The silver-haired man adjusted his glasses with one hand while holding his massive, human-sized greatsword with the other, not looking back at his subordinate.
"Rendezvous with the others, Moon. Get some rest–I'm not sure if this will be the final phase of the battle," Dae-Seong instructed, "...Well done."
"Heh. Give him hell," Moon waved off before running in the opposite direction.
The others that were tucked away in the building a safe distance away could now see Moon running towards their direction, holding his shattered wrist as he did so.
"Dae-Seong came!" He let out a smile of surprise.
"Hell yeah–I told ya' so! Ol' leader is as reliable as they get!" Yeong-Un gave him a high-five.
"...Moon is injured!" Eunji called out.
The moment the scruffy-bearded man pushed through the doors of the abandoned cafe, the white mage began to tend to his wounds.
"...Damn, that guy is tough as crap…" Moon winced, looking back through the window.
"Yeah, that's a bit of an understatement…" He replied with a wry laugh.
"Still, they'll be able to handle him–I'm confident in that," Moon assured.
He couldn't help but have his own doubts about that belief, but it seemed the rest of Gangcheori believed in their strength, so he wanted to see it for himself.
Just what kind of man are you, Dae-Seong?...And what kind of woman are you, Ma-Ri? I've been wanting to see it since the start of all of this, he thought.
–
Against the sword of light forged from the angel's authority, the silver-haired man's greatsword repeatedly countered against it.
"A worm, you said?" Dae-Seong finally replied to the angel's words, adjusting his glasses again as his white, gold-decorated coat swayed in the wind.
"Tch…" Radueriel clicked his tongue, "You're only a level thirty-eight…You shouldn't have strength like that."
"I shouldn't? That's odd–since it seems I do indeed possess this strength you're so wary of. Though the strength of a mere "worm" shouldn't pose any threat to a mighty angel, should it?" Dae-Seong replied stoically.
The angel silently fumed, bursting toward the man, "I'll turn you to ash, worm–!"
The leader of Gangcheori didn't raise any sort of guard, much to the surprise of the angel, who swung his light-forged blade towards the man–however, it was stopped before it could reach his flesh.
It wasn't Dae-Seong who blocked it, though, as he still remained unmoving, only matching the direct gaze of the angel.
"Thanks for the assist–Ma-Ri, Korain," the leader thanked.
Standing between him and the angel were two others; the dark-haired, pale girl wielding a spotless rapier, and the much larger, bulky man who held a claymore–together they guarded against the hissing, golden blade of the angel.
"You oughta be more diligent, boss!" Korain laughed.
"You…!" Radueriel hissed out, recognizing the man from earlier.
While he was momentarily distracted, the angel's eyes widened as the middle-aged man with slicked back, silver hair wasn't in front of his gaze anymore–only the two who held his blade back.
What–? Radueriel thought.
"You should use your head in battle more, angel."
Dae-Seong spoke from behind the divine being, prompting Radueriel to push away the two in front of him before spinning himself around in a fit of frustration.
A massive, vertical slash etched itself across his chest the moment he turned around, bisecting the winds as it created a massive shock wave–splitting the once immutable-though skin of the angel and spilling his blood onto the asphalt.
He cut me–? This doesn't make any sense–I didn't feel strength capable of this from him at first–so what is this?! Radueriel thought.
Upon inspecting the silver-haired man again, he witnessed something that for the first time, embedded fear into his body:
[Dae-Seong. Level: 76]
"H-how…? This isn't possible! You were half of that just a moment ago!" Radueirle swiped his arm in disbelief, holding his bleeding, lacerated chest with his other hand.
Dae-Seong adjusted his glasses, "Since you've shown such kindness to my comrades, I suppose I can let you off with that much information. What you're witnessing is my "Evolution System" – one of my evolutions allows me to temporarily double my level to overcome my opponent."
"What…? Something like that can't be…!" Radueriel gritted his teeth.
"I'd focus more on what's behind you," the silver-haired, stoic man warned the angel.
Just then, the angel felt a presence rapidly approaching him from behind, prompting him to swing back around as sweat dripped from his skin.
…I was so focused on that man that I forgot about the other two! Radueriel thought.
Leaping towards him overhead, the black-and-white haired, burly man displayed a reddened, strained complexion while rearing his claymore back with as much force as he could muster.
[Abandon: Stage Four]
"--!"
"This is payback for earlier, you sunnuva' bitch!" Korain roared out with a boisterous smile.
Like a meteor strike, the man slammed his claymore downwards with all of his strength, forcing the angel to manifest intertwined shields of light from his raised forearms to guard against the overhead swing.
"Graagh–!"
Even though he defended against the swing, the sheer force caused the asphalt beneath his feet to crack and sink, giving in to the overwhelming pressure as he felt it exude over his body, forcing the blood from the long, gruesome wound on his chest to spurt out in greater intensity.
Shit…! Radueriel thought desperately.
If that wasn't enough, while the angel was preoccupied holding the massive, downward swing of the claymore back from above him, he looked forward to see a flash of light approaching him before–a sharp impact.
"Gyrah–?!"
A rapier had pierced against his body, leaving an attack just as swiftly as the figure flashed past him–embedded a small hole in his chest that squirted crimson fluid out.
The girl–?! The angel thought.
"Ha-ha! Get him, Ma-Ri!" Korain roared out from above, pushing down harder against the angel as he had him locked in place.
The tables had turned completely: the ivory-haired angel now looked back with fear in his golden eyes, being met by the cold, icy gaze of the woman who looked no older than her late teens, yet possessed such indifferent malice as she strolled forward.
In the blink of an eye, that casual walk shifted into a flashing sprint while the lavishly-uniformed girl raised her shining rapier upward.
Another pierce–this time coming in the form of a dozen, swift stabs against the angel's back.
"Graaaagh!" Radueriel let out in pain.
–
"They're doing it!" He shouted out, pressed up against the window as he watched excitedly.
"I told ya', didn't I? The executives of Gangcheori are nothin' short of amazing!" Yeong-Un watched alongside him.
"They really might just pull this one off…!" He said, beginning to believe it.