In the heart of the wastelands, the sky trembled as Mirio and Shouya clashed—both clad in armor, flying at blinding speeds. Mirio, his eyes burning with a deadly seriousness, kept creating and hurling giant shuriken forged from his chains. Each throw was like a storm in itself, tearing through the air toward Shouya. But Shouya, keeping pace, dodged nimbly while launching his own counters—using massive summoned arms erupting from the ground to strike back.
Their battle was relentless.
High above the cracked earth, monstrous arms and chain-born constructs collided in a chaotic dance. Kirihai watched with narrowed eyes. "He's pissed," she muttered, her tone low.
Rin, visibly exhausted from her own fight with Kirihai, glanced over and scoffed. "Shouya is the strongest soldier in the Iron Country. No way some chain-wielding brat is going to beat him."
Kirihai's eyes darkened as she shot her a glare "Did you just call Mirio trash?" she asked coldly.
Rin smirked, stepping forward. "What if I did?"
But Kirihai wasn't rattled. "Mirio might be lazy, but he always completes his missions. And when he's angry... he doesn't hold back. I've never seen him like this before, but I can tell—he's not playing around."
Rin laughed confidently. "Those stupid chains aren't enough to beat Shouya."
Kirihai grinned back, her tone turning smug. "Shouya may be strong. But if Mirio's keeping up with him, then your precious soldier just met his match."
Back in the sky, Mirio's expression was dark. Silent fury radiated from his armored figure as he pushed forward, monologuing internally:
"I'll destroy anyone who pushes me too far…"
Shouya, noticing the hateful fire in Mirio's eyes, braced himself as the air snapped with tension. The two launched toward each other, their fists clashing mid-air. Every strike was like a cannon blast, each impact shaking the wasteland with gusts of violent wind. The impact of their punches were strong enough to sink mountains.
Rin watched, stunned. "How can a fight be that intense…?"
Inside Mirio's mind, a dark memory resurfaced—an image of his childhood: a man brutally beating him, throwing him into a pitch-black shack filled with rats. Their teeth, their claws... the fear, the helplessness. They had eaten away at his sanity.
His rage exploded.
"You dare trap me in the dark again?" Mirio shouted at Shouya. With a furious scream, his chains erupted outward in a frenzy, lashing out and leveling mountains around them.
Shouya dodged swiftly, forming dozens of massive spikes and hurling them toward Mirio. In response, Mirio forged a massive chain blade. With a single, furious slash, he obliterated every incoming spike—and the land behind it.
Shouya flinched. "Why didn't Hell's Domain work…?" Then it clicked. "The darkness... The void must have triggered something in him."
Looking Mirio dead in the eye, he called out, "Hand over the Millennia Stone, and I'll pretend this never happened."
But Mirio only responded with a roar.
"Shut up!"
Chains burst from his body again, forming dozens of sharp constructs.
Shouya, unshaken, mirrored his move—summoning his own monstrous weapons as both warriors charged each other again.
End of Chapter