"That’s right, Reinhart. You’ve just taken a single step toward what I felt... the mont she died."
Even as the words left my mouth, I wasn’t entirely sure why I said them. Sothing dark and heavy was boiling inside , and restraining it felt almost impossible.
"W–Wait, Jayden!!" Milleia’s voice cracked as she reached out, but Jayden’s figure had already blurred in a streak of white lightning.
–BOOOOM!!
The ground erupted as his lightning-charged dash tore across the field.
I raised Trinity Nihil instinctively, gripping the hilt so hard I felt the tal dig into my palm. He appeared in front of —a bright flash of white—and I swung.
–BOOOOM!!!
His sword smashed against mine, releasing a blinding burst of thunder. A white thunderbolt crawled over my body and my senses spun for a second, like the world tilted under my feet.
A low groan escaped my throat.
If Wrath wasn’t protecting , that hit alone would have been enough to tear apart from the inside.
I still staggered backward, boots slipping across the cracked stone. Jayden didn’t hesitate; he was already on again.
I pointed Trinity Nihil forward, Wrath pulsing in my veins. A large purple mana circle unfolded before the blade like an ominous flower.
"Burning Breath of Vysindra."
-BOOOOOOM!!!
A massive torrent of purple flas roared out, scorching the ground in its path. Jayden’s body blurred again into pure lightning, streaking sideways as the flas consud the space he had just been standing in.
Crackling lightning flashed beside .
"Reflect."
Five shimring mirrors materialized around in a triangular formation.
-CRACK!!
Jayden shattered them instantly, each mirror bursting like thin glass under his fist. His final strike connected with my guard.
–BAM!!
Pain shot up my arm as the impact hurled across the ruined earth. I skidded, dust exploding around . My arm throbbed violently.
Crackling filled the air again.
I looked up—and his sword was glowing gold.
Lun’s Blessing.
"Sin of Wrath." I coated Trinity Nihil in Wrath’s furious purple blaze and raised it. Jayden brought his glowing blade down. I swung up to et him.
–BOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
The explosion of power tore the ground apart. A crater opened beneath us, chunks of stone and earth flying outwardly. Golden aura clashed fiercely against my boiling purple.
Around us, I saw them scrambling to throw up mana barriers. Milleia was on one knee, a deep blue barrier spread wide to protect everyone from the shockwaves of Lun’s Blessing and Wrath colliding.
Jayden glared down at , teeth gritted. I t his eyes coldly.
"Lun Ray!!"
A massive golden circle materialized beneath my feet, spinning with strange symbols.
An Edenic Circle.
He learned that already...?
–BOOOOOM!!!
A spear of golden light shot upward, swallowing whole. The world turned white-hot for an instant. Jayden leapt away from the blast, and I hurled myself backward at the sa mont.
My left arm was charred black, useless and burning.
If not for Wrath shielding my core, that might’ve been my entire torso gone.
Jayden didn’t give a second.
Lightning ripped toward again.
I summoned a series of mirrors in panic and vanished through one.
"Damn it!!" Jayden’s voice roared behind as he destroyed each mirror in his path, lightning tearing them apart one after another.
I kept blinking between them, retreating—until a spellbound knight ca into view just a few ters ahead.
I reappeared in front of him, reached out, and ran my hand straight through his armor and chest as if it were made of water.
He let out a soft gasp as his body sagged.
"I’m sorry," I whispered honestly, catching his falling head with my shoulder.
Blood Art.
Crimson vapor swirled around my arm. His blood surged into —warm, violently, alive—until nothing remained.
I wasn’t a vampire, so the recovery was faint compared to theirs...but it was enough. Feeling returned to my left fingers, faint but present.
"YOU!!! EDWARD!!!"
Jayden appeared again, faster than before—his speed was getting ridiculous.
I jumped into another mirror, vanishing once more.
Just once more.
I whispered through clenched teeth, forcing my body to obey .
"Tegn Wrath."
A violent jolt tore through my chest.
"Ughh—!!"
It felt as if an invisible hand had reached into my ribcage and clenched my heart with rciless force. The backlash of channeling Wrath’s armor crawled through every nerve in my body. My vision blurred for a second.
–BOOOOM!!!
A shockwave burst outward from , rippling across the shattered ground.
Jayden flickered into existence right where I had been standing—but this ti, I was ready.
My body vanished into a streak of purple crackle. I wasn’t faster than him but the sudden spike in my speed caught him completely off guard.
My hand grazed his face.
Then I drove his head into the ground.
–BAM!!!
Stone erupted, the earth gouging into a deep trench as I drove him forward. I felt lightning crackle awakening in his body beneath my grip, warning to let go. I yanked him up and hurled him away.
He flew through the air.
"Jayden!!!"
His companions cried out in panic, rushing toward where he crashed. That bought the few seconds I needed.
I stabbed Trinity Nihil into the ground and launched myself backward. Amunet’s spectral hands burst to life beneath my feet, propelling high into the air—straight toward the massive crimson mana circle hanging in the sky.
