​"DIE!!!!"

​Angelina’s scream was a ragged edge of grief as she dived, shielded by the massive, leathery wings of her strongest Mythical Dragon.

​WHOOSH!!!

​".....?!!"

​The world seemed to stutter for a fraction of a second. Angelina froze. Before her eyes, the dragon’s colossal head slid cleanly away from its neck, separated by an invisible line. The massive summon—a creature that could level a city—dropped like a stone, its physical form dissolving into a cloud of grey dust before it even hit the canopy.

​"What just happened?!" Angelina’s voice shook. She hadn’t felt a surge of mana, or spirit energy, nor seen a single movement. Her strongest protector had been erased in total silence, killed in a second.

​She raised her head toward Regina. The red-haired woman stood calmly in the air, slowly sheathing her black-and-purple sword.

​"None of my enemies have seen this attack and survived," Regina said, her gaze as cold and sharp as the blade she carried.

’This is your judgement for insulting my god. From now on, you will be chased to exhaustion, and lastly, you will die.’ She thought, her gaze filled with coldness.

​WHOOSH!!

​The wind picked up, but it wasn’t a natural breeze. Angelina spun around, her heart sinking. She watched in horror as her entire army of summons—dozens of monsters—began to fall apart. Limbs were severed from torsos; wings were clipped mid-flight.

​".....?!"

​She stood trembling on the back of her last remaining eagle, watching her life’s work shatter into countless pieces. As the final summon dissolved, the Backlash hit her.

​"You!!"

​She clutched her chest, her vision swimming as she vomited a mouthful of dark blood. The psychic link to her summons had been severed so violently it felt like her soul was being shredded. She stared at Regina, her voice a terrified whisper: "What are you?!"

Regina stared at her, not uttering a single word.

​WHOOSH!!!

​The invisible death-knell turned toward her, but suddenly, a hand grabbed her shoulder. Denton appeared in a blur, wrapping his arms around her and leaping off the eagle just as it was sliced into ribbons.

​BAM!!

​Angelina blinked, watching the eagle’s remains drop through the sky. Her last summon was gone, she was rendered completely powerless.

​"Denton? Why are you here?!" she yelled, the shock of his arrival snapping her out of her stupor.

​"Shut up!!" Denton snapped, landing hard on a thick tree branch.

"Are you stupid heading out on your own! I know you’re angry, but at least think about yourself before acting!!"

"....??"

Angelina was speechless.

​WHOOSH!

​He didn’t stop to breathe. He scooped her up in a princess carry and leaped off the tree. A split second later, the massive trunk he had been standing on was split perfectly into halves.

​’This is strange... It’s like an invisible sword is chasing after us!’ Denton thought, his heart hammering against his ribs. He looked over his shoulder, watching as every tree he touched was instantly shattered into splinters.

​High above, Regina narrowed her eyes. "He can see the sword?" she muttered, surprised by the man’s instincts.

​"So what? Anyone you’ve marked can’t escape," Casey said, floating lazily behind her. "Even if they bury themselves beneath the ground, they will still die."

​"We need to hurry here," Precious added coldly. The two women turned to face her. "We don’t have time to waste. The faster we complete this mission, the better it is for everyone."

​Precious stretched forth her hand toward the forest, her gaze piercing through the foliage to find the fleeing pair. "We don’t have time to waste on ants."

​She clenched her fist. "Just die."

___

​[The Forest Depths]

​Denton hit the ground running, his lungs burning.

​"You?! Why are you helping me?!" Angelina asked, staring up at Denton’s sweat-streaked face.

​The dark-skinned man gave her a small, sad smile. "Can’t I help a friend?"

​"But—"

​BAM!!!

​Before she could finish, an invisible force smashed into Denton’s back with the weight of a falling mountain. He vomited a geyser of blood, the sound of his spine cracking echoing through the trees.

​"Denton!!"

​The force wrapped around him like a spectral claw, pinning him. Before it could pull him back into the invisible blades, he gathered the last of his strength and threw Angelina forward.

​"Go!! Don’t go back to the hideout! I will use all my powers to send you to the Boss!!" he yelled, his voice a guttural roar. He slammed his palms together, blood flowing freely from his lips.

​"Heaven Speed Arc!!"

​"No!!"

​Angelina screamed as the ground beneath her feet tore open into a shimmering gateway. She watched in agony as the invisible force dragged Denton back toward the "swords." She saw him get slashed into countless pieces, his remains scattered across the forest floor like fallen leaves.

