I stood at the edge of a half-broken wall that led to the two rooms below, overlooking them as their words cut through the air like drawn steel.
But my vision was gone, utterly blank. Yet strangely, I could see. Not with my eyes, but with something deeper. Every sound, every tremor, every flicker of light unfolded clearly in my mind. Even the colors of their aura, their energy burned vividly in that inner sight.
A question gnawed at the edges of my thoughts. Who are these two, wielding such power that the air itself bends around them?
But a sharper thought followed. And how did I end up back down there… and why am I still naked?
I exhaled sharply. "What kind of idiots start a fight in my own kingdom?" I muttered, my tone flat, almost bored. My unseen gaze drifted toward the one whose fury crackled most—Aya.
Before I could intervene, her roar shattered the stillness. Aya lunged forward, her blade arcing in a blaze of violet light. The strike met Light's energy mid-swing, the clash ringing like a bell made of thunder. Sparks—no, shards of aura burst in the air, scattering like molten glass.
She swung again, faster this time. The rhythm of her strikes blurred into a storm of motion, each clash carving deep lines into the earth and slicing down the grass around them.
The force of their duel lifted them higher—spinning, clashing, twisting through the air like two streaks of light locked in orbit. Aya flipped midair, her body twisting in a perfect backflip as her heel drove toward Light's head.
Light crossed his arms above his head just in time, the impact cracking the air, sending ripples outward. Aya spun again, swinging her blade left, then followed with a right punch, swift and clean. Light caught her fist in his palm, their auras colliding in a shock of green and purple flame.
The slice of the blade rang through the forest like a scream, the air trembling, their energy flaring wild and uncontained.
Then Light's fist shot forward, trailing a surge of glowing pressure. Aya met it with the flat of her sword, slapping the air itself.
The result was instant, a concussive blast that warped the space between them.
Light was hurled backward, crashing through the grass and splintering into a tree far beyond. The trunk exploded into fragments, the impact shaking the ruins beneath my feet.
Aya didn't hesitate. She drifted forward, her speed bending the tall grass in a rushing wave behind her.
Her blade came down hard but it struck only earth. Light had already moved. The next swing sliced clean through a tree trunk, the wood groaning before splitting apart.
She spun, slashing again, but this time Light was already in motion. His kick arced through the air and landed squarely against her jaw, snapping her head to the side. Before she could recover, a strike buried itself in her gut—followed by another, a sharp uppercut to her chin.
The blows sent her tumbling back into the grass, dirt scattering with every roll.
Aya gave a faint, breathless laugh, pushing herself up with one trembling arm. "Hmph… maybe you were right," she murmured, a half-smile breaking through the blood on her lip. "I'm no opponent for you."
Light didn't answer. His expression remained unreadable as he opened his palm. Light converged within it, condensing into the shape of a slender, gleaming blade. The air stirred, brushing his red hair across his face.
Aya rose again, steadying her footing. Then, without a word, she lunged.
Light met her mid-charge, the impact of their blades ringing through the night—sharp, metallic, and alive. Sparks scattered as their weapons locked, each strike blocked with effortless precision. Their movements mirrored one another—smooth, fluid, too fast for mortal eyes to follow.
From where I stood atop the broken wall, I could sense every shift of their aura, every vibration their weapons carved into the air.
Impressive, I thought, stepping along the cracked stone for a better view. At this point, it almost feels like a show… performed just for me.
They broke apart simultaneously, sliding back across the grass. Aya's breathing came ragged now, her shoulders rising and falling.
"Why?" she demanded, voice trembling between anger and fatigue. "Why keep protecting him, Light? Is it because when he dies, you die too?"
Light's blade dimmed slightly, the glow pulsing with each word he spoke. "Do not be deceived, Lady Aya. My existence is but a reflection, a light that fades only when its source is gone. But…" his voice rose, eyes hardening, the calm cracking just slightly under the weight of exhaustion. "…no one can kill my master. You know him only as a twenty-eight-year-old man, but he has lived far longer than your mind can comprehend. No one has ever succeeded in killing him..."
A faint wind swept between them, carrying dust and fragments of broken aura.
"...not even time itself."
"What are you talking about?" Aya snapped, her voice trembling between confusion and disbelief. "What do you mean he has lived longer than my mind can comprehend?"
Light didn't answer right away. His glowing eyes dimmed slightly, his expression unreadable. "Just go back home, Lady Aya, I promise I won't let Master Isolde harm anyone, nor will he ever return to the Young Sky Kingdom."
Aya tilted her head back and laughed—dry, humorless. "And you expect me to believe that?" she scoffed. "The young lord was branded a threat to all humanity the moment he was born. He should have been eliminated long ago. That was your duty, Light, one entrusted to you. And you failed your kingdom."
Her words dripped with venom, each one slicing through the space between them.
Light's brow furrowed. Her voice grated at his calm like a blade on glass. No matter how much he explained, she would never listen.
"Lady Aya," he said, his tone shifting, lower, colder. "You seem to forget something. I serve the Master, and only him. I have never sworn loyalty to your kingdom or any other." His aura flickered, the glow around him intensifying. "And if Master were to order me to kill you…" he lifted his gaze, meeting hers with a chilling calm, "…I would do it gladly. Without a second thought."
Aya's lips parted into a faint smile, her fingers tightening around the hilt of her blade. "You are indeed one of his kind, But if death is what awaits me..." she raised her sword, its purple aura blazing to life, "so be it."
They lunged, the air cracking as their movements blurred, two streaks of light colliding midair.
But as Light advanced, something shifted. A sound, a sharp gasp, a sudden silence, then the faint whistle of steel cutting through the night.
