CESAGA

Erabis roared with fury and charged, swinging the spiked iron club with crushing force. Zirko, quick on its feet, ran along the wall to avoid the blow.

The club slammed into the ground, shattering the stone floor and embedding itself deeply, creating a web of cracks around it.

Before Erabis could wrench the club free, a cloud of icy mist erupted from Zirko's muzzle. With a swift, forceful breath, he launched a razor-sharp shard of ice.

The icy projectile struck the club, freezing it solid, and Erabis was forced to release his grip.

With a savage growl, Erabis tensed his massive muscles, veins bulging beneath his red skin, and charged at Zirko with terrifying speed. His sharp tusks, now aimed like deadly spears, gleamed as he barreled toward the ice moose.

Purnama leaped off Zirko just in time, narrowly avoiding the devastating impact. Zirko's ice form shattered, along with part of the palace wall.

Small icicles then gathered at Purnama's side, allowing Zirko to reform into a smaller size.

"We need to narrow the gap," Zirko advised, "so you can use your hand-to-hand combat."

With a synchronized nod, Purnama and Zirko sprang into action, their movements fluid and coordinated as they circled Erabis from opposite sides of the ruined hall.

"GARRRRR!! Stupid Celestrias!" Erabis bellowed, watching them with seething rage.

Purnama tightened his grip, channeling energy into his left fist as he focused his shakti. Zirko moved in first for distraction.

Erabis, swinging wildly with a crushing blow, shattered the ice moose into countless pieces.

Confident in his strike, he turned to face the other side, unaware that Purnama had slipped beneath him.

With unwavering precision, Purnama pulled back his fist and unleashed a powerful punch directly at Erabis' chin. The impact was so intense that it lifted Erabis off the ground.

Purnama leaped after him, clasping his fists together mid-air as Zirko enveloped his hands in ice elemental.

"King Fist Technique, KSUMAT!" Purnama roared, bringing his combined fists down with such force that it smashed Erabis through the floor.

They plummeted into the level below—a resting chamber.

Without giving Erabis time to recover, Purnama landed on his back and delivered a series of rapid punches to the back of his head, each blow cracking the floor beneath them.

The continuous assault collapsed the chamber into the next level, a storage room filled with valuable artifacts.

Still hammering his fists into Erabis, Purnama fought to break through the thick iron protection on his skull.

The floor beneath them gave way again, sending them crashing into a reading room, where old scrolls flew through the air from the impact.

The iron helm on Erabis' head finally cracked, and with one final strike, Purnama delivered a whirlwind-infused punch that shattered the remaining protection. The force of the blow sent them crashing into the bottom level—the prison grounds.

The building trembled as Erabis' massive body crashed to the ground.

The prisoners, their faces contorted in terror, watched in stunned silence as a deafening BOOM echoed through the prison. Dust rained down from the ceiling, obscuring their vision.

When the dust settled, they saw Erabis, the fearsome tyrant, lying motionless on the prison ground. A wave of jubilant cheers erupted from the depths of the prison.

Purnama remained focused. He noticed Erabis' hands twitching, a telltale sign of the beast's fury.

Erabis ripped the tusks from his own face and hurled them with terrifying speed. Purnama leaped back just in time to avoid the sudden thrust.

The tusks spun wildly like boomerangs, smashing through the palace ceiling before crashing back down, embedding themselves deep into the prison floor.

Then, Erabis broke his second tusk and hurled it viciously toward the prisoners' cell. The tusk spun with deadly force, slicing through the air like a razor-sharp cyclone.

Without hesitation, Purnama bolted forward. His grip tightened around the tusk mid-flight, muscles straining as he halted its deadly momentum, diverting it from the helpless prisoners.

The sharp end of the tusk grazed Purnama's hands, a painful reminder of how close he had come to failure.

"FOOLLL!! When you fight, stop thinking about others!" Erabis' voice thundered through the palace, shaking the very walls.

In a blur of ferocious motion, he was suddenly upon Purnama, his massive fist—covered in rattling metal chains—descending like a hammer.

Purnama narrowly escaped Erabis's cataclysmic attack by leaping into the air. Yet, the relentless beast unleashed a torrent of dark energy, erupting from its maw.

The prisoners gasped, their chains rattling in terror as thick black smoke enveloped the area. The shockwave slammed into the iron bars of their cages.

Erabis threw his head back and cackled, his malicious laughter echoing in the cavernous space.

"Warghahahar!! You Celestrias are so predictable—sacrificing yourself for these weaklings!" He reached for the tusk that Purnama had intercepted.

"Where's your hope now, pathetic humans?! I'll kill you all and feast on your life orbs!" Erabis swung the tusk high over his head, ready to deliver a killing blow to the terrified prisoners.

But as he brought it down with savage force, the tusk froze in mid-swing, ice crawling over its surface, freezing it solid and building a cold mist.

Erabis roared in fury, muscles bulging as he struggled against the ice's grasp.

Through the cold mist, Purnama's shadow emerged, moving with lethal grace. With a burst of energy, he struck, fists flying in a rapid blur.

Erabis countered with wild swipes, but Purnama's movements were too precise, each strike landing with deadly accuracy. The battle raged with brutal intensity until Erabis unleashed another blast of dark breath, dispersing the mist and lunging toward Purnama's shadow.

He wrapped his enormous hands around Purnama's waist.

With a roar that rattled the earth, Erabis slammed Purnama into the ground, the impact once again sending shockwaves through the palace.

But when he looked down, it was not Purnama, but an illusion created by Zirko's elemental power, dissipating into thin air.

"COWARDDDDD!! Face me, Celestrias!" Erabis bellowed, his fury escalating, muscles trembling with rage.

A sudden surge of power filled the air. Erabis felt pressure build above him, and when he looked up, Purnama was suspended in mid-air, his right fingers outstretched and glowing with a brilliant bluish aura.

With surgical precision, Purnama aimed his strike directly at Erabis' unprotected head. The Puaka brute raised both hands just in time, catching the freezing blast, though his fingers quickly became encased in ice.

Erabis roared in defiance, his monstrous muscles rippling as he shattered the ice covering his hands.

With blinding speed, Purnama delivered a crushing King's Punch to Erabis' exposed right arm, which had weakened from the cold, causing Erabis to lose balance.

"ZIRKO! NOW!" Purnama's command sliced through the air.

Zirko, sensing the moment, amplified his ice shakti. Cold energy surged from the ground, temperature plummeted and quickly freezing Erabis from his feet upward, encasing his entire body in layers of ice.

Silence enveloped the chamber.

Purnama slowly approached the tusk still embedded in the ground. With a flick of his wrist, he yanked the tusk free, turned to face the frozen Erabis, and paused.

"It's the end of you," Purnama declared, his voice steady. Then, he jumped and somersaulted towards the frozen Erabis.

Disappointment flickered in Erabis's eyes as he realized that his overwhelming strength had not secured his victory.

Rage surged through Erabis as he watched Purnama somersault through the air, his tusks gleaming menacingly. He had underestimated his opponent, and this miscalculation threatened to cost him everything.

The impact shattered the entire form of the Rakshasha Puaka into crystalline fragments.

The prisoners stood frozen in disbelief, their eyes wide with a mixture of fear and awe. High above, sunlight streamed through the shattered roof, bathing Purnama in a golden light.

He exhaled slowly, chest heaving, and took in the stillness around him.

The battle was over.