In the burned and shattered city, a woman ran through the rubble, screaming hoarsely, "Maya! My child, where are you?" She stumbled over broken stone and twisted metal, still searching, still hoping her daughter had somehow survived.
Her desperate cries echoed through the smoke-filled streets. Then, within the thick gray haze ahead of her, a shadow moved. Someone had been standing there all along, quietly watching. The smoke slowly thinned as the figure stepped forward — a blond-haired man, his hands slick with blood and a few droplets staining his lips. Licking the blood from his hand, he gave a furious, twisted smile. A heavy, crushing aura radiated from him, the kind that made the air feel hard to breathe. He looked at her and said mockingly, his voice low and weighty,
"Young lady… looks like you survived the explosion."
The woman froze, her hands trembling, fear written across her face. Summoning every ounce of courage, she stammered,
"Sir… have you seen a girl around? Her age is—"
Before she could finish, a small blast erupted directly in front of her. Its intensity wasn't massive, but it obliterated her face completely, and blood gushed from her neck like a crimson fountain.
The blonde-haired man smirked, his voice cold and teasing.
"Oops… my hand slipped. Consider it a punishment for not answering me."
The guy was about to leave when a young girl came running toward the corpse, tears streaming down her face.
"Mom! Mom, please don't leave me!" she cried, clutching at the lifeless body.
His eyes gleamed as he struck.
"Ghk—!" A sharp kick hit her stomach, sending her flying backward. Pain stabbed her chest, and she coughed up blood, tumbling away from her mother.
He laughed, a cold, playful sound that echoed through the ruined streets.
"Ohhhh… such a heartwarming reunion between a dead mother and her daughter," he said mockingly, "Looks like I have to join you two... permanently."
The guy picked up a pebble, holding it menacingly toward the girl.
"Bye-bye… go meet your mother, little girl," he said with a cruel grin.
The rock exploded just in front of her—but before it could hit, a robot swooped in, carrying the girl out of the city.
"What!? The girl… saved by a robot?!" Nero shouted, anger flashing in his eyes.
On the ruins of a broken building, Kairen stood silently with a katana in hand. A mask concealed his face, mechanical boots humming softly beneath him, and yet—his arrogance still leaked through every line of his posture.
"What's your name?" he asked in a deep, commanding voice.
The guy spat saliva, tilting his head with a smug smirk.
"My name… heh… Nero. That robot was yours, right?"
Without waiting for the answer Nero threw multiple explosive pebbles towards kairen.
"Hahahaha... You really thought I will wait for your answer. This is what happens when someone takes away my prey...you filthy rat."
"Lol...did you really thought I died", Kairen spoke from behind. He was floating on a flying hoverboard
"How did you survive that? I caused multiple explosion"
"Looks like I am better than you" Kairen mockingly teased him.
Kairen in his mind speaking to Nova:
"Phew... that was close, I almost died. Thanks for saving me Nova"
"No problem! Btw if I already didn't tell you then I am gonna tell you now. By the level of damage done to the city this Nero guy did, he must have really trained his Astral."
"WTF!! Couldn't you tell me that earlier."
"Hehe...I forgot to mention it"
"Finee... anyway I just want an interesting fight and nothing else."
Back to the fight,
"You... better than me" Nero repeated the words. "Hahaha..What kind of joke is this" laughing by what he just heard.
Without saying a word, Kairen shot forward on his hoverboard. Wind howled past him. The katana was raised, his eyes fixed only on Nero.
Nero smirked.
"So, you really think you can defeat me with just a katana?"
He lazily pointed his finger at the charging Kairen.
"Inferno Blast!"
The world flashed white.
Kairen reacted instinctively—he jumped off the hoverboard and dragged it in front of him as a shield. The blast struck. The board shattered into fragments. Shards cut his skin as he crashed onto the ground and rolled back.
"Tch…"
He stopped sliding. His body throbbed, but thankfully, no major damage. Only burning scratches across his arms.
He forced himself up.
"Nova, activate the mechanical boots."
The boots lit up. A blue glow wrapped around his legs, crackling like thunder.
"…activated."
Kairen exhaled once, then vanished.
