The impact of Specter's attack Damaged Roulin's Body Badly , The resulting shockwave nearly tore apart what remained of the station.
Karean, Ark, Rugard, and the others barely managed to keep their footing. The sheer level of power on display was beyond anything they had ever faced.
Roulin's monstrous body twitched within the debris, the dark aura still writhing around him. But for the first time since his transformation…
He hesitated.
Specter stood still, his purple hair swaying in the winds of destruction. His face remained unreadable, his presence suffocating.
Ark clenched his fists, still struggling to process what just happened.
Who was this man?
Roulin let out a guttural , inhuman growl as he slowly rose to his feet. The Ancient's influence within him flared, and a massive surge of darkness erupted from his body, engulfing everything around him in a swirling storm of malevolent Shinshu.
"YOU CANNOT STOP ME."
The voice that came from Roulin's mouth was no longer his own.
It belonged to the Ancient.
Specter exhaled softly. "How irritating."
Then, before anyone could react—
He disappeared.
A fraction of a second later, a deafening explosion rocked the battlefield.
Specter reappeared right in front of Roulin, his hand gripping the Ancient-infested sword ,
"I wasn't asking."
A pulse of crushing Shinshu exploded from Specter's palm, traveling through the sword and into Roulin's body.
The effect was instantaneous.
The Ancient screamed as black energy began unraveling from Roulin's form, like chains being forcibly ripped apart. The oppressive aura of the Ancient began to weaken, struggling against Specter's power.
Roulin's face contorted in pain as his real consciousness fought to surface.
He was being freed.
But then—
Something changed.
The Ancient's black Shinshu, rather than dissipating, suddenly compressed into Roulin's core.
Specter's eyes narrowed. "…Oh?"
BOOM!
A second explosion erupted, sending Specter skidding backward as Roulin's body underwent another transformation.
His form became sleeker, more controlled. The monstrous distortions of his body solidified into something more refined.
The defects could only watch in horror as Roulin's power surged once again ,
But this time, it was different.
He wasn't struggling anymore.
He had adapted.
He had fused with the Ancient's power.
A voice, cold and emotionless, rang out from the void.
"Interesting."
Roulin lifted his gaze, his eyes glowing with a dark golden hue.
"…This body is sufficient."
Specter clicked his tongue. "Of course. You're a stubborn one."
Then, without another word, Roulin vanished.
A blink later, he reappeared behind Specter, sword already mid-swing.
Specter turned his head slightly, smirking.
CLANG!
A metallic shockwave erupted as Specter effortlessly caught the blade with his bare hand—again.
But this time, the impact sent shockwaves through the entire station.
The defects braced themselves against the force, barely able to stay upright.
Roulin's eyes narrowed.
Specter grinned.
"Now this is getting fun."
The battle had only just begun.
***********
CRACK.
A thin fissure ran across Specter's palm, blackened and seething with corrupt Shinshu. The moment of contact had left a wound—a rare sight.
Specter's smirk remained, but his fingers twitched slightly.
"…Not bad."
Roulin didn't reply. The Ancient-infused power inside him pulsed like a living force, his golden-black eyes fixed on Specter with eerie calmness.
Then—he moved.
A single step forward, and Roulin vanished.
Specter's instincts screamed. He raised his undamaged hand just in time—
BOOM!
A shockwave erupted as Roulin's blade clashed against Specter's forearm. The sheer force sent the older warrior sliding back, boots carving deep trenches into the shattered floor.
A second swing.
Specter dodged, twisting his body, but a sharp line of blood appeared across his cheek.
He was getting slower.
Ark, Karean, and the others couldn't believe what they were seeing.
"He's injured after such display of power…?" Rugard muttered, stunned.
Karean clenched his fists. "No, it's worse than that. He's getting overwhelmed."
Roulin's new form was adapting faster than Specter's counterattacks.
And then—
Roulin took a deep breath.
A shift in the air.
The entire station fell silent.
Specter's pupils dilated.
