The battlefield should have felt relieved.
Instead, it felt small.
Because when Ethan stood, reborn in braided gold and silver, the world didn't just stabilize.
It knelt.
The dimensional space stilled the way prey freezes when the apex returns to the territory. Even Leon's Chaos Avatar paused as if some older instinct whispered, predator above predator.
Ethan didn't flare his aura. He didn't emit killing intent. His presence simply existed… and the fabric of reality adjusted itself to accommodate him, as if the universe were sliding furniture out of the way for its returning landlord.
A faint ringing sound stirred behind him.
Not a chime.
Not a bell.
Something deeper.
The sound of a throne remembering its king.