​WHOOSH!!

​The invisible blades shot toward her, but they were too late. Angelina tumbled into the gateway, and it snapped shut.

​"Hmm...."

​Regina lightly touched down on the ground, Casey and Precious landing behind her.

​"It seems she is no longer in this world," Regina said, staring at the patch of disturbed earth where the gateway had been.

​"Really?" Casey asked, stunned that anyone had escaped Regina’s mark.

​"Yeah, my swords can’t locate her signature anymore. Anyway, let’s go." Regina turned toward the Ghost Fortress looming in the distance.

__

​[The Ruined Fortress]

​Inside the hall, the air was thick with the copper scent of blood. Executioner and Patricia stood before the cards, surrounded by the remnants of their power. They had destroyed all their summons to fill the Cup—only one Legendary and one Mythical card remained.

​Patricia coughed up blood, her face pale as death. She dropped to her knees. "Just 1% more..."

​"Come on, we can do this," Executioner yelled, his voice desperate.

​BOOOOM!!!

​"....?!"

​The heavy doors were blasted off their hinges. Three women walked into the hall with the casual air of people entering a garden.

​"It seems those two failed," Patricia whispered. She stood up slowly, reaching for the Legendary card hovering in the air. "We will fight to the death."

​Executioner nodded, drawing his final Mythical Dragon card. "Let’s go all out!" he yelled, throwing the card into the air. "Come out!!"

​"Come out!!" Patricia echoed.

​BOOOOM!!!

​The cards shattered, birthing two colossal dragons—one shimmering white and one deep crimson. Their massive bodies instantly pulverized the walls and the ceiling of the hall.

​GRAAAAAAAAA!!

​The dragons roared, their eyes fixed on the three interlopers.

​"Come on!! Prove you are worthy, and I won’t kill you!!!" Executioner screamed at his mythical beast. The dragon opened its maw, a swirling sun of fire forming between its teeth.

​"Hmm... This thing has the strength of a Transcendent Class," Precious noted, rubbing her jaw as she studied the beast.

​"Regina, please take care of those two summons," she added, glancing at the swordswoman.

​"Come on! You are the Leader of this team! Why am I doing everything?!" Regina yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Precious.

​"I am the leader, but your sword attack is the strongest," Precious snapped back. "We don’t have time for a debate."

​Executioner and Patricia watched in disbelief. A Mythical Dragon was ready to incinerate them, and these three were standing there arguing like children.

​"Do you want us to fail the mission?!" Casey added, siding with Precious.

​Regina sighed. She could argue all day, but the thought of failing a mission assigned by Sunny was a fate worse than death. She couldn’t live with that shame.

​"Ok then."

​She turned to the two dragons and gripped the hilt of her sword.

​"Ultimate Slash!!"

​With one fluid, blinding motion, she drew her blade. A massive, crescent-shaped wave of energy tore through the hall.

​"What?!!"

​The dragons’ eyes widened in a moment of sentient terror. Before they could breathe, the energy blade smashed through them, cutting both summons perfectly in half.

​".....?!!!"

​The summoners watched their ultimate weapons vanish in a single strike. The backlash hit them like a physical blow; both vomited blood and stumbled back toward the altar where the Cup was hidden.

​"What are you three?! And how is your attack this powerful?" Patricia asked, her voice trembling.

​"Of course, I am the true Goddess of Sharpness," Regina said, coolly sheathing her sword. "All my attacks are the sharpest in existence."

​"Where is the Cup?" Precious asked, her voice dangerously quiet as she walked toward them.

​"What cup!!" Executioner roared, his pride refusing to break.

​"I don’t have time for this." Precious snapped her fingers.

​SHLICK!

​Executioner’s right hand was severed cleanly from his shoulder.

​"Ahh!!!" He collapsed to his knees, clutching the stump of his arm.

"No!!" Patricia yelled in disbelief, and shock.

​"Where is the Cup?" Casey repeated. She blurred forward, her hand clamping around Patricia’s neck and hoisting the woman into the air.

​"No!!" Executioner yelled, but he found he couldn’t move—his body was pinned by an overwhelming pressure.

​’Who are these monsters?! Even my Mythical Dragon was slashed down in one move! How did we offend such beings?!!!’

"I will ask again." Casey’s voice resonated through the hall, vibrating in the very marrow of their bones.

​"Where is the Cup?"