The battle eventually ca to an end.
And just as everyone had expected—
Elysia won.
Sunny collapsed onto the broken stone floor while breathing heavily, his entire body aching from head to toe. Dust covered his clothes, several bruises were forming across his arms, and his chest still hurt from the absurd kick Elysia had delivered earlier.
Nearby, Nephis remained standing, though her breathing had also beco slightly uneven.
anwhile, Elysia herself rely sat atop a nearby rock while swinging her legs leisurely, looking completely relaxed.
Not even tired.
Sunny stared at her in disbelief.
'Monster…'
A faint silver fla ignited in Nephis's hand.
Without saying anything, she calmly placed it against Sunny's shoulder.
Warmth spread through his body instantly.
The bruises across his ribs slowly faded while the pain began disappearing little by little.
At the sa ti, Nephis quietly healed the injuries she herself had received during the fight.
Sunny let out a relieved sigh before imdiately grabbing the mory flask Senrix had lent him earlier.
The Flask of the Eternal Well.
He quickly drank from it.
Cold, refreshing water flowed down his throat endlessly, washing away so of his exhaustion.
Nearby, Senrix slowly clapped his hands.
"Good work."
Sunny glanced toward him suspiciously.
The silver-haired young man stood calmly amidst the ruined battlefield with his arms crossed, his crimson eyes lazily observing them.
"Putting up a fight against Elysia is already an achievent worth celebrating."
Elysia smiled proudly.
"See? Even Senrix agrees I'm amazing."
Sunny ignored her completely.
Unfortunately—
Senrix continued speaking.
"But sadly… after fifteen minutes at most, your next opponent will be ."
Silence.
Sunny blinked.
Then blinked again.
"...What?"
Senrix looked at him calmly.
"You heard ."
Sunny imdiately pointed at him aggressively.
"Fuck you an you?!"
Nephis stared at her brother with slightly widened eyes.
Even she looked genuinely surprised.
Elysia, anwhile, simply smiled faintly before sitting more comfortably atop the rock, clearly preparing herself to enjoy the upcoming disaster.
Senrix shrugged casually.
"Rest for now."
Then he added in an utterly calm tone:
"Because fifteen minutes from now, you're going to get utterly annihilated."
Sunny nearly choked on his water.
Fifteen minutes later—
The atmosphere around the ruins had completely changed.
Senrix now stood several ters away from Sunny and Nephis.
Unlike before, he was no longer wearing his heavy armor.
Instead, he only wore a pair of crimson gauntlets engraved with flowing runes.
The Gauntlets of the Crimson Engine.
The rest of his body was covered in simple dark clothing taken from the corpse of a Carapace Scavenger he had killed earlier.
Surprisingly—
The outfit suited him rather well.
It was light, flexible, and comfortable enough to allow unrestricted movent.
More importantly—
It made him look far more dangerous.
Without the heavy armor concealing his fra, Sunny could finally see just how absurdly toned Senrix's body actually was.
Not overly bulky.
But perfectly built for violence.
Scars faintly covered his arms and neck like remnants of countless battles.
anwhile, faint crimson heat continuously radiated from the gauntlets.
The air itself distorted slightly around them.
Sunny swallowed.
'Why does he suddenly look like a final boss…?'
Beside him, Nephis quietly adjusted her grip on her sword.
Unlike before, neither of them underestimated their opponent.
Not even slightly.
Because both of them already understood sothing terrifying:
Senrix was not simply stronger than them.
He was stronger in a completely different category.
Nearby, Elysia lazily raised one hand.
"Begin~"
The instant those words left her mouth—
Boom.
The ground exploded.
Sunny's eyes widened violently.
Senrix had already disappeared.
A split second later—
Nephis raised her sword instinctively.
Clang!
A deafening explosion echoed across the ruins.
Shockwaves erupted outward violently as Nephis slid backward several ters, her feet carving deep marks into the stone.
Sunny barely managed to react before Senrix suddenly appeared directly beside him.
Fast.
Too fast.
Sunny instinctively ducked.
A crimson gauntlet swept above his head violently enough to shatter the air itself.
BOOM!
The broken pillar behind Sunny exploded apart instantly.
Fragnts of stone scattered everywhere.
Sunny's heart nearly stopped.
'WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!'
