Hajime:
“Move it… all of you…”
“I’m not done.”
The room froze. Even Baku blinked in surprise.
Amy, about to rush to him, stopped in place.
Emily bit her lip.
Sockoo’s eyes widened, tears still on her cheeks.
Duella turned to Baku with a grin.
Duella: “…That boy really is your son, huh?”
Hajime limped forward, every step like dragging boulders, but his expression burned with rage and resolve. His body was steaming, joints creaking from overuse, magic leaking out of his skin.
He looked past Baku, Duella, and everyone else—locking eyes on Strikeka, still wounded but standing.
Hajime:
“This…isn’t your fight anymore.”
“He hurt my friends. My team. My family.”
“I don’t care who he is… I’m finishing this myself.”
Sockoo: “Hajime…!”
He didn’t turn to her, but he spoke again, softer… shakier.
Hajime:
“I won’t let anyone else fight for me. Not again.”
“Even if it kills me—I’ll protect all of you.”
And then his eyes flashed with blue flame, his battered foot dragging back into his kicking stance. Strikeka stood tall, blood trickling from the hole in his chest, but a smug grin smeared across his face.
Strikeka:
“You think some dramatic speech makes you strong again? Please. You’re limping, broken, barely alive. You’re not a warrior anymore—”
CRACK—
A blue blur slammed into his face.
His head whipped sideways as Hajime’s bare foot, now blazing with Blue Flame: Angel, cracked across his jaw. The sheer force of the impact launched Strikeka into the air, spinning wildly before crashing down into the ground with a thunderous quake.
Dust burst around him.
Strikeka’s grin shattered as he hit the floor hard, coughing.
Strikeka: “…What the hell—?”
He looked up, but—
Nothing.
No Hajime.
Just silence… wind… and the faint sound of something dragging lightly across stone.
Suddenly, a flash of blue light from the left—
BOOM—
A kick to the ribs.
Then from behind—
WHACK—
A heel to the spine.
Strikeka was sent tumbling, completely unable to react.
Strikeka:
“I… I can’t see him… Where the hell is he?!”
His monster-like vision tried to track the heat… but Hajime was moving faster than human—or monster—eyes could follow. Every flash of blue was a step. Every breath Hajime took sent steam into the air.
Duella, watching, blinked.
Duella: “That brat. He’s burning his soul now.”
And in the air, above the chaos, Hajime’s voice finally echoed again, distorted slightly by the blue flame coating him.
Hajime:
“Blue Flame… Magic: Angel… was made for protecting people—”
“But I’ll gladly use it to break you too.”
Sockoo, tears in her eyes, could only whisper:
“…Hajime…”Hajime, high above the battlefield, soared like a fallen seraph—arms outstretched like angelic wings, blue flames spiraling from his limbs. The intense heat hissed in the air, trailing behind him like divine fire from the heavens.
Below, Strikeka staggered, trying to regain balance, his vision spinning, his instincts screaming. But it was too late.
Hajime screamed out with blistering passion, his voice raw:
“BLUE FLAME MAGIC: ANGEL DESCENT!”
And in a blur of motion—
CRAAAAACK—!!!
Hajime’s leg came crashing down, cloaked in concentrated blue flame, slamming directly into Strikeka’s chest with a seismic impact that shattered the stone beneath them and sent a shockwave throughout the entire base.
Strikeka’s body buckled, his ribs crunching under the divine force, and his form cratered into the ground, blue flames erupting outward like wings from the point of impact.
The air trembled. Silence followed.
Hajime’s foot remained planted in Strikeka’s chest, chest heaving, blood dripping from his mouth and eyes, his body on the verge of total collapse.
But his voice was steady. Fierce. Unshaken.
Hajime:
“You hurt my team… You caged our leader… You made us bleed… So now… I’ll make sure you never rise again.”
The team stared in awe. Even Baku was frozen.
Sockoo was wide-eyed, trembling, whispering:
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“…He’s… really doing it.”
Strikeka coughed violently, eyes wide, body twitching, unable to move. Strikeka’s body twitched—then surged.
The cratered ground cracked further as he pushed Hajime’s leg off him, rising slowly, a wicked grin returning to his face—but this time, the humor was gone. His body bulged with restrained power.
Strikeka:
“You done yet? That all you got? That was cute. Now it’s my turn again, brat.”
In a blur faster than Hajime could react, Strikeka grabbed him by the face and slammed him into the wall with an echoing BOOM, then kicked him across the floor, sending him skidding like a ragdoll. Blood trailed behind him.
Before Hajime could even attempt to rise—
CRACK!
A knee buried itself in his gut, and Strikeka followed with a flurry of punches, each one like a meteor crashing into Hajime’s weakening frame.
Strikeka:
“You think some flashy speech and blue fire makes you unstoppable? Huh?! You’re nothing but a ticking time bomb, and guess what—”
WHAM!
