Ren Kagu's gaze locked onto Lillian, the faintest smirk curving his lips as he assessed her. His violet eyes gleamed, betraying a sharp intellect at work, but beneath the calm facade, his mind raced with calculations.
'Honestly, I'm screwed,' Ren admitted to himself, his God's Eyes offering an unfiltered view of the battlefield. It wasn't just a matter of skill—he had that in spades. No, the gap between them was something more primal, more insurmountable: mana rank.
Lillian's presence radiated with a suffocating intensity. Her mana, a dense and oppressive force, pulsed around her like a storm barely contained. Ren could tell she was nearing peak Immortal-rank—a realm of power so far above his current state that it felt like staring up at a mountain while standing in its shadow.
Still, raw power wasn't everything. Ren had learned that lesson long ago. In terms of relative ability, of technique and adaptability, he was confident he could hold his own. But holding his own wouldn't win him this fight.
'Why did I even come here?' he thought dryly, though he already knew the answer. He'd seen Seol-ah taken captive. To leave her there when she was the only person from his world he saw was stuupid. He wasn't foolish enough to charge in recklessly at the time, knowing he'd only end up sharing her fate. But now, with the city under siege and chaos reigning, the window of opportunity had presented itself.
Lillian tilted her head, studying him with an amused curiosity, her crimson eyes glowing faintly. "You're quiet," she said, her voice smooth and taunting. "Is it fear? Or perhaps you're realizing how utterly out of your depth you are."
Ren chuckled softly, flexing his fingers. The astral energy from his Fist Heart began to flow, swirling around his hands like black mist laced with faint pinpricks of light. "Oh, I realized that the moment I saw you," he replied, his tone light, almost conversational. "But don't worry. I'm used to being out of my depth."
Lillian raised an eyebrow, intrigued by his flippancy. "Bold words for someone so clearly outmatched."
Ren's smirk widened. "Boldness has nothing to do with it. You're just underestimating me. Don't worry—it's a common mistake."
Without waiting for her retort, he shot forward, his body a blur as he closed the distance. The air around him warped as he activated the First Movement: Gravity Collapse. A gravitational field exploded outward, dragging everything toward its center with bone-crushing force.
Lillian's expression didn't falter. She raised her hand, and with a casual flick of her wrist, unleashed a burst of mana that shattered the gravitational field like glass. The force sent Ren skidding backward, his boots carving furrows into the ground.
"You'll have to do better than that," Lillian said, her tone mocking.
Ren exhaled, his breath steady despite the sweat beading on his brow. "Oh, I plan to."
He raised his fists, the swirling black energy around them intensifying. With a sharp twist of his body, he launched into the Second Movement: Gravity Crush. The very air seemed to condense, the pressure around Lillian growing unbearable as the gravitational force zeroed in on her.
This time, Lillian moved. With a burst of speed, she dashed out of the crushing field, her movements so fluid it was as if she danced through the attack. She appeared behind Ren in an instant, her fist glowing with deadly mana as it arced toward him.
Ren barely dodged, his instincts honed to a razor's edge by countless battles. The ground where he had stood cracked and cratered from the force of her blow.
"You're slippery," Lillian remarked, a hint of irritation creeping into her voice.
"Comes with the job," Ren replied, his tone casual as he leapt back, gaining some distance. He couldn't afford to let her dominate the rhythm of the fight. Drawing on his reserves, he activated the Third Movement: Void Collapse.
A sphere of astral energy erupted from his fists, the light around it bending and distorting as it consumed everything in its path. Lillian's eyes narrowed, and for the first time, she seemed to take him seriously. She raised both hands, forming a shield of crimson mana that barely held against the collapsing void.
Ren pressed the attack, his body a blur as he closed the distance again. The energy around him surged, converging into a single point at his fists. With a roar, he unleashed the Fourth Movement: Void Rupture, a devastating punch that detonated the compressed energy in a blinding explosion.
When the light faded, Lillian stood amidst the devastation, her figure battered but upright. Her smirk had vanished, replaced by a cold, focused glare. "You're stronger than you look," she admitted, her voice tinged with respect. "But strength without rank is meaningless."
Before Ren could respond, she surged forward, her movements a blur. Her fist connected with his side, sending him flying. He crashed into the ground, coughing up blood as pain lanced through his ribs.
