Back within the depths of the forest, Shoto remained seated against the enormous trunk of an old tree while the healing pod he was in earlier continued operating several feet away from him, its metallic frame humming steadily as streams of pale blue energy moved through the transparent chamber where Hikaru's battered body remained suspended, and although the worst of Hikaru's injuries had already been repaired, the pod continued pouring energy into his body while Shoto quietly watched the process with an exhausted expression, his Dark Sword resting against the tree beside him as the peaceful surroundings gave him a rare opportunity to think about everything that had happened.
The silence of the forest was suddenly interrupted when the Dark Sword began glowing.
A dark radiance spread across the weapon as faint crimson energy crawled along the black surface of the blade, illuminating the grass around it while several unfamiliar markings appeared before slowly fading away, and Shoto immediately turned his attention toward the weapon with a confused expression because the sword had never reacted like this without a reason, especially after Hikaru's Water Sword had displayed similar behavior earlier.
Shoto slowly reached toward the Dark Sword, but before his fingers could touch the hilt, the strange energy abruptly disappeared as though someone had flipped a switch, leaving the weapon completely silent and ordinary once again.
Shoto stared at the sword for several seconds before slowly lowering his hand and looking toward the healing pod, where the internal lights had begun flashing as the machinery released a series of mechanical clicks that echoed throughout the forest.
The pod was beginning to open.
Steam slowly poured from the edges of the chamber as the transparent door lifted upward, revealing Hikaru still lying inside while the healing system gradually powered down, and Shoto pushed himself away from the tree as he watched the chamber open, completely unaware that another presence had already entered the clearing behind him.
A thin man slowly emerged from the forest.
His entire appearance was cloaked in crimson, with the strange material covering nearly every recognizable feature of his body while his silhouette seemed to flicker between existence and nothingness as he quietly approached Shoto from behind, moving with such unnatural silence that even the leaves beneath his feet barely seemed to react to his presence. Teziel.
Teziel stopped several feet behind Shoto and simply watched him, his crimson-cloaked body partially phasing in and out of sight as though reality itself could not properly decide whether he belonged within the physical world, yet despite standing close enough to strike, he made no attempt to attack, and after several moments of observation, his entire figure gradually faded until he disappeared into the surrounding forest without leaving behind a single trace.
Shoto continued watching the healing pod as another presence suddenly entered the clearing, and this time the atmosphere changed so dramatically that Shoto immediately sensed something approaching.
A woman slowly stepped through the trees while holding a sword directly toward Shoto's face, her enormous white wings extending behind her while her pristine white military uniform reflected the sunlight, and upon her head rested a white general's hat decorated with gold accents that immediately suggested she possessed considerable authority within whatever heavenly force she represented.
The woman stopped several feet away from Shoto and kept the sword pointed directly at his face while staring at him with an expression completely devoid of emotion.
"It's time to face your judgment, Shoto Kazami."
Shoto slowly raised his head and stared at the woman, his eyes moving from the sword pointed between his eyes to the enormous wings behind her before returning to her face as he tried to understand exactly what was happening.
"Judgement? What the hell are you talking about?"
The woman did not answer him.
She simply continued staring at him with the same cold expression while keeping her sword raised, and the complete lack of response made Shoto increasingly uncomfortable because there was something about her presence that told him she was not interested in explaining herself.
Before Shoto could ask another question, the healing pod released another burst of steam.
Hikaru slowly sat upright inside the chamber while rubbing his eyes, his expression carrying the confusion of someone who had just awakened from an unusually deep sleep, and after blinking several times, he slowly climbed out of the pod while stretching his arms and shoulders, completely unaware that an entire army was standing outside waiting for him.
Hikaru wiped his eyes before looking toward Shoto with a tired expression.
"Look, Shoto, we can stop fighting, okay?" Hikaru said while rubbing the back of his head and slowly walking toward him. "Look you can't handle this whole Ayato thing by yourself, you have to let u-" Hikaru stopped speaking, seeing the angelic general and the enormous army of angelic soldiers standing throughout the forest.
Hikaru blinked several times as his brain attempted to process what he was seeing, because behind the angelic general stood countless soldiers dressed in a white uniform while carrying swords, spears, shields, bows, and other weapons, with enormous wings extending from their backs and filling the spaces. Hikaru slowly looked toward Shoto, Shoto looked back toward Hikaru. Without saying a word the two immediately turned around and sprinted through the forest at full speed, abandoning every thought of fighting as the angelic army reacted almost instantly and began charging after them.
