Shiron's voice echoed through the vast space, calm… yet absolute.
"Each of you will face a statue… alone."
A brief pause followed.
"But this time—"
His gaze sharpened slightly.
"—it will be different."
"The form… the strength… the way it fights… all will vary."
"Yet all of them… will stand on the same level."
Before anyone could react—
The world shifted.
In an instant—
They were gone.
No sound.
No warning.
Yuro blinked.
The others had disappeared.
No—he couldn't even feel them anymore.
Each of them now stood in a separate arena.
Isolated.
Cut off.
Raino tightened his grip as his surroundings stabilized.
Then—
It appeared.
A statue.
Similar… yet different.
Larger.
Heavier.
Its presence far more oppressive than before.
The ground beneath it cracked slightly as it took a step forward.
Stronger… than the last one.
—
Elsewhere, Ren stood firm, his eyes sharp.
His opponent emerged in silence—
A statue wielding two long blades.
Thin.
Deadly.
Its stance low… precise.
Built for speed.
It didn't hesitate.
The moment it fully formed—
It dashed forward.
—
And then—
Yuro.
He stood alone.
Silent.
Waiting.
At first—
Nothing.
Then—
A presence.
He felt it before he saw it.
Heavy.
Solid.
Unshakable.
The figure stepped forward from the void.
A statue—
But unlike the others.
Its body was dense… almost immovable.
A single sword rested in its hand—
Yet something was off.
It didn't rely on it.
Not truly.
Its stance…
Its weight…
Its presence—
This wasn't a swordsman.
This was a fighter.
One that trusted its own body… more than any weapon.
Yuro's eyes narrowed.
"...So this is mine."The battle began.
Raino moved first.
Without hesitation, he formed a spear of energy—just like before—and hurled it straight toward the statue.
Fast.
Precise.
But this time—
The statue reacted.
Its arm rose instantly.
A shield formed.
Impact.
The spear shattered against it.
Raino's eyes widened slightly.
…Stronger.
This one was different.
He didn't stop.
He dashed forward, forming another spear mid-motion, aiming for a blind spot—
But the statue was faster.
Its sword cut through the air, aiming straight for him.
Raino barely managed to block.
Steel met energy—
The force pushed him back.
He slid across the ground before regaining his footing, creating distance.
His grip tightened.
This wasn't going to be easy.
—
Elsewhere, Ren had already engaged.
His opponent moved like a blur.
Fast—
Too fast.
Ren narrowed his eyes and raised his hand.
A beam of ice shot forward, aiming to freeze the statue in place.
But—
It missed.
The statue shifted at the last moment, slipping past the attack with unnatural speed.
Of course…
Speed was its strength.
Ren stepped back—
But it was already in front of him.
Too close.
The twin blades flashed.
He twisted his body just in time, the strike grazing past him instead of piercing through.
The air split with the force of the attack.
Ren landed a few steps away, his breathing steady—but sharper now.
"…Fast."
His eyes locked onto it again.
This wouldn't be a simple fight.
—
And then—
Yuro.Yuro clenched his steel gauntlets—
Then rushed forward.
No hesitation.
His fist crashed into the statue.
Once.
Twice.
Again.
Heavy blows—
But nothing moved.
Not even an inch.
The statue stood firm.
Unshaken.
As if Yuro's strength meant nothing.
His eyes narrowed.
"…Tch."
Before he could react—
The statue moved.
It didn't step back.
It stepped in.
Its sword came down, intercepting his strikes, deflecting them with brutal precision.
Yuro tried to pull away—
Too late.
The counter came instantly.
A strike—
He twisted his body.
Dodged half of it.
But the rest—
Landed.
Hard.
Pain shot through his side.
He gritted his teeth and tried to fight back, swinging again—
But the statue stopped him.
Its fist pulled back—
Energy gathering within it.
Dense.
Heavy.
Then—
It struck.
A direct hit to his ribs.
A crack echoed.
