Chapter 106: Astral Starlight Syndrome
The convoy's engines roared to life.
VROOOOOOM—!!
One after another, the vehicle doors slammed shut with heavy metallic thuds as seatbelts clicked securely into place.
THUD! CLICK... CLICK!
For the first time since the chaos at the Masquerade had begun, they were moving away from it.
Fast.
The circus grounds disappeared behind them as the vehicles sped onto the open road, leaving behind collapsing tents, panicked crowds, and a sky that still pulsed with flashes of violent blue lightning.
Inside the lead vehicle, silence settled over the group.
Not the silence of comfort but the silence of exhaustion.
Everyone carried fresh wounds, whether visible or hidden. Dust still clung to their clothes, dried blood stained their sleeves, and every passing second allowed the reality of what had happened to sink in.
Wei-Wan leaned forward in his seat, resting an elbow against his knee. The battle was over—for now—but his mind had already moved on to the next objective.
"...So."
His sharp eyes shifted toward Wasabi.
"Where are we headed?"
Wasabi didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she lowered her gaze to the tablet resting across her lap. Despite the damaged communications caused by Monday's overwhelming electrical discharge, some portions of her offline database remained intact.
Her fingers danced across the screen.
Scrolling, searching, and cross-checking.
Then searching again.
"...I'm not entirely sure."
She frowned slightly.
"...But if I remember correctly..."
Her finger paused over a highlighted entry.
"...We had another destination after this."
Before anyone else could speak, Aerin leaned forward from the back seat.
"We do."
Every eye turned toward her.
She nodded confidently.
"Daito briefed us before the operation."
Her expression softened slightly as she remembered his words.
"...After finding Nyx..."
She took a quiet breath.
"...We head to Playmore."
Silence filled the vehicle once again but it wasn't uncertainty, everyone was simply processing the next step.
Then Nyx spoke.
"Then that's where we're going."
Her voice was calm and certain, there wasn't the slightest trace of hesitation.
She leaned her head gently against the window, her complexion still pale from what had happened only minutes earlier, though the medicine she'd taken had stabilized her considerably.
"My employers are there."
A faint smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
"...And my next performance is already scheduled there."
Champagne glanced sideways at her, raising an amused eyebrow.
"...Well..."
He chuckled softly.
"That's convenient."
Nyx ignored the remark.
Instead, her gaze remained fixed on the scenery slipping past outside.
"...Also..."
She hesitated for the first time since entering the vehicle.
"...I'm running low on medicine."
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Brandon frowned.
"...Medicine?"
Wei-Wan slowly folded his arms across his chest.
"...Medicine for what?"
Outside the window, Ash-En-Town continued shrinking into the distance until it became little more than smoke rising beneath the storm-filled sky.
Nyx watched it disappear before answering.
"...A condition."
Her voice grew quieter.
"...Something I was born with."
Wasabi's fingers froze above her tablet.
"...Name?"
Nyx remained silent for several seconds.
Almost as though saying it aloud would somehow make it more real.
Finally—
"...ASV Syndrome."
She looked down at her own hands.
"...Astral Starlight Syndrome."
The name lingered inside the vehicle.
Strange, unfamiliar, and almost unnatural.
Aerin broke the silence first.
"...What does it do?"
Nyx slowly exhaled.
Her fingers curled unconsciously against her knees.
"...It tears you apart."
The words came quietly.
"...From the inside."
Nobody interrupted.
Nobody even moved.
"...Every time I use my Savage Power..."
She lowered her head.
"...The damage gets worse."
Wei-Wan's normally relaxed expression hardened.
"So..."
He studied her carefully.
"...Your own power is killing you."
Nyx gave a single nod.
"...Slowly."
Another silence settled over the vehicle heavier this time.
Then, almost absentmindedly, Nyx raised the same hand that moments earlier had nearly failed her.
A faint shimmer of starlike energy danced across her fingertips before fading away.
Swooo...
She stared at it quietly.
"...Ironically..."
