In a vast grassy area surrounded by the mountain of the King of Thieves, Erold stood with Jasmin and Argus by his side. Jasmin fidgeted with the edges of her cloak in obvious anxiety, asking in a trembling tone, "What are you two doing, Erold? Is this a challenge or what?"
Argus replied in a calm voice Jasmin hadn't heard from him before, "This is a duty, little one."
Erold took his first steps toward the center as Argus continued, "Luce's action is wise. The place we are heading to is dangerous; we must know each other's strengths."
Jasmin looked at him suspiciously. "We haven't seen your power yet! You might be weak."
Argus smiled with a strange confidence. "Little one, I was weak before, but now things are different. The storage level of my Mind Core has exceeded its limits after the fusion of elements. I've become stronger than I was."
Jasmin replied with a disgusted face, "Are you praising yourself? Do you know that only a failure praises himself?"
"Shut up!" Argus shouted in irritation. "I don't know why I'm arguing with a child!"
Jasmin laughed. "So you're taking my age as a measurement now, you failure? Hahahaha!"
Arthur emerged with enthusiasm, saying, "We're going to beat his ass! Don't worry, Erold, I'm with you. When the duel starts, I'll stop time!"
In a quiet voice, Erold said, "Arthur, don't you dare interfere! This fight is about my strength."
Arthur screamed, "What are you talking about, you idiot? Don't you see the situation? I am part of your strength!"
Erold replied, "Then I will give up part of my strength!"
Arthur began to shout, "You fool! You don't understand! You both agreed it would be a real fight!"
Erold hesitated. "Fine, but only if the situation gets difficult..."
Luce stepped forward calmly. "Erold, do you possess a Soul Realm?"
Erold replied in wonder, "No, why do you ask?"
"Curiosity," Luce answered. "Don't worry, I don't have one either, and even if I did, I wouldn't use it."
"Why?" Erold asked.
Luce began to move, circling behind Erold. "A Soul Realm, despite its great power, is considered a burden in some situations. Every Soul Realm has a condition. If your opponent manages to discover this condition, the Soul Realm will be canceled, and you will have drained your strength on something empty."
Luce pointed at the villagers. "Look, Erold, the whole village is watching." He then clapped his hands. "Shall we begin?"
Erold braced himself, gripping Thorn. "Let's go."
Erold felt everyone's focus. He released a short sigh as he escalated his energy. On the opposite side, Luce stood in a position of perfect relaxation, but his blue eyes gleamed with sharp intelligence.
Gilgamesh signaled with his hands, his voice tearing the silence: "The fight... begins!"
Luce lunged first with a lightning-fast movement Erold couldn't anticipate. He didn't use his sword; instead, he relied on a fist ignited with fire aimed directly at Erold's chest. The punch aimed to burn through his physical defenses.
Erold reacted by instinct. He spun in the air, avoiding the direct heat, then swung Thorn in a swift arc, covering it with an aura of dark light. Thorn collided with the fire aura around Luce, creating a concentrated boom while the dirt ground trembled from the heat.
He's fast and his power is pure, Erold thought. The fire relies on emotional manipulation!
They exchanged blows and parries at a frantic speed. Luce relied on absolute agility and the power of fire to create invisible heat pressure on Erold, forcing him to defend. Erold saw Luce's lethal movements but blocked them with calculated precision, using his sword to break the angles of Luce's attacks.
Luce smiled widely. "Well done, Knight! I didn't know the lessons of isolation had borne such fruit!"
In a moment where Luce was occupied with attacking, Erold exploited a gap. He released a quick burst of momentum from his foot, using his sword as a fulcrum, and lunged toward Luce. His punch was powerful.
Erold succeeded in hitting Luce hard in the side. Luce fell to the dirt ground in the center of the circle, signs of shock appearing on his face for the first time. Erold stopped in his tracks, breathing heavily, his sword pointed at Luce.
The villagers shouted, "Erold... Erold!" Argus cheered enthusiastically, "My God! A knockout punch!" while Jasmin held her mouth in worry.
Erold panted, "It's over."
Then, Erold made a fatal mistake. He partially turned his back to Luce to face Jasmin and Argus, who were stunned by the fight.
In that instant, Luce recovered from his fall in the blink of an eye. He gathered all his remaining strength, covered his burning fist with a thick aura of fire, and lunged at Erold from behind.
"The first condition in combat..." Luce's voice was sharp. "Never turn your back on your opponent until you're sure they're dead!"
Luce delivered a devastating punch directly to Erold's back, piercing his defenses. Erold was thrown forward and fell on his face, blood beginning to flow profusely from the corner of his mouth. Luce returned to stand in the center of the fighting circle, breathing with great difficulty, sweat pouring from his face from the drain of power.
The villagers shouted, "That's cheating! He fell!"
Luce said in a weak but threatening voice, "The fight is still ongoing... Knight, I will not use my power if you don't use all of yours!"
