Hanken had successfully taken control of the Nyxia warship.
Meanwhile, Varaichi had landed on the deck of another ship. He planned to set the ship on fire from the deck without making too much noise before moving on to the next warship. Varaichi took a deep breath and placed his mask, now glowing with burning embers, over his face.
"Fire's Descendant: Flame Caller!"
Varaichi's hand was instantly engulfed in flames. He gathered all of his SP into his hand and set the magic-enhanced warship ablaze. The ship slowly began to burn, but suddenly, all of the warship's sirens started blaring. Nyxia sorcerers rushed toward the deck. Varaichi drew his flaming sword. He was now ready to fight the Nyxia sorcerers.
"Come on, then..."
Varaichi suddenly lunged at the sorcerers.
Slashes
Within seconds, Varaichi was cutting down every sorcerer in his path. After a while, all of the sorcerers aboard the ship gathered around him.
"Where do you think you're going, you filthy Shadowian?!"
Varaichi suddenly ran into the ship and quickly descended to the sleeping quarters.
"DON'T COME BACK UNTIL YOU'VE CAUGHT HER!"
The sorcerers immediately chased after Varaichi. The sleeping quarters were arranged like barracks, with woolen beds stacked into bunk beds. Most of the enemy sorcerers descended into the sleeping quarters as well. When they spotted Varaichi, they thought they had him cornered.
"This is where it ends, Flame Girl! Take her down!"
Varaichi laughed mockingly.
"Hahah. Just wait... We're only getting started. Fire's Descendant: Flame Spiral!"
Flames suddenly began spiraling out from Varaichi's sword. They spread throughout the entire barracks, engulfing the woolen beds in flames. The Nyxia sorcerers were caught in the fire as well, and screams of agony echoed throughout the room.
"IT'S BURNING!!"
"I'M BURNINGGGGG!!"
Varaichi then slowly crouched down and made his way back up from the sleeping quarters. Standing in front of him was a brown-haired, brown-eyed man around 6 feet (183 cm) tall. He wore a mask decorated with a mixture of purple and pink, and he wasn't carrying a sword.
"Hahah! You don't even have a sword. I'd suggest getting out of my way."
The strange man simply stared into Varaichi's eyes with an intense expression.
Varaichi grinned.
"Is that so...? Then come at me!"
Dash
The strange man suddenly met Varaichi's sword with his bare hand and, in the same instant, punched Varaichi so hard that he went flying through one window and into another.
Smack
"Ahhh!"
Varaichi shattered the glass he crashed into and rolled across the floor.
"H-he did that without a sword...? This guy must be using a Jujutsu Technique. He's probably from Silverton. Jujutsu Techniques only exist in Rawen and Silverton, after all."
The man slowly approached him. He grabbed Varaichi by the shoulder and lifted him from the ground before delivering a devastating blow to his stomach, sending him flying once again.
Crunch
"AHHHH!"
Varaichi crashed into the door of a closed room, completely breaking it down as he fell into the kitchen. Fish were being cooked inside, and the smell filled the room.
"F-fish, huh?! Nice... B-but I need to get back up first. This guy is seriously dangerous!"
Varaichi immediately got back to his feet and drew his sword.
"Fire's Descendant: Flame Arrows!"
A barrage of flaming arrows shot from Varaichi's sword. The strange man weaved between them, rushing straight toward Varaichi. Once he finally got within striking distance, he prepared to throw a punch, but Varaichi suddenly countered with his sword. The man was knocked backward and crashed into a food cabinet.
The stranger brushed himself off.
"Ahh... Nice counter."
Varaichi stared at him.
"So you can talk after all..."
"Yunkei doesn't talk while he's focused."
"Yunkei, huh...? So that's your name."
"Are you trying to provoke me? Then take this!"
Yunkei suddenly lunged at Varaichi. The two began fighting at close range. Varaichi repeatedly struck at Yunkei with his sword, but Yunkei blocked every attack with his arms without taking any damage.
Slashes
Smashes
Varaichi suddenly unleashed another technique.
"Fire's Descendant: Flame Wave!"
