The gunfire had quieted just enough for Ren and Luxy to slip through the smoke as they got close to dungeon gate entrance. They landed behind a half-broken wall, where the sound of bullets was faint, and the air smelled like metal and burnt oil.

Ren looked around the ruined corner. "Looks like this side's clear," he muttered. "Luxy, can you sense if Kyouka is here?"

Luxy placed her hand on the cracked ground. A faint shimmer of energy rippled under her palm, but it quickly died out. She frowned. "If I was still a full angel, I could have found her instantly," she said softly. "But not anymore."

Ren sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "So our only option is to find someone who knows what's happening here."

Luxy tilted her head. "Someone like?"

"Amanda," Ren said reluctantly. "She's probably knee-deep in all this chaos already. She might know where Kyouka went."

Luxy blinked, reading his expression. "But?"

Ren gave a small groan. "But she's also the worst person to run into right now. The last thing I want is Amanda finding out about you."

Luxy smirked. "You mean the part where you're working with a fallen angel?"

"I mean the part where she'll probably shoot first and ask questions later," Ren replied, his tone sharp but tired.

Luxy nodded slightly, though her gaze drifted upward. For a moment, her pupils glowed faintly gold, then widened. "Wait…" she whispered, her tone shifting from calm to tense. "An angel's using their powers."

Ren turned toward her, alert. "An angel? No way!"

Luxy nodded slowly. "I can feel it… faint, but strong. That's not supposed to happen because it is not supposed to be fighting this hard.."

Ren clenched his jaw. "So that means it is fighting someone..."

"It looks like that," Luxy replied, worry creeping into her voice.

"Then we don't have much time," Ren said, eyes narrowing. "If Kyouka's here, she's probably already in the dungeon. Knowing her, she's not wasting time outside."

Luxy hesitated. "Ren, it's dangerous. You're talking about walking into the middle of a warzone with angels and hunters involved. Let me remind you this angel is here to harm you."

Ren smiled as he walked forward. "Well I sure don't want to die."

Luxy sighed, shaking her head. "You really are insane."

"Thanks for noticing," Ren said. "Come on."

They began to move through the rubble-strewn streets, staying low. The stench of gunpowder thickened as they approached the dungeon gate area. The closer they got, the louder the shouting and gunfire became.

When they finally reached visual range of the gate, they saw a group of armed women—mercenaries, or terrorists by the looks of it—setting up explosives around the perimeter.

Luxy crouched beside Ren, her eyes narrowing. "They're not regular hunters," she whispered.

Ren followed her gaze and noticed a familiar figure hiding behind a destroyed truck. "Wait," he whispered, his tone dropping. "That's Amanda."

Luxy blinked. "You mean the Amanda? The one you didn't want seeing me?"

"Yeah," Ren muttered. "Shit. This just keeps getting worse."

Ren quickly realized this might be another terriost attack.

He pressed his back against the wall, thinking fast. "If she sees you, we're finished. But we can't wait any longer either."

Luxy looked at him curiously. "So what's the plan?"

Ren took a deep breath, then—without saying another word—began to unbutton his shirt.

Luxy blinked rapidly. "Wait. What the hell are you doing?"

Ren pulled the shirt off and handed it to her. "Here. Wrap this around your face."

She stared at the shirt, then at him. "Ren. You do know what kind of world this is, right? If a woman sees you like that, half-naked, you'll end up dragged into some dark corner before you can say 'help.'"

Ren sighed. "I know that very clearly."

"Then why—"

"Because," he interrupted, thrusting the shirt into her hands, "you're going to walk in there and clear those terrorists out. No matter what happens, don't let anyone see your face. If they recognize you, my entire plan's done for."

Luxy looked at the shirt, then at him again. "You really are unbelievable," she muttered. "Fine. Whatever you want."

She wrapped the shirt around her face, adjusting it like a makeshift mask. As she did, her voice softened slightly. "This shirt smells like you."

Ren groaned. "I'm just glad you're not one of those yanderes. Otherwise, you'd be making a puddle right now."

Luxy rolled her eyes. "That's disgusting."

Ignoring him, she stood up and began walking toward the group of armed women. The terrorists noticed her almost immediately. The leader raised her weapon. "Hey! Stop right there!"

Luxy kept walking.

Two more women aimed their rifles at her, shouting. "Identify yourself! Remove that thing from your face!"

Luxy ignored them, her calm steps echoing softly over the cracked pavement. The leader cursed. "Final warning!"

