The dawn of the third day bathed the plains of Choyou in a crimson light.
The countless banners of Qin and Wei rose once more as the thunder of war drums echoed across the battlefield. What had begun as a clash for territory had now become a battle that would determine the fate of the entire campaign.
Within the Hi Shin Unit's mobile headquarters, Shin, Kyou Kai, and Karyo Ten gathered around the battlefield map one last time before the horns sounded.
Karyo Ten pointed toward the battlefield.
"Earl Shi is still holding the center. If we attack the same way as yesterday, we'll only repeat the same outcome."
Silence followed.
Then Shin spoke.
"...Something felt strange."
Both women looked toward him.
"When I crossed blades with Earl Shi yesterday... it didn't feel like he was fighting to win."
His expression became unusually serious.
"It felt like I was fighting... a dying ember."
"...A man who wasn't trying to defeat me."
"He was trying to kill himself."
Karyo Ten narrowed her eyes.
"...Now that you mention it..."
She looked over the reports from the previous day.
"The strategy Wei used yesterday didn't actually require Earl Shi himself to fight on the frontlines."
"He could've remained behind and still fulfilled his role."
She slowly closed the scroll.
"...Yet he personally threw himself into the bloodiest fighting."
"It was almost as though..."
"...he was trying to drown something inside himself."
Kyou Kai silently listened before speaking.
"That is exactly why..."
"I will be the bait."
Both Shin and Karyo Ten turned toward her.
"I'll take the center."
"The moment Earl Shi abandons everything to rush toward me..."
"...that will be your moment."
She looked directly at Shin.
"You will fight him."
"You alone."
Shin understood immediately.
No interference.
No assistance.
No rescue.
Just one duel.
Karyo Ten smiled.
"So we're using an open scheme."
Instead of hiding their intentions, they would openly allow Kyou Kai to advance through the center.
If Earl Shi truly desired only one thing...
He would come.
Kyou Kai continued.
"While Shin fights Earl Shi..."
"I won't interfere."
"My unit will continue pushing forward."
She pointed toward the Wei command position.
"I'll break through and head straight for Wei Headquarters."
Karyo Ten nodded.
"And I'll command the rest of the Hi Shin Unit to wipe out the remaining Wei forces."
"Our objective isn't just defeating Earl Shi."
"It's collapsing the entire battlefield."
The war horns sounded.
The Third Day had begun.
Exactly as predicted...
The Hi Shin Unit surged straight through the center under Kyou Kai's command.
Behind her lay hidden within the Kyou kai unit,
Shin is waiting for the right time to strike.
The elegant dance of her sword carved an unbroken path through the Wei soldiers as her army relentlessly advanced toward the enemy headquarters.
Watching from afar...
Earl Shi moved.
Without hesitation...
Without command...
Without concern for the battlefield around him...
He charged directly toward Kyou Kai.
Karyo Ten smiled from atop her horse.
"It worked..."
"The open scheme."
Before Earl Shi could reach Kyou Kai...
One rider galloped forward.
"OI!!"
Shin leaped from his horse.
The glaive of General Ou Ki crashed against Earl Shi's spear.
CLANG!!
The impact shook the battlefield.
The two warriors stared at one another.
Neither spoke.
Neither smiled.
Neither looked away.
Then...
Without another word...
They charged.
Elsewhere...
Kyou Kai never looked back.
"The duel has begun."
She raised her sword.
"Forward!"
The Kyou Kai Unit continued its advance while a portion remains to duel with Earl Shi personal guards.
Kyou Kai unit objective was no longer Earl Shi.
They were meant to draw him out only.
It was Wei Headquarters.
Karyo Ten quickly shifted her attention elsewhere.
"Signal the left wing!"
"The remaining Wei armies are beginning to collapse!"
"Now's our chance!"
The Hi Shin Unit divided its strength perfectly.
One force continued escorting Kyou Kai toward Wei Headquarters.
Another crushed the remaining Wei resistance under Karyo Ten's command and marksmanship.
The battlefield itself began tilting toward Qin.
But on that day the Hi Shin unit was not the only force that was breaking through.
Without a Fire Dragon blocking their advance...
Rokuomi's army erupted across the left battlefield.
"There's no one left to stop us!"
His Glaive tore through the enemy ranks.
On another front...
The Gyoku Hou Unit, having recovered after Ouhon's injuries from the previous days, also resumed its advance with renewed strength.
Under Ouhon's leadership, the elite cavalry shattered Wei formations one after another.
"The enemy center is collapsing!"
"Advance!"
Soon...
Three Qin armies.
The Hi Shin Unit.
The Rokuomi Army.
The Gyoku Hou Unit.
…all surged toward Wei Headquarters from different directions.
At the Hi Shin Battlefield, on the center of the battlefield...
Only two men remained.
The world around them faded beneath the deafening roar of steel.
Shin swung the glaive with all his might.
Earl Shi answered with impossible precision.
Every clash sent shockwaves across the battlefield.
CLANG!!
CLANG!!
CLAAAAANG!!
Neither man gave ground.
Shin's breathing grew heavier.
Yet his eyes never wavered.
Finally, he shouted over the ringing steel.
"I finally understand you!"
Another violent clash.
"You aren't fighting because you want victory!"
"You've already given up on living!"
Earl Shi remained silent.
Only his spear answered.
Shin roared.
"I fight for the people waiting for me back home!"
Another strike.
"I fight for my family!"
Another.
"I fight for my sons!"
Another.
"I fight for my kingdom!"
His eyes burned with unwavering conviction.
"In a clash of wills..."
"You will fall, Earl Shi!"
For the first time...
A faint emotion flickered within Earl Shi's empty eyes.
Not anger.
Not hatred.
Only acceptance.
He abandoned every trace of defense.
His spear became nothing but a killing thrust.
One final exchange.
One final gamble.
Shin's instincts awakened.
There.
A single opening.
Because Earl Shi had forsaken defense entirely...
His chest lay exposed.
Shin stepped inside the spear's reach.
"ORAAAAAAAAH!!"
The glaive descended like a falling mountain.
SLAAASH!!
The blade cleaved through Earl Shi.
Silence.
The legendary Fire Dragon slowly lowered his spear.
For a brief moment...
His empty eyes looked toward the sky.
Then...
He smiled.
A small...
Peaceful...
Almost relieved smile.
His body collapsed to the earth.
Earl Shi...
One of Wei's Seven Fire Dragons...
Had fallen.
Far from Shin's battlefield...
Another war raged with equal intensity.
Banners bearing the character Hyou surged against an overwhelming Wei force.
At their forefront stood Duke Hyou Ren, his sword drenched in blood as he carved through enemy ranks with terrifying momentum.
The true battle...
Had only just begun.