Clang!
Boom!
To Hans' astonishment, Phaga shot forward, wings flaring wide as he deflected the mechanical arms. In the same motion, he kicked the monster square on the jaw, sending it flying upward, then drove his heel into its chest, launching it even farther back.
"Any mechanical constructs—stay out of this! Ellen will explain!"
Phaga didn't waste another word. He threw out that command and immediately took off in pursuit of the monster.
The others turned toward Ellen. Without saying much, she lifted the parasol Phaga had left behind to block the sun, then calmly walked over to pick up her giant scissors.
Everyone noticed at once—the blades were already glowing with a faint purple hue.
"Is that Ether corruption?"
Eous approached, glancing briefly at Phaga in the distance.
No need for concern there—Phaga was still overpowering the monster with ease. Tough and durable as it was, those seemed to be the only strengths the creature possessed.
No—perhaps it had just gained a third.
Anton crouched down to inspect the scissors more closely, rubbing his chin. "That's Ether corrosion, isn't it? This monster can actually control the Ether activity within its own body. Grace, Big Ben, President—what do you think?"
"My thoughts?"
Big Ben stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I'd say it's best to keep anything mechanical or metallic as far away from that thing as possible."
"Isn't that obvious?" Koleda rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in frustration. "So I can't even take part in the fight now?"
"Can't I just finish it off before my weapon gets corrupted?"
...
Meanwhile, far away at the video store, Belle had her own thoughts. After pondering for a moment, she decided this wasn't mere Ether corrosion. Disconnecting from Eous, she muttered to herself, "That doesn't add up. With that Ether concentration, if the monster wanted to destroy Ellen's weapon, it could've done it easily. So why throw it back? And how is the scissor still perfectly intact?"
"Fairy, what do you think?"
[Fairy: Recommendation—avoid that weapon.]
"Why?"
[Fairy: No records found on the monster. Its abilities are unknown.]
[Fairy: However, based on classic movie logic from the tapes you often watch—if the villain could destroy something but doesn't, it's usually because they left it behind on purpose.]
"Uh..."
Belle's eyelids drooped instantly, the corner of her mouth twitching.
That explanation was... something else.
[Fairy: Master, Eous is requesting contact.]
"What?!" Belle blurted out.
Eous, being a special type of Bangboo, was highly intelligent—but that side of it rarely showed when synced with Belle. For it to initiate contact on its own now could only mean something major had happened.
In a rush, Belle reconnected.
The instant her vision returned, she found herself staring straight at a massive pair of scissors flying toward her—Ellen barely managed to catch them in time.
"Waaah!!!"
Eous screamed in panic, flailing its tiny limbs in a desperate attempt to flee.
But no matter how hard it squirmed, it couldn't move.
Then it realized—its feet weren't touching the ground.
"Huh, Proxy, you're awake!"
Anton suddenly noticed Eous moving in his grip and looked down.
But Eous had no time for pleasantries. "What's going on?!" it demanded.
"No idea! Ellen's scissors suddenly came alive and started chasing us around! She can barely hold on to them!"
Technically, she could hold them—it was just that at first, she'd been holding Phaga's parasol in her other hand, leaving only one to grip the giant shears. They'd nearly torn free from her grasp.
Fortunately, Ellen reacted quickly. She tossed Phaga's parasol aside and seized the scissors with both hands, gritting her teeth as she forced out a few words through clenched jaws.
"My positive reviews..."
But the scissors didn't care—they just kept lunging toward everyone, blades opening and closing, a mist of frost swirling around them.
At least they weren't strong enough to break free. Ellen held them down with sheer strength.
"Hang in there, Ellen! Don't let go!" Eous yelled. "We'll figure something out on our end!"
"I know!"
Ellen tightened her grip, her silver teeth grinding together.
...
Meanwhile, elsewhere on the battlefield—
Phaga, who had been dominating the monster without issue, suddenly heard chaos erupting behind him. After kicking the creature away, he turned to look—
And froze.
While he was out fighting, things had gone completely out of control behind him.
What in the world was happening with those scissors?
Why had they suddenly gone rogue?
Buzz—
A faint humming sound reached his ears.
Phaga turned back to see a dim red light flickering atop the monster's head, almost as if it were mocking him.
But he didn't rise to the taunt. Instead, his eyes narrowed, his tone calm but cold.
"I don't know how you're doing this... but if I deal with you, the rest should fall into place."
Phaga's voice dropped to a murmur as his right index finger slid toward his left palm. Just a little more pressure, and blood would spill.
But the monster moved first.
Its body flashed with sudden brilliance, both fists slamming down on the ground.
Boom!
A ring of Ether crystals shot up, encasing it completely.
The crystals didn't stop growing—they began spreading outward, not toward Phaga, but toward Ellen's position.
"Ellen!"
Phaga finally dropped his composure, spinning around and shouting the warning.
But Ellen didn't even have time to respond—she was still locked in a struggle with her own weapon.
Tsk!
No time to think. Phaga flared his wings, surging forward at full speed.
He glanced to the side—the Ether crystals were spreading even faster. He pushed harder, racing against them.
"Ellen!"
As he closed in, Phaga shouted again.
Now close enough to hear him, Ellen instinctively turned her head, blinking in confusion as she saw him rushing straight toward her.
Then her gaze shifted slightly—and her pupils shrank. A mass of jagged Ether crystals was erupting in her direction, each spike like a sharpened spear glinting in the light.
Whoosh!
Phaga's hand struck her scissors away with a single sharp motion, then wrapped his arms around her and took off.
The Ether crystals halted just short of where Ellen had stood, their tips grazing the air behind her before covering Phaga's parasol, [Kunmutu].
Moments later, Ellen's scissors—flung high into the air—came crashing down, embedding themselves into the crystal field.
Phaga looked down at Ellen, his wings casting a shadow against the sun. "Are you alright?" he asked softly.
"Mhm... I'm fine."
Ellen's voice was low, her tone slightly strained. "That monster... something's off. My scissors are completely out of control."
"I know."
Phaga turned back, his gaze fixed on the shimmering field of Ether crystals. His tone was calm, analytical.
"If I'm right, my parasol will be next to lose control."
"Hey, Phaga! Ellen! You guys okay?"
Anton's voice rang out as the others ran up.
Eous jumped forward urgently. "Phaga! The monster's Ether levels are off the charts—are you feeling any symptoms?"
"No. Don't worry."
Phaga shook his head. Then, as he walked past Grace, he paused.
"From my experience," he said quietly, "that thing can control metallic creations. If you don't want to see your 'children' forced into fusion, keep them far away."
Grace's eyes widened in realization. "Hans, Greta, Friday! Stay back from that monster!"
"But—"
"Do as I say!"
"...Okay."
Seeing that settled, Phaga nodded and took to the sky.
Ahead of him, the Ether crystal field shattered.
A newly transformed monster emerged—its original body intact, but its right arm had become the blade of [Kunmutu], and its head was now topped with the parasol canopy.
At the same time, Ellen's scissors had split in half, forming elongated, stilt-like legs for the creature.
Even so, there was nothing to fear. Phaga had already analyzed every one of its attack patterns.
He hovered above, looking down with cold disdain.
Round three—begin.