The air on the training grounds suddenly thickened, as if saturated with invisible static electricity. The stranger standing opposite Eni didn't even bother to take a combat stance. Instead, he simply snapped his fingers, and razor-sharp swords began to materialize from the void. They drifted in space, leveling their points at Eni before lunging. The projectiles didn't fly too fast, giving her a chance, but their trajectories were so unpredictable that Eni had to exert herself fully to parry them with her enchanted katana.

  Meanwhile, her opponent behaved provocatively: he lightly danced in place, swaying his hips almost imperceptibly to some internal melody, humming an unknown tune. Eni, heated by the fight and stung by his indifference, made a sharp lunge forward. She hoped to catch him off guard, but the guy reacted instantly. He caught her attacking hand accurately, almost tenderly, whirled her in a split-second movement resembling a waltz, and gently tossed her back.

  "But doesn't a little spice make every battle better?" he noted ironically, stretching his lips into a smirk that annoyed Eni more than the flying swords.

  "Shut up!" she growled, throwing herself back into the attack.

  The intensity of the fight ramped up. Now the swords appeared more frequently, becoming faster and stronger. Eni could barely dodge the thrusts, feeling the tips of the blades whistle right past her face.

  "Hey, hey! If you don't FACE the DANGER... I’ll just finish you off!" he exclaimed, theatrically surprised by her caution. With a wink, he directed a whole swarm of blades at her. Eni tried to deflect them in a fan-like motion, but one blade buried itself deep into her shoulder. However, the weapon dissolved like smoke upon contact, leaving not even a scratch.

  "Have you ever heard an old legend?" he asked suddenly, while the swords circled him like obedient birds.

  "No, why?" Eni froze warily, catching her breath.

  "A story based on a prophecy... by an Unknown. I seriously don't know who wrote it," he smirked again, and a new wave of swords rushed at Eni. She parried them with growing ease, but bewilderment grew inside her. Why was he using these magical projections instead of his real abilities?

  At some point, Eni lost her patience and activated one of her stored scrolls. A massive fireball tore from her palms, hurtling straight at the guy's chest. But he... simply batted it away with his palm like a ball! The sphere flew back at Eni, and she barely managed to drop to her knee, feeling the heat of the flames over her head.

  "Hey!" she protested.

  "This is a battle! And in a battle, there's no such thing as fairness," he laughed again. "So, the prophecy... 'A father who left his child in the depths of hell, forgotten for centuries due to negligence... A King tries to change the world and restore justice, but... it does not work.'"

  With those words, he sharply intensified the pressure. Swords began appearing directly behind her back. Eni spun like a top, her katana clashing incessantly. Just as she tried to close the distance again, he tripped her, and she slammed onto the stones of the ring with a crash.

  "Argh! You are so annoying!" Eni spat, lunging back to her feet.

  "'The King's son, mortally wounded in war; villains take his soul to realize their sinister plan... but unsuccessfully,'" he continued, ignoring her anger. Another wave of swords was deflected by Eni almost mechanically, but suddenly he was right there. A heavy foot in a black boot slammed her into the ground, knocking the wind out of her.

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  He didn't give her a moment to recover—he materialized a massive broadsword in his hand and brought it down from above. Eni rolled aside, feeling the earth tremble. The stranger suddenly threw a regeneration potion at her. The vial shattered against her uniform, enveloping her in healing steam.

  "'An island of northern color. An exiled maiden who travels between worlds and finds her savior,'" the guy began to swing the broadsword zealously, forcing Eni to defend at the limit of her capabilities. At the end of the series of blows, he stomped his foot with all his might, and a hail of stones erupted from the ground.

  Eni shielded herself with her arms—the impact was heavy, but bearable.

  "Why are you telling me this?!" she shouted.

  "Shut up and listen! I tell this prophecy to everyone. It’s important!" his voice became steel for a moment. "'A tragic grief of darkness. A great monster that gives a great gift to heroes, to awaken his brother.'"

  Hundreds of swords materialized above Eni's head. They fell like rain. She dodged as best she could, but most of the projections grazed her, vanishing on contact. Another healing potion hit her in the chest. Eni couldn't understand: was she really that weak, or was he so skillfully tailoring himself to her level just to toy with her?