He brought both fists down on Hajime’s back, slamming him into the ground—
”—the clock just ran out.”
Hajime’s blood splattered the ground. His body was convulsing now—his semi-immortality was no longer healing fast enough. His breathing became uneven. His eyes fluttered.
His body wasn’t regenerating.
His rage-fueled endurance was collapsing.
The team could only watch in horror—even Baku was stepping forward now, fists clenched. Emily was trembling, muttering, “No… no no no…” while Amy held her arm. Sockoo was frozen, hands over her mouth, tears dropping.
Rizra gasped.
Rizra:
“His semi-immortality… it’s breaking down.”
Strikeka stood over the broken Hajime, bloodied and nearly unrecognizable, whispering:
“What now, hero?” Strikeka’s claw gleamed in the red-tinted air. His hand raised above Hajime’s barely breathing body, magic swirling violently at the tips of his fingers.
Strikeka (coldly):
“Goodbye, brat.”
He thrust his arm down, aiming to pierce Hajime’s chest—
SLASH!
A burst of crimson sprayed the air.
But it wasn’t Hajime.
It was Sockoo.
She stood between them, eyes wide in pain, blood running down her mouth. Strikeka’s claw had pierced her side, deep—too deep.
Hajime’s eyes widened.
Strikeka froze, stunned for a second.
Sockoo slowly turned her head toward Hajime, her lips trembling, her voice soft.
Sockoo:
“I’m the leader… I protect you. That’s what we promised, right…?”
Her knees gave in, and she collapsed onto Hajime, her blood spilling over his already battered body.
Hajime’s breath caught in his throat. His pupils trembled.
Hajime (choking):
“No… no, no… S-Sockoo… what the hell are you doing?!”
He tried to sit up, but his body was already in shutdown. All he could do was clutch her. Her blood was warm.
Sockoo:
“I didn’t want it to be like this. But… I’m glad I could stop him… I’m sorry…”
The entire battlefield went silent.
Even Strikeka looked stunned—confused, as if what just happened didn’t make sense to him.
From behind, Emily screamed.
Emily:
“S-SOCKOO!!”
Amy gasped and covered her mouth.
Rizra gritted her teeth, weakly pulling herself up.
Baku’s head dropped, his fists tightening, jaw clenched.
And then…
Hajime let out a sound.
Not a word.
Not a scream.
A broken, guttural cry, deep from his chest, shaking with fury and grief.
His hands trembled around Sockoo’s body.
Then his head slowly rose—his eyes pitch black, his mouth twisted in a snarl.
Hajime (soft, deadly):
“You… took my leader from me…”The ground cracked beneath Hajime’s knees as he held Sockoo’s limp body, her blood painting his arms, chest, and face.
His breathing was uneven. His body was already torn apart by earlier attacks. His healing wasn’t kicking in anymore. His vision was blurry. But then—
A familiar hum.
Blue magic veins traced up his arm. His hand instinctively reached out, and with a flash of deep, radiant blue—
Storyshift materialized in his palm.
The blade gleamed as if it had tasted the grief itself.
A soft, womanly voice echoed from the blade, gentle but filled with concern:
Storyshift:
“Young master… I can feel your heart shattering. If you fight now… if you push past your limit again—”
Hajime (interrupting, eyes dark):
“She’s dead.”
Storyshift paused.
Hajime (voice cracking, cold):
“He killed my leader… my love… my girlfriend…”
“I don’t care what happens to me anymore. If I die…”
“I’ll claw my way out of hell just to drag him down with me.”
The sword pulsed in response, like it could feel his rage.
Storyshift (softly):
“…Then I’ll go with you, Hajime. Even into the abyss.”
Blue flames ignited from the soles of Hajime’s feet, dancing wildly.
His aura twisted, unstable, overflowing with grief-fueled magic. His eyes began bleeding again, his lips trembling from the overload.
And yet—he stood up, sword in hand, stepping over Sockoo’s body like a silent ghost.
Every step forward burned the ground below. Every movement blurred—barely visible.
The air shifted. Strikeka, even smug before, narrowed his eyes now.
Strikeka:
“Tch… What is this? You really want to die that badly?”
Hajime (cold, quiet):
“No. I want to make sure you die first.”
With a BLINK, he vanished. A sonic boom cracked.
Strikeka’s eyes widened as Storyshift’s blade sank deep into his chest, the steel grinding against bone with a sickening sound. Hajime stood in front of him, barely holding himself up—bleeding, trembling, teeth clenched—but still attacking with everything he had.
Strikeka (gasping, choking on blood):
“You damn brat…!”
He grabbed the hilt, trying to shatter the sword—
But just as his claws closed around it—
?? FLASH!