"GET THEM!" one of the angelic soldiers shouted while spreading his wings and launching himself forward.
"THEY'RE GETTING AWAY!" another soldier yelled as several others took flight above the trees.
Shoto and Hikaru sprinted through the forest while branches whipped across their faces and leaves scattered beneath their feet, with Shoto nearly tripping over a fallen branch before recovering at the last possible moment while Hikaru continued running beside him.
"HURRY UP DUMBASS! THEY'RE GAINING ON US!" Hikaru said, glancing towards Shoto.
Shoto looks back towards the army then back at his Rival. "THEY FLYING FASTER THAN WE CAN RUN!"
The two eventually burst out of the forest and onto the bustling roads beyond it, where the sudden appearance of two exhausted teenagers sprinting out of the trees immediately caused pedestrians to turn their heads in confusion, but the confusion quickly turned into panic when the enormous army of winged soldiers emerged from the forest behind them.
Hikaru continued running as quickly as possible while Shoto suddenly accelerated past him, causing Hikaru to assume that Shoto had finally decided to use all of his strength to escape.
Instead, Shoto suddenly stopped.
His shoes scraped violently against the pavement as he came to a complete halt in the middle of the road.
Hikaru continued several steps before realizing Shoto was no longer beside him, causing him to skid to a stop and turn around with an expression of complete disbelief.
"KAZAMI, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"
Shoto stood motionless in the middle of the road with his back toward the approaching army, his head lowered while his hands slowly tightened into fists.
Shoto slowly raised his head.
Dark energy began spreading across his face.
Black scales gradually formed beneath his lower eye and extended across his cheek, creating an ominous pattern against his skin as his expression hardened and his eyes locked directly onto the approaching army.
Hikaru stared at him with growing disbelief.
"Hey, Hey! You're not serious right?"
Shoto reached behind his back and grabbed the hilt of his Zamorak Sword, pulling the obsidian-black weapon free as molten red veins illuminated across its surface and a powerful vibration traveled through the blade.
The angelic general immediately noticed Shoto standing alone in the middle of the road.
"He has stopped," she announced while raising her weapon. "Prepare yourselves!"
Shoto tightened his grip around the Zamorak Sword while slowly drawing his Dark Sword with his other hand.
Shoto crossed the two swords before violently separating them, creating a massive X-shaped wave of dark energy that erupted from the blades and tore across the road toward the approaching army.
"X-SABER!"
The attack raced toward the angels with tremendous speed, ripping through the pavement as the enormous X-shaped blast generated a deafening roar that caused pedestrians to flee while the surrounding buildings shook from the pressure.
The angelic general immediately recognized the attack and raised her sword.
"DEFEND YOURSELVES, MEN!"
The angelic soldiers immediately halted their advance and raised their weapons as a gigantic barrier formed around the army, spreading outward in a massive dome of radiant energy just as the X-shaped blast reached them.
The attack collided with the barrier.
A tremendous explosion erupted across the road as the X-shaped energy slammed into the defensive wall, sending a massive shockwave through the surrounding buildings while dust and shattered pavement were thrown into the air, and the angelic general immediately raised one arm in front of her face as the enormous cloud of debris swallowed the entire battlefield.
For several moments, nothing could be seen.
The angelic soldiers remained behind their barrier while the general waited for the dust to settle, and when the cloud finally began clearing, the army remained completely unharmed despite the destruction surrounding them.
The general slowly lowered her arm and stared toward the road. She narrowed her eyes as both Hikaru and Shoto are gone.
The general's expression hardened as she slowly looked toward the surrounding buildings. "So he used that blast to cause a distraction for their escape. Impressive." One of the angelic soldiers spoke up. "What should we do now?"
"Find them, we can't afford to let Remedus eacape.." the general ordered while lowering her sword, her voice becoming cold and commanding as the soldiers immediately began searching the surrounding streets.
Hikaru and Shoto continued running through the deserted streets until the sounds of the angelic army pursuing them gradually became distant, and after turning through several abandoned roads and slipping between the remains of damaged buildings, the two finally found a temporary place where they could stop without immediately being spotted, with Hikaru slowing down first as his exhausted legs began to give out beneath him before he eventually collapsed onto the ground, his back hitting the pavement as he released a long breath and stared upward toward the empty sky.
"I think this is good enough.."