His speed spiked so sharply that an ordinary human's eyes would never catch him.
Nero's eyebrows rose. A grin followed.
"Ohh? A new trick. Looks like you're going to be fun after all."
Kairen appeared at his side and swung.
Instead of dodging, Nero cocked his fist back.
"Inferno Punch!"
The explosion bloomed point-blank. The shockwave hurled Kairen back.
"Argh—!"
He slid, teeth clenched. The frustration in his chest burned hotter than the pain. He charged again, strikes becoming non-stop, one after another, like rain.
Nero laughed quietly and stopped holding back.
"Explosive Speed."
The air cracked. His body blurred into streaks of yellow-orange light; explosions burst in the places he stepped.
The speed gap vanished.
Kairen's advantage disappeared in seconds.
Inferno punches slammed into him. He blocked many—too many—but each one still rattled his bones. His katana barely kept up; Nero's movements were getting faster and faster.
In the chaos he shouted internally.
"Nova! Where's the robot?!"
"It's returning. Approximately two kilometers away."
"Good. Bring some guns with it too."
"…Eh?"
"You heard me."
Kairen almost lost balance as another strike grazed him.
Nero smirked while dominating him.
"Is that all you can do?"
His fist sank into Kairen's stomach.
"Ghk—!"
Blood sprayed from Kairen's mouth as he was flung back and crashed, breath knocked out of him. His limbs refused to move.
Nero stepped forward and threw another punch—
—but it struck metal.
The robot arrived, standing like an iron wall in front of Kairen. Not a single scratch marked its surface.
"So you called your toy. Good choice." Nero grinned wider. "Now I can destroy both of you."
He lunged.
"Inferno Punch!"
The robot caught his fist. The explosion engulfed it completely—but it didn't budge. Its other arm spun like a drill and smashed Nero into broken concrete.
"Ghk—! Cough!"
Blood spilled from Nero's lips. His playful smile faded into something twisted.
"How dare you… hit me?!"
The ground cracked beneath him as he kicked off.
"Inferno Barrage!"
A storm of explosive punches crashed into the robot. One of its arms tore off and spun away. It still tried to swing the other—but Nero blocked it easily and kept hitting.
The robot about to strike back but a noise echoed
"Hey you! Who told you to fight hand to hand?! Guns were brought for you!", Kairen shouted angrily. "Nova! Make it take guns and support me from long range! Watching is boring!"
"But—"
"Do as I said!"
"…fine."
The robot stepped back, raised its rifle, and aimed.
Kairen disappeared again.
A barrage of sword strikes carved into Nero. He tried to guard, but every time he blocked one strike, another dug into a different part of his body.
"Tch—!"
"Inferno Defense!"
Light burst from his body. The explosion swallowed Kairen—
—but instead of being blown away, Kairen walked through the smoke.
The katana punched through Nero's stomach.
His eyes widened. Blood dripped from his mouth.
Shots rang out. Bullets slammed into him from afar.
Kairen grinned. "Looks like this fight is ending soon."
Nero gasped for breath.
"You think… I—Ghk—will lose… to you?"
His expression twisted.
"No more mercy. You rat."
"Core Detonation!"
The ground trembled. Chunks of earth tore free and floated toward the sky. Nero rose with them, hovering, eyes glowing with madness.
A piercing, high-frequency shockwave blasted outward.
"Urgh—! My… ears—!"
Sound stabbed into Kairen's skull like needles. Before he could think, rocks circled him and detonated in unison. The robot fired from behind—but Nero erected a blazing wall.
"You filthy robot… you think you can beat me?"
The explosion went off right in front of the robot. It survived—but only just. Its body shook, parts threatening to fall apart, sparks dancing along its joints.
Move… I have to move…!
Kairen forced his body forward. Using the boots, he jumped onto a tall ruined building.
"You think you can run?"
Boulders rained toward him—yet the robot intercepted, spinning, its speed whipping up a tornado to divert them.
"Nova… doesn't he have a weakness?" Kairen panted.
"I am still analyzing. Currently, none detected."
"Analyze faster."
He dove back down.
