The Lost Ones were on the verge of their first confrontation. Yanis was consumed by such rage that his mana radiated from his fists, ready for an aggressive battle. Dasra, who still held him by the arm, was ultimately forced to let go due to the growing strength of the teenager.
"Tony!" he shouted.
Using his teleportation abilities, Yanis lunged at Tony. His anger allowed him to attack his opponent with astonishing ferocity and speed. Tony defended himself with his dark nunchakus, which he wielded flawlessly. Yanis's rapid punches and kicks were in sync with the rhythm of his opponent's weapons.
"You still have your treacherous weapons, I see!"
Tony, smirking malevolently, saw no need to respond. He relentlessly battered Yanis with the brute force of his nunchakus. His blows came swift and thick, like gusts of wind, yet he couldn't touch Yanis. Yanis kept deploying his martial arts techniques on Tony, who couldn't keep up with the harsh pace set by his adversary.
"Damn it!" Tony exclaimed.
A combat dance unfolded before the puzzled eyes of the group, who were still trying to understand this unexpected showdown.
"I've never seen Yanis like this before..." murmured Gwendoline.
"I'm totally lost," Jacob added.
Yet, as the relentless tumult of Yanis and Tony's battle continued and all eyes were locked onto them, Dasra and Yorgor exchanged glances without uttering a word. Of all those present, they alone maintained their composure.
"Hey you, the female redhead. Your name's Dasra?"
"Yes. I'm responsible for protecting this group on this mission."
"I see you've brought me little Gwendoline. You're making my job easier, you know?"
"You're planning to kill them?"
"Not the new girl. But the others, yes."
After this exchange, the teens froze, horrified by Yorgor's chilling words.
"You'll have to kill me first!"
After Dasra uttered these brave words, Yorgor cast her a menacing smile. Seeing this, the young woman knew precisely what was about to happen. She turned to the Lost Ones and shouted:
"Get back! This will hurt!"
Before Dasra could finish, Yorgor struck with breathtaking speed, sending her crashing into village homes, destroying dozens.
"Is that all?"
The enormous power difference between him and the group amused him, like a cocky, bold child. However, in a brave gesture, Kalen stepped forward to shield the group.
"You won't harm the Lost Ones. They are the future and protectors of this multiverse."
Yorgor burst into laughter at Kalen's words, thinking the timid teenager showed divine courage in standing up to him.
"I like you! You're brave for a weakling. Well done!"
As Kalen became the target of Yorgor's open ridicule, Yorgor examined his face and posture, sensing impending doom.
However… this kid intrigues me… His face and stance remind me of someone… Who is this kid?
Kalen reached for the bow on his back and drew a steel arrow from his quiver. Yorgor laughed even harder, thinking a mere arrow would weaken him.
"You can't be serious, ahah! Do you really think a simple arrow will ki—"
Suddenly, Kalen released the arrow, interrupting Yorgor mid-sentence. The arrow struck Yorgor's head. It was clear to everyone that this wouldn't kill a demigod like Yorgor. As Yorgor stood frozen, the arrow released a mysterious green smoke, which faded into the air like the beginning of a forest fire.
"What did you do to me?" Yorgor mumbled.
"I imbued the arrow with the power to accelerate time infinitely. For every second that passes, your body ages ten million years."
Though Kalen's temporal power seemed overwhelmingly potent, Yorgor remained oddly unaffected by the rapid pace of time. He just felt deeply disoriented, unable to move even a limb.
"You're insanely powerful man!" Jacob exclaimed.
"I'm just trying to think of a way for everyone to get out of this intense night alive," Kalen replied.
Distracted from the immediate situation, Kalen noticed Yanis and Tony, both battered and bruised, engaged in a fierce battle.
"Your friend? What's happening to him?" he inquired.
"No one knows. Truth be told, we don't even know who this 'Tony' guy is," Alora answered.
"It's okay... I'll handle it."
Kalen swiftly grabbed another arrow from his pouch and channeled his temporal power into it, producing a green smoke. He then shot it at Tony, who was still clashing with Yanis. Hearing the air whistle, Tony spun around just in time to break the arrow using his nunchaku.
"Nice try. I'll come for you in two minutes, once I'm done with Yanis!"
With Kalen's intervention, Yanis finally seized an opportunity to land a powerful kick to Tony's head. With unmatched precision and supernatural strength, Yanis' high-kick sent Tony crashing to the ground.
"You piece of shit. I'm going to make you suffer as long as it takes. You're going to regret what you did, whether it was on Earth or here!"
As Yanis gripped Tony's collar, lifting him to assert his dominance, Tony sneered, "Hey dude, the pink-haired chick over there!" pointing at Alora, "She's your new Léa, right?"
"Shut up, asshole!"
Deeply hurt by these words, Yanis fiercely hurled Tony to the ground, leaving a massive crack.
"Yeah, ahah! Just as I thought! Deep down, you want to share the same bond you had with her, that bitch!"
"YOU'RE A DEAD MAN, TONY!"
Blinded by emotion, Yanis gathered mana in his foot, raising it over Tony's head. But as he was about to crush his skull, Tony summoned his nunchakus near Yanis' chest, striking him before he could land the blow. The impact sent Yanis flying far from the vicinity they were fighting in.
