The green military uniform with the distinctive red beret of the northern heroes.
Behind him was an entire army of soldiers just like that. But the snow-white hair and the weary eyes in that confident demeanor made him stand out the most.
"Stand still and put your hands behind your head, Jim Zecker. You're surrounded."
His voice rang out as he stepped into the only beam of light shining down. The standard warrior looked more like a main character appearing at the last moment than ever before.
Behind him, a series of warriors in uniforms had completely surrounded every cage.
Just with their appearance, even if the cage doors were opened, those raging monsters wouldn't dare open their mouths to roar even once.
They probably sensed the fear too. A fear deep within their instincts about the uniform that had once made all of LIMBO submit.
But Zecker didn't. He smiled brightly and spread his arms wide as if welcoming them, not like he was surrendering and surrounded.
The corners of Zecker's reptilian mouth and eyes stretched wide as he looked at the white-haired commander, as if seeing an old confidant he hadn't met in ages.
"Nort Burningstar. Finally, the giant of the White Plains sent you. I even thought he'd let me do whatever I wanted?"
Zecker's leisurely tone made everyone think he was waiting for them like friends, not like he was being cornered and captured by a top-tier army.
And it wasn't wrong to say that he and they were once friends. After all, they all came from the same military ranks.
"Jim Zecker."—Nort Burningstar tossed a pair of handcuffs down in front of those lizard feet.—"Kneel down and put the cuffs on your hands."
A basic procedure, but normally someone among them should have gone right up and shackled the madman. It's just that Jim Zecker was considered a specially dangerous target.
Think about it: a gigantic reptilian race with superior strength and speed that could tear apart countless other races without any help. Not stopping there, he also had combat skills from the heroic legion of the White Plains, and he had even unlocked Authority—the power considered utterly irrational in a world that was already illogical.
Add to that a heap of scientific knowledge and an army of self-implanted monsters, and it made the wanted image on everyone's control bracelets rate Jim Zecker as Class A—a natural mobile disaster.
Because of that, even the Commander had unanimously decided before deploying the team that no one would initiate an attack first, and they would consider it a voluntary surrender unless Nort Burningstar—the captain of the Silver Shooting Star Squad—personally subdued him.
But of course, everyone knew that was just a completely meaningless formality.
Because originally, this wasn't a mission that anyone besides Nort Burningstar could handle.
The lizard's claw extended and slashed through, cutting the cuff into four pieces without his eyes even moving.
"Looks like I slipped up a bit. Could the strongest hero of the current era overlook that for me?"
His tongue flicked out as if provoking the whole group in front of him. But his eyes didn't stop focusing on the two young men.
Nort noticed that too. And now, their objective had completely changed after overhearing the conversation and information from these two humans.
And that title "The strongest hero of the current era"? It made the blue eyes under that platinum hair flicker slightly. Then they quickly returned to their usual even and sleepy state.
"Then I'm afraid I'll have to forcibly take you in. But I'll give you a second chance."
Nort took out another pair of handcuffs. He was about to toss them again in front of the lizard, but his instincts immediately made his body pull back.
An invisible slash cut from the ground to the handcuffs.
It even revealed the real sponsor's forbidden sign when the ground was sliced open.
[UNDERLINED GROUND Manufacturing Workshop]
This probably wasn't enough to truly concern Nort. But cross-referencing the penalties from this worthless scrap and Jim Zecker's prior record, this was completely sufficient reason to subdue and arrest him.
At the same time, it was what he had been waiting for all along.
"Jim Zecker. Cross-referencing with the common laws of LIMBO and the UTOPIAs: you have committed the following crimes:
Desertion. Experimenting on living beings without permission. Working with unlicensed facilities. Resisting law enforcement.
In my role as a Hero of LIMBO, I hereby declare the order for forced arrest of Jim Zecker—former Hero of the Northern Plains."
"It's truly a great honor to face the strongest of this era."
Zecker's tail curled around the sword made of scales and placed it back in his palm.
The lizard's body shifted into a basic defensive stance with a sword like one used for rapier, but with karma energy flowing powerfully from his body to the blade and tip.
