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Two monsters from the Celestial Echo Squad.

The one who devoured a divine beast.

The cat from the other side, Adora.

The one engraved with magical sigils.

The one who split a mountain, Dragos.

Two of the five monsters who, when united, could even bring down Duke of Whitewood.

And those two were now standing before us.

"Hey, we're executives from the Mysticism Cult."

"Y-Yeah, executives~!"

At that moment, Dragos opened his mouth with a booming voice.

The sound was so loud it made our ears ring, and he glared at us with bulging eyes.

"If you leave our boss behind right now, we might consider letting you go. How about it?"

"We'll let you go~!"

They must be pretending to be part of the Mysticism Cult, banking on the fact that we wouldn’t know their real identities.

It was an obvious ploy, but not entirely incomprehensible.

"Sharin, from now on, read my intentions using magic."

"Got it~"

Sharin replied while sealing Eurozen in a magical prison.

My eyes met Isabel’s.

She sometimes sees through my thoughts with shocking accuracy.

Especially in battle—there, she’s unmatched.

Isabel and I nodded at the same time.

If it’s Isabel, I can trust her completely.

"Thanks for bringing me the leader of Mysticism. Good job."

Isabel’s eyes widened.

It was a bold judgment, but she had successfully brought Eurozen to us.

If Eurozen had ended up on their side, with Adora there, we’d never have gotten him back.

We owed a lot to Isabel.

“You really are something.”

As Isabel smiled gently, Sharin tugged on my arm.

Then, she poured magic into me so she could read my intent.

“Just focus on what I’m thinking.”

Jealousy?

Even in this situation?

Cute.

No, that’s just like Sharin.

“We defeat those two and find Lucas.”

That was all she needed.

“Hmph. So, surrender isn’t an option, huh.”

“Not an option at all!”

Dragos snorted.

He swung the axe on his shoulder in a wide arc and gripped it tight.

At the same time, he stomped hard on the air.

“Adora, it's time for battle.”

“Wooow~”

A massive current of force swirled around Dragos’s hand.

The atmosphere warped, and a mighty wind was drawn into his axe.

Whoooooooooooosh!

His swinging axe stirred up a violent storm and came crashing toward us.

The force was so overwhelming that trees bent at an angle and were ripped from the ground.

Strength and power so absurd it was hard to believe even while witnessing it.

A single swing had completely devastated the forest.

“Aha.”

As the gust surged toward us, we did nothing.

Only Sharin, having read my intentions, raised her staff with a smirk.

“This is gonna be fuuun~.”

At that moment, the magic from her staff activated.

A circular barrier of wind enveloped the three of us.

At the same time, a massive piece of fabric connected to the air barrier materialized.

“Huh?”

Just as Dragos was beginning to panic at the unexpected sight—

The storm hit us directly.

KA-BOOOOOOM!!

We were launched high into the air, carried by the enormous power of the wind absorbed into the fabric.

The cleverly angled fabric caught the wind perfectly and propelled us forward at unprecedented speed.

Dragos and Adora’s stunned faces quickly faded into the distance.

Tumbling inside the air barrier, I held Sharin tightly.

“Isabel!”

At my call, Isabel unfolded her divine wings.

A fresh gust stirred by her wings accelerated us once again.

By now, Dragos and Adora were nowhere in sight.

So then, did we choose to flee?

No.

Dragos wouldn’t be able to follow us.

Zzzzzzip—

But Adora absolutely would.

A space cracked open in front of me, and the feline face of the beastkin Adora appeared.

I pulled Sharin behind me and shot forward.

KAAAAAANG!

My knifehand strike collided with the force she had extended from the space.

And there—was Adora’s frightened face.

“H-How do you keep figuring out where I’m going to appear?”

Adora was flustered seeing me predict her arrival point so precisely.

But that surprise was fake.

Her eyes were sharper than ever, fully assessing the situation.

She always feigns weakness and panic to lure her enemies into a false sense of security.

