The silence that followed Nokoaka's roar was heavy, charged with an almost palpable tension. The air still vibrated from the hyper-sonic waves, and debris continued to roll across the ground.
Lior floated three meters above the ground, hands in the pockets of his long black coat. His locks swayed gently, carried by an invisible wind. A yellow, electric aura enveloped his body like a second skin. He wasn't looking at Nokoaka. He was looking at the gray sky, looking thoroughly bored.
"So, you're the famous Nokoaka?"
Nokoaka roared. A hyper-sonic wave surged toward Lior, powerful enough to pulverize concrete.
Lior didn't move.
The wave stopped dead one meter away from him, as if hitting an invisible wall. The vibrations died in the air, absorbed by nothing at all.
"Sound," Lior murmured, his voice drawling. "It travels through air. And air… that can be controlled."
Beside him, Musclea was trying to get up. Her legs trembled, blood flowed from her ears and eyes, but she clenched her fists.
"We're… we're staying."
Lior slowly turned his head toward her.
"Excuse me?"
Touchme, on the ground, his Nano-Tech armor cracked, raised a trembling finger.
"We're heroes too. We're not gonna let you do all the work."
Lior looked at them for a second. Then he shrugged.
"Do whatever you want. Not like I give a shit about your fate."
He raised his right hand.
Nokoaka tried to lunge, to charge, to scream. Nothing. Its body remained frozen, as if it had just hit an invisible glass wall.
"What the…" Musclea began.
Lior didn't answer. His hand kept rising.
Nokoaka lifted off the ground.
Its limbs thrashed in the air. Its massive, white, translucent body rose despite its cries, despite its struggles. Lior's yellow aura enveloped it like a giant fist.
"HE'S LIFTING IT!" Touchme shouted, eyes wide. "HE'S LIFTING A DEMON THAT SIZE LIKE A FUCKING FEATHER!"
Musclea, impressed despite the pain, watched the spectacle.
Nokoaka tried to scream. Nothing came out. The air around it had solidified, transformed into a prison.
Lior kept raising his hand. Blood flowed from his ears – the price to pay for such power. But his face remained impassive, almost sleepy.
He stared at the Daemon without uttering a single word.
Around them, the buildings trembled.
Then they lifted off.
An eight-story building to the right slowly rose from the ground. The foundations cracked. The walls fissured. The windows exploded.
To the left, a second building followed.
Behind them, an entire street detached itself, with its lampposts, its parked cars, its trash cans.
In front, the asphalt lifted up in slabs, carrying chunks of sidewalk, manhole covers, uprooted trees.
"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!" Touchme screamed, running to avoid a concrete block floating skyward. "HE'S LIFTING THE ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOOD!"
Musclea, mouth agape, watched the apocalyptic scene. Tons of matter floated above them, carried by the yellow aura, slowly swirling around the imprisoned Nokoaka.
"It's not possible… it's not HUMAN…"
Lior, hands still in his pockets except for the raised right one, looked at the chaos with a bored expression.
"Right. Now, let's pack it in."
He slowly closed his fist.
The debris, the buildings, the streets – everything converged on Nokoaka. A ball of matter, immense, compact, formed around the demon.
Concrete. Steel. Glass. Asphalt. Trees. Cars. Everything piled up, compressed, twisted.
Nokoaka, at the center, tried to scream. But no sound escaped its air prison.
The ball kept growing, densifying. It became a star of destruction, a sun of debris suspended above the city.
Lior looked at his work.
"Too close. Need to move it."
He moved his hand, and the ball slowly drifted toward a more open area, an old wasteland at the edge of the district.
Then he twisted his wrist.
The yellow aura tightened suddenly.
CRACK.
The sound was so violent that it shattered the remaining intact windows within five hundred meters.
The ball compressed, twisted, shrank by half. From inside came a tearing sound – flesh giving way, bones exploding.
Lior twisted again.
Again.
Again.
The ball became a compact, shapeless mass from which black fluids oozed.
He opened his hand.
The ball fell.
BOOM.
The impact carved a crater twenty meters deep. The ground shook all the way to the city center. A heatwave swept through the streets.
When the dust settled, nothing remained of Nokoaka. Just a ball of twisted debris, sealed in the crater like a tomb.
Lior landed gently at the edge of the hole. He put his hand back in his pocket.
"There. Done."
Touchme and Musclea, on their knees, stared at him with a mixture of terror and admiration.
"You're… you're not human," Musclea whispered.
Lior turned his head toward her.
"No. I'm Lior."
He disappeared in a gust of wind.
——
TV STUDIO – NATIONAL CHANNEL – TWO HOURS LATER
The screen showed images of the devastated district.
A reporter, microphone in hand, stood before the rubble.
"Good evening, everyone. We're live from the southeast sector, where an unprecedented event has just occurred. A Class A demon, identified as Nokoaka – yes, the one defeated by Captain Man two years ago – resurfaced this morning."
The image showed gutted buildings, overturned streets, crushed cars.
"The damage is colossal. An entire district was literally… lifted. Witnesses speak of a yellow aura, a man floating in the air, who allegedly… how to put it… folded the demon like a cheap rag."
The image changed, showing blurry photos, likely taken by cell phones. They showed a silhouette haloed in yellow, dominating the ruins.
"The identity of this mysterious hero has not yet been revealed. But one thing is certain: he is ranked, and his power level surpasses anything we've seen so far."
The journalist continued.
"Other crucial information: the wanted criminal Masajo has been arrested in the aftermath. He was found unconscious in the rubble of a collapsed building, likely a victim of the shockwaves. He is currently in the hands of the Association. His blade, named Ku, has been confiscated and placed under seal."
The image showed a photo of Masajo, handcuffed, face swollen, being pushed into an armored van.
"A fine catch for law enforcement, though the circumstances of his arrest remain unclear."
The anchor in the studio took over.
"Thank you for that report. We'll now move on to political and economic reactions. The CEO of the NG Group spoke a few minutes ago…"
The screen showed a man in a three-piece suit, predatory smile, microphone in hand.
"The NG Group guarantees the complete reconstruction of the district. We will rebuild everything, more beautiful, more modern, more solid. In return, the state will authorize us to collect a moderate tax on businesses and fixtures after repairs. A win-win arrangement."
The journalist continued.
"An announcement that reassures residents, but also raises questions about the NG Group's growing influence in the region."
The screen displayed graphics, interviews, debates.
The city tends to its wounds. But in the shadows, other forces are stirring.
---
SOMEWHERE – SECRET LOCATION
Lion, the legal representative of the Association.
He stood facing a long-nosed man in a luxurious, magnificent night-blue suit.
"Hello, Mr. Perfecto."
"You're the representative of the NG Group. I hear the real CEO hides his identity."
"You hide your game well, Lion."
"You're well informed. But so am I, don't you think, Leonard Fildg…"
"Oh… lala, you even got wind of my name, even though I did everything to keep it secret. You really are very dangerous."
"Anyway, let's move on and talk business."
Said Perfecto, his tone shifting.
"The district is ours. The taxes, the businesses, the influence. Everything is in place."
A silence.
"And Nokoaka?"
"Eliminated. Our heroes handled it well. Even though Lior, Number 1 of Class A, did the heavy lifting."
Another silence.
"But why are you asking me that? Didn't you watch the news?"
"Unless you only read what suited you – meaning the commercial rights."
Perfecto stammered for a moment before composing himself; he was clearly caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
"And Masajo?"
"Arrested. Ku is under seal. But maybe we can… use him."
A man, in the shadows, leaned forward.
"Bring him in. I have a proposition to make to him."