A strange, piercing roar ripped through the battlefield.
The dragon's head, which had been drooping toward the ground, suddenly snapped upward. The Cannibal opened its gaping maw, baring its fangs, and lunged savagely at the Maegor face clinging to its own neck.
But because of the angle and blind spot between the Cannibal's jaws and Maegor's position, no matter how frenzied it became, it could not reach its target.
Yet the sudden movement had an unintended effect. By sheer accident, the Cannibal's lunge intercepted several incoming fire spears, sparing Maegor's face from destruction.
Boom! Boom! Boom! The fire spears slammed into the dragon's brow ridge, detonating in bursts of fire and light.
The Cannibal roared in pain, its fury only growing more deranged. Its jaws spread wide, and it spewed forth a torrent of green dragonfire.
Aegon, Jaehaerys, and Alysanne swiftly retreated. But Aerea's awakened form, less agile in midair, was caught unprepared. The dragonfire engulfed her.
In an instant, her body was eaten away as though by acid, pitted and scarred beyond recognition.
Every Dragonkin on the field saw it clearly. A chill swept through their hearts as one thought consumed them all:
The might of a dragon—terrifying beyond measure!
Aerea's ruined form plummeted like a severed kite, crashing to the ground and leaving a shallow crater.
Rhaella spat a mouthful of blood. Her spirit was tightly bound to Aerea's; her sister's injuries tore through her own mind like knives.
In the sky, Aegon's half-awakened body flickered wildly. Steel spears shot from his hands like lightning, his movements so fast it seemed as if a dozen figures appeared and vanished across the air, dazzling the eye.
But now that the Cannibal's consciousness was unbound, those seeking to strike Maegor's face found it harder than ever. The dragon's breath was devastating—one brush of its flame was enough to cripple a Dragonkin.
Aerea, barely clinging to life, stumbled under Rhaella's control, retreating from the battlefield. She could no longer fight.
Aegon's brow furrowed, and a new, sobering feeling welled inside him: profound awe, and helplessness before the sheer might of a dragon.
He had always ridden dragons into battle, crushing foes with their power. But now, standing against one, he finally understood. Dragons were not just beasts—they were the ultimate creatures of the world.
Grinding his teeth, Aegon unleashed another ten percent of his magic.
His steel armor shifted instantly. Streams of molten gold ran between the seams, coating the joints, as he forced himself to wield Maegor's molten-gold power.
But even his Burning Steel had limits. Though he could temper countless essences of magic, wielding them all at once carried heavy strain.
Now he was drawing on five at once: the power of speed, the power of illusion, the power of bronze and flame, the power of molten gold, and his own burning steel. This was the edge of what his body could withstand.
And yet—even at this limit—his attacks barely scratched the Cannibal.
The Dragonkin clinging to the beast's back were in dire peril, their lives hanging by a thread. The Cannibal's breath and savage bites struck again and again, each one enough to kill.
Shadowless Sword Raphael, the slowest among them, was struck by dragonfire and died instantly. Lionheart Sword Ricardu was bitten clean in half, his life ended in one savage snap.
Of the top ten Dragonkin of the Demon-Hunting Knights, only No.1—Swift Sword Larissa—and No.2—Phantom Sword Miriya—remained. But both were teetering on the brink of awakening.
Seeing this, Aegon wasted no time. He darted to them, forcing his magic resonance to suppress their awakening before it consumed them.
Above, the Cannibal's massive arm whipped its grotesque flesh-forged greatsword through the air. Though it appeared unwieldy, the weapon swung with whip-like speed and staggering power.
As the hunters were pressed by the dragon head's fury, Jaehaerys was forced to bear the brunt of the sword's assault.
Several times Vermithor barely escaped the intestines coiling from its blade. If not for Alysanne severing the tendrils with her peony-bladed flowers, both dragon and rider would already be dead.
Her heart clenched as she watched her brother.
Jaehaerys was too righteous. He was throwing everything—his life itself—into holding back Maegor and the Cannibal's savage assault, never once retreating from the front lines.
Such a way of fighting was reckless, a death waiting to happen.
For a fleeting moment, in that desperate chaos, Alysanne thought of fleeing.
But she knew her brother would never abandon the fight.
Jaehaerys was a staunch believer in human supremacy. He would never turn his back on the war against demons. His conviction was unbreakable.
Aegon spun violently through the air, his form whirling like a top.
The twin steel spears in his hands became drills, his entire body executing a Spiral Sword strike enhanced by the Swift Sword technique.
This was the strongest attack Aegon could muster.
His target was the massive, exposed arm jutting from Maegor's back. With a deafening roar, Aegon became a tornado of steel, plunging down on the Cannibal's colossal limb.
When his spiral strike hit, the arm's flesh tore apart with shocking ease. Purple blood and molten gold burst in every direction.
Maegor howled in agony, his voice echoing from the human face embedded in the dragon's neck.
The Cannibal twisted, trying to bite Aegon, but he was too fast. He pierced clean through the giant arm, leaving a gaping hole. Blood poured from it in a steady stream, like a river of purple.
Aegon's figure flickered, leaving afterimages behind as he climbed back into the skies. His steel armor was slashed and battered, proof that the strike had come at a cost. The massive drain of magic was one thing, but the sheer resistance of grinding through the giant arm's flesh had torn into him as well.
Gasping for breath, face pale, Aegon did not hesitate. He gathered his strength again, his body twisting once more into a spinning drill as he hurled himself toward the colossal limb.
