The vast arena of the Coliseum had fallen strangely silent.
At the center of the bloodstained sand, a beautiful young woman slowly walked forward beneath the attentive gazes of the crowd.
Long hair flowed down her back like a delicate blend of gold and snow, swaying gently beneath the scorching wind of the arena.
Her face carried obvious nervousness.
In front of her…
Stood Mongrel.
The black armor seemed to absorb the very light around it. Resting on his shoulder was a dark odachi with a deadly appearance, while the terrifying demonic mask concealed every trace of emotion.
Even standing still, he radiated suffocating pressure.
The difference between the two looked absurd.
Part of the audience even felt pity for the young woman.
She looked fragile.
Far too beautiful.
Perhaps it was simply human instinct… but people always tended to feel more sympathy toward beautiful faces.
The young woman continued walking slowly across the arena until she finally stopped before Mongrel.
Then—
Fragments of essence began to shine around her body.
An elegant silver armor materialized around her figure, reflecting the scarlet light of the Coliseum.
Moments later, a rusty iron sword appeared in her hand.
The weapon looked simple.
Old.
Almost pathetic compared to Mongrel's monstrous black odachi.
The young woman took a deep breath before speaking softly:
— I hope we have a good battle.
Her voice carried nervousness… but also genuine politeness.
Behind the demonic mask, Sunny silently observed the girl standing before him.
Then he calmly replied:
— This will not be a battle.
The cold arrogance in his voice made part of the crowd shiver.
'Sunny…'
Samael felt his heart race.
'I'm talking to Sunny.'
Even while trying to maintain his composure, the overwhelming happiness he felt almost made him grin like an idiot in the middle of the arena.
The moment felt surreal.
For an instant, he completely forgot he was there to fight.
He simply wanted to engrave that scene into his memory forever.
Up in the stands, several people began whispering among themselves.
— She doesn't stand a chance…
A middle-aged man watched the arena with his arms crossed.
— Mongrel is undefeated. Honestly… I'm starting to doubt that thing is even human.
As he said that, he involuntarily remembered his own fight against him.
Or rather…
The completely one-sided massacre he had suffered.
The only reason the battle had lasted more than a few seconds was because Mongrel had clearly decided to play with him.
Then—
Under the disbelieving gazes of the crowd, the young woman moved.
Fast.
Very fast.
The rusty sword sliced through the air in a violent horizontal slash aimed directly at Mongrel's torso.
CLANG!
The black odachi blocked the attack effortlessly.
Sparks exploded across the arena.
But before Samael could even react—
The gigantic black blade was already inches away from his neck.
'Too fast!'
His body moved on pure instinct.
Samael stepped backward at the very last second, feeling the tip of the odachi nearly graze his throat.
Without hesitation, he twisted his body and launched a low kick toward Mongrel's supporting leg.
Sunny smoothly retreated.
The next instant, the odachi came crashing down toward Samael's head.
He barely dodged.
The blade sliced through several strands of his golden hair before smashing into the sand.
'Damn it…'
His heart pounded violently.
'He's way better at swordsmanship than me.'
Without wasting time, Samael rushed forward again and attempted a front kick aimed at Mongrel's chest.
Sunny blocked it easily.
Even so, the impact allowed Samael to create some distance.
He took a deep breath.
He needed to think.
Fast.
— You've gotten stronger since the last time.
Samael spoke casually, trying to provoke some kind of reaction.
Mongrel slightly tilted his head.
— I know.
Behind the mask, Sunny had absolutely no idea what the girl was talking about.
But Weaver's Mask forced him to answer honestly.
'…What is she talking about?'
Samael nearly had a heart attack from happiness.
'HE ANSWERED ME!'
Even in the middle of battle, part of him wanted to start some random conversation about Shadow Slave.
But another part was desperately trying to figure out a way to survive.
— My last opponent wasn't even close to your level, Mongrel… though I think I may have overestimated the Lord of Shadows.
Sunny froze for a brief moment.
— Lord of Shadows?
The confusion in his voice was genuine.
But beneath the mask—
'Damn it…'
Sunny instantly felt jealous.
'That name sounds ridiculously cool.'
Compared to that, "Mongrel" sounded terrible.
Samael smiled inwardly.
— He was quite a formidable cockroach.
The moment he finished speaking, he threw the rusty sword directly at Mongrel.
The black odachi easily knocked the weapon aside.
But that had only been a distraction.
At the same instant, Samael summoned the Bow of Despair.
The spectral string vibrated.
An arrow formed entirely from essence shot violently across the arena.
Sunny's eyes sharpened.
CLANG!
The arrow was deflected at the very last moment.
Even so, Mongrel was forced to take a step backward.
The crowd exploded into murmurs.
Samael wasted no time.
Another arrow instantly appeared.
But before he could fire—
Sunny vanished.
Shadow Step.
The black figure appeared behind him like a phantom.
Samael reacted instantly.
Twisting his body, he used the bow itself as an improvised close-combat weapon.
Mongrel caught the bow with visible surprise.
'Good reaction.'
The next instant—
A brutal kick shot toward his abdomen.
Sunny blocked once more.
But Samael had never intended to hit him.
His real goal was to create distance.
The moment he retreated, fragments of essence appeared around him once again.
An Ascended spear materialized in his hands.
Samael charged immediately.
The spear pierced through the air toward Mongrel's chest with deadly speed.
CLANG!
The black odachi intercepted the strike perfectly.
The impact echoed throughout the entire arena.
The audience watched the battle in complete shock.
A metallic cacophony filled the Coliseum as the two combatants exchanged savage blows at absurd speeds.
Bloodstained sand exploded beneath their feet.
— That girl…
The man in the stands stared at the arena with wide eyes.
The young woman who had seemed timid and harmless before…
Was actually a wolf wearing sheep's clothing.
Her fighting style was unpredictable.
Brutal.
Chaotic.
And somehow…
She was managing to keep up with that macabre demon in his bloody dance.