The Backflow Praisers and Black Hand's joint attack had turned Kun Ardo into a Shadow of Pandora.
He had been one of the most renowned swordsmen since the days of Southern Solarea.
After his nation's destruction, he wandered like a ghost, wielding his sword. Though stronger than before, his final blade now dishonorably stood against Juyeon on the enemy's side.
[True Blazing Fire]
Juyeon intensified her flames, unleashing a crimson slash from her greatsword.
Pandora immediately positioned the head of the Ardo family in front. The mountain range trembled from their colliding forces.
Using him as a meat shield, she swung her scissors from the side.
Sensing this would cut deep, she thrust the blade forward. Even so, Juyeon managed to escape with just a graze on her shoulder.
Landing with a twirl of her scissors, Pandora concealed her admiration and giggled.
"General. Are you really human? You're too brutish."
Kun Ardo had lost his consciousness and memories, but his body—filled with abundant magical power and modifications—was formidable.
If Juyeon were alone, she would have dealt with him quickly. But Pandora, the chimeras, and her younger brother's body kept attacking.
"..."
With her brother interfering at crucial moments, the battle remained unresolved.
Her wounds were increasing. Her breathing grew labored. Meanwhile, Pandora kept pulling syringes from the shadows, endlessly doping herself.
It seemed unlikely that side effects would appear or the drug's effectiveness would wear off today.
Juyeon was at a severe disadvantage in this war of attrition.
"My brother's role is more impressive than I thought. Plus, he's handsome, which I like."
Pandora taunted, poking her brother's cheek repeatedly.
Witnessing this, Juyeon felt an uncontrollable rage burning like wildfire.
Yet she couldn't bring herself to cut him down.
Just seeing her brother's face shook her resolve.
Looking at the blade imbued with her brother's frequently used skill, Scorching Blade, she constantly felt her emotional weakness.
She still hadn't let go of the past.
She had only deluded herself into thinking she'd moved beyond regret by distancing herself from Samhwaguk and spending happy times elsewhere.
"It's disappointing that despite rising to the rank of General, you couldn't abandon your soft humanity."
Pandora said this while using her scissors to trim the edges of the tattered chimeras that had reached their regenerative limits, leaving marks.
She bestowed upon them berserk and self-destruct abilities. It was time to end this.
She couldn't imagine how severe the side effects would be or how many years she'd be bedridden afterward, but victory would be sweet.
'He will praise me too...!'
Pandora's entire body tingled at the mere thought.
The idea of receiving his favor filled her with ecstasy.
"I don't particularly like it, but I'll make you my shadow too, General."
Pandora widely opened her scissors, keeping her brother as a shield beside her.
She cut through pitch-black masses rising from the ground.
[Dark Shadow Scissors - Mid-Heaven Demon Sprint]
— Kyaaaak!
Black shadows with grotesque faces flew toward their opponent.
Simultaneously, the family head and chimeras rushed at Juyeon.
"..."
Seeing the enemies closing in without gaps, Juyeon made her decision.
Yes, she couldn't cut down her younger brother. She acknowledged her weakness.
Therefore, she needed to be faster, stronger, with power her enemies couldn't handle. She needed an unreasonable speed to bypass her brother who acted as a shield and cut down Pandora.
[Hidden Fire Release]
She activated all her accumulated embers without reserve.
Juyeon's red hair absorbed a brilliant yellow light and burned magnificently. This was the power she had used to finish Omega on the deserted island.
It was a skill with extreme burden and magical consumption, so she couldn't use it for long.
If she couldn't settle this by the time the skill ended, Juyeon would lose.
[Flame Wheel]
Flames spread, entangling with shadows.
Pandora's attacks and minions pushed through the flames but cut through empty air.
Juyeon appeared silently beside Pandora.
[Fire Point]
She thrust her greatsword through the gap.
Pandora twisted her body. She couldn't dodge completely. Her waist was deeply cut, but shadows like threads immediately began sealing the wound.
"Kihaha! What a waste!"
Pandora let out a maniacal laugh, grabbing her brother by the collar and swinging him like a blunt weapon.
Juyeon stepped back.
She appeared right behind. She kept changing positions in the moments of recognition and response, trying to kill.
'She's nothing compared to Kun Ardo. This woman is truly insane.'
Pandora moved with her brother's body stuck to her like a shield. She found it hard to believe Juyeon could get even faster.
