The assassin’s face, encased in a head-mounted display within the black-iron exoskeleton, twisted in rage.

  The one-winged holy angel, the savior’s elder sister, the key to the plan—White Lord. Why protect the immortal black snake, fighting to save him? Eve, slicing the exoskeleton thinly with her five silver wings, swayed but glared with prismatic eyes, swinging her wings at the faltering assassin.

  The silver girl’s strikes were feather-light but razor-sharp, severing steel. The assassin countered with chain gun fire, driving pile bunker stakes to parry, muttering “Why?” repeatedly, glaring with hatred at Danan, crawling behind Eve.

  Immortal black snake, evil serpent seducing angels—your existence denies the tower peace. The plague ravaging the upper city ends only by crushing evil, building true silence. None who obstruct the savior’s plan can be spared. Canaan’s noble salvation, guiding tower-bound lives to eternal paradise, must be protected. The promised land, Eden, awaits those who climb Purgatory Mountain, cleansed of original sin.

  “White Lord, why sacrifice yourself for this snake?!” the assassin roared. “This scum, steeped in unforgivable sin, isn’t worth saving!”

  “Shut up already,” Eve snapped, sweat streaming, kneeling.

  “Eve…” Danan said, holding her shoulder as her icy, trembling hand touched his cheek.

  Beyond reckless—life-risking. Suppressing ICE’s effects with Lumina, Eve ignored Lils’ protests, answering Nephthys’ distress signal. Spreading silver wings in the undercity’s dark, she streaked like a meteor to the root of sin.

  The Lumina network linked compatible hosts’ vitals. Eve’s nanobots, implanted in Danan, and Nephthys relayed real-time data to her, the administrator.

  Lumina hosts regenerated from any state—lasers or evaporated cells rebuilt combat-ready bodies. But a broken mind turned them into living corpses. Sensing Danan’s hopeless fight via the network, Eve whipped her body, wings soaring.

  “You’re saying he’s not worth protecting?” Eve asked.

  “That’s not…” Danan started.

  “You don’t understand my actions?”

  “No…!”

  “Then what… do you think? I, to you—”

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  “I don’t even know why I’m so angry!” Danan roared, baring his teeth, his inner fury raging.

  Eve held his heart, wielding life-and-death power. Her arrogant tone, probing words, and mission-heavy resolve—a beautiful, struggling silver figure—burned with a crystalline fire Danan lacked. Why risk everything for the Hakara Deck? To save Eve, weakened by ICE.

  Wanting to live, praying against death, yet acting against that heart’s cry. Dying for one girl was foolish, a hypocrite’s act. But holding the frail Eve, gripping her cold hand, Danan thought one thing:

  *Burn your life for her. Crush despair, shatter it, incinerate it. For someone you believe in, who believes in you—stoke the fire in your heart.*

  “…Nephthys,” Danan said.

  *“Yes, Danan?”*

  “Activate Code Onimus.”

  *“Affirmed. Code Onimus activation approved. Good luck, Danan.”*

  “Lils, you hear me?”

  “I hear you… Danan, you—” Lils’ voice trembled over the comms.

  “I’m killing this assassin. Support me.”

  Lils gasped. Cold, murderous intent flickered in Danan’s dark eyes. Laying Eve down, he faced the hovering assassin, his heart blazing, clutching his chest.

  His brain screamed, torn by boiling blood. Blood sprayed from every pore, coating his bio-fused metal skin, forming crimson armor.

  Vision reddened. Agony surged from skull to toes, saliva dripping. Danan plunged his hand into his chest, piercing bone, activating Lumina to forge a crimson greatsword. Code Onimus transformed him into a blood-red knight. Charging with boosters, he clashed with the assassin, steel ringing fiercely.

  “Danan! Energy charge detected—watch for lasers!” Lils warned.

  The assassin’s cooled laser weapon charged. Glancing at Eve, Danan smashed the assassin’s head armor with his broken sword hilt, shattered by a pile bunker.

  *“Code Onimus: two minutes, thirty seconds remain. Mind control stable. Blaster deployed… ready to fire.”*

  Danan’s mechanical arm formed a machine-gun blaster from bio-fused metal.

  Not yet—not time for the large blaster. Gripping the assassin’s armor, Danan’s beastly instincts wavered as he fired.

  “Black snake!” the assassin bellowed. “A chaos incarnate like you wielding that power is a threat! You revel in lawlessness?!”

  “I’m—!”

  The exoskeleton’s chest armor split, revealing a wave cannon barrel.

  “—?!”

  A blinding flash engulfed Danan, catastrophic wave energy shattering his crimson armor. The anti-gravity surge, contracting and expanding, aimed to erase him.

  *I killed him!* No Lumina monster could survive a direct wave cannon hit! Landing, the assassin suppressed elation, savoring victory.

  Now, the one-winged holy angel—White Lord—must be taken to the upper city for salvation. Canaan’s guidance would lead to paradise. Approaching Eve, electromagnetic knife raised to sever her limbs, the assassin paused.

  “…”

  Eve’s six silver wings were body-mounted weapons.

  “…”

  One controlled Danan’s Code Onimus, leaving five—used to block the laser.

  “—!”

  Warrior’s instinct or assassin’s intuition—raising its right arm, it was shattered by a crimson spear thrown from above, scattering steel and circuits.

  “Evil snake! Black snake!” the assassin screamed.

  Danan, half his armor melted, used one silver wing as a shield, his eyes piercing the assassin.

  “I’m still here, assassin!”

  Diving, Danan kicked the assassin, stabbing a pillar into the ground and test tubes, aiming a large blaster rifle.

  “Burn!” he roared, firing a laser beam.