"The match begins!"
The crowd of onlookers, eager for drama, stepped back seven or eight paces in unison.
The arena for Luka and Svarog's duel instantly expanded several times over.
At this moment, Luka's eyes were tightly shut—
Then, they snapped open abruptly.
In a flash, Luka moved swift as the wind, launching a relentless barrage of attacks toward Svarog.
However,
The one standing before him was none other than the legendary Svarog. His ability to command countless robots wasn't just a stroke of luck—
Without true strength, he'd have long been reduced to scrap metal in the Underworld.
Svarog's footwork was agile, devoid of any mechanical rigidity expected of a robot,
And he effortlessly deflected every one of Luka's strikes.
With a resounding "Bang!", Svarog's fist collided with Luka's mechanical arm, sending him flying several meters backward.
"Whoa!" Stelle's jaw dropped, her popcorn spilling out.
"Svarog actually held back, huh? If that punch had landed square on his face, it'd have knocked his teeth sideways. So good! Love it!"
After this punch, the spectators erupted into thunderous cheers.
To the people of the Underworld, Luka was the champion of the fighting rings, a top-tier combatant without question.
As for Svarog? His prowess needed no explanation.
The clash between the two was exhilarating, and the crowd grew larger by the minute.
"Go, Boss Svarog!"
"Luka, you're insane! You're actually holding your own against Svarog?"
"The red-haired big brother is amazing!"
"…"
Hearing the cheers, Luka shook out his arm, steam hissing from his mechanical limb.
His mechanized glove shot forward like a missile, but Svarog crossed his arms and blocked the attack.
A bead of cold sweat rolled down Luka's forehead as he forced a grin. "Hah, finally an opponent who can take that hit!"
"A powerful strike—but insufficient to breach my defenses."
"As expected of Boss Svarog—then how about this next move?"
Yet no matter how hard Luka pressed the assault afterward, he couldn't break through Svarog's guard.
...
Luka knelt on one knee, gasping for breath.
Svarog retracted his combat stance. "You have left an impression, Luka of Wildfire."
"But it's… not over yet…" Flames flickered once more in Luka's palm. "I… still can't…"
With a desperate leap, he unleashed his full power in a final strike against Svarog.
Svarog shook his head and snapped his fingers. A colossal mechanical hand descended from above.
"I acknowledge your strength. Your performance compels me to reassess the limits of humanity."
Stelle could only sigh at the sight. She knew the terror of this move firsthand—
After all, only those who've faced Svarog in battle truly understand his might.
Sure enough, the giant mechanical hand clenched into a fist and sent Luka flying with a single blow.
"Luka! Hey, Luka!"
Darkness swallowed Luka's vision as Seele's voice echoed in his ears—until he finally lost consciousness.
[Svarog is seriously OP!]
[I thought Svarog was weak, but he's this strong? He basically steamrolled Luka!]
[First, Svarog was getting ganged up on before. Second, Clara was there at the time—I doubt he'd go all out recklessly with her around.]
[LOL, Svarog still didn't even use missiles. Summoning that giant mechanical arm was probably his highest form of respect.]
[True, but Luka gives off major shonen protagonist energy. I just don't get what his deal is?]
[If Luka had just shouted, "Everything for the sake of Fairy Tail!" and then busted out a Fire Dragon's Roar, Svarog would've lost for sure.]
[That kind of idealistic battle cry is an instant win.]
——
The screen faded to black, but subtitles identified the speakers.
Natasha: "Luka… can you hear me?"
Seele: "Hey… hey! Wake up, Luka!"
Luka's eyes slowly opened, the perspective shifting to his first-person view. The first thing he saw was Seele's breathtaking beauty and her concerned expression.
"Me? Where…?"
"Heh, finally awake! You've been out cold for a whole day—scared the hell out of us." Seele finally let out a relieved sigh.
After waking, Luka deflected Stelle and Seele's questions about the true purpose behind his "trial."
He made up an excuse and left the infirmary.
"I just don't get that guy!" Seele's gaze bore into the door Luka had exited through.
"Maybe the dude's just chuuni as hell."
"What kind of illness? If he never planned to explain things from the start,
Then why drag us into it?
No way, this is too weird. I'm tailing him to figure out what he's really up to."
Unable to let it go, Seele decided to follow him.
In the end,
Only Natasha and Stelle remained.
Fortunately, Natasha wore an expression of silent understanding and pointed Stelle toward the right path:
To seek out the person who knew Luka best—his mentor, Oleg.
As the story progressed,
Stelle learned the full story of how Luka lost his arm from Oleg.
Luka had sacrificed his right arm to save several townspeople,
Even falling into a three-day coma, barely clinging to life.
At this point, Oleg chuckled. "And y'know what? The first thing he said after waking up was, 'Master, I'm happy!'"
Stelle stared blankly. "What's the moral of this story?"
"What I'm saying is, that kid's always valued others' lives over his own. Even as a child.
So when he says crap like 'it's all for self-improvement,'
He's definitely hiding something."
Though Oleg didn't know the reason either, Stelle still gleaned crucial clues.
Coincidentally,
Stelle then received a message from Seele—she'd found Luka's trail
And invited Stelle to join her in tailing him to uncover his buried secret.
Stelle raised an eyebrow at the camera, her lips quirking upward uncontrollably.
[Is Stelle planning something shady?]
[Her smirk is harder to suppress than an AK's recoil!]
[First time seeing a protagonist this unhinged, and it feels like it's only getting worse.]
[Same, I'm sweating for Luka here.]
——
After regrouping with Seele, the two trailed Luka
Until, around a few corners, they unexpectedly spotted the pitch-black Tiger Cub herself?
Seele stared in disbelief.
"Wait, that's Hook?! What's she doing here?"
"Hook's definitely the one pulling Luka's strings!"
Seele had lost count of how many times Stelle had shocked her today.
"I can't even tell if you're joking anymore.
Luka'd probably tell her to go back to town, though. He's obsessive about kids' safety."
Soon after, Hook toddled up to the two,
Selling a wave of cuteness and draining the audience's HP before scampering off.
Seele and Stelle quickly followed Luka's trail, eventually arriving at the orphanage.
They watched as Luka left something behind before walking away alone.
Seele examined the object. "A box? I… I've got a bad feeling…"
"We've come this far—no turning back now!"
Under Stelle's influence, even Seele tossed aside her morals. "Yeah. You're right.
I'll open it. Let's see what's inside…
A notebook?
Looks like a kid's handwriting, with doodles too! Trailblazer, come take a look."
——