Exactly 1 hour and 44 minutes had passed since the battle began. By now, all the mages sent to the other districts under Goto's command had been exterminated by the New Dawn. The smartest among them, realizing they were at a disadvantage, had surrendered. The few who managed to escape fled at high speed in their vehicles across the massive bridges connecting all the districts to the central district and at that precise moment, they received the order to advance.
Hoshi and her elite soldiers, equipped with Glephnir armor and weapons, had done most of the heavy lifting, as they were nearly immune to enemy magic. They stood at the entrance of the bridge, completely still, awaiting orders.
(It seems we have the upper hand for now. Everything is going according to plan. Goto's next move will probably be...) (Hoshi)
And at that exact moment, the true collapse began. Dozens of deafening explosions echoed out as the bridges lost their structural support and collapsed, sinking into the ocean.
(Just as planned. We anticipated Goto would blow up the bridges leading to the central district.) (Hoshi)
Shortly after, using her earpiece, the woman contacted the person who had already predicted every move of their opponent.
"According to plan. Now we move to Phase 2." (Hoshi)
About 500 meters up in the air, surpassing even the height of the main Black Corps skyscraper a figure floated in midair without any support, completely motionless, as crimson red eyes flared to life. It was the Omega-rank, Yukihime.
"Good. Let's move to Phase 2." (Yukihime)
Extending her hand forward, the vampire created a small sphere of ice about the size of a basketball. With a graceful lower of her hand, she let the sphere drop, and a moment later, she snapped her fingers.
"[Cocytus]"
As the vampire uttered the name of the spell, the sphere split into four parts that transformed into howling blizzards, crashing down and expanding over the areas where the bridges had collapsed. Within ten seconds, the blizzards flooded the zones. A minute later, as the storms dissipated, bridges made of ice stood in their place, allowing the members of the New Dawn to cross in complete safety.
"NOW, TO ALL MEMBERS OF THE NEW DAWN: NOTHING CAN STOP US! DEFEAT THE REMAINING BLACK CORPS!" (Yukihime)
Meanwhile, the team was advancing toward the upper floor to rendezvous with the second squad when something unexpected happened. As soon as they set foot in the room where they were supposed to meet and devise a strategy, they were met with a horrific trail of corpses, blood, and dismembered body parts, likely the squad that had to resort to brute force against the Black Corps. That trail led toward a specific area of the floor where a distinct figure stood: a Black Corps commander under 30 years old, with red eyes, dark hair, a tight black combat suit, and an expression twisted between sheer joy and perversion... the man who ruled the West District with absolute madness: MUZAN.
He had single-handedly slaughtered the second squad that had infiltrated the Black Corps tower. Even one of the New Dawn leaders, capable of wielding Alpha-rank fire magic, proved to be no match for this ravenous, sadistic monster.
"Ah, finally! I was getting bored fighting these toys. But wow... they actually gave me a bit of a workout."
He held a Japanese spear in his left hand, resting against his back, while his right hand held the fire mage who seemed completely unable to generate flames anymore, before casually tossing him out a window, sending him plummeting to the ground.
"Did he just—" (Kuro)
"It's Muzan! Stay on guard, he's dangerous!" (Fumio)
"Understood!" (Hajime/Kuro)
(Damn it, I didn't think he was strong enough to wipe out an entire squad by himself, especially without taking a single wound.) (Fumio)
Coordinating their movements, Hajime and Kuro attempted to attack Muzan. Hajime created a layer of ice, freezing Muzan's legs in place. Believing he was immobilized, Kuro used Shadow Step to emerge from Muzan's shadow, intending to decapitate him with his scythe.
However, the leader of the West District smirked. With a movement that appeared instantaneous to Kuro, he deflected the blow with his spear, throwing Kuro off balance. As Kuro tried to recover for a second strike, Muzan broke free from the ice and lunged to impale him and seemingly succeeded.
"Pathet—" (Muzan)
His words were cut short as Kuro himself struck, slicing Muzan's back open with his scythe.
"Who's pathetic now?" (Kuro)
The moment Muzan had parried him, Kuro had created a residual shadow clone. When the clone was struck moments later, it vanished, giving Kuro just enough time to trick him and land a clean hit.
Muzan responded with a direct kick to the dark-haired boy's stomach. Kuro, not expecting such a swift counter after inflicting a wound like that, took the powerful blow and quickly retreated into his shadow to recover and figure out a plan.
(Is it just me, or is he stronger than before?) (Kuro)
Hajime rushed in with a lightning-fast sprint, hitting Muzan with a devastating upper cut to the stomach that shattered several of his ribs. Fumio followed up with his three-section staff, striking multiple vital and painful spots in rapid succession.
Hajime then blasted Muzan with a wave of compressed air, sending him crashing into the heavy double doors leading to the next room where Goto was located. The impact was so powerful that it shattered all the windows and glass panes on the floor.
Muzan lay there, barely breathing, seemingly completely out of strength.
"Looks like we somehow pulled it off. Let me bind him before he wakes up." (Kuro)
(How could someone with such low endurance defeat an entire squad led by an Alpha-rank? There has to be something else going on... Don't tell me—) (Fumio)
Just as Kuro tried to bind him with shadow tendrils, he was caught completely off guard. Muzan's hand clamped onto Kuro's face while his other hand grabbed the shaft of Kuro's scythe, preventing him from defending himself. Kuro tried to break free, but it was useless.
(HE HAS TREMENDOUS STRENGTH... HE'S GOING TO RIP MY JAW OFF!) (Kuro)
"DAMN IT!" (Hajime)
Hajime dashed forward, aiming his katana to sever Muzan's arm. He used blood manipulation to reinforce the blade, covering it in aura and red electrical discharges. But he was forced to stop at the last second as Muzan used Kuro as a human shield, before hurling Kuro directly at Hajime a couple of seconds later. Hajime caught him mid-air.
"HEY, ARE YOU OKAY?!" (Hajime)
"He... drained me..." (Kuro)
"What?!" (Hajime)
(I KNEW IT!) (Fumio)
"Thanks for the mana, kid. It was enough to heal me right up." (Muzan)
Thanks to his ability to convert pain into physical enhancement, Muzan possessed another technique rare among modern mages: Absorption. By directly touching a mage with his hand, he could absorb their mana to heal his injuries and boost his physical capabilities.
Now fully restored, he was ready to get serious. He picked up his spear once more, prepared to slaughter his opponents.
"Ready for Round 2?"