"Sixth Gate—Gate of View, Open!" Riku's deep roar echoed, making Fia's eyes narrow.
His power just kept growing. How many levels did this guy have?
Fia's beastly eyes narrowed, and with a powerful push from her legs, she shot toward Riku like a streak of red lightning. The mountain she used as a launch point crumbled, a huge crater left behind like something had taken a massive bite out of it.
"Morning Peacock!" As Fia closed in, Riku's muscles bulged, veins popping, his fists moving too fast for the eye to see.
The air itself combusted under his speed, fists setting the sky ablaze with hundreds of fiery projectiles flying straight at Fia.
"You may be strong, but there's no way I'll lose!" Fia said coldly, eyes on the swarm of fireballs. She side-stepped in midair, breaking the laws of physics, weaving through the barrage. The ones she couldn't dodge, she punched apart, explosions of fire lighting up the sky like fireworks.
In a blink, Fia was face-to-face with Riku, her petite hands turning into blurs as she launched her counterattack.
Riku fought back, blow for blow.
They traded thousands of strikes in seconds, the ground beneath unable to handle the pressure, craters and cracks spiderwebbed for miles, a ruined landscape left in their wake.
To the average onlooker, the fight was nothing but a blur of afterimages, deafening explosions, and sudden, massive craters appearing out of nowhere.
That was how fast and powerful they were.
"Hahaha! Now this is a fight!" Riku suddenly laughed out loud, the excitement in his voice a total change from his usual calm.
It had been a long time since Riku got to cut loose like this. Trading blow for blow, this was the kind of fight he dreamed about.
Even if his opponent was a beast-eared loli, the thrill was real.
"Hmph," Fia snorted, refusing to slow down. In her crimson beast eyes, a new look burned: excitement, a wild will to fight.
She'd always carried the worries of her people, never allowed to really let loose. This was the first time she'd ever fought at full strength, giving herself completely to the battle. It felt incredible.
Too bad their fun was everyone else's nightmare.
The monsters caught in the shockwaves were wiped out.
Back in the Werebeast settlement, everyone waited in terror, the sounds of battle thundering from afar.
None of them could believe anyone could keep up with their princess's physical power. Their pride had always been in their natural strength, and now a human was fighting their strongest on even footing? Their worldview was shattering.
Soon, the sounds of battle quieted, making the whole tribe uneasy.
At the leader's signal, dozens of elite Werebeasts rushed to the site.
They found a wasteland of craters and shattered peaks, like the end of the world.
Riku and Fia both stood there, battered and breathing hard, but their eyes were still bright with fighting spirit. Enemies or not, a sense of mutual respect had been born between them.
"Hey, Fia, don't you think this world is crazy?" Riku grinned through heavy breaths.
"This world is insane," Fia replied after a pause. "You, me, everyone… all the races here are mad."
"Hahaha, good answer. Want to do something even crazier?" Riku laughed.
"What do you mean?" Fia asked, curiosity piqued.
"I want to end this stupid war game. Knock the gods off their thrones, rule the world, and win the Suniaster," Riku said, his ambition bold and confident.
"You're insane," Fia replied, stunned.
"You just said so yourself," Riku shrugged, cool as ever.
"You can't do it. You're strong, but not even close to a Flugel's level, let alone the gods," Fia said, sounding defeated.
Struggling to survive in this chaotic era was exhausting, especially for someone like her, carrying the fate of her race.
"That's just for now. Just because I can't do it yet, doesn't mean I never will," Riku said, calm but determined. "What I want to know is, are your Werebeasts interested in teaming up with me?"
"Team up?" Fia's eyes flashed, her face turning serious. She paused, then said, "Are you serious?"
"Do you think I'd joke about this?" Riku answered just as seriously.
"You don't have the strength to make me bet my race on you," Fia sighed.
Their race's god, who created them, had been killed by the War God Artosh. Hating him was natural, but what could they do? Without their god, they were barely surviving, slightly better off than humans.
The same went for the Elves. Only the top six races were truly strong besides them, only Ex-Machina were doing okay, and that was because they'd killed a Dragonia king. No one dared mess with them now.
"If you want proof, I'll show you some strength," Riku said quietly. "Fia, let's settle this with one final move."
"Fine by me," Fia grinned, her power flaring again, hair burning red as her energy soared.
The ground beneath them caved in from the pressure.
"Seventh Gate—Gate of Wonder, Open!" Riku shouted, bearing the pain.
The seventh gate, just before the final death gate, pushed his power to new heights. Blue steam burst from his body, the air itself trembling from the energy.
"!?" Fia saw Riku's state and knew she couldn't wait. She vanished, using every ounce of strength for her final attack, fist blazing toward Riku.
But before she could hit, she froze, hair standing on end. In her vision, Riku's fist seemed to fill the world with a shadow of death looming.
One hit and she'd die, her head would burst like a melon. But she couldn't dodge; he was just too fast.
BOOM!
But Riku changed direction at the last second; his punch missed her by inches, the shockwave blasting everything in its path. Mountains shattered, debris flying, the sky cleared for miles.
"I lost…" Fia slumped, the blue flames scorching her cheek.
"Phew, I'm wiped out," Riku sighed, dropping to the ruined ground, releasing the technique and grimacing at the pain.
The seventh gate's backlash was brutal; he could barely move. Still, he was in better shape than Might Guy had ever been.
"Was that your full power?" Fia asked, awe in her voice.
"Not even close. If I went all out, the cost would be too high. I've got tricks I didn't need to use," Riku replied coolly.
"You've still got trump cards, huh… No shame in losing, then," Fia said, a bitter smile on her face.
"Let me ask you something else how long did it take you to get this strong?" she pressed.
"Less than a year," Riku answered, a little vague. Admitting it was just a month would have been too much.
"Incredible. You really do have unlimited potential," Fia marvelled. "Alright, I'll go crazy with you. Let's try to end this divine war."
"Heh, looking forward to working with you," Riku said, offering his hand.
"Yeah," Fia answered, shaking it and giving him a genuine smile. "Let's do this."