shimoro hit the bottom, crawling with one hand as he tried to force his body to stand. Blood was flowing from his nose, and his body was shaking from pain, anger, fear… and everything was mixed inside him.
But before he could lift himself up completely—
He heard a short laugh… and a smile appeared on ryo's face despite the wounds covering his body.
ryo said in a tone that was a mixture of amazement and confidence, as he wiped the blood off his mouth with his thumb:
"Don't expect that I'll let you get ahead of me, you idiot… Now it's my turn."
He took a step back… then another step.
He closed his eyes.
The wind blew around his body as if it knew him… as if it had been waiting for him all this time.
Small, transparent wind wings gathered behind his back, moving lightly, and the air around him turned into a sharp vortex.
"Accelerated Wind Wings…"
He opened his eyes.
"… Level One."
And he lunged.
His speed doubled to the point that the sand under his feet flew in a straight line.
He jumped into the air, and from the force of his momentum, it seemed as if he had disappeared for a moment.
He appeared directly above the head of the Red Scale fish…
And the sword swung down in a swift arc.
Slice!
A clear and deep scratch on the fish's scales, much larger than everything that had come before.
The fish screamed with a sound like the groan of a giant shark, then tried to slam him with its head—
But the wind swirled around ryo's feet, pulling him into another path with non-human speed.
He appeared on its right…
Slice!
A new scratch.
Then on its left…
Slice!
A third mark.
He repeated this many times, moving like a torn specter of speed and aerial tricks.
Even shimoro could no longer fully track his movements.
But the fish, in the middle of its rage… began to move randomly.
Its giant head was striking the ground and the water in a mad way, so much so that an entire line of the earth was destroyed!
But at the last second, ryo was able to dodge it, yet ryo was deceived because he was shocked by the attack…
In one of these moments—
It slammed into ryo with its head with force.
He flew into the air and then fell onto the sand, panting, trying to stand.
He said with a short, painful laugh:
"Aggh… this fish doesn't know how to play."
shimoro had finally stood up, despite the wound in his mouth, and despite his body shaking, he was still angry and it seemed he would continue his fight madly…
But ryo called out in a loud voice:
"shimoro! Do you remember?! When you stop questioning, you will become like them, you idiot!"
shimoro had already raised his hand, and before realizing ryo's words, he attacked, forming a massive ice ball and throwing it with all his might.
But the ball collided with the fish's scales… and broke uselessly.
However, ryo's words reached shimoro at this time… shimoro remembered everything… how he used to wonder if these creatures were animals… how if he stopped questioning he would become… shimoro regained his consciousness.
"…No… I didn't mean…"
And suddenly—
The fish began to emit an aura…
A dark red EIU aura, rising around its body like a grim steam.
ryo said with genuine concern this time:
"Don't tell me it's…"
The fish opened its mouth, and inside appeared an aquatic blue glow.
A massive water ball began to gather, shaking and expanding until it became almost the size of its head.
Then—
It launched it.
The ball was fast, lethal, and could not be easily dodged.
ryo was still trying to get up… he was unable to move.
But seconds before the ball touched his face—
It froze.
The aquatic mass turned into an icy stone in the air, complete, before falling to the ground and shattering.
"FREEZE"
shimoro was standing directly in front of ryo…
His hand extended…
And his nose was bleeding heavily, his face pale from the effort.
He said while panting:
"I… promised you… before… I'll pay my debt one day."
ryo looked at him, then… he smiled spontaneously despite the exhaustion:
"Idiot… but you actually saved me."
ryo stood beside him, on his right exactly, while shimoro stood on his left.
ryo raised his fist toward shimoro.
And shimoro raised his fist toward ryo.
Their fists touched slowly…
A short smile appeared on their lips despite the blood and scratches.
ryo said in a tone full of determination:
"None of us will die in this fight."
And shimoro replied, his shining eyes full of anger and resolve:
"And it will be me… who finishes it."
Their auras rose.
The air shook.
Ice formed under shimoro's feet, and the wind began to swirl around ryo again.
As if the two…
For the first time, took a fighting stance together.
To be continued…