Chapter 15

  In the barren expanse of Ronda, where silence reigned and the desert stretched endlessly, Suero stood facing Solio, who wore a mocking smile on his face. Suero's gaze was piercing, and his voice carried a profound weight as he spoke:

  "Tell me... You've killed many humans, haven't you?"

  Solio did not respond, his mocking smile sufficing as an answer. This provoked Suero to continue, his voice grim and furious:

  "Just as you killed them without thought... I, too, will kill you without thought!"

  Solio burst into loud laughter and retorted with a mocking challenge:

  "Come on, Suero Rashid! Show me what you're capable of! How long will you remain weak, whining like a coward?"

  Suero lowered his head, staring at the ground in silence, while the stillness around them felt like the calm before an inevitable storm. Solio observed him coldly before speaking:

  "You won't be able to kill me until you understand that we are two sides of the same coin!"

  Suero didn't lift his head, but his clenched fists began to emit blue sparks. Solio attempted to continue, but Suero's voice, laden with rage, interrupted him:

  "My blood boils because of you...!"

  Suddenly, Suero raised his head, his gaze sending waves of terror into the air as he declared in a chilling voice:

  "All dreams are over... Everything has ended. Now, we are in hell!"

  Solio smirked mockingly and replied with icy calm:

  "Stop your pointless prattle!"

  Out of nowhere, Solio doubled over and vomited a strange purple orb. The orb expanded rapidly, transforming into grotesque creatures with tears streaming from their eyes. The creatures charged toward Suero, seemingly intent on tearing him apart.

  One of the creatures let out a strangled, haunting cry:

  "Free us... Please!"

  Suero froze momentarily, his eyes widening in shock as he thought to himself:

  "Could they... Could they have been humans?!"

  Quickly snapping back to reality, he cautiously stepped back. Solio laughed arrogantly and shouted:

  "Isn't this entertaining? They begged me not to transform them, and now they've become monsters by my hand!"

  As the creatures lunged toward Suero, he kept retreating, muttering in anger:

  "You bastard...!"

  The creatures' tears fell like rain, and one of them roared in agony:

  "Help us... Kill us, please!"

  Confusion gripped Suero as his thoughts raced:

  "Should I kill them? And if I do, will that free them?"

  He dodged their attacks, his mind caught in a whirlwind of internal conflict. As one creature leapt toward him, time seemed to freeze for Suero. In his mind, he wondered in despair:

  "What should I do?!"

  Meanwhile, Solio watched with a smirk, thinking to himself:

  "Suero Rashid... The opposite of his master, Sbyam Brius. He can't bring himself to kill his own kind... What a fool!"

  He smirked again, but suddenly, everything changed. His expression froze and shifted to utter disbelief as he saw Suero grasp one creature's face with his hands, crushing it with such force that its head exploded under his grip. Blood splattered like shrapnel, and the stench of death filled the air.

  Drenched in blood, Suero slowly lifted his head and locked eyes with Solio, sending a shiver through the atmosphere. Another creature lunged toward him, but Suero unleashed a powerful aura from his body, causing the creature to explode as if it were a ticking bomb.

  The aura spread rapidly, causing the bodies of all the other creatures to explode simultaneously. A heavy silence settled over the area as Solio stared at Suero in utter shock. In his mind, he thought:

  "Did he really do it? Did he kill his own kind?!"

  Suero, meanwhile, stood still, staring at the blood splattered across the ground. His voice was cold and emotionless as he murmured:

  "I'm sorry... but I have to move forward."

  He raised his head, locking eyes with Solio, his gaze carrying a message that needed no words. Solio, in turn, shifted his attention to his glasses, wiping them with a faint smile as he thought:

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  "No matter how many he kills, nothing will change... In the end, he will still be weak."

  As Suero continued to stare at Solio, the mocking smile returned to Solio's lips. Suero began walking toward him with steady steps, his eyes blazing with anger and determination.

  With a sneer laced with mockery, Solio taunted:

  "Come at me, little one! Show me what you've got!"

  Suero launched himself forward like a lightning bolt, his movements astonishingly swift and fluid. In an instant, he was directly in front of Solio, unleashing a relentless barrage of powerful punches.

