The capital of Vartas was descending into chaos.
The ground rumbled violently as distant explosions rolled across the horizon like endless thunder. Empire walls shook, sending cracks spiderwebbing along ancient stone. Citizens poured into the streets, screaming and shoving as panic took hold.
"Everyone to the inner shelters!" a magic knight shouted, voice hoarse as he directed a group of terrified families. "Stay together! Do not run into the open!"
Another knight nearby waved his glowing staff, projecting a shimmering barrier over a crowded square. "Mages! Reinforce the eastern district! The tremors are getting stronger!"
High above the streets, several senior mages worked frantically, weaving large-scale protective domes that glowed soft blue. One of them wiped sweat from his brow as the ground bucked again. "Hold the barriers steady! Whatever is happening out there… It's only getting worse."
Amid the surging crowd, a small boy with short black hair weaved desperately through the panicked masses. Jin's heart pounded as he ducked between adults, eyes fixed on the distant empire wall.
I have to get there fast, he thought, small legs pumping. If I can reach the wall… maybe I'll see him. I cannot miss this...damn this body.
On a high balcony of the royal palace, Emperor Asterdolf stood completely still, hands clasped behind his back. The violent tremors barely seemed to affect him. His sharp eyes gazed toward the distant lands, where flashes of white and crimson light lit the sky like a second dawn.
So the Sky Palace has finally shown itself, he thought calmly. They must have come to bind the remaining dragon. How predictable...and a shame.
He watched the horizon without fear, only quiet calculation.
Back on the shattered battlefield, Indura suddenly stopped attacking.
His massive golden eyes swept across the destruction — new canyons carved by his breath, hills flattened, forests reduced to ash. For a long moment, he simply looked.
Then, with a shimmer of red energy, his titanic form began to shrink.
Bones compressed. Scales folded inward. In moments, the 5000-foot dragon was gone, replaced by the ten-foot armored humanoid figure with crimson hair and golden eyes.
Indura stood amid the ruins, hands slowly clasping behind his back.
Different, he thought, rolling his shoulders. I feel… different now. When I fought Gundr, his attacks actually hurt me. But now… I only feel the shock. The divine fragments must have been holding me back all this time. Well since they were purged, i suddenly felt much clearer than before.
He flexed his fingers, testing the new strength flowing through his lean frame.
Feels a lot better. I can still go on like this.
Juriel and Noriel landed gracefully a short distance away, divine blades still humming with power.
Juriel's mind raced. How are our attacks doing so little? His scales are ridiculously tough. And that breath… it's far more catastrophic than anything we expected. He narrowed his eyes. Something feels wrong about this dragon. He's not like the three in Chaos. That breath could erase divinity itself. And his size… no dragon should be that enormous.
Juriel raised his voice, trying to regain control. "This can end here, Red Dragon! Surrender now. It is pointless to resist. The Sky Palace has infinite numbers."
Indura turned slowly and walked toward what remained of his castle. The atmosphere around the battlefield was thick with dark smoke and ash, the sky above darkening as if mourning the destruction.
He bent down and picked up a piece of rubble — a broken fragment of white and gold stone that had once been part of his future home.
"I waited so long for this to be finished," he murmured, almost to himself. "I hid from the builders so they could focus. I rested in uncomfortable places, just so they could work in peace." His voice grew quieter. "For once, I actually looked forward to something. This castle gave me strength when times were low. And now… It's gone. All because some warriors want to use my power for their own gain."
Juriel remained silent, thinking to himself, That castle looked pointless anyway… but perhaps destroying it was a mistake.
Suddenly, Indura began to laugh.
First quietly. Then louder. The sound echoed across the ruined land, raw and unfiltered.
Juriel tensed. Is he going crazy?
Tears welled in Indura's golden eyes as he laughed — a strange mix of frustration, upset, and rising bloodlust. He touched his face, staring at the wetness on his fingers.
"I never knew I would see my own tears one day," he chuckled, voice thick. "How frustrating… to feel this way. But also… I feel like I could go wild right now."
He turned to Juriel, pointing a finger directly at him, his expression shifting into cold, terrifying bloodlust.
"It doesn't matter now," Indura said, voice low and dangerous. "You destroyed the one thing I actually looked forward to for a long time. Now that it's gone… I will kill you. Along with your companions. And after that, I will ascend to the Sky Palace and bring destruction upon it entirely. I won't stop there. I will make sure its end becomes reality." His eyes burned. "For now… that may be my purpose."
