Whirrr.
The whirring of the ACU embedded in the nape of Toph's neck echoed out.
At the same time, Toph vanished.
No.
It only looked like he had vanished.
Kael's eyes rapidly scanned his surroundings.
To the left?
Or to the right?
No, straight ahead.
"...!"
It was already too late.
In the blink of an eye, Toph was right in front of Kael.
A fist made of black alloy flew straight toward his face.
Kael tightened his grip, snapping the 1st-rank ACU held in his hand.
Snap.
The ACU's casing shattered.
The refined mana trapped inside dispersed for a fleeting moment.
Kael's parched magic circuits began siphoning it in.
Fortificatio Corporis [Body Reinforcement]
Along with the brief chant, mana seeped into his muscles and bones.
As Kael twisted his body, Toph's fist grazed past directly in front of him.
However, he could not completely evade it.
Boom!
The fist glanced off Kael's shoulder, and the sheer force of the impact knocked his body sideways.
To keep from tumbling across the floor, Kael dug his toes into the steel floor.
With a screeching scrape, he barely managed to steady his stance.
His shoulder burned.
Pain flared as though the flesh beneath his skin had been torn apart.
'He's faster than Pale.'
His judgment was instantaneous.
Because Pale was a typical magician, Kael could disrupt him whenever he spotted an opening.
But Toph was different.
This bastard moved his body first rather than relying on magic.
The ACU functioned more to support his movements, accelerate him, and amplify the impact.
Rather than a magician casting spells, it was as if a mechanical beast clad in magic was charging in.
Toph smirked at the sight of Kael.
"Judging by how your eyes are darting around, you must've thought you had something to rely on."
As a trickle of blood ran down Kael's shoulder, Toph watched it, the corner of his mouth curling upward.
"I'm different from your run-of-the-mill 6th-rank scrubs."
His ACU began vibrating even more violently.
Vrrrrm.
A crimson light spread along the circuits.
Toph's left eye blazed red.
"To begin with, I've always been a physical fighter, you see."
Before he even finished speaking, he moved again.
This time, he was even faster.
All that remained in Kael's vision was Toph's afterimage.
Leaning his upper body back, Kael deflected the trajectory of the strike with his palm.
Rather than taking the impact head-on, he shifted the angle to let it glance off.
Even so, a heavy jolt echoed through his wrist.
Crash!
A steel pillar crumpled.
Crash!
The floor shattered, carving out a massive hole.
Crack!
As his fist grazed Kael's flank, a dull ache surged from his ribs.
Kael drew a sharp breath.
Toph did not stop his assault.
"What's wrong, Mr. Hero? Exhausted already?"
Front, right, behind, left, and front again.
"You dodge well."
Before long, the surrounding Black Ring operatives had backed away.
Because this wasn't a fight they could interfere in.
All they could see was Toph's crimson afterimage and the black-masked figure barely holding on amidst it.
Toph's boisterous laughter echoed throughout the interior.
"Magic is just a little bonus."
As he clenched and unclenched his right hand, small electrical currents sparked across every joint of his metal fingers.
"I've always preferred smashing things with my own body."
Instead of replying, Kael caught his breath.
He had experienced Toph's fighting style firsthand, more than enough to be sick of it.
'He should be considered a warrior, not a magician.'
A warrior equipped with a High-Rank ACU.
A monster who replaced his body with Cyberware and used magic as a support system.
In that case, his response had to change as well.
The moment his toes pushed off the floor.
The minute delay right before the Cyberware detonated its power.
He had to spot that opening.
Toph lowered his stance once more, stomping his right foot hard against the floor.
'Here he comes.'
Toph's body vanished.
'Straight ahead.'
Kael slid his hand into his pocket.
Grabbing a second 1st-rank ACU.
Snap.
Fortificatio Corporis [Body Reinforcement]
Instead of his arms, Kael channeled the reinforced power into his feet first, planting them firmly against the floor.
Bending his knees, he twisted his waist and clenched his fist.
Just as Toph's black metal fist flew in, Kael threw his punch.
Snap.
Ictus [Heavy Strike]
At that moment, the two fists collided.
Kabooom!
As the shockwave erupted, the entire distribution center shook violently.
The surrounding glass windows shattered all at once.
Crashhh!
Shards poured down like rain.
Screaming, the Black Ring operatives ducked for cover.
As dust billowed upward, the steel floor caved in deeply.
Kael's arm trembled.
His bones creaked, the skin on the back of his hand tore open, and blood splattered.
Toph's fist ground to a halt as well, sparks of electricity crackling between his black alloy fingers.
Then, grinning with childlike excitement, he began to laugh.
"Oh. You blocked it? You're the first guy to take my punch head-on. But how did you do it? With just that sack of flesh, no less."
"...."
"Refusing to speak, huh? Making guys like you talk is half the fun."
***
Ever since he was young, the boy had loved stories.
To be precise, rather than simply liking them, he had lived leaning on stories to survive.
