Inside the corridor.
Two Crows were walking side by side. They were Koi and Molly.
"Which Entity do you think is stronger?" Molly asked.
"Entity 03-245 is clearly stronger, but it's not very cunning," Koi replied.
Molly raised an eyebrow. "Cunning?"
"An Entity's intelligence is usually determined by its host. If the host is highly intelligent, then the Entity becomes more cunning."
"So the other Entity has an intelligent host?"
Koi smiled.
"The host is human."
•••
Inside the corridor.
Lyxander and Quartz were walking straight ahead, searching for traces of the lizard Entity.
"Quartz, if you were a large-bodied Entity, where do you think you'd hide?" Lyxander asked.
"A wide area, perhaps?" Quartz replied.
"Then why are we searching here instead?" Lyxander frowned.
The corner of Quartz's lips lifted.
"Fufu, that's only if it wants to hide."
Lyxander's pupils widened. "I see… it's looking for an exit."
"Exactly."
"But doesn't that Entity breathe fire?" Lyxander frowned again. "Wouldn't it be dangerous to fight in a corridor?"
"You're right, it is dangerous. But doesn't that align perfectly with your plan?" Quartz raised an eyebrow.
Chuckling, Lyxander recalled Quartz's insane fight with the lizard Entity.
"Looks like you're going to do it again."
Quartz merely smiled.
Their steps came to a halt at a corridor intersection. The center of the crossing was scorched black.
"It looks like it burned this area," Quartz guessed.
Lyxander sniffed the air and scanned the surroundings, searching for traces of the lizard.
"Which direction do you think it went?" Lyxander asked.
"That way." Quartz pointed straight ahead. Her eyes were filled with confidence.
"Instinct?" Lyxander guessed.
Quartz smiled. "Instinct."
Lyxander crouched down and touched the scorched marks, immediately noticing something strange. His pupils widened, and he quickly pulled Quartz behind the wall.
Whooosh!
A reddish stream of fire engulfed the entire corridor. Quartz flinched and turned to Lyxander.
Lyxander only smiled sarcastically.
"Congratulations. Your instinct was right."
"How did it know we were here?" Quartz asked.
"Temperature. It's quite intelligent for a lizard," Lyxander replied.
"Temperature?" Quartz frowned.
"You might not know this, but a lizard's retina has far more photoreceptors than a human's. That makes them much better at detecting temperature differences."
Of course, this was just one of the many pieces of useless knowledge from Lyxander's original memories.
"So it left scorch marks here to observe temperature changes?" Quartz asked.
"Yes. It seems it hit a dead end over there, turned back, and found us."
Lyxander let out a sigh.
"We're really unlucky."
"Isn't finding it considered good luck?" Quartz said.
Lyxander chuckled lightly before replying,
"I wonder where all that optimism of yours comes from?"
"You still remember our plan, right?"
"Roger."
Clink!
Lyxander immediately leapt out, pressing a coin between his fingers and firing a shot.
BOOM!
A brilliant blue flash tore through the corridor.
Thud!
The Entity's head was struck. It began to growl and snort in rage.
The moment the shot was fired, Quartz dashed straight toward the giant lizard, her speed increasing steadily.
ROAR!
The lizard's roar shook the entire corridor, yet Quartz kept running, completely unfazed.
Thick smoke poured from the lizard's mouth as it opened wide, revealing a reddish glow deep in its throat.
Whoosh—
Quartz threw her karambit into one of the lizard's gums.
BOOM!
The karambit exploded, blasting several sharp teeth out of the giant lizard's mouth.
When they were forming the plan, Quartz had explained the three modes of her weapon to Lyxander. Two had already been shown during the earlier fight—the last one was the explosive mode.
ROAR!
The lizard roared again, this time in agony. It thrashed violently, its eyes filled with fury as pain surged from its gums.
The reddish glow appeared once more in its throat, preparing to breathe fire again.
Realizing a second attack was coming, Quartz hurriedly kicked off her shoes and extended her karambit toward Lyxander.
"These shoes are great for preventing slips," Lyxander smiled.
"But socks are perfect for sliding, aren't they?"
He immediately pulled Quartz toward him using the karambit, letting her slide at lightning speed into his arms.
Thump!
Quartz leapt and twisted her body midair, crashing her back into Lyxander's chest.
Struggling to remain upright, Lyxander wrapped his arms tightly around Quartz.
Clink!
He threw another coin and pressed his palm against it. At the same time, the giant lizard began spewing fire. A clash between blazing flames and radiant light began.
Whoooosh!
BOOM!
"If you can't attack the outside," Lyxander said, unable to suppress his sarcastic smile,
"then just attack the inside."
Blue and red light collided violently!
BOOM!
The blue light split the flames apart and blasted straight into the giant lizard's stomach.
The victor was decided.
The lizard Entity's abdomen was destroyed by the blue explosion.
"It actually worked?" Quartz stared in disbelief, never expecting Lyxander's plan to succeed.
Black liquid immediately spilled out from the lizard's body and moved toward them.
Clink!
Lyxander threw a coin, and the black liquid was instantly absorbed into it.
"We won."
Lyxander glanced at Quartz—and his eyes widened.
Bang!
A gunshot rang out, striking Quartz squarely in the chest.
The world seemed to slow down as Lyxander's rapid-thinking ability activated.
"It wasn't a dead end. The lizard was escaping!"
Step. Step.
A man wearing a golden mask with a single eye emerged from the shadows.
His arms were so thin they resembled dry branches. He held a pistol in his left hand, while his other hand gripped a cowboy hat.
Lyxander had already used all three light shots. Quartz was shot and in critical condition.
And as if fate were mocking him, he now had to face an Entity far more dangerous than the lizard.
Would he succeed?
Only God knows.