The battlefield had long since ceased to resemble an arena.
Shattered stone covered the ground in every direction. Deep craters scarred the floor. Walls had been torn apart by explosions powerful enough to reshape the chamber itself. Smoke drifted through the air, mixing with the scent of blood and scorched mana.
What remained of two raid groups stood amidst the devastation.
Exhausted.
Wounded.
Barely alive.
And yet the battle continued.
At the center of the ruined chamber, four identical figures hovered in the air.
Four Allures.
Four copies of the Knight of the Eclipse.
Each one wore the same beautiful smile.
Each one radiated the same crushing pressure.
Each one possessed the same terrifying power.
The moment they moved, the air itself seemed to shudder.
They vanished.
Not because they were invisible.
Not because they teleported.
They were simply too fast.
"Watch out!"
The warning came too late.
Two Allures appeared on either side of Rio simultaneously. Their crimson-black blades descended in perfect synchronization, aimed directly at her from opposite directions.
The timing was flawless.
The attack left no obvious avenue of escape.
Yet Rio didn't retreat.
She stepped forward.
The Crimson Bloodmoon flashed upward.
A deafening explosion of sparks erupted as her blade intercepted both attacks at once.
CLANG!
The impact sent a violent shockwave rippling across the battlefield.
The ground cracked beneath her boots.
Stone fragments exploded outward.
Rio's arms trembled slightly from the force, but she maintained her stance.
"...Fast."
The word had barely left her lips when the remaining two Allures attacked.
One appeared above her.
The other materialized behind her.
Their blades descended immediately.
No hesitation.
No wasted movement.
No mercy.
Rio twisted her body.
The Crimson Bloodmoon swept upward, intercepting the strike from above.
Another blade came from behind.
She shifted her footing at the last possible moment, redirecting the attack just enough for it to miss a fatal point.
The blade scraped past her armor instead.
Not clean.
Not perfect.
But enough.
The four Allures never slowed.
They pressed forward relentlessly.
Steel collided with steel over and over again until the battlefield became a blur of flashing blades and exploding sparks.
To the surviving players watching from a distance, the fight had become impossible to follow.
Only fragments of movement remained visible.
A flash of crimson.
A streak of silver.
Afterimages crossing the battlefield.
Distorted shockwaves tearing through the ruined chamber.
One of the surviving Eternity Lions members stared in disbelief.
"What the hell am I looking at...?"
His voice barely rose above a whisper.
"Seriously... who are these people?"
No one answered him.
Even Elias remained silent.
Even Hinabi.
Because they understood.
The battle taking place before them had already surpassed anything they could contribute to.
One of the Allures suddenly slipped behind Rio.
Perfectly silent.
Perfectly positioned.
The angle was fatal.
The descending blade aimed directly for the back of her neck.
The attack should have landed.
Instead—
CLANG!
The strike was blocked.
Not by her saber.
By her musket.
Without even turning around, Rio had raised her flintlock behind her back and caught the blade against its reinforced frame.
Metal screeched violently under the pressure.
Rio didn't even glance at her attacker.
"Too obvious."
Above her, another Allure extended a hand.
Dark energy condensed instantly.
Crimson-black mana twisted together into a massive crescent wave.
Then it descended.
The attack tore through the air like a collapsing mountain.
Rio's eyes narrowed.
"[Sword Skill: Moonlight Melody.]"
The Crimson Bloodmoon moved.
One swing.
Nothing more.
A crescent of crimson energy surged upward and collided directly with the descending attack.
The resulting explosion shook the entire chamber.
Light and darkness collided violently.
The two attacks devoured one another.
The blast wave that followed swept across the battlefield, forcing several of the Allures to retreat a step.
For a brief moment—
An opening appeared.
That was all Ryota needed.
"Got you."
He appeared behind Rio without warning.
Before the nearest two Allures could react, his hands shot forward.
He grabbed one beneath each arm.
Then he ran.
Not away.
Straight into the nearest wall.
BOOM!
The impact shattered stone.
Massive cracks spread through the chamber wall like lightning.
Ryota drove both Allures into the surface with enough force to bury them halfway inside it.
Before they could recover, Iron Steve began glowing with Indra's lingering power.
Ryota thrust the sword forward.
The blade shot toward one Allure's chest.
Then everything changed.
A hand suddenly grabbed his head.
The second Allure had recovered faster than expected.
Before Ryota could react—
CRASH!
His face slammed into the wall.
Stone exploded around him.
The chamber shook violently.
Pain exploded through his skull.
His vision blurred.
His grip weakened.
Only slightly.
But it was enough.
One of the trapped Allures tore herself free.
Her wings spread.
Her gaze swept across the battlefield.
Then she found her target.
Ayame.
Ayame remained kneeling near the rear line.
