The basilisk lunged forward with a brutality that left no room for hesitation.
Its massive body tore across the battlefield like a living disaster, crushing the rocks beneath its colossal weight. Every movement of the creature sent vibrations through the ground, as though the dungeon itself reacted to its fury.
There was no elegance in the way it fought.
No technique.
No hesitation.
Only overwhelming violence.
Facing it, Ryuji remained motionless for a fraction of a second too long.
His body seemed delayed, as if his mind struggled to keep up with everything happening around him. His crimson eyes stared at the basilisk, yet his gaze felt as though it was looking through the creature rather than truly seeing it.
Then, at the very last instant, he vanished.
A wave of heat exploded from the place where he had stood moments before, distorting the air with a low thermal rumble.
The basilisk's strike tore through empty space.
The shockwave alone was enough to shatter several boulders behind him.
Ryuji reappeared beside the monster's flank.
Too close.
Dangerously close.
As though his instincts had completely abandoned the very concept of caution.
In his hand, the flame he had summoned earlier began to change.
It no longer resembled ordinary fire.
The light pulsed unevenly, shifting between blazing crimson and near-black shades for brief moments. Sparks burst wildly around his arm, scorching the air before touching anything else.
His breathing was unstable.
His body too.
Yet he attacked.
Without stance.
Without preparation.
As if the only thing that mattered was moving forward.
The strike slammed against the basilisk's scales with a deafened explosion.
A wave of flames engulfed part of the creature's body, forcing a roar from the monster.
The basilisk staggered back several meters, more surprised than truly injured.
Ryuji, however, crashed heavily onto the ground.
His balance collapsed instantly.
One hand slammed against the stone to stop himself from completely falling over.
His arm trembled violently.
The muscles in his shoulder twitched erratically, as though his own body rejected the energy flowing through it.
This was not simple exhaustion.
It was worse.
Something inside him was slowly falling out of sync.
A short distance away, Roy watched the scene with a mixture of shock and disbelief.
"Is that… really him…?"
His voice was nearly inaudible.
Around him, several soldiers had stopped breathing normally.
Even those accustomed to battle stared at Ryuji with growing unease.
Some saw a monster.
Others… an uncontrollable weapon.
Among the men dressed in black, the silence was just as heavy.
Their leader kept his eyes locked onto Ryuji.
His expression remained calm, but his fingers slowly tightened around the hilt of his weapon.
"That isn't controlled magic…" he muttered.
Another man answered immediately, more nervously.
"His mana is fluctuating everywhere…"
"It's unstable… if he explodes, we'll all get caught in it."
Aeryn, meanwhile, could no longer look away from Ryuji.
Her mind analyzed every detail.
Every movement.
Every fluctuation in temperature.
But none of it made sense.
What she was witnessing surpassed every anomaly she already knew.
This was not simple magical overload.
It was as though multiple incompatible forces were colliding inside the same body.
And Ryuji… was surviving it anyway.
The basilisk unleashed another savage roar before charging once more.
Its tail sliced through the air with monstrous force.
The impact struck Ryuji head-on.
The sound of bone slamming against stone echoed across the battlefield as he was hurled into a pile of rocks.
Fragments exploded around him.
A collective gasp spread through the battlefield.
For a moment, some truly believed it was over.
Even Roy felt his chest tighten.
But within the cloud of dust…
Something moved.
Ryuji stood up.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
As though every movement demanded unbearable pain.
Blood streamed down his face.
Parts of his clothing had burned away, revealing red and blackened skin underneath.
But what truly froze everyone in place…
Was his expression.
He was smiling.
Not a reassuring smile.
Not a victorious smile.
Something twisted.
Something empty.
As though his brain no longer reacted normally to pain.
"H-He's smiling…?"
One of the soldiers instinctively stepped backward.
Even the men in black exchanged silent glances.
The basilisk itself seemed to realize it was facing something abnormal.
Its slit pupils locked entirely onto Ryuji.
This time, it was no longer trying to kill prey.
It wanted to annihilate a threat.
Aeryn immediately sensed the danger.
Her face paled slightly.
"Ryuji, don't look at it!"
But it was already too late.
The basilisk's eyes met his.
For one second…
Nothing happened.
Then the petrification began.
Ryuji's right arm froze instantly.
A layer of stone spread across his skin before slowly climbing toward his shoulder.
His leg followed moments later.
The transformation advanced with horrifying slowness, like a curse taking ownership of his body piece by piece.
Ryuji lowered his eyes toward his arm.
He stared at the stone with strange emotional detachment.
As though his mind struggled to process what was happening to him.
"…Ah."
That single sound sent chills through several witnesses.
Then the temperature exploded.
The air itself trembled.
Flames erupted around him with uncontrollable violence.
Not controlled flames.
Not a technique.
An instinctive reaction.
Brutal.
The fire instantly engulfed the petrified parts of his body.
The stone shattered apart with dry cracking sounds.
But his flesh burned alongside it.
A horrific smell immediately spread through the air.
Some soldiers instantly looked away.
Others stepped back in disgust.
Ryuji collapsed onto his knees.
His body trembled violently.
His breathing resembled that of a wounded beast.
"He's destroying himself…" Roy whispered.
And the worst part…
Ryuji barely seemed to care.
Aeryn quietly clenched her fists.
An unpleasant pressure tightened inside her chest.
She had used him.
Manipulated him.
Pushed him down this path because she believed she could handle the consequences.
But what she was witnessing now had gone far beyond her expectations.
Something inside him had changed.
Something dangerous.
Ryuji slowly raised his head.
His eyes were even redder than before.
Almost glowing.
Unstable.
As though something was burning behind his gaze.
Then, without warning, he charged toward the basilisk again.
Not like a warrior.
Like a human catastrophe.
The basilisk attacked immediately.
Its claws tore through the air.
Ryuji narrowly dodged some attacks.
Others struck him directly.
His body reacted with delay, as though his instincts moved faster than his consciousness.
But despite the blows…
Despite the burns…
Despite his condition…
He kept moving forward.
Again.
Closer and closer.
When he finally reached the basilisk's head, the flame in his hand changed once more.
It violently stretched outward, taking on an unstable, distorted shape.
The energy around him became chaotic.
Even the air itself seemed to scream beneath the heat.
Then he struck.
The explosion shook the entire battlefield.
The ground cracked apart.
A scorching wave swept across the area.
The basilisk roared as it was finally pushed back several meters.
But it did not fall.
And neither did Ryuji.
He crashed heavily onto the ground, unable to soften his landing this time.
His body remained motionless for several seconds.
Labored breathing.
Trembling fingers.
Around him, nobody dared to move.
Even the men in black remained frozen.
"If he survives this…" one of them muttered.
"…he won't be someone we can control anymore," another finished.
The basilisk stared at Ryuji with newfound recognition.
He was no longer prey.
He was a rival.
Another calamity.
On the ground, Ryuji let out a faint laugh.
Weak.
Broken.
But real.
As though some part of him genuinely found this situation amusing.
Then he began to rise again.
Once more.
His body trembled.
His breathing was uneven.
And the heat surrounding him kept increasing.
Aeryn watched him in silence.
And for the first time since the beginning of this mission…
She felt fear.
A clear thought crossed her mind:
Perhaps they had not unleashed an ally.
But something far worse.
The basilisk roared again.
Ryuji slowly lifted his head.
A tired smile stretched across his burned lips.
"…Again."
And he walked forward.
Again