In truth, she’s a naturally gifted fighter and a murderous lunatic empowered by a divine beast.

All she thinks about is slicing people up.

That’s exactly why we can’t let Adora gain momentum.

I stuck close to her, chasing after her as she parried my knifehand.

“Hiiieeek! Stay away, you ugly freak!”

Just before Adora could shake me off and dive into the dimensional space—

Sharin, who had been pushed back, released the charged lightning magic.

The lightning surged toward Adora like a predator on the hunt.

But her eyes, which had been scanning every moment of the fight, caught even that lightning.

She had sensed Sharin's intent to cast magic and reacted immediately.

Adora's sword aura surged, slicing through the lightning magic.

In that brief gap Sharin created—

I had already grabbed the severed lightning magic in my hand.

Magic Engraving · Lightning catcher

I hurled the captured lightning downwards with all my might.

Adora used dual blades.

She tried to block my lightning strike with her other sword.

But I wasn’t aiming at Adora.

Twisting my waist hard, I hurled the lightning spear to just graze her.

Her eyes widened as she realized the true target a moment too late.

The lightning spear pierced into the inner space she had just crossed into.

A blue radiant heat exploded from beyond the dimension.

Adora was forced to throw herself out of the space in a rush.

BOOOOOOM!

With the explosion, Adora came tumbling out.

She quickly tried to regain her stance, but—

Isabel was already standing in front of her.

“Who’re you calling ugly?”

“Hiiieek!”

Isabel's sword swung swiftly toward the fleeing Adora.

“He’s the most gorgeous in the world!”

“Gyaaaah!”

Adora screamed, but still rolled across the floor gracefully to barely dodge the strike.

But only for a moment.

Whish!

As Sharin dispelled the magic hanging in the air, Adora plunged downward.

In the sword aura’s dimensional space, time doesn’t flow.

As long as the lightning spear’s remnants remain, she can’t cross back into it.

Which means—

Adora has no way to fight in the air.

Isabel spread the wings of the goddess and dove after the falling Adora.

Adora tried flipping in midair to respond, but it wasn’t enough.

Isabel's wing-feathers and blade struck relentlessly.

Sharin’s supporting magic rained down in tandem.

Rays of light and fireballs pounded down on Adora again and again.

Adora clung on desperately, but was under constant attack the entire way down.

“Gyaaah! It hurts, it hurts!”

Isabel and Adora quickly disappeared from view.

I wanted to support Isabel, but I didn’t have the time.

Thud!

Far off, a monster had leapt through the air by throwing its axe—headed this way fast.

“Sharin, go support Isabel.”

Standing on the platform Sharin had conjured, I slammed my fists together.

“You okay alone?”

“Yeah. If we don’t take that woman down, we won’t be able to handle him either.”

So I had to buy time while Sharin and Isabel took down Adora.

Sharin's staff moved.

Support spells flooded over me, easing my movements.

“Call me when the moment’s right.”

“Got it.”

With that, Sharin leapt to the ground on a gust of wind.

Drawing in a breath, I slowly gathered heat throughout my body.

At my call, the ashes flared into flames and wrapped around my body.

As immense heat erupted—

A dragon’s silhouette appeared in my eyes, and my whole form blazed with embered fire.

True Dragon Transformation

Boom!

Just then, Dragos the Mountain-Splitter reached me.

He looked plenty pissed.

Three mere teenagers had been holding off the Celestial Echo Squad like this.

It must’ve been unthinkable to him.

“So you’re the one. Hannon Irey, was it?”

“You know me?”

“Yeah. Didn’t you take down Vulcan?”

“Vulcan was defeated by Lord Duke of Whitewood, wasn’t he?”

He clicked his tongue at my shameless response.

“If you’re going to lie, at least make it convincing.”

Sorry, no plans to do that.

Confusion works to our advantage.

“I respect your resolve to face me alone.”

Dragos lifted his massive axe once again.

“But that’s a poor choice.”

Even so, battle fervor lit up in his eyes.