Luxy still didn't stop.

"Shoot this bitch!" the leader screamed.

Gunfire erupted like a storm. The night lit up with muzzle flashes and the crack of bullets tearing through the air. But when the smoke cleared, Luxy was still standing. The bullets had flattened against her body, clattering to the ground like dull metal coins.

Amanda, hiding in the shadows, stared with wide eyes. "What the hell…?"

She watched as Luxy moved through the hail of bullets without flinching. Amanda's mind was spinning. The ability jammer was active. No one should be able to use any kind of power right now. And yet the stranger walked forward, untouched.

The mercenaries' expressions shifted from shock to fear. They dropped their rifles, drawing knives and batons instead. "Jammer might be down!" one shouted.

"No, it's not!" another yelled back. "She's… she's something else!"

Luxy cracked her knuckles. "If you're done shooting," she said quietly, "then come here."

The first attacker lunged at her with a knife. Luxy ducked, grabbed the woman's arm, and twisted—sending her flying into a wall. Two more came from behind, swinging batons. Luxy blocked one strike with her forearm and kicked the other woman backward, sending her rolling across the dirt.

She gritted her teeth as her makeshift mask slipped slightly. "Damn it," she muttered under her breath, holding it in place with one hand. "Why is this so hard to keep on?"

Another terriost who was the leader tried to grab her, but Luxy backhanded her so hard the woman fell unconscious instantly. She switched between blocking and striking with one hand while the other desperately held the shirt over her face. "Ren, you owe me so much for this," she growled quietly.

The fight didn't last long. Within minutes, the area around the dungeon gate was filled with groaning, defeated enemies. Luxy wiped sweat from her brow and exhaled. The wind picked up, blowing dust through the clearing.

Then she looked up—and froze.

Ren was running toward her, wearing nothing but his underwear, with his pants wrapped around his face like a makeshift scarf.

Luxy blinked, then burst into laughter. "Ren! What the hell are you doing!?"

Ren, panting and sweating, pointed at her. "I told you not to let anyone see your face! That includes me too."

"And you think this is better?" she shouted between laughs. "You look like an idiot!"

"I will delete your savefiles!" Ren snapped back.

Amanda, watching the whole scene from her hiding spot, could only gape in disbelief. The two of them—this ridiculous duo—had just charged into an active warzone, defeated a terrorist cell, and were now arguing half-naked in front of a dungeon gate.

"I… I'm dreaming," Amanda muttered. "This can't be real."

Ren reached Luxy, glancing at the gate. "Let's go. Before anyone else shows up."

Luxy nodded, still trying to stifle her laughter. Together, they ran into the glowing blue gate and vanished.

Amanda remained frozen for a few seconds, her mind struggling to process what she had just seen. The remaining terrorists were moaning on the ground, some barely conscious. She finally snapped back to her senses. "This is my chance."

Drawing her gun, she dashed toward the nearest enemy. The woman saw her coming, but Amanda was faster. A quick strike to the stomach, another to the jaw, and the mercenary went down. Amanda moved like a shadow, her training kicking in. Within moments, only one enemy was left standing—the leader.

Amanda pinned her against a wall, pressing the barrel of her gun against the woman's throat. "Who are you working for? What are these machines for?" she demanded.

The leader struggled, her mask hiding her expression. Amanda's patience ran out. She ripped the mask off—and instantly froze.

Her blood ran cold.

"No," she whispered, stepping back, her hands trembling. "It can't be you…"

The woman under the mask stared back at her silently, her face pale and expression unreadable. For a moment, the world seemed to stop. The wind carried the faint sound of distant gunfire, but Amanda couldn't hear it. Her heart was pounding too hard.

Her grip on the gun loosened, her breath shaking. "You were supposed to be dead."

The woman smirked faintly. "Surprise."

Amanda took another step back, eyes wide. "Why… why are you with them?"

The woman tilted her head. "Because, Amanda… I was shunned...I was thrown away...I was left to die."

Before Amanda could respond, a loud rumble came from the dungeon gate. The ground trembled violently, and the blue light flickered. Amanda turned her gaze toward it, but when she looked back—the masked leader was gone.

She stood there for a long moment, surrounded by unconscious enemies and silence. The reality of what she had just seen was sinking in like ice water.

"Miranda... how are you still alive?" Amanda muttered to herself as she quickly picked up her pistol and looked up at the dark sky, wondering if what she saw was real or just her imagination.