"Why does he possess the Holy Light of the Sun?"
Winnieshan stared fixedly at the approaching Kurose Akira, her eyes wide with disbelief.
Shock churned violently inside her heart.
She simply could not understand it.
The holy radiance emanating from Akira was not the ordinary light attribute used by priests or paladins.
No.
It was something far purer—something more primal.
It came directly from the Sun itself.
How could that possibly be?
Impossible…!
Winnieshan stood frozen where she was, struggling to process what she had just witnessed. The shock she felt now far exceeded even the reaction Lucia had shown when she first discovered Akira's solar power.
After all—
Winnieshan was not merely a Saintess of the Holy Church.
She was also the Princess of the Solar Theocracy.
For thousands of years, the royal bloodline of the Solar Theocracy had been a special lineage blessed with the Power of the Sun God. It was precisely because of that divine inheritance that they had founded what later became the most prosperous and powerful human kingdom in the world—the Solar Theocracy.
However, as history marched forward, the Sun God's power within the royal bloodline gradually weakened. At the same time, the influence of the Holy Church of Light continued to expand.
Eventually, the royal family found themselves overshadowed by the Church.
Over time, the Solar Theocracy effectively became a nation under the Church's control. Members of the royal family joined the clergy, and even the king himself became a devout believer.
As for the deeper reasons behind this shift—
Winnieshan didn't fully understand them either.
Why had the Sun God's power declined?
Why had the Church grown so powerful?
The only thing she knew for certain was that the divine solar power remaining within the royal bloodline had become almost negligible.
Even she could only draw upon the faintest trace of it.
And yet—
That tiny trace had already been enough to make her stand out within the Holy Church and become one of the most promising candidates for the position of Pope.
Unfortunately…
Lucia's appearance had ultimately caused her to miss that throne.
Still, Winnieshan harbored no resentment.
On the contrary, she had accepted Lucia's victory wholeheartedly. Between Lucia—who had been guided back by the Golden Holy Dragon—and the other candidates cultivated by the Church, Winnieshan would rather serve under Lucia without hesitation.
But today—
She had just witnessed something utterly unimaginable.
The pure solar divine power emanating from Akira was far stronger than anything possessed by the royal family of the Solar Theocracy.
Was that… even real?
Just as Winnieshan's thoughts spiraled, Akira had already landed beside them.
Idis leapt lightly upward and landed gracefully on Akira's broad shoulder. Tilting her head, she gazed up at the imposing hundred-meter dragon form with visible interest.
"You can turn into a dragon as well?"
Akira responded casually.
"Is that strange?"
"Not really~"
Idis shook her head slightly.
But inside, a faint ripple of delight passed through her mind—as if Akira had once again surprised her in an unexpected way.
However, Akira wasn't paying much attention to her.
His gaze was locked firmly on a distant figure—
The Witch of the Night.
Although it was only a manifestation born from the Night Pearl, the clone still possessed the Witch's full power from when she had been alive.
Even with both Idis and Winnieshan fighting together, it would not be an opponent they could afford to underestimate.
Meanwhile—
The King of the Star Kingdom, still bound by chains, witnessed the moment when the power of the stars was divided and Vivian failed to complete her Valkyrie transformation.
The Night Ritual had collapsed.
And with it—
His mind shattered.
"No…! No! Why?! Why did it fail?!"
The Star King clutched his head, his eyes bulging as blood vessels burst across them. His sanity teetered on the edge of total collapse.
The resurrection plan he had meticulously prepared for so long…
Had turned to dust in an instant.
"You!"
"You deserve to die!"
The king glared at Akira with unrestrained hatred, black blood seeping from between his teeth.
"You ruined everything I had! She'll never return to me now! I swear I'll kill you!"
Despite the furious roar—
Akira's expression remained completely calm.
He simply turned to Idis.
"Any tactical suggestions?"
Idis smiled faintly.
"Tactics? No need."
Her voice carried an almost casual certainty.
"It's already over."
The moment her words fell—
A massive magic circle suddenly appeared high in the sky.
Radiant brilliance illuminated the entire night.
Within the glowing formation, phantom silhouettes of angels gradually emerged, descending like divine messengers.
The sight stunned everyone present.
Gasps erupted from the crowd.
"What… what is that?! Angels?!"
