The screen continued playing the insane recording.
The tattooed figure, Sukuna, emerged from the rubble where he had been thrown. In his hand, somehow, he was holding a cup of soda and a box of popcorn.
His expression was flat, radiating absolute boredom, as if he were taking a stroll in the park rather than standing on a battlefield. His lips moved slightly, murmuring something, but his voice was swallowed by dust and wind.
"The white monster attacks with overwhelming raw physical power, while that man… he's using some kind of invisible sorcery," Koko analyzed, her eyes narrowing sharply.
"He doesn't seem to be taking this fight seriously at all," Kagaya added, his tone tinged with concern.
"He's treating this as a game," L replied flatly. "Look at his expression. That's the face of someone seeking entertainment, not victory."
"Wahahaha!"
Nobu's laughter exploded throughout the room. She clutched her stomach, aching from laughing too hard. "He was just thrown through a building by a Berserker-class monster, and look at him! Casually drinking cola and eating popcorn like he's watching a circus!"
Zelretch shook his head in disbelief. "In the middle of a life-or-death battle… he's snacking? What kind of arrogance is that? Is he the reincarnation of Gilgamesh?"
A demonic grin slowly spread across Nobu's face. "This guy… I'm starting to like him. I really want to meet him, and then…"
Koko turned toward Nobu, raising an eyebrow. "And then?"
Nobu let the sentence hang for a moment. Her gaze sharpened, a faint red-black aura flickering around her. In a flat, lethal tone, she finished her thought.
"…kill him."
Ritsuka remained silent, his eyes locked onto the battle on the screen, unwilling to miss even a single second.
Back on the screen, Sukuna casually flicked his hand.
SLASH!
Mahoraga's body was sliced open once again. The monster was pushed back but quickly regained its balance. Mahoraga lunged forward, grabbed Sukuna by the face, slammed the King of Curses into a concrete wall, and dragged him along the side of the building, pulverizing glass and walls into dust.
Mahoraga hurled Sukuna into the neighboring building with monstrous force. Sukuna landed on one hand, spun, and looked up at Mahoraga.
"Come on," he mouthed silently, challenging the monster.
Mahoraga charged. Sukuna leapt backward, narrowly avoiding a blow that completely flattened the building's floor.
"This really is like a battle between top-tier Servants," Zelretch commented in awe.
"They're far more brutal than your fight earlier, Ritsuka. And look… that man doesn't hesitate at all to destroy public infrastructure," Kagaya said.
Ritsuka fell silent. In his heart, a question echoed. Why is he smiling? In the middle of all this destruction… why is he smiling?
On the screen, Sukuna landed atop Mahoraga's clasped hands. With an acrobatic motion, he kicked the monster's head. Mahoraga staggered, but Sukuna gave it no reprieve. Grabbing the monster by the collar, he instantly severed both of Mahoraga's legs with his sorcery.
Mahoraga collapsed. But before its body could hit the ground, its chest expanded, lungs swelling unnaturally, and it released a devastating shockwave of compressed air.
BOOM!
Sukuna was blasted backward by the explosive gust.
"He can do that too?!" Koko exclaimed in shock.
"It seems his lungs possess abnormal elasticity, allowing him to compress air as a weapon," L analyzed quickly.
Sukuna was thrown several miles away, crashing into another building. He briefly reached into his pocket, checking something, before Mahoraga landed in front of him again and smashed him downward.
The two of them plunged freely. In midair, upside down, Sukuna blocked Mahoraga's assault with both hands and feet, then countered with a kick.
Sukuna tried to punch, but Mahoraga blocked the blow with its own fist. The shockwave from their clash shattered every window within hundreds of meters.
"Hm?" L raised an eyebrow. "It blocked the attack? Does that monster have combat intelligence?"
"It seems the monster doesn't rely solely on muscle, but also on a sharp learning instinct," Nobu added.
The fight continued on the rooftop. Mahoraga pummeled Sukuna relentlessly, but Sukuna blocked every strike with open palms alone. The impact of their clash split the skyscraper vertically in two, causing it to collapse.
Zelretch's eyes widened. "Incredible… that tattooed man didn't even need to gesture to activate his cutting sorcery just now. He can trigger it without any movement."
"Their physical strength also seems evenly matched," Kagaya added.
On the screen, Mahoraga now hovered in the sky. Suddenly, it wrapped debris from nearby buildings around itself using the tail-like structure on its head and swung it like a massive whip, smashing Sukuna through another building.
Sukuna burst out and charged toward Mahoraga. In response, Mahoraga ripped cars from a parking structure and hurled them like pebbles.
Sukuna deflected the cars midair, then with a precise volley kick, sent them flying back toward Mahoraga.
As the cars struck, Mahoraga suddenly went still.
SLASH!
