CHAPTER 44: RUN

Suddenly—

Clang!

A silver flash whistled through the air as Shiro’s hand blurred, flinging a trio of kunai in rapid succession.

One whizzed past Elius’s ear, slicing a few strands of his hair before hitting its mark.

TINK!

The kunai embedded themselves deep into the molten shoulder of Lava Scissor.

He didn’t flinch.

But Shiro was already on the move, his ninja instincts taking over like a coiled spring.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

He dashed to the side, circled in a wide arc, and released a fan of shuriken in a spread formation—each spinning with the hiss of heated air, each aimed at pressure points and crevices in the villain’s lava-scarred armor-like skin.

WHIP! WHIP! WHIP!

A hooked chain scythe followed next, bursting from beneath Shiro’s sleeves like a snake from its coil, wrapping toward Lava Scissor’s legs.

KLANG! SSSSSSSSSSSHH!

The scythe sizzled on contact with the man’s leg, but again, Lava Scissor didn’t move. He just stood there—hulking, grinning, glowing brighter with each strike like a volcano welcoming the pain.

"That’s more like it," Lava Scissor said with delight, a deep rumble in his chest. "Yes. YES. STRUGGLE MORE!"

Lina’s ghostly figures snapped into full form behind her, a dozen transparent apparitions that glided forward with their hands extended like claws.

Ron, already halfway into a primal roar, tensed his clawed feet and was ready to leap forward.

Klee raised her hand and a sparkle of green light swirled like a charging lance.

But then—

"Stop."

Elius’s voice cut through the air like a whip.

His hand moved up, sharp and commanding. His four fingers fanned out—not in warning, but in authority.

Instantly, the three paused.

Even Shiro, who had just dashed behind Lava Scissor to throw a smoke bomb, stopped mid-motion.

They looked at Elius, wide-eyed.

"What are you—?!" Lina said, breathless.

Ron blinked in confusion. "Are you serious?!"

Klee turned, startled. "We’re not fighting?!"

Shiro’s clone had already died earlier, and now the real one glared from behind his cloth mask, silent but tense.

Elius’s face was calm.

But his eyes... sharp. Calculating. Cold.

He didn’t respond with words.

Instead, one of the five floating swords behind him twitched.

It spun slowly—like a predator stretching before a pounce.

Then—

SWOOM.

The sword sliced through the air like a silent jet, its blade spinning faster and faster, building momentum as it screamed forward—

SWOOSH—THWACK!

Straight into Lava Scissor’s skull.

There was no dramatic scream. No last-second dodge. No heroic standoff.

SPLAT!

The molten skull of the villain burst like an overripe fruit under pressure. Flaming chunks of magma-flesh splattered in all directions, smoking as they hit the dungeon floor. The red-hot glow of his eyes dimmed instantly, his body teetering as if a string had been cut.

THUD.

He collapsed into a heap, a puddle of steaming lava-like liquid pooling beneath.

"Back," Elius said.

His voice was quiet, but absolute.

"Now."

Without hesitation, he leapt into the air, landed on one of his other swords, and swooshed away like a crimson comet.

The other four blinked.

Then, Ron scooped up Lina and Klee onto his back in one fluid motion, his raptor legs flexing hard as he bolted after Elius.

Shiro followed silently, his ninja strides leaving little more than a whisper across the cracked stone.

As they moved, the air still carried that strange burnt scent. Not just the stench of Lava Scissor’s flaming corpse—but something older. Something deeper. It lingered like an omen.

Elius soared down the stone tunnel on his sword, gripping the hilt with one hand, his other swiping through his system screens in his mind.

This is bad. This is really, really bad.

His thoughts spiraled as he raced ahead.

Lava Scissor. That name wasn’t just familiar—it was infamous.

In the original comic, Lava Scissor wasn’t even a real threat in the beginning. Just another throwaway villain. A monster-of-the-week.

But then...

Then came the war arc.

That’s when Keith, the comic’s main character, had first awakened the Solarion Pride—an innate power tied to his heroic lineage.

A power that made him invulnerable to elemental forces and allowed him to suppress anyone with elemental-type powers just by existing near them.

Lava Scissor had been the reason for that awakening.

He was supposed to force the awakening.

But now...

He was here.

And Elius didn’t have the Solarion Pride.

He wasn’t even sure he had Solarion blood at all.

He’s a Cultivator!

That made Lava Scissor an impossible enemy.

Yes, water was supposed to counter him. Fire and earth—lava—should’ve been weak to ice or liquid elements.

But no.

That thing was immune.

He remembered reading it—Keith had tried a dozen strategies. Poison. Water. Freezing time. And nothing worked until he unlocked that inherited bloodline.

And now here Elius was, stuck with the same threat...

...without the power to stop it.

He gritted his teeth, his jaw tight.

The sound of claws scratching stone echoed behind him as Ron sprinted closer, carrying the other two.

Soon, they caught up, and Elius finally slowed.

He landed softly on a floating sword, still hovering just above the dungeon’s craggy floor.

Ron stopped a few feet away, his chest heaving.

Klee looked pale.

Lina stared.

And Shiro, ever silent, crossed his arms.

Klee asked first. "Why... why did we run?"

Ron growled. "We could’ve taken him together—!"

"No," Elius said sharply. "We couldn’t."

They quieted.

Elius turned, looking at each of them in turn.

"I knew who that was," he said. "Before I took the entrance exam to become a hero, I... studied up. On rising threats. Dangerous individuals climbing the villain charts. Lava Scissor is one of them."

He didn’t blink. He made sure his lie was clean.

"He has no weakness. Not the usual kind. Water? Ice? No. They don’t work."

Lina furrowed her brows. "But he’s made of molten fire. That doesn’t make sense—"

Elius cut her off. "He’s a mutant. His powers are tied to some kind of spirit or whatever mutation. But what I know is, no element affects him. The more you hit him, the stronger the reaction becomes. And when he gets strong enough..."

He trailed off.

Klee hugged her staff closer. "Then... how do we beat him?"

"I don’t know yet," Elius admitted. "That’s why I took the headshot. That was our best chance. But if it didn’t kill him..."

"...he’ll regenerate," Shiro said quietly.

The others went silent.

Then Shiro pointed behind them. "But what about the entrance? If he’s unkillable... we just escape. Right?"

Everyone looked toward the shadowed corridor behind them—the stone hallway where the shimmering gateway back to the real world waited.

Elius’s face darkened.

"Didn’t you hear what he said?"

The others blinked.

He took a step forward, his voice low.

"He said someone brought him here. Pulled him out of a fight and threw him into this dungeon. As bait. As a challenge. As a test."

A long pause followed.

Klee’s hands trembled. "So..."

"...they’re still watching us," Lina whispered.

Elius nodded.

"That entrance might already be sealed. Or worse, trapped."

They all turned slowly, eyes toward the darkness.

Suddenly, the dim air seemed even heavier.

And now, a new fear crept into their hearts—not just of Lava Scissor...

...but of the one who brought him.

...

Back at the subterranean chamber, Radiant Man was smirking, "Now, son, how are you going to deal with him?"