------
Fwooosh... Crackleee...
Kaija snapped his lightning whip forward—it narrowly missed grazing Dracula's shoulder.
"How many times do I have to say this?" Dracula growled, slashing his sword horizontally.
A wave of energy surged from the arc of Dracula's blade, illuminating the encroaching twilight as it hurtled toward Kaija.
Thwakk!
Kaija struck the incoming energy with his whip, shattering it into fragments that scattered through the air.
"That little trick won't work on me," he sneered. "Face me like the warrior you pretend to be!"
With a roar, Kaija cracked his whip again, this time latching it onto Dracula's upper torso. With a sharp tug, he yanked Dracula toward him.
"Grahhh!"
Dracula snarled, channeling mana into his arms to tear free from the whip. With a swift motion, he used his sword to fling the whip's tip away.
Then, focusing mana into his foot, he launched himself at high speed toward Kaija—who barely had time to react.
CLANG!
The sound of metal echoed as Dracula landed behind Kaija, inspecting his sword's dulled edge.
"Your blade can't cut me," Kaija said smugly, wings spreading wide. "This body, these scales—they're blessings from the goddess herself."
Dracula's eyes narrowed. "Are you sure about that?"
The corner of his mouth twitched with amusement. "I've never cut a chicken with my sword before... but I guess there's a first time for everything."
Blue mana surged into the edges of Dracula's blade as he charged again.
"Preposterous!" Kaija shouted, panic rising in his voice. Never before had a mortal met his power without fear.
Kaija scrambled backward, lashing out with his whip in a vertical strike. But Dracula batted it aside with such force that Kaija lost his grip entirely.
"Stop! I surrender!" Kaija cried out, stumbling back as his main weapon clattered away.
Swing... Crackle...
"ARGHHH!"
Kaija let out a guttural scream as Dracula's sword sliced cleanly through his left wing at the joint.
"You should've led with that," Dracula said coldly, lowering his sword.
"I'm just doing my duty as a guardian," Kaija muttered, applying lightning-charged mana to his wound to stop the bleeding—silver blood dripped onto the ground.
"And I'm doing mine—to protect the helpless," Dracula replied, his voice low and firm. "I won't forgive those who harm the innocent."
"That's been our task since ancient times," came a calm voice.
Ouranus descended between the two, levitating gently in the air.
Dracula opened his mouth to respond but paused when a voice called out from below.
"SENIOR!"
It was Detta.
Dracula descended immediately, eyes scanning her for injuries.
But she was perfectly fine—not a scratch on her.
"You were hurt in the impact!" Dracula exclaimed.
"Impact? I... umm..." Detta hesitated. "I was busy doing... human things."
Dracula frowned. "Then who was—?"
"Who is 'who'?" Detta asked, her eyes wide with confusion.
A realization struck Dracula. He turned sharply, preparing to launch back into the sky.
But before he could move—
RUMBLEEE... RUMBLEEE...
A brilliant flash of lightning tore across the sky, thunder following with a deafening roar. The protective barrier around the Celestial Sanctum began to fracture and collapse.
Two figures emerged from the breach—one humanoid, the other a glowing, orb-like shape—fleeing rapidly.
"STOP THEM!" Kaija and Ouranus shouted in unison.
Dracula sprang upward—but it was too late. The figures were already too far.
ZAPPPP...
A bolt of yellow lightning shot out from the island and pursued them, surging with raw power.
Just as it was about to strike, the humanoid figure grabbed the orb and shoved it backward toward the incoming lightning.
"AGGGH... CURSE YOU, VALERINA!"
The orb screamed as it exploded into golden dust and a smaller white sphere.
Kaija's whip snapped forward, capturing the white orb before it could escape. The humanoid figure used the confusion to vanish into the shadows.
Dracula landed near Ouranus.
"What did they steal?" he asked grimly.
Ouranus's face was heavy with concern. "The fragmented heart of the Goddess," he said. "It was one of the seals trapping the Lord of the Dark—what fuels the boundary between the Abyss and Heaven."
---
Meanwhile, in the far northern hemisphere—where the ice never melts and the permafrost never thaws...
A lone maiden sat upon a glacier, watching a meteorite streak down and crash into a distant mountain.
She stood, her figure emerging from the frosty mist.
She was a vision of winter itself: long silvery hair, a crystalline crown, and a deep blue gown adorned with glimmering frost patterns. Icy armor braced her arms, and a delicate snowflake floated above her hand. She radiated calm power—a graceful queen of the frozen realm.
Her name was Aurora, the Ice Queen, guardian of the Northern reaches of Altaira, ever watchful against the forces that threatened her lands.
Because of the greed of one human evil forces throughout the continent are stirred up once again.
--------