The blade met her wings with a deafening clash, the impact sending a violent shockwave tearing through the air. Dust and leaves whirled upward in a furious spiral.
Lucy stood firm, her white feathered wings untouched—radiant in the chaos—while Sasaki's massive sword shuddered under the force. A jagged crack crawled along the blade's edge, faint but undeniable.
Sasaki's eyes widened. Impossible… He leapt backward in quick bursts, hammering the dirt. Why…? That's just a pair of wings. Feathers… bones, maybe. How can they be harder than steel?
"Don't look so surprised, brat." Lucy's voice was calm, almost mocking. She didn't even turn her whole body—just glanced at him over her shoulder. "I wasn't serious back there. In fact, I haven't been serious in a very long time. But… I do hate men who don't know how to treat a lady."
Sasaki's jaw tightened. "Don't take me lightly, woman! And stop calling everyone 'brat' like you're some ancient goddess. I'm not like the rest. I'm the predator of darkside spirits—no human alive can defeat me!"
In the space of a blink, Lucy was standing in front of him. No wind, no sound—just there. Sasaki instantly spun, summoning a roaring tornado to hurl her away. The winds tore at the ground, ripping branches from trees… yet Lucy stood within it, unmoving.
What…? His mind raced. She's inside my domain?
He gritted his teeth and expanded the tornado's range, calling forth dozens of swirling darkside spirits lookalike, each one lunging toward her.
"Wabi… Sabi…"
The words rolled from Lucy's lips in a slow, almost melodic tone. Her fingers stretched toward his face—then snap.
The world erupted. Her Renshi flared, fused with her force energy, exploding outward in a blinding surge. The air screamed as the shockwave shattered the tornado, erasing the darkside spirit phantoms like they had never been.
Sasaki was thrown back, his legs carving trenches in the dirt before he crashed to a halt. He clutched his head. Why… why did I call myself the predator? Why does it feel like something's missing?
Lucy lowered her hand, her expression icy. "Wabi Sabi… a technique I created decades ago. I only use it against opponents weaker than me. The effect is simple: my Renshi combined with my force energy creates a unique spiritual disruptor—the 'Soul Brute' technique. It attacks the spirit form directly. And you… you have no understanding of spiritual energy. That made it easy." She smirked. "You should learn something beyond just devouring darkside spirits, Sasaki the Ripper."
Her words cut deeper than her power.
"I am Sasaki. Sa… Sa… ki… I AM SASAKI!" His voice broke into a roar, agony twisting his face as a massive Renshical aura burst from his body.
---
Meanwhile, in Guhan—
Exca froze where he sat with the three white-clad men. His eyes narrowed. He could feel Sasaki's energy spiraling out of control. Damn… I can't keep control with my Renshi so diminished after shrinking the mind control circle.
"Tell us, ruler," the towering seven-foot man said from his seat, his tone deep but steady. "Why hide this from your pro darkside knights?"
Another of the men smiled faintly. "We have all the time in the world to hear your answer. It's up to you to decide when."
The third chuckled, eyes narrowing. "That spell needs more Renshi. You can't afford to break it now… can you?"
Exca's temper flared. "Get the hell out of my castle! Your presence is no longer needed. I'll handle this myself!"
"Don't fool yourself, Exca." The giant's grin widened. "We're not here because you crushed the badge. We have our own business with you. Coincidence, nothing more. The Reinforcement was supposed to be five… you're so dumb you forgot how to count."
---
Back on the border of Sunflower and Eminence—
Sasaki's mind was a storm. I am Exca. Capture the boy. Kill the woman. Do whatever I want with the girl.
"No… no… my name… is Sasaki the Ripper! Predator of darkside spirits!"
Over and over, the two truths clashed in his head, his Renshi aura surging like a beast breaking free of its chains.
"There we go!" Lucy's voice thundered. "Bring it all out, Ripper! That idiot controlling you thinks he's unleashed your full Renshi—he's wrong! Show me the man who stole my prey years ago and made my squad the laughingstock!"
The forest trembled as Sasaki's aura expanded, blood-red light spilling into the sky. But then his body began to twist and shrink, bones cracking audibly as his screams tore through the air. The aura collapsed inward, sucked violently back into him until—silence.
He knelt there, hands falling away from his head, breathing heavy.
Far away in Guhan, Exca felt it instantly. I've lost control. His fists clenched. "I don't care what your personal grudge is… I have my own mission. If you're not here to help, then get the hell Out."