A Moment of Hope

Polnareff looked on in astonishment.

Illuso's voice, however, was even more mocking:

"Still don't understand?"

"All objects in this Mirror World are merely 'images' of objects in reality."

"Of course, a person cannot affect a phantom, so in this Mirror World, you cannot lift, move, or destroy anything."

These words are somewhat disheartening.

Polnareff then suddenly realized where his opponent's confidence in victory came from:

Because Illuso can freely use items in this world, and he also has a Stand to accompany him in battle.

Polnareff could only use his two fists, which he had brought from the outside world, and he could not get any other help.

This is fundamentally an asymmetrical battle.

No matter how weak the Mirror Man is, they are not someone that a human with bare hands can defeat—except for Jotaro, of course.

"Damn it, that's outrageous!"

"Didn't I lose the moment I was pulled into this Mirror World?"

Polnareff muttered to himself in such a helpless manner.

Illuso, however, quickly hardened his expression and continued his unfinished battle, or rather, his execution.

"Mirror Man, kill him!"

Illuso himself stood cautiously a few meters away from the car.

To prevent a mishap, he had no intention of letting Polnareff get close to his true form.

The humanoid Stand named Mirror Man used its ample range to protect its master from a distance, and then charged at Polnareff once again.

The Riot Games was swift and powerful; although it wasn't fast enough to be seen, it was still extremely difficult to dodge.

Polnareff had been in a wheelchair for many years and only regained his physical health last night.

He had been out of combat for too long, and even though his body had recovered, his skills were still no match for the sword master he was in his prime when he was young.

What's more, he doesn't have a sword in his hand right now.

Faced with the iron fist coming straight at him from the Mirror Man, Polnareff could only raise his arms in a sorry state to defend himself.

The powerful Riot Games slammed heavily between his arms, the immense force instantly blasting away the two obstructing arms and landing directly on his scarred face.

Polnareff's head was knocked sideways by a punch.

He coughed up a mouthful of blood and swayed as he fell to the side.

The Riot Games of the Mirror Man immediately followed him like an inescapable nightmare, relentlessly attacking his disheveled and slumped body.

"No."

"If this continues, I'm bound to lose."

If you can't beat someone, you can't beat them. People can't suddenly unleash their power by shouting slogans or reminiscing.

When you are completely outmatched, the weaker the enemy, the worse the situation becomes.

Because that would only make the weak die slower and suffer more torment.

Polnareff, who is now being beaten like a chicken by the Mirror Man, is in this terrible situation.

"We have to find a way to attack him. Otherwise, I'll just have to sit here and wait to die."

"So, in this Mirror World, is there any way for me to hurt him?"

Polnareff was thinking with all his might.

No matter how hard the Riot Games landed on his body, they didn't affect the functioning of his brain.

Finally, a vague idea surfaced in his mind:

"Since the objects in this Mirror World are merely 'images' of objects in reality..."

"If I can change objects in the real world, the objects in this mirror world should change accordingly, right?"

Polnareff was thinking this, his gaze immediately fell upon Illuso was standing far away beside the car.

The car behind Illuso, with its large windows, could now serve as a "screen" for him to see the outside world, that is, the real world.

"I saw my Silver Chariot standing next to the cars outside."

"If you let it turn its body to the 3 o'clock position and then strike the car body with its sword..."

Polnareff's thoughts became increasingly clear:

"Perhaps it can puncture the car's fuel tank!"

Thinking of this, he immediately gave orders in his mind to the substitute he had left in another world.

The silver knight reflected in the mirror immediately turned around and unleashed a swift, deadly sword strike.

The sword light tore through the car's metal body in an instant and pierced the car's fuel tank.

As the sword danced, gasoline from the tank gushed out along with the silver blade, spraying out a colorful spray in mid-air.

"What?! What is that voice?!"

Illuso in the Mirror World was horrified.

Because in the real world, the moment a fuel tank ruptures and fuel gushes out, the fuel tank in the Mirror World also ruptures.

The oil suddenly gushed out in the Mirror World, unexpectedly spraying Illuso with gasoline.

Fortunately, his reaction was timely and alert enough.

The instant he heard the sound of a sword tearing through sheet metal behind him, Illuso instinctively rolled to the side to dodge.