Yuro's body lifted off the ground before crashing down violently.
Air left his lungs.
His vision blurred.
"…Khh—!"
His hand trembled as he tried to rise—
But his body refused.
Footsteps.
Slow.
Steady.
The statue approached.
It picked up its sword.
Lifted it—
And aimed for his neck.
Yuro's eyes widened slightly.
…This is bad.
—
Meanwhile—
Raino.Meanwhile—
Raino had already realized it.
His opponent…
Was stronger.
Not by much—
But enough.
He stepped back.
Then another step.
And suddenly—
He turned and ran.
Not out of fear—
But strategy.
He moved across the arena at high speed, keeping his distance, forcing the statue to chase him.
For a moment—
It worked.
Then—
The statue stopped.
Its grip tightened around its sword.
And without warning—
It began to swing.
Wildly.
Violently.
Strikes tore through the air in every direction, carving into the ground, sending fragments flying.
It wasn't aiming—
It didn't need to.
It was turning the entire area into a killing zone.
Raino narrowed his eyes.
Fast—
But controlled.
He slipped between the attacks, barely avoiding each strike as he dashed forward.
Then—
An opening.
He formed a spear instantly—
And threw it.
Direct hit.
The weapon pierced into the statue's neck.
A crack echoed—
Fragments of stone broke off and scattered.
The statue froze for a split second.
Then—
Its body began to glow.
Bright.
Violent.
The air around it distorted as it surged forward with explosive speed.
Raino's expression tightened.
Too fast—
He couldn't fully dodge.
The blade cut into him.
Blood spilled.
He staggered back, his breathing uneven.
"…Tch."
Pain spread through his body.
But his eyes didn't waver.
Instead—
A thought formed.
If a spear works…
Then—
His gaze sharpened.
Why not a sword?
He pushed himself back, creating distance, his hand lifting—
Energy gathered.
Unstable.
Incomplete.
He tried to shape it—
But it broke apart.
Failed.
The statue was already closing in.
No time.
It lunged—
The sword drove forward—
And pierced into Raino's abdomen.
His body shook.
For a moment—
Everything stopped.
Then—
He moved.
His left hand grabbed his right arm—
Forcing it steady.
Energy surged again.
Stronger this time.
Denser.
More focused.
And then—
It formed.
A blade.
Red.
Burning.
Alive.
Raino exhaled sharply, his grip tightening around it.
A faint smile appeared despite the blood running down his body.
"…Now."
His eyes locked onto the statue.
"This fight is even."Raino moved.
He dashed forward, gripping his newly formed blade, aiming straight for the statue's weapon.
Steel met energy—
A sharp clash echoed through the arena.
For a moment, they were locked.
Then—
Raino pushed harder.
His blade forced the statue's sword back, overwhelming it.
The statue understood.
If this continued—
It would lose.
In an instant, it made a decision.
It let go of its sword.
Energy surged through its body—everything it had left, condensed into a single point.
Violent.
Unstable.
It thrust its power forward, unleashing a final attack.
A direct clash.
No defense.
No retreat.
Raino didn't hesitate.
He stepped in—
And drove his blade forward with everything he had.
The two forces collided.
For a split second—
They held.
Then—
Raino's power broke through.
It tore into the attack—
Piercing straight through the statue's body.
A deep crack spread across it.
But he didn't stop.
He pushed further.
The blade cut through stone—
Once.
Twice.
Again.
Fragments scattered as he tore the statue apart piece by piece.
His breathing grew heavier.
His grip tightened.
Then—
He stepped back.
The statue… was broken.
Its form shattered.
But—
It didn't fall.
It was still standing.Raino staggered back, his breathing heavy.
The statue was still standing.
Broken—
But not defeated.
"…Not yet?"
His grip tightened.
No more hesitation.
No more holding back.
He gathered what remained of his energy—
Every last fragment.
It condensed in his hand, unstable… trembling on the edge of collapse.