Juriel's veins popped on his forehead in pure anger. "Don't be ridiculous! Threatening the Sky Palace is no small feat—"
Indura cut him off, his face now completely dimmed with coldness and killing intent.
"I will be the last shadow you ever see."
Silence fell like a blade.
Then Juriel snapped.
With a roar of pure fury, he lunged forward, divine sword blazing like a falling star. The air ignited in his wake as he closed the distance in a single heartbeat.
The second phase of the battle exploded into motion.
Indura stood in his armored humanoid form — sleek crimson scale plates hugging a lean, powerful frame, curved horns rising from his head, golden eyes burning brighter than before. His crimson hair flowed longer and thicker, whipping in the violent wind. No wings. No tail. Just raw speed and brutal intent.
He didn't dodge the first strike.
Juriel's blade came down in a devastating overhead slash. Heavenly Severance — amplified. The crescent of white light carved a glowing trench through the ground as it struck Indura's raised forearm. The impact rang like a cathedral bell, sending a shockwave that sliced a nearby hill clean in half.
Indura felt the force travel through his bones — sharp, jarring pain — but his scales held. He grunted and countered instantly, fist swinging in a heavy arc.
The punch connected with Juriel's guard. The Sword of the Sky was hurled backward, skidding across the shattered earth before stabilizing mid-air.
Not bad, Indura thought, rolling his shoulder. But they're faster than I expected.
Noriel appeared from the side in a blur, blade flashing with Thunder Seraphim. Lightning-chained strikes rained down, targeting joints and gaps in Indura's armor. Two hits landed cleanly — one across the ribs, another on the shoulder. Pain flared hot and bright.
Indura hissed through his teeth but didn't retreat. He twisted and drove a powerful kick into Noriel's midsection. The impact sent the warrior flying, carving a deep furrow through the ground before he recovered.
"They're coordinating too well," Indura muttered under his breath, golden eyes tracking both swordsmen as they circled him at blinding speed. I need to slow them down or at least separate them.
He opened his mouth mid-movement. Energy crackled violently around his jaws.
Juriel's eyes widened. "Breath incoming—evade!"
Indura fired a condensed annihilation blast from his humanoid form. The beam was narrower than his titanic version but no less deadly — a roaring white lance of void-flame that lit up the battlefield like a second sun. It missed Juriel by inches, but the explosive aftermath detonated against a distant ridge, erasing it entirely in a mushroom of fire and ash.
The shockwave slammed into the empire walls far away, causing fresh panic as towers swayed and civilians screamed.
In the capital, magic knights shouted over the chaos:
"Barriers up! Keep the civilians moving toward the inner shelters!"
Back on the shattered battlefield, the fight had gone airborne.
Juriel and Noriel blitzing around Indura like silver comets, their blades leaving trails of heavenly light. Hills were sliced to bits. The ground fractured into deep gashes. Slashes burst outward, some streaking so far they scarred the distant empire walls with glowing cuts.
Indura moved fast — faster than any humanoid should — but the two Swords of the Sky were still quicker. They overwhelmed him with speed, landing stinging hits that drew lines of pain across his armored body.
They're targeting the gaps, Indura thought, dodging a thrust from Noriel while taking a shallow cut from Juriel across his side. Blood trickled, but the wound was shallow. I can't match their speed yet… but I don't need to.
He planted his feet and swung a heavy claw strike. Juriel barely evaded, the passing force ripping his cape and sending him spinning.
Noriel seized the opening, diving in with a rapid series of Eclipse Divide strikes — darkness and blinding light alternating to disorient. Two hits landed hard on Indura's chest plate. The impact rattled his ribs.
Pain flared, real and sharp.
That one hurt, Indura admitted internally, golden eyes narrowing. They're learning my rhythm. At this rate...
He countered with a brutal fist strike that forced Noriel to block with both arms. The collision created a visible shockwave that flattened everything within a hundred meters.
Juriel used the moment to circle behind. "Starfall Edge — Cascade!"
Dozens of meteor-like pillars of divine light rained down from above, targeting Indura's back and shoulders. Several struck true. Indura roared as the shocks traveled through his body, but he refused to fall. Instead, he spun and fired another blast breath mid-turn — a shorter, quicker burst that forced both warriors to break formation and evade.
The beam missed, but the explosive detonation carved another canyon and sent a fresh wave of tremors toward Vartas.
In the capital, the panic intensified as the walls shook harder.
"Hold the line!" a knight yelled. "Get the civilians inside!"
Jin kept running, towards the walls desperate to see how things were going down.
On the battlefield, Juriel and Noriel regrouped in the air, breathing slightly heavier.