Even as his body screamed in protest, Ren pushed himself to his feet, his grin unwavering. "And yet here I am, still standing."
Lillian's lips curled into a sneer. "For now."
Ren steadied his breathing, his fists still glowing faintly with the remnants of his astral energy.
As Ren steadied himself, the flicker of mana in the distance grew closer, carrying with it a wave of absolute cold. His grin widened, his violet eyes gleaming with a mixture of relief and amusement.
"You're late as ever," Ren called out, his voice cutting through the frigid air. A storm of glacial energy descended upon the battlefield, targeting Lillian with an unrelenting force that even her considerable strength couldn't entirely ignore.
The ice storm coalesced into jagged shards of frost that swirled with deadly precision. Lillian instinctively shifted her stance, her crimson mana flaring up in defiance, but the sheer intensity of the cold slowed her movements.
Lucifer stepped onto the battlefield, his boots crunching against the frost-covered ground. His verdant eyes gleamed like emerald fire, his blade radiating an ethereal chill that seemed to warp the air around it. Beside him stood Seol-ah, her golden eyes sharp and focused, her aura crackling with restrained power.
"So, you're here too, Ren," Lucifer said, his tone calm but carrying the weight of authority.
Ren let out a breathless laugh, his body still buzzing from the intensity of his earlier fight. "Yeah, figured I'd get the party started without you."
Lucifer barely glanced at him, his attention already locked onto Lillian. He raised his sword, the intricate patterns of frost glowing brighter as he activated Cocytus's Descent. The ground beneath Lillian froze solid, jagged crystals erupting around her, trapping her within an icy prison reinforced by astral energy.
Lillian's expression twisted into one of frustration as she punched at the ice, her crimson mana flaring against the frozen barrier. Cracks began to spiderweb across the crystalline cage, the sheer force of her mana overpowering the restraint. With a final roar, the prison shattered into shards that scattered like a thousand stars.
Lucifer's lips curled into a faint smile, utterly unshaken. "Impressive, but you'll have to try harder than that."
"Always so cold, Lucifer," Ren quipped, earning a sidelong glance from his companion.
Seol-ah stepped forward, her onyx black hair billowing as her aura surged. She raised her hands, conjuring a vortex of mana infused with wind and lightning. Her voice was calm yet commanding as she activated the First Movement: Unyielding Tempest. The vortex spiraled outward, creating a maelstrom of razor-sharp winds and crackling bolts of electricity that forced Lillian to brace herself.
Ren's grin widened. "About time you two showed off. I was starting to think you'd left me to handle everything."
Lucifer's sword glinted as he transitioned into the Third Movement: Frozen Zenith. The air seemed to crystallize as he gathered all elements of mana, weaving them into a singular, devastating strike. His blade descended with glacial precision, releasing a wave of frostfire energy that engulfed Lillian in a kaleidoscope of freezing flames and spectral light.
For a moment, it seemed as though the combined force of the three fighters might overwhelm her. But Lillian's voice cut through the chaos, her laughter echoing with raw defiance. "Do you think this is enough to stop me?"
Her crimson mana erupted like a volcano, pushing back against the assault. The ground quaked under the pressure of her power, and the battlefield turned into a clash of elements—fire against frost, lightning against shadow, chaos against control.
Seol-ah gritted her teeth, raising her arms to activate a new movement. "You're not the only one who can push further."
With a sharp motion, she summoned Second Movement: Azure Horizon. A dome of radiant blue energy expanded outward, washing over the battlefield and amplifying the mana of her allies while suppressing that of her enemies. The balance of power shifted, giving their trio a brief but crucial advantage.
Lucifer nodded approvingly, his sword glowing brighter as he prepared his next strike. "Let's end this quickly."
Ren clenched his fists, the remnants of his astral energy coiling like serpents around his arms. "Yeah, because she's not going to wait around for us to figure things out."
Seol-ah's expression hardened as she unleashed Third Movement: Tempest Requiem, a barrage of condensed lightning and wind strikes aimed directly at Lillian's core. The combined onslaught forced the Demon King's daughter to momentarily stagger, her mana faltering under the relentless assault.
Lillian roared, her mana surging again as she began to counterattack, but the trio held their ground, their movements synchronized like the threads of a finely woven tapestry. Each strike, each defense, pushed her closer to the edge.