"Damn it—"
Roulin swung his sword.
A single black arc of condensed Shinshu ripped through the station.
The force behind it was beyond anything before.
The world seemed to bend around the attack, the sheer pressure collapsing walls, floors, and even distorting the Shinshu density in the area.
Everyone felt it.
Karean and Ark instinctively shielded themselves, even though the attack wasn't aimed at them.
Rugard roared, reinforcing his body with Shinshu.
But Specter… didn't move.
He couldn't.
His damaged hand was already fading—black energy eating away at his fingers like decay. His ability to counter the Ancient's power was waning.
And the slash was coming.
A blinding impact.
A split second before it hit—
BOOOOOM!
The station erupted.
The Hell Train's entire boarding platform collapsed under the force, debris and flames filling the air.
When the dust cleared…
Specter was gone.
The defects froze in horror.
"…Did he just—"
A sudden shockwave sent them flying backward.
Roulin still stood, sword raised, his black aura spiraling upwards.
But his expression…
Flickered.
A voice echoed.
"Tch. You really don't hold back, huh?"
Roulin turned his head.
Specter was still alive.
But barely.
His left arm was completely destroyed. His entire body was covered in scorching black Shinshu marks, evidence of the Ancient's corruption sinking into his system.
And yet…
He was smiling.
"…Alright then," Specter exhaled. "I guess I need to stop holding back too."
His remaining hand tightened into a fist. The atmosphere shifted again.
A battle on a completely different scale was about to begin.
************
"I guess I need to stop holding back too."
Specter's voice was casual, but his remaining hand was already moving.
The air shifted.
Then—
BOOM!
Specter vanished.
A second later—he reappeared behind Roulin. His leg sank into Roulin's ribs with bone-crushing force.
CRACK!
Roulin staggered. His aura fluctuated—shaken but not broken. His corrupted eyes locked onto Specter, filled with inhuman wrath.
He swung his sword.
Specter caught it.
Barehanded.
For a moment, nothing moved.
Then the station shook violently.
Black and purple Shinshu clashed in a storm, the shockwave sending cracks racing across the floor.
Specter grinned. "Not bad, but—"
He twisted his grip—and snapped the sword in half.
Roulin's expression twisted into something unreadable.
Then—he screamed.
A blast of pure, uncontrolled hatred exploded from his body. The shattered sword's pieces reassembled mid-air, now pulsing with an even darker aura.
Specter clicked his tongue. "Of course, it's regenerating."
Roulin moved like a blur, his swings faster, wilder.
Specter dodged the first, the second, the third—
But the fourth grazed his side, leaving a deep gash corrupted with black flames.
He grimaced. "This is getting annoying."
Roulin twisted his wrist, redirecting the blade for a downward strike—aimed to bisect Specter in one clean motion.
BOOOOOOOM!
The ground beneath them shattered completely.
Dust and debris swallowed the entire battlefield.
For several long seconds, no one could see what had happened.
Then—through the thick smoke—
Specter emerged.
Breathing hard. His wounds were worse than before, his Shinshu defenses barely holding up.
But , he was still standing.
And so was Roulin.
The battle wasn't ending anytime soon.
"Now!" Karean shouted.
The Defects and the remaining Regulars saw their chance.
The battle between Specter and Roulin had wrecked the station, creating several openings. If they wanted to escape—this was the time.
"Move, move!" Ark commanded, pushing forward with lightning-imbued speed.
Rugard shattered a collapsing wall with his raw strength, clearing a path.
Lira fired support shots to keep any stray attacks from hitting their group.
They didn't stop.
Because if they did, they would die.
A final explosion erupted behind them as they raced toward the exit.
The last thing Karean saw before turning away—
Was Specter, standing alone against the nightmare that Roulin had become.
And smiling.
"Don't worry about me," Specter had said earlier. "Just don't waste my effort by dying like idiots."
The Defects didn't look back.
They ran—toward survival.
Toward the unknown.