Kevin stepped forward with his sword ready. In front of him, the dark figure stood silent, preparing his black blade.
"Who are you?" The figure asked.
"KevinDawson, the Crimson Knight," he responded coldly.
"Crimson Knights... never heard of you," the figure replied.
"Trust me, I'm not like any of these weaklings," Kevin added, glancing behind him. "Now, won't you introduce yourself?"
The figure then drew his sword, pointing it forward as he said:
"Zero, the Dark Bladian, and the third Dark Lord serving the King of Darkness."
"Hmph. Such a long introduction," Kevin mocked coldly. "Just to be clear, I'm not interested in fighting Armageddon and his dogs."
Then, as he began glowing, he added:
"However, my pride refuses to let evil spread... especially when I'm around."
Suddenly, Kevin and Zero rushed forward, clashing their blades. Kevin jumped back and unleashed several crimson slashes. Zero dodged all of them using his {Shadow Step}, an ability that lets the user move swiftly, leaving black illusions behind.
Zero instantly countered with dark slashes. Kevin blocked them with his sword. Without hesitation, Kevin smashed the ground with his blade, creating a chaotic quake filled with crimson energy. Zero leapt high, avoiding the burst.
After landing, Zero said:
"I admit it... you're a worthy opponent. Even that sword doesn't seem normal."
"I haven't even used my true power yet," Kevin replied. "I was just getting started."
"I see. Just to let you know... neither have I," Zero added.
Then, they continued clashing blades fiercely.
Meanwhile, Lara stayed back to help the injured trio. Vincy was still unconscious, while Yukiko had woken up, though unable to stand on her own. Ema, with Lara's support, stood up.
"Shouldn't we help him?" Ema asked.
"Don't worry. He'll be alright," Lara replied softly. "The name's LaraTakumi, by the way. And his name is KevinDawson."
"EmaKenjiro. Thanks for the help!" She responded with a smile.
Ten minutes passed. Kevin and Zero leapt back at the same time, cooling down.
"Won't you show your true power yet?" Zero asked.
"If you insist, I'll gladly show it," Kevin replied.
Then, he held his sword with both hands and began glowing.
Suddenly, a red-colored wyvern symbol appeared behind him, just like what had happened with Taro that day. Kevin rushed forward instantly. Zero kept blocking with his blade, but the strikes were heavier than ever.
After a few minutes, Zero became visibly exhausted. Kevin struck the ground again, causing Zero to lose balance and drop his sword. Kevin sent the blade away and raised his own sword to end him with one final strike.
"Don't blink!" Kevin said.
Suddenly, a dark blast struck Kevin's arm, knocking his sword away and leaving him off-guard. It was Malice... she had saved Zero at the perfect moment.
"Tsk, coward!" Kevin snapped.
Zero raised his hand, and his black sword flew back into it. Instantly, he kicked Kevin back and struck him with another dark slash. Kevin remained standing, but he was badly injured and exhausted. A couple of seconds later, his glowing vanished.
Zero unleashed another slash, but Lara blocked it with her scythe, stepping in front of Kevin.
"Stay out of this, Lara," Kevin warned.
"No thanks. I'm not going to wait until you turn into a skeleton," Lara responded coldly. "Just stay back."
Suddenly, a strong light burst out of Yukiko and her katana. Sakura-shaped particles began spreading from her body. Her eyes and form glowed more than ever before. Yukiko had finally reached her strongest technique: {Bloom Phenomenon}.
She joined Lara, wielding her dual katanas.
"Oi, Yukiko, you're still–" Lara began.
"Daijoubu, Lara-chan," Yukiko replied. "My blade started glowing the moment that creature appeared."
"That blade... wasn't it Shizuka's?" Zero asked.
"How do you know about my sensei?" Yukiko questioned back.
"The one who killed her... was me," he replied.
Yukiko gripped her blades tighter.
"Naruhodo... my katanas want to avenge my sensei's death," she said in a sorrowful tone.
"And now, I'll do the same with her pupil," Zero said in his usual cold tone.
