It was humiliating.
To have my absolute strongest attack nullified by a single finger.
Stiffer stood before me without the faintest sign of strain, as though my strike had been nothing more than a gentle breeze brushing against his skin.
His expression, once touched by mild disgust, had now settled into the weary calm of a man already bored with the fight.
"Malachi," he said evenly, "I do feel for your effort. And I'll give you the mercy of slaughtering you quickly."
His body moved before the words even faded. His hands traced the length of my blade with effortless grace until they reached the hilt.
Then, with surgical precision, he twisted the pommel and drove it into
my shoulder. Pain exploded through my nerves.
Before I could recoil, his grip locked around my right arm and, in one fluid motion, he slammed me into the earth.
The ground cracked beneath the impact. My shoulder shattered.
My body, drained from the power I had just unleashed, could no longer keep pace.
I lay there, barely able to breathe, while he loomed over me, holding my sword like it belonged to him.
A sigh escaped his lips as he tossed the weapon onto my chest.
"This is the end, for you and your people. I hope you can reach Heaven."
I coughed, a broken laugh rattling out of me. "You think I want to go to Heaven? I would never."
His eyes flickered with something like pity. "It's a shame you all deem it necessary to resist. I don't particularly like killing."
I forced my gaze upward, locking onto his. "I don't see regret. I don't see sympathy."
"Did I not seem sympathetic?" he asked lightly. "Oh… I've always had trouble showing emotion."
"No," I said coldly, my voice cutting through the air. "You show them just fine, the ones you truly feel, at least."
For a heartbeat, he seemed to weigh my words.
Then he shrugged, as if they meant nothing. "The sky will fall upon his rise. I'm sorry you won't be here to witness it."
There it was, his rise. They weren't just fighting for themselves. They were preparing for something, or someone.
His hand rose. Power radiated from it in waves so oppressive I was certain that if it struck me, my life would end instantly.
His intent was absolute. His will, unshakable.
And yet.
I felt it. The depth of his desire. The boundless, reckless conviction surging behind that killing blow.
I seized it, not with my body, but with my will. I took his wishful certainty and twisted it.
He had assumed I was spent, that I would never again burn my own lifeforce to awaken my Regalia.
He was utterly, devastatingly wrong.
Blood surged into my mouth, spilling in a violent cough. My vision wavered as the edges of my soul tore open.
At that same moment, his killing hand faltered, and, impossibly, pierced his own chest.
His eyes widened in raw disbelief.
A breath later, the world was swallowed by light.
It was not mere brightness, it was infinite, searing divinity, hotter than suns, older than time.
It roared around us, an unending tide of radiance that reduced matter, thought, and memory to nothing.
And then, silence.
When the light faded, there was no trace of him.
Only a barren wasteland remained, the earth scorched into lifelessness beneath a sky that seemed to hold its breath.
Kivana had once told me there had to be a defining reason for why they were doing this.
He theorized Nicholas had the answer, but now, I had just gained it.
If only I'd had enough power to kill Stiffer.
He got away. Perhaps it would have been better for him to simply kill me, though it would have been a wasted effort.
As long as Kivana lived, I could always come back.
It was unfortunate, really. Still, the underlying problem had been dealt with. Now all I had to do was wait for Kivana to come get me.
My lifeforce, my mana, my infons, and my spiritrons, completely drained.
Stiffer hadn't taken the risk of nullifying my Regalia. If he had, I'm certain the outcome would have been very different.
Because Regalia are born from the mind, body, and soul, it isn't entirely uncommon for some to be unable to affect others at all.
Nicholas, for example, could barely affect me.
His Regalia could shift and alter reality, but only on a small scale, changing the outcome of events, swapping positions, subtle manipulations of fate.
Mirabel, however… her power was beyond my reach entirely.
That came down to cultivation. Her level compared to mine made the difference absolute.
Kivana was right. If I wanted to survive this war, I needed to focus more on my cultivation.
Something like today could never happen again.
I closed my eyes, letting my body sink into brief rest, drawing what little strength I could back into myself.
After a while, I felt her presence nearing. Even for her, spatial teleportation over such a distance took time.
She should work on that. By the time she arrived, I had managed to stand and heal myself enough to walk.
She appeared and immediately wrapped her arms around my waist. "Malachi… maybe we should unseal your Makilah."
I turned to her, my voice edged with annoyance. "Why? Because I lost one fight?"
She sighed. "No, you arrogant fool. Because this war needs to end, and we can't afford to keep any assets locked away."
"Do you even care about my current state?" I asked, my tone softening.
Her lips curved into a faint smile as we appeared in front of our room's door. "Damn it. I missed?" she muttered, pushing it open.
I chuckled. "How many times have you teleported today?"
She set me down on the bed with another sigh, clearly frustrated with herself.
"Not a lot, only around ten times, but ever since my power started diminishing, it's been harder to pinpoint exactly where I want to appear."
Her inability to see the future had been troubling enough, but now her control over space and time magic was faltering too.
It was entirely unlike her. Even now, I couldn't explain it.
At first, I wondered if she might be pregnant. But after over a year without a single sign, that seemed unlikely.
Still, it wasn't impossible, she could be suppressing it unknowingly, but the chances were slim.
It could also be her mentality. Though what exactly had caused this… I couldn't say.
"Maybe you should stay here for a while. Didn't you say Uhana has a plan?"
She rolled her eyes. "You're just scared I might get hurt. And stop spying on me without my permission."
"I'm not spying," I replied, crossing my arms. "I just happened to hear Uhana's words through our lovely connection."
She jumped into my lap, sending a jolt of pain through my body. "You think I can't feel you gazing at me?"
She wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me.
It was a blatant attempt to distract me from pushing for an answer, and it was working.
Naughty of her. But I wasn't about to call her out. Not when she was doing this.
Her lips lingered, then parted from mine as she glanced at my neck. "Vampires, huh? Maybe Cole should fight Stiffer."
I scoffed. "Are you saying he's stronger than me? I can kill him. I just need more training."
She held me tighter. "I'd rather he die than you."
"Just like I'd rather anyone else die than you. So please, stay here in the manor."
I'd tasted death more than a few times. It was violent. Cruel. I never wanted to see her experience it, even if I had the power to bring her back.
She smiled softly, nestling her head into my chest. "Fine… I'll stay here, if you free Makilah."
My fist tightened, but I knew it was worth the cost. "Fine. I just can't say no to you, not more than once, anyway."