The tornado caught Nero off-guard; bullets tore into him from every direction. Exhaustion finally showed on his face… yet he snarled.
"Nuclear Explosion!"
The world went white. A ten-meter radius disappeared. The robot was nearly obliterated, barely standing now.
Nero clutched his head, staggering. His consciousness flickered—
—and Kairen's kick smashed across his face.
Blood stained Nero's lips. Anger burned in his eyes.
"Tch… you really won't quit, huh… Hah… are you really that eager to die…?"
Kairen's boots flashed. He delivered kicks again and again, then drove his sword through Nero's shoulder.
"AAAAAH!"
Nero detonated another Nuclear Explosion at point-blank range.
Kairen took it full-on.
Smoke and dust drifted.
"…Looks like I won," Nero said coldly. He pointed his fingers like a gun. "Any last wish?"
Kairen laughed.
Not a weak laugh.
A wild, delighted one.
"Finally… after six years… this is fun!"
Nero clicked his tongue.
"You've gone mad—"
He fired—
—but the barely-standing robot staggered in and punched Nero away.
Nova's voice echoed.
"Kairen. Nero cannot fight longer than ten to fifteen minutes. His body weakens drastically. As a side effect of his Astral—though unconfirmed—his head may detonate if he continues using strong moves."
"Ten minutes, huh…" he muttered as he pushed himself to his feet.
A black aura burst forth from him. Beneath the mask, his lips twisted into a savage, predatory grin, and a chilling blue light flooded his eyes. They were cold and merciless—like those of a beast that had finally found prey worth tearing apart.
He charged.
Nero hurriedly raised a wall in front of him to protect himself—
but Kairen was already behind him.
Before Nero could even turn, the blade stabbed near his heart.
Nero swung weakly, hitting Kairen back, but the robot appeared behind Kairen, supporting him forward again. A kick sent Nero flying. Another metallic punch followed.
Nero trembled, trying to stand. The robot drew back for one more strike—
—and froze.
[Energy Over]
[System Power Off]
Before he could relax, a kick slammed into his stomach.
Kairen strolled toward him, lazily licking the blood from his sword.
"What's wrong, Nero? Out of fight already?"
"Inferno Bl—"
"AAAH!"
Nero's scream tore out of him. Pain exploded inside his skull. It felt as if a bomb were lodged in his head and seconds away from detonation. He clutched it, shaking, barely conscious.
Kairen walked toward him slowly. His aura was darker than night.
Nero stared at his eyes.
No exhaustion. No hesitation. Only thrill. Killing intent for no justice, no revenge—just desire.
As the scene registered in his eyes, fear twisted his expression.
"Wh…who are you…?"
Kairen raised his katana.
" Vain. The Nova-Bounded Trillionaire."
He sliced Nero's arm. Blood sprayed.
Memories flashed through Nero's mind. All the people he had killed for fun. Now the predator was the prey.
"Please! Don't… don't kill me!"
Nero's voice broke as he begged, eyes wide with terror.
Kairen tilted his head slightly.
A single swing.
Blood sprayed, and Nero's remaining arm was severed.
The scream echoed across the ruined city.
"You really entertained me," Kairen said calmly. "But it's time to say goodbye."
He aimed for Nero's neck.
But before the blade landed—
a beam of light pierced Kairen's abdomen.
He staggered, burning pain ripping through him.
Two figures appeared: a green-haired man and a red-haired one. The green-haired one caught Nero as he collapsed.
"…Arnav… what took you… so long…" Nero mumbled before fainting.
Arnav held him tightly. The red-haired man cracked his knuckles, laser forming at his fingertip.
"Zayan, we don't have time. Nero will die if we stay."
"Tch. Leaving already? Boring."
As they turned away, Zayan looked back.
"Listen well, kid. I'll be back… and I'll make you pay for what you did to my bro."
Smoke wrapped them.
They vanished.
Kairen remained standing for a moment, shaking—then collapsed. Exhaustion and pain finally crushed him.
"Heh… Nova… that was fun. Think there'll be more fights like this…?"
"There will be," Nova replied gently.
Kairen smiled faintly.
And lost consciousness.
------ TO BE CONTINUED -----