The moment Noctivar gave the command—
The battlefield exploded.
The puppets didn't charge.
They appeared.
One moment—
They stood still.
The next—
They were already mid-strike.
A puppet's fist tore through the air toward Arios' face—
No wind-up.
No warning.
Just impact.
BOOM.
The sound cracked across the field.
Dust burst outward.
Shockwaves rippled through the ground.
Everyone reacted—
But Arios didn't move.
The fist connected cleanly.
Direct hit.
No guard.
Silence followed.
The dust cleared slowly.
Arios stood there.
Head slightly tilted from the force.
Hair shifting lightly in the aftermath.
Unmoved.
His crimson eyes lifted slowly.
And for the first time—
There was no calm in them.
Only something colder.
A faint white aura began to radiate from his body.
Not explosive.
Not overwhelming.
But absolute.
Noctivar tilted his head slightly.
"…Huh."
A pause.
"…What's this?"
Arios didn't answer.
His grip tightened on his sword.
Then—
He stepped forward.
The puppet moved again—
Fast.
Precise.
Another strike aimed for his throat.
But this time—
Arios moved.
Not faster.
Not stronger.
Just—
correctly.
He slipped the strike by a fraction.
Stepped inside its range.
And punched.
CRACK.
The puppet's chest dented.
Not broken.
But compromised.
Arios didn't stop.
Second punch.
CRACK.
Fractures spread across its body.
The puppet attempted to counter—
But Arios had already moved again.
Not reacting—
evolving.
Third strike.
A direct punch to the core.
BOOM.
The puppet shattered.
Wood fragments scattering across the ground.
Void residue leaking faintly into the air.
Arios stood still.
Hand lowered.
His system activated instantly.
Ding.
Void energy gained.
Threat Level: Extremely High
Proceed with caution, Host.
Arios exhaled slowly.
"…So that's what you're made of."
Above—
Noctivar's smile faded slightly.
"…You adapted."
A pause.
"…On first contact."
The battlefield erupted fully.
Borus stepped forward—
Void Eclipse forming around his arms.
He clashed directly with two puppets at once—
Dark energy grinding against void wood.
Destiny moved behind him—
Her eyes glowing faintly.
Time bending slightly around incoming strikes—
Slowing impacts just enough for others to react.
Cecil stepped in—
The ground beneath her shifting—
Pressure building—
Depth crushing upward into incoming puppets.
Veldama smiled faintly—
Her fingers flicked—
Blood threads forming in the air—
Even pulling from micro-cuts in opponents—
Trying to bind puppet movement.
Zefair engaged in close combat—
Pure martial arts—
Reading motion.
Redirecting strikes.
Minimizing damage.
Damrei snapped his fingers—
"REC."
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.
Explosions erupted across multiple puppets—
But—
They held.
Barely damaged.
Lex dashed forward—
Lightning coating his body.
Speed exploding.
His strikes were clean.
Precise.
Fast enough to blur.
But—
Every hit—
did nothing.
"…What?"
He struck again—
Harder—
Faster—
No effect.
A puppet countered instantly.
A single punch.
Lex raised his arm to block—
CRACK.
The impact forced him back—
His arm fracturing under pressure.
Lex skidded across the ground—
Teeth clenched.
"…Damn…"
Above—
Noctivar laughed.
"…So this is what you entrust your defense to?"
A pause.
"…Children?"
Lysera — The Balance Shifts
He didn't notice her.
Not at first.
Because Lysera was already below him.
Standing directly beneath his position.
Looking up.
Her expression calm.
But her eyes—
Cold.
"…Shut up."
Noctivar paused.
"…Hmm?"
Lysera's aura flared.
Subtle.
But immense.
"…You don't deserve to use the Void."
Her hand lifted.
"…Power of the World Tree Ydris—"
A pulse erupted outward.
"—Restoration."
Light.
Life.
Existence itself responded.
Across the battlefield—
Wounds closed instantly.
Lex's fractured arm—
Healed.
Fatigue—
Erased.
Energy—
Restored.
The team stood again.
Fully reset.
Noctivar's eyes narrowed.
"…So you counter damage entirely."
Lysera looked up at him.
Unshaken.
"…Try harder."
For the first time—
He stopped smiling.
"…Interesting."
His aura expanded.
Not explosively.
But deeply.
The puppets reacted instantly.
Their bodies shifted—
Void patterns glowing across their structure.
Density increasing.
Speed rising.
Noctivar raised his hand slowly.
"…Puppets."
A pause.
"Full output."
The air collapsed inward slightly.
The puppets moved again—
This time—
Faster.
Heavier.
More precise.
Reality itself struggled to keep up with their movement.
Jin, watching from the shade, exhaled slowly.
"…Now it begins."
Philis remained silent.
Watching.
Measuring.
Miss Bromet smiled faintly.
"…Let's see how far they go."
Frontline — Arios & Lysera
At the center—
Arios stood.
White aura flickering stronger now.
Lysera beside him.
Her presence stabilizing everything around them.
A puppet lunged—
Faster than before.
Arios stepped forward.
"…Try again."
And this time—
He didn't just react.
He welcomed it.
Because now—
The fight wasn't about surviving.
It was about proving something.
That no matter what tried to define him—
No matter what tried to map him—
He would remain unreadable.
And above—
Noctivar Khaos watched closely.
Not as an observer anymore.
But as something that had finally found—
A challenge worth stepping into reality for.