Flynn immediately opened his arms upwards and summoned his claymore sword.
"Exceed The Storm!"
A blue light, with several bolts of lightning, appeared, quickly forming his sword. He then gripped the sturdy hilt and swung it down until he was ready.
Flynn quickly pushed off, launching his body forward, carrying his greatsword, and then swung it with incredible force.
The blade swung horizontally, but nothing happened.
Swing!
It was as if the moment had been forced to pause, waiting for the right moment to move again.
At that moment—
A large, glowing blue line of energy appeared horizontally in front of the two infori-like creatures and Nathan, but nothing happened. "...?!" His attack had no effect on their bodies; with a single movement, the two creatures managed to kick Flynn in the stomach.
THUMP!
"Ack!"
His body was thrown backward, but Infori swiftly caught Flynn's body to prevent it from falling further. Flynn was clearly grateful for the small gesture.
"Thank you."
"Yes," Infori replied, accepting the gratitude. However, he let Flynn go, knowing he wouldn't fall so easily. Flynn stood back on his own, ready to face the challenges ahead.
Infori then asked, "But how come your Force Thruster has no effect on them?"
"I don't know. It's like you're fighting the wind," he answered honestly, because he felt it himself.
Their bodies seemed hollow, formless, and empty. Yet, physically, their presence remained tangible—this contradiction only deepened their confusion.
When they raised their hands, their fingers were clearly visible, even alive as they should be. And from their hands, a dark aura gathered into a single unit, forming a single sword.
Infori and Nathan looked at each other, trying to find an answer in each other's eyes. Unfortunately, they failed. Their gazes conveyed the confusion that gripped their minds.
Flynn, meanwhile, stared intently at the man's face, unperturbed.
The man then chuckled. "Haha," then stopped speaking. "Your power will have no effect on the void, Captain Flynn. Now, surrender the grand artifact to me. And I will let you leave in peace."
It seemed he still wanted to negotiate, but the answer was clear.
"I won't give you the artifact!" Infori replied.
"Hah..." he let out a short breath. "Go."
One of the two creatures, resembling Infori, obeyed its master's command, quickly pushing off with its feet and darting toward the three of them without hesitation.
A sword swung towards its target, Flynn. Flynn considered blocking the attack, but ultimately decided against it as he regained his senses.
Flynn then moved his body to the right, causing the blade to graze only air.
Swing!
Unexpectedly, the infori-like creature stopped, raised its sword, and swung it sideways to its left, almost reaching its target: its neck.
"...?!"
Flynn quickly lowered his head and body. But Flynn had other plans: a slash to the creature's stomach. As it swung, the blade of his Exceed the Storm sword made contact with the creature's body, but unfortunately, instead of being cut, it seemed to pass through it without any resistance and without causing any damage at all.
(It can't be...!)
Then, Flynn rolled his body forward in a ball, then stopped and stood back up in a ready position.
The creature stopped and turned toward Flynn, giving him a cold, dead-eyed stare.
But from behind him, Infori appeared, swinging his sword at the creature. The blade pierced its body again. The clone didn't even flinch.
"...?!"
Flynn then warned Infori, "Get away! That creature won't be touched at all!"
"Too late," the man whispered.
Just as the man had said, it was too late.
The clone turned toward Infori and parried Infori's sword, lifting it upward. This left Infori defenseless in the stomach, giving the clone the opportunity to kick with all its might.
THUMP!
Infori was thrown backward rapidly and hit a tree hard.
"Infori!" Nathan and Flynn exclaimed.
Infori felt a sharp pain in his back, as that was the area that had hit the tree branch so hard, it left a large mark in the corner.
"Ack! Uh... Hah..."
But fortunately, the bag he was carrying wasn't completely destroyed. Perhaps just a few scratches and a few tears.
Infori, who had closed his eyes earlier, opened them again and saw the man standing in front of him without any movement at all. He seemed to move in the blink of an eye, and didn't even make a sound.
"Since when has he...?!" Nathan asked, seeing it firsthand.
The man then spoke to Infori. "Just hand over the artifact, and you'll be safe."
"Who are you?"
"I choose not to answer that question, as it's not a very important matter."
"I won't give you the artifact."
"Then, I'll take it by force," he said, his voice growing irritated at the end. With that, he swung his sword at Infori, who still hadn't gotten up.
The blade moved downward freely, aiming for its target.
CLANG!
The two swords clashed. Nathan, who had blocked the attack with his sword from below, swung his sword upward, raising the man's sword as well.
Forcing the man to take a few steps back.
"Tch..." the man spat out a breath.
Nathan then stood in front of the information center, raising his sword in front of him, as if in a fighting stance.
"You'll know I have a surprise."
"Yes. But not yet."