Outside the building, an old lady stood a few meters away from the entrance. Watching the scene unfold in the hall of the place that wasn't supposed to be open. She heard their conversation and finding out about that samurai's plan made her furious. The three weapons are not to be disturbed and people should respect that.
She couldn't accept this, plus the ruckus that's been going in the city these past few hours. She could hardly sit down and relax in her house located near the old building without someone screaming or an object crashing down.
Nobody had the key except her, for generations her family was entrusted with it. She made sure it was secured at her place. It's a shame the key wasn't used to open that door, not that she was going to let anyone do so anyway. But this was extremely disrespectful.
"Genkakuna Jiritsu-sei Style One!" Ryukushu raised his sword at the angel a few feet away from him and summoned purple shocks of energy that rose from the ground. They scurried to Douma's direction leaving cracks on the floor and causing it to shake along with the ceiling.
Douma backed away and sliced the two purple streaks flying towards him with his golden fans. He then bolted to where Ryukushu was and fired clouds of frost that turned the entire atmosphere foggy.
Even though it became extremely cold and foggy since they were both fighting in a compacted area, Douma's senses were sharp enough to know where Ryukushu would appear next.
"Scattering Lotuses!"
Before Douma could even fire an ice sickle at the approaching figure from the mist, a large arm reached out and grabbed his throat. He could feel the constricting pressure building up in his neck stopping him from letting out a cry of pain.
Ryukushu threw Douma towards the pillar which collapsed when the angel knocked into it. The samurai narrowed his eyes which appeared to be glowing red from a distance. He walked over to the angel, dragging his sword on the ground as he approached.
Holding onto his neck in panic, Douma gasped from the pressure and got up. His legs trembled and his breathing became shaky. Ryukushu meant what he said and he wasn't afraid to put up such a bloody fight.
Moreover, he got this surge in power from the very same entity that was hunting down his friends. But Douma was certain the demon wasn't using that power yet nor did he awaken it. He was treating this fight like a warm-up but thinking he wouldn't use it was an understatement. The demon turned Twin Island into nightmare fuel because of that conflicting power.
"Conflicting" because he happened to stumble upon it. Not that he asked for it initially but he has to live with it for the time being since the Chaos was in search of a host.
Douma defeated him before and he'll defeat him again. Unless, there's something else that he's not aware of yet.
At the corner of his eye, he saw Ryukushu sprinting towards him with the same sword that he supposedly took from him. The demon held on to it tightly the closer he got to the angel.
When the sword flew in his direction, Douma used one of his golden fans to block it. He slid away from the towering samurai, taking a few deep breaths to compose himself from the impact of the earlier attack and the tense collision of their weapons in the center of the hall.
Ryukushu cracked his fingers the sound of the coiled snapping echoed in the hall. The demon stared at Douma, preparing another attack that will conclude the battle here.
The moment, Douma saw Ryukushu glaring at him with those glowing crimson eyes filled with tyranny, the angel felt his chest tighten from this sharp pain that erupted internally. A wave of fear hit him as he crouched down to steady his breathing.
This exact suspense he felt was the same one he experienced back at the Hasu Mountains when they first fought. Douma pressed his hand against his chest hoping it would go away but it wouldn't. Blood was pounding in his ears and it got louder as time passed.
No this can't be happening. I can't be scared it'll only- Douma's thoughts were interrupted when he felt an elbow piercing his stomach.
The samurai watched as Douma crashed into another pillar the debris from above fell right on top of him.
"Mura-hachi bu." A ring of dark flames scorched the ground.
The word 'Prohibition' appeared on Ryukushu's forehead. He relished in the sight of Douma struggling to get himself up from the floor. The effects of his ability should've taken a toll on him now.
When Douma lifted himself up, he felt his body hesitating to grip his golden fans. He knew the reason and the dread he felt caused him to stumble back when he forced himself to pick up the fan lying closer to him.
"You didn't learn anything from your fight with Kelpy did you?" Ryukushu's voice stormed the halls. For a moment the ceiling started shaking again.
"That horse lectures his opponents especially the thick-headed ones. I thought you'd pick up something from there."
Douma crawled towards the other fan on the floor. Ryukushu lifted a brow and snickered when he saw the angel inching closer to it. He took a few steps towards Douma and grabbed the collar of his shirt.
He just picked up his weapon but Ryukushu wasn't going to let him off so soon.
Just as Ryukushu was about to shove him down to the center of the hall, Douma forced himself out of the samurai's grip and leaped into the air with his fans pointing at Ryukushu's back.
The towering samurai ended up thrusting his entire arm into the dome which led to the floor beneath his feet collapsing slowly, revealing another hidden part of the hall. Anticipation running through him as he knew he was close to finding the three weapons.
Seeing Douma about to land a hit from behind him, Ryukushu turned around and levitated upwards. He grabbed Douma and rammed through the floor with the blonde still in his hold.
They fell down from the hall with the rest of the debris and rubble, weapons clashing when Ryukushu brought his sword to Douma's neck again.
