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As Rex and Leon raced through the secret passageway, they finally reached the entrance to the facility. Leon gestured ahead, urgency in his voice. "This way," he said, quickening his pace. Both of them sprinted down the hallway, their footsteps echoing off the walls.

"Where is he, though? I’ve never even met him," Rex asked between breaths, the adrenaline sharpening his focus.

"He’s in a room with no sunlight at all," Leon replied. "His body needs constant monitoring after his fight with Yeager Rank Three."

"He's at the far end of the facility. Sally's using her strings to propel herself forward. She’s at least halfway there by now."

Rex’s brow furrowed. "How are we supposed to catch up in time? She’s going to kill him before we even get there."

"I’ve got someone standing guard, just in case something like this happened."

"Who is it?" Rex asked.

"My father, Nicholas," Leon answered.

Meanwhile, Sally used her strings to glide through the base, her movements precise and swift. She reached the door at the end of the hallway, only to find someone waiting for her.

"Yo, what’s up, Sally?" Nicholas greeted her with a casual smile, as if they were old friends meeting by chance.

Sally stopped in her tracks, her eyes narrowing. "What are you doing here, Nicholas? You’re supposed to be suspended."

"Temporarily unsuspended," Nicholas corrected her, still smiling. "The fact that you’re here means Barak is our culprit, and I can’t let you kill him."

"Move aside, or you will die," Sally warned, her voice laced with menace.

Nicholas’s expression didn’t waver. "Adam and Griffin made me promise to help their families if one of us died. So, I’m going to help you get through this depression of yours."

With that, Nicholas drew an axe, the blade gleaming in the dim light. "Let’s have some fun, shall we?" he said, charging at her with a swift, powerful strike.

Sally reacted instantly, her strings coiling to block the attack. She moved with grace, dodging and weaving as Nicholas unleashed a series of heavy blows. As they clashed, Nicholas whispered, "Ice Style: Frozen Love."

He slammed his foot down, and the entire hallway transformed into a frigid wasteland, ice crawling up the walls and floor. Sally covered her mouth and nose, realizing too late the danger she was in. The cold air was so intense it threatened to destroy her lungs. “I can hold my breath for at least five minutes, but I need to take this fight outside.” She thought

She charged at Nicholas, transforming her strings into a staff. She swung at his stomach, but Nicholas blocked the blow with his axe, then struck her in the head with the handle. The impact sent her staggering back, and before she could recover, Nicholas kicked her in the stomach, launching her down the icy hallway.

As Sally was sent flying through the air, she quickly regained her composure, using her strings to anchor herself and break through the nearby walls. With a swift motion, she hurled chunks of debris at Nicholas, hoping to overwhelm him. But Nicholas was ready. With a sharp swing of his axe, he shattered the rocks into harmless fragments, his movements precise and controlled.

*Poison Style: Poison Song,* she thought, her eyes narrowing in determination. As she opened her mouth, a haunting melody began to escape her lips, but it wasn't just music. A toxic mist began to pour out, spreading quickly through the air. The poison mixed with the cold, icy atmosphere, neutralizing it as the flux energy began to stabilize the air.

Nicholas sensed the change immediately. The frigid air was becoming less potent, the poison slowly eating away at his icy advantage. But he was unfazed. *Ice Style: Cold Step,* he thought, his expression still calm.

Nicholas planted his foot firmly on the ground, and the ice beneath him began to thicken and spread rapidly, reinforcing the cold and pushing back against the encroaching poison. The temperature dropped sharply again, turning the hallway into a deadly battlefield where ice and poison clashed, each trying to dominate the other.

Sally could feel the pressure building as the cold intensified once more. She had to act quickly before the freezing air overwhelmed her poison. She twisted her strings into new formations, preparing for her next move, while Nicholas remained steady, his gaze locked on her, ready for whatever came next.

Nicholas charged at Sally, his every step freezing the air around him, the ground crackling under the intense cold. But Sally was quick, her fingers dancing in the air, and before Nicholas could react, he found himself ensnared in her strings like a spider catching its prey.

“You’re done,” Sally declared with cold finality as she prepared to knock him out. But just as she moved in, the strings around Nicholas began to freeze and stiffen. Sally took a step back, realizing too late that Nicholas had managed to touch his foot to one of her strings, sending his icy power coursing through them. With a swift motion, Nicholas broke free and delivered a solid punch to Sally’s face.

“You have to realize what you’re doing is wrong. What would Adam say?!” Nicholas shouted, his voice filled with a mix of anger and pleading.

Sally coughed up blood from the impact, her eyes locking onto Nicholas. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, the weight of her actions hitting her.

With a powerful kick, Nicholas sent Sally flying out of the building. She quickly recovered and ran back inside, determined to finish what she started. But Nicholas was ready. “Ice Style: Ice Vines,” he thought as he spun his axe in the air. From the swirling cold, vines made of ice erupted, snaking toward Sally. She destroyed the vines with swift strikes, but as they hit the ground, they burrowed deep and shot back up, grabbing her and slamming her into the floor.

“Come on, Sally, this isn’t you! Where’s that mature and responsible person? Where did she go?” Nicholas demanded, his voice echoing through the icy corridor.

Sally struggled to her feet, her voice trembling. “After Luna destroyed all of Europe, I was devastated. I tried to kill myself so many times, but I couldn’t do it. Adam saved me… and now he’s dead too. I have nothing left.”

“What about Rex? You still have him. He’s your blood, your son,” Nicholas reminded her, his tone softening.

Sally’s eyes widened as memories of Rex flooded her mind. She remembered all the moments they shared when he was just a child. Tears welled up in her eyes as the realization hit her—she wasn’t alone, she still had Rex.

Meanwhile, Rex and Leon reached the hallway and saw the destruction left in the wake of the battle. “Leon, head down there. I’ll go after Barak,” Rex instructed, drawing his sword and moving toward a door at the end of the hallway.

The room beyond was dark, illuminated only by a single dark red light fixated on a tub. As Rex approached, he could make out a figure lying in the tub. He cautiously lifted the figure’s head with his sword, revealing a body with a slashed and burnt face. Something felt off about the scene. Rex carefully cut the head off and examined it, realizing it was a robot.

He walked back to Sally and Leon, confusion written across his face. “That was a decoy, but it doesn’t make sense. Barak couldn’t have left his room—sunlight would harm his body, and teleporting would kill him,” Nicholas said, puzzled.

“I might’ve built him something a while back that would allow him to travel, something like a mobile life-support system,” Leon admitted, his voice heavy with regret.

All three turned to him, the gravity of the situation sinking in. “I’m going to kill him,” Sally declared, her fury rekindling.

“No, no, no,” Nicholas said quickly, holding her back. “We need to think this through.”

“Leon, do you have any idea where he could be?” Rex asked, urgency creeping into his voice.

“He can’t have gone far. He needs that tub to stay alive, so he’s probably holed up somewhere nearby where he can’t be found,” Leon speculated.

“Or… he’s turned to a Yeager,” Nicholas suggested, the possibility chilling them all.

“It doesn’t matter right now. Our top priority is to find Barak,” Rex said, his voice resolute as he prepared for the hunt ahead.