Before he could recover—
Senrix attacked again.
Unlike Elysia's graceful and fluid style—
Senrix fought like a natural disaster.
Every movent carried overwhelming aggression.
Every strike felt devastating.
Yet despite his brutal fighting style—
There was still terrifying precision hidden beneath it.
His footwork was flawless.
His timing was monstrous.
Even his breathing remained perfectly controlled.
Nephis imdiately rushed forward again, silver flas erupting around her sword.
This ti—
Sunny moved together with her.
Their coordination had improved drastically after fighting Elysia earlier.
Nephis attacked openly from the front while Sunny circled through the shadows looking for openings.
Like light and darkness dancing together.
Senrix smiled slightly.
Then crimson flas erupted around his gauntlets.
The temperature of the entire battlefield rose instantly.
Nephis slashed toward him.
Senrix blocked the strike directly with his bare gauntlet.
BOOM!
Crimson fire collided against silver fla violently.
The impact shook the surrounding ruins.
Sunny imdiately erged behind Senrix, his shadow wrapping around the ground like a serpent.
His sword shot toward Senrix's neck silently.
At the sa mont—
Nephis attacked from the front again.
Perfect timing.
Perfect synchronization.
For the first ti—
Senrix actually moved backward.
Sunny's eyes widened slightly.
'It worked?!'
Unfortunately—
That thought lasted less than a second.
Crimson flas exploded outward violently.
BOOOOM!
Sunny and Nephis were both forced backward simultaneously.
The heat alone felt unbearable.
Senrix imdiately lunged forward.
No hesitation.
No pause.
His fist descended toward Nephis like a teor.
Nephis barely blocked in ti.
Clang!
Her entire body trembled from the impact.
Then Senrix twisted his body unnaturally and kicked Sunny directly across the battlefield.
Boom!
Sunny crashed into broken stone debris again.
"Cough—!"
Pain exploded through his body.
'Why am I always the one getting kicked?!'
anwhile, Nephis continued exchanging blows with Senrix directly.
Silver fla against crimson fire.
Sword against gauntlets.
Their clashes continuously shook the battlefield.
Yet slowly—
Nephis began losing ground.
Senrix was simply overwhelming.
Every attack carried absurd power behind it.
And worse—
He fought aggressively without giving even the slightest chance to breathe.
Sunny forced himself upright before imdiately rejoining the battle.
This ti, however—
The coordination between him and Nephis beca even smoother.
Nephis would force Senrix into direct confrontation while Sunny attacked from impossible angles using shadows.
Then Sunny would distract him while Nephis prepared stronger strikes.
Like two dancers moving perfectly together.
Light and shadow intertwining seamlessly.
Even Elysia seed impressed now.
"Ooh… pretty."
For a brief mont—
They actually managed to pressure Senrix slightly.
A cut appeared across his shoulder.
Another shallow wound ford near his side.
Tiny injuries.
But injuries nonetheless.
Senrix looked down at the blood staining his clothes.
Then—
He smiled.
The air suddenly beca heavier.
Sunny's instincts scread instantly.
Danger.
Extre danger.
Crimson flas exploded around Senrix's body like a raging inferno.
The surrounding temperature skyrocketed violently.
The ruins themselves began lting slightly.
Sunny's expression changed completely.
'Oh no.'
The next five seconds beca pure chaos.
Senrix moved like an incarnated calamity.
His punches shattered stone.
His flas devoured everything nearby.
Every strike forced Sunny and Nephis backward relentlessly.
Their carefully coordinated rhythm began collapsing under overwhelming pressure.
Boom!
Sunny was thrown across the battlefield again.
Clang!
Nephis barely blocked another devastating strike before her sword was knocked from her hands entirely.
Then—
A crimson gauntlet stopped inches away from her throat.
Silence.
The battle was over.
Sunny groaned painfully from the ground.
Nephis stared at her brother silently.
anwhile, Senrix slowly extinguished the flas around his body before exhaling calmly.
Only a few shallow injuries remained on him.
Barely enough to matter.
Nearby, Elysia clapped enthusiastically.
"That was amazing!"
Sunny stared at the sky lifelessly.
"...I hate this family."
Whether Sunny noticed that he had called the four of them his family or not is up to fate.
User Comments
0 comments from readers