Silence did not return.
It collapsed.
The final Allure hovered in the air
Still unmoving, watching.
Below her the remains of the others.
Bodies that were once identical.
Perfect.
Smiling.
Now.
Broken.
Severed.
Still.
For a moment—
Nothing happened.
Then—
They moved.
Not by force.
Not by wind.
Not by gravity.
But by will.
The fallen bodies began to dissolve.
Crimson-black particles lifted from the corpses
Like ash,
Like embers
Like something that refused to die.
They drifted upward.
Slow.
Inevitable.
Toward the last Allure.
"…So that's how it is…"
Her voice no longer playful.
No longer amused.
Something deeper.
Something darker.
The particles reached her and sank into her body.
One.
Two.
Three.
All of them.
The air thickened.
The pressure rose.
The ground beneath Elias and the others cracked further
As if rejecting what was about to be born.
Rio didn't move.
Didn't speak.
Her crimson eye remained locked
Unblinking.
Watching.
Understanding.
The transformation began.
Her form twisted.
Not violently
But deliberately.
As if this was her true shape all along.
Her armor expanded
Cracking
Reforming
Layer upon layer of jagged plates emerging
Each one stained with deep, dried crimson.
Her back split open
Not flesh.
Not bone.
But something worse.
Her four floating swords
The ones that once moved freely
Folded.
Shifted.
Then
Spread outward.
Like wings.
Bladed.
Alive.
Each sword aligned
Hovering behind her
Forming a halo of death.
Her arms
Multiplied.
Two
Four
Six
Eight.
Each one extending outward
Unnatural
Perfectly controlled.
And her hands
Changed.
Fingers elongated
Edges sharpening
Until each hand resembled a blade.
Not holding weapons
Becoming them.
Then
Her torso moved.
A ripple
Across the armor.
And then
They appeared.
Mouths.
Dozens.
Across her body
Across her arms
Across her shoulders
Each one lined with teeth
Jagged.
Endless.
They didn't speak.
But they breathed.
And that alone
Was wrong.
Completely wrong.
"…So this is what you've forced me into…"
Her voice layered.
Not one.
But many.
Speaking at once.
The battlefield froze.
Even Kiraya
Even Fayzan
Even Elias
Couldn't move.
Not from fear alone
But from the sheer weight
Of her presence.
A system notification flickered faintly
Unseen by most
But understood instinctively.
Allure, The Blood Knight of Eclipse
She lowered herself slowly to the ground.
Each step
Heavy.
Deliberate.
Final.
Then
She looked at Rio.
And paused.
"…Ah…"
Something shifted.
Her gaze narrowed.
Locked.
Not on Rio
But on her blade.
TheCrimson Bloodmoon.
It pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Reacting.
Not in fear.
Not in submission.
But in defiance.
In challenge.
In recognition.
The crimson aura around Rio intensified.
As if answering back.
As if declaring
This battlefield
Was no longer Allure's alone.
"…Interesting…"
The mouths across Allure's body opened slightly
Teeth grinding
Almost… smiling.
"…So you've brought something that dares to stand against me…"
Her wings shifted.
Blades aligning.
"…Good."
And then
She moved.
No warning.
No build-up.
Just Impact.
Eight arms struck at once.
Blades from every direction
Impossible angles
Perfect synchronization.
Rio didn't step back.
Didn't evade.
Didn't hesitate.
Her blade rose.
CLANG—!
The Crimson Bloodmoon met the storm.
One strike.
And yet
It held.
Every blade
Every arm
Every impossible angle
Stopped.
At her sword.
The impact shattered the ground beneath her feet.
Cracks spread outward violently.
Dust erupted into the air.
But Rio stood.
Unmoved.
Her crimson eye burned brighter.
"…You talk too much."
The air trembled.
Because now
Two monsters stood across from each other.
And neither was willing to yield.
The clash did not end.
It evolved.
Steel screamed against steel
No
Against something far worse.
Rio stood at the center of the impact, her body unmoving despite the overwhelming force pressing down on her from all directions. Eight bladed limbs bore into her guard, each strike heavy enough to crush stone, each angle impossible to predict.
Yet
She held.
Her crimson eye burned brighter.