He unleashed a large dark slash toward her, but Yukiko blocked it with her blades.
"Lara-chan, take care of the crow lady," she requested.
"And you take care of yourself, Yukiko," Lara replied with a smile.
Yukiko used her {Flash Step} to move behind Zero. He blocked just in time, clashing blades. Suddenly, Yukiko spun and slashed in multiple directions. Zero blocked some, but others left him injured. Before he could leap back, Yukiko used her {Sakura Rope}, wrapping around his arm. She jumped in, kicked his chest with both legs, and slashed. She chased him for several minutes without pause.
Meanwhile, Malice was summoning her illusional clones. Lara threw her shurikens at them while blocking attacks with her scythe. Malice then began firing dark blasts, but Lara kept evading.
Malice charged a larger attack. Lara gripped her scythe tightly. A purple-colored peacock symbol appeared behind her, just like Kevin earlier. As Malice unleashed her energy, Lara swung her scythe in a circle, deflecting the blast. Suddenly, a sharp blade extended from the scythe's bottom. Lara hurled it at Malice. However, she dodged, and the scythe returned to Lara like a boomerang.
Moments later, Vincy regained consciousness, crouched down.
"Vincy, are you alright?" Ema asked.
"Yeah... a little. What happened?" He responded.
Then he spotted Kevin in front of him.
"Hey! What's he doing here?!" Vincy shouted.
"Vincy, calm down," Ema said. "He came to help."
Kevin turned and looked at him.
"You're finally awake. No time to be lazy," he said coldly.
That arrogant jerk... Vincy thought, clenching his fists.
Then he noticed Kevin's wounds, saying:
"Hey, you're hurt...!"
"I'm fine, but I'm not sure about her," Kevin replied, looking at Yukiko.
Vincy looked toward Zero, asking:
"Who is that creature?"
"One of the Three Dark Lords, and the strongest one by far," Ema answered.
"Now tell me... what happened to you?" She added.
"What do you mean? What did I do?" Vincy asked back.
"You grew two wings and horns, and went insane for minutes," she explained.
"I-I don't remember anything..." he murmured.
Suddenly, a purple portal opened nearby. Out of it, dark creatures came out in great numbers. Yukiko and Lara retreated to protect the others. Kevin stood with his sword, and Ema prepared her bow. Vincy tried to get up, but stumbled.
"Don't push yourself. We'll handle them," Ema said.
"Aw man... I'm always unlucky," Vincy replied, ashamed.
They began fighting the wave, ignoring Malice and Zero. Kevin and Lara struck from the right, and Yukiko from the left. Ema joined Yukiko with her light arrows.
Once they cleared the wave, just before the portal vanished, Obsidian stepped out. He emerged beside Malice and Zero, clenching his fists.
"Obsidian's back!" He shouted.
"No way! That muscled jerk returned!" Vincy shouted, pissed.
This is bad... the only one who can beat him is Vincy, and he's not ready yet, Ema thought, worried.
Zero stared at Obsidian, asking:
"Obsidian, why are you here?"
"Those were my king's commands!" He replied.
"Tsk, he acts without thinking again!" Malice muttered.
"No. This time is different. Look closely," Zero said. "They're defenseless. This is our chance!"
"Oh? So that's what you're thinking?" Malice replied. "You're right."
"Obsidian, Malice, lend me your hands," Zero ordered, raising his arm.
They placed their hands on his, and together they charged a massive dark aura. Eventually, a huge dark beam formed. Kevin noticed and shouted:
"Everyone, behind me!"
They all heard and rushed behind him, except Vincy, who stood in front of him.
"Idiot! It's dangerous!" Kevin warned.
"Be quiet! I won't just stand here doing nothing!" Vincy shouted back, bracing with his arms.
Before Kevin could say anything else, the Dark Lords blasted the beam.
Just before it could strike Vincy, a glowing, massive blue shield appeared in front of him. It blocked the beam entirely, then vanished. The Dark Lords were shocked, while the others were surprised, wondering about what happened. Then, someone appeared in the distance... approaching them.
That was TaroAbodo, holding a new powerful sword!