Douma felt overwhelmed by the fear accumulating in his body and senses but he tried to fight it off. Whenever he did, it seemed as though Ryukushu was aware of his retaliation and evoked the effects of his abilities further such that Douma wouldn't have the guts to counter his next attack because of the doubts racing through his mind.
They both landed in a quieter area that reminded Douma of a large crawlspace. The blonde balanced himself, thinking about how frightening the Sagi-chi must be for those unfortunate lives they had taken. It must be horrifying to face all of them at once. Kelpy alone was a challenge especially for those who lacked the arsenal to take on his unpredictable attacks.
The building was designed in a way that nobody would figure out where the valuable items were hidden even if they had a map. Finding that one door was an endless process which is why nobody bothered to try and barge in.
Which meant the battle might take a while but that's alright as long as Ryukushu doesn't get the chance to find that door.
Douma blocked another one of Ryukushu's sneak attacks. He always tries to get him off his feet whenever there's a cloud of smoke. Interesting enough, he didn't try to pull off this kind of attack when the hall was misty earlier.
At the same time, Douma was very much aware that Ryukushu knew that state of the surroundings would benefit the angel more so than him because of the familiarity Douma had with that kind of environment enforced by his powers.
Ryukushu is one of those people who studied and paid close attention to their opponent's attacks during the time of war. He was careful not to make a mistake that could cost him his own advantage during battle.
"Tired? Seems like you're giving up." Ryukushu sneered, pushing Douma back with his sword. The golden fans struggled to keep up with the pressure of the large weapon that was being held in place.
"No why would I be? This is a piece of cake." Douma rasped, trying to sound brave but deep down he knew this battle wasn't turning in his favor despite having won the first time. The samurai had gone all out to make sure Douma stays on the ground. Maybe Ryukushu was completely geared up this time which is why the battle is skewing differently. Being locked up in chains can change a person, roaming around freely gathers their sense of self back.
Which was unfortunate because Douma was barely able to stand his ground every time Ryukushu decides to take things up a notch such as casting strange spells and then surprising him with an elbow or a fist that rarely showed up during their battles.
"How arrogant. Treating this fight like some type of game when this is clearly... murder don't you think?" The samurai darted back and held his sword against his side.
"I'm fighting you fair and square. If you're not expecting me to call any reinforcements than you shouldn't bite your own words." Though Douma knew the team might show up here sooner than later, he couldn't help but feel unsettled by the way Ryukushu was taking things. He has those monsters with him and now he too has a team to back him up.
"Of course you're imagining the horrors your friends will face when they see your corpse laid out on the floor by the time they get here. I don't think you want them to play a game of life and death with me because I'm not giving them any chances. Murder doesn't give anyone a chance so repeating that cycle is pointless."
"I warned you, there are agreements to a battle. We're the only ones standing here unless you have something else up your sleeve which I'm not surprised about knowing your disgusting cover-ups." Douma pointed his golden fan at the samurai threateningly.
Ryukushu held out a bag that he took out from the compartment on his waist. "It's not a cover-up if it can lead me somewhere. That would be considered a tactic rather than a cover-up wouldn't it?" A couple of items fell from the bag he was holding, Douma could only look at it in horror.
So that's how he found out about this place. He got the information from people in the city but how he managed to get that information didn't end well for them. Douma narrowed his eyes at the demon who found his reaction amusing.
"Hmmm I have my ways. They tend to involve physical manipulations sometimes mental inferences too. It's only a matter of whether you can... spot the difference."
The demon's voice lingered behind him as Douma spun around and fired two ice sickles at Ryukushu who sliced them up with his sword.
Trust issues were necessary especially when dealing with someone like Ryukushu in a completely different location. Not everybody appears as they seem. Douma hoped the team had taken note of that because you're either the cat or the mouse in these kinds of situations.
"Enough talking for now. I have some important work to do. Kamisori no mure!" Ryukushu sprang up from the walls and rotated his sword when he got closer to the blonde standing on the ground below him.
Douma grit his teeth and leaped up. "Kaleido Ascension Style: Searing Skies!" His golden fans came into contact with the rotating sword, the friction between them causing the floor to split.
Although he regained his strength and courage after the effects of Ryukushu's abilities earlier, he still felt cautious whenever the samurai attacked him with a direct hit. Countering his sword with his fans felt like a chore sometimes because as much as possible he didn't want to be near the demon whose sword was stained with blood and death.
When Ryukushu avoided Douma's golden fans by hovering down to the floor of these narrow hallways, the angel closed in on him from the corner and slammed his foot at the side of the demon's head, sending him flying to the wall and crashing into it.
Douma landed on the ground and quickly moved backwards when Ryukushu emerged from the cloud of smoke in front of him and swung his sword in his direction. The samurai did this a few times before he stopped and realized Douma was standing on one of the walls now, calculating his movements so he could prepare his next move.
His golden fans radiated a golden glow when Ryukushu rushed towards him and fired multiple purple aftershocks at him. Douma leaped up avoiding the purple aftershocks that exploded when they collided with the wall and stalled Ryukushu who didn't expect the angel to muster up this bravery that he though he sealed away earlier during the battle.