"Everyone, look! Mishima has once again transformed into a powerful demon—what terrifying power! With just a single attack, he nearly destroyed the entire arena! Previously, even Akuma fell before Mishima's demonic might. So how will contestant Pink—Little Bunnibunn—fight against such an opponent?"
Hearing the announcer's shout, Honoka—standing far away—was drenched in cold sweat, her fists tightly clenched.
To her, defeating someone like this was unimaginable.
Because the most crucial point was—
—The opponent could fly!
That's right.
The demonified Mishima Kazuya was floating in midair, refusing to descend to fight Duanmu Huai.
And unlike Kazuya, Duanmu Huai did not have wings—there was no way he could fly up to meet him.
So under these conditions…
How was Duanmu Huai supposed to fight Kazuya?
"You foolish mortal! This is the power that you can never attain—power beyond humanity!"
Hovering in the air, Kazuya looked down at Duanmu Huai with a triumphant grin.
He spread his arms, and the giant eyes embedded in his wings all snapped open.
Two more demonic eyes appeared on his forehead and chest, glaring at Duanmu Huai as purple light gathered ominously.
"Die! Behold the power of a demon—beyond human limits!!"
With his roar, multiple purple beams fired simultaneously—from Kazuya's forehead, chest, and wing-eyes—shooting straight toward Duanmu Huai.
Duanmu Huai didn't even have time to dodge.
He was hit head-on.
"BOOOOOM!!!"
The entire arena exploded violently.
The shockwaves shook even the surrounding platforms and stands.
"Hahahahahaha!!!"
Watching as the smoke engulfed Duanmu Huai, Kazuya laughed and raised his hands.
"The power of the Battle God belongs to me! No one can defeat me!!"
"Duanmu-san…!"
Honoka's legs gave out, and she collapsed to the ground.
She stared blankly at the towering flames erupting from the arena, her mind completely white.
"Unbelievable! Such terrifying demonic power! Is there truly no one who can stop Mishima?! Even Pink Little Bunni—wait, what is that!?"
Just as the announcer was about to declare Kazuya the winner, his voice suddenly changed pitch.
At the same time, the audience erupted into shouts and gasps.
"Huh?"
Honoka raised her head in confusion—
And then her eyes widened.
In the blazing fire stood an enormous iron figure.
A towering suit of black armor, thick and heavy, adorned with skull insignias—
A terrifying steel warrior.
Its helmet was glowing with a blood-red light.
"Wh-What are we seeing!? Is that a robot!? Or is this some ability of contestant Pink Little Bunnibunn?!"
"YOU—!!"
High above, Kazuya shouted in shock.
He began to flap his wings again, preparing to fire another blast—
But the armored figure suddenly looked up at him and roared—
Then thrust out its right hand.
Gravity Gauntlet!!
The moment the power armor reached out toward him, Kazuya felt an immense force dragging him downward—
Yanking him out of the air straight toward the armored warrior.
He flapped his wings desperately, trying to resist—
But it was useless.
It felt as though a mountain had been dropped onto him.
He couldn't move.
He could only watch in horror as the incoming iron fist grew larger and larger—
Before it smashed into his face.
"THUD!!"
Duanmu Huai seized the demon Kazuya—
And unleashed a brutal barrage of iron fists.
"ORAAAAAAA!!!"
Not even Kazuya's demon body could withstand the Inquisitorial Power Armor's onslaught.
His face was pounded into an unrecognizable mess.
Bones and muscles shattered and tore beneath steel knuckles.
If he could sing, at this moment Mishima Kazuya would surely have burst into song—
A cold, cold steel fist slaps across my face,
Warm tears mixing with cold iron in disgrace.
The colors before me suddenly fade away,
Your shadow circles me with merciless sway.
You're like an executioner who sold me out,
My heart stabbed through without a doubt!
Who could accept a fate so cruel and dire—…
"ORAAAA!!"
With one final roar, Duanmu Huai slammed his fist downward—
Driving Kazuya into the arena floor.
Then he stomped on Kazuya's torso, grabbed both demon wings—
And ripped them off.
"AAAHHHHHH!!!!!"
"OHHHHHHHH!!!!"
With Kazuya's scream and the audience's ecstatic roar filling the arena—
Duanmu Huai tore both wings from his body.
Then he grabbed Kazuya's legs, lifted him upside down—
And with a savage movement—
"SPLAT—!!"
Mishima Kazuya was torn in half before the eyes of thousands.
Blood and organs rained onto the arena floor.
The crowd erupted into the loudest cheers yet.
Duanmu Huai tossed the corpse aside.
His helmet retracted, revealing his face.
Seeing this, the stunned announcer finally screamed:
"I-I can't believe it!! Facing Mishima's demonic assault, contestant Pink Little Bunnibunn donned terrifying, powerful iron armor—
AND TORE MISHIMA IN HALF!!
How is this even possible!?