A sad smile appeared.
"...It's also the only reason I'm still alive."
No one spoke since no one needed to.
Every person inside that vehicle understood exactly how cruel that contradiction was.
Power that sustained its owner...by slowly destroying them.
Champagne leaned back against his seat and released a long breath through his nose.
"...That's one hell of a bad bargain."
Nyx let out a quiet laugh.
Small and almost tired.
"...Tell me about it."
The conversation ended there not because anyone had run out of questions. But because no one could think of anything worth saying.
The only sound left was the steady hum of the engines as the convoy continued speeding across the highway.
Outside...Ash-En-Town vanished completely beyond the horizon.
KKRRRAASSSHHH...
KKKRROOMM.....
Behind them, flashes of lightning still split the distant sky, faint rumbles of thunder rolling across the open plains.
Whatever was happening between Daito and Monday Valhalla... It was far from over.
Ahead, however, the road stretched endlessly into unfamiliar territory.
A road leading toward Playmore, toward new allies, and new enemies.
And perhaps... The answers they had been searching for all along.
* * *
The convoy thundered down the empty highway, its engines humming in steady rhythm as miles of open countryside rolled past the windows.
The further they traveled, the smaller Ash-En-Town became.
Before long, the smoke rising from the ruined city was nothing more than a dark stain against the distant horizon. Even the flashes of blue lightning had faded into brief glimmers, appearing only occasionally as storm clouds swallowed the battlefield where Daito and Monday continued their clash.
No one spoke for several minutes.
Each of them remained trapped inside their own thoughts.
Finally, Wei-Wan broke the silence.
"...Playmore."
He leaned back in his seat, folding his arms once more.
"I've heard the name."
His eyes shifted toward Wasabi.
"But I've never actually been there."
Wasabi nodded.
"Neither have most people."
She enlarged a map displayed on her tablet before placing it where everyone could see.
"If our intelligence is accurate..."
Her finger tapped a glowing marker.
"...Playmore isn't just another town."
She zoomed out further, revealing roads, trade routes, and neighboring territories.
"It's a hub."
She paused, allowing everyone to absorb the information before continuing.
"A large place where information changes hands."
Another tap.
"Where influence is bought and sold."
A third.
"And where powerful organizations quietly shape events long before the rest of the world realizes anything has changed."
The vehicle fell silent again.
Champagne let out an amused sigh.
"...Fantastic."
He rested an elbow against the window.
"So we're driving straight into another nest of trouble."
Aerin smiled faintly without taking her eyes off the road ahead.
"...Or a place full of answers."
Nyx, whose eyes had remained closed throughout the discussion, spoke without opening them.
"...Most likely..."
A small pause.
"...Both."
No one disagreed.
Because deep down...they all knew she was right.
The convoy continued onward, cutting through the endless highway as the afternoon sun slowly descended toward the horizon.
Every passing kilometer carried them farther from one battlefield...And closer to another.
* * *
FWOOSH!
Far behind them... At the outskirts of Ash-En-Town... Civilization simply...ended.
The cracked roads disappeared beneath drifting sand. Buildings gave way to barren plains. The sounds of people, machines, and distant traffic faded until only the wind remained.
It was quiet almost peaceful.
Exactly the kind of place Daito had been searching for.
Step...
He stopped walking, the desert stretched endlessly in every direction.
No civilians, no homes, and no power lines. No innocent lives that could become collateral damage.
He slowly exhaled.
"...Perfect."
The wind brushed across the sand.
Then—
BRRRZZZZT—KRAAAAAK!!
The clouds split apart.
A pillar of blue lightning crashed into the earth less than thirty meters away, detonating with enough force to throw sand high into the sky.
The ground trembled violently.
Electricity spread outward like living veins, racing across the desert floor before gradually fading away.
As the smoke cleared...Monday Valhalla descended from the sky.
He hovered several feet above the ground, surrounded by countless streams of crackling lightning that danced around his body like an untamed storm.
CRACK... SNAP... BZZZT...
