'He has become a fool,'
Aetherion thought as he clashed against Pallas.
Pallas kept sacrificing parts of his own body in order to land blows, but his injuries only regenerated after several minutes.
Though he recovered, the damage still disrupted his divine energy and weakened his control.
His mind was beginning to cloud; he could no longer think clearly.
Aetherion noticed all of it.
And because of that, Pallas' fighting pattern had become obvious.
Aetherion had not been holding back.
He had fought with everything he had.
Yet he knew one thing—if Pallas had remained calm, calculating, and fully rational, defeating him would have been far more troublesome and far more time-consuming.
So Aetherion choose another path for a quick victory.
He picked to…. humiliated him.
He outmatched him.
Outpaced him.
Overwhelmed him again and again, forcing Pallas to slowly realize that he stood no real chance.
Each exchange wounded not only his body, but his pride.
The titan who sacrificed his pride to call for help, could only take so much.
'I can see it now.'
Aetherion thought this calmly, because throughout the battle he had been using his Star Domain to its fullest extent.
[Star Domain: Path of Victory.]
That was the true ability he had been relying on.
It did not allow him to see the future.
It did not grant fate.
He was a fateless one—nothing was guaranteed for him.
Instead, the stars revealed probabilities.
Thousands of possible paths unfolded before his eyes.
Not certainties.
Not destiny.
Only likelihoods.
Outcomes branching endlessly, each one shimmering like a thread of light.
He could see which path held the highest chance of success.
After all, did the stars not show the path under the night sky while travelers try to find the path, why couldn't it show the path of victory too?
That is how Aetherion made this move, a move combined with the star to show a path to victory for himself and himself only.
and a long with his eyes that could sense and see intent, deception or a threat to himself, Aetherion became simply untouchable of that alone.
It was prediction refined to divine calculation.
Lines of starlight and divine powers appeared in his vision—visible only to him.
They traced the trajectories of attacks before they were fully executed.
If a strike was likely to aim for his head, a golden streak would flicker there in warning.
If a move carried unpredictability or a threat to him, a violet streak would shimmer, urging caution.
Pallas' attempts to sacrifice his own body for advantage had worked at first.
But now they were useless.
Every reckless gamble only harmed him more than Aetherion, because one simple truth remained:
Aetherion regenerated far faster.
Even in his divine form, where Aetherion could not use his others domain.
his Life Domain and Nature Domain vitality and regeneration still reinforcing him, he returned to peak condition while Pallas' regeneration lagged behind.
The longer the battle dragged on, the worse it became for the Titan.
Pallas realized it.
Yet he refused to change tactics.
Because he knew—if he slowed down, if he returned to calm calculation, the boy before him would end it even faster.
So his mind descended further into chaos.
His eyes trembled.
His movements grew more desperate.
'Yes… I can see it even more clearly now.'
Aetherion's gaze sharpened.
Among the countless branching paths, one line shone brighter than the rest.
This was the path to victory.
His eyes lowered briefly to the scarf around his neck, and a small, cold smile formed on his lips.
'Yes. This will work,'
"I will end this soon,"
Aetherion muttered.
He did not care whether Pallas heard him or not.
The truth was already set in motion.
Those words only disrupted Pallas further, pushing him deeper into rage.
He began attacking like a cornered beast—wild, relentless, furious.
But Aetherion remained cautious.
Because even a cornered beast was still a beast.
And so he moved carefully—yet confidently.
His star-lit eyes gleamed as he followed the shining thread before him.
The path of victory was clear.
And he was walking it.
He did not know why, but his heart was beating excitedly as he fought against Pallas.
Even though he knew victory was within arm's reach, this battle had awakened something inside him—something fierce and alive.
And so, he fought.
Aetherion suddenly lowered himself into a stance.
Pallas watched carefully as Aetherion muttered:
[Star Domain: Nova Step.]
Immediately, compressed starlight detonated beneath his feet, propelling him forward at extreme speed.
Pallas' eyes widened in shock.
In the next instant, Aetherion was already upon him, his sword thrusting straight toward his throat.
Pallas raised his spear to block or deflect the strike, but Aetherion simply sidestepped to the right and teleported to a star positioned behind Pallas.
Pallas had grown used to this trick.
He spun instantly and thrust his spear toward Aetherion—
But something unexpected happened.
Aetherion teleported again.
A star manifested directly in front of Pallas, and Aetherion's voice rang out clearly:
[Star Domain: Nova Burst.]
The star compressed violently at point-blank range and exploded in a blinding flash.
A devastating shockwave tore through the realm Aetherion had created, illuminating the entire starry expanse.
Aetherion watched calmly, waiting to see the damage.
From within the smoke, Pallas stepped forward.
He was far from unharmed.
His body was severely burned, one arm nearly charred beyond recognition.
Only parts of his face remained protected by hastily reinforced divine energy.
He coughed out ichor, divine blood spilling from his lips.
His eyes burned with murderous rage, and the flames around him flared wildly.
"I'm going to kill you! And rip you apart!"
Pallas yelled, his fury clearly visible .
Aetherion laughed, openly mocking him.
"You know you can't, right?"
he replied lightly, mischief gleaming in his eyes.
Pallas charged again.
This time, Aetherion did something different.
He dismissed his sword and summoned a spear instead.
Pallas blinked in surprise—then smirked.
"Arrogant,"
he muttered.
But then he noticed something strange.
Aetherion's stance… it was familiar.
Almost identical to his own.
No—exactly like the move Pallas himself had used earlier in the battle.
As Pallas rushed forward, Aetherion's voice rang out once more.
[Star Domain: Fury Flame.]
White stellar fire ignited along the length of Aetherion's spear as he thrust forward in a motion eerily similar to Pallas' own technique.
Pallas' eyes widened.
He had just been copied.
"…How?"
Aetherion's lips stretched into a cocky, mischievous grin—far too wide for Pallas' comfort.