Human joys and sorrows never truly align. While Rain was overwhelmed with emotion, the Cunning Hares inside the Hollow only found the whole scene unbearably loud.
In the end, Nekomata reacted first. Terror flooded her mind, jolting awake some ancestral instinct. Panicking, she grabbed Eous off the ground, scrambling on hands and feet as she shrieked, "Run!!"
Her cry snapped the others out of their daze.
Billy and Nicole snapped back to their senses just in time to see something plummeting from above. In perfect sync, they froze—then bolted.
Mid-escape, Nicole suddenly sensed something missing beside her. She glanced back—and saw Anby still standing there, dazed. She yanked her arm sharply.
"Anby! Why are you still standing?!"
"This feels just like an old movie—an enormous mech suddenly bursting out from underground... Eh—"
Nicole wasn't about to listen to Anby ramble. She dragged her away at full speed.
The next second, a massive concrete slab slammed down from the sky, landing exactly where they had stood moments before.
But that was only the beginning. After the slab came car doors, steel beams, engines—each plummeting like meteors. The ground collapsed, dust exploded outward, and within the haze a faint crimson glow flickered, like a newborn storm taking shape.
Suddenly—BOOM!
Several car engines, unable to withstand the heat, suddenly detonated. Burning debris shot upward and crashed straight through the school building before the group.
Whoosh!
Long accustomed to the teasing breeze, the timid Curtain Girl—soft in temperament and fabric alike—had never felt heat like this before. Before she could even report back to the principal, a mischievous Flame Spark slipped through her curtains and overwhelmed her completely.
She wilted instantly, overwhelmed by the scorching warmth.
Believing the Spark had come to save her, Curtain Girl let herself burn brighter and brighter… until she was reduced to ashes.
But the Flame Spark had no time for grief. It wasn't seeking love—it was seeking fuel.
[You call yourselves her colleagues!? Curtain Girl shielded you from wind and rain every day, and you just watched her burn!? Heartless!]
Table, Chair, Lamp, Multimedia: "…"
Multimedia cleared her throat.
[…First of all, it was mostly Window Brother doing the sheltering. Second… didn't you burn her?]
Flame Spark: "…"
[I don't care! You let a colleague die! All of you—you're next!]
It lunged at them. Flames curled up their surfaces. The table and chair pair succumbed first, falling apart with helpless crackles.
Then came Multimedia's turn.
In theory, she knew the most about stopping Flame Sparks.
In practice… the Spark knew exactly how to overwhelm her circuitry.
Her plastic casing began to warp from the heat. Half resisting, half giving in to inevitability, she felt her inner wiring overload—
—and then she, too, finally burst.
BOOM!
The sudden explosion engulfed the entire teaching building in fire, spreading rapidly outward.
Billy stared, stunned. He covered his face, then abruptly dropped his hands, pointing at the burning building before swinging toward Nicole.
"Boss Nicole! Are we really gonna save Phaga? I feel like we'll get wiped out by some random AoE before we even reach him!"
Anby rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Just like standard grunts in old movies—three seconds on screen before getting killed."
"Right! Exactly, Anby! So, Boss Nicole, let's bail! This commission is way out of our league—"
SMACK!
Billy's whining was like a splash of water threatening to extinguish the glowing dream of eighteen million Dennies. So Nicole struck first, cutting him off with a slap.
"Boss Nicole actually hit me… Doesn't your hand hurt?"
"Shut up!"
Her right hand throbbed, swelling quickly, but Nicole clenched through the pain, baring her teeth. "Do you have any idea how much eighteen million Dennies is?!"
"With that kind of money, we could pay off every last debt and make our old creditors crawl like dogs! You—"
"Sorry, interrupting!"
Eous suddenly hopped out from the side, narrowing his eyes at Nicole. "Nicole, did you forget I'm also one of your creditors?"
"Ah—haha…"
Nicole's expression flipped instantly. She leaned in toward Eous, rubbing her hands in a fawning gesture. "Come on, how could I possibly be talking about the Proxy? The Proxy is our best business partner at Cunning Hares."
"Hmph. Fine, you pass."
Eous gave a soft snort, then pressed a hand to the side of his small head as if conversing with someone.
[Alright, Ellen. We'll follow your plan. Don't worry—when the crucial moment comes, we'll do everything we can to save Phaga.]
He lowered his soft hand, sighed, then lifted his head toward the others. "I've coordinated with Ellen. We just keep watching Phaga's condition. When his fight with Black dies down enough for us to intervene, that's when we act."
"Oh~~ Perfect! That makes everything way easier!"
Billy gave a thumbs-up, suddenly full of confidence.
"Yeah, this is much better."
Nicole finally relaxed and looked up at the battle raging in the sky.
At some point, it had reached its peak.
Black tried to escape the mecha's attack range, but the giant machine merely flexed its arms. Its skirt-like lower half suddenly launched car after car into the air.
Each car had a huge Ether crystal on its hood, with a cable at the rear connecting it to the mecha's lower body.
The Ether crystals suddenly flared, firing volleys of Ether lasers.
Black's pupils tightened as he darted frantically, each beam grazing dangerously close.
[No—at this rate, the Creator will wear me down.]
His gaze darkened. Through his vampire vision, he could see clearly: the Ether powering Phaga wasn't Phaga's own. It was the Ether stored within each Ether-powered vehicle.
[Then I'll stake everything and push for the cockpit!]
Gritting his teeth, Black beat his wings, dodging beams as he forced his way forward—enduring the ones he couldn't avoid.
Inside the cockpit, Phaga watched Black charge toward him with reckless determination, his heart sinking.
Even so, Phaga's hands didn't cease. His right hand pushed the blade hilt forward, sending the mecha's right fist shooting outward in a thunderous punch that crushed the air.
The attack was so fast Black couldn't react in time. With no room to dodge, he crossed his arms, slashing open several wounds to release Ether Substance, forming a shield before him.
Boom!
In an instant, all his defenses shattered. The colossal fist slammed into his arms, its immense force blasting him backward.
[Now!]
As he was hurled away, Black forced his eyes open, staring at the Thracian captive held in the mecha's other hand. His interference had kept Phaga occupied all this time—leaving no chance to deliver a killing blow.
[It's up to you now, you big brute…]
Black gritted his teeth. Phaga didn't notice his eyes gradually shifting from crimson to pitch black.
On the ground, Billy held a hand over his brow, watching the aerial clash. "Oh! Looks like Mr. Phaga still has the advantage!"
Nicole's eyes widened. She hoisted her suitcase and slammed it toward the back of Billy's head.
"Shut your mouth!!"