The air was tense in the vast barren field, mountains standing silently in the distance like sentinels watching the storm that was about to erupt. The sun beat down hard, but even its heat seemed to pale in comparison to the intensity between the two figures standing face to face.
Luminous Valentine, Demon Lord, ruler of Ruberios, stood with her divine sword Night Rose unsheathed, gleaming like a star in her hand. Her silver eyes burned with restrained fury, her breath even, her posture elegant yet battle-ready. Opposite her stood Hujiro Hanma — tall, broad, relaxed. His shirt barely clung to his muscular frame, the wind brushing against his face. He didn't pose. He didn't need to. He simply existed — and that presence alone sent shivers across the land.
Louis and Ghunter stood far behind, hidden in the shadows of the rocky ridge, watching with bated breath.
"He's just standing there," Louis whispered, eyes narrowed. "No aura. No energy signature. Nothing."
"Yet he crushed Hinata like she was a child," Ghunter muttered. "What... is he?"
With a flash of light, Luminous vanished.
VOOM!
She reappeared in front of Yujiro, her blade descending with inhuman speed.
CLANG!
Her strike met Hujiro's open palm. He had caught her sword with two fingers.
Luminous' eyes widened. "What...?"
Yujiro looked bored. "You're fast. But not fast enough."
She pulled back and swung again, her strikes now a blur of silver light — ten, twenty, a hundred slashes in mere seconds. But Yujiro moved like water, weaving between them, tilting his body by inches, deflecting with the back of his hand or simply letting the blade graze his shirt.
With a grunt, Luminous whispered, "[Holy Ark]."
A dome of pure holy light erupted around her, burning with divine intensity.
But Yujiro didn't flinch. He walked through the field like it was a gentle breeze.
"How...? You should be ashes!" she cried.
"Magic," Yujiro said, rolling his neck. "Is a crutch."
Enraged, Luminous activated her Unique Skill Lust, glowing with crimson radiance. Her aura expanded, and she summoned everything she had — Aspectual Magic, Spatial Sever, Holy Field, Death Blessing, Energy Drain, Disintegration.
From above, beams of light rained down. Space twisted and ruptured. The earth cracked.
Yujiro was gone.
No — he was there. Behind her.
He tapped her on the shoulder. "You're open."
She swung, but he leaned, dodging with surgical precision. Then —
CRACK!
A palm strike to her solar plexus. She flew backward, coughing blood, crashing into a hill.
"Impossible..." she gasped, wiping blood from her lips. "What kind of monster are you?"
Yujiro walked calmly toward her. "I am what nature made. You rely on tricks. I am the truth."
Then Hujiro moved.
BOOM! He launched himself with a single step, vanishing. Luminous barely had time to blink.
A punch to her ribs — she flew sideways.
A spinning heel kick to her back — she crashed to the ground.
Then —
Boxing combos — jabs, hooks, uppercuts.
Kung Fu — precise strikes to her shoulders and hips.
Aikido — redirecting her own attacks, flipping her onto her back.
Wing Chun — lightning-fast chain punches to her chest.
Hapkido — twisting locks that sent her spinning.
Tai Chi — subtle, flowing deflections of her energy attacks.
Every style flowed from him like a natural rhythm, a perfect dance of destruction. His footwork was flawless, his balance unshakable.
Luminous tried to rise. Blood on her lips, knees shaking. "I… won't lose… to a human!"
"You already did," Yujiro replied coldly.
Then he struck with Dim Mak — his fingers tapping precise pressure points. Her muscles spasmed. Her legs gave out.
Kyusho Jitsu followed — nerve strikes, shutting down her movement.
Finally, Angampora — an ancient martial art that ended with a devastating elbow to her chest and a spinning strike to her neck.
BOOM! She was down. Gasping. Unable to move.
Aftermath....
Louis trembled. "Did he just… shut down her body? Like a machine?"
Ghunter's voice was hoarse. "Luminous Valentine… a Demon Lord… she couldn't lay a finger on him."
Luminous stared up at the sky. Her sword lay broken beside her. "What… are you…?"
