The atmosphere of the trial courtroom shifted in an instant. Those below C-Rank were ushered away by Sir Raptor, while the stronger heroes mostly guild leaders and powerful solo awakeners.. rushed to choose a side.

There were two sides to be taken. On one stood one of the most powerful heroes on the planet: the Undying Flame. He hovered midair, flames spiraling around his frame, his very presence radiating a psychological chill and literal, immense heat simultaneously.

At his back stood several powerful heroes; most were High A-Ranks from the Flame Guild, followed by others who sided with him simply because the choice between an uprising hero and a long-standing legend was obvious.

Han, however, did not stand alone. Behind him were the members of his guild: Clara, Aiden, Silver Wing, Shae, Bron, Shin, and a few others. Still, the disparity in numbers was glaring. No matter how much Han had accomplished in such a short time, his presence could not yet match the Undying Flame in the eyes of the masses.

It wasn't just about status, either; it was about the man he was protecting. To everyone else, the projected video had shown that Ronan was a vile monster. If they let a creature like him live, who knew who the next victim would be?

They weren't necessarily opposing Han, just Ronan... but since Han had made it clear that no one would touch a hair on Ronan's head while he stood there, it amounted to the same thing.

"Hey, which side should we support?" Little One leaned in and whispered into Balor's ear.

Balor frowned. Which side were they supposed to choose? They respected the S-Class heroes immensely; after all, they were the pillars of humanity that even the A6 looked up to. They had worked hard to reach their current level, and opposing a legend now felt like throwing that effort away. On the other hand, there was Han.

His guild had done the world a massive favor by eliminating the Cursed. They had fought and bled alongside Han's team, and even Ronan had helped them survive on multiple occasions. They had simply gone through too much together to turn their backs now.

Balor turned to his sister. "Elexa, which side are you choosing?"

Elexa's gaze lacked its usual playfulness. She stood up and walked forward. Deep down, she felt the evidence had to be fake. she had watched Ronan and the others fight for justice; she had fought alongside them long enough to know they meant no one harm. Why would Ronan, a man who preferred silence and peace, commit such a heinous act against Blazer without reason? Something wasn't adding up.

As Elexa walked toward the confrontation, Balor's face stiffened. Was she really going against the Tryst Guild? Perhaps that was the only reasonable choice. But his tension didn't last long; Elexa walked right past the Undying Flame's supporters and took her place beside Aiden.

The Undying Flame's cold gaze washed over her, but she didn't flinch. "Sorry, Sir Flame, but I'm opposing you on this one. I don't believe Ronan would do something that heinous," she said, gesturing toward the screen.

"Elexa, you don't want to involve yourself in this," a voice from the Flame Guild's side growled. It made no sense to them that the top two A-Class heroes would side with the "enemy."

Just then, the space rippled and Balor stepped calmly beside Elexa. "I'm sorry, Sir Flame, but I will side with the Tryst Guild as well. I trust them. I would prefer if this fight didn't break out; we can still settle this. There must be a mistake somewhere."

A small figure landed on Balor's shoulder. Little One sat there, rubbing his forehead. "You guys are really going to be the death of me. But who cares? I'll side with you one last time."

He looked toward the Undying Flame, who regarded them with icy disdain before looking back at Han. "I will only say this one last time: get out of my way, or you will suffer the same fate as your friend."

Han's expression remained calm and relaxed as he shook his head. "I'll have to decline."

The light around the Undying Flame became blinding as he raised a palm. A large ball of fire began to form, growing larger and larger as waves of heat rushed outward. Han's flame ring pulsed once, and multiple inferno vortexes formed in the air. Both were ready to charge, and the courtroom seemed on the verge of total destruction, when a figure descended with mighty force.

The ground exploded outward. Standing in the shattered crater with feral energy rolling off his body was the Beast. "Both of you, stop this madness!" he roared, his voice hitting the room like a sonic boom.

"Beast, move! I'm not stopping," Flame snarled.

The Beast looked at Flame and growled, "Come on, this is against the rules of the court. You are going against everything *he* wanted. Doing this is the same as going against him."

At those words, the coldness in Flame's eyes wavered. He knew the Beast was right; this was not something Walker would have wanted. The insane heat and flames around the Undying Flame vanished as he floated down, though his face remained menacing.

"I won't fight here, but I believe we have seen enough. Ronan Steele should be executed."

Han dismissed his fusion with Ifrit and landed as well, shaking his head. "No, that's not happening."

The Beast turned to Han. "You saw for yourself what your guild member did. That is undisputed evidence. How would you counter that?"

"That evidence is a lie," Han said simply. "There is no way Ronan would do that." Elexa and the others nodded in support.

The Beast looked toward Ronan, who remained standing in his place, eyes glazed over as if looking through everyone at something unseen. "Ronan, you did what they said you did, didn't you?"

Ronan's gaze shifted to him. He shook his head. "I didn't kill Blazer. Buster did."

Flames erupted again as the Undying Flame's rage spilled over, though this time it was more contained. "We all saw it! Stop the lies! We saw you kill him, behead him, and crush his head.

Now you're trying to shift the blame to Buster after you killed him yourself? Or are you going to claim you didn't kill Buster either?"

Ronan looked at Flame. "I killed Buster. That, I admit."

"And why did you do that?" the Beast asked. He still found it hard to believe the kid before him had the power to kill an S-Rank... it was an admirable feat, if not a desirable one.

"He deserved it," Ronan replied. "Buster was a monster, and he deserved to die."

"You are overstepping, young man. Calling an S-Rank a monster while you've killed him and many others yourself? You're making me want to support Flame in killing you," the Beast said with a joyless smile. He clearly wasn't buying Ronan's story.

"Things are getting tense again, aren't they?" Little One muttered, his face glooming. If a fight really broke out, the scale would be massive.

Just as the tension reached a breaking point, a loud sound silenced the room. Sir Raptor stood from his seat. "Everyone, return to your seats. The trial is not over. Defendant and accuser, please step forward and give the full proof and statements you have prepared."

Han and the others left Ronan and Clara alone as the Beast dragged Flame back to his seat. Clara stepped forward to begin the defense. "I believe there is a lot going on here that is twisting the truth. First, I would like to ask the accuser where he obtained his evidence."

She turned toward where the accuser had been standing, but he was gone. In his place, a piece of paper floated. Someone nearby grabbed it and read aloud: "I have done my best for the world by revealing that Ronan Steele is a monster who should be killed. Now, I cannot stay and let the Fire God and his allies choke or kill me, so I am leaving for my safety."

Clara's expression darkened. The man's choice of words had painted him as a holy seeker of justice. Things were spiraling. But what bothered her more was who the man actually was, and how he had left without any of them noticing.

Han was even more bothered than Clara. His senses spread out for several kilometers, searching for the man, but there was no trace. It was as if he had vanished into thin air.

Something told him this wasn't the last time that stranger would cause trouble. Han was right; he didn't know it yet, but that man would become his worst enemy very soon.

Meanwhile, far away, the man who had testified against Ronan was inside a sleek, fast airship traveling at insane speeds. "Master Kai, we are drawing close," one of his subordinates said reverently.

Kai looked through the window at the clouds. Would the evidence he dropped be enough to kill Ronan? He wasn't certain, but he always planned several steps ahead. If Plan A failed, this would surely work.

"Time for Plan B," he said.

His body began to change. His sleek white suit shifted into a black overcoat with black inners. A hood covered his head and his hair turned jet black.

Two swords hung loosely at his back, forming an X-shape. In seconds, Kai had transformed into a very familiar figure.

It was Ronan Steele.

"Time to destroy the Flame Guild," he said, his eyes glowing purple.