The drug twisted her entire body's senses like wringing a dry cloth.
Thanks to doping, she could barely react at the brink of death. Normally, she would suffer fatal injuries, but the current Pandora was beyond ordinary categories.
Her muscles and nerves were breaking and tearing just from responding to a speed she originally couldn't match.
It didn't matter.
Hex's special drug made her forget pain up to a certain point. She could endure for now. It was obvious who would be exhausted first.
'Moving like that, her body can't possibly be intact.'
The fact that Juyeon hadn't used this from the beginning was clear evidence, despite the urgent situation outside.
Pandora's minions returned.
The fastest was naturally Kun Ardo.
Heat condensed in Juyeon's greatsword.
It flashed, leaving a deep mark.
[Explosive Flame Cross Sword]
—BANG!!! Unable to withstand the force, Kun Ardo's body twisted and crashed into the mountain range.
He would likely regenerate and return. Juyeon released heat to push back the chimeras, focusing solely on Pandora.
A time when both walked a tightrope with their lives, determining fate.
An impurity intruded.
Both their senses momentarily turned in that direction. Their closed mouths opened at the incomprehensible situation.
"Kid?"
"...Rohan?"
*****
Rohan moved his broken body.
He instinctively headed toward the battlefield where pillars of fire rose and shadows twisted.
What is the source and power that moves humans?
Can such complex beings as humans satisfy and move everything by will alone, like machines running on a single fuel?
Rohan had just found the answer.
Somehow, he made it. He was there.
"Kid?"
"...Rohan?"
Both Juyeon and Pandora noticed that Rohan's consciousness wasn't clear.
His injuries were severe. It was incomprehensible how he was even breathing.
But that didn't stop Juyeon and Pandora from continuing.
The battle resumed.
Rohan looked at his status window.
'Remaining HP: 3%.'
As he became aware, the number changed from 3 to 2. Perhaps because he was moving while injured. Death was imminent.
Just feeling alive was enough. The number didn't matter. As long as it wasn't 0, he was satisfied.
Rohan gripped his sword tightly. He held the handle with all his might, as if it would scream.
He rolled his eyes, trying his best to understand why the battle remained unresolved.
'Who is that man?'
The man Pandora was using as a shield. He possessed Scorching Blade, just like himself.
Juyeon's blade moved to avoid the man. It wasn't physical defense or distorting power. It was Juyeon's will.
KWANG—!!!
One pitch-black chimera exploded, creating a thunderous sound.
Even before this tremendous destructive power, Juyeon was merely pushed back. She charged again.
Rohan recognized what he needed to do.
He read for an opening to step in.
'Enter and die.'
Pandora's hostility flickered right before him.
Not just Juyeon, but Pandora also seemed to have no leeway. Her warning was clear: cross the line and die.
"Huuu..."
As Rohan exhaled, all his remaining magical power burst forth.
The power of death's edge.
All the erupting power desired only one outcome.
'Where to throw the sword.'
With Rohan's skill, matching Juyeon at her full power was a mere dream.
It was also unreasonable to think he could defeat Pandora, who had become monstrous thanks to Hex's power and thorough preparation.
It would be extremely arrogant to think he could create change in their duel with his own strength.
'Find the path.'
Even looking for an opening to thrust his blade was like searching for a raindrop that had fallen into the ocean.
Like chasing the scent of a single petal among tens of thousands fluttering.
Like grasping a single foothold on a cliff. Like tracing the trajectory of starlight in the pitch-black night sky.
Nearly impossible.
'But it's possible.'
Because a human with fully opened senses is truly superhuman. It's about naturally doing what others call impossible.
Unwavering belief in possibility is also essential.
'The person I need to target is.'
Decision made.
He aimed for the maximum speed possible in the current situation.
Rohan loaded the Angular Running Step and lowered his sword.
After relaxing his muscles.
He shot his body like an arrow with momentary elasticity.
[Three Swords - Light Wing Cone]
Accompanied by footwork, burning flames, twisting rotational force, clean thrust, and scraping the bottom with the East Returns to the East.
The fourth harmony.
"!"
Pandora's eyes widened as she became the target of the blade's tip.
Though she periodically used harmony herself and Juyeon used it freely, those were very special cases.
Rohan's attack was naturally unexpected.
No one expects a missile to be fired from a gun barrel.
Feeling a rising sense of crisis from deep within her unconscious, Pandora exploded her chimeras and swung her scissors.