"Emotions are the weakness of losers like you. But I must admit, your rage is quite impressive!"
As the Lost Ones watched the battle from afar, Dasra soared back to their position, her transformation striking. She now bore white wings that touched the skies, constructed entirely of a blinding white flame, twice her size.
"I'm back! Ahah!"
Dasra turned to Yorgor with unyielding determination and, with a gesture of immense strength, she struck the archdemon, unintentionally rousing him from his vegetative state.
"Enough games, Yorgor. This ends now, and your apprentice will join us to spend the rest of his days in prison!"
"Ahhh... You think you're in a position to threaten me? Do you comprehend our true power?"
"We'll see about that!"
She landed the first blow on his abdomen, but to her horror, her punch barely moved him, inflicting no damage.
"What?!"
"Welcome to Hell!"
Before Dasra could even react, Yorgor struck with blows so fast and powerful they left her reeling.
"You're resilient! Good! But it won't save you."
Rogue, in a moment of courage and determination, reached out towards Yorgor and unleashed hundreds of lightning strikes enveloped in a blinding coding light.
"You're Rogue, am I right? "
The smoke from the digital lightning unveiled an unharmed Yorgor, his arms crossed, posture conveying boredom from the lack of challenge.
"Wait, see if you can withstand this!"
As soon as Rogue's taunt was out, chromatic aberrations and glitches surrounded Yorgor. However, Yorgor's gaze remained unflinching.
"Is that all?" he sneered.
"Rogue! What are you trying to do?" Jacob asked.
"Alter his code lines! But it's not working!"
"Don't worry, I think I have a solution!"
Jacob took the lead, summoning Igdifir by activating a game. Igdifir materialized in a stream of pixels, his gaze merciless and focused.
"Igdifir! Get rid of him!"
"Right away, Jacob."
Igdifir cleared the path from Yorgor with both hands, protecting everyone from his imminent assault.
"What's this supposed to be?! An archdemon? I can barely sense its mana, ahah!" laughed Yorgor.
Igdifir, wise and brave, chose not to respond. Suddenly, a powerful stream of orange light and energy gathered between his hands, gleaming like a diamond.
"Go on, I'm ready to absorb your futile attack."
Under Yorgor's smug gaze, Igdifir unleashed his attack, crying its name. It erupted like a gamma ray from the sun.
[Heroic Demonic Beam]
This devastating ray wreaked havoc, but to Jacob's dismay, Yorgor's silhouette emerged from the smoke, unaffected.
"What the heck?!"
"Jacob, we're only level 7. Yorgor is estimated to be level 786."
"What the fuck?! He's that powerful?!"
As Jacob grappled with the absurd power difference, Dasra seized the opportunity, beheading Yorgor with a sword forged from her mana.
"Thanks for the assist, Jacob."
"Eh, no problem, but it's a bummer..."
Jacob deactivated his game, dismissing Igdifir with a gust.
"Don't be disheartened, Jacob. You did your best," Kalen assured him warmly.
But tranquility was short-lived as Dasra realized Yanis and Tony were missing.
"Wait! Where's Yanis?!"
"He was fighting 'Tony.' Then, I lost sight of him," replied Alora.
"We had our fun, pests. Now, it's time to raise the stakes."
Yorgor loomed menacingly behind Dasra, forcing everyone to freeze in fear.
"Go, find Yanis!"
"Understood, Lady Dasra," shouted Gwendoline.
As everyone sprinted towards Yanis' last known location, Yorgor ensnared Gwendoline with a red energy lasso.
"Ouch!"
"You stay! You're coming with me!" Yorgor commanded.
"Go on without me, guys!"
"I'll stay with her, go!" Kalen declared.
"Got it! We'll bring Yanis back!"
The hopeful smile Gwendoline gave Jacob was a wish for them all to survive the night. They all ran, determined to rescue their friend Yanis.
*
Returning to Yanis and Tony, their fight continued with the same relentless intensity. Tony's prowess with the nunchaku was not only awe-inspiring but verged on inhuman. He had gained the upper hand over Yanis, who was already considerably injured from their recent encounters.
"You want to keep going?"
"I won't stop until I've smashed that smug face of yours, Tony."
"As you wish!"
With unmatched agility and precision, Tony spun his nunchakus at a dizzying speed around his body, allowing him to harness a tremendous amount of demonic mana.
"Not against me!" Yanis shouted.
Yanis attempted to halt him with a question mark kick, a deceptive move that tricks the opponent into thinking the target is the lower body when it is actually aimed at the upper body—hence the name "question mark kick."
However, all of this was merely a ruse to distract Yanis from his surroundings. From behind, a third nunchaku imbued with demonic energy slammed into his neck, rendering him unconscious.
Alora, who had just arrived at the scene alongside Rogue and Jacob, managed to catch him in her arms just in time.
"Yanis? Can you hear me?"
Yanis fainted in her embrace, a tear trickling down near his eye. Jacob and Rogue stood in front of Tony, who retained that same sinister smile on his face—a testament to his cruelty and determination to obliterate everyone.
"I see the cavalry's arrived!"
"Who the hell are you?" Jacob demanded.
"What do we have here?! A damsel, a weakling, and a mod! I'll enjoy tearing you apart!"