Chapter 57: The Finale
Silence and stillness engulfed the ruins of Beura. Sbyam stood quietly, his gaze fixed on Spailo's burned corpse lying motionless on the ground. His eyes were lost in deep thought as the wind gently played with his flowing white hair. The air was thick with the scent of ash, dust swirling with every breeze, while blood continued to seep from the charred black cracks of Spailo's body.
Suddenly, a voice shattered the eerie silence:
"Oh! Sbyam Brius!"
Sbyam slowly turned toward the source of the voice. Trainer Surichi and Mr. Oda were rushing toward him, their faces filled with concern. As they arrived, the desolate city stretched before them like the aftermath of a nightmare. The buildings were crumbling, life was absent, and the only sound that remained was the crackling of flames devouring the debris like a ravenous beast.
Surichi stood frozen, staring at the devastation before him, then muttered in shock and awe:
"W-What happened here?!"
On the other hand, Sbyam's expression remained utterly devoid of emotion. Slowly, he turned and began walking toward Moryo, who lay unconscious against a rock, covered in blood.
Oda hesitated before stepping closer to the burnt corpse, his voice uncertain:
"Who is this...?"
Surichi moved forward, his eyes fixed on the body. The moment recognition struck him, he whispered in disbelief:
"Spailo...?"
Shock flickered across Oda's face upon hearing the name. He glanced back at the charred remains and muttered in astonishment:
"Spailo? Wasn't he the sorcerer responsible for the Ronda incident?!"
While Surichi remained visibly shaken, Sbyam knelt beside Moryo, observing him quietly. Inside, he pondered deeply:
"You fought bravely on your own... Well done, Moryo. You did well to survive."
Lifting his student, Sbyam hoisted Moryo onto his shoulder before turning toward Surichi and Oda. His voice was calm, yet his words carried the weight of truth:
"The Rizsius Organization has been eradicated. Raizo, Spailo, and all former members... they are finished."
Surichi remained silent, but his thoughts clashed within him:
"Is it true? The organization's members were killed in the Ronda incident... Only Spailo and Raizo remained... Does this mean they have now been eliminated?"
Finally, Surichi broke his silence and asked:
"Spailo is dead, but I don't see Raizo's body... Where is he?"
Sbyam halted before them, his voice deep and enigmatic as he replied:
"No... I didn't mean that Raizo was killed like Spailo. He escaped... along with the leader of the Mana Organization."
Surichi and Oda exchanged stunned glances as Sbyam continued:
"Mr. Golobet sided with Raizo... He betrayed us. But why? Why would the leader of the Mana Organization align himself with Raizo?"
Oda lifted his head firmly, his gaze steady as he looked at Sbyam and said in a serious tone:
"You will find out soon. But first, we must head to the Mana Organization's headquarters... There, the truth will be revealed."
Sbyam raised an eyebrow in slight surprise:
"The truth?"
Without another word, Surichi and Oda turned and began walking toward their destination. Oda's voice was low but resolute:
"Everything will become clear there..."
Sbyam watched them silently for a moment before following, carrying Moryo on his shoulder, his mind stirring with thoughts about the answers that awaited him.
---
At the base of the Mana Organization's mountain…
Rita and Laura stood, shock and horror written across their faces, their eyes widened in disbelief. Rita murmured anxiously:
"Could what Suero said be true?!"
She turned to Laura, who was equally shaken. Their eyes met, both reflecting the same stunned expression. Rita spoke hesitantly, her face still painted with shock:
"Nicola and Hyona followed him… Should we follow him too?!"
Laura's expression shifted abruptly, transforming from hesitation to unwavering determination. A heavy silence settled over them as the snow continued to fall, covering the ground in a cold, mysterious veil. Then, with firm resolve, Laura declared:
"I will follow his path! I will follow what he said... I will begin executing the plan."
She then turned sharply to Rita and said with conviction:
"If you're coming with me, then let's work together on the plan!"
Rita stood frozen, her eyes flickering between shock and disbelief as she stared at Laura, struggling to grasp the gravity of her words. Before she could respond, a voice called out from behind them:
"Oi! ... Laura!"
Both Laura and Rita turned simultaneously to find Trainer Surichi and Mr. Oda standing behind them, alongside Sbyam, who was raising a hand in greeting.
