The top floor pulsed with tension.
Saya moved like water between shadows, her breath steady, her blade flashing with lethal precision. The two B-Class phantoms shrieked, green fire leaking from jagged limbs. Their spiritual presence was denser here—stronger than those below.
They weren't quite A-Class… but close.
Leaping from wall to wall, she closed the distance in a blink. Her katana sliced the air with a clean hum. One phantom lunged—too slow. Her blade split it open across the chest before it could react. Spinning mid-air, she carved the second phantom in a blur of steel. A heartbeat later, she landed softly behind them.
The two creatures froze, then burst into flames. Their bodies dissipated into glowing ash as she slid her katana back into its sheath with a sharp metallic click.
Meanwhile, on the middle floor, Ryan fought with the ease of a man fully in control of his rhythm.
His nunchucks twirled like extensions of his will, each movement charged with threads of Lixar. The first phantom didn't stand a chance — its head torn from its shoulders by a blinding strike. The second came at him with a venomous, scorpion-like tail, aiming to cleave his torso in half.
Without breaking stride, Ryan caught the tail mid-swing with the chain of his weapon, absorbing the momentum before twisting. In one smooth motion, he spun his nunchucks overhead and slammed the end of one into the phantom's skull — an electric surge laced through it, detonating the creature's head in a flash of blue energy.
Another one down.
Not long after, Saya's voice buzzed through the communicator on George's wrist.
"Mission complete. Regroup at ground level."
George stood waiting in the ruined lobby, chest rising and falling with post-battle adrenaline. His arms were scratched and sore from his fight on the lower floor, but he was still standing.
Ryan appeared first, descending the stairs casually, weapon spinning lazily in his hand. Saya dropped down moments later, landing without a sound.
George gave a half-grin. "You two are something else."
"You held your own," Saya replied with a small nod. "Not bad for your first mission."
"Yeah," Ryan added. "Rookies usually freeze or panic. You stayed sharp."
George chuckled, pride settling in. "Felt good to get out and breathe real air again."
But before more words could be exchanged, something changed.
The air grew heavy.
Thick. Suffocating.
It was as though the building itself had gone silent, recognizing something far beyond what it was meant to contain.
George's breath caught. "That Lixar… I can feel it. Even without using Rei."
Ryan's expression shifted, serious now. "This isn't a normal phantom. Might be B+. Could even be A-Class."
Then came the sound — something massive slamming into the building from outside.
BOOM!
A portion of the upper wall exploded as a monstrous figure burst through the rubble, dragging itself forward with a snarl.
He was massive — eight feet tall, charred and scarred, green flames licking his twisted form. Flesh barely clung to his skeletal frame, and his aura radiated corrupted Lixar like suffocating fog.
Oben.
"I knew I smelled power in this place," the phantom rasped, voice low and guttural. "Lixar… ripe and full. Souls that will elevate me to perfection."
Ryan stepped forward calmly, eyes narrowed. "Oben. War criminal. Escaped from the lower levels of the underworld."
Oben grinned through cracked lips. "Ah, so I'm remembered."
George instinctively took a step back, heart racing.
Ryan turned to Saya and George. "Take him and leave. Now."
George protested. "Wait—what? We can fight him together."
Saya didn't even look at him. "No. He's right. You're not ready."
"But—"
"George," Ryan said flatly, "You fought well. Don't throw it away. Trust me."
Reluctantly, George clenched his fists and nodded. He and Saya retreated toward the exit, leaving Ryan standing alone in the shattered lobby.
Oben cracked his neck as he approached, twisted limbs dragging across the floor.
"Sending them away. How noble," he mocked. "Do you think you stand a chance alone?"
Ryan gave a thin smile, tapping his nunchucks together as sparks of Lixar crackled between them.
"Actually," he said, "I was hoping for someone who wouldn't fall in one hit."
Oben roared with laughter, then raised a skeletal hand. Raw, corrupted energy spun into a swirling green orb — a volatile ball of spiritual force.
"Let's see if you can withstand this… Phantom Bomb!"
The bomb launched like a cannonball, spiraling toward Ryan with terrifying speed.
Ryan raised one nunchuck, charging it with lightning. Moments before impact, he struck the Phantom Bomb squarely — releasing a surge of electric Lixar that collided with the blast.
The resulting shockwave shattered windows across two floors. Glass rained down in shimmering shards.
Oben didn't stop. He charged forward, using his hulking frame like a battering ram.
But Ryan was gone.
He reappeared behind Oben in an instant, slamming the back of his weapon into the phantom's spine. Oben stumbled forward, crashing through walls as dust and debris filled the air.
"I expected more," Ryan said calmly, adjusting his grip.
Oben roared and launched another bomb — but Ryan moved first. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled one of his lightning-charged nunchucks in a spiraling arc.
It struck true.
The weapon sliced clean through Oben's thick neck. Time seemed to slow as the phantom's head spiraled through the air, flaming green blood trailing behind it. The severed head broke through the building wall —
—and landed with a thud on the pavement outside, just in front of Saya and George.
George recoiled in shock. "What…?"
A silhouette emerged from dust and rubble.
Ryan stepped out, retrieving his returning nunchuck as he walked.
"I told you I had it handled," he said, unbothered.
The air around them returned to normal. The oppressive Lixar vanished.
The mission—was officially over.