The blood-red moon painted the entire land in crimson.
Below it, rivers of blood flowed endlessly through the shattered earth.
The metallic smell of blood filled Medusa and Sota's noses.
An unbearable silence covered everything.
It looked as if the moon itself had descended upon the world.
Medusa and Sota stood inside the river of blood, their bodies frozen in place.
Sota's eyes were locked ahead, as if he had witnessed something no human should ever see.
In front of him stood a man completely drenched in blood.
Drops of blood slowly fell from his sword.
Mike's silver hair had turned deep red, shining like the cursed Blood Moon itself.
Even Medusa stood completely still, like a warrior preparing himself for death.
"Why… does everything feel so strange?"
For a few seconds, Medusa silently observed the world around him.
Then, inside his mind, a single word echoed—
"Illusion."
Suddenly, Medusa grabbed Sota and pulled him close.
He thrust his hand into the river of blood and released his mana.
Cracks instantly spread across the blood moon and the rivers like shattered glass.
"Thuu…!"
"Thu…!"
As the illusionary world broke apart, Sota's eyes widened in horror.
"W-What… is this…?"
The mountains that once surrounded them had completely collapsed into the earth.
Only gigantic craters remained behind.
As Medusa slowly pushed Sota away from him, Sota's pupils suddenly shrank.
Mike appeared in front of him at terrifying speed, his sword slashing directly toward Sota's eyes.
Everything slowed down before Sota's vision.
The blade shining in front of his eyes looked almost unreal.
Just as the sword was about to pierce him—
CLANG!
Medusa instantly deflected Mike's blade upward with his black sword.
"THAMMM!"
Mike stepped back and glared at Medusa with his monstrous eyes.
Before him stood Medusa, holding a pitch-black sword that looked like the darkness of night itself.
"Sota… run as far away as you can."
"And don't look back."
Sota immediately tried to speak—
"But—"
Medusa suddenly shouted—
"SOTA… GO!"
Seeing Medusa yell like that for the first time, Sota stopped arguing and began running away without another word.
Mike's gaze followed Sota.
He instantly dashed toward him—
—but Medusa appeared in front of Mike and swung his sword downward.
Mike dodged the attack effortlessly and slammed a powerful kick into Medusa's chest, sending him crashing deep into one of the giant craters.
Mike landed above him with a terrifying smile.
"Blessing of the Great Ancestor Phoenix Flames…"
"Fire Spell — Fifth Stage…"
"Wings of Flame."
The moment Medusa heard those words, his breathing stopped.
"Phoenix…?"
Behind Mike, Medusa saw two gigantic flaming wings spreading across the sky.
The burning wings rushed toward Medusa at incredible speed.
Medusa tried to escape—
but for a moment, his body stopped moving completely.
"W-What…?"
"My body…!"
As the flaming wings reached him, Medusa raised his black sword in defense.
But just before the flames touched him—
The giant wings suddenly shattered into countless glowing embers.
Tiny sparks floated through the air in every direction.
It looked exactly like thousands of fireflies dancing beneath the Blood Moon.