Sbyam pointed directly at Rita, his tone sharp:
"Stay away from me!"
Rita's face remained frozen in shock, as if the weight of reality was still sinking in. As the group closed in on them, Surichi asked seriously:
"Why are you two here?!"
Laura quickly replied:
"I healed Jan and took him to the Mana Organization's headquarters..."
A questioning look crossed Sbyam's face as he asked in a strange tone:
"And why did you take him up there? And why did you come back down here?"
Laura met Sbyam's gaze, her response firm and unwavering:
"Because Suero left a message for you!"
Everyone stiffened at her words. Moryo, still weak and barely conscious, slowly opened his eyes and muttered in a faint voice:
"A message? Wasn't Suero at his family's house?!"
Despite his exhaustion and pain, Moryo forced himself onto his feet, leaning against Sbyam's shoulder. His voice, though tired, carried urgency:
"Why?! Did he go up the mountain?!"
Laura answered seriously:
"Yes! He took a book from the organization and seized the power of 'Obliteration'!"
Mr. Oda's expression darkened with fear as he stammered:
"WHAT...?! HE TOOK THE 'Obliteration'?!"
Moryo's eyes widened in confusion:
"Mr. Oda told me about that book, but why would he take it?!"
Sbyam, still processing the revelation, turned his head toward Laura and asked in disbelief:
"What are you saying?! A book? ... The power of 'Obliteration'?!"
Without warning, Mr. Oda broke into a sprint toward the mountain's peak. Sbyam watched him for a moment before swiftly following. The others immediately fell in line, all racing toward the top—toward the Mana Organization's headquarters.
Snowstorms raged as the winds howled, sweeping across everything in their path. The snow covered the entire land, as if burying the truth beneath layers of secrecy and mystery.
—
After a Short While...
Everyone had reached the mountain peak, where the snowstorms raged violently as if trying to conceal what was happening deep within the Mana Organization. Mr. Oda pressed forward with urgency, heading straight for the organization's massive entrance. He shoved the door open forcefully, as if carrying an overwhelming sense of impending danger. His footsteps echoed rapidly through the long corridor, with everyone following closely behind.
At the end of the hallway, a door stood wide open, revealing a room drenched in an eerie silence. Jan lay unconscious on the floor. Mr. Oda hurried toward the entrance, his eyes scanning the inside—only to find the chest standing open. He froze for a moment, struggling to believe what he was seeing. With hesitant steps, he entered the room and muttered in a voice filled with disbelief:
"Yes... He has taken the power of 'Obliteration'!"
His words echoed through the chamber. Sbyam, puzzled, turned to him and asked with a questioning tone:
"Why such fear?! What exactly does the power of 'Obliteration' contain?!"
Mr. Oda turned toward him, his face overwhelmed with terror and dread. Lowering his voice as if afraid someone might overhear, he said:
"That power... must never fall into the wrong hands! It is a force capable of destroying the entire world!"
Sbyam instinctively stepped back, unable to process what he had just heard. A heavy silence filled the room before Mr. Oda continued, his voice tense:
"Why did he take it?! What is his purpose?! Is he planning to use it?!"
Outside, the howling winds intensified as if nature itself was warning them of what was to come.
Suddenly, Mr. Oda moved toward one of the wooden shelves along the side. He rummaged through it frantically, searching for a book—but it was nowhere to be found. He stopped momentarily before picking up a neatly placed paper. With a trembling hand, he held it for a few moments before placing it on the central table in the room.
Everyone gathered around, their eyes fixed on the paper. Moryo picked it up, and with a voice burdened by exhaustion and fear, he began reading aloud for all to hear...
—
The Letter's Content:
"My dear friends,
This is Suero Rashid speaking to you. I have left this letter behind, entrusting Lady Laura and Lady Rita with its whereabouts. As for the reason? It is something I can no longer keep hidden.
Yamato—the one I always considered a sister—led me to discover this ancient book, one I never imagined would contain such an unbearable weight of truth. What I read was not mere words; they were revelations that shattered my perception, stripping away the illusion we have lived under for so long. The truth, my friends, is that we are nothing more than caged beings, trapped under the shadow of beasts, while the world beyond Kaisima thrives in peace and prosperity.
