Golden light exploded across the roof of the train.
The Nendu Express thundered through the desert night beneath them, steel wheels screaming against the rails as the Inner Rim slowly grew larger in the distance.
Kiraya planted her feet against the roof.
Wind whipped through her silver hair.
Across from her, Sarrow smiled.
Then the guild leader of Epsilon Dawn raised her sword.
The air itself shimmered.
Light gathered around her weapon.
Not flames.
Not mana.
Pure concentrated light.
Sarrow's white eyes glowed.
And then she swung.
[Sword Skill: Shining Jewels]
A line of light appeared in the air.
It stretched across the battlefield.
A glowing scar carved through reality itself.
Kiraya's instincts immediately screamed.
Danger.
The line split.
Then multiplied.
Then exploded.
Thousands of brilliant projectiles erupted from the glowing line.
The night sky vanished beneath a barrage of concentrated light.
Kiraya moved instantly.
BOOM!
The first projectile struck the roof.
Metal exploded.
BOOM!
Another impacted behind her.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The entire train shook.
Kiraya sprinted left.
Her boots barely touched the roof as she ran.
The light projectiles chased after her.
Each one detonated with enough force to tear apart steel.
Explosions followed her path.
The roof behind her was being systematically destroyed.
Sarrow stood calmly in the center.
Watching.
Observing.
Controlling the barrage.
Kiraya gritted her teeth.
Fast.
Too fast.
She couldn't keep dodging forever.
She needed to break the momentum.
Immediately.
Mana surged through Lionheart.
Flames erupted around the blade.
Blue fire illuminated the night.
[Sword Skill: Lionheart Strike]
Kiraya swung.
The flaming blade released a massive arc of compressed fire.
The attack roared forward.
At the same time—
A translucent shield of fiery energy formed around Kiraya's body.
The remaining projectiles slammed into it.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The shield trembled.
Cracks spread across its surface.
But it held.
The flaming slash continued forward.
The attack tore through the night.
A burning wave aimed directly at Sarrow.
Sarrow tilted her head.
Then disappeared.
The fire slash passed through empty space.
CRASH!
The attack struck the far end of the train and exploded into the desert beyond.
Kiraya wasn't aiming to hit her.
Not really.
The moment Sarrow moved—
Kiraya accelerated.
She crossed the distance between them instantly.
Lionheart swung.
A brutal horizontal strike.
Sarrow reappeared.
CLANG!
The two blades collided.
Sparks exploded.
The roof beneath them dented.
Sarrow grinned.
"Not bad."
Their faces were barely inches apart.
Most players would've disengaged.
Would've retreated.
Would've reset the fight.
Kiraya did none of those things.
Instead—
She smiled.
A dangerous smile.
Sarrow's expression changed slightly.
Then Kiraya activated her next skill.
[Sword Skill: Freeze Point]
Blue frost erupted from Lionheart.
The freezing energy surged through the point of contact.
Sarrow's eyes widened.
CRACK.
Ice spread across her weapon.
CRACK.
The frost raced upward.
CRACK.
Her left arm froze solid.
The entire limb became trapped beneath layers of ice.
For the first time—
Sarrow looked genuinely surprised.
Kiraya took advantage immediately.
BAM!
Her fist smashed into Sarrow's face.
The impact snapped Sarrow's head sideways.
Before she could recover—
BAM!
A second punch landed.
Sarrow stumbled backward.
The frozen arm slowed her movement.
The ice continued spreading.
Kiraya rushed forward.
Wanting to capitalize on the opening.
Then—
Sarrow's body exploded into particles of light.
The frozen arm shattered apart.
Not flesh.
Light.
The frozen section dissolved.
The rest of her body transformed.
And suddenly—
She was gone.
Kiraya's eyes widened.
Behind.
Again.
CLANG!
She barely turned in time.
Their blades collided once more.
Sarrow had already reformed behind her.
The speed was absurd.
Even after discovering the timing flaw earlier—
Kiraya was still struggling.
The two continued exchanging blows.
CLANG!
CLANG!
CLANG!
Light and steel collided repeatedly.
Sarrow appeared.
Disappeared.
Reappeared.
Every strike came from a different angle.
Every attack forced Kiraya further onto the defensive.
The Lionheart Knight's armor accumulated scratches.
Her health slowly declined.
Yet she remained standing.
Because she was adapting.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Sarrow noticed it.
Every transformation.
Every attack.
Every movement.
Kiraya was learning.
Predicting.
Adjusting.
Not enough to dominate.
But enough to survive.
And survival against Sarrow was dangerous.
Because surviving meant eventually finding weakness.
The battle continued.
Minutes passed.
