BOOM!! BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!
The once-quiet street erupted with explosions as energy blasts cratered the ground.
"Lady Lala! Earthling! Surrender! You have nowhere left to run!"
"Ah... I'm going to break! I'm going to break, Lady Lala..."
"Hahaha... this is so fun! Peke, just hang on a little longer!"
...
Being pulled by Sora and narrowly dodging the energy blasts again and again, the dress-up robot Peke was screaming its head off, while Lala was having the time of her life, thinking it was all a game.
Feeling that was enough—if he let the other guy keep going, the whole street would be destroyed—Sora let go of Lala and stopped. Watching the energy blasts whistle towards them, he pointed his finger, and beams of light shot out.
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!!
A series of explosions, like fireworks, as the energy blasts and light beams detonated in mid-air.
"You annoying pest, you can become a shooting star too!"
Flashing into the air next to the man in black, Sora delivered a sweeping kick.
"What—Ah!!!"
Horrified, the man crossed his arms to block but still couldn't escape his fate of screaming and becoming a shooting star.
"With a Devilukean's constitution, he probably won't die..."
Landing on the ground, Sora muttered to himself. In any case, the men in black were Lala's guards and not true enemies, so he hadn't used much force.
"Sora, you're so, so amazing! you kicked all those annoying guys away!"
Running to his side and hugging his arm, Lala cheered and bounced with joy.
Her innocent and lively nature was completely unleashed. The fifteen years of princess etiquette and demeanor she had learned on Deviluke were all thrown to the dogs.
Feeling this girl, whose soul was pure without a single impurity, was truly adorable, Sora was just about to pat her little head when another bothersome person appeared—
"Lady Lala, this is as far as you go!"
A pillar of light descended from the sky, and from it, a majestic figure in a cape and battle armor emerged. It was the captain of Lala's royal guard, Zastin.
"Ugh... Zastin!"
Seemingly a little intimidated by him, Lala quickly hid behind Sora.
"Hmph! I hate Zastin the most! I'm not going back with you!"
"Go away, go away! Blehh..."
Like a naughty child, Lala poked her head out, waved him away with a look of disdain, and even stuck her tongue out at him.
"Lady Lala..."
The cool atmosphere he had painstakingly built up vanished without a trace. Zastin clutched his chest, feeling his heart shatter into pieces. He had been so loyal, chasing her across half the galaxy, only to be met with such contempt from the princess. What was it all for?!!
Feeling heartbroken and sad for his misfortune, Zastin had slowly gotten used to being shot down by Lady Lala over the years.
Although he sympathized with her plight and had even deliberately gone easy on her several times during the chase to let her enjoy her freedom a little longer, this was the limit.
Though he might incur her wrath and suffer some bad luck, if he failed his mission and was blamed by Queen Sephie and that demoness Lady Rhea, he would really be in for it...
Steeling his heart, Zastin pulled himself together and turned his gaze to Sora, who stood in front of Lala:
"Earthling, I am Zastin, captain of the royal guard for the First Princess of Deviluke, Lady Lala. I ask that you refrain from any further actions that hinder us from bringing her back. Otherwise, we will consider your actions a provocation and a declaration of war against Planet Deviluke."
He had already witnessed Sora's strength from the ship's surveillance, but he had absolute confidence in himself and looked down on a backward planet like Earth. Thus, his tone was laced with warning and coldness.
"Heh... quite domineering, aren't you."
Looking at Zastin, Sora's eyes narrowed into a wicked smile, showing no intention of backing down.
The atmosphere grew cold and tense. Sora and Zastin locked eyes, their auras rising steadily. Not far away, a certain girl who had finally caught up was hiding behind a corner, covering her mouth to keep from making a sound. Beside her, a small pet dog was lying on the ground, covering its eyes with its little paws and trembling...
"Miss Lala, leave this to me. Go wait on the side for a bit."
"Don't worry, I absolutely will not let them take you."
Turning around, Sora patted Lala's little head and smiled.
