"Haaa..."
Neron pushed harder, pouring everything he had into the fight.
"Haaa... haaa..."
His movements became more desperate, his attacks more volatile.
The ground cracked and splintered under their feet, the mountain itself beginning to crumble under the weight of their battle.
But no matter how much power Neron unleashed, the Martial Blade God remained calm. He deflected, countered, and evaded with an almost effortless grace, as though the fight were a mere exercise to him.
Finally, Neron staggered back, his chest heaving.
His Mage Mode flickered, his reserves of mana running dangerously low. Despite his best efforts, the Martial Blade God hadn't even broken a sweat.
"You've got heart, boy," the man said, lowering his blade. "But heart alone won't win this fight."
Neron's fists trembled at his sides, his anger boiling over.
"You haven't seen anything..." he growled, his voice hoarse.
The Martial Blade God smirked, his golden eyes gleaming.
"I'm waiting."
And with that, he sheathed his blade and raised his hands, prepared for yet another attack as the swirling dust of the battlefield danced around him.
Neron fell to his knees, his body shaking with exhaustion and frustration.
Serah and Legris rushed to his side, their faces pale with worry.
"Neron... are you okay?" Serah asked, her voice trembling.
He didn't answer.
His gaze remained fixed on the spot where the Martial Blade God was standing his mind replaying the fight over and over.
He had given everything he had—and it still wasn't enough.
"I'll beat him," Neron whispered, his voice barely audible.
"No matter what it takes."
He rose to his feet and squeezed out every bit of Mana he had, and as he did so... all of the energy around him began to gather.
They all became his energy, coalescing towards him like iron would be drawn towards a Magnet.
In an instant, his energy reserves skyrocketed.
That allowed him to pull up his last trump card.
"[Original Magic..."
VWUUUUUUUMMMMM!!!
The air around Neron distorted, vibrating under the sheer magnitude of power emanating from him.
Neron didn't let up.
He pushed forward, using [The Hermit] to accelerate his movements, increasing the effectiveness of his Original Magic, and [The Sun] to infuse every strike with explosive power.
The mountaintop became a battlefield of chaos, the very air trembling under the weight of their battle.
BOOOOOM! BOOOOOOOOOM!!!
Every collision of their power sent shockwaves rippling outward, uprooting trees and splitting the earth.
The mountains groaned under the strain, their peak crumbling into a cascade of rubble.
"Raaagh!" Neron roared, teleporting above his opponent and delivering a devastating downward strike.
THUUUUMMM!!!
The Martial Blade God raised his blade to meet the attack, the force of the collision sending cracks racing across the ground like spiderwebs.
"You've grown stronger," the man admitted, his voice calm despite the chaos.
"And you're about to lose!"
Neron spat back, pouring more energy into his strikes.
But his body protested. The toll of maintaining [All The Time In The World] was immense, his mana reserves dwindling rapidly despite his ability to absorb energy from the environment.
Each second felt like an eternity, his very essence straining under the weight of his power.
Still, he refused to falter.
VWUUUUUMMMMM!!!
Neron gathered every ounce of mana he could muster, his aura flaring like a supernova.
His energy coated the battlefield in a golden hue, illuminating the devastation around them.
"This ends now!" he shouted, raising both hands.
The energy around him coalesced into a massive, radiant sphere—a final attack meant to obliterate everything in its path.
The Martial Blade God watched, his glowing eyes unblinking as the sphere grew larger, its destructive potential undeniable.
Neron threw the sphere with everything he had, the force of its release shaking the very foundation of the mountain.
KRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKK!!!
The radiant sphere hurtled toward the Martial Blade God, its brilliance rivaling the sun.
The air screamed under its weight, the battlefield consumed by its overwhelming light.
And then...
The Martial Blade God smiled.
"Enough playing around," he said, his voice cutting through the chaos like a blade.
"Let me get a little serious too."