“Come on! Don’t tell me you went down with just that–!” Radueriel called out in ecstasy driven by battle.

As the angel rushed forward with his wings spread, the large fox returned to its feet, shaking off the debris from its pale, clean fur before opening its jaws–revealing blue flames building up in its mouth.

The azure flames spewed out from the beast’s mouth, pushing through the street and against the opposing building with a hissing, roaring heat.

“I can feel the heat from here!” Jeong-Hui commented, still residing in the building a block away.

“Damn, that’s hot!” Yeong-Un laughed.

While the flames persisted, seemingly enveloping the angel, the fox’s jaws were suddenly slammed shut as from the beast’s blind spot, the angel appeared beneath its mouth, having punched its bottom jaw up to close.

“Gumi–!” Moon yelled out worriedly.

Radueriel smirked, “Bad pup.”

With the blinding, unparalleled speed the angel possessed, he vanished, though as the fox sought its opponent, it suddenly felt weightless as it somehow began to float before rapidly being dragged into the air.

“…Am I dreamin’ right now? This angel guy is somethin’ else…” Yeong-Un muttered.

“He’s too much…” Eunji added, spectating through the window as the three moved their gaze upward.

Raduriel’s laugh echoed, holding the beast by one of its many tails as he dragged it into the skies, “Bad pups need to be punished–! Go take a nap!”

Swinging the mythical beast around while grasping its tail, he gathered momentum as the large, behemoth of a fox was helpless to his pull before being released directly towards the ground far below.

The resulting impact was as if a meteor had just plummeted into the town, causing the entirety of the block to shift and rumble._.

“Ha-ha-ha!” Radueriel laughed in absolute glee of the battle taking place, witnessing the destructive impact of his actions.

The resulting winds from the impact expanded outward and pushed upward, spiraling the air as the asphalt cratered and shattered beneath the weight of the great fox.

“Gumi…!” Moon called out, rushing towards his summoned familiar.

Before he could do anything to assist his familiar, the scruffy man found his wrist suddenly grabbed–blinded by the unnatural agility of the angel, who smiled down at him.

“Now, now, sitting in the back while your friend there does all the fighting is pretty despicable, isn’t it?” Radueriel said with a grin.

“What’re you–? Ah–!”

His wrist was snapped by the immutable angel, bent to the side in a grotesque way from a simple tug.

“Moon–!” Eunji called out, quickly covering her mouth as she shrieked from the cruel display of strength.

“Dammi! What’re we waiting for, Yeong-Un?!” He looked at the scar-faced man.

Though he felt contempt for whatever this stagnant plan they were following was, he stopped as he saw just how emotional his friend was himself–clenching his fists tightly as well as his teeth while he sweated profusely.

“Just wait, fire-head–! Moon is buying us precious time! We need the perfect moment!” Yeong-Un assured him.

“…How can I be confident in that if you don’t tell me anything?!” He pressed the man, grabbing Yeong-Un by his fishnet shirt.

The blue-haired man looked at him, clicking his tongue, “Alright, alright!…Moon is gettin’ that angel bastard in proper position. With that fox, he can hit way above his level, so he’s wearing him down the best he can–then, once that smug bastard is busy lording over him–they’ll strike.”

“They…”

He already knew who the man was referring to with those words, and could presume another by the lack of a presence:

Dae-Seong, Ma-Ri, and Korain…but will it be enough? He questioned as sweat trailed down his cheek.

–

“Grgh…!” Moon held his forearm, falling to his knees before the winged entity.

Radueriel seemed utterly pleased with the agony he inflicted on the man, smiling wide as he raised a single hand, “…I’ll commend the beast, but you’re nothing but a worm!”

As the angel brought his hand down with a destructive, golden essence coating it, he was suddenly halted as multiple, elongated and fluffy trails wrapped around his limbs and body, pulling him back with a whiplash.

“Hghh…! You’re tougher than I believed, beast–!” Radueriel called out, shifting around to face the snow-white behemoth as he broke free from the holds of its tails, “Be honored in your death–and fall!”

–Suddenly, the angel’s senses were distorted–the view of the fox he thought he saw, from a bird’s view of the shattered street, revealed itself to be something else to his eyes: a serene, night-fallen field of luscious, green fields.