Yujiro stood over her. "I told you. I'm Yujiro Hanma. The Strongest. Remember that before you ever look down on raw strength again."
Then — he walked away.
Silence fell on the land.
The wind carried a chill silence over the rugged expanse of land, where dust still hung in the air like the remnants of a nightmare. The sun began its slow descent behind the jagged cliffs, casting long shadows across the battlefield. And at the center of it all—lay Luminous Valentine, Demon Lord of Ruberios, motionless.
Her once-pristine cloak was torn, streaked with blood and dust. Her fingers, pale and trembling, barely gripped the cracked hilt of Night Rose, her divine sword. Her golden hair lay splayed around her like a fallen halo, and her eyes, normally bright with command, now stared upward in stunned silence.
"Luminous-sama!" Louis shouted, sprinting across the field with Ghunter at his side. They dropped to their knees beside her, panic written all over their faces.
"Get the healers' magic going—now!" Ghunter barked, already casting recovery spells. "Stop the internal bleeding! She's losing too much magicules!"
Light began to glow around her body as restorative spells wrapped her in warmth, but Luminous didn't react. Her breathing was shallow, her skin pale. Her pride, her essence—it had all been shattered in mere moments.
"He didn't kill her…" Louis murmured in disbelief, looking around as if the mountain itself might answer him. "He could've… but he didn't."
"No," Ghunter muttered grimly, watching the retreating silhouette of Yujiro Hanma, his footsteps calm, deliberate. "To him… she's already dead."
Louis clenched his fists. "He didn't just defeat her. He humiliated her…"
Suddenly, a weak voice escaped Luminous's lips, low and broken, yet sharp like cracked glass. "Enough…"
Both men turned instantly to her.
"Luminous-sama—"
"I said… enough," she said again, firmer this time, her eyes narrowing. She tried to sit up, and though her body screamed in protest, Ghunter helped her up slowly.
"You shouldn't move—"
"I won't be seen like this," she growled, her voice regaining the edge of command. "Not by anyone else."
"Luminous-sama, please," Louis whispered. "We need to report this. The other Demon Lords, Milim, Guy—they need to be warned. He could be a threat to—"
"No," she snapped. Her crimson eyes glinted dangerously in the fading light. "You will tell no one."
Louis froze. "But… but why?"
"Because I am Luminous Valentine," she said coldly. "One of the Demon Lords who rule the world from the shadows. If word spreads that I was defeated… like this… then what do you think will happen to Ruberios? To the balance of power?"
Ghunter looked conflicted. "But… if we don't warn the others—"
"We'll watch him. From afar," Luminous interrupted. "Track his movements. Do not interfere. Do not engage. If he wishes to challenge another, let him. They'll learn the truth the same way I did."
Louis bit his lip. "And if he comes back?"
Luminous's voice dropped low. "Then I'll be ready."
A heavy silence hung between them. The woman before them was still wounded, still reeling… but not broken. No, not entirely. Beneath the pain in her voice was a flame rekindling—a quiet fury. Her pride wasn't dead. It was waiting.
Luminous staggered to her feet with their help. She looked out into the distance where Yujiro had gone, her eyes unreadable.
"He didn't use magic… no aura, no divine essence… and yet I couldn't land a single meaningful blow." Her voice was quiet. "He fought with nothing… but he moved like fate itself."
"Do you think he's human?" Ghunter asked carefully.
"I don't know," she answered honestly. "But whatever he is, he doesn't need power. He is power."
Louis stared at her. "What do we do now?"
"…We prepare," she said slowly. "Strengthen Ruberios. Double the shadows watching the borders. But this incident—this never happened. Not a word to the Council."
Both men nodded solemnly.
As they began to teleport back to the hidden cathedral in Ruberios, Luminous cast one last glance at the bloodstained dirt where she'd fallen. Her fists clenched at her sides.
"I will never fall like that again."
In the distance, Yujiro Hanma kept walking—toward his next trial, his next opponent. No magic. No skills. Just the raw, terrifying truth of strength.