Then—
It took form.
A spear.
Different from before.
Denser.
Compressed.
Ready to explode.
Raino narrowed his eyes.
"This ends now."
He stepped forward—
And hurled it.
The moment it struck—
Detonation.
A violent explosion swallowed the statue whole, tearing through what remained of its body.
Stone shattered.
Fragments scattered in every direction.
The ground trembled.
Then—
Silence.
When the dust cleared—
Nothing remained.
Raino exhaled slowly, his arm dropping to his side.
"…It's over."Meanwhile—
Ren moved.
Not forward—
But back.
His steps were sharp, controlled, narrowly avoiding each strike.
The statue was relentless.
Faster than him.
Every swing of its blade came sooner than expected—closer than it should.
Ren clenched his jaw.
"…Then I won't chase your speed."
His hand rose.
Cold gathered instantly.
Not a beam—
Not this time.
A surge.
A wave of freezing energy burst outward from him, spreading across the battlefield.
The ground—
Froze.
The walls—
Turned to ice.
The very air seemed to crystallize.
Frost crawled in every direction, coating everything in a thin, deadly layer.
The statue moved—
Then slipped.
Just slightly.
But enough.
Its movements—
Slower.
Not by much.
But no longer perfect.
Ren's eyes sharpened.
"…Got you."
He stepped forward.The statue was still fast.
Too fast.
Even with the frozen ground—
It adapted.
Its movements were unstable for a moment… then sharp again.
Ren narrowed his eyes.
"…Still not enough."
Then—
A memory flashed.
Shiron.
That small sphere of energy—
Simple.
Yet absolute.
Ren raised his hand.
Energy gathered.
Condensed.
A sphere formed in his palm.
Without hesitation—
He threw it.
The statue reacted instantly.
It twisted mid-motion—
Dodging the attack.
The sphere exploded behind it, grazing its body.
Not a direct hit—
But enough.
The statue staggered slightly.
Its weight shifted—
To the right.
Ren's eyes sharpened.
"…There."
He saw it.
A pattern.
When it leaned on its right leg—
It charged.
When it shifted to the left—
It prepared a sudden strike.
Ren exhaled slowly.
"…Then I control the rhythm."
The statue moved.
Weight—
Right.
It dashed forward.
Fast.
But expected.
Ren stepped aside at the last second, letting it pass—
Then fired a beam of ice straight into its side.
The impact pushed it off balance.
But that wasn't the attack.
Not yet.
Hidden behind his body—
Another sphere had already formed.
Smaller.
Quieter.
Waiting.
He released it.
The statue reacted again—
Crossing its blades to block.
The energy deflected—
Redirected—
Back toward him.
But—
Ren didn't move.
Because it was already part of the plan.
Behind that—
A second sphere.
Larger.
Denser.
He had prepared it the moment he attacked.
Ren stepped forward—
And struck it.
The sphere shot forward like a cannon—
Colliding directly with the statue.
For a split second—
Everything stopped.
Then—
Explosion.
The force tore through its body, shattering it completely.
Fragments scattered across the frozen ground.
Silence returned.
Ren lowered his hand.
"…Got it."Yuro lay on the ground.
His body refused to move.
The monster stood above him, its sword slowly rising—
Ready to cut through his neck.
Yuro's thoughts trembled.
…Is this the end?
We just started…
His eyes tightened.
Doubt crept in.
That man…
Does he even care if we die?
His breathing grew heavier.
No…
Not yet.
I can't die here.
I need to know…
what he's planning.
The blade descended.
Closer.
Closer.
It was about to touch his neck—
Then—
Yuro vanished.
The sword struck the ground.
A heavy impact echoed.
But—
He wasn't there.
The monster turned.
Behind it—
Yuro stood.
Still.
Watching."…You missed."
His voice was low.
Steady.
The air grew heavier.
He raised his eyes.
"I'm not the one who loses."
A pause.
"…You are."