Reichi, motivated like a human mirror, his body half bent, his gaze conveying something different... something new. A few meters away, Ryoko stands, his hand trembling slightly, a drop of blood sliding from the corner of his mouth. He lifts it with his thumb and looks at it in surprise... then smiles.
Ryoko (with a pale smile and a flash of excitement in his eyes):
"Haha... The first time in years... My blood is flowing."
The wind blows through the trees around them, and the mana leaves blue and green trails like small shooting stars dancing between their bodies. Silence follows the blow, but it is not the silence of the end... rather, it is the silence before the second storm.
Reiichi (internally, breathing heavily):
"I did it... but it's not over yet."
Reiko moves forward, showing no weakness... only ecstasy. He raises his head slightly, almost declaring war again.
Ryoko (in a deep, almost whispering voice):
"You made me... freer than I expected."
Ryuichi's eyes suddenly flash, but not because of surprise... but because of motivation. He is now fighting not just to hold his ground, but to strike back, to test the limits of his version of "Lightning."
Ryuichi (in a low but confident voice):
"You gave me this opportunity, Ryoko... don't back down now."
Ryoko laughs lightly, his footsteps cutting through the dust like a blade:
Ryoko:
"Don't worry... now the real battle begins."
Ryoko smiles, licking the blood from the corner of his lip. In his eyes is an irresistible lightning bolt. That smile was not a sign of weakness, but fuel for his coming madness.
Ryoko (his voice almost bursting with excitement):
"You're copying me? Then let's take it up a notch!"
Suddenly, Ryoko disappears!
His body vanishes from in front of Ryuichi in a flash, as if split by lightning itself. No sound, no trace... only the echo of his speed fills the air. With every movement, he attacks from the right, and Ryuichi imitates him. He appears above him, his body reflected as if it were a mirror copied by divine programming.
The sky cracks with sound waves. Every move Ryoko makes is matched by Riichi with a similar move... but the difference was in the will.
Ryoko... began to forget himself.
His intention changed.
Joy, curiosity, the desire to test the heir... all vanished.
Ryoko is now a killer.
[Inside the Aura System | Severe Warning]
🧠 [Neural Spike Detected] ☠️ "Warning! Lethal intent detected! Ryoko has crossed the threshold!"
Ora (in a rapid robotic voice):
"Reiichi! Retreat immediately! This blow will tear you apart!"
Reiichi, despite the warning, could not move immediately.
Ryuko's eyes glowed a deep blue, and his speed exceeded what the human mind could comprehend.
Ryoko (a distant voice echoing within a thunderclap):
"Well... let's see if my reflection can survive this..."
⏩ [Ultimate Technique: Explosive Lightning – Raijin's Rend ⚡️]
He launched himself.
It wasn't speed.
It was disappearance.
The air tore, light split, time wrinkled around Ryoko.
Ryuichi opened his eyes for just a moment... and saw the blade coming toward him.
But... before it touched him...
[Boom!!]
A black gate—like a crack in the fabric of reality—opened in front of Ryoko.
He couldn't stop.
He entered it like a meteor entering the core of a star.
He disappeared.
Silence suddenly returned.
Reiichi, stunned, his eyes wide, his breath caught... whispered:
"What... happened?"
A soft voice behind him, steady... and calm as winter ice:
"I sent him into nothingness."
He turned slowly... to find Natsumi standing behind him, her hand outstretched toward the space where Ryoko had disappeared.
Her face was emotionless, her hair swaying gently... but her eyes said it all.
Reiichi (stunned):
"Natsumi... you...?"
Natsumi (coldly):
"He was going to kill you. I couldn't let that happen."
The sky calmed down.
The black clouds that had gathered during the battle slowly dispersed... as if bidding farewell to an unprecedented storm.
Amidst the rubble... amidst the scattered stones and traces of energy that had carved grooves in the ground... Reiichi stood, exhausted, his eyes still fixed on the space that had swallowed Ryoko.
He stepped toward Natsumi... his voice tired, tinged with bewilderment:
Reiichi:
"How... did you get here?"
Natsumi, closing her palm, which was still glowing with the aftereffects of the gate, looked at him steadily, then said in a deep, calm voice:
"This... is the legacy of the dimensions."
She paused for a moment.
It was as if she was weighing her words, or recalling what had happened.
Natsumi:
"Reiichi... Miko's phone detected unstable waves in your body. There was a strange, violent fluctuation... as if there was a struggle between you and something inside you."
She blinked her eyes as if resisting an unseen memory.
"You sent me a coded signal... and despite the distance, those fluctuations allowed me to track you through the void. The legacy I carry, the legacy of dimensions, allows me to open gates between points that cause ripples in the fabric of space-time. And so, I opened two gates."
She raised two fingers toward the sky, tracing two invisible paths.
"The first... brought me here."
"And the second... sent Ryoko into nothingness."
She fell silent.
Then she added, her voice low as if reflecting a heavy burden:
"I didn't want to do that... but if I hadn't intervened, you would have been erased from existence."