For a child born in Graverock Block, the world had been narrow from the very beginning.
The world Rio knew was fundamentally different from what children in other districts experienced.
Yet when his parents were still alive, the night wasn't entirely terrifying.
Before bed, his father would always tell him stories.
A hero who saved people from the darkness.
A hero journeying through the black forest toward the Demon King's Castle.
A knight soaring through the sky.
A hunter striking down evil magicians.
His mother stroked Rio's hair as she listened to those tales.
"Someday, someone like that will exist."
His mother smiled and said.
"Someone who appears at the hardest moment to save another."
Rio believed those words.
He wanted to believe them.
Yet the world utterly betrayed Rio's faith.
It was the night the Black Ring seized control of the district.
Rio couldn't remember everything from that day.
But a few memories remained stark and vivid.
The sound of the door splintering and his father's desperate shouts.
His mother's hands holding him and his Noona tight.
And the deafening blast of something exploding.
After that day, his parents never returned.
Rio's legs ceased to function properly as well.
People told them.
That they were just unlucky to have been caught up in the Black Ring's business.
But Rio knew it wasn't something that happened simply because of bad luck.
He knew it was something committed entirely at the whim of someone with power.
People who went around harming others as they pleased, solely because they had an ACU implanted and could use magic.
That was why Rio despised magicians.
Magicians depicted in books were radiant beings without exception.
They saved people, flew through the sky, and defeated monsters.
But real-world magicians were completely different.
That was why Rio couldn't bring himself to abandon stories of heroes.
Believing that somewhere out there, one had to exist.
Someone who would appear at the hardest moment to save another.
That belief was the strength that kept Rio going.
Even if his legs refused to move.
Even when his Noona returned home from working late into the night, smiling with an exhausted face.
Rio believed.
That someday, a hero would appear.
And only recently did he think he had truly met one.
He had heard that a figure wearing a black mask appeared every night to strike down villains.
Rio believed he was a true hero.
And yet.
Right now, he couldn't do a single thing.
The outer passage of the distribution center.
Sitting in his wheelchair, Rio listened to the detonations roaring in the distance.
Boom!
The walls shuddered as dust and ash showered down from the ceiling.
From deep inside, a chaotic blend of screams, curses, and clashing metal echoed out.
Rio gripped the wheels of his wheelchair with both hands.
He knew he had to flee.
Because the hyung he called a hero had told him so.
To get out.
Yet he despised himself for his useless legs that wouldn't move.
It had been the exact same way when his Noona was cornered by thugs.
He hadn't been able to do anything besides scream.
And even now....
The hero had come to save him, yet once again, he could do nothing.
Rio gritted his teeth.
"Damn it...."
It was then.
Kabooom!
As the wall collapsed, steel panels and concrete chunks burst outward as if exploding.
Rio instinctively raised his arms to cover his face.
Amidst the shower of dust and debris, a dark shadow came flying through.
Thud!
The man in the black mask rolled across the floor and came to a stop in front of Rio.
It was the hero.
His clothes were torn, and blood trickled from his shoulder and the back of his hand. Even his mask was stained with dust.
Seeing him like that, Rio's face turned deathly pale.
"H-Hyung!"
The man braced a hand against one knee and slowly pushed himself up.
"Phew."
Rio tried to move his wheelchair closer to him.
"Are you okay? Hyung, you're really okay, right?"
The man looked down at Rio and remained silent for a moment.
"...."
He muttered softly under his breath.
"What on earth am I even doing."
Reaching inside his clothes, he grasped something.
Then, he squeezed his fingers.
Snap.
The sound of something breaking rang out.
At that moment.
Vrrrrm!
A stream of blended blue and silver light spread through the air, beginning to envelop Hyung and him.
Just like the cosmos depicted in storybooks.
Then, it began to be absorbed into Hyung's body.
"Y-You really are okay, right?"
"...."
From beyond the collapsed wall, Toph was walking out.
It was Toph, brushing off the dust with a grin.
"You're holding out pretty long."
The ACU on the nape of Toph's neck glowed crimson.
"Have you shown everything you've got now?"
The man raised his head.
A faint blue light began to kindle from deep within his pupils.
"No."
He stood up slowly.
"I'm just getting started."
At that moment, the atmosphere shifted.
Rio felt it. Something had changed. Toph must have sensed something as well, because the smirk vanished from his face.
Then, light rose into the air like a scene found only in books.
The man raised his hand, curling his fingers as if seizing Toph.
Vinculum Gravitatis [Gravity Bind]
The moment those words fell, Toph's body slammed straight down.
Boom!
As the steel floor caved in, both of Toph's knees buckled.
His eyes shot wide open.
"What...?"
It felt as though an invisible, colossal hand was pressing down on his shoulders.
Toph tried to move, but his metallic legs merely scraped against the floor.
His ACU flared crimson, hotter than usual.
Whirrr!
Still unable to lift his body, he gritted his teeth.
"You bastard...!"
