Because they had poured all of their energy into that single strike, the princes and princesses were now utterly exhausted. They clearly had not expected the queen to rise again, let alone transform into such a form. Their gazes turned toward Athena almost in unison.
Athena rely smiled and looked up into the air.
Up there, the queen’s body was undergoing a terrifying change. From her face, darkness began to spread outward violently. Her moon-colored hair rapidly turned into a pitch-black mass, as though it had been congealed from thick sludge.
Her flesh shifted to a grayish black, no longer bearing the glossy sheen of tal. It withered and collapsed inward, making her appear as though only a layer of shriveled skin remained, stretched over bare bones.
Her once-luxurious robes, woven with countless intricate patterns, began to dissolve as well, revealing the body beneath, where rib joints were exposed with no flesh to cover them.
"Rip!"
Two additional pairs of arms burst forth from splitting gaps, dragging blood and torn flesh with them. Long, twisted claws unfurled, trailing wisps of curling black smoke.
The blue of her fish tail completely vanished. Flesh peeled away like a tattered skirt, leaving only a fixed skeletal structure behind. From those bones, dense spikes erupted, like countless frost flowers blooming all at once.
The trident in the queen’s hand flared with blinding brilliance, crackling with violent lightning. A column of energy shot straight upward, piercing through the water layer above.
No sound echoed, yet in the next mont, all of them sensed that the sea itself had changed.
It was as though another layer of light had finally shone upon this land.
"Aqualon has been exposed," Nicole said, her eyes heavy with dread. Before this, all of their battles had been confined within Aqualon. But once the boundary was erased, the aftermath of such powerful clashes would affect the flow of the entire sea.
At that very mont, Nicole’s fears were proven justified. The sea surface, which had been calm just a second ago, suddenly erupted in fury.
Wave after wave surged violently, swallowing ships drifting upon the ocean. Fishern near the coast were swept away, and seaside hos suffered even worse fates.
The tides had never reached them before, yet now, the opening act of this storm was tearing their hos apart.
Even though patrol mages were swiftly dispatched to the coastal regions for rescue efforts, no matter how fast they moved, the damage could not be avoided. The number of people drowned continued to rise with each passing hour.
Small islands that humanity had begun to use as bases were rcilessly subrged, the land shattering into countless fragnts.
The sky seed to respond to the atmosphere below, dark clouds rolling in thickly, as though the end of the world were drawing near.
A chorus of lantation, heavy with oppressive pressure, was already spreading toward Luminous, like a prophecy declaring that today, at this very mont, the land would officially beco one with the sea.
Nathan’s coastal village was not spared from the raging waters. They fled at nearly the fastest speed possible.
Leaning on his cane, Nathan listened to the sounds of wailing devastation almost brushing past his ears.
He turned his head and looked toward the ocean. There, waves surged in endless succession, the seawater a deep blue so dark it was nearly black.
Foam burst high into the air as the waves grew larger and taller by the mont. Even from here, they could hear the sound of their hos being battered and collapsing.
And this was almost certainly only the beginning. Farther away, an even greater storm was still gathering.
Deep beneath the sea, after the boundary between Aqualon and the outside world was shattered, powerful ocean currents surged into Aqualon itself. The once-peaceful scene was destroyed in an instant. Yet just as quickly, they sensed sothing else. An even greater concentration of energy was gathering at Aetherium Tower.
The rfolk could not help but move toward it, but wave after wave of violent aftershocks forced them all back.
The queen smiled as she looked down at her children. "Even now, do you still think you can win, Athena?"
Athena smiled and shrugged. "At least right now, you’re no longer the queen. You’re far weaker than you were before. Maybe just one more strike like that, and sothing forged from darkness like you will shatter completely."
The queen—no, she was no longer a queen. Darkness had fully eroded her soul, gnawing at it bit by bit until now, its effects laid bare for all to see.
Thalassa smiled. "Unfortunately, you won’t be able to unleash another attack like that."
As soon as she said this, the other princes and princesses suddenly raised their heads. Their bodies stiffened, as though they were struggling against sothing.
But it was futile. The darkness was like a seed that had long been planted deep within their souls, and now, it was ti for it to sprout and spread its branches and leaves.
In the blink of an eye, a web-like network of darkness took shape. Shadows surged violently as the princes and princesses charged straight toward Caesar. So of them even lunged at one another, tearing and biting.
Nana leapt from Caesar’s back. Magic circles blood in the air as streaks of light arrows shot forth like rain, relentlessly striking those corrupted by darkness.
Caesar also sprang into action, as though it had finally stepped onto its own stage. As a Lumin, it was the natural nesis of darkness.
Its claws sliced through the rfolk, and as it opened its mouth, a colossal sphere of light instantly ford within.
"Boom! Screee!"
Light burst forth, sweeping in a wide arc and blasting the rfolk flying in all directions. However, it did not end there. The rfolk now seed incapable of feeling pain. Even after losing half their abdons, they could still lash out with their tails. Their flesh regenerated rapidly, stitched back together by darkness, as they turned their claws toward Caesar once more.
On the other side, Athena swung the trident in her hand and lunged straight at Thalassa without the slightest hesitation.
Thalassa exclaid in shock, "You’re not being controlled!"
Athena smiled. "There are plenty more surprises. Now die!"
As she spoke, energy gathered on her trident, aiming straight at Thalassa.
"What perfect material for a puppet. I love it!" Thalassa cried out excitedly. She did not dodge Athena’s attack at all, instead eting it head-on and charging forward.
Although Athena’s side was incredibly powerful, it was impossible to deny that they were now at an overwhelming nurical disadvantage.
Moreover, no matter how strong they were, facing a dark legion with such absurd regenerative abilities, they were being steadily forced into a corner.
Caesar let out a fierce roar and continued to fight valiantly, yet Nicole noticed that its coloration was growing paler and paler. anwhile, the recovery speed of the dark rfolk had only slowed slightly. At this rate, this was not a viable solution.
They needed a way out...
Just as this thought crossed Nicole’s mind—
"Boom!" A piercing crash suddenly rang out. Almost at the sa ti, everyone’s gaze snapped toward the source of the sound, the massive gates of Aetherium Tower.
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