Fresh blood still stained the floor of the Tower of Metal Moose, illuminated by the cold blue light emanating from the Prismatronic Core. Marshmallow propped his Titan Hammer against the wall, staring at the drops of blood dripping from it. He still couldn't wrap his head around what he had done, but whatever. It was like every strike of the Titan Hammer echoed in his head like a funeral knell.

But moments earlier, another battle had raged in the Prismatronic Core chamber on the other side. Samantheye and OK Damage were preparing to face the Leader and the Strategist.

Dam fixed the Leader with an icy stare that promised violence. "We're not here to be target practice," he said in a gravelly voice. "We're here to kill you."

The Leader laughed derisively. "Ah ah ah! Kill me? You two? You're pathetic. Insects challenging a god."

Samantheye steeled herself for battle, her gaze resolute. "Don't underestimate us," she declared in a voice that brooked no argument. "We'll show you what we're capable of."

The Leader laughed again, this time the sound devoid of humor. "By all means, come at me. But I warn you, you'll receive no mercy from me. My power is beyond your comprehension."

The Strategist, silent until now, took a step back, leaving the field open to his comrade. "Let me stand aside, let's see what you can do alone," he said with a shrug.

"Fine, let's get started," Samantheye muttered, gripping her rifle until her knuckles turned white.

The Leader arched an eyebrow in disdain. "Prepare to be annihilated."

A blinding glow emanated from his hands, and within seconds, a searing bolt of incandescent light shot forth like a missile toward Samantheye. She hit the deck, rolling, and it grazed her shoulder with a hiss, leaving the smell of seared flesh in the air.

"Shit!" Samantheye exclaimed. That was a close one, if the blast had been slightly more to the right, she would have had to say goodbye to her arm.

Dam reacted quickly, unleashing a hail of bullets from his Tricoda at the Leader. In an instant, the Leader made a gesture and a shimmering force field appeared around him, the bullets bouncing harmlessly off. Dam gritted his teeth in frustration. No matter how hard he hits the barrier, the shots don't get through.

The Leader regarded them with amusement. "You really think you can compete with the power of an A Rank? You're just insects, flailing about in my battlefield."

Dam gritted his teeth, feeling the anger building inside him. "I don't like to use this, but it might be the only solution," he muttered to himself, struggling with his energy reserves.

Samantheye clenched her fists, feeling the fire of determination burning within her. "We won't give up that easily," she stated firmly, reloading her rifle. "We'll show you what we're capable of."

At that point, Dam had an epiphany as he kept his eyes trained on the barrier. He wouldn't easily break through by randomly pummeling it. He needed one precise, piercing strike. "Alright, you bastard," he muttered through gritted teeth as a determined light shone in his eyes. "Let's see what I can do with this damn tail."

With a swift, precise motion, Dam coiled his Tricoda into a single tapered protrusion, gripping it like a sharpened drill bit. With a guttural cry of sheer force, Dam launched his coiled Tricoda at the Leader's light barrier. Sparks flew into the air as the Leader's defenses were sorely tested.

"Inconceivable!" the Leader bellowed. "A mere insect threatening my invincibility?" The Leader then worked to thicken his light barrier, but Dam didn't relent. With burning determination, he continued whirling the drill at full force until the Tricoda became a razor-sharp blade, slowly boring through the barrier.

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Finally, a crack opened in the Leader's defenses. Samantheye, ready for action, seized the opportunity, aiming her rifle through the gap. A single shot struck the Leader's shoulder. Likely the Leader's Constitution stat was insanely high because normally Samantheye's souped-up rifle shot would have punched clean through body armor. Instead, the Leader had barely flinched from the impact, only a trickle of blood seeping from the point of impact. And this was after taking a point-blank rifle shot from less than two meters away.

"What?" Samantheye exclaimed in disbelief. She couldn't believe her eyes. What insane fortitude did this guy have to shrug off a shot like that?

The Leader contorted his face in pain but took no significant damage. With a sneer, he casually closed the gap in his light barrier with a wave, knocking Samantheye back.