Shoto remained standing beside him for several moments while trying to catch his breath, his body still tense from the encounter with the angelic army, but as the adrenaline slowly began fading from his body, the black scales that had formed beneath his lower eye and across his cheek gradually disappeared, leaving his skin completely normal again as the strange power that had surrounded him finally subsided.
Shoto slowly placed his back against the nearest wall while attempting to steady himself, but the moment his body touched the damaged surface, his remaining strength seemed to disappear as he gradually slid down the wall until he was sitting on the ground beside Hikaru, his breathing heavy while his eyes struggled to remain focused.
For several seconds, Shoto's vision began to blur.
The buildings surrounding him seemed to distort while the edges of his vision became hazy, and the sounds of the distant city slowly became muffled as though he were underwater, but after blinking several times and shaking his head slightly, his vision eventually returned to normal, allowing him to once again see Hikaru sitting nearby.
Shoto lowered his head while staring at the ground, his expression becoming increasingly exhausted as everything that had happened began rushing through his mind all at once.
"What the hell is going on anymore.."
Hikaru slowly shrugged while sitting against the pavement, his expression unusually serious as he stared toward the deserted street ahead of them.
"I don't know, but your father definitely has something to do with it."
Shoto slowly looked toward Hikaru before lowering his eyes toward the ground again, his fingers tightening slightly against his knees as the mention of his father caused another wave of uncertainty to settle over him.
"Yeah.."
For several moments, neither of them spoke, but Shoto's silence was not peaceful, because beneath it was an overwhelming amount of confusion, fear, and frustration that had been building inside him since the moment he learned about his supposed past.
"The Rune Gate, these angels.., Kyoya.., My dad.. This Reincarnated King Crap.. I can't do this.."
Shoto's voice gradually became weaker as he lowered his head, and before he could stop himself, tears began forming in his eyes, slowly running down his cheeks while he desperately attempted to wipe them away, but the more he tried to hold everything inside, the more impossible it became to keep his emotions under control.
"This is all getting too much.. all of this is happening because of some king that I don't have memories of.. what if he was a Tyran—"
"Shut up."
Hikaru interrupted him before he could finish the sentence.
Shoto slowly raised his head.
Hikaru looked directly at him, his expression serious but not angry, because he understood exactly what Shoto was doing to himself and refused to allow him to continue blaming his present life on the actions of someone whose memories he did not even possess.
"You're not him.. you don't have any memories of that man either. This is a good thing."
Hikaru slowly pushed himself upward from the ground and stood directly in front of Shoto, his expression remaining firm as he extended one hand toward him.
"You're Shoto Kazami, so what if that king was a Tyrant or an idiot or a murderer or some Corrupted Leader. You're not him, never will be. We both don't know about these angels, and where Kyoya is and your fa-.. what I'm trying to say is.. you're not alone in this. Not anymore, so stand up and let's go beat your dad.."
Shoto stared at Hikaru's outstretched hand for several seconds while the tears continued sliding down his face, his expression caught somewhere between exhaustion and disbelief as though he had not expected Hikaru to say something like that, especially after everything the two of them had gone through.
Shoto reaches his hand, as Hikaru pulls him up. helping Shoto rise from the ground as the two stood together in the middle of the abandoned street, and although Shoto's expression remained exhausted, something within his eyes had changed, because the overwhelming fear that had consumed him moments earlier was no longer quite as powerful as it had been.
When Shoto looked around the city, he noticed something strange. There were abandoned cars sitting motionless along the roads, some with their doors still open as though their owners had simply disappeared without warning, while buildings stood completely silent on both sides of the street with no movement visible behind the windows, and despite the fact that they were standing within what should have been a busy part of the city, there was not a single person anywhere.
Hikaru looked around as well, reaching for his back pocket for his glasses as he put them on quietly. "Let's keep moving.." Hikaru started to walk forward as Shoto followed him quietly.
Within the secluded depths of Zan-Xi's mansion, far away from the chaos that had begun spreading throughout the city and completely isolated from the disturbances taking place beyond the estate's walls, an unnatural silence had settled over one of the mansion's most private rooms, where the only sounds disturbing the stillness were the faint ticking of an antique clock mounted against the far wall and the quiet crackling of the fireplace burning several feet away, while Zan-Xi stood alone in the center of the chamber with his attention completely focused on a strange weapon enclosed within a large transparent display case.