  Although caught off guard, Solio managed to dodge each punch with remarkable precision, his movements resembling a dance to the rhythm of battle. In a split-second maneuver, Suero slid deftly between Solio's legs.

  Before Solio could react, he found Suero behind him, delivering a series of rapid punches to his back. Blue sparks flew from Suero's fists, and with a swift, forceful kick, Suero sent Solio's body hurtling through the air like a falling meteor. Solio crashed into the ground and rolled for a significant distance.

  With a serious expression, Suero moved like a phantom, closing the gap between them as Solio struggled to his feet.

  "Is that all you've got?" Suero asked coldly.

  But suddenly, Solio flashed a maniacal grin, and his body began regenerating at an unnatural speed. In an instant, he leapt to his feet and delivered a powerful punch to Suero's face. The tremendous force sent Suero flying upward, but he quickly regained his balance, landing smoothly on the ground.

  The two faced each other once more, their eyes speaking volumes more than words ever could. In a fleeting moment, they both lunged at one another like intersecting arrows. Solio aimed a deadly punch, but Suero evaded it with agile precision. In return, Suero executed a low sweeping kick to knock Solio off balance, but Solio leapt effortlessly into the air.

  With a wild glint in his eyes, Solio shouted:

  "You will never be able to kill me!"

  Placing his hand gently on the ground, Solio caused the earth to tremble violently. Suero leapt back cautiously, but the ground near him cracked open, and massive, purple-hued roots erupted from the fissures, growing rapidly toward the sky.

  Standing atop one of the towering roots, Suero watched the scene in amazement:

  "What is happening here?"

  From below, Solio's body began to stretch and transform as he ascended with lightning speed toward Suero. His hand morphed into a sharp blade aimed at cutting Suero in two. At the last possible moment, Suero jumped, narrowly avoiding the lethal strike with extraordinary agility, landing on another root.

  At a dizzying height above the twisting purple roots, the two faced each other again. Solio raised his hand, which transformed into a massive cannon. From it, he fired a blazing black orb. The fiery projectile shot forth with devastating speed, and Suero cursed in frustration:

  "Damn it!"

  Leaping to a nearby root just in time, Suero watched as the black orb obliterated the root he had been standing on. Solio, his expression a mix of hysteria and delight, aimed the cannon once more, unleashing a barrage of black orbs.

  Suero moved swiftly between the collapsing roots, his eyes never leaving his adversary. He dodged one attack after another, the fiery sparks exploding around him as if the heavens were raining fire.

  Moving with incredible skill, Suero evaded the onslaught, appearing to dance to the rhythm of peril. His gaze burned with determination as he focused on Solio. Inside his mind, one thought echoed endlessly:

  "I have to reach him... There’s no other choice but to face him head-on, or I’ll die here."

  Solio continued his relentless barrage of blazing orbs, his hysterical laughter echoing across the battlefield. But suddenly, the bombardment ceased, and his hand reverted to its original form. With a powerful leap, Solio launched himself toward Suero, extending his fist in an attempt to deliver a deadly punch. Yet, in a split second, Suero vanished like a ghost.

  Solio froze in place, his eyes darting in every direction, searching desperately for Suero. Before he could comprehend the situation, Suero materialized behind him. The blue sparks around Suero's fist flared into a dark crimson glow, radiating an ominous intensity. In a voice deep and brimming with fury, Suero shouted:

  "Shrine Punch!"

  Suero's punch connected with Solio’s face, unleashing a shockwave so powerful that it tore through the air, sending Solio hurtling toward the ground like a meteor crashing from the heavens. Dust and debris erupted into the air as Suero descended gracefully, the crimson energy still swirling around his fist like an unrelenting spirit of rage.

  Solio struggled to his feet, blood streaming down his face, his jaw shattered. Staring at Suero with a mix of fear and disbelief, he thought in despair:

  "What... what did he do to me? Why can’t I regenerate my soul?!"

  Suero advanced steadily, his cold, piercing gaze weighing heavily on Solio, suffocating him with dread.

