Chapter 79 - Confrontation Against the Former Princes (Part Two)

🟠 Chapter 78:

🟧 Narrator's POV:

As soon as Takeru approached the ruby, he found himself crushed under an intense gravitational force. Khefi kept him pinned and shifted his attention toward Ryo and Elnar.

Elnar used Phantom Replication again to distract him.

Ryo followed up with a surprise punch. Khefi attempted to block it, but Ryo redirected the punch downward—straight into the floor beneath Khefi—shattering it and causing Khefi to lose his balance. Elnar struck him from behind, wounding him slightly before Khefi leapt back.

He quickly healed the wound using his healing technique, then launched air blades toward the two. This time, Ryo blocked them with his wings, leaving both completely unscathed.

Khefi was impressed by the toughness of Ryo's wings:

"Amazing… your wings are unbelievably sturdy."

Suddenly, Khefi sensed a signal through the barrier he had placed around the palace.

Not intruders—people leaving it. He frowned:

"Strange… did Number Four exit the barrier? No… there are multiple people. Must be the king and his entourage."

Ryo and Elnar immediately realized the cause: Mirai. If people were escaping, it meant she had possibly defeated Number Four.

Still, Khefi no longer cared:

"Fine. Even if they escaped the palace, they won't escape the capital in time."

He refocused on his opponents.

In the blink of an eye he charged at Elnar—so fast Elnar hadn't even blinked before Khefi was already in front of him, arm extended to pierce through his stomach.

What Khefi didn't account for… was that Ryo could match his speed.

A direct kick from Ryo struck Khefi's face, launching him across the room and slamming him into a wall, shaking the chamber.

Elnar expressed his gratitude:

"Thanks, Ryo… you saved me."

The gravitational effect trapping Takeru finally ended, allowing him to stand even though his body ached. He considered using his ten-meter absorption range.

But he couldn't—not with all the ruby and crystal fragments filling half the room.

Amid the chaos, Prince Elithius, unconscious this entire time, finally woke up. The moment he opened his eyes, Takeru noticed him.

Meanwhile, Rey attempted to ambush Elnar from a blind spot—

Only to be shot by one of Takeru's explosive rounds.

The blast knocked Rey to the ground and saved Elnar at the last second.

Khefi's rage exploded the moment he saw it.

He had briefly looked away from Rey—

Now his brother lay collapsed.

Takeru didn't even have time to react before Khefi was inches from him, veins bulging across his furious face:

"You dared lay a hand on my brother?! I told you to stay out of this, you worthless brat."

Takeru shivered under Khefi's murderous aura. He instinctively aimed at Khefi's face—

but Khefi crushed the gun with a single fist and hurled it aside.

He hardened his fist, preparing to pierce through Takeru's stomach:

"I'm done with you and your childish toys. You've been nothing but a nuisance. Die and spare me the annoyance."

At the very moment Khefi's fist was about to tear through him—

Neither Ryo nor Elnar were close enough to help.

But something else saved him:

A neralite metal plate materialized between Khefi's fist and Takeru's stomach.

Khefi's punch smashed into the plate, then into Takeru, sending him flying to the ground.

It wasn't Takeru who created the plate—

His system had activated automatically.

Takeru muttered in shock:

"Thanks, system… this is the first time you've done something without asking me."

[There was no other choice. You were about to die…

And there's a feature in your skill I need to tell you about.]

Takeru tried to focus on the system's words, but Khefi didn't give him a second to breathe, attacking relentlessly—

until Ryo intervened at the last moment.

Their fists collided, creating a shockwave that shook the entire room.

Khefi's blind rage made him lose a portion of his concentration.

That momentary lapse allowed Elnar to trap him:

"Flame Layers."

Khefi was pulled into Elnar's zone, entering the first layer—his clothes instantly began burning.

He reacted quickly and activated shock absorption to protect himself from the flames.

He tried moving, but the Zone forced him along a fixed path toward the center.

He attempted to create a Rift large enough to step into, but his body refused to move toward it.

He could only stay trapped in place.

Elnar told Ryo:

"We need to press harder. Ever since his brother fell, he's unstable."

Ryo asked:

"Prince… are you certain you can control Flame Layers properly this time?"

Elnar smiled confidently:

"Don't worry, Ryo. I'll do it right this time."

Khefi released more air blades to keep anyone from approaching the ruby, but Ryo shielded both Takeru and Elnar with his wings.

Not stopping there, Khefi fired a red energy pulse—and redirected it through a spatial rift, keeping its exit location unknown.

Elnar suddenly heard a faint crack from his leg bone; he nearly screamed but bit down hard.

The redirected pulse hit him, knocking him to the ground, leg bleeding.

Khefi mocked them:

"Look at you—unable to get past me even when I'm standing still."

The response came from someone unexpected:

"Oh really…? Then how about this?"

It wasn't Ryo.

Nor Elnar.

Nor Takeru.

It was Elithius, now fully awake—holding the unconscious Rey in one hand, and Rey's own knife in the other.

From what he'd seen since waking, he understood Khefi's weakness: his brother.

Khefi went berserk.

He tried to stay calm, but he knew he couldn't move from the Zone.

His only option was to use a Rift to stop Elithius from harming Rey.

A Rift opened behind Elithius.

Khefi's hand emerged from it, firing a red pulse from his finger—

But before it could blow Elithius's head apart—

Takeru shot Khefi's hand.

The bullet shattered his palm, sending blood dripping down, yet he persisted.

He launched another pulse and created multiple rifts to make his attack unpredictable.

In the end, Elithius was struck in the hand, dropping the knife as blood scattered on the ground.

Ryo and Takeru rushed toward Khefi, but he unleashed a barrage of air blades to keep them at bay.

Then he dragged both Rey and Elithius through another Rift.

The tables had turned—

Khefi was now threatening to kill Elithius.

Meanwhile, he had already entered the second layer of Flame Layers.

At that moment, Elithius shouted a crucial truth:

"Aim for Khefi's heart—he has a severe heart condition!"

Khefi froze in disbelief.

Elithius had discovered his secret.

He had spoken about this in front of Rey while Elithius was under mind control.

He hadn't realized whether his skill had weakened or whether Elithius's will had grown so strong that he'd remained partly conscious while controlled.

"You brat… how did you learn that?"

"I don't know how… but I remember your conversation with your brother."

Khefi realized Elithius's resistance had grown far stronger.

Only two minutes remained before the capital's destruction.