But that's not quite right. His entire body stood erect, with scales and spikes rising all over him, making Zecker bristle with swords. Each of those swords could fully retract and launch invisible slashes, and everyone could see they were strong enough to force Nort Burningstar to dodge.
Entering a stance that overwhelmed the enemy, but they forgot one part of Zecker's power.
"Everyone, focus on defense. I'll handle him immediately."
Nort did the same. He drew a sword hilt from his waist and extended it straight to his bracelet. The energy flow changed color through the bracelet and condensed into a silver-white blade.
Yes. The bracelet. Zecker had one too.
And at the same time as he charged forward, the screams of the implanted monsters rang out with the lizard's final button press.
Just one command. The creatures that had been suppressed by fear immediately switched to feeding mode. At that moment, in the heads of those walking, eating implants, there was only biting and tearing at anything in sight.
The warriors still standing there immediately became victims as their weapons were still aimed at the large lizard.
More accurately, after the Hero's footsteps, a one-sided crushing was happening behind his back and in front of the smugly smiling enemy.
It's not that he didn't notice it, but right now, he couldn't do anything more.
The blades of both clashed as they seemed to push force against each other.
But at that moment, Zecker, trying to press forward, immediately felt a loss of force. The hero completely vanished before his eyes.
In his place, Nort Burningstar stood in front of a group of people, some lying, some standing unsteadily behind. Not just them, White Turner and Rust were also completely behind him.
And Nort's monster horde had been completely exterminated. Blood, corpses, and waste from them were scattered all over the research bunker as if someone had just run through, slashing each one like they were on a stroll while executing a massacre.
And that someone here could only be one person. Only one.
"As expected of the strongest hero. But the trade-off is a bit much, huh?"
"Shut up, Zecker."—Nort's breathing was heavier, but he kept it as normal as possible. After all, his side only had him left who could continue fighting.
But Zecker's side was the same.
Each side only had one left.
And Nort was still completely capable of suppressing Zecker.
"Stop it, Zecker. You're taking things too far."
The blade pointed straight at the lizard's tongue again. But this time, instead of the excited glee from before, he was utterly calm.
As if he knew this would certainly come. And it looked like he had been waiting for it for a long time.
"You're right, but not quite. I haven't reached the goal I desire yet, so I'm not allowed to stop."
The spikes hadn't been retracted at all. The ice sword was the same. Everything remained focused on what was probably the strongest opponent he had ever faced.
Yes. Jim Zecker understood what he was facing. It was his end. And also the new beginning he had been waiting for.
That's why he could stand here proudly and face it heroically, instead of constantly digging tunnels to hide and skulk around like before.
The sword slashed out again along with a barrage of blades from the sharp scales. The target of all those was none other than the group behind Nort Burningstar.
But no one bathes twice in the same river. This time, the captain of the White Plains warriors didn't waste a breath to cleanly wipe out those sword energies.
In fact, the ice sword, fangs, and sharp scales on the lizard's body were all stripped clean. What remained was only a few drops of blood boiling and waiting to evaporate on that green-white energy blade.
Nort's sword tip pierced through the layer of flesh no longer protected by those impenetrable scales. His hilt gently lifted the face drooping from pain and blood loss of a fallen former hero.
"Don't do anything more. Come along and submit to escort."
Under those eyes, the words held only pleading and weariness.
Even though Nort knew saying this was utterly meaningless at this point.
"Haha... You won't wait until that day. My work here is done."
The reptilian eyes rolled toward the sword piercing through his shoulder.
Zecker was as if waiting for that. He surged up with his last breath and yanked the sword in Nort's stunned surprise.
Blood and sweat, along with complacency, had made Nort lose his grip on the situation. Blood from his body covered the boy's eyes. The smell of innards and other things paralyzed his senses. The lizard's final strength and body kicked him away for the first time.
But fortunately, what Zecker wanted to seize wasn't the boy's life.
He pulled out the sword. Launched a sword strike. Just one strike where he expended all his strength and life. Just one strike large enough to reach what he considered essential.
Finally. He immediately collapsed before the purple-black light corroding back along that large but fragile sword energy path.