Khryselakatos materialized in my grip, expanding into its colossal bow form. I pulled the string back until I felt the tension rattle my bones.
My other hand with the red ring clenched.
Blood Art.
Cyril and Sirius had used this technique flawlessly during the Blood Moon Spell, especially Cyril linking themselves to every victim and feeding on the living web of blood beneath them. I wasn’t a master of it—not like them—but I wasn’t a stranger either.
And more importantly...
I had strong Blood Connections.
Elizabeth.
Alicia.
I knew exactly how it worked.
Follow the blood, and you find the prey.
I reached out with my senses.
Thousands of Blood Spell-bound individuals flickered into my awareness like dim red stars across the map of Central Vedelia.
Not many.
Pitiful, compared to Elizabeth’s Blood Moon Spell that had devoured hundreds of thousands.
But enough for what I needed.
I pulled the bowstring harder.
"Follow the track."
A massive amber arrow materialized..
My arm trembled. I pulled even further.
"Anathemas Fire: Ignition."
A vast purple mana circle blood before my bow, spinning with symbols that hissed and writhed like serpents.
"W–What is he doing?!"
Claudia’s voice echoed faintly from the ground. I felt all eyes lock onto .
My mana plumted in a single instant—a gut-wrenching emptiness hollowing out my core.
If not for the ring absorbing the brunt of it, I would’ve collapsed right there.
I breathed in shakily.
"Hunt them down... Scourge of Artemis."
–BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
The colossal amber arrow tore forward, piercing the purple circle—and imdiately fragnted. In an instant, it split into hundreds—then thousands—of smaller arrows, each igniting with a vicious purple fire.
–BOOOOOOOOOM!!!
The sky lit up, turning entirely purple as the rain of arrows scattered outward like a teor shower. From my vantage point mid-air, I watched them streak across the entirety of Central Vedelia.
Then the impacts began.
-BOOOOOOM!!
-BOOOM!!
-BOOOOM!!!
The closest spellbound ones never even had a chance to react.
An arrow struck—and they erupted into pillars of purple fla.
Human torches.
The sight spread across the capital—from the outer districts to the very heart of Sancta Vedelia.
Everywhere the arrows landed, buildings cracked, streets burst open, and that rciless purple fire consud every marked target.
A rain of death.
Gravity finally reclaid . My feet struck the ground hard, but I kept my gaze raised.
The enormous crimson mana circle—the core of the Blood Moon Spell—was dissipating.
Its color faded.
Its structure warped.
And then...
It began to crumble, flecks of crimson dissolving into the night air.
No blood remained to sustain it.
I didn’t even have a second to breathe—Jayden appeared right in front of , lightning still crackling off his skin.
I swung Trinity Nihil instinctively.
–BOOOOOM!!!
Our blades collided again, the impact sliding backward across the torn ground.
I shifted my gaze quickly.
Claudia...
A massive blood circle opened behind her, swirling violently as she released a volley of blood lances sharp enough to pierce through steel.
"Reflect."
I raised my left hand summoning a mirror.
At the sa ti, on my right, the elven girl drew her bow and let loose a rapid stream of arrows. I summoned another mirror, this one angled toward her.
Claudia’s blood lances vanished into the first mirror—and burst out of the second one, rging into an overwhelming storm that shredded the elf’s arrows and slamd straight into her.
–BOOOOM!!
"Hyaagh!!" She cried out as the blast crushed her barrier and flung her back.
Jayden’s eyes widened in horror.
"K–Kenia—!"
He didn’t get to finish.
-BAM!!!
My knee drove deep into his abdon. The air left his lungs in a violent gasp, blood spraying from his mouth. His Ruah and mana couldn’t help him—not while I was coated in Tegn Wrath.
I lifted him by the collar and tossed him upward.
"YOU!!!"
Lightning flashed beside —Jennyfer materialized, spear in hand, her face twisted in rage. She swung the crackling lightning spear down with deadly intention.
"Ring of Vysindra."
I tightened my fist. The ring coiled around my wrist expanded, glowing brightly.
Jennyfer’s blue eyes shimred purple.
–BOOOOM!!!
But before the attack could land properly, a winged woman swooped down and snatched her away from danger.
It was Arete.
"Shadow’s Realm."
A whisper crawled behind . I skidded back just in ti to see the dark-haired girl erge from her own shadow, two daggers flying toward . One grazed past—the other pierced straight into my calf.
"Hollow Ground," I growled.
White sand erupted beneath her, swallowing her feet and dragging her deeper into her own shadow.
"W–Wha—?!"
Her eyes widened, panic flashing through them.
"Explode."
I leapt backward.
–BOOOOOOM!!!!
Her shadow detonated beneath her. She scread, rolling across the ground, the blast tearing through her barrier. Her shadow mitigated so of it—but not nearly enough.
Before I could follow up—a tanned woman dropped from above, swinging a massive mace.
-BOOOOM!!
I jumped back, her mace cleaving into the ground and splitting it in two. She moved fast—faster than I expected—but as I retreated, my back hit sothing solid.