A wave of flames erupted from Varaichi's sword. Yunkei crossed his arms in an X-shaped guard, protecting himself from the flames. However, the sheer force of the attack still pushed him several meters backward.
Varaichi didn't slow down. He immediately rushed toward Yunkei again, and the two resumed their close-quarters battle. With a sudden burst of agility, Yunkei drove his elbow into Varaichi's stomach, knocking the breath out of him.
"Khhkk!!"
Yunkei then struck Varaichi across the right side of his face with the back of his hand. Varaichi collapsed to the ground.
"I forgot to add my surname... Hirosato."
Varaichi struggled to breathe as he brought a finger to his lips. Blood was pouring from them.
"S-so it's time to use it again... Fire Angel!"
Flaming wings erupted from Varaichi's back, blasting everything around him away. Yunkei was launched five to ten meters into the air above the warship. Varaichi rose after him, his orange mask glowing brightly with flames.
"Whoa. I thought you were just another low-ranker. Guess I was wrong. Looks like I'll have to use my Dreams ability."
Varaichi suddenly flew upward and reached Yunkei. He struck Yunkei downward in midair. Flames erupted from Varaichi's sword, and Yunkei crashed into the warship at tremendous speed. By then, more than half of the warship was already engulfed in flames.
Yunkei slowly opened his eyes.
"Ahh! That bastard dislocated my shoulder! I'm gonna make him pay for that."
Yunkei rose to his feet. His hands suddenly began glowing with a pinkish light.
"Rising Dreams!"
Rising Dreams was the ability of Yunkei's mask. It was perfectly suited to his Jujutsu Technique. The ability increased the power and speed of Yunkei's strikes and movements tenfold, while also generating shockwaves that scattered outward after every hit.
Yunkei suddenly leaped into the air and swung his fist at Varaichi, who was approaching him. His fist collided with Varaichi's sword, sending a massive shockwave through the air. Varaichi was stunned by the impact and launched dozens of meters backward. After flying through the air, he crashed onto the roof of another Nyxia warship.
Yunkei, meanwhile, moved incredibly quickly, leaping from warship to warship until he reached Varaichi.
Varaichi suddenly rose and countered with his sword.
Slash
Yunkei blocked the attack with his arm. But even the small shockwave produced from the impact sent Varaichi's feet off the ground.
"W-what the hell are these recoil shockwaves!? I don't know what to do... I've never fought someone with a Jujutsu Technique before..."
Yunkei suddenly lunged at Varaichi again and delivered a powerful punch. Varaichi blocked it with his sword, but the impact sent him flying several meters backward. He fell from the roof of the warship, landing among the enemy sorcerers below. Yunkei descended from the roof as well.
Everyone stared at the two fighters in fear and shock. No one dared to interfere.
Varaichi slowly got back to his feet. Yunkei once again threw a powerful punch. Varaichi ducked at the last second, narrowly avoiding the blow to his face, but the punch struck his right wing instead. His right wing was instantly torn off and sent flying, while Varaichi was thrown violently back to the ground.
Varaichi's lip was completely split open. Blood streamed down from his head, and both of his eyebrows were badly torn apart. Blood dripped from beneath his mask. He could barely remain standing anymore. Staggering, he looked toward Yunkei.
Yunkei stared back at him coldly.
"What else have you got left?"
Varaichi focused one final time. He could barely breathe. Gathering every ounce of strength he had left into his sword, he finally spoke.
"Fire's Descendant... EIGHT SERPENT ERUPTION!!"
A tremendous torrent of flames erupted from Varaichi's sword. Because Varaichi was already exhausted, the flames reached only around forty meters.
However, thanks to Rising Dreams, Yunkei moved behind Varaichi at incredible speed the instant the flames left his sword.
The flames engulfed everything in front of Varaichi. The entire crew caught in their path, along with six warships ahead of them, were reduced to ash.
Yunkei suddenly grabbed Varaichi by the arm and slammed him into the ground.
BOOM
The sound of Varaichi's body hitting the ground collided with the shockwave, causing the entire sea to tremble.
Varaichi had already lost consciousness the moment he hit the ground. His mask had fallen away, revealing a face completely covered in blood. His jaw and nose were both broken, and he lay motionless in a pool of blood.