"I'll admit, you almost caught me by surprise there," the Leader snarled in a voice dripping with disdain. "But such a meager swipe is not enough to truly injure me."

Before Dam or Samantheye could react, the Leader charged up two brilliant glows between his hands and unleashed twin waves of energy at each of them, violently blasting them to the ground.

"Observe closely, insects," the Leader thundered as he marched towards them menacingly. "Let me show you what it means to face true divine power."

In his hands, energy began gathering once more into an increasingly blinding glow, almost impossible to look at directly. Dam and Samantheye, aching, struggled to get back on their feet, but too late.

With a roar that seemed to shake the very foundations of the tower, the Leader unleashed that sphere of pure energy at them. The impact was devastating, an actual detonation that slammed into them like an incandescent meteor.

Samantheye was flung backward with unheard of force, her body bouncing off the floor like a ragdoll before crashing against the wall with a dull thud. Dam, meanwhile, was literally engulfed by the shockwave, his silhouette swallowed by a swirling vortex of debris and sparks.

When the smoke cleared, both of them lay motionless, their bodies ravaged by burns. If this was real life, they would have been urgently hospitalized. The two strongest of the group had already fallen. They couldn't do anything. The Leader approached them with a malicious look of triumph, ready to deliver the killing blow.

But it was at that moment that Samantheye and Dam caught a glimpse of the Novgovian remains on the other side, revealing a horrific scene. The bodies of the lower-ranked enemies had been reduced to an almost unrecognizable bloody pulp. Right there, emerging from that carnage, was a fearsome, demonic figure.

Realizing what had happened, Marshmallow, still mounted on the Goat Horse, had started charging at full force toward the Leader, dragging his blood-drenched Titan Hammer behind him. His gaze was one of primal fury, a demon reborn from the ashes of battle.

With an animalistic roar, Marshmallow spurred his steed to accelerate its charge. The Goat Horse neighed fiercely, its hooves too drenched in blood, kicking up clouds of dust as it barreled towards the Leader.

Marshmallow shot a glance at his fallen comrades, rage burning in his eyes. He wanted to kill the Leader at all costs. He gripped the handle of the Titan Hammer tightly and swung at him with every ounce of power. But as the hammer struck the light barrier, it simply bounced off without leaving a scratch. The defense was simply too resilient.

The Leader sneered derisively. "Is that all you have to offer, worm?"

Marshmallow snarled, and determination burning within him. This time he took a longer run-up, gathering as much speed and force as possible. With a bellow, he charged and swung again with a mighty horizontal slash, causing the entire room to tremble. But once more, the barrier held inviolable, repelling the strike in a blinding flash.

The Leader shook his head in disappointment. "Pathetic. Is that it? I expected more from you."

Before Marshmallow could react, the Leader charged up another incandescent sphere of energy between his hands and hurled it toward him with devastating force. The impact was like being hit by an explosion, the detonation blasting Marshmallow and the Goat Horse to the ground.

He's too strong... Damn!

Hope seemed to fade as they lay motionless and injured, tension hanging in the air like a millstone. Samantheye coughed, blood trickling from her lips.

"It's over..." Dam rasped in a thin voice, his eyes fixed on the ceiling.

The Leader marched towards them menacingly, and a cruel sneer spread across his face. "Insects like you should never have challenged my divine power."

He raised his hands, searing energy beginning to coalesce. "Goodbye!" he declared. He was ready to deliver the killing blow. But at that critical moment, a hulking, austere figure materialized from nowhere, interposing itself between the quartet and their foes.

The man wore dark, unadorned heavy armor. His face was a carved stone mask with severe features and a defiant gaze. A sweeping black cloak billowed from his shoulders, swirling around him like a dark shadow. He wielded no lances or swords, yet his bare hands radiated a power that could only be described as primordial.

Marshmallow's jaw dropped, his eyes wide with shock. He couldn't believe what he was seeing until finally a single word escaped his lips.

"...Colonel?"