bleeding out on the floor.
"KANEEE!!" he roared, vanishing into the Phantom World.
"WAIT!!" Mikage shouted, racing after him.
Lyon blinked in shock, then darted in behind them just as the veil slammed shut.
Outside, Edward, Yukiko, Trixie, and Luke gasped as they could breathe again.
"I need to get out of here," Luke panicked. "They're dead anyway—"
He turned to run—
SHINK!
A dagger forged from pure darkness was at his throat. Edward had shadow-stepped in front of him, eyes cold.
"Go back," Edward ordered. "You were sent to dismantle the Phantom World. Do your job."
"Who do you think you are to command me?!" Luke snapped. "Tch… Dark mana users. Always acting like they belong."
"You're not going anywhere."
Yukiko's katana was at the other side of his neck. Her voice was calm—deadly calm.
"I am Yukiko Hakuren, granddaughter of Hanzo Hakuren. The sole heir to the Hakuren name." Her eyes narrowed. "If you refuse to open the veil, I'll report you to the higher-ups—for cowardice, for abandoning three students while bearing the title of Divine Visionary. Imagine the punishment… the disgrace."
Luke gritted his teeth, voice shaking.
"Y-you're all insane… you'll regret this."
Still, he began to undo the Phantom World.
Inside the Phantom World
Lyon surged past Mikage and Akira in a blur.
"Mikage! Follow me!" Lyon shouted. "Your friend can handle that bastard. There's a bigger threat deeper in!"
Mikage paused, glancing at Akira.
Akira gave a firm nod.
Mikage clenched his jaw, then shot forward, racing after Lyon.
"Huh?" Charles blinked, momentarily distracted—just as Akira appeared mid-air, swapping places with Sigvard in a flash of dark light.
SHUNK!
Charles' arm was severed.
Akira caught Kane mid-fall, vanishing again with a shadow step. Around them, dark-armored soldiers formed from the ground—Akira's mana manifesting as a defensive line around Kane, James, and Tony.
Sigvard stepped forward, facing Charles.
Farther inside, Dracula stood, silent. He sensed it.
"What are these new mana signatures…?" he wondered.
Suddenly
"Enten!" Mikage bellowed, hurling a blazing fireball, massive and roaring, directly at the Vampire King.