Chapter 188: The Fallen Flame of Sorrow

He spun around swiftly and, as expected, caught Yahageshii's silhouette behind him. In those cold, detached eyes, a trace of pain and sorrow flickered. Watcher 20 sneered, "As expected of a brute, you've fallen into my trap after all."

Yahageshii's body burned with transparent, warped flames, his aura roaring like a flood. He was already so close that evasion was impossible, his momentum irreversible. Watcher 20 had long prepared, channeling the depths of darkness for this exact moment when Yahageshii charged.

Clenching his long blade, the dark energy surged like a tidal wave, transforming into a deadly arc of light. He sidestepped, aiming his blade straight at Yahageshii's neck, unleashing a lethal strike with full force.

Yet—

Whumm— The blade cleaved through not a body but a distorted void! Yahageshii's form fragmented like a shattered mirror, scattering into nothingness.

"What?!" Watcher 20's pupils contracted sharply as he realized this was merely an illusion created by heat. The real Yahageshii emerged from another transparent space, cloaked in overwhelming flames that radiated an unassailable presence, closing in on him from behind.

Twisting his body desperately, Watcher 20 tried to redirect his blade toward Yahageshii. But at that moment, Yahageshii's unexpected action stunned him—he stopped.

Yahageshii's left fist, still wreathed in terrifying transparent flames, effortlessly retracted the fire. His movements and expression exuded a calmness that was suffocating, as if he were waiting for something. Watcher 20's blade halted mere millimeters from Yahageshii's lashes, missing by the thinnest margin.

"What?! How is this bastard so composed in such a situation?!" Watcher 20's mind roared as sweat drenched him. He finally understood—those flames were a ruse! Yahageshii had never acted impulsively but had been patiently waiting for his moment.

Yahageshii lifted his gaze slightly, his eyes burning with flames that seemed to consume the heavens and earth. The fiery intensity pressed against the air, twisting it into unbearable heat. Each moment felt like the air was being seared, the space around them tearing apart under the pressure. The flames, devoid of radiant light, emanated pure destruction and an unyielding dominance, as if compressing the world into a searing inferno.

Watcher 20 had already swung his blade. The edge, sharp and imbued with deadly intent, vibrated through the air. But in an instant, his body froze in place, his every motion forcibly halted. The overwhelming pressure bore down like an invisible mountain, locking him in place. He couldn't even retract the swing he had unleashed. Time seemed to freeze; his heartbeat stalled as the flames swallowed his every sense and thought.

Frozen with terror and frustration, he could only watch as Yahageshii's transparent flames advanced relentlessly, erasing any chance of resistance or escape.

"A second early or late, it all ends the same." Yahageshii's voice was cold, his resolve absolute.

Watcher 20 felt a crushing force, as if the entire space around him twisted and compressed. Yahageshii's left fist descended, the transparent flames multiplying into countless phantasms that engulfed his body. Each strike landed with precision, their scorching force invading his very soul.

The flurry of punches interwove into an unseen net, trapping Watcher 20 completely. Escape was impossible; resistance, futile. Every blow tore the air asunder, erasing everything around it. Pain faded into numbness, replaced by a profound emptiness, as if the flame of his life was extinguished bit by bit.

Watcher 20 struggled to move, but his legs felt nailed to the ground. His consciousness blurred, his body consumed by the transparent fire. There was no more pain, only a void in his soul as the fire devoured him whole. These punches were no mere physical attacks; they carried a profound annihilation, dragging him into an endless abyss where his existence unraveled completely.

With each strike, numbness took hold until Watcher 20 was entirely devoid of life.

For the final blow, Yahageshii gazed coldly into his eyes, speaking with quiet finality: "And you must die."

The punch came down like a force that could shatter the heavens.

"Soulfire."

Yahageshii's fist struck, and the transparent flames surged forth like a relentless torrent. They engulfed Watcher 20 entirely, burning everything in their path. The intense heat distorted the air, its oppressive aura suffocating. The rising temperature warped the battlefield, the flames consuming everything as if the world itself would collapse into a single fiery point.

Watcher 20's body vanished within the transparent blaze. Every part of him—flesh, bone, and soul—was reduced to ash. Even his final thought was overtaken by the cold realization:

"My soul… it's my soul that burns…"

He now understood why these flames, silent and unassuming, could destroy utterly. They did not merely consume flesh but incinerated the soul. A soul reduced to ashes was no different from death itself.

As his awareness faded, Watcher 20's face twisted in disbelief and fury, his body dissolving until nothing remained but a faint shimmer of heat in the air.

Yahageshii stood amidst the aftermath, transparent flames still flickering around him. They did not spare even their wielder, devouring his strength and consciousness. Staggering, his steps faltered.

Yahageshii forced a bitter smile, his voice hoarse and faint like the remnants of a dying ember: "Lazy bug… Did I do well? …Or was I still too late?"

His body fell from the sky like a silent meteor descending to the earth.

"Yahageshii!"

The anguished cry came from Harutemi. She leapt from the ground without hesitation, catching Yahageshii in her arms. Tears streamed down her face, glistening like shattered pearls.

The transparent flames licked at her arms and shoulders, even climbing to her cheeks. Yet she held on tighter. Her eyes held no fear, only boundless sorrow and tenderness.

"You still have me…" she whispered, her voice steady despite her breaking heart.

Gently, she caressed Yahageshii's face as the fire enveloped them both. Together, they fell into the depths of the sea.

The ocean swallowed the fiery heat in silence, bubbles rising and vanishing into the abyss.

The transparent flames lingered, faintly visible at the bottom of the ocean, telling a story no one would ever know.