"A death trap?"
Phainon chewed on these two words and smiled.
The next moment, he vanished from his original spot.
A blinding golden beam of light, like a divine punishment, brutally tore through the dimness of the artificial streetscape.
A broadsword, emblazoned with the blazing sun emblem, appeared in Phainon's hand with a fierce flourish.
their tip pointed directly at Rick's face, twisted into a sickly smile!
"HKS!"
Mydei squeezed out a roar from his throat, his muscles tensing instantly.
That wasn't a special effect!
Absolutely not some damned lightsaber model or holographic projection!
The scorching sharpness that assailed him, the terrifying pressure that made his skin tingle, was so real it made his soul tremble!
This wasn't acting!
This was a fight to the death!
He wanted to rush forward, to stand in front of Phainon, but his body felt as if it had been filled with lead, incredibly heavy!
Facing this earth-shattering sword strike, Rick's smile didn't waver in the slightest.
He didn't even look at the sword about to fall.
He simply raised his hand and, with an elegant motion, snapped his fingers.
Snap.
The sound wasn't loud, but it was like an absolute command.
"Pause."
In an instant, the world was put on pause.
The wind solidified.
The "passersby" around, who had been craning their necks to watch the commotion, turned into grotesque wax figures.
Mydei's roar froze in his throat; his mind was still racing frantically, but his body couldn't move even a single finger.
Time and space were completely locked down by an invisible force.
The golden sword tip also stopped less than three inches from Rick's nose.
The radiant glow flowing from the blade was solidified into static amber.
In this silent tableau, Rick was the only one who could move.
He admired Phainon's face.
In his eyes, it was like a perfect masterpiece.
"I told you, this is a death trap tailor-made for you."
Rick's voice slowly flowed through the absolutely silent world.
"On set, actors have to follow the director's rules."
As soon as his words fell, another voice sharply pierced the silence.
"Alas... you simply don't understand..."
Elio likewise couldn't move, but his voice broke free from their restraints.
"What is The Hunt? It's an unceasing pursuit! It's an arrow shot towards the finish line!"
"In 'their' dictionary, there are no such words as 'pause' or'stop'!"
Hearing this line, Mydei's frantically operating mind paused for a moment.
Why... did those words sound so familiar?
At this moment, Rick's brow furrowed for the first time.
He suddenly looked at Phainon.
In the depths of his eyes, the golden flames grew even more intense, as if a sun was burning fiercely within them!
The Invasion Dawn greatsword, forcibly frozen, began to hum.
Crack.
A crisp cracking sound.
Crack, crack... It wasn't coming from the sword itself.
But from the space in front of the sword tip!
A crack, imperceptible to the naked eye, appeared out of thin air.
Solidified time was shattered by the will of The Hunt!
Rick's pupils suddenly contracted.
This isn't good!
His body instinctively recoiled.
Boom—!
Almost at the same instant he retreated, the golden sword light, like a breaching flood, engulfed the spot where Rick had originally stood.
The sword's edge grazed his clothes, neatly slicing off a section of the hem of his meticulously tailored tailcoat.
The entire world resumed their flow.
Mydei gasped two ragged breaths.
Experiencing the complete loss of bodily control for the first time was indeed unpleasant.
The surrounding crew members looked bewildered; they only felt a blur before their eyes.
When they came to their senses, they saw Assistant Director Rick retreating with disheveled clothes, while Phainon maintained his sword-swinging posture.
"What... what just happened?"
"I don't know... This special effect was too fast! Couldn't see a thing!"
Rick looked down at his severed clothing, and the smile on his face grew even more intense, tinged with a hint of madness.
"Excellent! You're performing very well! Please, by all means, continue such a performance!"
"Alright."
Phainon didn't even lift an eyelid, simply taking the advice. With a downward flick of his wrist, he prepared to unleash a second strike.
"Stop fighting! Phainon!"
Elio suddenly darted in front of Phainon, spreading his arms to block him.
"He's not the enemy, at least not in the future."
"The real enemy is that guy!"
Elio abruptly turned his head and pointed into the distance.
At the spot his finger indicated, stood the refined man who had been observing everything with detached indifference, like an outsider from beginning to end—Zandar.
Elio began muttering again, clutching his hair.
"His data is empty, empty, truly empty! I can't read anything from him; he's not an 'actor' at all."
Phainon followed his gaze.
If Zandar could still feign a semblance of humanity during their first meeting, now he didn't even bother to pretend.
His face was devoid of emotion, devoid of fluctuation, more like a robot than even the Lygus he had personally created.
He was merely a perfect program, executing some kind of instruction.
Suddenly, Zandar moved.
He pulled at the corners of his mouth towards Phainon, revealing the same unsettlingly gentle smile he had shown at their first meeting.
Then, he turned and, with precise, ruler-measured steps, blended into the crowd.
"Go now!"
Elio grabbed Phainon's arm, his voice trembling, "Don't waste time here! We must leave immediately!"
Phainon retracted The Invasion Dawn.
He glanced at Rick, whose face was still twisted in a sickly smile, then at Mydei beside him, who looked confused but had already taken a defensive stance.
"Take him and go, Mydei!"
Phainon's voice carried no emotion, yet it held an undeniable weight.
"What about you?" Mydei instinctively retorted.
"I'm going to find Zandar."
Before his words finished, Phainon's figure once again transformed into a streak of light, directly chasing in the direction Zandar had disappeared.
"Go!"
Mydei no longer hesitated, he hoisted the scrawny Elio onto his shoulder and sprinted off in the opposite direction from Phainon.
Although he didn't know what exactly had happened, or why Phainon possessed such power, or why the man named Rick could pause time, he knew that the only thing he had to do was to trust Phainon unconditionally!
If I also had such power, I could surely clear away his worries!