Aya's blade pierced through Light's chest, the point emerging from his back in a spray of glowing embers.
For a moment, time stopped. Light's eyes widened as he staggered, blood spilling from his lips in quick, uneven breaths.
Aya grinned, watching him fall to one knee, her face illuminated by the faint shimmer of his fading light.
He coughed once, twice, each breath shallow, and fragile.
Something's not right here, I thought, my expression tightening.
A quiet dread crept over me as I focused my hearing, tuning into the sound of the grass, the faint hum of energy, the rhythm of their hearts. Something unseen was moving beneath it all.
No… this isn't over.
"You're just like every other opponent, Light," Aya sneered. "You fell for an obvious trick."
She strode toward him, her boots crushing the grass underfoot. Reaching down, she grabbed his chin, forcing his gaze up to hers. "Now that you're finished, let's end that master of yours too. I'll prove I won't fail where others did." Her grin turned cruel. "You're really worthless, you know that, Light? You betrayed everyone who trusted you… even your king."
But before she could say another word, Light's voice echoed behind her, calm, cold.
"And you," he said, "are so predictable, Lady Aya."
Aya froze. Then slowly, she turned.
The body she'd stabbed shimmered, then dissolved into particles of pale light. The real Light stood behind her, unscathed, his expression unreadable.
"You fell for an obvious trick," he said softly. "Did you forget that the Kaski don't bleed? Because there's no blood in our veins to begin with."
Before he could move again, a sharp violet glow flared behind him.
A hand wreathed in burning purple energy pierced clean through his chest.
Light gasped, eyes widening as the world slowed, the glow of his own body flickering violently. Behind him stood a tall figure clad in full silver armor, its entire form pulsing with violet fire. Through the slits of its helmet, two glowing eyes burned, a being made entirely of energy, not flesh.
Light stared down at the hand impaled through him as his body began to crumble, fragments peeling away and drifting upward like burning paper caught in the wind.
Still facing forward, Aya tilted her head slightly, glancing over her shoulder, her tone was sharp and composed.
"Do not forget, Light, I am the master of the Four Luminous Yoda." Her eyes narrowed, voice sharpening into command. "And the one behind you... is Yoda Ifrielle, Master of Flames. He burns everything… even Kaski."
The hand in Light's chest ignited, the violet flames flaring outward in a blinding wave, the air shimmering.
Light's body convulsed as fire tore through him, his form devoured by the blaze. He tried to move, tried to summon a counter, but his limbs refused to obey.
The flames roared louder, consuming the glow that once defined him, until nothing remained but the faint whisper of ash dissolving into the night.
"Hey, Ms. Aegis Commander there."
I lifted one hand lazily, head turned slightly aside. "You've really done some damage to my property. I was wondering if you could take this fight somewhere else?"
Aya's head snapped toward me. Her eyes widened when she saw a man standing at a distance completely naked. A sudden blush climbed her cheeks.
Huh? Who is that? And why… why doesn't he have any clothes on?
For a brief moment she couldn't even place me.
"But before you leave," I added, voice light but edged, "do tell me who you are and why you chose my property as your battleground?"
There were no crowds, no cheers, no spectators. Just the wind. The silence made it clear, this wasn't some staged duel. This was real.
Aya glanced around at the ruins I'd called my property. Is this man serious? she thought. Standing there like that completely bare and asking about this forsaken place as if he owns it.
Before she could turn back toward me, I was already standing in front of her.
My hand wrapped around her throat, my thumb pressed just enough to sting, the nail digging lightly against her skin.
"I won't ask again," I said, voice low, almost a whisper. "Who are you, and what are you doing here? Because when I woke up this morning, I was certain I was the only one here. So tell me where did you come from, Ms. Aegis Commander?"
Strands of my long black hair slid across my face, revealing only pieces of it just enough for her to see the faint curve of a cold smile.
Aya's breath caught in her throat, her hands gripping mine, trembling. As her eyes adjusted, and recognition flickered.
"Young Lord… Isolde?" Her voice quivered. "You're… you're really alive?"
Her words came out soft, barely audible, as if even saying them might break the illusion. "I came here in a rush, thinking my instincts were playing tricks on me, but I was right."
For someone sent to kill me, her tone almost sounded relieved.
I tilted my head slightly, amused. She tried to speak again, forcing a laugh through her disbelief.
"Don't act like you don't remember me! We both haven't changed that much!"
Behind us, her Yoda, Ifrielle stood motionless, its burning aura casting violet light that danced across the broken walls and grass. The ground shimmered beneath its heat, the world holding its breath between us.
When Aya faltered, words crumbling into something raw and indecipherable, my patience snapped. Her hesitation tasted like weakness, and I no longer wanted to hear excuses.
I pressed my thumb hard into the hollow of her throat. She gasped, eyes wide, hands clawing at my hand as the sound of her struggle choked into a ragged silence. I felt the pulse under my thumb, then the slow stutter of it fading; when I was certain she'd slipped into unconsciousness, I let go.
I took her blade without ceremony. With steady, mechanical motions I drove it into her a handful of times enough to ensure she would not rise again then stepped back and turned away.
As I walked past her Yoda, it stood there like a sentinel, burning violet light licking the air. I didn't spare it a look. "Get off my property," I said, voice flat. "Or I'll make you."
The Yoda didn't fight. It dissolved into thin air as if unmade by a whisper, leaving only the residual heat of its flames behind.
I kept walking back to my dark chamber, to the cold stone and the dim bulb, leaving the ruined battleground and the quiet heap of a fallen commander behind me.