"The afterburner still pulsed defiantly on Luka's arm, but he could no longer advance an inch. His prosthetic arm was firmly caught by Svarog, who didn't even take a single step back."

"'The victor has been decided,' Svarog's cold voice rang out again."

"'...Enough, Luka! Stop right there!' Seele urged anxiously from the side.

"'...No... not yet, it's not over! I must let you... see...'"

"'You've impressed me, Luka of the Wildfire. Svarog lowered his head, his crimson gaze sweeping across the young man's face. 'I will remember this battle.'"

"'Ha... ha... Thank you... but... it's not... not over yet...'"

Svarog no longer held back, and a final punch sent Luka to his knees, unable to rise again.

"'Luka of the Wildfire, whatever your motive for coming, I acknowledge your strength. Your performance makes me re-evaluate the limits of humanity.'"

In the last moments before his consciousness faded, Luka still tried to stand up again, but all he heard was the pounding of his own heart... his vision gradually blurred until everything turned black.

"'Hey, wake up! Don't fall! Get up! Luka! Hey, Luka—!'"

—

Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas.

"What are you still expecting, Aldebaran?" Albafica raised an eyebrow. "Do you really think that kid can still stand up?"

"It's just a pity. This kid is a great prospect for a Saint, but he didn't appear on Earth. Otherwise, I would definitely try to recruit him..." Aldebaran clenched his fist. "This kid has astonishing willpower. If he could join the Galaxy Rangers for some tempering, he might one day truly become a powerhouse comparable to Argenti and Boothill."

"You mean, he should travel through the cosmos?"

"Exactly." Aldebaran nodded. "Sometimes, if a person wants to become stronger, their opponent is very important. If this kid stays in the Fight Club, it will be difficult for him to improve... but facing a large robot like Svarog feels a bit beyond his scope."

"The key isn't the opponent, but the teacher. Even for us, we don't encounter Void Fighters of equal strength every day," Shion of Aries said calmly. "Just like Yanqing of the Xianzhou, that young man's swordsmanship is already peerless in the Luofu at such a young age, but without a teacher like Jing Yuan, it wouldn't be possible. And Jing Yuan's martial arts today are also thanks to Jingliu's guidance in his youth—the teacher is the key to Luka's strength."

"Where can one find teachers like Jing Yuan or Jingliu? Not to mention he isn't from Xianzhou; even on Xianzhou, not everyone has such good fortune—"

Aldebaran crossed his arms and said irritably, "Unless he is willing to go to Xianzhou to apprentice. But only the Astral Express can arrange something like that. Now that Xing is right beside him, it just depends on whether Luka himself has the desire."

—

"'Luka... can you hear me?'"

"'...'"

"'Hey... hey! Wake up, Luka!'"

Luka reluctantly opened his eyes, rubbed his groggy head, and found himself back in Natasha's clinic.

"'Heh, you're finally awake! You've been lying here for a whole day; you really scared us.'"

Natasha said that Luka was fine, as Svarog had deliberately held back. But she repeatedly warned him not to do such foolish things again, no matter his intentions.

However, Seele wasn't going to let him off the hook, glaring fiercely at Luka: "...I'm not as easygoing as Natasha; this can't just be brushed aside. While we have a moment, quickly explain what was wrong with you earlier?"

"'And your victory slogan from before...'"

"'The only good thing about you passing out is that we don't have to listen to you shout it again...'"

Luka tried to gloss over it: "Haha... Being so serious, that's your style. I already said, this is my trial plan... *cough, cough, cough!*"

"'...Don't move around, you haven't fully recovered yet. Seele, don't push him too hard... Luka needs to rest now.'"

"'Thank you, Natasha—but I've almost recovered. I... have something to do now. Hey...'" In the blink of an eye, Luka ran out of the clinic, leaving only his slightly staggering silhouette.

"'Hey, you—'"

"'...Let him go, Seele.'"

By now, Seele realized that Luka must be hiding something from her but refused to explain. Unable to rest easy, she decided to follow him. Natasha also felt that this matter was unusual; she knew that although Luka could sometimes be overly enthusiastic, he was never reckless, so she asked Xing to go ask Oleg about his situation.

—

Akame ga Kill!

"I'm really curious what he's up to..."

Inside Night Raid's forest stronghold, Tatsumi sat cross-legged on the grass, analyzing seriously, "Since he's hiding something from Seele... and even Natasha, the leader of the Wildfire, can't be told, is he perhaps training some ultimate move?"

"Pfft—Tatsumi, have you been training too much with Akame? Are your muscles starting to take over your brain?" Lubbock leaned lazily against the base of the large tree behind him. "Your ideas are too rigid! Look at how secretive he is, his eyes darting around, only speaking half-truths... Based on my extensive reading, this kind of person is probably up to no good!"

"Up to no good? What could Luka be up to?"

Lubbock suddenly sat up, putting on a mysterious expression, "If you ask me, he might be a hidden ambitious individual, whose ultimate goal is to replace Natasha, become the leader of the Wildfire organization, secretly control Belobog's Underworld, and contend with Bronya—"

"Shut up, Lubbock! Luka is so kind, how could he be a bad person! I think you've been reading too many novels and now everyone seems like a villain!" Mine walked over from behind, poking Lubbock's shoulder hard with the barrel of her Pumpkin. "Don't talk nonsense next time!"

"Then... Mine, why do you think Luka would do this?"

Being stared at by both of them, Mine's earlier momentum immediately weakened a few points, a hint of unnatural blush appearing on her face as her gaze drifted elsewhere.

"I think... because... because... Luka... has someone he likes!"

Tatsumi: "?"

Lubbock: "?"

"You, you guys think about it! He's working so hard to become stronger, it must be to protect the person he likes, and those strange lines, maybe they're the victory slogan he and his beloved agreed upon! As for challenging Svarog and refusing to give up... maybe it's because the person he likes is watching him from afar! Yes! It must be!"

"Is... is that right?" Tatsumi was instantly dumbfounded.

"Nonsense, her guess is even more outlandish than Mine." Lubbock rolled his eyes, looking back at the pink-haired girl whose face was flushed with embarrassment. "Speaking of which, Mine... are you in love? Or have you been reading too many romance stories? Could it be... you have someone you like?"

As if something had been hit, Mine's face instantly turned even redder.

"You, you... what nonsense are you talking about, Lubbock! Do you want to taste the power of my Pumpkin?!"

—

"Xing quickly found Oleg and told him all about Luka's recent abnormal behavior. After listening to Xing's account, Oleg's bushy white eyebrows furrowed instantly."

"'Hmm... now that you mention it, there are indeed many strange things; it's completely unlike him... I mean, don't let Luka's seemingly naive appearance fool you; he actually has a lot on his mind. Has he told you about the origin of that mechanical arm, Xing?'"