The completely white hand contrasted with the absolute darkness enveloping the entire region, standing out as though it were the only thing that still existed in that void. With a sudden movement of his arm, the figure sent Jago spinning through the air before hurling him violently into a building, destroying part of it upon impact.
'From the looks of it, everything is dark, but we're still in the same location in the original world. I can sense the positions of the buildings and other elements around me... Apparently, this is an incomplete zone magic.'
Jago got back to his feet without showing any significant damage.
Before him, as though emerging from the darkness, the legs of a figure began to appear. Just like its hands, they were completely white. In fact, its entire body had that same coloration. When it finally emerged from the void, its appearance began to regain its original colors.
'So this is your appearance as a Nartheis, Enrico...'
His face was covered by a sort of mask with a cross in the center. The only thing that stood out was his golden eyes, resembling those of a wild animal. His skin had a grayish tone in the areas that remained exposed, while his clothes seemed to have transformed into a completely black second layer of skin. His hands had sharp claws, and his teeth had turned into fangs. His hair, now long and black, fell down his back, while his ears had taken on a slightly pointed shape. At the center of his chest was a white cross-shaped symbol.
Name: Vaen, Panther of the Void
Rank: Ranvil — Level 2
Magic: Void
Unique Ability — Devour: Allows the user to multiply their own strength as they devour their prey. When devouring magic, they can also absorb an opponent's magical affinity and use it once per day. This ability can be enhanced.
A small amount of smoke escaped from Vaen's mouth. With a simple movement of his hand, he struck Jago in the stomach. The impact was so powerful that it distorted the air for kilometers around the city.
Upon detecting a threat of that magnitude, the world itself began to react, increasing its resistance to withstand the destruction caused by that power. After all, that strength was already equivalent to that of a Circle Seven mage.
"So you're a Level Two Ranvil? How curious... I am too."
To the surprise of the three vampires, Jago had managed to block the blow with the palm of his hand, although he seemed to be struggling to withstand the force of the impact. Apparently, they were both at the same level.
"Bone Armor!"
An armor began to form around every part of Jago's body. When the bones finally covered his head, forming a skull-like helmet, his eyes glowed red. Then, he returned the blow with a punch of equivalent power.
"Damn... Those monsters are actually fighting!"
"I don't understand. Aren't they supposed to be on the same side?"
Elaris was quite confused, just like Lamia. Even so, in a way, they both felt relieved to be protected by those Nartheis. Yumeha and Rina, however, felt their hearts tighten as they watched that creature. For some reason, Vaen's presence made them think of Enrico.
"Big Sister Rina, the master..."
"Yumeha, be quiet. We'll ask for explanations later."
"You're right. Our master doesn't usually hide things from us."
When the smoke caused by the impact finally dissipated, Vaen appeared practically unharmed. Just like Jago, he had managed to block the blow with the palm of his hand.
Opening his mouth, he fired a black beam that struck his opponent directly in the face, sending him flying.
"Giant Skull: Complete Summoning!"
An enormous skeletal creature, resembling the boss from that zombie dungeon, appeared wielding a sword. With a swing of its weapon, it unleashed a slash that cut across the entire city and traveled several kilometers, extending far beyond its boundaries.
The newborn Nartheis managed to dodge by moving to the right.
Infusing his fist with Void Magic, Vaen managed to break through part of Jago's bone armor and send him flying again. Vaen repeated the movement three times before his opponent finally managed to react, pulling a scythe from among the bodies of the zombies scattered below him.
After receiving a slash to the chest, Vaen pointed a finger at Jago's face and fired a black-and-white beam that pierced his head. However, even without a head, Jago managed to move and appear behind Vaen, delivering three deep slashes.
Vaen's body moved only a few centimeters. Even as the slashes tore through his chest and shoulder, what emerged in place of blood was a dark mist slowly seeping from his wounds. The metallic sound of the scythe being pulled back into Jago's hands echoed through the surroundings, as though the very air were vibrating with the tension of that battle.
For a brief moment, silence fell over the dark battlefield. The air seemed dense, too heavy even to breathe. Then Vaen's voice broke the silence. It was deep and distorted, almost as though two entities were speaking at the same time.
"Kill... Avenge..."
"It seems you still haven't fully mastered this body. That's good for me. This way, I can study it more easily."
The battle resumed, turning into a clash of brute strength and magic, with no room for words. Vaen attacked first. The Panther of the Void manifested as a solid shadow, its muscles condensed from darkness and its golden eyes cutting through the surroundings. Its first impact triggered a vacuum explosion, sucking in the surrounding air and sending sand and debris swirling into whirlwinds that tore through the facades of the buildings.
Jago tried to retaliate by creating a cyclone of bones. A bone wall appeared before him, but it was immediately destroyed, exploding into countless fragments. Vaen's magic pierced through the bone structures as though they didn't even exist.
Jago prepared his scythe once again, concentrating his energy into the weapon.
'Even though it's a newborn, it's still dangerous because of the level it has reached.'
Each of Jago's scythe strikes left a trail of crimson light, while every one of Vaen's advances seemed to plunge the area around him into darkness. Their movements were extremely fast, carried out through leaps that defied the ordinary laws of physics. His paws disappeared and reappeared at different angles, opening wounds that seemed to drain even the sensation of one's own body, as though pain itself were being devoured along with the flesh.
Jago resorted to Necromancy, tearing corpses from the ground and shaping their bodies into blades and spears. A veritable sea of zombies was launched at Vaen like a rain of projectiles, but he passed through them all without slowing down. Whenever his teeth touched one of those creatures, its body disintegrated into black smoke, which was immediately sucked into his mouth.
[Unique Ability — Devour activated.]
As he fed on that mist, Vaen began to grow. His muscles, which had previously seemed more compact, gained volume and became even more defined. The golden glow in his eyes intensified, as though a second source of light had appeared within them. His dark skin also seemed to harden, forming black plates that reflected the faint light present in that environment.
The Bone Knight summoned by Jago entered the battle once again, wielding its enormous sword.
"Death Rift!"
With a swing of its weapon, it unleashed a slash that opened a corridor of destruction all the way to the horizon, tearing off rooftops and leaving a devastating trail in its wake.
Vaen dodged like an elongated shadow. His feline body slid between the waves of the attack, and the sword managed to hit only his tail, tearing away a strip of darkness that immediately reformed.
'An extremely high regeneration rate... Which makes sense, considering he's a Level Two Ranvil Nartheis.'
However, the energy from that strike wasn't wasted. Vaen moved along the blade like a blur and, upon making contact with the sword, began devouring part of its enchantment. Small strands of magic were torn from the weapon like threads of light and absorbed into his body. For an instant, his shadowy form pulsed, expanding and contracting in increasingly intense movements.
Watching that battle, the girls couldn't hide their nervousness. Both creatures were displaying absurd levels of power, and every new clash between them seemed to cause even greater destruction.
However, there was something they all agreed on.
'I hope that black Nartheis beats that damn zombie bastard!'