The arena was silent. The poison mist still clung in the air like a suffocating curtain, but through that darkness, a single beam of light shone.
Raelyn stood tall, his golden aura bursting outward in waves, tearing through Seraph's dark poison clouds. His eyes glowed with radiant fury, his voice calm but commanding.
Raelyn: "Your darkness won't swallow this world. Not while I still stand."
Seraph snarled, his grin breaking into madness. He lashed out with his venomous tendrils, launching dozens of poisonous spears in every direction.
But Raelyn moved.
Like a flash of light, his figure blurred and vanished—appearing directly before Seraph in a single bound. His fist, glowing with radiant energy, slammed into Seraph's gut with bone-crushing force.
BOOM!
The ground cratered beneath Seraph's body as he spat blood, his aura flickering. Before he could recover, Raelyn struck again—this time a knee to the jaw, launching him upward.
The audience gasped. They could barely keep up with Raelyn's movements.
Drake (wide-eyed): "His speed… it's unreal."
Hibiki (furious): "He—he had this all along?!"
Seraph roared, summoning a giant serpent of poison that lunged downward at Raelyn. But Raelyn only raised his hand.
The serpent's form shattered into particles of light as Raelyn's palm strike disintegrated it mid-air.
And then Raelyn was on Seraph again.
Punch. Kick. Elbow. Radiant blasts. Every strike connected. Every blow cracked the air with power. Seraph, the ruthless commander of Plutrion, couldn't even land a single counter.
He staggered back, coughing blood, his face swelling from Raelyn's brutal assault. His prideful laughter was gone, replaced only by grunts of pain.
Karen (hands over mouth): "He's… dominating him."
Lyra (trembling): "I've never seen Seraph pushed like this…"
Finally, Raelyn floated into the air, his aura glowing brighter than ever. Light formed around him like wings, spreading across the battlefield.
Raelyn: "This ends now, Seraph! Absolute Radiance!"
A massive sphere of blinding light erupted from his body, engulfing Seraph completely. The arena was drowned in brilliance, forcing everyone to shield their eyes. The darkness, the poison—everything was washed away in that single overwhelming flash.
When the light cleared, Seraph's body crashed to the ground, motionless, his aura extinguished. He was K.O.'d.
The crowd erupted into stunned silence.
Raelyn slowly descended, his Radiance Mode fading. He returned to his normal form, panting heavily but standing proud. His friends rushed to him, their faces filled with shock and questions.
Drake was the first to speak, his voice filled with awe.
Drake: "Raelyn… what was that?!"
Hibiki stomped forward, his tone sharp and accusing.
Hibiki: "You—! You've been hiding this from us all this time?! Do you realize how dangerous that is?!"
Criss, Akito, and Cyrus said nothing. Their silence was heavy. They had seen battlefields, they had seen monsters, but this… this was something else.
Karen stepped closer, her voice trembling.
Karen: "Why, Raelyn? Why didn't you tell us?"
Lyra: "We trusted you. And you… you carried this secret all along."
Raelyn lowered his head, his golden eyes dim but steady. He took a deep breath.
Raelyn: "From the very beginning… I knew I wasn't normal. I could feel it. This light inside me—it wasn't ordinary magic. I knew I was different."
He looked at Show, still kneeling from Seraph's earlier poison strike.
Raelyn: "But then… I saw him. I saw Show. I felt the same energy in him that I felt inside myself. And when I witnessed him awaken his Ancient Fire… I understood. I wasn't alone. There were others like me. And I had to find my own path to awakening."
His fists clenched. His voice grew firmer.
Raelyn: "Today… was the time."
Show smirked faintly, despite the pain surging through his body.
Show: "…So during our duel… you weren't going all out. You were holding back."
Raelyn shook his head.
Raelyn: "Not exactly. I didn't know how to use that power back then. But yes—you could say I wasn't giving everything. Because I didn't know what 'everything' was."
Show chuckled under his breath.
Show: "Heh… fair enough."
Raelyn straightened his shoulders, turning to the others.
Raelyn: "But we can talk more later. This isn't over yet."
The ground trembled violently.
Everyone froze.
Seraph's laughter echoed again, broken and ragged but full of venom. His body twitched, his aura flaring once more. The poison surged back, thicker and deadlier than before.
Seraph (mad grin): "You… you think it's over? You dare humiliate me like this?! I am Seraph, Commander of Plutrion! I will kill you both!"
He stood again, staggering but burning with twisted rage.
Show rose to his feet beside Raelyn, fire erupting from his body as his Rising Fire Mode reignited. Raelyn's golden aura burst once more, his Shining Radiance Mode returning.
The two stood side by side, their auras clashing, fire and light swirling together into a storm of brilliance.
Show (grinning, his voice rough but strong): "Let's end this together."
Raelyn (calm but firm): "Side by side."
They stepped forward in unison, their presence overwhelming the battlefield.
The stage was set.
Show and Raelyn—the Twin Ancients—vs Seraph, the Poison Commander.
To be continued…
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