An enraged Achtur charged toward the Crimson Night members. One of them fired an arrow, but Achtur easily evaded it. As the men rushed forward with axes and swords, Achtur stepped on one of their faces and vaulted into the air, crashing down hard onto another. He slid across the ground, tackling the man beside him, before grabbing the archer by the collar.
Lightning began to gather in Achtur's palm, surging wildly. With a burst of power, he channeled it straight into the archer's chest, electrocuting him instantly.
Katsu, watching from a distance, stepped back in disbelief, slowly edging toward the carriage. Simon simply smirked.
Achtur grabbed another injured Crimson Night member by the collar, preparing to kill him too. But just as he was about to strike, Katsu rushed forward and caught his hand, stopping him. Flames gathered intensely at one point on Katsu's palm.
"He's got better control over his flames now," Simon muttered with a smile.
"Don't kill him," Katsu said firmly.
Achtur turned to Katsu with a dead serious expression, lightning still crackling over his body.
"This isn't the way to go," Katsu added. "You don't have to kill them."
"Why?" Achtur asked, voice low and dangerous. "They killed my comrades. Why shouldn't they suffer the same fate?"
"I killed your comrades too," Simon said casually, his expression twisted with amusement. "Will you kill me as well?"
"I'll deal with you later," Achtur growled, turning back to Katsu. "Now get your hands off me."
"No," Katsu said, his voice shaking slightly but filled with determination. "Not unless you promise not to kill him."
Achtur gave a dry smile. "I see… You're one of those saint types."
Katsu stiffened, a deadpan expression on his face. "I'm no saint." He released Achtur's hand.
Achtur jumped back, glaring at Katsu. "Why can't you just let me make them pay for what they did?"
Kneeling down, Katsu checked the pulse of one of the fallen men. "Because this isn't the way," he said, standing up. "Don't make the same mistake I did."
"Your acting like you know everything! You don't know how it feels!" With a burst of speed, Achtur dashed at Katsu, his palm shaped like a blade, ready to cut him down. As Achtur swung, the impact kicked up a storm of dust and wind—
—but Simon appeared in front of Katsu in an instant, catching Achtur's hand with just two fingers, smiling broadly.
"Good grief. You really are desperate for revenge, huh?" Simon said, easily releasing Achtur's arm from his grip.
Katsu, who had instinctively turned his head and stepped back, thought, "Wha—?! He wanted to kill me? I didn't even see his attack… such speed..."
"Now then," Simon said with a grin, "before you attack my teammate, look at your comrades first."
In a flash, Simon vanished.
Achtur spun around, trying to locate him—but his vision whirled as Simon reappeared beside him and flipped him onto the ground effortlessly.
"You'll thank me later, buddy." Simon said casually as he crouched beside him.
Standing up, Simon headed for the carriage. But Achtur, still crackling with lightning, charged after him with a furious punch. Simon turned at the last second and caught the incoming fist easily, smiling darkly.
A strange, oppressive aura began to radiate from Simon—it was his White Matter.
Both Katsu and Achtur froze in shock at the sight.
"Simon, stop."
A calm voice pierced through the tense atmosphere. It was Akiko.
"Don't take your anger out on him," she said, her tone neutral. "He's still ignorant."
Simon sighed heavily. "Haaaaaa… I just wanted to play a little. But I guess I can wait until we reach Fogmore Sidecleave." His smile softened, though it still carried a hint of menace.
"Alright everyone, back into the carriage. We have a destination to get to," Akiko commanded, stepping back inside.
Katsu watched as Achtur tried to walk off in the opposite direction, but Simon immediately tied him up with rope and tossed him into the carriage like a sack of potatoes.
Katsu climbed into the carriage, sitting opposite Akiko and near the struggling Achtur, who fought futilely against his bindings.
Simon remained at the rear, guiding the carriage forward.
"Alright," Akiko said, her eyes cold as she watched Achtur. "Even if you don't want to join us, we'll force you. And you'll benefit from it too."
She turned to Katsu. "Any objections?"
Katsu flinched under her gaze but replied, "No."
"Hey, Simon," Akiko called.
"Yeah?"
"What's the name of this party?"
"Oh, 'Raiders,'" Simon answered casually.
Akiko's eye twitched. "Who came up with that name?"
"Katsu did," Simon said bluntly.
Katsu looked over nervously. Akiko was genuinely frightened. "Katsu, even pigs wouldn't name themselves that!" she shouted.
"It sounded cool in my head..." Katsu muttered, hanging his head in shame.
"Well, does it sound cool now?!!!" Akiko snapped.
"No… not really," Katsu admitted.
"You should be ashamed," Akiko scolded.
"Anyway, I'm taking leadership of this party. Our new name is Nebula Unit. Any objections?"
Simon and Katsu remained silent. Achtur struggled wildly, but his mouth was sealed shut.
"Good. No objections," Akiko declared with a satisfied smile.
Meanwhile, far away, back in the ruins of Ember City—
Seven figures stood at the edge of the destroyed city, surveying the devastation.
"I wonder what happened while we were gone?" one of them asked.
"Something not average, I suppose," another replied.
"We leave for one mission, and the entire city's destroyed?! The WHOLE city?!" a third exclaimed.
"Interesting," another said with a smirk, stepping forward. "I wish I had been here."
They were the High Rankers—the elite warriors who had been sent out of Ember City on a mission.