Ryuusei could barely remain conscious; His vision was a blur of grays and reds, his body a throbbing mess of pain that pulsed with each irregular heartbeat. Yet even in that pitiful state, he felt it: a suffocating pressure, a weight in the air that made his badly wounded chest shrink again. Something bigger, something more monstrous, had arrived.
A few meters away, hidden behind a column of smoke and debris, the group watched with bated breath. The Black Herald's sword, about to strike the final blow, had stopped in mid-air. For the first time, his relaxed posture stiffened, as if something inside him recognized a real threat.
"It can't be—" muttered the Herald, his voice deep and distorted, with a faint hint of surprise that echoed in everyone's mind.
"What's going on?" Why did it stop? Aiko whispered, eyes filled with tears, her hand pressed to her chest.
From the blackness of the rubble, two eyes flashed like gray flames, expressing no feeling. A low, guttural roar echoed through the air, a sound that seemed to come not from a throat, but from the ground itself. The ground trembled as a huge silhouette emerged from the shadows.
"Oh, God..." Kenta covered her mouth, her voice a thread of panic. "That thing... no...
"That's the beast," Daichi confirmed, his voice firm, though his eyes reflected a horror that had never been seen in him before. "The one that attacked us first. But... it's bigger. Much bigger.
The Beast had arrived. He was a nightmarish being. His body, an amalgam of muscles and living darkness, moved with restrained aggressiveness. Claws as sharp as blades scratched the earth with each step. Its jaws parted, showing fangs capable of tearing steel as if it were paper. But the worst thing was his presence. It was as if the abyss itself had materialized in the form of a predator.
The Black Herald, always imposing, took a step back. The crack their first encounter had caused in the ground spread even further.
"Tch... This was not in the plans," hissed the Herald, his voice filled with frustration that contrasted with his unchanging appearance.
"Plans?" Haru whispered, his analytical mind trying to process the information. "The Herald has plans. Death has plans. And wasn't this in them? This is a wild card. A failure in the system.
"And what does that mean for us?" Aiko asked, her eyes moving frantically between Ryuusei and the new creature.
"It means..." Daichi swallowed. "It means that maybe we're not the target right now. It means that, for the first time, Death has lost control.
Ryuusei gasped, trying to find the strength to move, but her body refused to respond. I could barely process what I saw. The Beast did not distinguish allies from enemies. Its only nature was destruction. The monster roared, and the world seemed to shudder.
"Run, Ryuusei!" Run! Kenta shouted.
But Ryuusei couldn't. I was nailed to the spot, not just out of pain, but out of sheer disbelief. I didn't understand. For the first time, he felt like a simple ant in a duel of giants.
The Black Herald was the first to react. With impossible speed, he retreated several meters, his sword glowing with dark energy. His gaze was fixed on the creature, evaluating it.
"If you think you can stand in my way, you're wrong. You're just a broken toy.
The Beast did not answer with words. I didn't need it. He just threw himself in.
"He's going to attack him!" Aiko shouted.
"No!" He's going to attack the beast. No, he's going to attack us. No, wait, just the beast. Why is this happening? Who is stronger?! Kenta couldn't stop talking, her words running over each other.
"Hush, Kenta," Haru said, his voice icy. "Observe. This is a battle between two of Death's most powerful creations. The Beast is raw, pure power, without technique. The Herald is technical and cold. It is the force against martial art. It is pure force against a murderer.
"And who is going to win?" Aiko asked in a trembling voice.
"I don't know," Haru replied, with a sincerity that surprised everyone. "Nobody. There is no winner in this. Death is losing.
The Beast's attack was instantaneous. The speed with which it moved did not correspond to its size. In the blink of an eye, he was atop the Black Herald, his claw descending with a blow capable of splitting a mountain in two.
BOOM!
The impact raised an explosion of debris and fire. Ryuusei felt the ground beneath him fracture from the shockwave. He could barely cover his face with one arm to protect himself from the shrapnel of rocks and dust. As the cloud of dust cleared, he saw the Black Herald standing, his sword crossed in defense, resisting the crushing force of the Beast. But, for the first time, there was a crack in his weapon, and the Herald was straining. You could feel it.
"You're pushing it back! Kenta exclaimed.
"The Herald is seriously fighting," Daichi whispered, his voice filled with astonishment. "I wasn't playing with him. I was struggling to survive.
The monster roared with a primitive fury and attacked again, giving it no respite. Blows, thrusts, fangs and claws collided against the scythe in a deadly dance. The Black Herald was forced to fall back, deflecting each attack with pinpoint accuracy, but the difference in power was evident. The Beast was a being of pure instinct, without strategy or technique... but with an enormous strength that made it immune to any form of resistance.
And then, Ryuusei understood something terrifying.
"This is not a fight. It's a hunt."
The Beast was hunting the Black Herald.
But if that creature could push back its worst enemy... what if it fixed its attention on it? Fear stabbed him in the chest. He had no strength to flee and no way to defend himself. If the Beast decided to attack him, he was dead.
He tried to move, to force his body to react, but every muscle protested with excruciating pain. He could only watch, helpless, as the two titanic beings continued their confrontation.
The Black Herald gritted his teeth. Black sparks erupted from his weapon. "Damn freak," he hissed.
The Beast did not wait. He launched again, this time with even greater speed. The Herald barely had time to react when the claw dug into his chest, hurling him across a colossal rock.
CRASH!
The rumble echoed throughout the area. A huge crater formed at the point of impact.
Ryuusei held his breath. Had he beaten him? Had he finished with the Black Herald?
But then, something changed. The air became even denser. The temperature dropped sharply. A dark mist began to emanate from the crater.
"No... Haru murmured, his eyes wide with terror. "It's not possible.
And in the midst of the black mist, a deep laugh rang out, a laughter that was not of the Beast.
"Hehehe... Don't think it will be that easy...
Ryuusei felt a chill run down his spine. The battle was not over. It was just getting started. And he was caught in the center of the hurricane.