The weapon resting inside the clear container was unmistakable, because although Zan-Xi had encountered countless weapons throughout his life and had witnessed artifacts possessing abilities that ordinary people could never begin to comprehend, the object before him carried an aura that immediately separated it from anything mundane, with its magnificent golden and blue design reflecting the warm illumination of the room while its elaborate structure revealed it to be another one of the legendary God Swords, an ancient weapon whose reputation alone was enough to make even experienced warriors approach it with caution.
The Saradomin Godsword rested horizontally within the protective case, its magnificent blade reflecting the flickering firelight while the ornate golden hilt and divine blue accents gave the weapon the appearance of a sacred relic rather than something created for ordinary battle, and Zan-Xi remained several feet away from it while silently studying every detail of the weapon, his expression calm and unreadable as though he were attempting to determine exactly why the sword had been brought into his possession and whether the strange artifact would recognize him as someone worthy of wielding its power.
The heavy wooden doors behind him slowly opened, causing a faint creaking sound to echo throughout the chamber as Inoue, Zan-Xi's trusted butler, quietly entered the room with the same precise discipline he displayed regardless of the circumstances, and after gently closing the doors behind himself, the butler walked toward his master while maintaining a respectful posture and keeping his hands calmly positioned in front of him.
"I couldn't find Sylph, sir, shall I go back and retrieve him from the cat?" Inoue asked quietly while standing several feet behind Zan-Xi, his voice carrying through the otherwise silent room as he waited patiently for his master to acknowledge him.
Zan-Xi did not turn his head, because his eyes remained fixed upon the Saradomin Godsword while his expression stayed completely unchanged, and for several moments he simply stood there in silence as the warm reflection of the fireplace moved across the transparent display case before finally answering in a calm and dismissive tone.
"I'm sure that Lizard will be fine."
Inoue lowered his head respectfully while accepting the answer without question, and after giving a slight bow, he turned toward the doorway and began walking away from the room with the quiet efficiency that had made him such a reliable servant throughout the years.
"Understood, sir," the butler replied quietly before leaving the room and gently closing the heavy wooden doors behind himself, leaving Zan-Xi alone once again with the strange weapon and the uncomfortable silence that had settled over the mansion.
The moment Inoue disappeared, the room became silent once again, although the silence now felt different to Zan-Xi because there was something faintly unnatural about the atmosphere surrounding the weapon, as though the presence of the Saradomin Godsword had subtly altered the room itself while waiting for someone to finally reach toward it.
Zan-Xi continued staring at the Saradomin Godsword through the transparent case, and after several seconds had passed, he slowly approached the display while keeping his eyes fixed upon the sacred weapon, his expression becoming slightly more focused as he reached toward the locking mechanism and carefully examined the container before finally releasing the seal.
The case slowly opened as the transparent cover lifted upward, and the instant it did, a faint pressure spread throughout the room, causing the flames within the fireplace to flicker while the air surrounding Zan-Xi seemed to become heavier and strangely still.
Zan-Xi paused as he felt the energy radiating from the weapon, because the sensation was unlike anything produced by an ordinary sword, and for a brief moment it felt as though the Saradomin Godsword itself were silently measuring the man standing before it, testing his presence without revealing whether it considered him worthy of touching the divine weapon.
Rather than stepping away, Zan-Xi continued forward and slowly extended his hand toward the Saradomin Godsword, his fingers gradually approaching the ornate hilt as though he intended to determine whether the weapon would react to his presence, and with every inch he moved closer, the strange pressure within the room seemed to grow heavier.
His hand was only inches away from touching the hilt when his instincts suddenly screamed at him, causing every muscle in his body to tense as his attention immediately shifted away from the weapon and toward the surrounding room.
Zan-Xi immediately stopped moving, and although his expression barely changed, his eyes narrowed as he slowly glanced toward the empty space beside him, because despite the fact that there appeared to be absolutely nothing there, something about the atmosphere had changed enough for him to realize that someone else was inside the room.
Zan-Xi immediately closed the display case, his movements becoming much faster as his right hand moved beneath his coat and pulled out his firearm in one smooth motion before he turned toward the empty space and fired without hesitation.
The gunshot echoed throughout the room as the bullet traveled directly through the space where Zan-Xi believed the intruder was standing, but the projectile passed through nothing except empty air before disappearing into the opposite wall.
Zan-Xi remained perfectly still while smoke slowly drifted from the barrel of his weapon, his eyes remaining fixed upon the location where he had fired as he waited for whatever had entered his mansion to reveal itself, and despite the apparent emptiness of the room, his instincts continued warning him that he was not alone.
The air suddenly distorted several feet away from him.
