The ground trembled beneath the overwhelming march of Raizen's legions—the eternal nemesis of the shadows. The sky, once glowing with the grim color of dusk, now twisted and distorted under the destructive clash of war. The once-living dark fields had turned into a battleground soaked in conflict and ruin.
On one side of the field stood Sajibro's army, unwavering, prepared to deliver a merciless lesson to Raizen's advancing forces. Behind Sajibro, the commanders led their ranks with relentless resolve:
Musayuki surged forth with his dispersed shadows, taking terrifying forms that tore across the horizon, mercilessly ripping through his enemies.
Kain stood unmoved, his eyes glowing with deadly calm as he observed his foes in slow motion—maneuvering them like chess pieces on the board of death.
Kuruma summoned wind and lightning, merging them into a devastating onslaught no one foresaw, striking the enemy ranks with overwhelming force.
But on the opposite front, Raizen's army unleashed its full fury. His shadows spread across the land, devouring everything in their path. The enemy used deception and twisted darkness to confuse the battlefield and disrupt Sajibro's forces.
In the heart of the chaos, as Raizen's army began gaining ground, Sajibro felt the moment had come—a turning point that could shift the tide. At that instant, he turned his gaze to Arthur, who stood with burning resolve, his eyes ablaze with power. Sajibro stepped toward him with deliberate steps, raising his hand to bestow the long-awaited gift.
"Arthur…" Sajibro spoke in a low voice, but his words carried enough weight to stir the winds around them. "Now is your time. Use the power I gave you."
Arthur met his gaze with unwavering determination and understood what had to be done. He raised his sword—Oria Lux—which began to radiate with an unfamiliar power, its energy building in his hands.
"Oblivion Cannon," he declared in a single breath, as an overwhelming force surged through the blade. Before his arms moved, a beam of pure light erupted, slicing through the horizon and setting the sky ablaze, crashing into Raizen's forces.
The holy wave Arthur unleashed was true annihilation. A colossal beam devoured Raizen's army, scattering darkness through the air as if it were melting, dissolving before the radiant brilliance. The sky lit with faint explosions while soldiers vanished in the chaos—leaving nothing but dust to veil the field.
Raizen's army collapsed in an instant, its formations falling apart under the wrathful light. The shadows that once dominated the battle began to vanish, melting into the air. As if they had never existed—mere illusions, nothing more than a mirage.
But that wasn't enough.
Raizen and his counterpart, Raizen-Ita, still lived—hidden in a distant part of the battlefield.
As the earth grew silent after the destructive blast, and the torrent of blood came to a halt, Sajibro stood tall, his eyes closing over the remnants of Raizen's shattered army. Then he turned to his commanders and spoke with a calm but absolute voice:
"No one interferes. This battle is mine alone."
Musayuki, Kain, and Kuruma exchanged whispered words, but made no move to object. They knew this fight belonged to Sajibro alone. It was not merely a clash between armies—it was something greater. A confrontation between throne and death, between power and betrayal.
Sajibro turned toward the distant place where Raizen and his copy hid, walking steadily. The shadows gathered around him, as though they couldn't escape his grasp.
"It's time to end this," he whispered to himself as he walked in silence—each step a prelude to the inevitable.
He could feel the gazes of the commanders upon him, and he knew this moment would change everything.
The beginning of the end.
As he neared the place where Raizen and his copy hid, Sajibro paused. The sky darkened overhead, the ground trembling beneath his feet. There, far away, the shadows clustered around Raizen—as if the world itself were bracing for the final clash.
Then Sajibro spoke in a chilling voice:
"Then let's finish this."
He stood at the edge of the end, his eyes glowing with resolve. Everyone knew that the battle between him and Raizen, and his clone, would be the final chapter of this war.
End of Chapter Twenty-Four