  "'A field of purple flowers. A vast garden burned in the hellfire of almighty power and stupidity'..." He attacked again, but this time inky shadows grabbed Eni by the ankles. She had to parry attacks while balancing on one leg in an awkward pose.

  "So you're Nick?!" it dawned on her.

  Nick burst out laughing so hard he almost dropped his broadsword:

  "My right eye is PINK, just like Vee’s, for FUCK'S sake! You haven't figured it out until now?"

  "No... I didn't notice..." Eni muttered uncertainly.

  "Enough, be quiet. I need to finish the prophecy, not chatter with you!" He coughed, clearing his throat. "'And what's next? Well, I don't know!'"

  He grinned widely. Eni literally exploded:

  "You shut me up for THAT?!"

  "Take it easy, sweetheart. Is it my fault the text cuts off after that point?" He went on the attack again, and then the unimaginable happened. Nick... multiplied. Or rather, there were several of him. As soon as Eni blocked a blow from one, he would vanish, while another was already striking from the flank.

  "What the... how?!" she gasped in shock.

  "Just like that," he replied in the tone of a man who is surprised by his own talents. "Unfortunately, there was no more prophecy. The story became so great, so staggering, that you can see its echoes even in the form of tablets, like when you killed that Gorgon. 'Those who could write, the next generation, the heroes... The pen was only waiting to be used, to write the next page...'" His voice suddenly faltered. "But they almost all died..."

  He slammed his foot into Eni's ribs; she blocked the hit but was immediately faced with three of his copies at once.

  "FUCK! What kind of psycho are you?!" she screamed, fighting back with her last strength.

  "Head of the Coalition, Demon of Ink... and a father," he smirked ironically. "And you? I see history in your eyes... burning so brightly... burning purple, burning with the primal fear of dragons."

  The floor beneath them collapsed with a roar. The ceiling of the training hall vanished, and the battle moved to islands floating in the void—remnants of the destroyed polygon. Eni ran across the debris, fighting off dozens of Nick's clones.

  "Looks like this is JUST THE BEGINNING!" Nick looked truly insane and happy.

  Eni, wiping blood from her lip, whispered with involuntary awe: "Fuck... just how strong is he?"

  "So... how do you think it all ends? No... how do YOU want it to end?" he asked, while tons of swords flew at her from all sides. Eni, already accustomed to his pace, dodged everything.

  "Phew... I'm tired..." she wiped away sweat. "If I could choose... I guess I'd want a quiet life. It's just better if it all... ends?"

  Two Nicks attacked her immediately, whirling in a synchronized deadly dance. Swords fell like hail, but Eni blocked that too. Nick started to slow down... or was she getting faster?

  "N-ha-ha-ha-ha!" he laughed contentedly. "Well, well... Fighting me, the most dangerous creature in the upper and lower layers of the world... you choose 'eternity.'"

  He split into six, forming a ring around her. Blows rained down from all sides simultaneously with a downpour of swords. Eni didn't make it. Her body was pierced by dozens of projections; Nick slammed his foot into her again, sending her flying, and immediately healed her with a new potion.

  "But there is one thing capable of surpassing the blackness of this world. The white thread of fate, known as hope. I suppose... every surviving hero has it."

  "Me? No," Eni snapped. "I'm controlled by the Voice. My thread is the trickery and deception of the Voice, and your device that jams it."

  "Really? REALLY???" Nick roared with laughter.

  "Yeah! Now shut up and let me punch your face in!" Eni barked.

  Nick accepted the challenge. He began appearing and disappearing at different points in space, attacking with his broadsword at inconceivable angles. Eni blocked, growled, and snapped back with counter-thrusts. At one point, she saw a whole army of Nicks before her—hundreds of copies wound up to strike simultaneously... and vanished.

  Eni found herself standing in the center of the training ground. It was blown to splinters; the stones of the ring had turned to dust.

  "Whatever, I'm tired," Nick tossed out. He looked absolutely fresh, not even out of breath.

  Eni stood with her mouth open, unable to utter a single word from the shock of what she'd experienced. The Head of the Coalition simply turned around and, whistling that same melody, carelessly walked away.