The Legendary Ghost Hunter

Beyond the corridor, another set of stone doors lay. These ones, however, were a lot bigger and grander, embellished with gemstones and glowing sigils that painted a night sky on the stone.

"For a Ghost's home… these aesthetics sure are nice," Iyesha muttered, but her heart wasn't in it.

"Never mind that… how do we get through here?" Acaya wondered, looking around. "Did we miss something…?"

But then, a booming voice suddenly enclosed the chamber, ringing in everyone's ear.

"DO YOU DARE CHALLENGE ME, MORTALS?"

"…!" Immediately, the group drew their weapons and activated their Angelicas, readying themselves for anything.

"Who…" Obo narrowed his eyes.

"I AM THE ONE YOU SEEK. THE ONE YOU WISH TO SLAY. THE EMPEROR OF THIS CITY — THE LUNATIC, MOON INHERENT."

"It's him… the Emperor-level Ghost…" Tian Long muttered.

"Oi!" Duke roared. "Open up the damn door, coward! We'll kick your ass!"

"HO? ARE YOU CERTAIN, MORTAL? IT MAY NOT BE NIGHTFALL YET, BUT IT IS CLOSE. DO YOU TRULY WISH TO FIGHT ME, WITH YOUR PUNY 'ANGELICAS'?"

"We didn't come all this way just to back down now," Iris said firmly. "If our Angelicas are such 'puny' things, how have we crushed your two bodyguards? And how come you are not letting us in to fight you? You claim to be so strong… but really, all you're trying to do is buy time until the moon rises, aren't you?"

"… VERY WELL. HEHEHEH…"

A creepy, low giggle echoed across the chamber as the doors before them began sliding open slowly, shaking the entire ground and causing a loud rumbling sound to occur. Behind this door, an open courtyard lay. There was no ceiling, and the sky was in clean view.

In the distance, the very tip of the sun could be seen beyond the horizon. It was about to fall — and when it did, the Emperor's reign of terror would begin.

On the other side of the courtyard, an enormous figure sat. It wore a silver crown on top of its pale white head and a purple cape that covered its back.

The group entered the courtyard, and the doors slammed shut behind them. Then, slowly, the massive figure turned around.

It was at that moment that the Ghost Hunters saw true horror.

The Lunatic had the face of a normal Phantom. That signature Glasgow smile, earless head, and noseless expression. But its eyes… one of them was perfectly fine and normal, pupiless like any other Phantom, but its other eye socket… it was empty.

The eyeball draped out of it, dangling and threatening to fall. Blood dripped from the empty socket and splattered across its face, painting its white face partially black like someone had poured tar over it.

On its forehead was a mark — a crescent moon, with its tips pointing upwards. It was as if the sigil had been carved into its very skin, like something a mad cultist would do.

"W-What the hell…" Obo muttered, voice quivering with fear. The other Ghost Hunters all took a step back instinctively, faced with this utter abomination.

"What's the matter, thou who wisheth to kill me?" The Lunatic laughed, revealing rows upon rows of sharp but deranged white teeth. "Be careful who you challenge… for the Hunters may become the prey instead… HAHAHA!"

It reared its head back and howled in laughter, but the Ghost Hunters have had enough.

"Stop the trash talk!" Duke yelled, charging forward as a red aura enveloped him. Ripple and Jester followed, the former sending an audiowave blast while the latter split into dozens of copies, all with their weapons drawn.

"Wai-" Acaya began, but Finn stopped him.

"… Let them be the lab rats."

"Wha… you…"

"… Did you forget already? They killed your friends."

"T-That may be so, but still… sending them to their deaths like this…"

"We didn't send them," Finn replied coldly. "They charged forward on their own."

"Take… THIS!" Duke leaped up into the air, preparing to sink his charged fist into the Lunatic's face, but the Emperor-level Ghost merely smiled like a maniac, completely unconcerned.

"Damn it… I'll KNOCK THAT SMILE OFF YOUR FA-… ce…"

Duke looked down, and saw his chest torn open by a white tentacle, stained red with blood. It was so fast he couldn't even see nor feel the pain, but he knew that his life had ended right then and there.

"I-Impossible…" He shifted his head slowly on his dying breaths to look at his two teammates, and saw that they too had their chests penetrated by the Emperor's thick tentacles. Even Jester, who used his copies to trick enemies, was instantly identified by the Lunatic.

No… it had simple pierced all of Jester's copies in an instant, and found the right one.

"Such speed… such power…" Acaya whispered, slack-jawed.

"… HEHEHEH…" The Lunatic giggled like a crazy man and launched the three's lifeless bodies at the other Ghost Hunters, who quickly dodged out of the way.

"This… it's beyond our Healing capabilities…" Chisis muttered, staring down at the massive holes in the three's punctured bodies, blood forming a pool beneath them.

"Weak, weak, weak, weak, WEAK!" The Lunatic roared gleefully. "Is that how you Ghost Hunters fight? HA!"

"… Nah." Finn bent down and placed his hand on Jester's forehead, then Ripple's. "… You just sqaushed some maggots. That's all."

Standing back up, now with two new Angelicas obtained (he already had Duke's Brawler Angelica thanks to Pang Zi from a while back), Finn rolled his neck a little and activated the Cardmaster Angelica, then pointed at the Lunatic.

"… Judgment."

Suddenly, a magic circle appeared above the Lunatic, and it looked up to see a beam of light charging up on it.

BOOM!

The laser beam of white light shot out of the magic circle and pummeled the ground — and the Lunatic along with it.

"D-Did that get him…?" Tian Long asked, still shocked at how sudden the three people he had wanted to get revenge on just died.

"UP HERE, FOOLS!" The Lunatic's unmistakable voice suddenly laughed, and the Ghost Hunters all cast their gazes into the air in response.

There, the Lunatic hovered, eight tentacles squirming behind its back. The purple cape it wore had now been cast away, setting the creature's tendrils free.

"Hehehehe… IS THAT ALL YOU HAVE, GHOST HUNTERS?"