Juriel's mind raced. His scales are ridiculous. Even our stronger techniques only draw shallow wounds. That breath… if it lands cleanly, it could erase us.
He glanced at Noriel. "We need to wear him down. Find the blind spots. He's strong, but he lacks refined combat experience."
Indura stood below them, crimson armor smoking from multiple hits, golden eyes bright with a mix of pain and exhilaration.
This is getting annoying by the second. Each time I strike, they counter it, especially that second one following Juriel, he thought, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. But I'm starting to understand their pattern.
He charged upward, fists and claws blazing with red energy, meeting the two Swords of the Sky in a furious aerial melee.
The sky itself seemed to crack under the weight of their clash.
Blades flashed. Fists roared. Shockwaves rolled across the land like thunder.
The battle had become a desperate, high-speed storm of steel, flame, and divine light — and neither side was willing to yield.
Asterdolf stood motionless on his high balcony, hands clasped behind his back, watching the horizon where white and crimson flashes lit up the sky like a second, violent dawn. The ground beneath the palace continued to rumble, sending faint tremors through the stone.
If this battle keeps escalating, he thought grimly, the damage will spread far beyond those remote lands. Mountains will fall. Rivers will boil. The empire's borders will crack, and the people… the people will pay the price for a war they never asked for.
He slowly placed his right hand over the lower part of his chest, near his heart. A dull, persistent ache pulsed there — the lingering dark energy Goulag had left behind during their last clash. It had never fully faded. With each passing day, it gnawed a little deeper, weakening his life force like slow poison.
Asterdolf's expression remained calm, but his eyes darkened.
Indura… it would be a shame if the Sky Palace obtained him and bound him to their will. He sighed softly. A dragon of that caliber, turned into a weapon for corrupted divine order… how dangerous that would be for the entire world.
He glanced down at the panicking citizens below — tiny figures running through the streets, voices rising in fear as the tremors worsened.
With another quiet sigh, Asterdolf turned and stepped back into his private chambers.
The room was dim and still. On a small wooden table sat an old framed picture of his late wife, her gentle smile captured forever in glass. He picked it up carefully and dusted the frame with his sleeve, fingers lingering on the edges.
"I miss you, Maria," he murmured, voice low and intimate, as if she were standing right there. "Every day, I wish you were still here with me." A faint, tired smile touched his lips. "Our son has become a strong man. When I leave this world, he will take over. He will carry the empire forward."
He stared at the picture for a long moment, thumb gently tracing the frame.
"There is a great evil spreading across the world," he continued softly. "If the dragon who has lived among us is truly good… I cannot let the Sky Palace take him. There is a chance — with his help — that the mission I started so long ago could be carried on by someone else." His voice grew quieter. "I need him to live."
Asterdolf carefully set the picture back down, then stepped outside onto the balcony once more. He looked up at the sky, eyes steady.
"Give me strength… one more time," he whispered. "Let me protect the people of this empire."
He turned his gaze forward — just in time to see a massive divine slash hurtling straight toward the capital, a glowing arc of heavenly light capable of cleaving entire districts in two.
Asterdolf slightly raised his hand.
A colossal golden barrier erupted around the entire empire in an instant — wide, radiant, and absolute. The massive slash slammed into it with a thunderous boom, sending ripples across the golden surface but failing to break through.
The people in the streets froze. Heads turned upward.
For a heartbeat, silence.
Then realization hit.
"It's the Emperor!" someone shouted.
"The barrier… His Majesty has acted!"
Cheers erupted across the capital — raw, relieved, and full of hope. Citizens raised their hands, voices rising in a wave as they realized their ruler had finally stepped in.
Asterdolf sighed softly and let out a quiet chuckle as the cheers washed over him from below.
At least they still believe.
Jin stood among the crowd, staring up at the enormous golden barrier with calm, knowing eyes. No panic. No fear.
This barrier isn't like any other, he thought. It's… different.
Suddenly, golden aura began spreading from the barrier, coating everything the empire touched — buildings, towers, streets, every corner — in a perfect, shimmering layer of protective light.
The people looked around in awe, murmuring in wonder.
Then the air shifted.
The ground began to rumble with a deep, resonant sound, as if the very earth itself was moving and reshaping. The golden aura flowed through every inch of the empire, strengthening foundations, reinforcing walls, and spreading calm energy that eased the tremors.
On the balcony, Asterdolf stood tall, his body now emitting a steady golden aura. He murmured under his breath, voice firm with quiet resolve.
"At least… let me protect the future of this world