"Heavy, thick mist… it's his power," said Derius. "Now it will be dangerous."
Samaira trembled.
"I know Miss Violet will find a way," said Duke.
"You're pretty confident… well, that's right—we should at least be positive," said Derius.
"There must be a way," said Lysa.
"Hey, you're back, Lysa!" Samaira exclaimed.
"I'm back—with my bow," Lysa replied with confidence.
"Lysa, don't you shoot arrows at him," said Derius.
"If he comes toward us, I will."
"No, Lysa, do you think that's right?" said Duke.
"You're irritating—tch," said Derius. "I don't want to talk to him."
"Let's focus on finding a way," said Duke.
"I don't have to say it—I'm already doing that," said Derius.
Back at Violet and the Monk.
"It's over," the Monk said, his voice calm yet final.
A blinding arc cut through the suffocating fog, racing toward Violet.
The slash almost reached—
Then, all of a sudden, a burst of swirling energy erupted around her, forming a barrier of whirling currents.
"Wind Shelter," Violet declared.
The attack shattered against the shield, sparks scattering in the mist.
The Monk's smile didn't waver. "That move again… but you can't use it forever," he said calmly, his tone edged with mockery.
But this time, the Wind Shelter did not fade. Instead, the currents began to circle around her, growing faster and sharper, howling through the fog.
Violet's eyes narrowed, her voice cutting through the storm.
"The wind is my shield—it bends to my will.
The storm is my fury—it knows only silence.
The shelter… becomes the blade.
Unleash the storm."
Her words echoed like a chant, each syllable feeding the tempest.
The air trembled. The Wind Shelter spiraled outward, transforming into a raging vortex.
The Monk's grin faltered, his eyes narrowing with interest. "What's this? This is not the move you used earlier…"
"Wind Shelter—Whirlpool," Violet muttered, her chains rattling in the surge of power.
The storm roared, swallowing the mist itself.
The wind around them howled violently, pulling everything toward Violet's vortex.
"T–That… that's…!" the Monk stammered, his grin twitching.
Roof tiles tore free, houses groaned, dust and shattered debris swirled upward—all of it dragged into the raging storm. Even the suffocating mist was being consumed.
"Ahhh—what is with this wind?!" Lysa cried out, shielding her face as her hair whipped wildly.
"The mist… it's disappearing…" Derius' eyes widened, disbelief flashing across his sharp gaze.
On the rooftop, Duke's lips curved into a rare smile. "Miss Violet… she figured it out."
Even Samaira, trembling only moments ago, allowed herself a small smile of relief.
Down below, Dan Fisher staggered, his cloak flapping violently as the storm dragged at him. "W-What is this?! The wind—it's pulling me in!" His voice cracked, his expression twisted with shock.
"T-The mist! It's… it's disappearing!" one of the assassins stammered, his eyes darting in terror as the suffocating fog dissolved into Violet's spiraling vortex.
The battlefield itself was being rewritten—mist torn away, houses cracking, and the storm bending everything toward Violet.
Violet vanished into the whirlpool, her body spinning with the storm itself. In a blur, she launched directly toward the Monk.
His eyes widened—too late.
PUNCH SLAMED!
The impact shook the village. The Monk's body was hurled backward, smashing straight through a rooftop, the structure caving in with a thunderous crash.
The storm slowly faded as Violet descended, her boots touching lightly against the broken roof of another house. Chains rattled at her side as she straightened, calm and composed.
A low, cold laugh escaped her lips.
"Your slashes… they aren't completely invisible," she said, her eyes sharp. "It's the mist."Your slashes aren't unseen… they're painted in the mist's shade."
.That's your trick."
The Monk, buried in rubble, coughed blood—his eerie grin returning even through the pain.
The Monk staggered to his feet, blood staining his lips, yet a twisted smile spread across his face.
"That was a clever technique… and in such close time, you managed to figure out my invisible slash trick." His voice carried grudging respect—but it quickly sharpened into mockery. "But still… you're incredibly dumb."
He lifted his hand. Before Violet's eyes, torn flesh began knitting together. His other arm, bruised and battered moments ago, was already healing.
"You've wasted so much energy on that single technique. Soon, your Kendra will be drained dry. You still have limits…" He spread his arms wide, grin widening. "…and I have no limits."
Violet's eyes narrowed, her chains clinking as the wind coiled tighter around her.
"All I need to do…" the Monk hissed, grin cutting through the blood on his teeth, "…is survive until you burn yourself out."
"I have enough Kendra energy to kill you twice," Violet said coldly, taking her stance.
The Monk began to float again, mist swirling faintly around his form. "Is that so?" he murmured, his grin widening.
In the next breath, he unleashed more slashes—dozens of them slicing through the air.
For the first time, Violet saw clearly how he created them. Below, where he had once meditated, faint warrior-shapes of Kendra shimmered into existence—phantoms wielding swords, each one sending out arcs of energy that cut toward her.
Violet dodged swiftly, her chains rattling as she twisted through the storm. A sharp smile flickered across her lips. Now I see… once you understand the trick, the slashes are easier to dodge. Still, her expression hardened. But they're creepy.