  Realizing the futility of conventional combat, Solio's eyes glowed with a vivid purple, and sparks began to crackle around him. In a commanding voice, he declared:

  "Realm Expansion: Realm of Soul Distortion!"

  Despite his shock, Suero did not hesitate. He charged forward with all his might, fully aware of the impending danger. His thoughts raced:

  "I have to reach him before his realm takes full form!"

  But an ethereal barrier began to form, enclosing the area as the world around them started to shift.

  In an instant, Suero vanished again, reappearing directly in front of Solio, who could barely register what was happening. The crimson energy surrounding Suero's fist surged with even greater intensity. With a thunderous cry of rage, Suero delivered a devastating blow:

  "Shrine Punch!"

  The crimson energy tore through the sky, ripping apart the ground and air alike as the nascent realm descended into utter chaos. The destructive wave obliterated everything in its path, leaving behind nothing but ashes and ruins.

  In the desolate wasteland of Ronda, now a graveyard of despair, Solio lay crumpled on the ground like a broken puppet, utterly motionless.

  With great effort, Solio raised his eyes, trying to make sense of the devastation around him, only to see Suero standing before him, calm and composed, like the eye of a storm. Suero’s cold gaze bore down on him, cutting through the remnants of his will.

  Bending slightly closer, Suero spoke in a low, menacing voice, every word dripping with lethal intent:

  "Oii... you bastard."

  Solio's features trembled, and he swallowed hard, paralyzed by fear. Suero’s voice, cold and unyielding, broke the silence:

  "I admit it… I am you, and you are me. But that doesn’t matter now. Because my role in this war demands only one thing… to end you."

  Solio began to shiver uncontrollably, unable to tear his gaze away from Suero's piercing eyes, which seemed to penetrate his very soul. Overwhelmed with terror, he tried to crawl away, dragging himself across the ground. Behind him, Suero followed with slow, deliberate steps, his presence looming like a shadow of judgment.

  "I’ll make you one promise," Suero said softly but with resolute finality. "I will cleanse this world of all of you."

  Solio scrambled faster, his desperate cries echoing through the barren wasteland. Suddenly, he felt a heavy foot pinning his own, halting his escape. Slowly, he turned his head, only to find Suero standing over him, his cold gaze piercing down like a blade, stopping Solio's heart in its tracks.

  "You’re weak… and pathetic," Suero declared, crouching down to bring his face closer to Solio’s. "Your existence has no value."

  Suero raised his hand slowly, placing his palm against Solio’s trembling face. Solio’s wide, terrified eyes stared at Suero's hand as it began to glow, emitting a surge of crackling blue energy.

  "Apologize… to the souls you’ve taken."

  Solio screamed in panic, but his cries were abruptly silenced as the blue energy shot through his face like a bullet, leaving a deep, hollow void. His lifeless body slumped to the ground, the eerie silence consuming the space once again.

  Suero stood over the corpse as it began to disintegrate, dissolving into nothingness. All that remained was the necklace Solio had worn around his neck, lying in the dirt, untouched by time or decay. The winds carried the last traces of Solio's ashes into oblivion.

  Turning away, Suero cast a somber gaze over the ruins of Ronda, a city that once brimmed with life and vitality. Now, it was nothing more than a barren wasteland, flat and silent save for the haunting whisper of the wind.

  The barrier surrounding the city began to dissipate, gradually revealing the grim scene to the waiting journalists and observers outside. A reporter, frozen in place, whispered hoarsely into her microphone:

  "What… happened here?"

  In the center of what was once a bustling city, Suero stood in solemn silence, his eyes bearing the weight of the carnage that had unfolded. Beyond the barrier, countless eyes stared at him in shock and disbelief, their hearts heavy with unanswered questions.

  End of Chapter.

  Oh my God! That was truly an amazing chapter, wasn't it?! Suero managed to defeat Solio, and the war that broke out in Ronda has... sort of ended.

  The next chapter will be the final one in this arc, wrapping up events that will determine the fate of all the characters. Stay tuned for a chapter full of twists and turns, along with the Mana Organization enforcing its laws after the incident ! .