"Wait,"the voice said.
Icariel halted mid-stride. "What's the deal?" he replied.
The voice spoke in his mind—its tone deep and absolute—and said something that shocked Icariel.
"What?!" Icariel suddenly screamed, eyes wide.
Elif and Elena stopped, stunned. "Icariel?" Elena asked, confused and concerned.
He turned to them, deadly serious. "Listen to me. Now. It's really important."
——
Meanwhile, at the center of the capital in the middle of the square, dozens of Yetis had emerged from the portal. Their massive bodies stomped across the stone and dirt. The portal behind them—its center revealing only a land of endless white snow—finally vanished.
Floon's eyes blazed with fierce determination. "Soldiers! Target their legs—cripple their mobility! And aim for the sides of their necks—that's their only weak spot. A clean strike there, and they fall. Remember, these beasts have no magic—only brutal, raw strength. Don't let them get a grip on you. One grasp, and it's over."
A thunderous "Yes, Sir!" echoed from the ranks, filled with both fear and resolve.
Princess Virethiel scanned the battlefield from her vantage point, her green eyes sharp and troubled.
"It's deteriorated so quickly… damn it. Civilians are still trapped in their homes because of my lockdown orders. If one of those Yetis goes on a rampage through the residential districts, it'll be a massacre. We're right in the heart of the capital, and even though we have some room to fight, the houses are dangerously close."
She clenched her jaw, overwhelmed by the spiraling chaos.
——
Not far from the castle—at the capital's east flank—Royal Guard Eldrin was locked in a brutal duel with Grinis, the red-and-yellow-eyed invader.
His golden armor was now torn, scorched, and dented. Blood trickled from numerous cuts across his arms and face.
Across from him stood the strange girl. Her red-and-yellow hair fluttered behind her like wildfire.
She smiled, wicked and calm. "You're not even worth the effort," she said. "I haven't even used my full power yet."
"Damn it," Eldrin spat, his voice ragged. "I only need one good thrust with my spear… but I can't even land a clean hit. This damn superhuman… I already said that she's the worst possible match for me."
He glanced toward the center of the capital. The distant rumble of battle echoed.
"It's bad there too," he thought. "But I saw the army heading in that direction. They'll handle it. I need to focus…"
"HOW do I deal with her?"
Grinis moved, her dagger flickering.
FSHHH!
She launched a furious barrage of swings. Eldrin blocked, barely—his body screaming from exhaustion as the blade left fresh shallow cuts across his face.
He staggered back and gripped his spear with both hands.
"NOW!"
He roared and lunged, green energy flooding the weapon.
FOOM! The spear thrust forward like a thunderbolt.
Grinis didn't even blink. "Same pattern again? How many times will you try that?" she scoffed.
The tip of the spear barely grazed her side armor.
But Eldrin wasn't done. He used the forward momentum to flip—a front flip mid-air—ripping the spear back with a spin.
Even Grinis was caught off-guard. "What—?"
Mid-spin, Eldrin kicked off the ground and hurled his spear again, not to stab—but to crush her skull with its sheer rotational force.
Grinis's eyes widened. She stomped the ground hard, blasting herself backward just in time. The spear missed—only slicing off a few strands of her hair.
"Whoa… that was actually good," she admitted with a grin. "But that's all, huh? I'm bored. Time to end this."
Eldrin's breath came heavy and ragged. "She's too fast. I already know that. Everyone else is locked in their battles, holding their ground… and here I am—getting overwhelmed."
"Always the one lagging behind… just like when I couldn't save Teren. Am I still that boy, Princess? Am I still unworthy?"
"If only I'd mastered something like Warleader Aelar's Vital Surge, or learned some mana art like Tessara… maybe then… Damn it."
Grinis advanced again. Eldrin barely moved in time—her dagger carved a deep line across his cheek. Blood poured out.
Grinis smiled. "What's the matter? Daydreaming now?" she teased. "Makes this even easier."
"Damn it… what am I even doing…"Eldrin thought, frustration gnawing at him.
"If I were truly this weak… if I shattered every time my opponent was stronger… then my comrades would never have trusted me."
"The princess herself wouldn't have named me Royal Captain."
"I don't have any special skill. I don't possess Vital Surge like our Warleader. I'm not capable of mastering the Arts Form like Tessara. I don't have combat spells. I don't have some gifts like Lonor. I was just an elf—blessed like any other with an incredible reserve of mana, but unable to wield it to learn battle skills or spells. That's the truth."
"But—"
"I have a resilient body. Quick reflexes. And a spear technique sharpened through relentless training, hardened by pain, and tested in blood."
"Here I am, saying foolish things like if I learned, I could change, but no—I couldn't learn because that was the limit of my talent. But that doesn't mean anything. Because—"
"AHHHHH!" Eldrin screamed, a primal roar that ignited his spirit with fury and defiance.
"Even 'enhanced energy'—something I devised myself—is just me channeling internal mana into my spear," Eldrin thought, "only enough to make it a bit sturdier. It's nothing compared to a Swordmaster's weapon, even when they're not using Aura."
"But this… this is all I have. And this is what I need. And I will use it to end this battle with my victory—the way it always has been."
He gritted his teeth and raised his spear. "Come, you rainbow freak," he taunted, mocking Grinis with a smirk.
They clashed again.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Metal screamed against metal.
Grinis, using swift and precise footwork, suddenly ducked low—her dagger arcing toward Eldrin's right side, aimed straight at his neck.
"This is the end," she whispered.
Clang!
Eldrin twisted, pulling his spear across just in time. He dodged, pivoted, and drove a heavy kick into her stomach, sending her flying backward. "I will take you down," he said, breath ragged. "No matter what."
The battle continued.
Eldrin was still reeling, yet he refused to surrender. He darted into nearby houses, using them as temporary shields to catch his breath and lure her into a false sense of security.