She closed the distance, moving for the Monk, but he leapt backward, widening the gap once more—then raised his hand. A barrage of slashes tore forward in rapid succession, filling the air with deadly arcs.
"Look at that… we can see them now!" Samaira gasped, clutching her glaive tightly.
"So it was the mist hiding them all along," Derius muttered, his jaw tightening. "I'm an idiot… if something truly invisible like that existed, he'd have conquered the world already."
Duke remained silent, eyes narrowed, analyzing every movement of the duel.
Violet twisted and rolled through the storm of blades, sparks flashing as a few grazed her. Thin cuts streaked across her arm and cheek, blood flecking the wind.
The Monk's voice rang out, calm and cruel. "Keep dodging… until you drain yourself completely."
"Again, the fight's shifted toward us, boss," one of the assassins muttered nervously.
"Hehehe… Violet's death is certain today," Dan said, a cruel grin splitting his face.
"He's not letting her get close," Derius observed grimly. "After using that big technique, he's just trying to drain her dry. Miss Violet's speed is holding for now, but even with Kendra fueling her… soon, she'll start taking real hits."
Duke's hand went instinctively to his sword hilt.
"Don't even think about it," Derius snapped, "not unless she orders it—or unless she falls."
Duke's jaw clenched, his anger rising. Yet deep down, he couldn't deny the truth in Derius' words.
Samaira's eyes stayed locked on the clash, her face pale but determined.
"Please, God…" whispered Lysa, her hands pressed together, praying desperately.
On the field, Violet charged, her chains whipping outward in a wide swing—this time without Kendra reinforcing them.
The Monk dodged effortlessly, leaping back again. His grin widened. "You almost got me," he said calmly. "Very well… let's make this more interesting."
He raised his hand. Kendra energy flared, condensing into a swirling sphere of light in his palm.
Violet's eyes widened. That's bad. If that hits… the people in these houses will be in serious trouble.
The Monk hurled the energy ball.
Violet dove aside, the attack narrowly missing her—
BOOM!
The house behind her erupted as the blast consumed the first floor, fire and rubble exploding outward. The shockwave slammed into Violet mid-air, hurling her body violently across the street. She smashed through the wall of another building, debris raining down as the air quaked with the aftershock.
The Monk hurled another glowing sphere of Kendra energy.
BOOM!
Violet twisted aside just in time, but the shockwave slammed into her, throwing her body down into the tiles. Dust and splinters rained as she forced herself back up.
Another blast came. Then another.
Each one she dodged, but each shockwave punished her, forcing her down again and again, her boots cracking rooftops as she landed hard.
From within the haze of rubble, the Monk's calm voice drifted.
"Looks like my other hand is healed enough to move now… not fully, but enough." He flexed his arm, light shimmering across half-mended flesh. His grin widened. "This situation has always been under my control. You never had a chance against me."
Both his hands rose, Kendra surging between them. Power condensed, heavier than before, humming with lethal force. A massive energy ball grew in his grasp, light bending around its density.
Violet's eyes narrowed sharply. Without hesitation, she mirrored him—both of her hands flaring with Kendra as she began condensing her own sphere of energy. The wind coiled violently around her arms, her chains rattling as if in defiance.
The Monk's grin stretched wider. Yes… use more. Burn yourself out. You're walking straight into my trap.
"Now—!"
He thrust both hands forward, launching his colossal sphere.
Violet answered in the same breath, her storm-wrapped Kendra ball tearing forward.
The two orbs collided in midair.
CRAAAAASH!
The world shook as the spheres detonated against one another. Shockwaves ripped across the battlefield, splintering wood, shattering glass, and cracking stone foundations. The blast lit the night like lightning, roaring outward in every direction.
For one instant, the two forces seemed equal—neither giving way, locked in furious balance.
The dust slowly cleared.
The Monk hovered above the ruins, calm as ever, a faint whistle escaping his lips as though mocking the silence.
Violet rose from the debris opposite him, chains rattling as she steadied her stance.
Once more, both of them raised their hands—Kendra flaring violently. Twin spheres of blinding energy began to form, the air trembling under their power.
They launched—
The orbs clashed midair, snarling as they coiled into one another. Shockwaves erupted in bursts, blasting tiles, tearing through walls, rattling the bones of everyone watching.
"Equally matched…" Derius muttered under his breath, eyes wide. "They're fighting with pure Kendra strength now."
Again and again the spheres collided, each clash ending in deafening detonations that shook the battlefield. The ground itself groaned under the pressure.
Then—
Another collision. But this time, Violet's sphere faltered.
The Monk's Kendra ball cut straight through hers, devouring it whole before hurtling toward her like a falling star.
Her eyes widened—too late.
"—!"
The blast struck.
BOOOOOOM!
Violet's body was hurled backward like a ragdoll, the shockwave tearing through the street. She slammed into the wall of another house with devastating force, the entire structure collapsing around her in a storm of dust and rubble.
The Monk lowered his smoking hand, a sly grin cutting across his bloodied face.
Her technique had weakened the strike slightly—but not enough.
To be continued