The evacuation began at sunrise.
The peaceful forest villages that had stood untouched for generations transformed overnight into something unrecognizable.
Fear moved faster than fire through ordinary people.
Families packed belongings hurriedly into carts while elders directed children toward safer forest routes leading south. Livestock were gathered quickly. Supplies disappeared from storage houses almost immediately while worried voices echoed constantly across the roads connecting both villages.
Nobody slept properly anymore.
Because now they had seen it.
The fracture in the sky.
Vijaya.
The impossible power surrounding Arin.
And once ordinary people witness something divine—
fear becomes real very quickly.
Arin stood atop one of the large wooden watchtowers overlooking the distant plains beyond the forest opening while cold winds moved through his hair.
The massive open land connecting both villages stretched endlessly beneath darkening skies.
And deep down—
he already knew.
They were late.
Liora climbed the tower quietly afterward before stopping beside him.
"The first evacuation groups already left."
Arin nodded once without looking away from the horizon.
"How many remain?"
"Too many."
Silence followed afterward.
Because evacuating two entire villages wasn't simple.
Not everyone moved quickly.
Not everyone accepted reality immediately.
Some people still tried saving belongings instead of running.
And time was running out.
Liora quietly studied Arin's expression afterward.
"…you can feel it, can't you?"
This time he answered immediately.
"Yes."
The wind around the tower suddenly grew colder afterward.
And then—
the sky darkened.
Not naturally.
Violently.
Massive black clouds spread across the distant horizon unnaturally fast while the earth itself trembled faintly beneath the villages. Birds scattered through the forests in panic.
Then came the sound.
A deep echo rolling across reality itself.
Not thunder.
Something worse.
Liora's eyes widened slightly afterward.
"…already?"
Arin slowly gripped the edge of the tower tighter.
"They're here."
The alarm bells rang instantly throughout both villages.
Panic exploded almost immediately afterward.
People began shouting through the streets while carts overturned in desperation. Children cried. Families rushed toward evacuation routes faster now as fear completely consumed whatever calm remained.
And then—
the sky broke open.
A massive fracture tore across the plains beyond the forest opening like reality itself had been sliced apart. Darkness poured through it endlessly while distorted energy spread across the land beneath.
The Entity had arrived.
And behind it—
the army emerged.
Not hundreds.
Thousands.
Dark figures flooded from the fracture endlessly, covering the plains like a black ocean moving toward the villages. Massive creatures towered among them while twisted underlings crawled across broken space itself.
The sight alone shattered morale instantly.
Villagers froze in terror.
Some collapsed immediately from fear alone after witnessing the scale of the army approaching them.
Riven stared toward the horizon afterward with disbelief written across his face.
"…that's an army?"
No one answered him.
Because words failed completely now.
Compared to this—
everything they fought before truly had been only fragments.
This was war.
Real war.
And standing at the center of the fracture itself—
the Entity watched silently.
Its enormous dark form barely visible beneath collapsing shadows while countless eyes burned faintly across its body.
Then slowly—
its voice echoed across the world.
"SURYAPUTRA."
The villages shook violently beneath the sound.
Arin stepped forward immediately afterward.
Golden-black energy exploded around him instantly.
Vijaya appeared in his hand once more.
And for the first time since completing the divine bow—
he released its power fully.
The earth beneath the tower shattered.
Massive waves of celestial energy erupted across the sky while ancient symbols ignited above the forest itself. The pressure released by Vijaya alone forced the advancing army to slow slightly.
The villagers stared upward in complete shock now.
Because standing above them—
Arin no longer looked human.
Golden flames moved across his body while divine energy distorted the air around him violently.
Then suddenly—
he vanished.
A sonic explosion tore through the village instantly as Arin crossed the distance between the villages and the battlefield in seconds.
The Entity's army charged immediately afterward.
The plains shook beneath thousands of advancing creatures while dark energy spread across the ground like corruption consuming reality itself.
And alone at the center of the battlefield—
Arin drew Vijaya.
The sky trembled.
Then—
the first arrow flew.
It split into thousands instantly.
Golden celestial arrows rained across the battlefield like divine judgment itself while explosions erupted throughout the advancing army. Entire sections of the underlings vanished immediately beneath the attack.
The villagers watching from the forest edge froze completely.
Because this wasn't combat anymore.
This was devastation.
Arin moved again before the explosions even finished.
Space itself distorted around him while golden-black energy sliced through reality. Every movement carried enough force to tear apart entire waves of enemies instantly.
The Entity's forces surged toward him endlessly.
And Arin met them alone.
Agneyastra erupted across the plains moments later.
A sea of divine fire consumed thousands of underlings instantly while the earth itself cracked beneath the heat. Massive creatures burned alive while the skies turned crimson from the flames.
Then Varunastra followed.
Entire rivers rose from nowhere before crashing down across the battlefield with enough force to erase entire sections of the advancing army.
The villagers could barely comprehend what they were witnessing anymore.
Even Riven stood speechless now.
"…he's actually fighting them alone."
The battlefield exploded continuously beneath divine Astras while Arin moved through the center of the army like a force of nature itself.
But despite all the destruction—
the army kept coming.
Endlessly.
The fracture behind them continued expanding while more creatures poured through reality itself without stopping.
And then—
the Entity moved.
The massive shadow raised one enormous arm slowly toward the villages.
Arin's eyes widened instantly afterward.
Because it wasn't targeting him.
It was targeting the evacuation routes.
"NO."
Space shattered violently around Arin as he moved instantly.
A massive beam of corrupted energy erupted from the Entity toward the forest behind him.
Toward the fleeing villagers.
Toward children. Families. Innocent people trying to escape.
And before the attack could land—
Arin appeared directly in front of it.
Golden light exploded across the battlefield.
The corrupted blast collided directly against Vijaya.
The impact alone shattered the plains.
The forest behind him shook violently while massive shockwaves tore through the sky itself.
But Arin didn't move.
Didn't fall.
He held the attack back completely.
The villagers stared toward the battlefield in absolute silence afterward.
Because now they understood fully.
He truly was standing between them and the end of everything.
The Entity's voice echoed again afterward, colder this time.
"You protect them still."
Arin slowly raised Vijaya again while golden flames consumed the battlefield around him.
"They're my people."
And then—
the real war began.