No one knew how much ti had passed.
When Ethan opened his eyes again, he was back at Erald Castle.
But sothing in the air imdiately put him on edge.
A strange, unfamiliar energy filled the sky—subtle, not violent, but instinctively unsettling.
His brow furrowed. He reached out and grabbed a patrolling soldier.
"This energy—where's it coming from?"
The soldier quickly pointed toward an open clearing not far away.
There—
A tall figure hovered in midair, dark energy pouring off him like a tide, warping the space around him.
Ethan had barely stepped closer when that energy wrapped around him, like invisible claws trying to tear him apart.
He instinctively pushed back with his own power.
But the mont his resistance kicked in—
Sothing strange happened.
His physical strength surged. His energy flow beca smoother, more refined.
Ethan blinked, caught off guard.
Before he could process it, Feylora ca jogging over, grabbing his arm and pulling him toward the clearing.
"Master, his na's Karnoth," she said quickly. "He's from the Dark Fairies."
"His power's dark-aligned, but it has a unique refining effect."
"Anyone exposed to it gets their mind and strength forcibly tempered—amplified several tis over."
Ethan looked at Karnoth.
The man looked a little awkward, scratching his head before pulling out a worn, slightly tattered map.
"My kingdom was far from here," he said. "But… it's gone now."
"My people scattered. I only wandered into this place a few days ago."
"If this lady hadn't given sothing to eat, I probably would've starved."
Ethan gave a small nod, not pressing further.
He raised a hand and casually placed the Plane World he'd just brought back into a stable zone outside Erald Castle.
The mont it settled—
A surge of rich, vibrant energy rippled outward.
It was like the entire atmosphere of Erald Castle had been cleansed and renewed.
Nearby soldiers instinctively drifted closer, cautiously but eagerly absorbing the unfamiliar power.
"Master, where'd this little girl co from?"
As Ethan returned to the main keep, the child at his side imdiately drew everyone's attention.
She looked no older than six or seven, with bright, clear eyes and a presence so quiet it made people question if she was even real.
A few curious soldiers couldn't help but inch closer, reaching out to pat her head.
But just as their fingers were about to make contact—
BOOM!
An invisible force exploded outward.
The soldiers were blasted back, slamming hard into the ground.
The little girl planted her hands on her hips, chin tilted up, voice sharp and fierce.
"You low-level creatures—who said you could touch my head?"
"Only Daddy can!"
Her voice was soft and childish, but the possessiveness in it left no room for argunt.
For a mont, the entire courtyard went dead silent.
Ethan knew full well—
This wasn't so childish tantrum.
It was a primal, territorial instinct.
And no one could say for sure whether, in the next second, she'd revert to that terrifying form capable of erasing a high-tier enemy with a flick of her finger.
The tension hadn't even fully settled when—
The sky suddenly dropped.
HUMMM—
A crushing force descended from above, sharp and overwhelming.
The clouds tore open.
A tall figure slowly erged from the heavens.
A man clad in gold-etched battle armor, a gleaming gemstone embedded in the center of his forehead. Inside the gem, energy pulsed like it was breathing.
But the strangest part—
The flow of energy around Erald Castle shifted the mont he appeared, as if being drawn toward him.
"So this is Erald Castle?" the man said, scanning the ground below with open disdain.
"I expected sothing impressive."
"Turns out it's just a low-tier Plane World."
"No idea how those useless fools from Vorgar managed to lose a whole army here."
Discontent rippled through the castle.
Ethan stepped forward, rising into the air, power surging through his body.
But before he could act—
A small hand tugged at the hem of his coat.
The little girl floated up beside him, silent.
She didn't look at Ethan.
Her eyes were locked on the man in the sky.
The man just sneered.
He raised his hand, and a massive energy sphere began to form in his palm.
At the sa ti, a pair of radiant wings unfolded behind him, etched with golden runes. The symbols shimred, pulling at the energy field across the entire region.
Ethan forced himself to stay calm.
System scan—initiated.
—Vorgar Empire.
—Tier 30 (Low).
The result made his heart sink.
"Not a high level…"
"But his aura's completely off."
Even as he processed it, the man's power shifted.
Not just a boost.
A convergence.
The energy of the world itself was being forcibly drawn in, restructured, forming a colossal shadow behind him—so massive it blotted out the sky.
The shadow didn't move.
But the pressure hit like a mountain.
HUMMM—
RUMBLE—
The air compressed to the brink of collapse.
Ethan was just about to strike—
When a sharp, childish voice rang out beside him.
"You trash from Vorgar!"
"You dare lay a hand on my daddy?!"
The little girl stepped forward.
No buildup. No warning.
And in that instant, the towering energy construct behind the man unraveled.
Its power was yanked apart, scattered, and then—
Sucked straight into the girl's body like a tide reversing course.
For the first ti, the man's expression cracked.
"Impossible…"
"My gift is absolute energy dominion!"
"Any power within range bends to my will—!"
But reality shattered that belief.
This child—
Had a higher-tier energy authority.
Before he could even finish the thought—
She was already in front of him.
She raised her hand.
A simple motion.
But it carried the full weight of the energy he'd just summoned.
SMACK—!
The slap landed clean.
His body snapped in half midair.
"NO—!"
The scream cut off instantly.
Both halves of his body were flung backward.
In a panic, he scrambled to activate his innate gift, forcing his severed form to reassemble.
What Ethan saw next made him forget to breathe.
He'd never seen anything like it.
Not healing.
Not regeneration.
But—reconstruction.
The man from the Vorgar Empire, after being split in two, used his own energy to forcibly rebind his body. Bones and flesh twisted and fused midair, barely restoring a humanoid shape.
That level of self-repair was far beyond anything normal combat logic could explain.
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