X twisted his torso just enough for the Beast's claws to shear past his face and stomach, its tails whipping in from opposite angles toward his right knee and left elbow, and he avoided those too by margins that were far too precise to be luck. He had already died to those exact lines of attack, had already felt them tear through him, and rewound to step around them. "Ugh, this is such a frustrating fight," he said, breath tight as he pivoted in close and drove the iron pipe hard into the Beast's ribs, the impact ringing against its plated hide, "It's just unfair," he added, starting to shift his footing again—
—and his head was gone.
The moment snapped back.
X dropped under a sweeping tail this time, the strike passing over where his neck had been an instant before. "You get to change and adapt to fight whoever you're up against," he said, coming up inside its reach and jamming the iron pipe forward, ramming it into one of the Beast's many eyes with a wet, jarring impact—
—and both of his arms were severed.
The moment snapped back again.
X landed from a short hop backward, putting space between them as the Beast's claws tore through the air where his torso had just been. "And all I have is the ability to control time, that's just not fair, I should have what you have as well," he muttered, his breathing growing heavier now, the strain of repeated rewinds catching up to him. His stance reset, shoulders lowering, eyes locking onto the Beast as it roared and lunged, its right fist drawing back for a crushing blow that he knew would kill him.
He braced for it.
He expected the impact.
He expected the pain.
It never came.
Instead, the Beast's body lurched sideways mid-charge as Bram tore past it, his saber carving a clean line across its left flank, the blade biting in with enough force to drag its mass off course. At the same instant, Ercale came in from the opposite angle, his body snapping through a tight rotation as he drove a flying kick straight into the Beast's face. Lightning detonated from the point of contact, a sharp, violent burst that sent the Beast hurtling backward through the air.
It recovered before it could crash, wings snapping open to catch itself while both tails stabbed down into the ground, anchoring and dragging to bleed off the momentum until it ground to a halt. When it stopped, its many eyes lifted, locking onto the two of them with that same Bestial Hatred, deeper now, more focused.
"Really don't like the look on its face," Bram said, rolling his shoulder as he straightened, blade angled forward.
"I doubt it's going to take long to change to fight against you, you're a one trick pony after all," Ercale replied with a shrug, lightning still faintly crackling along his leg.
"Fuck you," Bram shot back without looking at him.
X exhaled, the tension draining out of him all at once now that the pressure was off. "Need to relax so you guys fight him, I'll be by Sarandel and catch my breath," he said, and before either of them responded, he vanished.
He reappeared at the edge of the crater beside Sarandel, dropping down onto the ground with a tired groan. The goddess looked down at him, clear annoyance in her expression as he sprawled out, staring up at nothing.
"I know, I know, I'll explain later," X said, already waving it off, before letting his head fall back fully as he lay there, catching his breath.
Meanwhile, at the edge of the battlefield, the others could only stare at what was unfolding, confusion cutting through the brief relief that had come with the Demon King's fall.
"What are you three doing?" Prince Mark demanded, his gaze fixed on Bram and Ercale as they positioned themselves against the Beast.
"It was going to kill that bastard! Why did you stop it!?" Samwell shouted, frustration and disbelief bleeding into his voice.
"That thing just beat the Demon King, you two, whoever you are, were struggling!" Annabel called out, trying to make sense of the reversal.
"If you're fighting, use that damn magic of yours to trap him like you did at the mayor's office!" Amara added sharply, already shifting her stance as if ready to act.
"Don't hurt him! Please! He just isn't in control!" Zee yelled, her voice breaking as she strained against Mae's grip, unable to break free.
Nearby, Nori was no better. That brief moment where his voice had returned was gone again, leaving him silent, but his intent was clear. He had stopped trying to crawl forward, his strength spent, yet his eyes locked onto Bram and Ercale, pleading, desperate, trying to convey what he could not say.
Ercale exhaled slowly, irritation evident as he dragged a hand through his hair before stepping forward just enough to address all of them at once.
"Listen up, all of you!" he snapped, his voice cutting cleanly through the noise. "What's in front of you isn't Xain, not right now anyways. It's something ancient and old, something so far beyond all of you, all of us here, that we cannot hope to truly beat it." His gaze flicked briefly toward the Beast before returning to them. "But we need to keep it under control so that the ape can take control again."
He let that settle for a fraction of a second before continuing, sharper now.
"If you don't want to help, then fuck off and don't get in the way. If you do want to help, do it now, because if we go at this thing one at a time, we are all going to die!"
The weight of his words hit immediately. No one spoke. Muscles tensed, eyes shifted, each of them caught between hesitation and the reality being forced onto them.
Then someone moved.
A fireball tore through the air and struck the Beast directly, bursting against its body in a flare of heat and light that forced a roar from it as the impact staggered its stance.
All eyes snapped to the source.
Amara stood there with her arm still extended, fingers splayed from the release, her expression set.
"What?" she said flatly, not even bothering to look at the others. "You heard him. And he speaks like he knows what he's talking about." Her hand lowered slightly as mana gathered again. "So let's all stop standing around, and attack that Beast."
That was enough.
The hesitation broke. One by one, then all at once, they steadied themselves, resolve hardening as they turned back toward the Beast, preparing for yet another fight.