"Everyone, he's here! The hero has finally appeared!"
"That commanding figure, the Black Hero! Is he the last hope for humanity and the Earth?!"
"This is the exclusive global broadcast channel. Stay tuned, we will bring you the latest updates."
"Tajima-san, it's too dangerous! We have to retreat!"
"You fool! The world is about to end, where can you retreat to? Off the planet? This is a history-making moment! I'm staying right here!"
"…"
The helicopter was battered and bruised, but it had somehow survived the aftershock of the earlier explosion. The reporter leaned out the window, his voice filled with excitement and determination.
What can we say? He was a brave, stubborn, and reckless man…
"Human, are you ready?" the girl asked, looking at Sora coldly.
"I'm ready whenever. Your name is Rhea, right? I'm Kusanagi Sora, not 'human.' I hope you'll remember that next time," Sora replied with a slight frown.
"Heh, an insect is an insect. Do I need to remember the name of every single one?"
"If you want me to remember your name, then survive against me and prove your worth! If you can do that, I'll do more than just remember your name—I'll do anything you ask!"
"But can you do it? Human!" she sneered, her expression filled with endless sarcasm.
"Ha… So this is the standard 'the weak have no rights' speech, is it…?" Sora covered his forehead, feeling exasperated. He was beginning to understand just how extreme this woman was.
"To be honest, I don't entirely disagree with that philosophy."
"Fine then. I'll show you what I can do!" Sora's eyes narrowed as he lowered his hand, a wicked smirk on his lips.
He decided then and there that he would beat this insufferably arrogant woman to a pulp.
Knowing that words would never earn her respect, Sora took action. He clenched his hand, and an energy blast was compressed into existence. He then hurled it at her.
The blast, initially the size of a fist, grew larger and larger in the air. By the time it reached her, it was over a hundred meters wide!
She made no move to dodge. A disdainful smirk touched her lips as she raised a single hand and stopped the incoming blast.
"Hah!!!"
With a sharp cry, invisible ripples of force spread out from her. The once-menacing energy blast disintegrated and vanished completely…
"Is that all you have? I don't know how those fools like Zastin ever lost to you."
With a disappointed and sarcastic look, she spoke. Hearing her words, Zastin, who was watching from the ship, wanted to cry. He felt like he had been hit by a stray bullet.
"Then try this."
In a flash, Sora appeared below Rhea, a bloodthirsty sneer on his face.
"Fire Dragon's… Iron Fist!!!"
He remembered this was a move from a certain magic world, used by a hot-blooded idiot named Natsu. Although Sora couldn't use magic, with his power, it was easy to replicate the effect.
With a deafening roar, Sora's punch shattered the air in a hundred-meter radius. A blazing wave of red-hot energy instantly engulfed Rhea Aslan Deviluke…
…
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
In the sky, a silver figure and a black figure flashed in and out of sight, their collisions echoing across the sky.
People all over the world were glued to their TV screens, watching the battle that would decide the fate of all humanity and the entire planet, their hearts filled with tension, excitement, and hope…
"That Black Hero… he looks kind of familiar," Rito said thoughtfully, sitting in front of his TV.
Next to him, Mikan clasped her hands tightly in her lap, her beautiful eyes shining. Unlike Rito, she was absolutely certain.
"It's Sora-san! The Black Hero is Sora-san!"
…
Meanwhile, in the Sairenji home—
"Honestly, they're both monsters. Is that something a human can even do?" Akiho Sairenji muttered, watching the two figures clashing on the TV. She used to think fantasy movies were exaggerated, but compared to this fight, they looked like child's play.
And more importantly, this was reality! If people could be this powerful, how were ordinary folks supposed to live?!
"Sora-san is not a monster!" Haruna suddenly looked up and shouted, startling Akiho.
"Geez, Haruna, don't scare me like that! You nearly gave me a heart attack."
"Sora-san? You mean your classmate, Kusanagi Sora, the one who walked you home that time? Why are you suddenly talking about him?" Akiho rapped Haruna lightly on the head, annoyed.
She didn't know why her sister had brought up her classmate, but she didn't make the connection that Sora was the Black Hero. Her subconscious had already filed that under "impossible."
"S-sorry, big sister. I-it's nothing…" Haruna blushed, a flustered look on her face as she quickly lowered her head.
"Really?" Akiho was suspicious. As her older sister, she could tell Haruna was hiding something.
She wanted to lecture her for not being honest, but she decided against it for now. If the Black Hero didn't win, the world would be destroyed. She wasn't in the mood for that right now.
Muttering to herself, Akiho turned her attention back to the fight on the TV…
…
At the same time, in the Tenjōin home—
"Sora! It's Sora, he's back!"
"Ohohohoho! Go, my prince! That infuriating woman! Beat her! Beat her senseless!"
"Lady Saki, you're too excited! Please calm down!"
"Lady Saki, that's your father's prized antique! Please stop throwing it!"
Well, what can we say? The Tenjōin household was still in chaos…
…
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
In the sky, the two fighters had, at some point, started a barrage of energy blasts. Thousands of them were formed and launched from both Sora and Rhea.
The entire sky was a chaotic mess of explosions, turbulent air currents, and deafening shockwaves. Even the ground far below was trembling slightly.
The scene was like the apocalypse, awe-inspiring and terrifying…
"Get off my planet!"
With his hands raised, a hundred-meter-wide energy sphere was compressed above Sora's head and then hurled at Rhea.
"Hah!!!"
With a sharp cry, the silver-clad girl pushed back with both hands, blocking the blast. At the same time, invisible ripples of force spread out, trying to dissipate it.
However, the energy in this blast was too immense. Even Rhea couldn't dissipate it immediately. She was pushed back by the force, shooting upwards like a meteor, breaking through the atmosphere and into space.
BOOM!!!!!
A massive explosion rocked the void of space, a white shockwave expanding outwards.
The world seemed to fall silent. People watching on TV were stunned, swallowing nervously.
Is she defeated? That alien monster…
No one could survive a hit from an attack like that, right? Just as people were about to cheer for Earth's victory, for humanity's victory—
"HUMAN!!!"
The girl's enraged roar echoed from the sky, amplified by her power so that nearly the entire planet could hear it!
At the same time, an equally massive, hundred-meter-wide energy blast descended from the heavens, hurtling towards Sora and Sainan Town below!
A sharp glint in his eyes, Sora unleashed his power and caught the blast. If it were to hit the ground, the entire town would be turned to rubble.
The force from the blast was immense. Sora was pushed downwards, crashing into the city streets below.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The solid ground was pulverized. Sora was pushed back, digging a long, deep trench through the entire street.
"Aaaargh… HAAAA!!!!!"
This time, even Sora was giving it his all. With a final, desperate push, he sent the energy blast flying.
The massive sphere of energy arched through the sky and landed on a large mountain outside Sainan Town.
BOOM!!!!!
Another deafening explosion. As people watched in horror, the entire mountain shattered and collapsed into a pile of rubble…