In the Abyss (3)
Meanwhile, things were even more dire on Lucy's side.
"Hmph, a mere human soul dares to challenge me?" Ballan narrowed his eyes and snorted derisively. The giant's face was etched with utter mockery and contempt. His glowing blue eyes sharpened like a predator toying with its prey.
"A pup that knows no fear of the tiger."
His voice boomed with heavy resonance, dominating the air around them. The ground trembled faintly with every subtle shift of his massive frame, as if he were a god lording over mortals. To him, Arnold was nothing more than insignificant dust to be crushed underfoot.
Yet Arnold stood unwavering, his gaze sharper and more resolute than ever.
"Arnold! This isn't right!" Lucy cried out in a trembling voice, her face a mix of desperation and anxiety. She seemed to know just how powerful Ballan was. The demonic energy cloaking his body warped the space around him like a raging storm, suffocating even from a distance.
"……Arnold? Can you hear me?" Her entire body shook involuntarily—not mere fear, but an primal unease rooted in survival instinct.
"I saw you fighting those hybrids earlier. I know you're strong."
Lucy tried desperately to persuade him, but his demeanor didn't budge. If anything, a faint smile tugged at his lips.
"But that guy's on a whole different level! This is reckless!"
Despite her shouts, Arnold simply gripped his sword steadily. The blade didn't waver. A calm aura emanated from him, circling the air with sharpened intent. He took a step forward, looking up at the colossal being.
"It's fine."
His voice was steady and firm. Lucy froze, her expression flustered.
"And besides… it doesn't look like we have any choice but to break through him, right?"
At his words, Lucy glanced around. Realistically, there was no escape. With Ballan blocking the path like an impenetrable fortress wall, there was nowhere to run—like prey trapped in a snare.
But Arnold saw it differently. He didn't view this as a crisis, but as an opportunity to shatter the mold.
"You… you're really planning to fight him?"
Lucy stared at him in disbelief. But in that moment, a soft glow flickered from the tip of Arnold's sword. The energy began to envelop his body. With a light sigh, he raised the blade.
"Senior, don't worry—just fall back for a bit."
As soon as the words left his mouth, the sneer on Ballan's face vanished. Simultaneously, flames danced in his blue eyes.
And then—
BOOM—!!!
A shockwave that seemed to shake heaven and earth slammed into the temple. Stone pillars quivered and crumbled to dust, massive cracks spiderwebbing across the floor. Even the enormous statues lining the walls trembled, fissures forming on their surfaces.
"Hmph."
Ballan had merely stomped lightly in boredom. But that single motion unleashed a colossal blast. The temple interior filled instantly with dust and debris, swept away mercilessly like a violent tempest.
"Still just a human in the end."
Ballan chuckled lowly, his blue-flamed eyes cooling to ice. As the dust settled, the floor beneath his feet lay revealed—shattered and fragmented, deep fissures and scattered rubble everywhere. An impact like that would pulverize any body beyond recognition.
"You think you can stop me?"
He muttered, shrugging indifferently, a mocking sneer crossing his face as if ridiculing the being he'd crushed.
"Did it even leave a corpse?"
There was no curiosity in his tone. It was the most predictable outcome.
But then—
"Senior, you okay?"
A familiar voice sliced through the space.
"Hm…?"
Ballan's leisurely air shattered in an instant. The blue flames of his eyes flickered uncertainly. As if in disbelief, he fell silent and slowly turned his head.
There stood Arnold, utterly unscathed, with Lucy supported beside him.
"What the hell is this?"
Discomfort laced Ballan's voice—enough to wrinkle the brow hidden within his helm, mingling faint panic and confusion. His attack should have obliterated everything, yet Arnold stood whole.
"Ugh…! Wh-what…? Huh?!"
"Just a second ago—"
Lucy, watching from Arnold's side, was equally stunned, her eyes wide in shock.
"I squeezed my eyes shut during Ballan's attack… and then you…."
Her voice was still dazed, as if grappling with an illusion.
"You dodged it safely, so relax."
Arnold continued calmly.
"And sorry for the intrusion just now."
"Huh? What do you—?! Wait?!"
But at his words, Lucy felt an odd sensation and looked down. Her face flushed crimson.