Her staff glowed softly as she continued desperately healing the survivors.
She had no mana to spare.
No strength left.
No protection.
The moment the Allure locked onto her, everyone understood the danger.
"No!"
The copy launched forward.
A crimson-black blade materialized in her hand.
She moved like a streak of darkness across the battlefield.
Meanwhile, Rio remained occupied by two other Allures.
Ryota was pinned against the wall.
Neither could stop her.
The attack was about to land.
Then a blazing wall of fire erupted between Ayame and death.
BOOM!
The charging Allure was struck from the side by an enormous flaming slash.
For the first time during the battle, she was caught completely off guard.
The attack threw her sideways.
Kiraya landed between Ayame and the incoming threat.
Her shield was raised.
Her sword burned with roaring flames.
Her eyes were cold.
Focused.
Determined.
"You picked the wrong target."
The moment she spoke, another figure appeared.
Fayzan.
He didn't bother with a sword strike.
He didn't cast a skill.
He simply slammed his shoulder into the recovering Allure with every ounce of strength he had left.
BOOM!
The impact drove her straight into the ground.
The stone beneath them exploded.
Flames erupted immediately.
Fayzan poured everything he had left into the attack.
Fire engulfed the battlefield.
The inferno wrapped around the pinned Allure, burning hotter and hotter.
"Stay down!"
A shadow appeared above them.
Elias.
Silent.
Focused.
Final.
He raised his sword.
Then drove it downward.
THUD!
The blade pierced directly through the Allure's face.
At the same moment, Fayzan's burning sword plunged into her torso.
THUD!
Two blades.
One body.
Completely pinned.
Flames consumed her from every direction.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then Kiraya's eyes narrowed.
Something was wrong.
The Allure was still smiling.
Even while impaled.
Even while burning.
Even while trapped.
"...Yeah."
Fayzan grimaced.
"Figures."
Elias didn't remove his sword.
"She's not dying."
The realization settled heavily across the battlefield.
Everything they had done should have killed her.
Yet she remained alive.
Then disaster struck.
A sudden explosion erupted behind them.
Everyone turned instinctively.
Ayame stood frozen in place.
Her staff slipped from her fingers.
The healing light surrounding her vanished.
Then her HP bar disappeared.
Zero.
Complete silence filled the battlefield.
"...Ayame?"
Kiraya's voice cracked.
Nobody understood what had happened at first.
Then they saw her.
The Allure near the wall.
The one holding Ryota.
She stood calmly with her hand extended.
Smoke rose from her palm.
A cruel smile stretched across her face.
"One less problem."
Ryota's eyes widened.
"You—!"
But he couldn't move.
He couldn't stop her.
He couldn't save Ayame.
And that single moment changed everything.
Rio saw Ayame fall.
For the briefest fraction of a second—
Her focus broke.
One heartbeat.
One moment.
One mistake.
The two Allures in front of her moved instantly.
Their blades struck simultaneously.
Perfect synchronization.
Perfect timing.
Rio raised her weapon.
Too slow.
The attacks crashed into her chest.
SLASH!
Blood erupted into the air.
The wounds were deep.
Brutal.
Devastating.
Rio's body was launched backward.
She slammed into the ground hard enough to crack the stone beneath her.
BOOM!
Dust exploded upward.
The Crimson Bloodmoon nearly slipped from her hand.
Nearly.
But not completely.
She forced herself to keep hold of it.
Her HP plummeted.
Critical.
Dangerously close to zero.
Still alive.
Barely.
"RIO!"
Ryota's voice echoed across the battlefield.
But there was nothing he could do.
Nothing any of them could do.
The battlefield fell silent once more.
Above them, the remaining Allures hovered in the air.
Smiling.
Watching.
Waiting.
Below stood the survivors.
Kiraya.
Elias.
Fayzan.
One pinned Allure still trapped beneath their blades.
One Allure restraining Ryota.
Two more floating above.
Rio critically wounded.
Ayame dead.
No healer.
No recovery.
No safety net.
No second chances.
The balance of the battle had shifted once again.
This was no longer simply a fight.
It had become a countdown.
A race against inevitable defeat.
Fayzan tightened his grip on his weapon.
"Damn it..."
Flames flickered weakly around his arm.
"This just got worse."
Kiraya raised her shield once more.
Exhausted.
Bleeding.
But still standing.
Still fighting.
Elias lowered his stance.
Preparing himself for the next exchange.
Above them, the two airborne Allures laughed softly.
Their eyes swept across the battlefield like predators observing trapped prey.
They looked certain.
Certain that victory was already theirs.
Certain that the remaining resistance would soon crumble.
Certain that this was the end.
And for the first time since Rio and Ryota arrived—
It truly felt like they might be right.