The building didn't collapse all at once.
It failed in layers.
Steel beams snapped.
Concrete floors gave way.
Support pillars folded under pressure that had nothing to do with gravity.
And at the center of it—
They kept moving.
Adrian stepped forward—
Space twisted—
The ground beneath his feet no longer mattered.
He wasn't standing on it.
He was using it as reference.
The man came at him head-on this time.
No adjustments.
No hesitation.
Just force.
Their fists collided—
And the air between them shattered.
A shockwave ripped outward, blowing apart the remaining structure around them. Debris scattered in all directions as the ceiling above finally gave in.
Open sky.
Night.
Cold air rushed in.
They didn't stop.
Adrian shifted—
Space folded slightly to his left—
The man's next strike passed through where Adrian should have been—
Adrian countered immediately—
A clean hit—
The man's body slammed into what remained of a support column—
The column collapsed.
He pushed himself out of the rubble, breathing heavier now.
Still smiling.
But tighter.
"…You're getting sharper," he said.
Adrian didn't respond.
He was already moving again.
This time—
He layered it.
Space didn't just shift once.
It shifted twice.
A false position.
Then a real one.
The man reacted to the first—
Missed the second—
Impact.
His body skidded across broken ground, tearing through debris before stopping.
Silence.
Dust filled the air.
Adrian stood still for a moment.
Watching.
Waiting.
"…You're starting to fall behind," he said calmly.
A pause.
Then—
The man laughed.
Low.
Breathless.
"…No," he said, pushing himself up again.
A thin trail of blood ran down his arm.
"…Now I'm starting to understand you."
That was enough confirmation.
Adrian's eyes sharpened.
"…Then you're done."
He stepped forward again—
Faster.
Sharper.
More precise.
But this time—
The man didn't meet him head-on.
He shifted.
Not like Adrian.
Not spatially.
But instinctively.
He gave ground.
Adrian's strike missed—
Barely.
And in that gap—
The man countered.
A direct hit.
Adrian's body moved with the impact—
Not thrown.
But pushed.
He slid back a few steps.
Stopped.
Looked up.
Silence.
"…Good," Adrian muttered.
Behind him—
A crack.
Lirael's restraints flickered again.
Weaker now.
The structural collapse had damaged the suppression arrays.
Her fingers twitched slightly.
"…Adrian," she called softly.
His gaze didn't move.
"I know."
The man followed his line of sight for half a second.
Then smiled again.
"…You're distracted."
Adrian replied instantly.
"No."
He moved.
This time—
No testing.
No layering.
He forced it.
Space compressed violently between them.
Distance vanished.
The man reacted—
But too late.
Adrian's strike landed clean—
Driving him straight into the ground.
The earth cracked.
A crater formed beneath the impact.
For a moment—
Silence.
Then—
The man's hand moved.
He caught Adrian's wrist.
Stopped him.
Their eyes met.
Closer now.
"…You're still holding something back," the man said quietly.
Adrian's expression didn't change.
"…No."
The man smiled.
"…Liar."
And then—
His aura surged again.
Not higher.
Different.
Adrian felt it immediately.
Not pressure.
Not weight.
Interference.
The space around him didn't respond the same way.
It resisted.
For the first time since the fight started—
His control slipped.
Just slightly.
That was enough.
The man twisted—
Broke the angle—
And struck.
Adrian took the hit.
Didn't dodge.
Didn't shift.
The impact forced him back.
Harder this time.
He landed several meters away.
Skidded.
Stopped.
Silence.
He exhaled slowly.
"…So that's your trick."
The man stood up from the crater.
"…I told you," he said.
"We study anomalies."
A pause.
"…And we build counters."
Behind them—
A sharp crack echoed.
Lirael's restraints shattered.
The suppression field collapsed completely.
She dropped to one knee—
Then pushed herself up.
Free.
Both of them felt it.
Adrian's focus shifted for half a second.
Not away.
But wider.
The man noticed.
Of course he did.
"…There it is," he said.
Adrian didn't respond.
But something changed.
The air around him didn't distort violently this time.
It tightened.
Focused.
Controlled.
He rolled his shoulder once.
Stepped forward again.
Slower.
Deliberate.
"…You wanted to test me," Adrian said.
The man nodded slightly.
"…Yes."
A pause.
Adrian's eyes darkened.
"…Then you should've been ready to die."
Silence.
The man smiled.
But it didn't reach his eyes this time.
"…We'll see."
Behind Adrian—
Lirael steadied herself.
Her presence returning.
Her power stabilizing.
Not stepping in.
Trusting him.
And ahead—
The man adjusted his stance.
Because now—
The fight wasn't equal anymore.
It was shifting.
And both of them knew—
The next exchange would decide everything.