---
The Aftermath of the Collision
The battlefield was silent.
Ash and embers drifted through the air, remnants of the explosion caused by the clash between Echo Chamber and Hellfire Waltz. The once-consuming inferno had been neutralized, leaving only scattered flames flickering weakly against the scorched ground.
A figure stood in the center of it all.
Akira Takahashi remained upright, breathing heavily. His hands trembled from the strain of manipulating sound frequencies at such an intricate level. His uniform was torn, his body covered in minor burns, but he had succeeded.
Hellfire Waltz's Phoenix Form was gone.
Across from him, Ayaka Fujiwara kneeled on one leg, her body shaking. Her once-fiery aura flickered erratically as she clenched her fists.
"How…?" she muttered, voice hoarse. "How did you counter it so perfectly…?"
Akira exhaled, stabilizing himself. "Fire is an energy reaction," he said. "If you introduce the right resonance, you can destabilize its pattern. You didn't lose because you were weaker, Ayaka. You lost because you didn't account for sound."
Ayaka gritted her teeth, then chuckled dryly. "Damn it… Guess I got outplayed."
She tried to stand—but her body betrayed her. Her Stand had been overexerted, and her energy was spent. She collapsed, unconscious.
Akira sighed. "One down."
Then he turned his gaze toward the other battle.
---
The Web Tightens
Daisuke Mori's blade of wind struck true.
Gale Phantom's attack had been precise—aimed at Reika Hoshino's shoulder to disable her without killing her.
But something was wrong.
The moment the attack should have landed—
Reika vanished.
No—
She had shifted.
Daisuke's eyes widened. He felt it too late—the strings that had been broken were merely a distraction.
Reika was behind him now.
"You adapted quickly," she admitted, her voice smooth and calm. "But you're still dancing in my symphony."
Daisuke barely had time to react before the second layer of Strings of Fate activated fully.
Every remaining string in the battlefield surged toward him—
Not just to bind him.
To cut.
Daisuke twisted midair, wind erupting from his body in a defensive burst. The first wave of strings was deflected—but the second was already upon him.
His movement had been predicted.
The strings coiled around his wrists, his ankles—his throat.
Reika closed her hand.
Daisuke felt the pressure constricting his body. If he didn't act now—
---
The Phantom's Answer
Wind surged.
Daisuke didn't resist the pull of the strings.
Instead, he used them.
He allowed himself to be dragged toward Reika—accelerating at the last moment, turning her trap into his momentum.
Gale Phantom materialized beside him, arms outstretched. The wind hardened, forming razor-thin air currents that countered the strings mid-flight. The moment of tension snapped—Daisuke was free.
Reika's expression shifted, her calculated calm cracking for the first time.
Impossible.
Daisuke twisted his body, adjusting his stance in midair.
His counterattack was already prepared.
---
The Winds That Cut Fate
Gale Phantom struck—not with brute force, but with something far deadlier.
A precise wind current, vibrating at supersonic speeds.
A frequency tuned specifically—to disrupt Reika's strings.
The very moment it made contact—
Every single thread of Strings of Fate unraveled.
Reika gasped, staggering backward. The invisible force she had relied on—
Gone.
Her Stand shattered apart, dissipating like mist in the wind.
Daisuke landed, rolling to his feet. He took slow, measured breaths. "You overplayed your hand," he said simply.
Reika clenched her fists, her mind racing.
Her entire combat style revolved around control.
Without her strings—she had nothing.
And she knew it.
She let out a shaky breath, closing her eyes for a moment. Then she smiled—a slow, knowing smile.
"Well then," she murmured. "Looks like I lose."
And then she collapsed.
---
The Battle's End?
The battlefield was still.
Ayaka Fujiwara—defeated.
Reika Hoshino—defeated.
Daisuke and Akira stood side by side, both of them exhausted but victorious.
They had won this fight.
But something didn't feel right.
Akira narrowed his eyes. "This was… too easy."
Daisuke nodded slowly. "Yeah."
Then—
They felt it.
A pulse of energy.
Something shifting in the distance.
A presence—growing stronger.
Akira's breath caught in his throat. He recognized this aura.
And if it was who he thought it was—
Then this battle was far from over.
---
A New Threat Awakens
Far beyond the battlefield, a figure observed the aftermath.
His lips curled into a slow, deliberate smile.
Minh had been watching.
And now—
It was time for him to make his move.
---