Regardless—Pink Little Bunnibunn has defeated yet another incredibly strong opponent and successfully advanced from the elimination round!
Up next… the semifinals!
Can he defeat his next opponent and become champion?
Let's wait and see!!!"
"Hmph."
Duanmu Huai snorted coldly at Kazuya's mangled demon corpse.
If Kazuya had fought as a human, he might've held back.
But the moment the guy declared, "Humans have limits, I am no longer human!"
—then Duanmu Huai saw no reason to hold back either.
Once the opponent was no longer human, Duanmu Huai didn't need to follow human rules.
He simply treated him as another alien abomination.
Putting away the power armor, Duanmu Huai left the arena.
When he reached Honoka, she looked at him with a complicated expression.
"Duanmu-san… just what are you?"
And who could blame her?
A normal martial artist absolutely would not possess something like that.
"I'll tell you after the tournament."
"Ah… o-okay…"
Honoka nodded and left quietly.
Then another bunny girl arrived with a smile.
"Congratulations! Please follow me to the resting room—your prize is waiting."
"Sigh…"
Duanmu Huai sighed helplessly.
One Yue Huasha was already enough trouble.
Hopefully this new "prize" wouldn't mess with his mentality again, so he could send her off quickly.
After all, his real goal was only Marie Rose—
…actually, wait, phrasing it like that sounds wrong.
Oh whatever, same difference.
He sighed again and opened the resting room door.
"Uwah."
He froze.
This was not a normal resting room.
It was a Japanese-style washitsu with tatami floors, paper sliding doors, and…
Dozens upon dozens of dolls filling the room.
Honestly, it didn't look like a resting room at all.
But more importantly—
Where was the girl?
Duanmu Huai scanned the room, but besides dolls, he saw nothing.
Did he walk into the wrong place?
Just as he turned around—
He finally saw her.
A small girl had silently appeared behind him.
"Uwah… and who are you?"
Duanmu Huai blinked in surprise.
No wonder he asked.
The girl had pale skin, delicate features, flowing black hair smooth as silk, and wore a pitch-black, extremely elegant kimono.
She looked… more like a doll than the dolls in the room—
Even more doll-like than Olgis.
She didn't answer his question.
Instead, she stared at him with emerald-green eyes.
"You are… the victor, yes?"
"That's right. Don't tell me you're Mishima's partner?"
"You could say that."
She tilted her head ever so slightly, then looked at him again.
"Uh…"
Something about this girl felt very wrong.
Honestly, she feels more bizarre than demonified Kazuya.
At least Duanmu Huai could determine that Kazuya was a human-turned-demon.
But this girl—
He couldn't tell what she was at all.
Just as he was about to speak, she asked:
"Do you… wish for love?"
"…Love?"
The question caught him completely off-guard.
"If you ask whether I want it or not, of course I want love… but with how I look, it's not like normal girls would want to date me. At least no normal person would…"
He spread his hands and laughed self-mockingly.
He had thought about love before.
Back in middle school, he even confessed to a girl—who said yes.
He'd been happy then.
Until he learned the truth:
She didn't like him at all.
She only agreed because she was terrified that rejecting him might provoke something horrible.
Her family moved away soon after.
Ever since then, Duanmu Huai gave up on romantic feelings entirely.
"No, wait, I didn't come here to talk about that…"
He shook himself back to his senses.
"I'm just here to tell you—I'm not planning to do anything to you. If you want to leave, you can go.
That's all."
"I see."
She nodded gently, then reached into her sleeve.
She took out an object and offered it to him.
"What's this?"
He took it, puzzled.
"This is a Phantasmal Kaleidoscope. It will show you… a beautiful and illusory tapestry."
"…???"
He peered into the kaleidoscope.
All he saw were shifting, multicolored lights.
And then—
A voice whispered by his ear.
"Cause and effect are threads spun in a wheel.
Light and shadow, mirrors of countless faces.
The fleeting world—no more than a momentary dream.
Good and evil, love and deceit—all predetermined.
Within the wheel of fate, swallowed into the darkness of Yomi.
I am the Keeper of Dreams, the Watcher of Phantasmal Love.
Within the kaleidoscope alone shall I eternally remain…
We will meet again, God of Destruction.
Next time, you shall taste the essence of phantasmal love…"
"!?"
Duanmu Huai jolted.
When he snapped back to awareness—
The room was gone.
The dolls were gone.
The kimono girl was gone.
He was standing in an ordinary resting room.
What the hell was that just now?
Frowning, he looked down at the kaleidoscope in his hand.
This was clearly not an ordinary item.
He was about to throw it away when—
A system notification appeared.
[Hidden quest detected — Hidden Quest Activated]
[Quest Title: ???]
"What the…?"
Duanmu Huai paused—then slowly put the kaleidoscope away instead of tossing it into the trash.
Could this thing be tied to a quest?
Maybe… it could trigger something with an NPC later?
He thought for a moment.
Forget it. Better to keep it. It might be useful someday.
(End of Chapter)