Her breathing steadied.
Then
She let go.
Not of the fight
But of hesitation.
Her left hand loosened.
The flintlock musket slipped from her grip
Falling.
Spinning.
Striking the ground with a dull, metallic sound.
At the same time
Her mind moved faster than the battlefield itself.
An interface flickered.
Inventory—open.
Light surged briefly around her hand
And in the next instant
A second blade appeared.
The Imperial Saber.
Sleek.
Refined.
Balanced.
Where the Crimson Bloodmoon was wild, heavy, and domineering—
The Imperial Saber was precise.
Controlled.
Elegant.
Two weapons.
Two styles.
One wielder.
Rio moved.
Her stance shifted
Weight redistributed
Flow perfected.
Then
She struck.
CLANG—!
The Imperial Saber intercepted one of Allure's bladed arms
Redirecting it.
SLASH—!
The Crimson Bloodmoon followed immediately
Crashing into another
Forcing it aside.
Momentum broke.
Allure staggered
Just slightly.
But enough.
"…What"
Rio stepped in.
A single step.
And everything changed.
She countered.
A cross-slash
Perfectly timed
Perfectly placed
BOOM
The force of both blades striking in sequence pushed Allure back.
Her massive form slid
Eight limbs dragging
Armor grinding against the fractured ground.
For the first time
She lost ground.
Behind them
Ryota moved.
His eyes locked onto the fallen musket.
"…Got it."
He dashed forward
Scooped it up
Turned
And aimed.
"…Let's see how you handle this."
His grip tightened.
His ability activated.
Scalular Impact.
Energy condensed
Focused
Infused into the weapon.
The musket trembled slightly under the pressure.
Then BANG
The first shot rang out.
The bullet tore through the air
Faster
Heavier
Deadlier.
Allure tilted her head
The bullet missed.
It struck the ground behind her
BOOM
The impact exploded
Cratering the stone.
Dust and debris burst upward.
But Ryota didn't stop.
BANG
BANG
BANG
Shot after shot
Each one enhanced
Each one tearing into the battlefield
And each one
Missing.
"…Tch."
But he didn't care.
Because he wasn't aiming to hit.
He was shaping the battlefield.
Rio understood instantly.
She pressed forward.
Relentless.
Her dual blades moved in perfect rhythm
Strike
Parry
Cut
Advance
Allure responded.
Eight arms moved in unison
Blocking
Deflecting
Countering
The clash intensified.
Blades collided faster than the eye could follow.
Sparks burst with every impact.
Shockwaves rippled outward.
To the others watching
It wasn't a fight.
It was a storm.
"…Seriously…"
One of the surviving members whispered, barely able to track their movements.
"…What are they…"
Kiraya watched in silence.
Even she
Couldn't follow everything.
Back on the battlefield
Ryota kept moving.
Circling.
Adjusting position.
Firing.
Each bullet carved into the ground
Creating more craters
More uneven terrain
Forcing movement.
Forcing error.
"Keep going, Rio!"
She didn't answer.
Didn't need to.
Because she already was.
Her blades accelerated.
Faster.
Sharper.
More precise.
She drove Allure backward
Step by step
Cut by cut
Until
It happened.
A misstep.
Not from Rio.
From the ground.
Allure's foot landed
On fractured stone
One of Ryota's craters
The surface gave way.
Her balance broke.
Just slightly.
But in this fight
That was everything.
Rio's eyes sharpened.
Opportunity.
She took it.
No hesitation.
No mercy.
Her body twisted
Weight shifting
Both blades aligning
Then
SLASH
A clean
Precise
Devastating strike.
One of Allure's arms
Severed completely.
It fell
Spinning
Crashing into the ground with a heavy thud.
Blackened blood spilled
Hissing
Burning the stone.
Silence
For half a second.
Then
Allure screamed.
Not in pain.
But in rage.
Her remaining arms twitched violently.
Her mouths opened
Teeth grinding
"…You—!"
Rio stepped back slightly.
Both blades raised.
Her crimson aura flared.
Steady.
Unshaken.
Behind her
Ryota lowered the musket slightly.
A grin forming.
"…Got her."
But the fight
Was far from over.