Although he inevitably got doused with gasoline, he immediately moved away from the car with the damaged fuel tank.

Rolling several meters away ensured his safety.

"That was close. They actually tried to use the characteristics of the Mirror World to attack my main body directly."

"If we had been just a step slower, that guy's Stand would probably have already set the gasoline on fire, right?"

Illuso wiped the gasoline off his face, still shaken by the experience.

At the same time, his gaze toward Polnareff became more cautious:

"They came up with a counterattack so quickly."

"This uncle really keeps you on your toes."

"If that's the case, then the Mirror Man— "

Illuso gritted his teeth and commanded:

Don't give him a chance to see the mirror!

Polnareff was able to manipulate the Silver Chariot to perform such dangerous maneuvers entirely because he saw the real world through the mirror and knew the exact location where the Silver Chariot was standing.

So as long as he can't see the mirror, he naturally won't be able to use the Silver Chariot blocked outside to do any tricks.

Startled, Illuso immediately launched a more ferocious and cautious attack.

On one hand, he quietly retreated more than ten meters away, maintaining an absolutely safe distance between himself, the dangerous oil-leaking car, and Polnareff, who might still be hiding some trump card.

On the other hand, taking advantage of the Mirror Man's incredibly long range in the Mirror World, Illuso began to remotely control his Stand to launch attacks.

The Mirror Man charged forward again.

This time, it was no longer a simple attack and beating, but rather a highly purposeful shoving of Polnareff in one direction.

That's the direction the front of the car is facing.

Because the windshield is blocked by the hood, all that's left of the mirror in this direction is the narrow metal strip embedded in the front of the car.

This was originally a "blind spot in the mirror" that Polnareff had created to escape, but now it has become the perfect battlefield for Illuso to cut off his connection with the outside world.

"Kill him right there!"

Illuso roared from afar.

Amidst the roar, the Mirror Man dragged Polnareff to the front of the car and began a new round of even more brutal beatings.

The Riot Games pounded relentlessly between the chest and abdomen, the most vulnerable parts of the human body, and the immense force, like a tidal wave, repeatedly assaulted Polnareff's internal organs.

Polnareff's defenses are becoming increasingly difficult and unsustainable.

But there was nothing he could do.

Because Illuso was already on guard, and this guy was standing more than ten meters away, even if the Silver Chariot could really detonate the car, it wouldn't hit him.

To make matters worse, Polnareff is currently unable to see the outside world or the exact location of the Silver Chariot; he can only vaguely recall that the Silver Chariot is still standing to the side of that car.

"We can't let things continue like this."

"I can't do anything in the Mirror World, so I have to start from the outside to win."

"Although I have absolutely no idea how to turn things around, and I see no hope at all, but..."

"I need to at least see what's happening outside, to see what's going on outside—"

"Otherwise, I wouldn't even have the slightest chance of discovering that possibility."

Polnareff gritted his teeth, thinking with such resolve.

Perhaps the human body truly possesses some unleashed potential; at this moment, he completely abandoned defense. He no longer tried to block, but instead desperately met the Riot Games of the Mirror Man.

He squatted down.

This squat is certainly not an admission of defeat to the enemy.

He simply wanted to get his line of sight around the obstruction between the Mirror Man and the narrow metal strip embedded in the front of the car.

The metal strip was really narrow, and it was several meters away from Polnareff.

Can you really see anything by just glancing at it from this far away?

It was just a fleeting image.

In that brief, blurry image, no one could guarantee that he would actually see any useful clues.

For that brief moment, for that one incredibly slim chance, Polnareff abandoned his defenses, completely exposing his vitals to the enemy's fists.

The Mirror Man then threw a punch, delivering a heavy blow to Polnareff's head.

That punch left him with a bloody head.

Pain and dizziness spread from his brain throughout his body, causing his entire body to tremble.

But Polnareff's previously anxious and confused eyes suddenly lit up:

"That instant"

"I saw it!"

It was like that ray of sunlight that shone into the Cairo mansion more than a decade ago.

In the darkness, he grasped at hope.

Writing this is so difficult. Spatial information is hard to express in words; I really want to add a sketch. (=_=)