Episode 6 : The Beginning Of The Anime (Part 5)

"Haaaa!!!!"

Ezakiel thrust his hands forward, unleashing a relentless barrage of bone shards at the monster.

But the moment they struck its body, they shattered instantly—completely ineffective.

"Pathetic… Then again, what else do you expect from a mere Berserk-tier monster throwing around such feeble attacks?" the creature sneered. Its jagged maw stretched open, and a torrent of raging flames erupted forth—fire so intense that it burned hotter than the surface of the sun, carrying the destructive force of a high-tier nuclear explosion.

"BARRIER!"

Ezakiel reacted instantly, raising his arm and manifesting a transparent green shield. The moment the flames collided, his entire body trembled from the sheer force. The fire split apart upon impact, but its intense heat licked hungrily at the edges of the barrier, melting parts of his skeletal frame.

Taking advantage of the distraction, both Rin and Yuki launched their own attacks—powerful, invisible slashes cutting through the air toward the beast.

Yet, just like before, their strikes had no effect.

The monster ceased its relentless flamethrower, snapping its jagged maw shut. Raising both arms, it fired two minuscule black holes—one aimed at Rin and the other at Yuki.

Yuki reacted instantly, swinging her rapier with all her might. The sheer force of the attack sent tremors through her arms as she barely managed to hold the black hole at bay, her weapon straining under the immense gravitational pull.

Meanwhile, Rin wasted no time. In a split second, she redirected her black hole, teleporting it directly behind the monster. The beast barely had a moment to react before its own attack turned against it—gravitational forces dragging at its massive form. It let out a guttural growl, struggling against the pull as its body began to sink inward.

And at that exact moment, Yuki gave one final push, hurling the black hole she had been holding straight at the monster.

Both black holes struck simultaneously, their combined force tearing at the monster's body. It let out a deafening scream, its form twisting and contorting as it desperately fought against the pull.

"We did it!" Rin exclaimed, her eyes wide as she watched the monster being consumed.

"No, we didn't," Ezakiel said sharply. "Don't celebrate just yet—look."

Rin and Yuki turned their gaze back to the battlefield. Their brief moment of relief vanished as they saw the monster's body beginning to radiate a deep, ominous purple aura. The black holes that had been swallowing it started to distort—then, slowly, they began to dissolve.

"Haa… haa…" The monster let out a low, rumbling chuckle, taking a deep breath as the purple glow around it faded. "Wow… I can't believe you two almost had me."

It turned its hollow, burning eyes toward Rin and Yuki.

"You forced me to use my trump card—Void Aura." A sinister grin stretched across the monster's jagged maw.

"It erases things on a conceptual level. No matter what exists… you can simply make it not exist, yada yada yada," Ezakiel interrupted, finishing the monster's sentence with an unimpressed tone.

The creature froze for a brief moment, caught off guard.

"How… how did you know about it?" the monster demanded.

"Like this!"

Ezakiel raised his hand, and without hesitation, he unleashed his most powerful instant death attack.

The moment the attack struck, the creature crashed to the ground. It thrashed, struggling to rise, but before it could, Ezakiel fired again. Each conceptual attack slammed it back down, pinning it further and further into the earth.

Even though the monster was hundreds of times stronger than him—even though it was immune to the concept of death—Ezakiel's relentless barrage still forced it down. The attacks might not have dealt actual damage, but the sheer force behind them was more than enough to keep the beast restrained.

"Do you guys have any plans yourselves? It's damn clear we can't beat it in raw power—we have to rely on hax," Ezakiel said, launching another conceptual attack to keep the monster at bay.

"Huh? You don't have one yourself?" Yuki scoffed. "I thought you did, considering you jumped in out of nowhere to help." Her grip on her rapier tightened. "And speaking of help—why did you even decide to assist us? You should know we won't hesitate to kill you once this is over."

In fact, had the circumstances been different, she would have struck him down the moment he revealed himself.

"About that... I have my reasons," Ezakiel said, his tone unreadable.

The only reason I'm doing this is to ensure you survive this battle. According to what was stated, the entire first arc of the anime would have technically never happened if you had lived through this fight.

His gaze flickered toward Rin.

I need to give her the illusion that I'm once again risking myself for her—to make her feel guilty, to weaken her mentally. If her mind wavers, manipulating her will become far easier… though I didn't expect her to be here as well.

