After the deaths of the two demon peers, Tempestia and Moon Light stood side by side in the ruined avenue, neither taking their eyes off the last monster remaining.
Fires burned across collapsed buildings behind them. Thick smoke drifted through the air while shattered vehicles crackled with lingering heat.
Above the destruction, Megalodon watched in silence. His massive frame descended slowly through the smoke, arms folded behind his back. His boots hovered inches above the ground as if gravity itself refused to touch him.
Halfway down, he stopped. His gaze moved lazily toward the distant craters where the other demons had fallen.
"What a shame," he said. His tone stayed calm, almost conversational. "Both demons were slain so easily."
He tilted his head faintly. "Though they were nothing more than inexperienced children pretending to understand war."
Moon Light wiped dust from the corner of his mouth and spat onto the broken pavement.
"Now we only have to deal with this arrogant bastard." His fingers flexed at his sides as he stared upward. "And yeah, I can already tell he's way stronger than those other freaks. He's in a completely different league. This asshole lifted one finger earlier and erased multiple blocks like it meant nothing."
He glanced toward Tempestia. "Good thing you reversed the damage and teleported the civilians out before things got worse."
Tempestia gave a short nod without looking at him.
Megalodon laughed under his breath. The deep sound rolled across the street, strong enough to shake loose concrete fragments from nearby walls and rattle broken glass across the ground.
"Arrogance is only natural for someone like me," Megalodon replied, his voice calm and resonant. "I am a superior being. You two are nothing more than fodder. Your minds are simply too limited to understand how far beneath me you stand."
Tempestia stepped forward. Her boots crushed scattered glass beneath them. Blue-white electricity crackled over her forearms and snapped around her hands in unstable bursts. She raised her voice firmly.
"The battle just started." She leaned slightly closer to Moon Light without shifting her gaze from the demon and lowered her tone. "You need to stay on your toes. Holding back means death. Something about him feels wrong."
She lifted her arm toward Megalodon in clear challenge. "If you are truly above humanity, then why waste time with Earth?" she demanded.
Her voice carried sharply through the ruined district.
"Go back to whatever pit you crawled out from and stop this insanity."
Moon-Light did not wait for Megalodon's response. He cracked his neck once. "Fuck talking."
Then shot upward through the smoke before Megalodon could answer. Light gathered around one hand while darkness spiraled around the other. The opposing energies twisted violently as he thrust both palms forward.
Explosive blasts hammered toward Megalodon in rapid succession.
Tempestia's hand shot upward. "Wait. Sneak attacks won't wo…"
The blasts connected before she could finish. Multiple explosions swallowed Megalodon completely. Shockwaves tore across the battlefield, flipping cars onto their roofs, snapping streetlights, and ripping entire sections of pavement upward.
Moon Light grinned. "Hell yeah! Direct fucking hit!"
Thick smoke rolled apart slowly. Megalodon stood exactly where he had been, completely relaxed. There wasn't a single wound on his body. Not even a scratch. He casually brushed ash from one shoulder with the back of his hand.
Moon-Light lowered his arm slowly, the grin disappearing from his face. "You've gotta be kidding me." He threw one arm out in disbelief. "That's complete bullshit. Not even a damn scratch?"
Tempestia appeared beside him in a blur of light. "I told you already. High-ranking demons are almost indestructible. They're nearly impossible to kill physically."
Her breathing slowed. A dark thought crossed her mind as she watched him standing there untouched.
Even at my peak… this monster would still be an extremely difficult foe to battle. We are basically delaying the inevitable.
Her fingers curled tighter.
Megalodon released a long sigh. The boredom on his face became even more obvious.
"Is that truly the extent of your power?" he asked. "You showed far more spirit while fighting my subordinates. You certainly spoke louder back then."
The world distorted for a single instant. Megalodon vanished. Moon Light barely processed the movement before the demon appeared directly in front of him. Two fingers pressed beneath Moon Light's throat and forced his head upward. Moon Light froze as the overwhelming difference in speed hit him.
"You talk too much," Megalodon stated, staring directly into his eyes.
Moon-Light's eyes widened sharply. For the first time since the battle started, surprise fully crossed his face.
He warped away instantly. The space he left behind exploded from the sheer pressure of Megalodon's hand movement. The blast sent him flying backward through one building, then another, then a third. He crashed through support walls before skidding across broken rubble. After rolling twice, he dug his hand into the street to stop his momentum. Blood splattered from his mouth onto the pavement.
Tempestia's voice echoed sharply across the battlefield. "Don't forget about me!"
She teleported above Megalodon and twisted through the air into a spinning descent. Her heel crashed downward toward the side of his neck with crushing force.
The impact detonated across the avenue. Megalodon's feet sank slightly into the ground, but his body did not shift an inch. Tempestia's eyes widened as powerful recoil shot up her leg.
"What the hell… Is he immune to physical damage?!"
Megalodon calmly raised one hand toward the distant rubble where Moon Light was struggling to his feet. A sphere of compressed energy fired from his palm without warning.
"Moon Light! Incoming attack!" Tempestia shouted.
The attack screamed across the battlefield. Moon Light caught it with both hands. The force drove him backward instantly. His boots carved deep trenches through the concrete while his entire body shook under the pressure. Blood slipped from between his teeth as he forced the beam away from his chest.
"Fuck… this thing is heavy!"
Megalodon turned his head toward Tempestia while Moon Light struggled behind him. His free hand moved calmly toward the leg she still had braced against his neck.
Tempestia vanished a split second before his fingers could close. She reappeared high above the battlefield with smoke swirling around her. Both arms lifted overhead as lightning exploded across the clouds.
"Pillar of Purification!"
A massive column of white-hot energy crashed downward. The blast consumed Megalodon instantly. Roads vaporized beneath the impact. Nearby metal structures melted into glowing debris. The shockwave ripped through the district, shattering every remaining window.
For several seconds, nothing was visible inside the blinding light.
Then steady footsteps emerged from the smoke.
Megalodon advanced through the smoke without changing pace. Steam rolled off his body. Fresh wounds across his chest and face sealed themselves shut in real time. Torn flesh knitted back together as bruises faded beneath regenerating skin.
By the time he fully stepped out of the smoke, he once again looked completely untouched.