"Who cast that spell?! That level of power has to be forbidden-tier magic, right?!"
"It must be the Saintess from the Holy Church! Only she could possibly wield something that terrifying!"
"That divine pressure… even a demigod might be erased instantly!"
"My God… that's practically the work of a deity!"
"…!"
Everyone stared upward, their faces pale with a mixture of awe and terror.
The magical energy emanating from the circle had surpassed their imagination.
Even the Church inspectors present widened their eyes in disbelief.
But Akira knew something important.
The caster was not Winnieshan.
Because Winnieshan herself looked just as shocked, staring at the sky in utter amazement.
Which meant…
Akira's gaze slowly shifted toward Idis.
A complicated emotion surfaced in his heart.
He remembered something she had once said:
Yvessa is a part of me—but I am still myself.
Now it seemed that Idis had inherited everything from Yvessa.
Including her light affinity.
At the same time, inside Akira's soul space, Lucia witnessed the scene through his perspective.
Her expression instantly grew serious.
Those golden-red eyes flickered with disbelief.
"Why…?"
She murmured softly, unable to hide her confusion.
Lucia had encountered Yvessa before.
Although Yvessa could use light elements and sacred magic, the spells she wielded were relatively low-level.
At most, they reached high-tier magic.
They had never touched the true origin of light.
But the spell Idis had just released…
Had clearly reached the forbidden tier.
Even within the Holy Church, only three demigod-level figures were capable of wielding magic of that level.
And such spells were absolutely never taught to outsiders.
So why…
Could a succubus from the Abyss perform it?
Just as everyone remained trapped in shock—
The angelic phantoms within the magic circle began to move.
They raised their bows.
Their targets—
The Witch of the Night.
And the Star King.
The arrows they nocked were unlike anything ordinary.
Each one appeared to be forged from pure light elements.
Even more strangely—
The arrowheads were shaped like skulls, radiating an eerie yet overwhelming aura.
"Heavenfall~"
When Idis softly chanted the spell's name—
Countless arrows rained down like a storm.
The Witch of the Night and the Star King were swallowed instantly by the torrent.
From the center of the arrowstorm, Akira could see nothing clearly.
All he could hear were the roaring cries of dragons and the shrill screeches of phoenixes, echoing violently.
Occasionally, tendrils of black mist attempted to spread outward—
But they were instantly purified by the golden rain of arrows.
The forbidden spell continued for nearly a full minute before gradually fading.
When calm finally returned—
Both the Witch of the Night and the Star King had completely vanished.
Floating alone in the sky remained a golden crown.
"Is it over?"
Akira looked toward Idis, still sounding slightly uncertain.
Although he could no longer sense the Witch's presence, caution made him seek confirmation.
Idis laughed lightly.
"It was only a residual shadow of the Witch of the Night."
"Nothing particularly difficult."
She waved her delicate hand.
The floating crown gently drifted down into her palm.
Akira glanced at it.
A system prompt appeared immediately.
[Star Crown (Legendary): The crown symbolizing the stars.]
Then he asked another question.
"What about Vivian?"
Akira already knew Idis intended to place Second Princess Catherine on the throne of the Star Kingdom, ruling the nation from the shadows.
As for Vivian—
Her fate would likely be either death or exile.
"Her?"
Idis turned her gaze toward Vivian, who lay weakly in Akira's dragon claw.
"Give her to me."
"She still has… value."
Akira nodded.
"Alright."
He handed Vivian over.
Then he released his fusion with Mare Rhein.
The dragon once again soared freely across the sky, and Lucia and the others returned to the dragon's back.
When Idis saw Lucia, she spoke calmly.
"According to our agreement, I'll leave the rest to Miss Lucia."
"…."
Lucia didn't respond verbally.
She simply nodded faintly.
Then she walked straight to Winnieshan and whispered a few quiet words into her ear.
"I understand."
Winnieshan nodded and turned to leave.
But as she walked away—
Her eyes briefly glanced toward Akira.
And within that gaze…
There seemed to be a trace of hostility.
Akira frowned slightly.
Curious, he approached Lucia.
"What exactly did you two agree on?"
Lucia glanced at him calmly.
"The Holy Church will take responsibility for assassinating the monarch of the Star Kingdom."