It was working. Rin's expression wavered, a flicker of guilt appearing in her eyes. She truly believed Ezakiel was here to protect her.

And he could already sense it.

What a stupid little... whore.

Without another thought, he turned back to Yuki, hurling another attack at the monster.

"And I don't care," he said. "Besides, I do have a plan. I'm not some fool who blindly charges ahead without thinking."

"So, tell us—what's the plan?" Yuki asked, eyes narrowing.

"Oh yes, that's a secret technique," Ezakiel said, launching another conceptual attack at the struggling monster. "You could call it… my trump card."

"And what is that exactly?" Yuki pressed.

"First, dematerialize your rapiers."

Though skeptical, both Rin and Yuki dismissed their weapons, their forms vanishing into energy.

"Now what?" Yuki asked, just as the monster attempted to rise again.

Without hesitation, Ezakiel lunged forward, grabbing both of their wrists.

"Trump Card: Nigerundayo!"

In an instant, he yanked them with him, vanishing in a blur of motion. Simultaneously, dozens upon dozens of illusions—each marked with their energy signatures—scattered in all directions, creating utter chaos on the battlefield.

"I will kill all of you!" the monster roared as it finally rose from the massive crater, its form towering over the battlefield. The ground beneath it had been torn apart, a deep abyss left in the wake of Ezakiel's relentless attacks.

"It doesn't matter how many of you there are! It matters none!"

With a deafening scream, the monster raised its hands high.

The very landscape began to shift.

Lava and magma erupted from the shattered earth, spewing molten fire into the air. The sky darkened into an endless void, swirling with ominous clouds. Chunks of the ground broke free, levitating and twisting unnaturally in the air, as if the world itself was being reshaped by the monster's fury.

----

Using every ounce of speed he could muster, Ezakiel shot through the air, faster than sound itself. The landscape blurred past them as he tore through the skies, escaping the battlefield's outer zone.

At the last moment, he opened a portal, dragging Rin and Yuki through it just as the battlefield behind them erupted into chaos.

They crashed into the golden sands of the Sahara Desert, tumbling across the dunes before finally coming to a stop.

"Woo-hoo! I can't believe we made it!" Ezakiel cheered, pushing himself up and dusting off the sand from his skeletal frame.

"I must say, that was quite a strange technique," Yuki said as she stood, brushing herself off. Rin followed suit, though she remained silent.

"Well, it's something I can only use in truly desperate situations," he admitted.

"You're correct on that," Yuki replied with a smirk.

Then her expression twisted.

Her smile turned sharp—psychotic.

In an instant, her rapier manifested in her grip, gleaming under the desert sun.

"Now… are you ready?"

Rin wanted to help Ezakiel and was about to summon her weapon, but he shot her a brief glance—silent but firm.

A warning.

Don't interfere.

"Don't make a foolish attempt, girl," he said aloud, ensuring Yuki wouldn't suspect anything. "You are not strong enough to face me."

Yuki's eyes flickered with amusement. "Your focus should be on me, not on her."

"True," Ezakiel admitted, shifting his stance. "My attention should be solely on you."

"Now that makes me happy to hear," Yuki said, her smirk widening. She leveled her rapier at him, the blade gleaming under the scorching desert sun. "So, what will you do now?"

Ezakiel tilted his head slightly. "Well, I'll use another trump card."

"Really?" Yuki's smile turned sharper. "Is it another attempt to run away? If so, unfortunately for you… that won't work this time."

"I love you," Ezakiel said.

"I lov—whaaaaat?!" Yuki's eyes went wide, her usual composure completely shattered. Even Rin, who had been silent this whole time, stood frozen, mouth slightly open in shock.

"I said, I love you," he repeated, his tone unwavering.

"H-Hey, hey, hey! That's not a nice thing to say, y-y-you know! We're enemies, mister!" Yuki stammered, her rapier slipping from her grip. "I-I mean, I know I'm hot and sexy, but still—that's not a nice thing to say!"

She was so flustered that she didn't react in time when Ezakiel suddenly kicked up a cloud of sand, sending it straight into her eyes.

"Aghhh! You damn Exsecrati Mortui! I'm going to rip your skull out and fornicate with it!" she screamed, rubbing her burning eyes.

"Oh, quite kinky," Ezakiel mused before his form began to fade. "Gotta go!" And just like that, he teleported away.

"No, no, no! Don't leave, you bastard!" Yuki's frustrated scream echoed across the vast desert.