A massive horizontal slash struck its neck. Mahoraga's head and shoulder were deeply severed, nearly completely cut off. Its head drooped sideways, held in place by only a thin strip of flesh.
"That monster… it didn't even scream in pain. It's holding together despite being cut like that," Nobu muttered grimly.
"Is the monster finally defeated?" Koko asked hopefully.
"No. Not yet," L replied shortly.
Right after L spoke, the screen dimmed for a moment, and that dreadful sound echoed once more. The exact same sound as Ritsuka's Dharma Wheel.
CLUNK.
The screen brightened again. Sukuna stared coldly at Mahoraga.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
Before them, the gaping wounds on Mahoraga's neck and shoulder closed at an absurd speed. In an instant, it was completely healed, as if nothing had happened.
"It seems the fight isn't over yet. That wheel can even heal fatal injuries like near-decapitation," Nobu said, her tone now serious.
"Uhuk—uhuk!" Kagaya coughed in shock. "Is it possible… that the arms and legs that were cut off earlier also grew back after that sound?"
"That should be the case," L answered. "If the wheel can heal a nearly severed neck, regenerating limbs would be trivial."
Zelretch tapped his staff against the floor. "Its head was sliced down to the shoulder, yet it was healed… just how far does this ability go? How far can that wheel keep its 'user' alive?"
"Does that mean… Ritsuka could also survive injuries like that?" Koko asked quietly.
All eyes in the room immediately turned toward Ritsuka.
Ritsuka felt the weight of their stares. He swallowed, cold sweat trickling down his neck. "I-I don't know either…"
"Want to test it?" Koko teased with a terrifying crooked smile. "I have tools that can produce wounds that precise. Let's see if you can survive and regenerate."
"Don't joke around, Koko! I don't want to experience that!" Ritsuka protested in panic.
Nobu laughed heartily, her eyes gleaming mischievously. "Wahahaha! Master, if you're unsure, no need for fancy tools. I'd be happy to help 'confirm' it right now!" Her hand moved toward the hilt of her sword.
"Nobu! Stop it!" Ritsuka shouted.
Back on the screen, the battle grew even more insane. Sukuna was rammed by Mahoraga and sent flying through several city blocks at supersonic speed.
Sukuna landed in an empty building. Mahoraga landed before him. Suddenly, the concrete pillars around Mahoraga were cleanly sliced apart, yet strangely, Mahoraga's body wasn't scratched at all.
Sukuna grinned. He lunged forward and pressed his palm against Mahoraga's abdomen.
ZREEEET!
Instantly, Mahoraga's stomach exploded into thousands of spiderweb-like slashes. Blood sprayed everywhere.
L leaned forward, eyes sharp with confusion. "Why did he touch it? Earlier, he could attack without physical contact."
"It seems to be a different type of attack, judging by the damage," Kagaya said perceptively.
Zelretch nodded. "Yes, very different. His long-range attacks were singular and powerful. But when he touched the monster… the effect was like thousands of blades mincing it in a single second. And there's something strange about that monster."
"Strange? What do you mean?" Nobu asked.
"I'm not entirely sure yet. I'll explain once I see more," Zelretch replied.
Ritsuka remained silent, staring at the cruelty on the screen.
Back on the screen, Sukuna stood casually before Mahoraga, who lay in a pool of blood. Suddenly, Mahoraga rose again, the blade on its arm swinging toward Sukuna's neck.
Sukuna avoided the strike with minimal movement. Mahoraga pressed on, aiming its blade at Sukuna's neck to decapitate him.
But instead of blocking with his hand, Sukuna tilted his head. Suddenly, the skin on his neck split open, and a massive mouth full of teeth emerged.
CRACK!
The mouth on his neck bit down on Mahoraga's blade, stopping it with terrifying jaw strength.
Koko's face turned pale. "Eek!! He can even grow a mouth on his neck?!"
Sukuna used the moment to kick Mahoraga in the stomach with all his might.
BAM!
Mahoraga was launched skyward, then slammed violently into a building across the street.
Mahoraga tried to stand, but white foam began spilling from its mouth. It looked on the verge of death, its life about to end. Yet once again, the Dharma Wheel above its head rotated, glowing gold in the darkness.
CLUNK.
"Again…" Sukuna muttered, sounding both annoyed and amused.
Sukuna extended his hand forward. Mahoraga's body was struck again by invisible slashes, but this time the damage was significantly reduced.
"The wheel healed the monster again… and it seems that man's attacks are getting weaker?" Kagaya said.
Mahoraga roared and charged Sukuna, driving the King of Curses through falling debris.
The battle moved into the air. They exchanged blows amid the steel framework of a construction site. Sukuna cleverly fired an attack at the hook of a massive crane above them.
SNAP!
The hook snapped, and the giant steel crane fell, poised to crush Mahoraga.