Rio watched the spectacle in a daze.
Magic.
It was undeniably magic.
With a single gesture of the man's hand, Toph had been driven into the ground.
At that moment, Rio's heart turned cold.
Wondering if the black-masked hero, Hyung, was ultimately a magician too.
The person he had trusted. The person he had wanted to believe in.
Was that person also of the same breed he despised after all?
Though he knew he shouldn't, Rio was on the verge of disappointment.
No, he was already disappointed.
Just then, the hero spoke.
"Watch closely."
Rio raised his head.
The man was looking at Toph, but his words seemed directed at Rio.
"That kind of thing isn't magic."
Toph flared up in anger at his words.
"What?!"
As the man slowly opened his hand, lines of blue mana hovered around him.
Circles, letters, and fragments of light.
The light flowed like a living river.
"So, that guy can hardly be called a magician."
The man's voice was calm.
"Magic isn't something like that."
When he lightly snapped his fingers.
Lumen [Light]
Small orbs of light bloomed in midair.
Star-like motes drifted up inside the dark distribution center.
Light reflected off broken shards of glass and metal walls, illuminating the heavens.
Rio held his breath.
Because it was a scene he had only ever witnessed in storybook illustrations.
The man moved his hand once more.
Ventus [Wind]
As dust scattered in all directions, a refreshing breeze blew.
Brushing past Rio's face, it felt strangely warm.
Pinned to the ground, Toph was still gritting his teeth.
"Are you kidding me...?"
The man looked at him and clicked his tongue.
"Tsk. No."
Blue mana lines gathered at the man's fingertips once again.
"I'm teaching what true magic is."
Toph's face contorted.
"To whom?!"
Instead of answering, the man lightly tapped the floor with his toe.
Manus Terrae [Hand of the Earth]
Broken concrete pieces and metal debris moved, gathering beneath his feet to form the shape of a massive hand.
The hand seized Toph's arm, pinning him even more firmly to the floor.
Crunch!
Toph's metallic arm screeched and creaked.
"Kuuugh...!"
Rio watched the spectacle with wide eyes.
It was magic.
The repulsive magic that had stolen away everything precious to him.
Was now conjuring scenes straight out of a fairy tale.
At that moment, the man raised his fingers.
Snap, snap.
He lightly snapped his fingers twice.
Then, a small orb of light materialized in front of Toph.
The instant Toph saw it, he instinctively twisted his body.
"What is this...?!"
The man did not reply.
Before long, the orb of light adhered to Toph's chest.
In an instant, Toph's body was hauled upward.
"Huh?"
No trace of a smirk could be found on Toph's face anymore.
Desperately struggling to resist the magic, his metal legs scraped against the floor, but.
It was utterly useless.
An unseen force seized him entirely and lifted him up, slowly levitating Toph's body into the air.
As if reaching for the clouds in the sky.
None of the Black Ring operatives could move a muscle.
Rio lifted his head and gazed up at the sight.
The monster of Graverock, the magician who had trampled upon people.
The boss of the Black Ring who had made his Noona cry and kidnapped him.
That very Toph was now flailing helplessly, suspended in midair.
As the man slowly raised his hand, lines of light extended from his fingertips.
Small dots resembling yellow flames wound in a circle centered on Toph.
Rio caught his breath at the beautiful sight.
Though Toph ground his teeth and screamed.
"Put me down, you bastard!"
The man merely tilted his head slightly and spoke softly.
"It's the finale."
And then, he chanted briefly.
Ignis Florens [Blooming Flame]
At that moment.
The lines of light encircling Toph surged skyward.
Kabooom!
As the blast roared, Rio instinctively shut his eyes tight.
Yet neither scorching heat nor sharp shrapnel came his way.
Instead.
Flashhh!
Light blossomed overhead, and through the shattered ceiling of the distribution center, blue and silver sparks embroidered the night sky.
The flames bloomed like flowers.
Dozens of light trails burst in the darkness, scattered, and drifted down like tiny stars once more.
Broken shards of glass glittered as they caught the light.
Toph's scream was drowned out by the sound of fireworks.
His body was hurled through the air, slamming hard into the steel framework deep inside the distribution center.
Crash!
A colossal din echoed belatedly, but Rio's eyes remained fixed on the sky.
Magic fireworks blooming in the night sky.
The scene from the storybook where celebratory fireworks exploded over the castle after the hero defeated the Demon King.
It resembled that very scene.
No.
It was even more vivid than the illustrations.
Words failed him.
The magic he had so despised.
The power that had stolen his parents away.
Was now decorating the night sky so beautifully.
Simply.
It seemed as if it was meant solely for Rio to see.
That magic could do things like this too.
As the man slowly lowered his hand, the blue mana lines floating around him faded away.
The fireworks beyond the shattered ceiling also went out one by one.
Clenching the armrests of his wheelchair, Rio looked at the man and muttered softly.
"...Real."
His voice trembled.
"Real magic...."