The blade pulsed bright and transformed, dispersing into blue light. From the light emerged Storyshift in her human form, flipping gracefully into the air, her boots hitting the ground beside Hajime.
Storyshift (eyes glowing):
“You don’t get to touch me without consent, freak.”
Strikeka’s chest wound gushed blood as he coughed violently, stumbling back.
And in that split second—
Hajime launched forward.
With rage in his bones and flames at his heels, he shouted—
?? “Blue Flame Magic: Iron Hammer!!”
His leg ignited in deep blue flames, denser than ever before, coating his shin in raw energy. With one devastating kick to Strikeka’s stomach, it sent the monstrous man flying back, smashing through one of the metallic walls like a ragdoll.
Strikeka skidded across the floor—bleeding, growling, coughing.
But Hajime didn’t stop.
Hajime jumped high, his body cracking from strain. His hands twisted into a clawed gesture, blue sparks gathering at his palm like a coil igniting—
A draconic shape of flame formed above him.
Hajime (voice roaring through the chamber):
DRAGON GUN!!!”
A blinding beam of pure power in the shape of a roaring dragon surged from his hand, targeting Strikeka with unstoppable force.
?? BOOOOOOM!!!
Strikeka screamed as the magic collided with him, the force pushing him through another wall—crumbling the structure itself. His body was smoking, armor cracked, skin charred.
He was taking real damage now.
Around them, silence followed the blast. The smoke cleared.
Hajime, still barely standing, collapsed to one knee, puking blood again, his breath shallow.
Storyshift (worried):
“Master—”
But Hajime raised one shaky hand and smiled through the blood—
Hajime (voice breaking):
“Told you… I’d drag him down… even if it killed me…”Strikeka, coughing up blood and stumbling from the wreckage, looked up—his body trembling, not from fear, but from shock. His face twitched, a grin returning despite the gaping wound in his chest.
Strikeka (mocking):
“Is that… anger I see? Hah… That rage… it’s delicious.”
He spat a tooth.
“Watching me murder your little leader, your precious girl… did that fill you with rage, brat?”
There was a pause.
Then—
?? Hajime lifted his head slowly, one eye swollen shut, blood streaming from his mouth, nose, and eyes. His body looked ready to collapse, but he still stood.
Hajime (low, trembling, but furious):
“Hell yeah it did.”
The floor cracked beneath his foot as he took a step forward, his aura pulsing violently.
Hajime (shouting through gritted teeth):
“So that’s what you’ll pay with—DEATH!”
?? BOOM!!
He vanished again—sub-zero speed—this time faster, even more unstable. Blood trailed behind him like a stream of red vapor.
And then—
?? SLASH!
?? SLASH!
?? SLASH!
Rapid cuts tore through Strikeka’s arms, legs, chest—dozens within seconds—until Hajime reappeared midair right in front of his face.
Hajime (furious):
“FOR RIZRA!” — SLASH!
“FOR SOCKOO!” — KICK!
“FOR EVERYONE YOU TRIED TO BREAK!”
His hand lit up in dragon fire again. He grabbed Strikeka’s face and slammed it into the ground, dragging him across the floor like a meteor, concrete shattering in their path.
Strikeka (barely breathing):
“You… you really think… rage can kill me?!”
Hajime stood over him, blood dripping down his chin, and muttered:
“No… But it can fuel me until you’re nothing but ash.”
His entire body burst into blue fire, dangerously unstable, veins glowing.
Storyshift (yelling):
“Master, your body—stop! You’ll die—!”
Hajime (not listening):
“Rage on.”
The battlefield was about to erupt again. Strikeka’s body twitched, aura exploding like a vortex of black-purple storm clouds. The ground beneath him cracked and twisted as he screamed in sheer fury.
Strikeka (rage-filled):
“I CAN’T BELIEVE I’M GETTING OVERWHELMED—BY A DAMN KID!”
Veins bulged. His muscles expanded. His voice deepened.
“I’VE HAD ENOUGH! I WON’T ACCEPT DEFEAT—!!”
Hajime, bleeding from every part of his body, eyes burning blue with unstable fire, didn’t flinch.
Hajime (in sync, voice equally fierce):
“I WON’T ACCEPT A WORLD—!”
Strikeka:
”—WHERE A LITTLE BRAT LIKE YOU THINKS HE CAN WIN!”
Hajime:
”—WHERE SCUM LIKE YOU EVEN EXIST!”
??The moment their words collided—so did they.
BOOM.
The clash was blinding. A white dome of light burst outward, engulfing the entire battlefield in pure silence.
No screams.
No voices.
No sounds.
Just a frozen moment of nothingness.
Everyone shielded their eyes—even Baku, Emily, Bella, Duella, and the others. It was impossible to see through.
And then—
The light faded.
??????? Sight returned.
?? Sounds slowly bled back into the world.
Everyone’s eyes widened to what happened next
