It was then that a crystal-clear memory flashed through Rio's mind, as if Kakek Henry were whispering directly in his ear. It was the day he had sat by the fireplace in the Gladius house, exhausted from training, as Kakek Henry explained the secrets of Shunpo.
"The Shunpo technique, Rio, has three stages. Each stage opens a gate to greater power, but with increasingly terrifying risks. The risk of the first stage, you have already felt yourself through hard training, pushing your body's limits to total exhaustion."
"The risk when you use the second stage… every bone in your body will feel like it's being instantly crushed, son. The pain is beyond human limits, as if every joint and muscle is being forcibly torn apart. This is a forbidden technique, only for life-or-death situations where there is no other way. I… I will not formally train you in the second stage, because it is too dangerous. But, I will tell you the theory, how to trigger it… only as knowledge, not to be practiced."
"And the risk of the third stage… I cannot even explain it in detail, son. I myself have never seen anyone successfully use it and return whole. All I know is… a near-certain death awaits at the end of it. It is an unreachable abyss, Rio. An unequal exchange."
Kakek Henry's voice faded. The pain from the poison surged again, bringing Rio to the brink of consciousness. He saw his mother's face, etched in the searing fire within his mind. A face that had cried, that had sacrificed, that was ultimately destroyed. He remembered his oath. I'm not running anymore. I won't let this happen again. No one else will suffer like Mom did.
Something inside Rio broke. Not because he was giving up, but because his pure determination, the onslaught of extreme pain, and his dormant natural talent found a way out. He didn't consciously trigger the stage. It just happened. Naturally. Instinctively. An explosion from the core of his soul.
Rio stopped screaming. He stood up slowly, his body trembling violently, but his gaze, which had been full of pain, now burned with a terrifying intensity, a cold fire of searing determination, as if staring directly into hell. The wind around his body began to swirl violently, creating a powerful vortex of energy, lifting dust and debris from the hall floor. The antique items nearby vibrated, some even thrown, crashing, shattering. The air around him hissed fiercely, an invisible power radiating from him. Every fiber of his muscles tensed, every joint creaked, as if his body was ready to tear itself apart for a single purpose.
The Domifirt sensed the change in atmosphere. The grin on its face faltered slightly. Its cold eyes narrowed. The strange Aura emanating from Rio made it feel… uneasy. "What… what are you…"
Before it could finish its sentence, Rio had already vanished from its sight. In a blink of an eye that was even faster than a normal Shunpo—a speed that surpassed normal human limits, nearly approaching an illusion—Rio was now directly behind the Domifirt. His sword was already raised high, its blade gleaming in the dim light, ready to strike.
An expression of utter shock was painted on the Domifirt's face. Disbelief flashed in its eyes; how could this human achieve such speed? It had no time to react, only able to slightly shift its shoulders. It tried to raise its hands to block, but it was too slow.
TRRAAASSSHH!!!
Rio's sword slashed, not the neck, but both of the Domifirt's arms, severing them at the shoulders. Thick black blood sprayed into the air, soaking the floor and parts of Rio's face.
"ARRRGGHH!!!" The Domifirt roared in pain and rage, its voice filled with shock and fury. Its body staggered, the severed arms falling to the floor with a wet thud.
However, what sent a chill through Rio's heart—and what confirmed that this enemy was no ordinary Eater—was what happened next. The severed arms began to twitch on the floor, and from the Domifirt's stumps, new flesh began to grow at a terrifying speed. Nerves, muscles, and skin regenerated, forming perfect new arms in a matter of seconds.
Dammit! He really does have full regeneration! Rio thought, the pain in his own body worsening.
"Hahahaha! You think that's enough to defeat me, wolf cub?" the Domifirt laughed, though there was a bitter note in its voice. This regeneration… this is the pride of my race. An absolute advantage that makes us nearly immortal. Let this boy try. It will only prolong his foolish suffering.
