In their attempts to escape, Shin and Manu found themselves facing the same giant who had greeted them upon their arrival. Having confronted him before, they knew full well that they couldn't defeat him, not even in his current state. Fortunately, defeating him wasn't their objective today.
— "Did you really think you could run?"
The giant was indeed imposing—tall, powerful, radiating a sense of invincibility. Facing him was like facing a beast.
Tom shot them a dark look, a mix of disappointment and regret, as if he didn't want things to come to this. He had hoped to see these two young men grow under his guidance, to help them become true Awakened, but it seemed fate had other plans. The giant's skin began to turn to steel, though at a very slow pace.
He had a physical-type ability, but the transformation speed was slowed thanks to Manu's efforts, who had spent the entire night preparing this formation. Yet, despite their efforts, they were currently caught in a pincer move: Tom in front of the hall, and Céline breaking her energy bubble at a terrifying speed. Luckily, the rest of the team wasn't there; otherwise, the two young men would have had no chance. Their absence was due to the possibility of another monster appearing in the city, meaning they couldn't all gather here for just two Level 0 Awakened.
— "You guys are really annoying, you know?"
Finishing his sentence, the young challenger grinned. Shin threw smoke bombs in every direction, blinding everyone.
He took advantage of the moment to activate the perpetual cycle and boosted without hesitation.
Skilled as he was, Tom quickly spotted their silhouettes despite the smoke and sent a powerful punch, hoping to finish things quickly. Yet, he only hit a floating sweater in midair.
Then he saw two fingers in front of his eyes.
— "AHH!!!"
Shin's audacity knew no limits. Whether his opponent was kind or not, he was determined to give everything for victory. At least he managed to blind his opponent for a moment, and Manu seized the opportunity, following his friend's lead. He aimed for the giant's groin, paralyzing him briefly.
— "This is for yesterday's training."
Manu added as he sprinted after Shin toward the door. For a moment, the two friends glimpsed their escape—the door that would allow them to flee and begin their plan to dismantle Rubis and protect the city's inhabitants, contrary to what the police and special forces had planned. They were so close to achieving it, but fate had other ideas.
From the shadows, Grid appeared behind Manu. He had been there from the start, waiting for his moment. He had observed everything in silence, from their entry to their attack on Tom, patiently waiting for Shin and Manu to slip up so he could deliver a decisive blow—and he had found the opportunity. Most importantly, he wasn't going to miss it.
Standing behind Manu, he prepared the most devastating move of the Mountain Tiger art: the King of the Mountain, and he did not miss.
His fist glowing with green flame, he struck, shattering the ground beneath him and creating a powerful shockwave that cleared the smoke screen—but more importantly, it hit Manu's leg, breaking his shin and sending him crashing mid-sprint. He screamed in pain as he slammed into the ground.
— "Manu!"
Shin froze for a second, the only second Tom needed to grab him and hurl him across the hall, where he fell awkwardly to the floor, his arm—by which Tom had grabbed him—badly damaged. Tom had not held back.
Shin was now in the worst possible situation: surrounded by everyone, with less than ten seconds remaining for Céline to free herself.
— "Run, Shin!"
Shouted Manu as he was restrained by the steel giant.
Reluctantly, Shin tried a second breakthrough to escape, but again Grid intercepted him, blocking the path. Shin clicked his tongue in frustration and threw a smoke bomb, creating another smoke screen to obscure Grid's vision.
He planned to go around him, yet our hero didn't expect his own weapon to betray him.
The smoke from the bomb also blocked his view, preventing him from seeing what Grid was preparing. Little Fang prepared his technique again and emerged from the smoke.
In an instant, he struck Shin at head level, sending him to the ground.
Céline finally broke her bubble and used her cane to immobilize Shin, pressing him down flat on the floor. She applied a kind of enhanced gravity to each of his limbs with her ability, leaving him completely immobile.
Shin and Manu had failed in their escape attempts; their fate was now sealed.
Little Fang looked down at the heroes on the ground. These people, so arrogant and provocative in his eyes, had finally lost to him. In the end, he could only show a dark, amused smile as he looked at Shin—once so proud and arrogant—lying on the floor, while he stood above him, a symbol of superiority. Then he said:
— "Guess what? I win in the end, hahahaha!"
Shin had lost against all odds, despite all his preparations. Normally, that wouldn't have been possible. It was as if Grid had known in advance what would happen and prepared accordingly.
— "I've never had a sweeter victory than this. Thank your precious mentor for betraying you!"
Grid immediately burst into maniacal laughter after finishing his sentence. The truth struck Shin in the face, and everything suddenly made sense. If there was a traitor among them, Shin had denied it and turned to Haru, hoping to hear that it was all a lie.
— "Sorry, Shin… I told you not to do it."
Shin's face fell apart, a mix of rage, sadness, and an abyssal emptiness.
The tragedy had finally arrived.
Grid's dark laughter intensified as Céline spoke.
— "I suspected you might try something after the monster appeared, so I asked Haru to tell me if you attempted anything."
She said with a sigh, looking at them with the same contempt one reserves for disgusting, pitiful cockroaches.
— "You would have been better off listening and staying in your place."— "Even if Haru told you everything, there's no way you could know what we prepared yesterday. After all, I didn't mention the emergency plan."
Grid then smiled and spoke. He grabbed Shin by the hair, bringing him close so he could hear clearly.
— "It's because I was listening when you two were talking on the roof. After that, I went to see what your precious friend was doing and prepared while staying in the shadows."
Finishing his sentence, he slammed Shin's head into the floor as he stood.
— "Alright, it's time to put the three of you in prison."
Said Tom, dragging Manu like a sack of potatoes.
— "Three?"
Asked Haru, confused.
— "Of course. After all, you conspired with them."
Céline said with disdain as Grid easily restrained her. After all, a ranger without a transformer is nothing against an Awakened.
— "NO! That wasn't the deal, Céline! You were supposed to free my son!"
Haru screamed.
— "The boss has, of course, decided to free your son, but we decided it was time to finish with you. After all, your existence is unbearable to her. Consider yourself lucky we're letting you live until we deal with Rubis."
With those harsh words, Céline, Tom, and Grid had won, while Shin, Manu, and Haru had lost.