A blood barrier.
Claudia again.
"Take THAT!!!" The tanned girl shouted as she swung her mace in a horizontal arc.
I crossed my arms.
-BAM!!!
The impact rippled through and sent rolling across the ground. I dug my heel into the dirt and rose on one knee—just in ti to duck.
Jayden’s lightning-fast kick tore through the air where my head had been.
"What—?!"
"Tegn Wrath." I spread both arms outward. "Field Break."
Jayden paled.
"Shit—"
-BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
Purple radiance erupted from my body. A violent shockwave blasted out in all directions. Jayden was thrown back, most of the impact absorbed by his Lun Blessing—but the others weren’t so lucky.
Only Milleia’s barrier protected them from being torn apart.
"S–Stop!! Stop this!!" Milleia scread, tears streaming down her face. "Please!!"
"Move, Milleia!!" Jayden shouted, his entire body glowing gold. "He’s dangerous!"
His eyes locked onto —furious.
An Edenic Circle ford beneath him, flooding his body with the full power of Lun’s Blessing.
Trinity Nihil flew back into my hand. I grasped it tightly.
A purple pentagon spun beneath my feet.
Jayden froze for a mont—his breath catching.
A Khaos Circle.
Cleenah had shown it only briefly, and I never finished developing it...but it was enough.
Deep inside , I felt Nesis—who was silent until now—smiling with a twisted delight, her malicious excitent spreading through at what I had just shown.
Six rings of Vysindra ignited around my blade then, orbiting Trinity Nihil in blazing arcs.
"Edward!!" Milleia cried, voice breaking, tears spilling uncontrollably as she looked at .
I stole a brief glance at her before planting my foot against the shattered ground and kicking off with every ounce of strength left in .
Jayden vanished in a streak of lightning, and in the sa instant, we closed the distance between us. Seconds stretched into an eternity. Our swords collided—or were about to—and ti seed to slow, stretching each heartbeat into a drum of inevitability.
Then I saw him.
Zeus.
His figure appeared like a specter of frost, piercing blue eyes scanning with that icy, unfeeling intensity. I barely had ti to react before a dark mantle wrapped around , suffocating, oppressive.
Nesis.
-BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!
Both of our attackers had been obliterated in a flash, but the resulting shockwave hurled Jayden and backward at bullet speed. I grunted, teeth gritting, as my body skidded across the broken earth for what felt like hundreds of ters, before colliding violently against a jagged rock.
"Arghh!"
I coughed blood, my knees hitting the ground hard. My lungs scread, gasping for air as I tried to stay upright. Through the haze of pain, I saw Jayden—not much better than —already being tended by his companions.
I braced myself against Trinity Nihil, using it as an anchor to keep upright, my ribs screaming in protest.
That son of a bitch, Zeus.
I dragged myself forward, every motion agonizing.
My thoughts spiraled quickly.
I can’t die here.
I won’t die here.
"Ah... ah... aha... ah..."
Central Vedelia... is saved.
The Second Ga... is over.
Please... let see the won I love.
I need to see Celeste again, to tell her everything I feel, apologize, tell her I truly love her. I want to hold Alvara in my arms, awaken Elizabeth once more, and finally let our love breathe freely.
And yet there’s so much left undone—Ephera, Cleenah, Persephone, Layla, Anna, Samara, Tihana, Orlin... all of them. I need to see the people who loved , who believed in . Just once more.
My blurry vision landed on Jayden, cradled by his companions, even Alector who hadn’t raised a finger against , moving taking care of him.
I had to survive... just to see them again.
To see the people who loved for who I was.
"...!"
A silver blade flashed in my periphery. Trinity Nihil t it awkwardly, forcing to skid back across the scorched ground.
A man in gleaming white armor, blond hair catching the fading light, stood before .
"Who the fuck are you?" I growled, teeth gritted.
He smirked, eyes cold but amused.
"You have a very Holy Blade for such an unholy appearance, Edward Falkrona," he said, thrusting his glowing sword toward . The blade sliced through my side, tearing flesh. Pain exploded through , but I bit it back, refusing to falter.
He took a swift step forward, plunging his sword straight at my chest. But in that mont, I vanished into a cloud of white sand. His sharp eyes widened in shock as I reappeared behind him, using my remaining Wrath.
-BAM!!
My swing connected—or tried to—but he parried, the force sending him skidding back. I planted Trinity Nihil into the ground, my fingers slick with blood as I tried to stanch the flow. My vision swam violently, the world tilting as every heartbeat scread danger.
I needed to stay awake.
I glared at the man in white. He smirked again—but that smirk faltered, eyes widening in surprise.
I turned, raising Trinity Nihil, but... everything froze.
My whole body seed to have frozen as if sothing restrained .
What?
It was Nesis’ doing.
W...Why?
My movents halted mid-swing, mid-turn.
-SPURT!!
A blade shot through the center of my chest.
"...!"
And when I raised my eyes, I saw grey eyes looking at .
Kleines.
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