Beside the man, a golden ripple opened, and from within it, the stranger drew a sword with a long, elegant crimson blade.
With a fluid and precise motion, he twisted his wrist.
In a fraction of a second, every energy sphere was split in half, bursting into luminous sparks that dissipated before they could even reach him.
A2's eyes widened. That reflex and technique were unlike anything she had ever seen—not even among YoRHa's elite models.
The blond didn't stop.
With a sudden burst forward, he charged toward the enemies, leaving a trail of dust behind him.
Every movement was lethal and calculated—a combination of absurd speed and brute strength.
The sound of slicing cuts blended with the distant echo of the wind, and within seconds, the machine lifeforms surrounding him were reduced to smoking scrap.
But the battle was not over yet.
From her vantage point, A2 could see more than fifty enemies approaching, marching through the streets in formation.
There were drones, bipedal units—an entire swarm advancing toward the man.
Should I help him? she wondered, for a brief moment.
Even without knowing who he was, something about his presence stirred an unsettling feeling—a nagging curiosity.
But before she could decide, the answer came on its own.
Dozens of golden ripples appeared behind the stranger, each firing different weapons. In less than a minute, the new wave of enemies was completely annihilated.
A2 watched in silence, the blue glow of her eyes reflecting the chaos below.
The man moved like a seasoned veteran of war.
Every enemy that tried to react was destroyed before it could even understand what was happening.
Amid the chaos, he seemed to dance—a lethal, precise, and strangely beautiful dance.
---
A damaged drone attempted to rise again, its broken body sparking erratically.
Its lower half was completely exposed, revealing a vibrating core on the verge of overload.
Before it could take flight again, the blond struck once more with a clean slash that cut through the air and split the machine in half.
The core exploded immediately afterward.
The impact shook the nearby buildings, scattering debris everywhere.
The shockwave swept through the silent streets, bringing down structures already worn by time.
The sound echoed for long seconds—until silence once again dominated the ruins.
Amid dust and metal fragments, the man stood still, his sword still in hand.
His red eyes glowed briefly, and then he let out an exasperated sigh.
"Where the hell did I end up...?" he muttered, his voice rough and irritated.
He ran a hand through his hair, tightening his grip on the sword's hilt. "Damn it, Saeko… you should've warned me first."
"But looking on the bright side, it's been a long time since I've had such a good chance to stretch my muscles." he added, lightly stretching.
Not far from where Arthur had arrived—or rather, crashed—an ancient, silent forest stretched out.
The wind whispered through the dead trees, and the distant creaking of metallic structures formed a somber symphony. He was still on Earth—of that he was certain—but something was terribly wrong.
Everything around him was a world in ruins, a devastated and forgotten planet.
The surrounding buildings were covered in moss, cracked, overtaken by roots that seemed to be devouring the concrete. Judging by the erosion of stone and the rust consuming the steel, centuries—perhaps millennia—had passed since a human had set foot there.
Arthur gazed at the horizon thoughtfully.
The sky was gray, covered by dense clouds, and a cold breeze carried the damp scent of the forest.
If he wanted to survive, food and water would be priorities—and judging by appearances, the forest ahead was his best chance. Even amid decay, nature seemed to endure.
With no other choice, he began walking toward the trees. The sound of his footsteps echoed among the debris.
When he finally reached the forest's edge, he leaned against the trunk of an ancient tree and slowly slid down to the ground. He then retrieved his sword from the Gate of Babylon.
"Damn, you're completely covered in oil, Koryuga." he complained as he took out a cloth to clean the blade.
But the moment of calm didn't last.
He felt that someone was watching him.
Without hesitation, Arthur grabbed Koryuga's hilt and, in a single motion, launched himself into the forest.
And then he saw her.
Between the gaps in the trees, moving with the agility of a panther, was a woman with long, pale yellow-white hair reflecting the faint sunlight filtering through the canopy.
She carried a sword larger than her own body on her back, and despite its size, it didn't seem to weigh her down at all.
As he drew closer, her figure became clearer.
Her clothes—or what remained of them—were torn and covered in dust. Large sections of her artificial skin had peeled away, revealing parts of the black protective underlayer that formed her mechanical structure.
Parts of her body were exposed not by choice, but by destruction. The material mimicking skin peeled like aged wax, especially on her arms and legs. Her torso revealed the metallic contours of her internal frame, partially covered by fragments of black fabric.
"She's not human." Arthur murmured.
Suddenly, two golden ripples appeared beside him, and from them, magic wands emerged, firing beams like compressed lightning.
The blasts struck two massive trees, which collapsed with a thunderous crash, falling in front of the woman and blocking her escape route.
Arthur advanced quickly, leaping over branches and stones. At his current speed, he knew he could catch her within seconds.
But suddenly—
"Huh?"
Something caught his foot.
He looked down and saw a nearly invisible thin wire hidden beneath the leaves.
Before he could react, he was violently yanked upward. The world spun, the ground fell away, and he found himself hanging upside down, swaying several meters above the ground.
"What the hell…?" he muttered, surprised and irritated. "A trap?"
With a swift motion, he cut the steel wire using a blade fired from one of the golden ripples, landing on his feet with the lightness of a cat.
However, when he lifted his gaze again, the woman had already disappeared—as if she had dissolved into the air.
Arthur frowned, realizing she was gone, but he knew she was still nearby.
Then, a female voice echoed from behind him.
{"Who are you? And what are you? Where did you come from?"}
Arthur spun around, but no one was there.
The voice came from something hanging on a tree trunk—a small metallic device, old, yet miraculously still functioning.
{"Answer immediately,"} the voice continued. {"Or I will consider you a threat… and hunt you down."}
---
(End of Chapter)