The silence Nox left in her wake was a physical weight, thick with the dust of the erased and the echo of Sarah's failed punch. Kenta was at her side in an instant, helping her up, his own horror mirrored in his eyes. The sheer scale of the annihilation was beyond anything they had ever witnessed.
"LR…" Sarah whispered, her hand trembling as she clutched her numb arm. The System's warning was a death sentence written in cold, digital fire.
Before the reality of their situation could fully crush them, a weak, gurgling sound came from the dais. King Theron, whom they had thought dissolved like the others, was stirring. His body was half-gone, fading into motes of light, but some ancient, desperate magic was clinging to the last shreds of his existence. One hand, shimmering and translucent, was pressed against the arm of his throne, which now glowed with furious, golden runes.
"Fool…," the King rasped, his voice the sound of crumbling stone. "You think… my ancestor… the Tyrant King Alaric… built this castle… for beauty?" He coughed, a spray of golden light. "He was a monster… who loved bloodsport… A final failsafe… the 'Crimson Gala'… once activated… no one leaves the throne room… until only one soul… drawn by royal blood… remains alive."
As his words faded, the massive, ornate doors of the throne room slammed shut with a finality that shook the very foundations. The runes on the walls, floors, and ceiling blazed to life, weaving a net of brilliant, golden light that sealed every window, every crack, every possible exit. The air grew heavy, pressurized. They were trapped. The entire throne room had become a gilded cage, and the slaughter had just been the opening act.
From the shadows across the room, Nox rematerialized. Her amused detachment had vanished, replaced by a flicker of sharp, calculating annoyance. She reached a hand towards the shimmering barrier at the main door, and a bolt of golden energy repulsed her with a sizzling crack.
"A containment field," she murmured, her starlit eyes narrowing. She turned her gaze to the fading king. "A rather dramatic security system. How… inconvenient."
Her eyes then slid back to Kenta and Sarah, the last other souls in the room. The implication of the King's words hung in the air, unspoken but understood. Only one would be allowed to walk out.
"It seems our introductions were cut short," Nox said, her voice regaining its silken, predatory calm. She began to pace slowly, a panther assessing its prey. "The rules of this little arena are simple, if brutish. I need to leave. You are in my way." Her gaze lingered on Kenta. "A shame. I did mean what I said. You are remarkably compelling. The way you move… that beautiful, discordant harmony within you. It would have been a delight to unravel you, piece by piece, under different circumstances."
She stopped pacing and faced them fully. The air grew cold as her LR-ranked aura began to bleed into the room, a palpable pressure that sought to crush their will and freeze their blood. It was a dominance display, meant to make them kneel.
Kenta stepped forward, placing himself slightly in front of Sarah. The dark aura of Yami no Hikari flickered around him, not in a wild rage, but as a focused shield against the psychic weight. He said nothing. He simply settled into his stance, both hands resting on the hilts of his blades. His calm was a fortress against her storm.
Sarah, her arm still tingling, pushed herself to her feet beside him. The System was screaming at her to run, to hide, that victory was impossible. She ignored it. Instead, she focused on the data, the Infinity Calculation whirring to life, not to find a path to victory, but to find a path to survival. She analyzed the barrier's energy frequency, the pattern of Nox's movements, the decaying royal magic sustaining the king.
"We don't have to win," Sarah said, her voice low and steady, meant only for Kenta. "We just have to be the last ones standing. We just have to survive her."
Nox's smile returned, wider and sharper this time. "Survival? Against me? Oh, my dear spark. You have no idea what you're asking for."
The gilded cage was sealed. The monster was inside with them. The only way out was through a battle that, on paper, was a foregone conclusion. But as Kenta and Sarah stood back-to-back, ready to face an LR-ranked entity, they knew paper meant nothing. They had each other. They had the lessons of the temple. And they had the desperate, unyielding will to live. The final, bloody act of the Crimson Gala had begun.