Hiroshi's body is covered in purple flames from head to toe. After a few seconds of concentration, his body also begins to change after absorbing the flaming aura. His skin gradually turns purple, his hair turns brown, and his worn-out clothes begin to flutter as purple flames overflow from his sleeves, stretching them with a fabric created by the same flames.

A translucent purple flame begins to glow in his hand. The flame forms in his hand into the shape of a sword. As he closes his fist, he causes the flame to materialize, giving rise to a detailed shadowy sword with a black blade and purple hilt.

With his transformation complete, he opens his eyes, which glow purple, with a thin, shimmering mist of the same color exuding from his pupils. Opening his mouth, he reveals that his canine teeth are larger and more pointed.

Not knowing how to react, Katsuo just stares in horror at the result of the transformation:

"It's like the time Vektor was possessed... No, it's a little different. His appearance is more affected, he seems further away from a human. However, at the same time... he seems more stable...?"

Unable to predict his opponent's actions, the swordsman reluctantly positions himself for combat. Surprisingly, Maken manages to react naturally, saying with his own mouth:

"Trembling as always... Do you really think you can defeat me this time, Katsuo?"

"I- I didn't spend this entire month playing around! Now that I've mastered my swordsmanship, I have enough power to surpass you!"

"Hehehe, I'm getting curious... Not that it'll change the outcome."

The creature Maken energizes the blade of his sword with purple flames and also positions himself for combat, while the swordsman Kder wields his sword.

The legendary swordsman and the creature the evil servant has transformed into are about to begin a short duel unlike any other duel between the two sworn brothers. Now the battle is between hero and monster.

The two stare at each other as they prepare to attack, Kder with a nervous look and Maken with a dry but insane look.

While Maken is currently just setting his mind on winning, Kder finds himself mentally at a dead end.

"The truth is, the difference between us is more than obvious. If this were truly a deathmatch, I would definitely die. However, this battle is merely a test of endurance. From his point of view, this is a battle against time. My only goal is to survive as long as possible. If I can stay alive until Vektor is summoned back, victory is mine!"

"...!"

The two advance towards each other and then cross their swords, generating a powerful impact between two beams of blue light.

"Two-dimensional slash!"

After saying this simultaneously, the two begin a contest of strength. It doesn't take long for Kder to feel the disadvantage, dodge the course of the swords and jump back. However, his enemy doesn't give him time to breathe and runs towards him.

"Two-dimensional slash: Blue satellite!"

With this technique, he cuts the space in front of him and keeps it as a way to protect himself. Maken receives a serious wound on his arm because of this technique, causing him to jump back to his original position, without appearing to feel much pain:

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"Oh...! You hurt me, that's new! Looks like you really learned some new tricks while I was away, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm the most experienced."

Maken then uses purple flames to heal his arm, while Kder realizes that he was also hit by an attack from his opponent, but his wound soon heals seconds later through purple flames.

"What? But I don't have any powers like that."

"This is my sword's new power. Good for you, you won't have to worry about getting your body covered in cuts. As long as I don't hit your vital organs, you'll only feel a little pain when I use techniques like this one...!"

Maken attacks Kder using the same technique he used against Vektor during their duel a month ago:

"Two-dimensional slashes: 16-directions Cage!"

"Planetary orbit!"

Kder uses another one of his new techniques to defend himself. Planetary orbit is a rotating two-dimensional slash that can be used for attack or defense, working in the same way as the Blue satellite, but with a greater range and less precision.

After Maken fails to execute his technique, the two clash swords again. After his enemy retreats once more, Kder begins a powerful combo of all the other two-dimensional slash techniques he has learned:

"Starlight!"

First, he uses a technique in which he pretends to attack the opponent's eyes with high-speed piercing thrusts, until the opponent reacts by defending himself, so he can then take advantage of the opponent's low guard and cut his belly with a two-dimensional diagonal slash at high speed.

"Nitrogen meteorite!"

The second technique of the combo consists of Kder using his super speed to circle around Maken until he loses his focus, and then attacking with a two-dimensional slash in his blind spot.

"Lunar orbit!"

The next technique consists of delivering a two-dimensional slash vertically from bottom to top, followed by another even larger one in the same place. Maken manages to defend himself from the first cut, but ends up lowering his guard for the second.

"Theia's Core!"

Kder finishes his combo with his final new technique, in which he performs several spinning two-dimensional slashes during an aerial pirouette. Maken defends all 20 aerial hits with his sword, but then Kder lands and delivers the final hit of the technique, delivering a two-dimensional horizontal slash to the opponent's chest.

Finishing his 4-hit combo, Kder leaves a large, bright blue asterisk mark on Maken's chest, allowing him to inflict the effect of his newest secret technique:

"Two-dimensional slashes: 8-directions Asteroid: Impact!"

The impact of the technique's explosion sends Maken flying, causing him to spill blood in his path. After a few seconds, his chest burns with purple flames, and he slowly stands up as the flames die down and his wound heals.

"Hahaha, what an amazing sequence, huh? I can even say it hurt a little... But now, it's my turn."

He then uses his super speed to run back and forth around Kder, attacking him from different directions, much like he did at the beginning of his duel with Vektor. However, from the beginning, Maken aims to hurt Kder, even if only slightly.

Kder manages to defend himself from most of the attacks, but ends up getting hit by shallow cuts a few times. As the seconds pass, the swordsman starts to lose energy and starts getting hit more often, despite his wounds being instantly healed by the purple flames.

However, he doesn't have time to get used to it. From a certain point on, all of Maken's attacks become two-dimensional slashes, which seriously injure Kder's body and cut his hair clip. This is Maken's secret technique:

"Two-dimensional slashes: Mist of blue fireflies!"

After performing his technique, he returns to his original position. Kder is left with several wounds all over his body, which soon burn in purple flames and heal, but his exhaustion remains.

His long, loose hair and his tired, panting face show how weak his body is. With his legs shaking and his arms hanging down, Kder drops his sword, letting it fall to the ground, a clear sign of defeat.

The duel is settled. There is nothing more Kder can do to prevent his own death.

Maken advances towards his target using his super speed and delivers his final attack, bringing his sword forward with the intention of piercing Kder's heart, and the hero in turn does not have the strength to even try to dodge.

"Farewell, Katsuo!!"

The dark blade then pierces flesh. With a mixture of relief and astonishment, Kder looks at the one who is between the two, interrupting the sword's trajectory. Maken looks at this person with a mixture of contentment and resentment.

This person between Kder and Maken, with his face lowered, appears to be in agony, due to the fact that a sword is entering the palm of his left hand and piercing the flesh and bones of his left arm.

Irritated by the pain and by his own impulsive act, he says:

"Khhh-! Damn it! Honestly... I always make the worst decisions without thinking twice...!"

Vektor then raises his face, much more nervous than usual:

"Am I an idiot or what?!!"