Erold laughed. "As you wish, Luce."
He wiped away the blood, and light emerged from his chest. In overlapping voices, Arthur said, "Here I am, Erold!"
Erold said firmly, "No, boy. Just your strength."
Erold seized control. Arthur was shocked: "I can't take control! How did you learn this, you bastard?"
At that moment, Luce felt the danger from Erold's power, a smile crossing his face. He joined his hands, and tongues of flame rose around his head to form a glowing crown of pure fire.
"Very beautiful..." Luce said with a calm voice. "United power. No matter. This will make us equals."
In an instant, the speed and intensity of his attacks increased. Luce's strikes were now swords of concentrated fire, rushing toward Erold. The fight broke out with staggering violence, and the villagers' cheers grew in excitement. Luce gave Erold no chance to catch his breath, turning the ground into a hellscape.
Luce launched a series of pure fireballs aimed at burning limbs. Erold spun around himself quickly, using Thorn—wrapped in dark light—to scatter the fireballs and turn them into black smoke, absorbing part of their heat.
Luce jumped high, covering his fist with burning fire, attempting a clamping punch from above to break Erold's defense. Erold raised his sword vertically, receiving the fire's force directly on the blade, causing a vibration in his arm. Erold pushed his sword forward quickly, forcing Luce back two steps to avoid a stab in the chest.
Gilgamesh sensed the power of the fight and thought quietly: They are truly talented. I was relying on myself for this journey. He smiled and said, So, you will be of use.
The fight continued for five minutes, but the amount of energy released showed it was a battle of attrition. Luce created a thermal wall of fire around Erold, aiming to slowly suffocate him and hinder his movement.
Luce shouted with an enthusiasm that ignited the arena: "Come on, Erold! Don't you dare fall to this!"
Erold didn't run. He relied on Arthur's speed to dash through the wall of fire, striking Luce's chest with lightning sword strikes. Luce was slightly injured.
Erold returned the challenge with a confident voice: "Come on, Luce! Don't you dare fall to this!"
Quickly, Luce delivered a side-kick covered in fire. Erold received it on his shoulder, smiling. "Whoa! That was close!" He then used the momentum to drop to his knees, slamming his sword into the ground to release a dust wave that distracted Luce's focus.
Luce laughed amidst the dust. "Come on, Erold, stop the tricks!"
Luce turned and grabbed Erold's hand which held Thorn. Erold said, "Fatal mistake, Luce!" He delivered a kick to Luce's ear, making him reel. Erold ran toward Luce and delivered a punch with immense force, throwing Luce across the fighting circle to crash into the mountain. The Fire Crown fell and vanished.
Erold stood tall, pointing Thorn at his fallen opponent. "It's over, Luce."
Luce rose slowly, his cold smile turning into a dark look. His veins glowed a deep purple, and unstable energy rose around him.
"No!" Luce said, his voice trembling with suppressed power. "It's not over yet!"
Luce began to release a strange energy, far exceeding ordinary fire power, while his body seemed to be tearing apart. In that moment, Luce's elegant form shattered. Darkness flowed from his body, enveloping him completely, then receded to reveal a new form:
A light armor of black iron inlaid with purple emeralds covered his body. His stature increased, and his frame became taut, wrapped in a glow of energy. His back split, and a pair of large, distorted wings emerged. These wings were not of feathers, but of a dark, pointed material like black volcanic glass, hanging with terrifying sharpness and beauty. In his hand, a long sword of pure blue fire materialized—a cold, lethal fire exuding energy that signaled annihilation. Thick fire rose around his head, surpassing the usual fire crown, to form a distorted crown of poisonous purple fire, weaving a web of shadows and intermittent purple light around him. His blue eyes turned into a red and purple flash, reflecting a mixture of pain and ecstasy. His face was taut, carrying no expression of kindness, but a harsh majesty liberated from the constraints of logic.
The villagers' voices rose in amazement while Jasmin was terrified of Luce's appearance, saying, "What happened to Luce?"
Argus muttered in daze, "So this is the form Ashura was talking about!"
Only Gilgamesh stood with features full of joy, shouting, "Continue! I want to see more!"
Luce was hovering in the sky, his body relaxed in a posture suggesting absolute sovereignty, placing his hands on his face and laughing madly, a laugh that shook the foundations of the place. "It's been a long time, Fallen Manifestation! I missed you!"
Suddenly, he turned his gaze toward Erold, who was watching him in shock from below. Luce raised his sword high, and a storm of blue flames erupted from its blade, covering the horizon. He then brought his burning sword down toward Erold, releasing massive tongues of flame like fire dragons. Everyone's face went pale from the horror of the sight.
Jasmin shrieked in panic, turning to Gilgamesh: "Shouldn't we stop them? Someone's going to get hurt!" But Gilgamesh remained standing coldly, arms crossed over his chest, his eyes never leaving the fight, not saying a word.
