The underground chamber was dim, lit only by the faint glow of crystal sconces embedded in the walls. Echoes of the upper battle rumbled faintly through the ceiling, but here, silence reigned. Rei stood alone at the threshold, his white coat dusted with blood and smoke, eyes like cracked lightning.
From the shadows emerged a figure—tall, masked in silver and black, eyes glowing an unnatural red. His presence was suffocating, thick with killing intent. The Second Elite of the Hero Hunters.
"You came alone," the man said, his voice cold, mechanical.
"I'm enough," Rei answered flatly.
The second elite stepped forward, his weapon—a curved dual-bladed scythe—glistening with enchanted runes. "Then die alone."
In the blink of an eye, the elite dashed forward. Rei barely had time to raise a hand before the scythe came down. A flash of light erupted as Rei summoned a barrier of raw energy—cracks forming instantly. He countered with a palm strike, sending a pulse of divine lightning through the air, but the elite twisted mid-air, evading it with ease.
They clashed again.
Steel against lightning. Flesh against will. Each blow sent shockwaves through the chamber. Rei's god-powered speed matched the elite's assassin-level precision.
The elite vanished into smoke, reappearing behind Rei, blade aimed at his spine. But Rei was faster—he twisted, grabbing the shaft of the scythe and igniting it with a surge of holy fire.
"You fight like a god," the elite muttered, yanking his weapon back. "But your heart wavers. I see it. You don't want to kill me."
Rei's fists clenched. "I don't kill unless I must. But I will."
The elite laughed bitterly. "Then let's see how far that mercy takes you."
Suddenly the elite unleashed a storm of blades—dozens of shadowy scythes summoned through dark incantation. They hovered, then rained down like meteors. Rei narrowed his eyes, activating Almirah's divine mode. His body glowed with white flame, wings of radiant energy bursting from his back.
With blinding speed, Rei darted through the storm, dodging, deflecting, redirecting. The ground cracked beneath his feet as he vaulted upward and crashed down with a divine punch—sending a seismic wave through the floor.
The elite was fast—but Rei had transcended human speed.
The two collided in the center of the room again, sparks flying. This time, Rei landed a clean blow to the elite's gut, sending him hurtling into a wall.
"You can still stop," Rei said. "You don't have to fight me."
But the elite only growled. Blood trickled from his lip beneath the mask. "You don't understand... I've lived in shadows my whole life. I don't get to stop. I was born to die for this cause."
His scythe ignited in black flame, and the floor cracked with dark sigils.
Rei's expression fell. "Then I'll mourn you when this is over."
They clashed again.
Rei's fists were like hammers of heaven, his divine energy punching through the elite's defenses. The elite fought with desperation, ferocity, but each move became more wild, less calculated.
Finally, Rei ducked a wide arc, stepped in, and struck the elite with a double palm strike—one hand charged with lightning, the other with healing energy.
The elite flew back, crashing through a pillar.
Breathing heavy, Rei approached slowly. The elite lay slumped, mask broken, face revealed—a scarred, tired man, barely older than Rei himself.
"Do it," the elite whispered. "End it."
Rei stared down at him, his hand glowing with divine light.
And then...
He closed his hand.
"No. I don't kill the broken. Go. Leave."
The elite blinked, stunned.
Rei turned his back, walking away.
"If you ever come for us again... I won't show mercy twice."
The battlefield shook.
Rei stood, blood dripping from his arms, breathing hard. The second elite, cloaked in the deep red uniform of the Hero Hunters, had been quiet—too quiet. The two had been clashing for minutes that felt like hours. Rei's god-enhanced speed and strength had overwhelmed him initially, but now… something was wrong.
The elite's eyes suddenly opened wide—glowing a deep, twisted violet.
A sinister aura burst outward.
"Rei..." the elite muttered, his voice no longer human. "You've seen only my surface. Now see why I'm called the Abyss."
Suddenly, the air thickened. The ground cracked beneath the elite's feet as his energy surged. Rei stumbled backward, sensing the danger before the movement even began.
Boom!
A fist crashed into Rei's stomach like a cannonball, sending him flying through a building wall. Dust clouded the battlefield. Rei gasped as he slammed into the ground, coughing up blood.
"He was hiding this power?" Rei muttered, staggering to his feet.
The elite stepped through the dust, his body coated in a strange obsidian armor—living, shifting, like it was breathing.
"I didn't want to kill you. But now I'm awake…" the elite said, vanishing.
Slash! Rei turned just in time to block a punch—no, a blade. The elite's arms were transforming mid-battle into weapons, claws, whips, and knives.
Rei spun, throwing a wide arc of divine flame, but the elite dodged mid-air, landing behind him and delivering a kick to the spine that launched Rei forward again.