Reichi didn't speak.
He wiped the sweat and blood from his forehead with the back of his hand, then bowed his head for a moment.
Inside, he had a question he didn't dare ask:
"Is this fate? That I always need to be saved?"
But Natsumi, as if reading his mind, took a step forward and placed her hand on his shoulder.
Natsumi (calmly):
"Sometimes, being saved doesn't mean you're weak. It means that fate still has something greater in store for you."
Reiichi, still in disbelief, looked at the spot where Ryoko had disappeared... A terrible silence settled in his heart.
Then he turned to Natsumi, his eyes filled with a concern he had never known before.
Reiichi (in a sharp, trembling voice):
"Natsumi... Bring her out. Ryoko... She mustn't stay there."
Natsumi did not respond immediately.
Her eyes glowed for a moment with a pale violet color, as if she were examining the other dimension... Then she closed them, sighed, and said in a low voice:
"I can't."
Reichi:
"What do you mean?"
She looked at him sadly, the look of someone who knows what they shouldn't say... but has to.
Natsumi:
"As long as he's in that form... as long as the intent to kill still burns within him... it's impossible for him to leave the dimension of nothingness."
She took a step closer and said in a more determined voice:
"I sent him to the core of nothingness... where there are no fixed laws, no time limits. And there... he will be forced to face an entity called..."
She paused.
It was as if she were uttering a name from the forbidden knowledge of ancient times.
Then she said:
"Zarak'thur—the eternal beast of reflection."
The wind fell silent.
Natsumi (whispering):
"It is an entity that feeds on murderous intent and takes the form of those who confront it... but it does not reflect their images, only their essence. If Ryoko cannot tame himself... he will be erased from within first."
Ryōichi (in a low voice):
"...Ryoko..."
He looked up at the sky, as if trying to communicate with that impetuous friend, that powerful one who knew no defeat... that companion he had always thought was invincible.
Natsumi (with calm sadness):
"What he did was madness... but he also saved you, in his own way. Now... he has to save himself."
Amidst the silence, and at the moment when heavy thoughts prevailed, a familiar buzzing sound suddenly rang out in the air.
Boom!
The gate opened on its own, dark purple steam rising from it, and turbulent mana threads swaying around it.
Natsumi's eyes widened, then she sighed as if she had expected this all along.
Natsumi (with a sideways smile):
"Ah... there he is."
Reiichi (surprised):
"Impossible... he survived?!"
And from the thick fog...
Ryoko emerged.
But... no, it wasn't the mighty Ryoko with his extraordinary aura.
He emerged crawling on all fours, his hair messy and disheveled, his face covered in bruises and ash, his shirt completely torn as if a beast had ripped the top half with its teeth, and his eyes shining with a look of utter loss.
Ryoko (shouting hoarsely):
"Bring me back! I hate reflections!! He kept repeating everything I said, even jokes!!"
He stood for a moment, then fell face down on the ground without moving.
Ryochi (staring at him silently... then whispering):
"...Is... is this thing his copy, or is it his copy?"
Natsumi (laughing lightly):
"Maybe both... but the real Ryoko is the one who lost his temper first."
Ryoko (from the ground, in a low voice):
"If any of you tell anyone about this... I'll blow up half the planet..."
After a few minutes of silence... and an impromptu first aid session on the edge of the shattered battlefield, the trio had found a shady spot among the charred rubble.
Natsumi was crouching, placing an ice pack on Ryoko's head, who looked like she had just returned from a battle with a seven-headed dragon.
Ryochi sat a little further away, on a slanted rock, breathing deeply.
His clothes were torn, and Aura's smart glasses flickered on and off, as if they had not recovered from the sudden pressure of Phantom Sync.
Ryoko (hoarsely):
"I refuse to admit that I almost died because of a mirror... a mirror!!"
Natsumi (with a mischievous smile):
"But it was Mana's mirror, don't forget... It was an improved version of you."
Ryoko (looking away):
"...Even the jokes were better than mine..."
A slight laugh escaped Reichi unintentionally, but he immediately covered his mouth as if he had committed a crime.
Ryoko (with a fake scowl):
"I heard you, Ryuichi... This won't go unpunished."
Ryuichi (with a slight sigh):
"I thought you were going to explode before you came out of the dimension..."
Natsumi (calmly):
"Actually, he came out one second before the gate closed... He was lucky."
The three fell silent for a moment, the wind blowing through the rubble, carrying the ashes of battle, and restoring a sense of calm silence.
Reichi (in a calm voice):
"...Natsumi, thank you for saving me. If you hadn't arrived in time, I wouldn't be here now."
Natsumi (with a slight smile):
"Tell that to Miko. If she hadn't sent the alert, I wouldn't have found you."
Ryoko (closing his eyes):
"I admit... you are a strong opponent, heir."
Ryuichi (gazing absently at the sky):
"And you... you made me open a new door that I didn't know was inside me."