"The Star King will be judged as a follower of the Witch of the Night."
"I see."
Akira nodded thoughtfully, looking down below.
Winnieshan had already begun negotiating with the royal nobles of the Star Kingdom.
Although they had witnessed the king's death firsthand—
They had also seen the Witch of the Night appear.
In the end, the king's death was attributed entirely to the Witch's conspiracy.
"However…"
Lucia suddenly changed tone.
A trace of doubt appeared on her delicate face as she looked toward Idis in the distance.
Akira noticed immediately.
"What's wrong?"
Lucia frowned slightly.
"It feels like she knew everything from the very beginning."
"As if every outcome… had already been predicted."
"…."
Akira silently watched Idis.
Lucia's suspicion made sense.
Idis seemed to hold the script of the entire story in her hands, guiding every event toward its conclusion.
Meanwhile—
Idis herself remained unaware of Akira's gaze.
Her attention was fixed entirely on Vivian.
Vivian had regained consciousness.
But after receiving the blessing of the stars—and enduring Akira's brutal purification—
Every inch of her body throbbed with pain.
She tried to stand.
But even that simple motion felt impossibly difficult.
Idis approached her slowly, her expression calm and indifferent.
"Princess Vivian."
"You lost."
"…You…"
Vivian raised her head.
Resentment flickered briefly in her eyes, but it was quickly drowned by helpless despair.
She bit her lip.
"You won."
Deep down, Vivian already knew—
The moment the stellar blessing shattered, everything had been decided.
But even if she had succeeded—
What then?
She would only have become the sacrifice used to resurrect the Witch of the Night.
From beginning to end—
Her fate had never contained victory.
Only failure.
Idis said nothing further.
She simply lifted her hand slightly, as though preparing to do something.
At that moment—
A butterfly made of ice suddenly fluttered toward her, attempting to interrupt.
"Hm?"
Idis merely glanced at it.
Instantly—
The crystalline butterfly shattered into countless sparkling fragments.
The next moment—
The Frost Knight, Iceblue, appeared silently behind her, sword drawn and radiating freezing energy.
"Stay away from her!"
She slashed downward.
But before the blade even touched Idis—
Iceblue was blasted several meters away by an invisible force.
She tumbled across the ground before finally stopping.
"T-This… how is that possible…?"
Blood spilled from her mouth.
Her eyes were filled with disbelief.
She had never imagined that Lady Idis could be so terrifyingly powerful.
She couldn't even withstand a single move.
"Stay where you are."
Idis spoke coldly.
Her gaze merely brushed past Iceblue—
Yet the knight instantly felt a terrifying pressure clamp down on her, as though invisible chains had bound her body.
She couldn't move at all.
Idis then turned back to Vivian.
With a light flick of her fingertip—
A blood-red rose materialized.
Step by step, she approached the princess.
Vivian had no strength left to resist.
All she could do was watch helplessly as the crimson rose slowly sank into the center of her forehead.
But the moment the rose entered—
A flash of surprise crossed Idis's face.
She discovered something unexpected.
Around Vivian's soul floated a layer of black mist, forming a protective barrier.
Seeing this—
Idis seemed to realize something.
A mysterious smile curved across her lips.
"So that's how it is~"
"Looks like the ending of this story still has an unexpected surprise."
"How interesting."
With that, she rose slowly and waved her hand.
A giant rose blossom suddenly bloomed around Vivian, gently wrapping her inside its petals.
The same happened to the Frost Knight.
Both women were enclosed within the rose.
After finishing, Idis turned toward Akira.
"Come."
"Let's head to Lankai's treasury."
"It's time to collect our spoils."
At that moment, Akira was checking Roselyn's injuries.
She had fought Iceblue inside the Unlimited Sword Domain for quite some time.
Although she couldn't defeat the level-86 Star Knight, her domain power had successfully delayed the enemy.
Of course—
That had only been possible because Iceblue hadn't truly intended to kill her.
"Alright."
Akira responded.
After giving a few instructions to Yvessa and the others, he followed Idis toward the portal leading to the Abyss.
Just as he was about to step through—
Idis's voice suddenly whispered beside his ear.
"Bring Yvessa along as well."
"I happen to have a few things I'd like to teach you both personally."
Akira blinked.
"…Huh?"