And Grinis was growing irritated. No matter how many attacks she launched, how precise her blows were, she couldn't land a fatal hit.
"He dodges every deadly blow without fail," she thought. "Like an ancient tree, weathered but unyielding—no storm, no matter how fierce, can bring it down."
"What is this damn elf? Is he truly an elf… or some wild beast?" Her frustration twisted inside her like venom.
"I was supposed to use the crystal only if we were completely losing... when death was certain. So for now, it's off the table." She hesitated. "But is it truly my only hope?" A pause. Then, quietly: "No. Not yet. I still have two choices."
BAM!
They clashed again. And again. And again.
Despite Grinis's constant attempts to rip Eldrin's head off or land a killing blow, he evaded her every time. His body was a canvas of wounds, but he still moved—still fought—his adrenaline carrying him forward like fire in his veins.
"Come on, come on!" Eldrin called, grinning. "What's going on, rainbow? Your colors aren't landing well on this green land—maybe this tree here is blocking them!"
He pointed mockingly at his neck—the spot she kept missing. "Yeah, blocking them," he teased.
"You bastard," Grinis hissed. "You leave me no other choice now."
Her voice dropped, sharp and unwavering. "And since enough time has passed, I suppose…" She curled her lips into a wicked smile. "Now's the time."
"What?" Eldrin muttered, eyes narrowing.
"Skill: Void Swap."
With a sudden Foom!, a massive circle erupted beneath their feet—surrounding almost the entire place—radiant yellow, etched with strange, arcane markings and unfamiliar lines that seemed to pulse with energy.
"What is this?" Eldrin thought, stumbling backward as the light grew brighter, casting eerie shadows around him.
Grinis laughed. "A teleportation skill. Everything in this 80-meter circle's range will be transported—to wherever I'm connected to." She leaned forward, grinning madly. "And guess who I'm connected to? Some strong allies from our Godless Abyss."
She raised her arms. "If I can't kill you here—because I can't find an opening—they'll make one for me. I can't afford to consume lots of mana activating my other skills; this one consumes the least. It's really effective, but it does require a bit of time."
She laughed—sharp and unhinged.
"AHAHAHAHA!"
"Damn it!"Eldrin's thoughts burned. "I have to get out of the circle—fast!"
Foom!
He dashed toward the edge of the glowing circle.
But Grinis lunged, closing the distance instantly. "Oh? Giving me that opening for free?" she taunted.
Clang!
Eldrin twisted, parried her dagger just in time.
"It's meaningless if you run. Show me your back, and you die."
"Your death is delayed, not avoided—AHAHAHA!"
"You gave me so much irritation, so many insults—now I'll return the favor tenfold!"
Eldrin gritted his teeth. "I can't run. She's not lying—there's no point in using a skill like this unless she's serious. But where will this end? What kind of place will we be sent to? What kind of monsters await?"
"Damn it. So, this is the end, huh? And here I thought I could just wear her down — keep dodging, keep running — until my chance finally came." He spat the words out, bitterness sharp in every syllable.
"If this truly is the end... maybe I should feel relief," he thought bitterly. "She said she could reach the people she's connected to. If she can't come back here..." then—
It hit him like a crushing blow. "Fuck. Her comrades are still here—the very ones invading this place. That means she'll return. After dealing with me."
"All this time fighting... all my efforts—wasted. Still, I bought some time. Kept her from the Tree of Life fragment longer than she expected. But what good is that now? I should've stopped her. I should've defeated her. I failed the tribe and the Princess."
He exhaled sharply, his breath coming in ragged, tortured gasps. His lungs burned fiercely, heart pounding like a war drum hammered by a remorseful spirit.
"Is this really how I meet my end?"
"Is this how your story ends, Ironshield Eldrin?"
"It was... regrettable."
Then—suddenly—he saw something.
Behind Grinis, descending from the sky.
Just barely visible.
Something was coming.
"Huh?" he muttered.
Grinis was still laughing, her voice echoing. "The time has come! Let's take a short trip before your death!"
He saw it before he heard it.
A flicker of light—then a roar of heat. Fire ripped across the battlefield, faster than thought.
Grinis's laugh caught in her throat—
FOOOM!
A spear of flame hit her. It struck Grinis in the back.
Her armor held—the spear didn't pierce—but flames erupted, licking across her coat and shoulders, setting her partially ablaze.
The armor was sturdy… but fire did what fire does best.
It burned.
"AHHHHHH!"
Grinis screamed in pain, twisting as the flames crawled across her body. Her armor hadn't broken—but the fire didn't need to pierce.
"Who the hell did this?!" she roared, staggering backward. The massive teleportation circle still pulsed beneath her, not disrupted in the slightest.
"What was that…?" he thought, his chest heaving. "Who launched that spell…?"
He had already accepted his death.
He'd been staring into the abyss.
And then—that abyss caught fire.
The reaper that had come for him—was suddenly set ablaze.
Grinis continued screaming, clawing at the flames.
Eldrin didn't waste the moment. His vision—sharp, enhanced, and honed by countless battles—scanned the surroundings, sweeping past the broken walls and cracked stones of the nearby houses.
He didn't just search with eyes—he hunted for mana, feeling for the pulse of life beyond the heat.
Through the distorted waves of heat, flame, and chaos—his gaze caught it. Not too far at the edge of the battlefield, tucked behind a cluster of stone elven homes… three figures stood, just barely visible.
One of them—a boy—his entire body surging with mana from head to toe. It shimmered around him unnaturally, controlled, dense, and terrifying. And he had only met such a living being just once.
His hands were raised.
From his body position, it looked like he was ready to throw another spear like that.
Eldrin's heart skipped.
"…Aelar's disciple?" he whispered.