The sun had barely risen when the Empire's might assembled at the border. Reyon stood quietly beside Edward and Evelyn, his eyes locked ahead on the distant figures gathering in the valley below. With them marched an army composed of elite 7th-circle mages, and behind them, stretching far and wide, were thousands upon thousands of 6th- and 5th-circle warriors. Their mana surged like a tidal wave across the field, shaking the very sky above.
The Phoenix Standard fluttered with pride as the emperor himself stood at the forefront—Edward Phoenix, now a 9th-circle mage, the strongest man alive.
The air tensed.
Across the field, the Brook Kingdom's forces formed their lines. But compared to the overwhelming presence of the Empire, they looked like candlelight facing a storm.
"They're… too many…"
"I heard Edward Phoenix is here. Ninth-circle…"
"T-This is suicide…"
Whispers of dread rippled through the ranks of Brook soldiers. Fear stained their faces. Some trembled. Others struggled to stand still. None dared meet the emperor's gaze.
Yet among the Brook Kingdom, one person did not flinch.
Alice.
She had known this would happen. She had felt the disparity. There was no comparison between her side and the Empire. The moment both sides met, she sensed it—if they fought, her army would be annihilated within fifteen minutes.
Still, she stood tall.
Arthur's command echoed in her memory.
"Distract them. Stall for time."
But how? She was no fool. No strategy, no formation could hold against such might. Then a thought sparked in her mind—the best possible option under such hopeless odds.
A duel.
A representative battle.
One-on-one.
The victors would decide the outcome of the war.
Alice called for a messenger.
The envoy galloped forward with white flags held high. Moments later, he stood before Edward Phoenix, declaring Alice's proposal for a duel. Edward didn't need to think twice.
He accepted.
From the Brook Kingdom, Alice stepped forward.
And from the Empire's side, Reyon walked ahead.
As the two slowly approached the center of the battlefield, time itself seemed to pause. Mana thickened around them like mist. Soldiers on both sides watched with held breath.
Then Alice spoke.
Her voice quivered with rage, eyes burning with betrayal.
"You didn't meet me… when I tried to," she said, each word cutting like glass. "You even got engaged to Julie… and now you stand here, ready to fight me?"
She clenched her fists, her mana flaring wildly.
"I was wrong to love you."
Reyon's breath caught.
He looked into her eyes—those same eyes that once softened every time they met his. Now, they burned with heartbreak.
"I—" he began softly. "This… this is a misunderstanding. I was hurt. I just recently woke up… and only now I've learned you went to the Brook Kingdom."
He stepped forward, hands gently raised.
"Please… let's end our little fight here. If we don't… many will die."
Alice shook her head.
"No," she said coldly. "I also don't want unnecessary blood spilled. That's why I suggested this duel."
She narrowed her eyes.
"If I can't have you, then no one will."
Her mana surged.
"Today… either you die, or I do."
She thrust her hand forward, screaming, "Absolute Zero!"
The sky itself changed.
Dark clouds surged in like ink over water. In a heartbeat, the battlefield froze. A colossal blast of ice, pure and white, erupted from Alice's palm. Her spell had reached its peak—she was now an 8th-circle mage. This spell held the same terrifying cold as the infamous Cold Sword himself.
But to Reyon…
This was child's play.
He didn't flinch. He didn't even raise an arm.
Instead, he casted ∞—Infinity.
A swirling ball of void appeared before him, blacker than night, deeper than the abyss.
The Absolute Zero attack slammed into it… and vanished.
Absorbed completely.
Reyon's eyes gleamed with resolve. Without hesitation, he stacked σ—sigma—over twenty times, each fold amplifying the captured energy.
The air snapped.
Mana cracked.
And from the void, a counterattack burst forth—now enhanced by 30%, infused with raw voidal force.
He launched it back at Alice.
Alice's eyes widened. Her heart dropped.
"H-He countered it… that fast?" she mumbled to herself in disbelief.
She panicked.
Another Absolute Zero, casted hastily.
But it wasn't enough.
Her spell collided with Reyon's amplified one—and shattered.
BOOOOOM!
A blizzard exploded outward, a storm of shattered mana and ice roaring through the valley, spreading for dozens of miles. Soldiers from both sides screamed and dropped to the ground, shielding their heads.
The storm raged for minutes.
When it finally settled…
Silence.
Snow and frost blanketed the battlefield.
And there—lying amidst the ruined ground—was Alice.
Unconscious.
Two of her limbs severed by the devastating force of the enhanced spell.
Reyon's boots crunched softly over the frozen ground. He knelt beside her, his hand gently brushing snow from her face. Her expression, even unconscious, was peaceful now.
He looked away.
"This wasn't supposed to happen," he whispered to himself.
Without a second thought, Reyon lifted her into his arms and vanished—teleporting her directly to the healer's tents behind the Empire's lines.
He turned to the shocked medics.
"Save her," he ordered.
They obeyed without question.
Meanwhile…
The Brook Kingdom's army was in shambles.
90% annihilated by the storm. The survivors—half dead, disoriented—no longer held their weapons. They stared in terror at the destruction their own general had brought down upon them.
And yet…
Even on the Empire's side, there had been risks. The storm could have injured many. But Edward, standing firm, had raised a colossal light barrier just in time, shielding his forces from harm.
His cape flared in the wind, eyes scanning the horizon.
It should have been over.
But suddenly…
A piercing screech tore through the air.
A crystal beam of light—pure, focused, and fast—shot from beyond the mountains.
CRACK!
It shattered Edward's barrier like glass.
"W-What?!" Edward's eyes widened.
The ray pierced through, slamming into the Empire's ranks.
Hundreds of soldiers were vaporized instantly—their bodies turned to ash before they could even scream.
Reyon turned, eyes narrowing.
"What… was that…?"
Edward's jaw clenched. He looked toward the direction the ray had come from.
And there—
Soaring above the distant peaks—
Was a crystal dragon.
Its translucent wings spread wide, gleaming like razors under the sun.
The same one Reyon had warned about.