Hikaru charged at Yagami with full speed, eyes burning with rage, sword ready to cleave him in half.
But right at that moment…
From the right side, a loud roar shattered the air:
"GOT YOUUUUUU!!"
Hikaru glanced to the side and in that single second caught sight of Tswya hurtling toward him like a meteor, screaming!
"RRRRRAAAAAAGHH!!"
BOOOOM!!!
Tswya collided with tremendous force, sending both of them crashing into the massive wall of the Dābora chamber!
A terrifying shockwave erupted from the impact. Cracks spiderwebbed all the way down the corridor.
Yagami flicked a quick glance in that direction.
Through the smoke and debris, Masaru emerged from the huge hole Tswya's crash had created.
He walked casually into the wide, dark passage where the 16-meter-tall Dābora Gate loomed like a black mountain before him.
Masaru grinned and looked at the enormous fissure Yagami had torn through the center of the labyrinth:
"Ohoooo… what did you do, kid! Didn't you go a little overboard?!"
Yagami stared back at him with his glowing crimson eyes.
Masaru immediately raised both hands and laughed:
"Sorry! Just kidding!"
But the two elves…
Suddenly roared! RRRRRAAAAA!
Their auras shifted — eyes turned an even deeper red, bodies grew larger and more monstrous.
Claws and fangs extended, their terrifying howls filled the entire space.
Masaru silently rested his sword on his shoulder, flashed a demonic grin, and turned to Yagami:
"Well… jokes aside now. Let's give these two a proper beating!"
Yagami spun his sword once, chuckled darkly, and with a wicked look said:
"Now that I look at you more closely… you seem kinda interesting. Partner!"
And now…
Two monsters versus two monsters.
A battle that wouldn't just shake the labyrinth — it would shake the very earth…
Hell was only just beginning!
Masaru took a few steps forward with a laugh, looking at the newly transformed Tswya and Hikaru:
"Why are you guys suddenly so pissed? Come on, let's solve this peacefully with a nice chat."
Yagami glanced at Masaru, gave a crooked smile, and muttered to himself:
"This guy… he reminds me of Yuji…"
Meanwhile, on the far side of the labyrinth, Satan was still locked in a bloody battle with Kaito.
Wounds covered his body, his breathing had grown heavy, but Kaito… not a single scratch, not tired, not even winded!
Kaito tilted his head and said with a cold smile:
"What's wrong, Red Giant? Tired already?"
Satan, drenched in sweat and seething with rage, snatched his sword off the ground with trembling breaths and roared with raw violence:
"Demonic Blade!"
A howling slash of darkness erupted from his sword like a whip of night, rushing straight toward Kaito.
Kaito instantly shouted back:
"Demonic Blade!"
An identical slash — a perfect mirror of the same dark magic — exploded from his own blade and met Satan's in mid-air.
A devastating shockwave erupted from the collision, cracking the stone floor beneath them.
Satan, wounded and furious, roared once more:
"Death Sword!"
He slammed his sword into the ground with all his might, but…
TINK!
Instead of splitting the stone, the blade met impossible resistance and bounced back violently, forcing Satan to stagger backward.
Kaito stepped forward with that eerie smile and shouted:
"Death Sword!"
But unlike Satan, he gripped the sword like a blazing spear — and hurled it with lightning speed straight at Satan!
Satan, still off-balance from the rebound, eyes wide, stared at the flying blade coming straight for him.
With a desperate twist to the left he barely avoided a direct hit…
The sword grazed just millimeters beneath his eye, slicing deep — blood sprayed violently from the wound.
Satan, panting heavily, looked at the thrown sword now embedded deep in the wall seam.
Then a cold, calm voice whispered right beside his ear:
"You should really pay more attention, Prince of Darkness…"
Satan whipped his head around — but… it was already too late.
Kaito stood right in front of him, terrifying grin on his face, fist clenched and ready.
BOOOOM!
Kaito's fist smashed with full force straight into Satan's face… but Satan didn't budge even one centimeter.
Satan flashed a demonic smile, grabbed Kaito's wrist, and squeezed with bone-crushing strength — the sickening sound of cracking bones echoed.
With a deep, quiet, yet utterly lethal voice he said:
"Throwing away your sword just made my job easier, kid…"
Only now did Kaito realize the terrible mistake he'd made… but it was far too late.
Satan pulled his fist back, a blazing crimson aura coiled around his arm, and roared:
"Bone-Shattering Fist!!"
The strike landed with horrifying power — Satan's fist burst straight through Kaito's chest, exiting from his back!
Kaito's body was hurled backward at unbelievable speed…
On the other side of the labyrinth's darkness…
A girl ran through the shadows, gasping desperately. Her ragged breaths echoed in the silence…
When she finally reached a patch of light, her face became visible:
Elizabeth!
Trembling with fear and anxiety she whispered to herself:
"If I hadn't created that clone of myself and jumped into the side passage at the last second… I'd be dust right now…"
But before she could finish the thought—
BOOOOM!!
From the wall right beside her, just centimeters from her face, Kaito's body shot past like a blazing cannonball!
Elizabeth stared in horror at the corridor Kaito had just been blasted through.
Her eyes were wide with terror, cold sweat dripping from her temples.
She pressed herself against the wall and whispered in a shaking voice:
"Don't tell me… don't tell me that one-eyed god… I'm finished!"
At that same moment, on the other side…
Satan collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. His breaths were ragged, body covered in wounds, but his eyes still burned with life.
In a hoarse voice he muttered to himself:
"That punch… was way too strong… I've never seen a kid with that much power… I have to get up fast… Master Yagami… ughhh… he needs me."
Leaning against the wall, he painfully dragged himself to his feet.
He used his sword like a cane, and with heavy, agonizing steps, began to walk forward.
At that exact moment, Elizabeth — still hiding behind the wall in terror — peeked once more into the corridor.
And suddenly… her eyes locked onto Satan coming from the other direction.
Her breath caught in her throat, cold sweat pouring down her neck.
She whispered to herself:
"If I don't do something, this time I'm really dead…!"
Then her gaze fell on the nearby wall. One of the bricks was missing…
Satan reached the hole Kaito had been blasted through.
He stuck his head inside, slipped through, and disappeared into the other passage.
Everything fell silent…
Until suddenly, one of the bricks in the wall became shrouded in thick, eerie mist.
From within that fog… Elizabeth emerged.
With cold sweat on her forehead, she dropped to the ground, panting:
"What the hell was I thinking coming into this damn labyrinth…"
(To be continued…)