Lyren snapped a rapid kick upward, catching Jupiter under the chin and launching him back across the stage. She shot after him, splitting into a cascade of multi-colored silhouettes. Each clone raised its hands and fired a rain of vibrant light beams.
Jupiter braced himself, but her output had skyrocketed — every clone hit with force nearly matching her own. Before he could adjust, the illusions rushed him with blades of light drawn.
He curled inward.
A forest of bone spikes erupted from his body, skewering every clone in an instant as they burst into sparks.
"Slimy bastard..." Lyren hissed.
A low buzzing sound filled the arena. Jupiter looked up, he was surrounded again, this time suspended high above him.
"DIRTY FIREWORKS!" Lyren roared as she and her duplicates unleashed a crushing bombardment of beams. The blasts pounded him relentlessly, dust pluming upward until the arena floor looked buried under clouds.
She didn't let up.
Then —zip— the real Lyren flashed directly over the strike zone, her raised leg glowing with blinding intensity.
"SOLAR HEEL DROP!"
A pillar of pure radiance crashed down, swallowing the stadium in light. The crowd shielded their eyes from the shockwave.
When the beam faded and the dust thinned, Lyren stood tall, breathing hard but triumphant. She turned toward the announcer—
—and froze as a chill of absolute death crawled up her spine.
"That was a great meal."
Jupiter's voice was warped, deeper... hungry.
He rose from the crater. His skin had darkened several shades, and the wild mess of pink hair now hung straight and limp across his face. His aura churned violently.
The ground shattered under his first step.
He vanished.
Lyren's body slammed into the floor before the sound reached the crowd. Then came a storm of invisible hits — dozens, hundreds — blurring into one prolonged impact that crushed her from every direction.
"Hurts, doesn't it?"
Jupiter seized her and hurled her skyward. Both hands pointed up as he fired a hail of bone bullets, each shot punching through her as she screamed.
She plummeted toward the stage — a broken, bloody silhouette, but Jupiter wasn't finished.
Chi surged through him. He launched himself after her, battering her mid-air with brutal punches before catching her by the ankle and whipping her downward like a rag doll. She struck the arena, bounced, and before she could even gasp, he slammed her head into the ground again, carving out a crater.
"Had enough yet!?" he snarled, his voice no longer human.
From his high seat, Zephyr's expression tightened with confusion. I can't sense it... but does he have a contract with a—
His thought cut short.
Court Angel Ragna flashed into the arena, spear pressed against the back of Jupiter's skull. Jupiter's arm had twisted into a bone drill, seconds away from ending Lyren's life.
"Don't move," Ragna warned, his voice lethal and cold. "I won't hesitate to kill you."
Jupiter's monstrous form snapped away instantly. He exhaled, raised both hands lazily in surrender.
"You won. Don't push it again — or you'll be disqualified."
Jupiter nodded, unimpressed, and walked off toward the exit as the stadium erupted — cheers, boos, and a chaotic mix of bloodthirsty excitement. Even those who despised him couldn't deny the spectacle.
Erenyx shivered. "They were insanely fast..."
Loretta nodded. "I can't even touch speed of sound with my Cloudsteps."
Heartz groaned playfully. "Man... meanwhile I'm just running like a regular dude."
Everyone laughed — except Rui, who tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Still. Lyren was moving at literal light speed. And Jupiter... blitzed her. While holding back."
Zephyr's eyes narrowed. "You could tell he was holding back, Rui?"
She nodded. Erenyx chimed in, "That was maybe half his power."
Zephyr let out a low, impressed laugh. "You two are far more perceptive than I expected. Good."
Heartz and Loretta exchanged baffled looks, neither of them having noticed any of this.
Zephyr turned to Heartz. "Do you think you could beat him at full strength?"
Heartz met his gaze for a moment. Then he looked down, fist quietly clenching. "No. He'd slaughter me."
Zephyr's smile carried the weight of experience. "Those are the types who will challenge you for your title, or kill you just to send a message. I don't know where each of you came from — besides my boy Loretta — but I do know this: enemies exist everywhere. Factions, nations, people wanting power."
His aura pressed against them — not harsh, but immovable.
"Seek strength. Quickly, but without losing yourselves. I put my belief in you all in front of the entire world." He paused, letting the silence sink in. "Don't make me regret it."
The warning was cold.
The trust behind it felt warm.
And the group felt both deeply.
...
Erenyx leaned against the wall, anxiety written all over her face, phone pressed to her ear. "Jeez... none of you bastards can pick up?" The call dropped to voicemail, so she left a message anyway. "Hey, Dad. I have a lot to catch you and Orion up on, but I just... wanted to hear your voice. I heard you're off with Neriah. Wherever you are, be safe, okay? Call me back when you can. Love you."
She ended the message and tucked her phone away, her mood sinking as she pushed herself off the wall. Night had settled over the city, warm air moving with a gentle breeze. The faint taste of salt drifted in from the sea miles away. It should've been calming.
And for a moment, it was.
But each breath came out shaky, unsteady. Then she noticed something wrong — she could see her breath, misting in front of her like the air had suddenly turned frigid. Confusion snapped her posture rigid as her eyes darted around the empty street.
Nothing. Not a soul she could sense.
Her breathing sped up. Fear slid cold fingers down her spine.
And that cold became real — ice began creeping over her fingertips, delicate and dangerous.