Chapter 191

The Eighth Eighth Another Ryuga

“Henshin!”

He pulled out a black leather coat from his inventory and draped it over himself. On the back of the coat was a painting of a golden giant eagle’s talons holding the entire Earth. The eyes of the giant eagle, adorned with rubies, flickered with a terrifying, unpredictable light.

Ash loosened the dial of Another Ryuga. It fell slowly from his hand, wrapped in a mysterious power. It left behind streaks of dark stars as it floated in mid-air. After circling Ash several times, it inserted itself into the Spadger Driver on its own.

“[Ryuga]!”

A deep wave of energy burst from Ash’s body. A darker glow began to surge from within him, eventually enveloping his entire body. Love, Regina, and the other Pretty Cures who had come to support them were all blown away by the shockwave.

Black, with an nauseatingly terrifying darkness, came in waves. Not only the Pretty Cures, but even the officers of the Selfish Organization, who were born from darkness, could hardly catch their breath. The way they looked at Ash had completely changed.

“The Selfish King must have already possessed him!”

“It definitely has. After all, that is the Selfish King!”

They were very confident, considering the overwhelmingly dark Selfish King. How could a mere human possibly compare? They must have obediently given up their body.

This reaction was obviously due to the might of the Selfish King!

When the engulfing darkness finally dissipated, the true form of what could only be described as a demon from hell emerged. The original Western knight armor’s curvature was infinitely expanded, transforming into a sinister, black evil armor reminiscent of Eastern generals. The helmet, which once exuded a cold presence, now looked extremely menacing. The twisted grilles and crimson eyes, oozing black smoke, paralyzed anyone in its gaze.

Most terrifying was its set of exposed saw-like teeth, producing exaggerated breathing sounds that sounded like scraping metal, endlessly tormenting the girls’ nerves. The dragon head fused with his right hand spewed dark flames occasionally, while his left hand wielded a menacing large cleaver emitting icy light; no one wanted to test its power.

Now transformed into a new form unknown to them, Ash’s appearance alone was far more terrifying than anything they had seen before. Coupled with the overwhelming aura continuously emanating from him, it instilled in the Pretty Cures an unprecedented fear greater than any enemy they had faced.

“What on earth is going on?!”

Unable to comprehend.

They couldn’t understand. What had happened to Ash? Was this the aftermath of being attacked by the Selfish King? But he wasn’t hurt, yet why—

“Greet the Selfish King—ah!”

Officers ready to flatter the Selfish King who they believed had possessed Ash were caught off guard when Ash, without hesitation, sent them sprawling with a single fist.

“This isn’t right. I’m Ash. You talk about the Selfish King—how can something so weak be my opponent?”

“You—impossible! How could the Selfish King, a king of darkness, not defeat a mere human like you?!”

“Could it be that being sufficiently selfish makes someone the Selfish King?” Ash ignored Levi’s scathing glare as he pondered this question. “If so, then I, the world’s most selfish person right now, am the Selfish King.”

“How dare you say such things! Hey, Ira, Mamu, teach this guy a lesson—”

“I refuse!”

“He’s mentally unstable. I won’t fight him!”

Both of them instantly gave up on fighting upon recognizing the figure as Ash, having no intention of attacking.

“Wait—let’s retreat to the Poker Kingdom for now!”

The Selfish Organization withdrew without much effort, leaving the sea where the Selfish King’s illusion vanished. However, no one could breathe a sigh of relief because Ash now stood against them.

Finally, Love mustered her courage. “Um, Mr. Ash…”

“What’s wrong, Mana? Your voice sounds like I’m dead.”

Upon hearing it was indeed Ash, Love exhaled in relief, then asked, “Mr. Ash, this…is another form of Ryuga?”

“This? This [Another Ryuga]. Because someone gifted me a special present, I created this. Pretty nice, huh? No idea what it feels like to be an evil knight, but now I do.”

Despite the unexpected attack, Ash hadn’t lost his life. Instead, a never-ending power of “evil intentions” arose within him, instantly filling up the reservoir of Dark Echoes.

Utilizing his newfound power without restraint, Ash injected the evil energies into the blank dial, combining historical knowledge of Dragon Knight, leading to the creation of the Another Ryuga dial.

[Stop, Ash, it’s enough—]

Panel after panel appeared.

[Stop, Ash!]

[Stop!]

[Stop!]

[Continue this and you’ll regret it]—

“Ugh, shut up!”

Fed up with the incessant warnings, Ash crushed the panels with his bare hands, tossing them into the sea, out of sight, out of mind.

Frustrated, Ash could still explain kindly to Love.

The void and desires gnawed at Ash’s heart. Watching these Pretty Cures, he recalled happy moments with them, driven by desire, his mind fixated on one thing.

Fight! I need to fight! I want more fights—more power!

To battle them, to satisfy himself with everything he gains in combat!

To seize their beautiful bodies and radiant hearts!

“Uh…Mr. Ash?!”

“Ash?”

“What’s wrong, Ash!”

“Answer…answer me! You’re so scary!”

Another Ryuga’s blade pierced the water, slicing through each wave as Ash advanced. Faced with the silent and advancing Ash, the terrified girls could do nothing but step back.

A bit of translucent saliva dripped from Ash’s slightly open fangs into the sea.

Ah…Pretty Cures! Right now, I can’t hold back any longer!

“Fight!”

Ash suddenly attacked, horrifying everyone. The cleaver slashed Love’s hurried defense, propelling her backward. Even prepared for the impact, the attack was far stronger than any before, sending her flying.

“Ya—!”

“Fight!”

This time, Makoto suffered, barely able to push the equally terrified Regina towards the beach before she was covered in flames, screaming as she plunged into the sea, the heat from the clash of her flames and seawater intensifying her cries.

“Ah—!”

“Fight!”

“Don’t, Mr. Ash, please!”

Arisu activated a shield in front of the trembling Rikka, but with just one hit, she noticed the shield beginning to crack.

“Mr. Ash, what’s wrong with you?!”

Rikka’s voice trembled as she questioned, why did it feel like they had regressed into the twisted interactions of the past? Hadn’t they achieved mutual understanding?

Why, why does Mr. Ash seem to have returned to—no, even worsened from his previous state?!

“Oh dear, not good…” Having regained some composure after a few strikes, Ash sheathed his blade.

“A bit off… If we’re fighting, I should formally challenge you.”

“No…” Supporting the equally devastated Makoto from the water, Love looked at Ash’s dark gauntlet.

Is that it? Is Ash being controlled by that?

“Mr. Ash, are you under control of this? If so, please discard it!”

“HAHA, Mana, what nonsense are you talking about?” Ash laughed loudly, almost tilting his lower spine at a 90° angle.

You want me to discard this? What are you saying? This is mine, whether I’m controlled or not, you can’t demand this much from me.

“Please…discard it, or give it to me. Don’t let this happen, return to the Ash we know?”

Seeing Love’s pleading eyes, Ash paused and raised a finger.

“Then, let’s play a game.”

“What game?”

“If you can defeat me.” Ash tapped his waist-mounted dial. “I can give this dial to you.”

“But if you lose…”

“Cureheart, if you lose just once, I will take away one of your friends.”