Rei rolled, eyes blazing. "God Flame: Divine Torrent!"
A wave of fire surged toward the elite, turning the battlefield into an inferno. Buildings lit up in the background. But the elite… walked through the fire.
Untouched.
Unbothered.
Rei's eyes widened. The elite had changed. The armor now absorbed the divine fire.
"Your godly power is beautiful," the elite said. "I'll keep it."
Slash!
A blade struck Rei's shoulder. Another blow came to his ribs. Rei blocked the third, but the elite spun and swept his legs, then elbowed him in the face, cracking his nose.
Rei fell to one knee, gasping.
But he didn't stop.
"I'm not done yet."
A surge of white-blue lightning crackled around Rei's fists as he stood. His god form shimmered, power rippling like heatwaves.
"This isn't for me. It's for Isamu… for everyone."
He charged. The elite met him mid-air. Their fists collided, cracking the sky. Lightning and shadow danced in the night air. The shockwave shattered windows for blocks.
The fight intensified. Punches traded at speeds the eye couldn't follow. Rei ducked, countered, weaved through slicing whips, shot divine energy through pressure points, but the elite adapted fast—too fast.
Suddenly—
Stab!
A shadow blade pierced Rei's thigh. He cried out, barely dodging the second that went for his neck.
Rei's vision blurred, his god-form starting to wane.
"You fight well," the elite said. "But I've fought gods before."
Rei dropped to his knees.
"I… won't lose…"
He raised one hand, glowing with every ounce of his remaining power.
"Divine Breaker."
He struck the ground.
A dome of holy light exploded outward, disintegrating the battlefield, purifying all darkness in its radius.
The elite screamed as the light overwhelmed his armor, cracking it.
When the light faded… both stood. Barely.
Bleeding. Shaking.
The second elite staggered forward.
Rei raised his fists again.
Round two… was just beginning.
The wind howled across the shattered battlefield.
Rei's god-infused body trembled. His golden-white aura flickered like a candle on its last breath. The Second Elite stood opposite, parts of his armor melted and broken, one eye bleeding, yet still grinning with savage thrill.
"Still standing?" the elite asked, cracking his neck. "That dome nearly erased my soul. Impressive."
Rei wiped blood from his mouth. "You're strong. But this ends here."
Crack!
They both vanished.
Mid-air—fist met fist. Energy shockwaves split the earth. Rei twisted in the air, landing a spinning kick into the elite's ribs. Bones cracked. The elite snarled, driving an elbow into Rei's face. Rei flipped back, skidding across the rubble, but his hands were already forming a seal.
"Divine Chains!"
From the sky, golden chains rained down, stabbing into the ground and locking around the elite's limbs.
"Tch—!" he growled, struggling.
Rei took the chance.
"Heaven Flash!"
A spear of light formed in his hands, burning white-hot, and he hurled it with all his remaining power.
Boom!
The explosion lit the night like a second sun. The ground cratered. Dust swirled.
Silence.
Then—movement.
The elite crawled from the crater, coughing, one arm limp, body smoking. His armor cracked, revealing a real, battered man beneath it.
"You… think I lose?" he spat.
He slammed a palm into the earth. Shadow energy burst out. His broken armor reformed, sleeker, darker. His eyes turned pitch black. His aura now felt ancient, corrupted. Even the air distorted around him.
"You're not the only one with divine help," the elite muttered. "Mine comes from the Abyss."
He roared—and charged.
Rei barely reacted in time. The elite's blade formed mid-swing, slicing into Rei's side. Rei cried out, spun, punched with divine lightning, but the elite absorbed it.
"Give up!"
"Never!"
Rei jumped, summoned wings of holy light and dove like a missile, slamming into the elite. They crashed through buildings, through steel, into the harbor.
Water erupted like geysers.
Underwater, the fight continued—blades and fists, divine light and abyssal power, lighting up the ocean in flashes.
Then—Rei's eyes widened.
The elite wrapped shadow tendrils around Rei's neck and whispered:
"Let's die together."
He began charging a self-destruct.
But Rei… smiled.
"You made one mistake."
Rei raised a hand—already glowing.
"You thought I was alone."
From the surface, a glyph ignited.
Luna's support spell.
Ash's blessing.
Koharu's link.
Naoto's fire.
All his friends' powers—channeling through Rei.
"Heavenfall Pulse."
An explosion of divine light erupted underwater, turning the sea white. The shockwave blasted upward—shattering clouds and parting the sky.
Everything went silent.
When it cleared…
Rei floated in the center of the ruined harbor, unconscious, glowing faintly.
The Second Elite's armor was gone. He lay beneath the waves, eyes empty. Defeated.
Rei had won.