Shadow Bug

Zero: (to Joshua) Now what can you do with a broken sword?

The rest of the Kaimi Daja members ran through the lake and met up with Zero after he shot Joshua with a water bullet.

Lokk: You okay Zero?

Zero: Yeah. I'm fine.

Lorra: Don't just rush in like that!! You could've gotten hurt!!

Zero: (grinning at Lorra) Were you worried about me, Lorra?

Lorra: (blushes) Um…

Jokita: Hey! This isn't the time to flirt Zero.

Desmond: (sighs)

Zero: Right. Anyway... (glancing at Joshua) That water bullet didn't do enough damage to put him down, but at least I've taken out his sword. Now, he'll have to draw the Luminary Sword.

Desmond: So, that's why you broke his sword.

Lorra: You're forcing his hand.

Zero: Exactly. But Joshua Egoshin isn't stupid. He knows we're trying to lure him out. It's up to him now to decide how he'll respond. (to Lokk) You tagged him already, didn't you?

Lokk: Yeah I did.

Zero: Good. The moment he activates his technique, you activate yours.

Lokk: Right.

On the other side of the battlefield, Joshua began healing the chest wound inflicted by Zero's water bullet. His jacket sleeves were torn, his right glasses lens cracked, and despite his efforts with harmonic restoration, he looked worse for wear. Holding the broken sword in his hand, he adjusted his glasses with grim determination.

Joshua: (to himself) Damn it. They're forcing my hand. I've used everything in my arsenal, but with two of them able to use harmonic restoration, they just keep healing and coming back. I can't let this fight drag on anymore. If they want the Luminary Sword, fine—but I won't give them the chance to act once I bring it out.

Joshua stood, gripping the broken sword in his mouth. His eyes burned with determination.

Zero: Looks like he's ready to go again. Get ready, everyone.

Everyone: YEAH!!!

The Kaimi Daja prepared for two scenarios: one where Joshua brought out the Luminary Sword and one where he didn't. But in the end, only one scenario unfolded.

Joshua: [WHITE: LUMINARY SWORD]

The Luminary Sword, a power derived from the All Mother's left god hand, had been passed down the Egoshin Clan for 800 years. It had the devastating ability to inflict wounds that even harmonic restoration struggled to heal. This was the power the Kaimi Daja had been scheming to steal.

As the sword shone brilliantly in Joshua's hand, Zero signaled Lokk to activate his technique. But the moment Joshua took the Chūdan-no-kamae stance, the members of Kaimi Daja froze, remembering why Joshua Egoshin was a Level 1+ Hunter.

Joshua: [PERFECT MANIFESTATION: GRAYSCALE KENJUTSU]

Joshua Egoshin's Perfect Manifestation, "Grayscale Kenjutsu," was the ultimate expression of his Divergent Moon Technique. The ability transformed the entire range of the manifestation into a grayscale landscape, draining the area of color and vitality. Within this monochrome field, movement was drastically slowed for anyone caught inside, as if an oppressive weight bore down on their bodies. The Kaimi Daja found themselves trapped in this distorted reality, struggling to react.

With the Luminary Sword in hand, Joshua moved like a phantom. Swift and precise, he exploited his opponents' slowed reflexes, striking them one by one.

Zero was slashed across the chest, the blade grazing up to his cheek.

Lorra suffered a deep gash across her stomach.

Jokita barely managed to block, but the force of the strike nearly severed his right hand and left a brutal cut across his torso.

Lokk was struck cleanly across his chest.

Desmond took a savage blow down his back.

The only member spared was Gaki, who lay unconscious on the lake's surface, oblivious to the chaos.

By the time Joshua completed his assault, each member of the Kaimi Daja bore injuries severe enough to overwhelm even their restorative abilities. The battlefield was silent except for the faint hum of the Luminary Sword as Joshua stood amidst his incapacitated enemies. Joshua ended his manifestation, convinced the fight was over.

Joshua: (to himself) That should've taken care of them. Now to call HQ and ask them about the situation.

But the mistake that Joshua Egoshin made was that he did not deactivate the luminary sword the moment he brought down his perfect manifestation because the moment that he tried to make a phone call to the HFA headquarters, Lokk's lighter technique went active.

Lokk: (despite his injuries) [WHITE: BINDING TAGS]

Suddenly, Joshua felt his strength vanish. He fell to his knees, his body too weak to stand.

Joshua: (to himself) What is this? I've suddenly grown weaker? But how? My lighter energy has dropped because I used perfect manifestation but not to this extent of making me this weak. So why is this happening?

Lokk's Binding Tags technique equalized his opponent's energy and physical strength to match his own weakened state. Joshua, tagged at the start of the fight, was now as drained as Lokk.

Joshua didn't have time to comprehend why his strength had drained so rapidly. Despite the wounds inflicted by the Luminary Sword, Desmond Gravy staggered to his feet and charged toward him with determination burning in his eyes.

Joshua, though severely weakened, refused to give in. He attempted to conjure a Spinning Vortex, aiming to blow Desmond away. But before he could execute the technique, Lorra, battered and bloodied, summoned a medium-sized tree. The roots and branches shot up from the ground, coiling around Joshua and locking him in place.

He struggled, thrashing against the bindings, but his body was far too weak to break free. In the blink of an eye, Desmond was upon him. Joshua's defiance flickered, but he couldn't move—he couldn't fight back.

Desmond seized Joshua by the face with his left hand, locking eyes with him.

Desmond: [WHITE: MIND ILLUSION]

Mind Illusion, a devastating skill from the False Reality technique, plunged Joshua into a fabricated world constructed from his own memories and deepest fears. This ability could only be activated through direct contact, and now, Joshua's mind became its battleground.

Within seconds, he found himself standing on a lake—a lake filled with the blood of his victims. The crimson waters stretched endlessly, the weight of his actions pressing heavily on his soul.

Ahead of him, a small figure emerged: a young boy, the lone survivor of Joshua's first mission. Tears streamed down the boy's face as he stared at Joshua with eyes full of anguish and betrayal.

The boy: (crying) "They were different… They wanted to change what the world thought of us. Why didn't you give them a chance? Why did you kill them?"

The words cut through Joshua like a blade. He collapsed to his knees, trembling.

Joshua: (voice cracking) "I… I'm sorry. I didn't understand. I was blind to what was right in front of me. Your family's death—it's my greatest regret. I swear, I'll do everything to make it right."

The boy's expression darkened, his voice twisting into something monstrous

The Boy: Too late, Joshua. Too late for apologies. The wars, the bloodshed, the endless cycles of pain—it's been going on for 500 years. How do you intend to fix it now?

The lake erupted. From its depths, the undead forms of Joshua's victims clawed their way to the surface. Pale hands latched onto his arms, legs, and torso, pulling him downward. He struggled, screaming, but the weight of his sins dragged him into the blood-soaked abyss.

Back in the real world, Joshua's body tensed as he fought to break free of Desmond's illusion. Gritting his teeth, he let out a roar and shattered the mental chains binding him, clawing his way back to consciousness.

But it was too late.

As he returned to reality, agony surged through him. A thorned sword pierced his chest, its vines sprouting vibrant roses that spread across his body. Lorra's shadow technique had rooted itself deep within him, and the thorny blooms used his body as fertile soil to grow.

Joshua gasped, his strength fading rapidly as blood trickled from every wound. He dropped to his knees, powerless, as the members of Kaimi Daja surrounded him.

Zero: (smiling while still heavily injured) This is our win.

With a single, decisive slash, Zero severed Joshua's left hand, claiming the Luminary Sword and the God Hand.