Rex and Eva tremble after hearing Khaled's words.
Lex strokes his chin, pondering what Khaled just said.
"Hmmm, that's interesting… but do you think you have what it takes to kill me?"
Khaled gives a silly grin and says,
"Haha, of course not."
The two behind Khaled are stunned—has he lost his mind?
Rex and Eva quickly pull him back and whisper,
"What do you mean 'no'? Then why did you tell him you'd kill him?"
Khaled replies,
"Of course, if I tried to fight him now, I'd be the one to lose—at least for now. So my goal isn't to kill him now, but to stop him."
Lex speaks,
"So, you're saying you want to stop me? Do you have the ability to do that too?"
Khaled responds,
"Well, the fact that you're here listening to me and not going anywhere proves that I can at least slow you down."
Lex locks eyes with Khaled. His eyes burn with confidence and determination.
Lex smirks and says,
"Your eyes… those eyes… how beautiful it is to shatter eyes like those. The eyes of the shining ones. The brighter they shine, the more satisfying their extinction becomes...
Listen, I won't go further down. I could, but I won't. Entertain me. I'll fight you now. So, entertain me."
Lex pulls a black sword with a pure white hilt from his sheath.
He unsheathes it, points it at Khaled, and says,
"Draw your weapon."
Khaled smiles, reaches into his black cloak, and pulls out an ordinary sword.
"I'm ready when you are—"
Khaled's words are cut off by Lex's sudden charge, his black blade swinging straight toward Khaled's head.
Khaled blocks it with difficulty and kicks Lex in the stomach, pushing him back.
Though the kick lands solidly, Lex stands tall as if nothing happened.
He looks at his sword, then at Khaled's, and says,
"Your sword is worn out, but for some reason, it refuses to break."
Indeed, Khaled's sword is filled with cracks and strange fractures, looking like a weapon well past its prime.
Khaled examines it from top to bottom, then turns back to Lex with his usual smile.
"Well, yes, this is a great sword, don't you think? My father gave it to me when I turned… Actually, I'm lying. It was my father's sword, true, but he didn't give it to me. When I returned home after a long separation, I found it there. The house was worn out and abandoned, but it looked exactly the same as before."
Lex says,
"Did I say I was interested in this story?"
"At least pretend to be. What about you? Your sword is interesting. Any stories about it?"
Lex looks at the blade of his black sword and says,
"This was my master's sword—the former deputy of Hole. Back then, I was just a pawn. But once I realized the other pawns were more deserving of power than me, I killed them all. After that, I knew my master would find out. So I killed him too and took his sword… It just so happened that on the day I killed him, Hole was there. He saw everything and simply said: 'So you're the new knight? I hope you work hard.'"
Lex and Khaled fall silent. After a pause, Khaled says,
"Did I say I was interested in your story? I just wanted to know how you got the sword."
Lex blinks, then chuckles quietly and says,
"You're a funny one. I promise, breaking your resolve will be truly painful."
Khaled grins,
"And I'll do my best to resist your destruction."
With smiles on both sides, the two dash toward each other with force. Their blades clash, the sound of steel echoing through the corridor.
Lex clearly had the advantage. Anyone watching could see that Khaled was on the losing side—even Khaled himself knew it.
Neither Rex nor Eva dared to interfere. They stood frozen, watching in silence.
Khaled started retreating, struggling to block the relentless attacks.
He dropped to one knee, Lex's sword looming over his head.
"I expected you to be more interesting," Lex said.
Despite his position, Khaled kept smiling.
With a sudden move, he dropped a rubber ball from his cloak. Lex instinctively looked down—just for a moment—and Khaled took the opportunity to bring him down.
Now, the blade was pointed at Lex's head as he lay on the floor.
Lex wore an indifferent smile.
"Well, I don't have my sword, I'm on the ground, and I have no way to escape. So why did you say you can't defeat me?"
Khaled remained silent for a few seconds, then said,
"I know. I know you can't die."
Lex's smile widened. Rex and Eva looked even more horrified.
"Haha, and how did you know that?"
Khaled replied,
"I'm not foolish enough to try killing you without knowing anything about you. I studied you. I found footage—leaked videos. In one, a group of terrorists shot you with everything they had. You just kept walking. In another, a sword master cut off your arm. But when you picked it up, it reattached itself instantly."
Lex laughed quietly, then louder, until his maniacal laughter echoed through the corridor.
"Hahaha, you're a fun one. You know that?"
Lex stood up, ignoring the sword still aimed at him.
With a soulless smile, he said,
"So, how do you kill an immortal man?"
Khaled replied,
"Quite simply, I won't, What I'm trying to do now is just stop you temporarily so that Neer and the others can escape."
Lex replied,
"But there's a strong person below—you know him. That serious, grim-faced guy. You must've met him before."
Khaled smiled,
"You know Neer well, right? You must be aware of his abilities. His talent surpasses the very concept of talent—learning anything like a terrifying machine. Maybe I haven't faced that man many times, but the chance of Neer losing to him is lower than my chance of losing to you—and I won't lose to you."
Lex laughed again,
"Oh my god, you really are fun. It would be a shame if you die. Try not to die."
****
Sunny grits his teeth tightly. Before he says anything, Neer leaps over him and lands a kick on Michael.
He turns to look at Sunny and Lilith, who's clinging tightly to Sunny.
Neer yells,
"You foolish idiots! Are you really going to let a cliché guy like this get to you?"
He grabs Sunny by the shirt.
"You're really an idiot. I thought you were special—but you're nothing but a coward."
A jolt runs through Sunny's body.
Sunny—the one who thought he was better than others—couldn't accept being called a coward by someone he barely knew.
Normally, he would've brushed it off, but this time… the words cut deep.
He swallows hard and looks at Neer with determination.
Neer understands immediately—Sunny wants to fight.
Sunny gently pushes Lilith off his arm without saying a word.
His sister looks terrified at the thought of him and Neer fighting that monster.
Michael rises after taking the hit, brushing the dust off his coat.
He looks at them with his usual sharp glare.
"So, you two aren't going back like obedient little children, huh?"
No one replies. Instead, they give him sharp, steady looks.
Behind them, a familiar voice speaks—James. Or rather, one of his clones.
"So, you two are joining, huh?"
Wearing his usual sly grin, he adds,
"Well then, dancing together is much more fun."
Michael sighs and places a hand on his forehead.
"I can't believe this—you're a bunch of reckless fools. I'll have to discipline all of you."
Sunny leans down, picks up a metal pipe, places his hand over his wounded arm, and exhales.
Neer stretches and shifts into a fighting stance.
Michael stands tall and shouts,
"Come on, who wants to explode first?!"
****
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