“What–?” He let out.

As he halted his attack, dropping down onto the ground, he looked around, finding himself surrounded by a valley of mountains that was completely different from the scenery just a moment ago.

Looking directly up, the dark, star-filled sky of the night was supplemented by the iridescent glow of the full moon.

What is this? What’s going on?…Is this the ability of the fox, or perhaps one of those worms? Was I warped? Radueriel questioned.

It was indeed something supernatural in nature.

To the outside view, the angel was standing stagnant in the street, looking around in utter confusion as if lost.

“Do it now, Gumi–!” Moon commanded.

With that swipe of his shattered wrist and a yell released at full strain of his throat, the man commanded the snow-white, giant fox to plant itself firmly against the ground, parting its maw as it gathered an azure energy pointed directly towards the entranced angel.

“He got him…! Moon trapped him!” Yeong-Un pumped his fist with a relieved smile.

“Yes! It worked!” Eunji celebrated, clapping her hands together and clasping them in a prayer.

“Huh…?” He was left confused, not knowing what was done.

Yeong-Un noticed his confusion, explaining it, “Gumi, Moon’s bigass fox, has a unique ability: those it touches with one of its tails can be placed into an illusionary mindscape! It was a gamble if it would work on an angel, but it paid off!”

“Oh! Get him!” He celebrated as well, now knowing what was happening.

While the angel was caught in a sense-altering illusion, the fox continued to build up the azure energy in its jaws, unleashing heat waves that propelled like shock waves.

“Go, Gumi!”

All at once, the dark-blue flames were unleashed, tunneling towards the stagnant angel as they burst through any vehicles on the street, carving up the asphalt and causing it to bubble up just in its presence.

The wave of azure, mystical flames crashed against the form of the divine man, enveloping him completely in its aggressive hold as it swirled directly around the angel.

“Rggh…!”

Radueriel came to, blinking as the heat of the flames dragged him out of the mindscape–but, it was too late–the flames had already birthed into full force around him.

It continued to rapidly swirl around him before a stationary, azure tornado of flames formed, sparkling as if filled with the beauty of stars.

“Rggh…! You dare test me, beast?! I was going to let you off easy–but now? I don’t know!” Radueriel yelled out from within the blue flames.

The flames continued to exude from the maw of the nine-tailed fox, all while the angel continued to roar out, and the others watched anxiously.

“Enough–!”

With a voice that boomed as if amplified by divine means, the flames suddenly dispersed, being pushed away by an omni-directional shock wave that freed the angel from their wrath.

“–“

Radueriel was breathing heavily, with visible scratches and light burn marks against his golden-brown skin: though they were light, almost superficial wounds–it was something, and more importantly, it seemed to drain him somewhat.

“…You’re going to Hell; all of you! I’ll make sure of it with my own two hands!” Radueriel promised.

Rearing his hand back, the angel manifested a colossal lance of golden light, matching the size of the great fox.

“Gumi–!”

“Oh shit!” Yeong-Un let out while watching on.

Radueriel roared out before swiping his hand forward, launching the gargantuan, divine lance towards the white fox–though it hit nothing but air.

“Return, Gumiho…!”

–Pressing his hands together, even with his twisted wrist, while breathing heavily, Moon managed to recall his familiar just in time.

Radueriel clicked his tongue as he turned back to see the summoner, knelt down and on his last draws of energy.

“All you’ve done is change the direction of my wrath, human,” Radueriel told him.

Moon caught his breath, looking right at the angel, “I know that.”

“Hm,” Radueriel began to slowly walk towards him, conjuring a sword of golden light as he neared the man, “Perhaps you may be able to die some semblance of an honorable death, then.”

“Maybe…but that’s just because my fight is over,” Moon muttered.

“…”Your” fight?” Raduriel stopped just before him.

At that very moment, the angel felt two presences arrive simultaneously, and from either side of himself, prompting his senses to kick into high gear.

“–!”

A large, decorated greatsword slammed at the spot the angel stood just a moment before, embedding itself into the asphalt with a tremor stretching through the block.

“Oh? Another worm joins the fray?” Radueriel spoke while backstepping.