The train sped toward the Inner Rim.
Wind screamed.
Steel rattled.
And then—
Kiraya noticed something strange.
Her eyes narrowed.
The players.
The three players who had originally stood behind Sarrow.
The dagger users.
The axe fighter.
They were gone.
Completely gone.
Not dead.
Not unconscious.
Gone.
Kiraya blocked another strike.
CLANG!
She immediately jumped backward.
Her eyes scanned the roof.
Empty.
The other Epsilon Dawn members had vanished.
Sarrow noticed where she was looking.
A smile slowly appeared on her face.
That smile worried Kiraya.
A lot.
"Looking for someone?"
Kiraya tightened her grip on Lionheart.
"Where are they?"
Sarrow chuckled.
"Elsewhere."
Kiraya's heart sank slightly.
Not because she feared them.
Because she immediately understood.
This fight.
This entire battle.
It had never been about defeating her.
It had never been about defeating Rio.
Or Ryota.
Or Sayanaki.
It had been about distraction.
Keeping them occupied.
Keeping them separated.
Keeping them from helping one another.
Sarrow spun her blade.
Golden particles floated around her body.
"You should focus on me."
Her white eyes glowed.
"Because right now..."
Light gathered around her once again.
"...your friends are fighting their own battles."
Kiraya's grip tightened.
The realization made her expression harden.
If those players had disappeared—
Then they were heading somewhere.
Toward another objective.
Toward another target.
Maybe the civilians.
Maybe the train staff.
Maybe Ramos.
Maybe Silla.
And that meant one thing.
She couldn't afford to lose.
Not here.
Not now.
Sarrow slowly raised her blade.
The air around her brightened.
The golden light intensified.
The train roof became illuminated as though a second sun had appeared.
Kiraya lowered her stance.
Blue flames erupted around Lionheart once more.
The two guild leaders stared at each other.
Neither willing to retreat.
Neither willing to yield.
The distance between them was barely ten meters.
The wind howled.
The train raced forward.
And somewhere deeper within the train—
The true purpose of the attack was beginning to unfold.
The train continued racing across the desert.
Steel wheels screamed against the rails.
Outside the windows blurred together beneath the darkness of night.
Inside carriage 6A, however, the atmosphere was strangely calm.
At least compared to the chaos occurring throughout the rest of the train.
Explosions echoed from distant carriages.
Shockwaves occasionally rattled the floor.
The sounds of battle traveled through the metal framework of the train.
Yet Rio remained seated.
Silla sat beside her.
Ryota stood nearby.
And Sugolith continued eating peanuts.
Crunch.
Crunch.
Crunch.
The mercenary leader looked completely detached from the ongoing battle.
Ramos, meanwhile, looked like he was one step away from suffering a heart attack.
Every explosion made him jump.
Every loud noise caused him to flinch.
Every creak of metal made him glance toward the nearest exit.
He couldn't understand how everyone else was so calm.
Especially Rio.
The silver-haired guild leader sat with her arms crossed as if she were waiting for a train ride rather than surviving an assassination attempt.
Another explosion echoed from somewhere above.
BOOOOM!
The carriage shook.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Ramos nearly fell out of his seat.
"Shouldn't we be doing something!?"
Rio glanced at him.
"We are."
Ramos blinked.
"What?"
"We're protecting you."
Ramos opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Opened it again.
Then gave up.
Because somehow that answer made sense.
Before he could continue—
A faint blue glow appeared beside Ryota.
The light was small.
Almost harmless.
Yet it immediately caught everyone's attention.
Silla looked up.
Rio turned her head.
Even Sugolith paused his peanut chewing.
The glow intensified.
A tiny crackle of electricity danced through the air.
Then—
POP.
Something appeared on top of Ryota's head.
"...Huh?"
Ryota froze.
Something soft had landed on him.
A second later—
A tiny blue dragon lifted its head.
Small wings.
Tiny horns.
Azure scales.
A tail that swayed happily behind it.
Bright eyes filled with excitement.
The creature looked around.
Then immediately spotted Ryota.
"Kyuu!"
The tiny dragon launched itself forward.
Ryota laughed.
His entire expression brightened.
Without hesitation he lifted the small dragon off his head and into his arms.
"There you are."
The dragon rubbed its head against Ryota's chest.
Its tail wagged so fast it became a blur.
"Looks like you're finally awake."
"Kyuu!"
"I missed you too, buddy."
The dragon happily climbed onto Ryota's shoulder.
Then onto his head.
Then onto his shoulder again.
Unable to decide where it wanted to sit.
Rio couldn't help smiling.
She reached over.
The little dragon immediately accepted the attention.