But this time, the Cannibal was ready. It inhaled sharply and unleashed a torrent of green dragonfire directly at Aegon's spiraling form.
He tried to dodge—but too late. The flames engulfed him.
The Spiral Sword halted midair. His balance shattered, his body fell in a steep, uncontrolled dive.
With a thunderous crash, Aegon smashed into the ground, a cloud of dust erupting around him.
"Brother!!" Rhaella, still tending to Aerea's wounded awakened form, screamed as she saw him fall.
Jaehaerys froze where he was, despair gripping his chest.
Even Aegon couldn't withstand that dragonfire? Could they really defeat this monstrosity? Was there any hope left for mankind?
Alysanne rushed Silverwing to his side, her voice urgent, desperate.
"We've failed. Humans cannot fight Dragons. Brother—we must retreat. If we survive, humanity still has hope!"
"Humans… can't fight demons…" Jaehaerys muttered, his eyes unfocused. The magic within him spun wildly out of control. His awakening surged past 80% in a heartbeat, with no sign of stopping.
Alysanne's face went white with terror.
"Brother, what are you doing?! You've always despised demons! Are you going to become one of them? It's useless—even if you awaken, it won't help! Don't awaken—please, don't!!"
Her words dissolved into sobs. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she cried his name, trying to pull him back.
But Jaehaerys didn't hear her. Bronze-green corrosion surged across his face like a flood. His jaw split open, rows of sharp fangs forcing their way out.
His body swelled, muscles bulging like hammered bronze ingots. His back tore open as wings of green-copper flesh unfolded, dripping with viscous fluid, stretching more than five meters wide.
Slowly, he raised his head, his gaze steady on his sister. His voice was hoarse but firm.
"I know what I'm doing, Alysanne. This is our only chance to defeat Maegor. If the Dragonkin and Aegon fall, we'll never be able to kill him.
I'll fight for humanity until my mind is gone. And when it is—I'll either take my own life… or let the demons kill me."
Alysanne's sobs broke into a scream. She reached toward him as if to hold him back, to keep him from leaving.
"No… don't do this. I can't lose you!"
Jaehaerys beat his wings once, lifting from Vermithor's back.
Steel gathered in his claws, forming into twin greatswords three meters long. Flames roared across their blades, tongues of fire stretching five meters outward until it seemed he held two dragons made of flame.
His presence was overwhelming, godlike.
Never in his life had his resolve felt so unshakable.
This will be my last battle—my strongest battle. Maegor… you must die.
With that vow burning in his heart, Jaehaerys hurled himself at the Cannibal's neck.
At that very moment, the dragon dipped its head toward Aegon's fallen body. The human face on its nape was fully exposed—the perfect opening for Jaehaerys's strike.
Rhaella saw the Cannibal move in to finish Aegon. Her terrified eyes locked on her brother, knowing he stood on the brink of death.
At that critical instant, the magic within her erupted, and she awakened.
Blinding white spiritual energy enveloped her, forming a radiant full moon.
Within that vast orb, seven star-marks connected into a constellation. Aerea's awakened form was also drawn into its glow.
It was as if the twin sisters felt some mysterious transformation within the moonlight. Rhaella's awakening triggered a strange reaction.
Their bodies intertwined, melting into one another within the moon's embrace. Rhaella's flesh split into countless tendrils, writhing like serpents as they burrowed into Aerea's body. She became a tenacious vine, tightly entwining her sister's awakened form.
The horns embedded in Aerea's features fused into her body, growing as part of her.
Together, they began to grow—three meters, then five. Their fused lower halves anchored them, while their upper bodies rose, embracing the luminous moonlight.
And they kept expanding. Their upper bodies remained female, but four great wings unfurled from their backs. Bone arrows sprouted from the feathers with a clattering sound before launching in a torrential volley across the battlefield.
The nearest rebels had no time to escape. The arrows struck them, and in an instant, their bodies shriveled into husks, sucked dry by a terrible force.
Each arrow was tethered by a thin tendon, linking back to the wings of the twin statue. With every harvest of blood and flesh, the monstrous form grew taller, loosing yet more bone arrows in a relentless storm.
Hundreds more rebels fell, their life essence devoured.
The twin statue swelled further, its fused lower body like a vast skirt of flesh and roots that writhed and fed on the living. Their arms were gone, replaced by bands of flesh binding them together, while their wings continued to fire volleys of bone arrows, butchering the rebel host.
The abomination climbed past ten meters in height, radiating a suffocating aura of dread.
Meanwhile, Aegon struggled against the Cannibal's snapping jaws, slipping away like a phantom through his sword techniques.
Jaehaerys's awakened form descended like a blazing meteor, smashing into the Cannibal's neck and carving two massive, charred wounds.
Half of Maegor's human face was hacked away, sending the dragon into a frenzy as it whipped its head toward Jaehaerys.
But Jaehaerys did not falter. He raised his five-meter flaming greatsword and brought it down with all his might.
The dragon did not dodge. Its vast jaws snapped shut, swallowing Jaehaerys whole into its maw before thrashing wildly, grinding him between its teeth.
His body was torn apart in an instant, blood spraying in every direction.
"Brother! Nooooo!!!" Alysanne screamed, her cry raw with despair and anguish.
Vermithor, feeling its master's life vanish, roared a mournful farewell.
Then, like a moth to flame, it hurled itself at the Cannibal.
But with a casual beat of its fleshly wings, the Cannibal swatted Vermithor aside. The dragon slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash, raising a storm of dust.