Kura noticed the way the bishop defended against his attack, confirming his theory about the old man's true power.
— Well, I can assume that my regular attacks won't work against that ability of yours.
The young man admitted this as he prepared to strike again. He had already come up with a plan: the bishop would make another move, altering the ground beneath the protagonist and creating a hole that would drop him straight to the floor below. In response, the dark-haired youth covered himself in electricity, using electromagnetism to "fly." He then used his electricity again—not to hit the bishop, but to heat the air into plasma, allowing him to control the gas.
— You should've died from that attack, Bishop!
Meanwhile, as Arold was finishing his preparations, explosions rang out, killing Mr. Uzai's subordinates who were attacking him. It looked like a minefield.
— You won't reach me… for the simple reason that I turned the entire floor you walk on into a bomb!
That was the power of Arold's spirit—a reflection of his often explosive personality—which allowed him to turn the ground into a highly explosive chemical compound by touch. The long-haired young man was finishing up the setup for the mission's conclusion.
— Hey, you military bastard!
The one shouting was one of the bishops' followers—Father Dantony. Arold just turned slightly toward him:
— Huh? Oh, it's just one of the failed priests. If I were you, I'd stay there and accept defeat already.
Some of the priests' underlings grew angry and charged forward, but the moment they stepped on the ground ahead, a massive explosion killed most of them and left others without limbs. Since Arold made no visible attacking movement, no one understood what had happened. He just kept working with the wires to complete the plan.
— I warned you, didn't I?!
Arold said, but Father Dantony suddenly lunged at him with absurd speed. His only reaction was to put his hands up—no one understood why. The priest went in confidently, expecting to land a full punch, but as his blow reached Arold's hands, an explosion occurred, throwing him back. The blast was so powerful it ripped off one of the man's hands.
— This is going to be fun, Father!
Meanwhile, Kura was still in a deadly battle with the bishop. The entire second floor of the temple was in ruins, just like the rest of the temple. Both were gasping for breath, the bishop covered in burns.
— I have to admit, kid, you really have some great skills!
The dark-haired youth was exhausted as well.
— Thanks… I could say the same about you—if you weren't a dead man!
After those words, Kura launched a gigantic electric punch at the old man, reaching a temperature of 30,000°C. The bishop repeated his strategy of summoning iron pillars, which would normally work.
— That's useless now!
The masked man quickly melted the steel pillars in seconds, then manipulated them with electromagnetism. He swiftly reshaped them into dozens of knives and hurled them at the old man. The only reaction the cleric had was to take control of a statue behind him to act as a shield and counterattack.
— You're getting smarter, kid. But…
The bishop made the ground seem like liquid and "dived" into it to reach the shoulder of the massive statue faster, using it as a perch.
— But this ends now!
He made the statue strike repeatedly at the masked youth. The blows were relentless, but Kura dodged them all with ease. After evading for a while, the young man countered—he turned the air around him into plasma due to the heat of his lightning and manipulated it electromagnetically to melt both of the statue's hands. Taking advantage of the moment, he closed in on the bishop. Reaching lightning speed, in less than a second, he was face-to-face with the man. Kura flipped in the air and landed a high-speed kick toward the bishop's head. The old man narrowly dodged and transformed a small part of the statue's shoulder into a sword, attempting to sever the youth's leg. Kura managed to melt and break the bishop's sword with electricity, but not before suffering a small cut. As he tried to pull his leg back, the bishop threw a punch at his face. Kura dodged, but the bishop made Kura's mask shift shape. The protagonist used his lightning heat to melt the mask's strap and pull it away, dodging the needles it turned into—only receiving minor cuts on his forehead and cheeks.
"Tsk… He might be old, but he's not slow or weak!"
Kura had this thought as he fell to the ground. He used his flight technique to land without injury and quickly raised his head to get a clear view of the bishop. Upon seeing the young man's face, the bishop froze for a moment, then spoke:
— Ooohhh… When I heard your name, I doubted you were telling the truth…
His shocked expression turned to genuine joy, followed by a loud laugh:
— GYAHAHAHAHAHAH! Who would've thought?! The army sent the one and only vessel this country has to kill me!
At that moment, in the temple's underground, Father Dantony and Arold were nearing the end of their battle. Arold had some bruises and blood on his lips. The priest was worse off—missing an arm, covered in burns, and with swollen veins.
— Ever since this fight started… I've been dizzy and nauseous… and it doesn't seem to be just from blood loss.
Upon hearing that, Arold gave a relieved smile and stretched, confusing everyone around him until he spoke:
— Well, my ability is to generate explosive materials or turn things into explosives by touch. What you're feeling is from triiodide, a chemical variant of iodine that's just as toxic… In short, you're already a dead man.
The priest prepared for one last charge, using his power to bounce off the walls. The explosive youth extended his arm with a thumbs-up and declared:
— I touched your remaining arm during our fight!
Then, he dropped his thumb like pressing a detonator. The enemy's arm exploded—along with the triiodide inside his wounds—blasting his heart and brain veins, killing the priest mid-attack. Other lower-class enemies charged Arold, but he responded with a massive explosion that killed them all and hurled them outside—right where Kura and the bishop were still fighting. Kura quickly understood the message: his brother had finished his part of the plan.
"Finally!"
But in that second of distraction, the bishop landed a kick on his chest and pressed a sword to his throat.
— Now I'll kill you. Then I'll kill that other one who came with you. And after that, I'll start my revolution against this country, using the people of this damned city as my pawns!
The bishop finished his speech—but suddenly heard his own words echo back. He turned pale. The young man had used his electric control to transmit the bishop's words through speaker wires, like a stadium's loudspeakers. The entire city gathered furiously outside the temple, using their spiritual powers to try to break down the doors, yelling that the bishop must die for his crimes.
— Well, at their request, I'll do it myself—here and now!
Kura kept transmitting his voice and, using his maximum speed, delivered a right punch to the old man's chest, piercing through his body.
— I hope the gods show you mercy in your judgment!
The young soldier said before beheading the bishop and taking his head. He grabbed Arold and fled the temple, heading back to the academy.
— Hey bro, our stuff's still in the hotel!
Arold shouted, not wanting to leave his clothes behind.
— Shut up, Arold! Let's get out of here and pass this exam!
And so, they began their two-day journey on foot back to base, ready to complete their trial.