"Welcome back, Indra."
The dragon closed its eyes.
Clearly enjoying the head pats.
"Kyuu."
Silla blinked.
Ramos blinked.
Both stared at the creature.
Then at Ryota.
Then back at the dragon.
"...That's a dragon."
Ryota nodded proudly.
"Yep."
"A real dragon."
"Yep."
Ramos pointed.
"A dragon."
"Yep."
"..."
"..."
"..."
Ryota laughed.
"You're stuck on the dragon part aren't you?"
Ramos immediately nodded.
Rio leaned back slightly.
"This is Indra."
The little dragon lifted a paw.
Almost as if greeting them.
"Kyuu."
Rio continued.
"We found him inside a dungeon a few weeks ago."
Silla's eyes widened.
"You found a dragon?"
"More accurately."
Ryota scratched Indra's chin.
"He found us."
Indra nodded proudly.
As though confirming the statement.
Sugolith finally stopped eating peanuts.
For the first time since the train attack began—
The mercenary leader looked genuinely interested.
His eyes narrowed.
"A dragon."
Rio noticed immediately.
She smiled.
"Problem?"
Sugolith snorted.
"No."
He tossed another peanut into his mouth.
"Just wasn't expecting that."
His gaze remained fixed on Indra.
"A pet dragon."
"Inside a guild."
"That's unusual."
Ryota crossed his arms proudly.
"He's not a pet."
Indra immediately nodded.
"Kyuu."
"He's a guild member."
That statement managed to shock everyone.
Including Sugolith.
"...A guild member?"
Rio nodded.
"He has a guild rank. He is in Rank 3"
Silla stared.
Ramos stared.
Sugolith stared.
The tiny dragon proudly puffed out its chest.
"Kyuu."
The reaction clearly pleased him.
Rio couldn't help laughing.
"Indra was injured shielding us during our battle against Allure."
At the mention of the boss, Ryota's expression darkened slightly.
The memory was still fresh.
The battle had nearly killed all of them.
Indra had taken the worst of it.
The small dragon had spent most of the recovery period asleep.
Healing.
Recovering.
Waiting.
And now—
He was finally back.
Ryota gently scratched beneath Indra's chin.
"You worried us."
Indra lowered his head apologetically.
Then immediately climbed onto Rio's shoulder.
Seeking more attention.
Rio laughed.
"Looks like someone wants extra head pats."
"Kyuu!"
Silla slowly reached out.
"Can I?"
The dragon looked at her.
Then surprisingly leaned forward.
Silla carefully patted his head.
A smile appeared on her face.
For the first time since escaping the bunker.
A genuine smile.
Not forced.
Not frightened.
Not sad.
Just happy.
"He's cute."
"Kyuu."
Ramos slowly reached over too.
Indra sniffed his hand.
Then accepted him.
The former farmer visibly relaxed.
"I thought dragons were supposed to be terrifying."
Ryota grinned.
"Give him a few years."
Indra immediately bit Ryota's finger.
Not hard.
Just enough to protest.
"Ow!"
"Kyuu!"
The carriage briefly filled with laughter.
Even Sugolith smirked slightly.
For a moment—
The tension disappeared.
The battles.
The assassins.
The danger.
Everything faded.
And for the first time that night—
The members of Crowned Era looked like an actual family.
Several carriages away.
The situation was significantly less wholesome.
CRASH!
Hinabi slid backward across the floor.
Broken vegetables scattered around her feet.
The storage carriage had become a complete disaster zone.
Burning crates.
Destroyed containers.
Shattered walls.
And standing amidst the destruction—
Clause.
The former Burning Pride officer rolled his shoulders.
Lightning danced around his body.
His expression was noticeably less amused than before.
Because for the first time—
Hinabi had hit him.
Directly.
Earlier.
When Clause had attempted another aggressive advance.
Hinabi had predicted it.
She had read his movement.
Calculated the timing.
And struck.
[Mage Skill: Crimson Lotus]
The scarlet blast had exploded directly against his back.
The attack hadn't killed him.
Far from it.
But it had hurt.
And Clause hated being hurt.
The burn marks on his armor proved it.
Smoke still rose from the damaged area.
Clause clicked his tongue.
Annoyed.
Very annoyed.
"You've gotten better."
Hinabi calmly adjusted her stance.
The magical circles around her slowly rotated.
"I had good motivation."
Clause laughed.
"Oh?"
Hinabi's eyes narrowed.
"People like you."
The smile vanished from Clause's face.
For the first time—
The fight started becoming personal.
Very personal.
Lightning erupted around him once more.
And Hinabi prepared another spell.
The battle inside the storage carriage was only getting started.