The Guardian battles had finally come to an end.
Airi had returned to normal.
Raika had regained consciousness.
Sahara had finally stopped fighting her own emotions.
Mizuna had been freed from the Demon Queen's control.
But one Guardian still remained.
The strongest of the Five Guardians.
Kaguya—the Weapon Master Guardian.
And now, there was only one person left to face her.
Leo.
---
A flash of golden light appeared at the very edge of the world.
Leo stepped out of the teleportation portal.
The moment his feet touched the ground, he looked around.
There was nothing.
No city.
No temple.
No forest.
No mountains.
Only an endless horizon.
The ocean stretched ahead of him, while the land behind him seemed to disappear into nothingness.
It was as though he had reached the final boundary of the world itself.
Leo slowly looked toward the horizon.
"Hmm..."
He put his hands on his waist.
"The end of the world."
He smiled.
"Hmm... pretty good place to have a fight."
Leo looked around again.
"But where is she?"
Silence.
He waited.
Five seconds.
Ten seconds.
Thirty seconds.
Nothing.
Leo sighed.
"Well... I suppose I'll wait."
He sat down on the ground.
Then suddenly, he remembered something.
"Wait."
He snapped his fingers.
"Since she's taking so long to teleport here..."
Leo closed his eyes.
"I might as well talk to my Spiritual Beast."
---
Inside Leo's consciousness, everything became peaceful.
A massive golden lion was lying on the ground.
The Lion King opened one eye.
Then the other.
He immediately looked annoyed.
"Oh?"
Leo appeared in front of him.
"Hey."
The Lion King suddenly stood up.
"HEY!"
Leo jumped.
"Whoa!"
The giant lion stared at him.
"Do you finally remember that I exist?"
Leo blinked.
"Of course I remember."
"Then why haven't you talked to me?"
Leo scratched his cheek.
"Well..."
The Lion King walked closer.
"Do you know how long it has been?"
"No."
"You haven't contacted me."
"I've been busy."
"You haven't even let me rest!"
Leo laughed awkwardly.
"Sorry."
The Lion King pointed toward his own eyes.
"Look at my eyes!"
Leo looked.
There were huge dark circles underneath them.
Leo's eyes widened.
"Damn..."
The Lion King sighed dramatically.
"Look what you've done to me."
Leo laughed.
"I'm really sorry, okay?"
"Then why are you here now?"
Leo smiled.
"Because there are only two battles left."
The Lion King froze.
"...Two?"
"Yeah."
Leo raised his fist.
"We'll save the world one last time."
The Lion King slowly looked toward the sky.
Then he took a deep breath.
"Thank God."
He placed one paw against his chest.
"After this, I can finally retire."
Leo stared at him.
"Retire?"
"Yes."
Leo crossed his arms.
"At your age, I don't think retirement is possible."
The Lion King's eye twitched.
"What?"
Leo continued.
"Think about it. Every time the world gets peaceful, some new disaster appears."
The Lion King became silent.
Leo smiled.
"There's always someone trying to destroy the world."
The Lion King slowly looked depressed.
"...Don't remind me."
Leo laughed.
"Anyway, I'll talk to you after the battle."
The Lion King immediately shouted.
"WAIT! YOU'RE LEAVING AGAIN?!"
Leo disappeared.
"Good luck!"
"LEOOOOOO!"
---
Leo opened his eyes.
He was back at the end of the world.
He looked around.
Still nothing.
Leo scratched his head.
"She's still not here?"
He stood up.
"Hmm..."
He looked at the empty battlefield.
"Then I'll do something useful."
Leo dropped into a push-up position.
"One."
He went down.
"Two."
Again.
"Three."
Again.
"Four."
His speed increased.
"Five. Six. Seven. Eight..."
His movements became faster.
The ground began shaking.
"Ten thousand..."
The wind started spinning around him.
"Hundred thousand..."
Dust rose into the air.
"One million..."
Leo's arms moved so quickly they became a blur.
"One million, one hundred thousand..."
His body was moving at an absurd speed.
"One million, one hundred and eleven thousand..."
The ground beneath him cracked.
Leo finally stopped.
He stood up and wiped his forehead.
"Hmm..."
He looked at his hands.
"I don't even know how many I did."
He shrugged.
"Whatever."
Suddenly—
BOOOOOOM!
A gigantic teleportation portal opened behind him.
Leo turned around.
"Oh."
A woman stepped out.
She was enormous.
Her body was covered in the powerful Guardian armor that all five sisters had used while under the Demon Queen's control.
Two gigantic blades were mounted across her back.
Each weapon was massive.
Chains connected the two weapons together, allowing her to swing them independently or use them like chained weapons.
She slowly stepped forward.
Her eyes glowed red.
Kaguya.
The final Guardian.
The Weapon Master.
She looked down at Leo.
"So..."
Her voice echoed across the battlefield.
"You are the one who came to fight me."
Leo looked up.
"Yep."
Kaguya smiled.
"Then you're even smaller than I expected."
Leo's eyebrow twitched.
"That's rude."
Kaguya laughed.
"Look at you."
She lifted one gigantic weapon from her back.
"How could someone of your size possibly fight me?"
Leo looked at her.
Then he remembered something.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Wait."
Kaguya tilted her head.
"What?"
Leo pointed at her.
"I just realized something."