A strange crimson silhouette slowly phased into existence, with the thin man's entire body concealed beneath a crimson cloak that seemed to flicker between physical and intangible states, while his outline constantly shifted as though reality itself were struggling to maintain his form, and although his face remained partially hidden beneath the crimson hood, a faint grin could still be seen beneath the darkness as he stared toward Zan-Xi with obvious amusement.
Teziel slowly tilted his head while looking at the firearm still pointed toward him, his expression suggesting that he was genuinely impressed that Zan-Xi had managed to detect his presence before he had even attempted an attack.
"I'm surprised you noticed me, I haven't even made a move yet.."
Zan-Xi did not lower his firearm, because his expression remained completely calm as he continued aiming directly at Teziel while carefully studying the mysterious intruder standing before him, his eyes moving across the crimson cloak and the strange distortions surrounding Teziel's body as he attempted to understand exactly what kind of being had entered his mansion.
"The hell are you.. and what are you doing in this room?"
Teziel responded with a quiet snicker as his crimson body suddenly began phasing away, his silhouette becoming increasingly transparent until the crimson cloak and the thin figure beneath it completely disappeared from Zan-Xi's sight, leaving behind nothing except a faint distortion in the air.
Zan-Xi immediately fired again, sending another bullet through the location where Teziel had vanished, but once again the projectile passed through empty air without striking anything.
Another shot followed.
Then another.
Each gunshot echoed through the mansion as Zan-Xi continued firing toward the faint distortions appearing throughout the room, but rather than firing blindly, he carefully tracked the slightest changes in the air and attempted to predict where Teziel would reappear next.
Teziel suddenly appeared near the wall, his crimson silhouette materializing between one heartbeat and the next, but Zan-Xi immediately turned his firearm toward him and fired, forcing Teziel to phase away before the projectile could make contact.
Another distortion appeared behind Zan-Xi.
He immediately spun around and fired again, but the bullet passed directly through the crimson figure as Teziel phased away before the projectile could reach him, leaving Zan-Xi standing in the center of the room with his firearm still raised while the strange assassin continued disappearing and reappearing around him.
Teziel appeared near the fireplace before vanishing again, then briefly emerged beside the display case before disappearing once more, and although each appearance lasted only a fraction of a second, Zan-Xi continued watching carefully while trying to determine whether Teziel's ability had a limitation that could be exploited.
Despite the unnatural nature of Teziel's ability, Zan-Xi never panicked, because he understood that becoming frustrated would only allow his opponent to control the pace of the confrontation, so instead he remained patient while studying every distortion and every subtle movement until the room suddenly became completely silent.
Zan-Xi slowly lowered his firearm by only a fraction while keeping his eyes fixed on the space in front of him, because the sudden absence of movement was more suspicious than anything Teziel had done so far, and after several seconds passed without another appearance, Zan-Xi realized that the assassin was deliberately waiting for him to relax.
The air directly in front of Zan-Xi suddenly rippled.
Teziel appeared directly in front of him.
The crimson assassin stood so close that his face was only inches away from Zan-Xi's own, and from beneath Teziel's cloak, a strange crimson appendage slowly extended toward him, resembling a distorted red hand with elongated fingers that appeared almost completely unnatural, while the grotesque appendage stopped inches away from Zan-Xi's face as Teziel stared directly into his eyes.
"Shaniran's orders," Teziel said with a quiet grin as the strange crimson hand slowly curled its fingers, the joints bending in a way that made the appendage look less like a human hand and more like some living creature preparing to tear its prey apart.
Zan-Xi continued staring at him without showing the slightest trace of fear, because even with the monstrous appendage hovering directly in front of his face, he refused to give Teziel the reaction he was clearly hoping to provoke.
"Kill you, then your group.."
The atmosphere inside the room became unbearably tense as the two men stood only inches apart, with Zan-Xi's firearm still held firmly in his hand while Teziel's strange crimson hand remained poised directly in front of his face, and behind them, the Saradomin Godsword remained sealed within its transparent display case, its golden and blue surface reflecting both figures as though the sacred weapon itself were silently witnessing the beginning of a confrontation that was about to tear through the mansion.
Zan-Xi slowly tightened his grip around the firearm while keeping his eyes locked onto Teziel, his expression remaining completely calm despite the assassin standing directly within striking distance, because whatever Shaniran had ordered Teziel to accomplish, Zan-Xi had already decided that he would not allow the mysterious crimson man to complete his mission without forcing him to fight for every inch of ground.