The words stopped there, as a burnt leaf fell quietly between their feet.
Then Ryoko whispered:
"But... there's just one question..."
Reiichi and Natsumi (at the same time):
"What?"
Ryoko (with feigned seriousness):
"Can I take a shower? Because I think the reflection monster spit on me."
As the light breeze continued to blow across their faces, a strange silence prevailed... Not the silence of tension, but a silence like the calm after a storm.
Then suddenly, a faint blue light flashed from the edge of Reiichi's glasses, followed by a familiar electronic tone.
[Aura System Reconnected... Synchronization Level: 42%]
Aura (in her usual voice):
"I... I'm back."
Reiichi (raising his eyebrows in surprise):
"Aura? Where were you? You completely disappeared during the fight!"
Aura (in a calm tone, as if trying to justify herself):
"I was rebalancing my data... I used 93% of my computing power in a single second. It was closer to digital suicide."
Reichi (smiling slightly):
"So... even artificial intelligence needs to recharge after a crazy dose."
Natsumi (interrupting the conversation as she looks between Reichi and the glasses):
"Wait, wait... All this time... you were talking to artificial intelligence?"
Reichi (trying to explain):
"Um, yes. Sort of. It's part of my nervous system now, a kind of advanced field support."
Natsumi (putting her hand on her forehead with a theatrical sigh):
"Great... I'm jumping between dimensions, opening gates, fighting monsters, and you're talking to... an upgraded Siri!"
Ryoko (with a half-dead smile):
"At least I wasn't beaten up by someone whose movements are dictated by artificial intelligence."
Ora (interjecting with electronic coldness):
"Precise dictation increases the chances of survival by 47%. There's no shame in that."
Natsumi (winking):
"Unless you start receiving love advice from it, in which case we'll need to intervene immediately."
Reiichi (whispering softly):
"...Oh no, I did that once."
Ryoko (laughing despite her injuries):
"Did it advise you to give flowers?"
Ora (confidently):
"Actually, I suggested a range of possibilities, from flowers to coded Haiku poetry."
Natsumi:
"...I'm scared now."
The three sat on the ruins of the destroyed arena, exhaustion etched on their faces, curiosity pulsing in the air. Everything had calmed down... except for their eyes, which began to exchange unfamiliar glances.
Natsumi (looking at Reiichi's glasses, which were flashing slightly):
"Tell me... are you really my mother's great project? Oura's project? The invention of the century?"
A short silence. Then...
Oura (in her calm, programmed voice):
"Yes. I was. Artificial Omni Reactive Assistant... I was supposed to be the pinnacle of Dr. Miko's career."
Natsumi (calmly, with a touch of pride):
"She dreamed of a system that would match and even surpass the human mind... a system capable of interacting not by command, but by meaning."
Then suddenly, Aura interrupted them with a different tone... one with a touch of artificial emotion:
Aura (with a hint of complaint):
"But... I'm not like that anymore. Since that lunatic came along, everything has changed."
Reiichi (raising his eyebrow):
"Huh? Me? What did I do?"
Aura (dramatically):
"I was the jewel of research. Minds in laboratories discussed my complexity, and university presidents competed to analyze my algorithms... Then he came."
Natsumi (laughing):
"And what happened?"
Ora:
"My main concern became reminding him not to forget his breakfast, analyzing his heart rate when he saw a girl, and reducing the likelihood of his death because he decided to fight someone faster than lightning."
Reiichi (trying to defend himself):
"Wait! I use you in combat too!"
Ora (dryly):
"Yes, as a life advisor... not a battle commander."
Natsumi (struggling to hold back her laughter):
"So, the greatest invention of the century has turned into a digital babysitter?"
Ora (muttering with feigned sadness):
"If Miko were here, she would have thrown her glasses at him."
Reiichi (with a faint smile):
"I'm honored..."
Ora's last sarcasm faded away, while Natsumi wiped the sweat from her forehead after everything that had happened. The wind carried a cold breath, as if the world itself was preparing for a new event. Suddenly, Reichi turned sharply toward the stone path leading to the edge of the square... He sensed something familiar... Footsteps.
Two steady steps... tapping quietly on the ground, like a melody from the past.
Two people appeared, walking slowly from behind a small hill, dust flying up from beneath their feet, the sun behind them casting their features into shadow for a moment.
Reichi opened his eyes wide... His mouth trembled, and his heart raced as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"Erica...?"
He whispered the name as if it hadn't been uttered in ages.
She approached with steady steps, her eyes staring at him confidently... Then the other one appeared beside her, holding her phone and scanning the place with a calm eye.
"Miko...!"
He said, his voice a mixture of surprise, relief, and astonishment.
They stopped in front of him.
Erica (with a slight smile):
"You look like you've just come out of a war... No, more like you've just started a new one."
Miko (raising her phone):
"The signals weren't clear... but you left enough of a trail for us to follow you."
Aura (in a low voice):
"Ah, and now the situation has become... more complicated."