Luce looked at his sword, whispering to it coldly, "Calm down." He then waved it to cover the sky with pure blue flame. He raised his sword and said, "Now, come back!" The flame snapped back to the sword with high pressure that shook the air. Luce then pointed his finger at Erold as if saying, Here I come.
At that moment, Arthur's voice rang in Erold's depths: "Run, Erold! He is far stronger than what you can block!"
Erold replied with determination, "Let's do it, Arth—" Before he could finish his word, he found Luce directly in front of him with a lightning speed his senses didn't perceive.
Breaths stopped... blood began to flow from Erold's body. The villagers screamed in terror. Jasmin screamed madly, "Luce, you bastard! What have you done?"
Argus rushed toward Erold but stopped in his tracks, shocked... Luce's sword had pierced entirely through Erold's chest.
Inside, Arthur screamed, trying to activate his ability: "Obey me, Time!"
But time did not stop. Arthur screamed again in despair: "Time, obey me!" Time did not stop.
Consciousness began to withdraw from Erold, and he felt himself falling into pitch darkness, to find Dante before him, laughing mockingly: "Have you died, you simpleton?"
Erold whispered in shock, "Did Luce kill me?"
Dante replied coldly, "He did. Are you shocked?"
Erold looked at him in shock: "No... he surely did it unintentionally! He thought I could block or avoid it. Besides, what do you want, you bastard? You will die with me!"
Dante let out a booming laugh and said in a terrifyingly serious tone: "No, you won't die... I want you to watch while I kill him. I hope you see his corpse in high definition from here, you scoundrel."
Erold was shocked and shouted in despair, "Stop, Dante! Don't you dare!"
At the moment Erold fell stabbed to the ground, his body turned into the center of a cosmic event. Darkness began to spread through his body, crawling like ink from the bleeding wound in his chest, covering his skin and features. A distorted ring of white light began to form and settle above his head, broken and incomplete. Bright spots began to scatter in the darkness covering his body. This blackness flowed over his face, but white sparks began to explode from his closed eyes.
Amidst this horrific transformation, a loud, earth-shaking laugh rang out, terrifying those present. It was the laugh of Dante, who had reclaimed his being, carrying a tone of supreme arrogance.
Dante rose from the ground slowly. He was no longer Erold, but an entity covered in darkness and stars, with eyes emitting sparks.
Argus shouted in panic, "Erold! Are you alright?"
Dante eyed him with a look overflowing with arrogance and said, "I am not that scoundrel. My name is Dante." In a condescending voice, he said, "You may call me the Original Entity, you bastards."
Among the shock of everyone, some villagers were in disbelief. Chief Richard retreated, muttering in shock, "What kind of monsters are they?"
Beside him, Amalia, her body trembling with fear, looked at Erold—or what remained of Erold—and said in fear, "What is this thing?"
Gilgamesh answered, his eyes shining with interest, "It is the power of a Cosmic Entity... but it is incomplete. Also, the entity has not descended into the body with its full strength."
Dante looked at Luce, who had transformed into the Fallen form. In contrast, Dante laughed coldly and, without the need for a sword, lunged at massive speed to say: "I missed this feeling!"
Despite his great energy, Luce was unable to resist Dante's attack. In the blink of an eye, Dante had bypassed Luce's defenses and struck a single powerful fist that shattered his armor and struck his heart.
Shock rose on Luce's face, and the Fallen form vanished in an instant. Luce fell to the ground unconscious, surrounded by a patch of hot purple ash.
Dante stood over Luce, placing his foot on his chest, raising his hand, bending his fingers to point with them. A powerful black energy began to form and gather at his fingertips.
Erold screamed: "Don't, Dante, stop you bastard!" Arthur's voice was heard saying: "Stop, Dante! Please!"
Dante whispered with a deadly calmness: "This is your fate, you scoundrel. These fools realize nothing."
At that moment, Gilgamesh intervened. Without words, he extended his hands and used his power to form a golden aura, materializing four massive arms of pure, radiating energy. The arms restrained Dante forcefully, hindering his focus and scattering the lethal energy from his fingertips.
Gilgamesh shouted, directing his speech to Erold's consciousness: "Erold! Take control of your body!"
Dante laughed despite being restrained and looked at Gilgamesh mockingly: "Your Highness, do you miss affection or something? Or after the death of your beloved, have you started hugging everyone?"
Gilgamesh squeezed Dante's body, which made Dante laugh and say, "I didn't expect you to be this sensitive, Your Highness! Don't worry, my time ends here."
A black substance began to fall from his eyes and mouth, until the blackness began to disappear and the ring vanished from above his head. Erold's body returned to normal, and Gilgamesh let him go to fall, his face opposite Luce's face.
Jasmin and Argus ran toward them. As for Gilgamesh, he stood looking at Erold's body to say: "There are things that bring us together, you."