Dragos lives for one-on-one duels.

And I deliberately gave him what he wanted.

As long as this duel continues, he won’t go anywhere.

‘Isabel and Sharin will definitely bring Adora down.’

Their skill is more than trustworthy.

“We won’t know until we try.”

I will defeat Dragos the Mountain-Splitter.

* * *

Above the Contact Point of Mysticism.

Isabel launched a relentless barrage of attacks at Adora.

Adora desperately swung her gongdo to counter, but Isabel’s assault was razor-sharp.

Wounds covered Adora’s body.

Yet no matter how many blows landed, none dealt a fatal injury.

‘She’s cleverly deflecting all the critical hits.’

Isabel bit her lip hard.

She had known her opponent was skilled, but the gap was far wider than expected.

If not for her wings and the advantage of aerial combat, even getting into melee range wouldn’t have been possible.

And now, the aerial battle was nearly over.

The ground was right below them.

Even as she kept screaming, Adora was constantly calculating the distance to the earth.

Included in those calculations was the trajectory—to kill Isabel.

Tension radiated through her blade.

She could gauge her opponent’s strength, and the battle to come was already playing out in her mind.

But she couldn’t back away now.

That gongdo Adora had used earlier—

Though Vikamon had sealed it with quick thinking, that wouldn’t last long.

Given time, she’d regain control over it.

Just as Isabel prepared to press the attack—

“Bel.”

A voice, like that of a relief pitcher, reached her ears.

Just before Adora hit the ground—

A massive gust of wind blew up from beneath, lifting her body.

“Eeeek?!”

Just when she’d been longing to feel solid ground beneath her, Adora was suddenly launched skyward again.

It was Sharin’s magic, reaching Isabel just in time.

And so, the aerial battle resumed.

Without hesitation, Isabel spread her wings and leapt toward Adora.

Adora’s eyes shook violently.

If this kept going in the air, she had no options.

But unlike Dragos, she couldn’t use magical engravings to fly.

Then what should she do?

The answer was already clear.

Adora threw one of her gongdo into the air.

At the same moment, she stepped on it midair—her body coiling like a spring.

Isabel noticed her movement—

BOOOOM!

Adora launched off the gongdo at breakneck speed.

Her target was Sharin, descending from the sky.

Isabel rushed to intercept her and protect Sharin.

Just as Isabel blocked her path, Adora curled her body and swung her remaining gongdo.

Their weapons clashed, and in that instant, both of Adora’s feet struck Isabel’s body.

Isabel quickly covered herself with her wings.

Adora’s feet pressed against them with all her might and vaulted upward.

CRAAASH!

Another mighty leap, this time using the goddess’s wings as a launchpad.

Adora flew straight down to the ground.

Her absurd fighting style widened Isabel’s eyes.

This didn’t feel like fighting a human.

“Well, well.”

At that moment, a massive burst of radiant light swept past Isabel’s back.

Sharin’s magic.

Adora, plummeting to the ground, took the blast head-on.

Its force was enough to wipe out an entire dense forest.

“Bel!”

As Sharin screamed, Isabel shook off the daze and folded her wings to dive.

The moment she reached the ground—

There was Adora, tumbling across the dirt before finally coming to a stop.

Her body was covered in wounds.

An ordinary body would’ve retired from battle already, but she had swallowed a divine beast.

Thanks to that, her magical resistance was high enough to avoid a knockout.

“Ugh, ground—solid ground! I’m so happy I could cry!”

Adora stomped her feet and shouted.

With teary eyes, she looked at Isabel, who had landed in front of her.

“I’m mad now.”

From above, one of the gongdo dropped—and Adora caught it perfectly.

“I’m definitely going to kill you!”

Though her shout held no strength, the killing intent in her eyes was chilling.

“Go ahead. Try me.”

Isabel gripped her sword tightly and took a deep breath.

Vikamon believed she could defeat Adora.

She would live up to that belief.

Isabel’s golden eyes gleamed brightly with resolve.