She looked at him, then at Zastin, and tilted her head in thought for a moment before seeming to make a decision:
"Okay, okay!"
With a pure, flawless smile, Lala nodded vigorously and then really did bounce over to the side.
"To think that a strong warrior like you could exist on such a backward and weak planet, I am honestly very surprised. But Earthling, if you think your strength is enough to provoke us, the strongest race in the universe, the Devilukeans, then you are gravely mistaken!"
His brow furrowed deeply. Zastin stared at Sora coldly and spoke slowly. Although he admitted Sora had some power, and his own two subordinates were helpless against him, it was far from enough for him to acknowledge him.
"I'm just doing what I want to do. I have no intention of provoking you."
"Of course, if you insist on thinking that way, I have no objection."
Shrugging, Sora had an indifferent expression.
"Hmph! In that case, let us settle this with force!"
His calm reaction annoyed Zastin. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and he decided not to waste any more words.
Drawing the longsword from his waist, his battle aura erupted. Zastin stomped the ground with a roar and shot towards Sora.
A slight curve formed on Sora's lips, and he also charged forward to meet him...
…
BOOM BOOM!! BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!
"Ha! Haha!! Hahahaha!!!"
Boom!!!!!
Possessing a noble and powerful bloodline, and as the captain of Lala's personal guard, Zastin's strength was naturally impressive. Even among all the warriors of Planet Deviluke, few could surpass him.
With superb sword skills and powerful energy, the surrounding streets and buildings were continuously destroyed. Zastin's imposing figure fully displayed the might of the universe's number one race, the Devilukeans.
However, he hadn't managed to land a single hit on Sora!
"Sora, go! Sora, go!"
"Hahaha... Zastin, you're so weak! You can't even hit Sora. You should just go home! Pfft... bleh..."
As Sora and Zastin battled across the sky and ground, Lala, who loved nothing more than chaos, jumped up and down, cheering for Sora. For Zastin, however, she only offered jeers and made funny faces.
He was clearly fighting for his life for Princess Lala's sake, yet she had so cruelly abandoned him. Zastin felt his life was truly unfortunate and tragic. His breathing became ragged, and he almost fell from the sky.
The dress-up robot, Peke, also felt that Zastin was quite pitiful. He wanted to put in a good word for him in front of Princess Lala, to comfort him or something, but seeing the princess so excitedly cheering for the Earthling named Kusanagi Sora, Peke decided against it.
It was enough for that poor fool Zastin to be disliked by Princess Lala; he didn't want to be disliked by her too...
"Haah... haah... Earthling, why can you use the power of the Kirarian people?!"
Feeling utterly frustrated that no matter how he attacked, his opponent could instantly dodge with the speed of light, Zastin temporarily stopped. He panted heavily as he questioned Sora.
"Well, who knows..."
Hovering in the air, Sora spread his hands with a playful expression. While it wasn't a huge secret, he didn't seem to have any obligation to tell him, did he?
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, the anger in Zastin's heart grew. He stopped wasting words, brandished his sword, and charged at Sora once again.
Zastin's sword techniques were swift and fierce, each move aimed at Sora's vital points, clearly honed through countless battles. Although a hint of admiration flashed in Sora's eyes, that was all it was. It was still far from enough to harm him.
He dodged with the ease of a leisurely stroll. No matter how hard Zastin fought, he couldn't touch a single hair on Sora. As time passed, Zastin grew more and more horrified and impatient.
Just what is the deal with this Earthling!!!
To think that he, a proud Devilukean warrior, was being toyed with by an Earthling like this! If this continued, Zastin felt he would lose all face. Steeling his heart, he stopped holding back. Zastin retracted his longsword, leaped up, and with a surge of combat energy, he formed an energy blast and hurled it down at Sora.
Watching the energy blast flying towards him, although it was much stronger than the ones used by the two men in black earlier, it was nothing special in Sora's eyes. With a slight tilt of his head, he dodged it.
Sora was about to see what other tricks Zastin had up his sleeve, but then, he suddenly heard a girl's cry of alarm from below...