"What?"
"I don't know your name."
Silence.
Kaguya stared at him.
Leo stared back.
Then he casually asked:
"So... what's your name?"
Kaguya blinked.
"...You're asking me now?"
"Yeah."
She sighed.
"My name is Kaguya."
Leo nodded.
"Kaguya."
She smiled.
"The Weapon Master Guardian."
Leo nodded again.
"Nice to finally know your name."
Kaguya raised her giant weapon.
"And I am the one who serves the Demon Queen."
Leo's expression changed.
"...What?"
Kaguya smiled.
"I serve the Demon Queen."
Leo stared at her.
Then he slowly nodded.
"Yeah..."
He placed his hand against his chin.
"That actually makes sense."
Kaguya looked confused.
"What?"
"Because you're still under her manipulation."
Leo sighed.
"So you're the last one."
Kaguya's smile disappeared.
"The last one?"
"Yeah."
Leo looked toward the horizon.
"Everyone else came back to their senses."
He looked back at her.
"You're the only Guardian still controlled."
Kaguya raised her weapon.
"Then I suppose I'll be the last obstacle."
Leo reached behind his back.
His hand grabbed the handle of his khukuri.
"Maybe."
Kaguya suddenly grinned.
"However..."
She raised both gigantic weapons.
"You can't fight me in this form."
Leo looked at her enormous body.
"...You're right."
Kaguya smiled.
"So I'll make this easier for you."
Her gigantic body began shrinking.
The massive Guardian form collapsed inward.
Her size decreased.
Ten meters.
Five meters.
Three meters.
Until finally—
She stood directly in front of Leo.
Her height was now roughly the same as his.
But her clothes remained exactly the same.
The Guardian armor had not disappeared.
Leo stared at her.
Kaguya smiled.
"Now we are equal."
Leo slowly pulled out his second khukuri.
"Much better."
Kaguya grabbed the chains attached to her weapons.
"Come."
Leo lowered his stance.
"Gladly."
For a moment—
Silence.
The ocean stopped moving.
The wind disappeared.
Even the clouds seemed to freeze.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!
Both of them disappeared.
Their weapons collided in the center of the battlefield.
CLAAAAANG!
A shockwave exploded outward.
Leo slid backward.
Kaguya didn't move.
She immediately swung her giant chained blade.
Leo ducked.
The weapon passed over his head.
WHOOSH!
Leo spun around and slashed toward her side.
Kaguya blocked with the second blade.
CLANG!
She kicked.
Leo crossed his arms.
BOOM!
He was thrown backward.
He flipped through the air and landed on one foot.
"She's strong."
Kaguya pulled both weapons backward.
The chains tightened.
Then—
She launched both blades simultaneously.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
Leo jumped.
One passed beneath him.
The second came from above.
Leo twisted his body in midair.
The blade barely missed him.
He landed—
But Kaguya was already there.
BANG!
Her fist struck his guard.
Leo flew backward.
He crashed into the ground and rolled several meters.
He immediately jumped back up.
"Okay..."
He wiped a small amount of blood from his face.
"This is going to be harder than I thought."
Kaguya laughed.
"You're finally understanding."
She swung both weapons again.
Leo rushed forward.
Their battle became a blur.
CLANG!
BOOM!
WHOOSH!
CRASH!
Leo dodged one blade.
Blocked another.
Jumped over a third attack.
He countered with his khukuri.
Kaguya blocked.
She spun.
The chain wrapped around Leo's weapon.
She pulled.
Leo nearly lost his balance.
Kaguya appeared directly in front of him.
BOOM!
Leo was hit again.
He flew through the air.
He landed hard.
This time, he didn't immediately stand.
Kaguya walked toward him.
"Is that all?"
Leo slowly pushed himself up.
His clothes were torn.
His body was covered in injuries.
His breathing had become heavier.
Kaguya raised her weapon.
"You should have brought more than two little blades."
Leo looked at his khukuri.
Then at Kaguya.
He smiled.
"You know..."
He slowly stood.
"I've been holding back too."
Kaguya's eyes narrowed.
Leo's expression suddenly became serious.
His spiritual energy exploded around his body.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The entire battlefield shook.
Kaguya's hair and clothes were blown backward by the pressure.
Leo lowered his head.
Then he slowly opened his eyes.
His pupils had changed.
They looked different.
Sharper.
Calmer.
Almost unnatural.
His senses expanded.
The sound of the ocean became clearer.
The wind became slower.
Every tiny movement around him became visible.
Kaguya moved her fingers.
Leo could see it.
The chain moved.
He could see it.
Her weapon shifted by a fraction of an inch.
He could see that too.
Leo whispered:
"Form Two..."
His spiritual aura erupted.
His eyes glowed with a strange, ultra-sharp appearance.
Everything around him seemed to slow down.
Kaguya's expression changed.
"What...?"
Leo raised his head.
His senses had reached another level.
Even movements approaching incredible speeds now appeared slower to him.
Leo tightened his grip around his khukuri.
"Now..."
He stared directly at Kaguya.
"I can see you."
Kaguya smiled.
"Then try to keep up."
She vanished.
Leo's eyes followed her.
For the first time—
He didn't move immediately.
He waited.
He watched.
He calculated.
And then—
Leo smiled.
"Got you."
TO BE CONTINUED...