He slowly looked around, miles of empty desert and nothing else.
His gaze returned to Daito.
A faint grin spread across his face.
"...Heh."
He chuckled to himself.
"You really are a problem."
Daito remained silent.
Monday tilted his head slightly.
"...You're the strategist."
His smile widened.
"But this one's easy."
He casually spread his arms toward the empty landscape surrounding them.
"You brought me all the way out here..."
"...Because you didn't want anyone getting caught in the crossfire."
Daito finally spoke his voice was calm, steady, and grounded.
"...You're not insane."
Monday blinked once.
"...What?"
"You know exactly what you're doing."
A gust of wind swept between them, carrying loose sand across the battlefield.
"So why pretend otherwise?"
Monday's expression remained unreadable.
Daito took another slow step forward.
"Why waste your strength hunting people who can barely defend themselves..."
His eyes sharpened.
"...When this world is filled with monsters..."
"...Waiting for someone strong enough to challenge them?"
For the first time since arriving...Monday didn't answer immediately.
The lightning surrounding him crackled softly.
His grin disappeared.
Then—
"Heh...."
He laughed.
Not loudly, not mockingly, just enough to break the silence.
"...You're wrong."
The storm surrounding him intensified.
KRAK... BOOM...
"I've never hunted the weak."
His eyes locked onto Daito's.
"Only the strong are worth my time."
He slowly descended until both feet touched the sand.
"You simply never understood..."
"...Why they locked me away in the first place."
Daito shrugged.
"I don't care."
The answer came instantly without emotion and without hesitation.
He continued walking.
"What happened to you..."
"What broke you..."
"What turned you into this..."
He stopped only a few meters away.
"...None of it is my business."
Monday's grin slowly faded.
Daito's grip tightened around the hilt resting at his side.
"My father taught me something."
The wind seemed to slow.
"A man doesn't interfere in another man's affairs."
A brief silence followed.
"Because the moment he does..."
Daito's gaze became colder than steel.
"...He stops being a man."
Neither of them moved.
The desert seemed to hold its breath as Monday stared at him for several long seconds.
Then...He smiled.
This time there was no madness in it, only respect.
"...Sounds like your father..."
He stepped forward.
"...Was a real man."
Another step.
"...Too bad..."
His smile sharpened.
"...His son isn't."
The words struck like a blade.
For one brief moment...everything stopped.
The wind, the lightning, even the drifting sand.
Then—
SHIIING!
A cold metallic note echoed across the empty desert.
Daito slowly reached behind his back.
Click..
His fingers wrapped around the hilt.
With one smooth motion...he drew his sword. The polished blade reflected the fading sunlight, its edge gleaming with deadly precision.
He resumed walking not hurriedly and not angrily.
Simply...Certain.
"...Using a man's family to provoke him..."
His voice had grown quieter.
"...That's a punk's way of talking."
Another step.
"...Real men found a better language."
He stopped directly in front of Monday.
The distance between them had vanished.
"...Simple."
A pause.
"...Direct."
The wind died completely.
Monday's grin returned.
"...Yeah."
He floated gently back to the ground before rolling his shoulders, loosening every muscle in his body.
Electricity dispersed into the sand around his feet.
"...I like that."
He raised both hands.
No weapons, no tricks.
"...Hand to hand."
Another step.
"...No running."
His eyes gleamed with dangerous excitement.
"...You beat me..."
He smiled wider.
"...I'll follow you..."
"...To the ends of the earth."
Silence.
Then—
"...You lose..."
The air became impossibly heavy.
"...You die."
Daito never blinked and never looked away.
He lowered his center of gravity, his grip on the sword remained steady.
"...I wouldn't have it..."
A slow breath escaped him.
"...Any other way."
Neither man moved, and neither dared break eye contact.
The wind returned as sand drifted lazily across the battlefield.
Then—
SWOOSH!
Both vanished.
BOOOOOOM!!
The desert exploded and the battle had begun.
To be continued...