Rio was undeterred. His body screamed in agony from the continuous use of Stage Two Shunpo, but he forced himself to keep moving. He shot forward again, delivering slash after slash. Every time he cut off a part of the Domifirt's body, that part would grow back with the same speed. It was a futile dance, a fight that could not be won by conventional means.
"Why are you backing away, huh?!" the Domifirt taunted, seeing Rio take a moment's distance, his breath ragged, the pain from the poison and the effects of Stage Two Shunpo beginning to eat away at his consciousness. "You must be desperate since you can't kill me! Just give up, and let me end your suffering!" Its tone grew more mocking, trying to provoke Rio's emotions.
Rio stared at the Domifirt, his eyes narrowing behind his wolf mask. His cold logic worked quickly, processing every detail. This creature is arrogant, easily provoked, and its regeneration is too fast. If I can't kill it by cutting vital organs, then I have to incapacitate it completely. If its regeneration is that fast, I have to sever all its lines of movement, break every single joint.
With a shocking move that made the Domifirt pause for a moment, Rio dropped his sword to the floor.
KLANG!
"What are you doing, you fool?! You're giving up at a time like this, dropping your wea—AAAAARRRGGHH!!!"
The Domifirt's sentence was cut off by an extraordinary shriek of pain, its laughter turning into a roar. Rio, without his sword, had now seized the Domifirt's neck with both hands. Not to strangle in the usual sense. But to crush. With the power of Stage Two Shunpo flowing through him—a power that now felt as if it would tear his own body apart—Rio began to break the bones in the Domifirt's body, one by one. Neck, shoulders, ribs, arms, legs, even the bones in its fingers. He didn't stop until every bone he could reach was crushed to pieces, until the suited man's body went limp like a marionette with its strings cut. The sickening sound of snapping bones filled the hall, now quiet from the villagers' screams, leaving only the Domifirt's roars of agony.
The Domifirt roared, screamed, cursed, but it was helpless. Its once-arrogant body now lay on the floor, only groans of pain escaping its mouth. Its regeneration might be able to grow flesh, but it couldn't repair crushed bones in an instant. This was Rio's way, with his intelligence in the midst of extreme desperation, to paralyze a creature that seemed unkillable.
Rio stood panting over the Domifirt's crippled body. Blood dripped from his nose. The pain from using Stage Two Shunpo now truly hit him, stabbing every cell in his body. Every joint and bone felt like it was about to shatter. His vision darkened, his consciousness thinned. The poison in his arm was still burning, spreading throughout his system. His legs felt weak; he could barely support himself.
Dammit! Impossible! I… I am a Domifirt… the ruler of the eastern District Two! I am the one who should be controlling them all! How… how could I lose… to a human… this damned, masked wolf…
I'm not like them, it's true… not like the Emperors in the Capital… not like the Nobles in the North… They have real power… able to manipulate fate, to destroy mountains with a single glance… They would never make a stupid mistake like this. I… I am the weakest among us… and now, I'm paralyzed because of this boy. This rotten human.
But this means nothing! Their plan… our grand plan… it won't stop just because I failed! Antares will become our most fertile livestock farm. They will continue to breed, to worship us, unknowingly becoming our meals. This human… this human will die here, sprawled out like the trash he deserves to be. And the others… the other Eaters will finish the rest!
This isn't over! The Nobles… the Emperors… they will come soon! They will see what happened here, and they will erase this human's trace from the face of the earth! And I… I will rise again! I will watch you all burn!
"AARRRGGHH!" The Domifirt's final roar was now more of a growl of pure frustration and hatred, no longer of pain.
Before the darkness completely swallowed him, Rio saw Dany and Lisa finish off the last of the Eaters. They both turned toward him, their faces showing a mixture of relief and panic.
Then, Rio's body collapsed to the floor, unconscious, lying beside the broken Domifirt. A satisfying dance of death, but one that came at a very high price.