"W-wait a second?! This is…!"
Her voice brimmed with panic and embarrassment.
Arnold had one arm supporting her back, the other under her knees, cradling her effortlessly in the air—like a prince from a fairy tale sweeping up his princess on horseback.
"P-put me down, quick!"
Lucy squirmed and flailed. The life-or-death tension from moments ago crumbled into absurdity at this ridiculous pose.
"Th-this is so embarrassing!!"
At her flushed cheeks and wriggling, Arnold set her down with a bemused look.
"I-I'm not used to a guy doing this…."
Lucy fidgeted, face burning. An awkward silence hung briefly amid the tension and shame.
But it didn't last.
"Not bad at evasion, human."
A deep, resonant voice cut through the air. Lucy snapped to attention, tensing up. Arnold remained unshaken, his expression serene.
"Senior, please fall back to safety for now."
Lucy opened her mouth to protest, but Arnold stepped forward, pushing her behind him. His gaze locked solely on Ballan.
Ballan glared back with beastly eyes, his pupils flashing blood-red. He stomped the ground with armored might.
"Ugh… fine then!"
In an instant, Ballan vanished with speed belying his massive bulk.
BOOM—!
Arnold's vision blurred. Ballan's fist closed the distance in a heartbeat, crashing down with a thunderous roar.
"Be crushed!"
Harder than steel, the fist tore through the air—its trajectory too fast to track.
"Danger!!"
Lucy's cry barely sounded before Arnold moved.
KABOOM!!
A deep crater scarred the spot where Ballan's fist landed. Dust erupted violently into the sky.
But Arnold was nowhere in it.
"Hah—"
As the dust settled, he stood leisurely outside the attack's range.
"Dodged that too?!"
Ballan roared in fury, his eyes blazing brighter.
"Insolent runt!"
He crouched again, vanishing once more.
BOOM—!
This time, far more ferocious speed. The air exploded, vibrating the surroundings. Ballan was a monster transcending human limits—anything he touched would shatter under that mass and velocity.
"Be flattened!"
He slammed the ground with savage force. The earth split, rocks flying.
Yet Arnold flowed like water, evading effortlessly.
"Dodged again…!"
Ballan gnashed his teeth. Rage boiled at being toyed with by such speed and power.
"You filthy pest!"
He unleashed a frenzy of strikes.
BOOM—! BOOM—!
The ground shattered. The floor collapsed.
But not a single hit landed.
"Slow."
Arnold's cold voice rang out.
"Predictable?"
His movements were a mirage, untouchable even to the eye.
"Slow. So slow."
BOOM!
The next strike, and the one after.
"Can't even land a proper hit, just chasing tails!"
BOOM!
Ballan's blows never connected.
"Annoying rat!"
BOOM—!!
He thrust his fist again with greater force. But Arnold slipped away, smiling.
And murmured softly.
"Alright, that should do it."
The words carried an eerie chill.
"Hmph! Next time for su—"
Undeterred, Ballan sneered down disdainfully. But as he raised his fist again—
Crack—
"Huh?!"
Fine cracks spread across his ironclad armor-like skin.
"What?!"
Black Iron. Armor black as if devouring the sun itself—thought unbreakable.
Now fracturing.
Crunch, crackle!
The fissures raced outward. In a flash, the armor shattered to pieces.
And not just that—
"Wh-what the hell?!!"
His entire fist had been gouged away.
"How…?!"
Ballan recoiled in horror. But true terror followed.
"…!"
He finally looked at his body. Minute traces marred the remaining armor.
"These are… sword marks…?"
His blue flames wavered wildly.
Ballan realized. Arnold hadn't just dodged.
He'd carved into the armor—Ballan's very skin, his everything.
This heralded Ballan's end.
"Took you long enough."
A wicked smile echoed as Ballan grasped it.
"You bastard! What did you do?!"
He demanded desperately, though he already knew.
He was dying.
"I told you earlier."
Arnold slowly raised his sword toward the panicked giant.
And—
"Let's have you take a proper beating from me today."
With those words—
"……!"
Ballan swallowed his first taste of dread, but
Crack—!
Arnold's assault had only just begun.