We fought wars, sacrificed our lives, believing we were struggling for survival—unaware that our battle was nothing but a scripted tale, pre-written without our consent. And to make matters worse, the wars that tore us apart were nothing more than a distorted reflection of a world we mistakenly thought shared our fate.
But… let us not drown in despair. What matters now is that I have made an irreversible decision. I have left, abandoning the land I loved and grew up in, heading straight into the enemy's den. I am not seeking personal glory but reclaiming the freedom that was stolen from us since the very beginning.
There is only one thing I want you all to know: I will never forget you. I have watched my friends fall before my eyes, one by one, and they have never left my memory. Their spilled blood will not be in vain. I will carry their vengeance—our vengeance—and I will restore Kaisima's stolen dignity, even if it costs me my own life."
—
Inside the Mana Organization's chamber, Moryo's voice trembled, caught between shock and fear:
"WHAT…?!"
Sbyam, his face pale, his eyes filled with disbelief, muttered as if the words weighed heavily on his tongue:
"What is he saying…? Where exactly is he going?!"
And then, as if the very mountains trembled in response, the ground beneath them shook violently. A deafening explosion erupted outside, shaking the organization's walls and throwing everyone into a whirlwind of anxiety.
Trainer Surichi's voice broke through the tension, filled with unease:
"WHAT IS HAPPENING OUTSIDE?!"
Everyone rushed like the wind, leaving the room and heading down the long corridor before exiting. Outside, the cold winds carried a dense black smoke rising from the distant horizon. Trainer Surichi stared at the smoke in disbelief and said:
"WHAT... HAPPENED?!"
But Rita, who was standing a few steps away, pointed with a trembling hand toward the sky, her voice coming out in a broken tone as though the air was choking in her throat:
"Lo... Look... at the sky!"
Everyone lifted their heads, and what they saw froze the blood in their veins. The sky, which had been blue moments ago, was now completely covered by a fleet of warplanes, their numbers so vast that they blocked out the sunlight, leaving the place in shadows as dark as night. Sbyam stood frozen in place, like an ice sculpture, his eyes wide with indescribable fear, whispering:
"WHAT... WHAT is this?!"
---
Inside one of the planes, a officer dressed in a green military uniform stood by a small window, looking down at the land of Kaisima below them. He turned to one of the soldiers and issued a stern command:
"Tell the World Sages that we have arrived in Kaisima's territory. We are ready to begin the annihilation."
The soldier nodded and responded firmly:
"Understood, Sir!"
The officer then opened the plane's door, and the wind slapped his face with great force, but he didn't flinch. He raised his hand to the sky, giving a single gesture that was enough to unleash hell like the world had never known. He shouted in a voice so deep it made the soldiers' hearts tremble:
"NOW... BEGIN!"
The countdown began:
"3... 2... 1..."
Suddenly, the doors of the planes opened one by one, releasing their deadly cargo. Missiles, like black meteors, began to fall from the sky like rain. Kaisima, completely unaware of what was coming, stood frozen in terror. Its inhabitants were paralyzed, too frightened even to move. Children hid behind their mothers, and the elderly raised their hands to the sky in prayer. But nothing would stop what was coming.
When the missiles struck the ground, the explosions were like opening the gates of hell. Flames shot high into the sky, their color a deep red, as if the sun had come too close to earth. The sound of the explosions was deafening, shaking the ground violently, as if the mountains themselves were crumbling. The sound of a child crying, but their scream vanished suddenly when a missile struck them, leaving only a patch of blood behind, as though their body had never existed.
Screams filled the air, mixed with the sounds of explosions and the echoes of collapsing buildings. The sky, once filled with black smoke, was now entirely red, glowing from the light of the explosions. The Mana Organization, once considered a symbol of strength and wisdom, was now under siege.
Moryo, who had been standing outside the organization, felt his feet frozen to the ground. His wide eyes reflected the image of a missile rapidly approaching him. Everything seemed to happen in strange slow motion, as if time itself had decided to torment him. The missile pierced the air, striking the organization's headquarters directly.
The entire mountain shook violently, splitting apart as though it was screaming in pain. Massive rocks fell, and parts of the organization were completely destroyed. The sky became thick with smoke and flames, as if the earth itself were devouring itself.
Kaisima, the nation that had once been vibrant with life, was now nothing but ash and rubble. The city burned, and the smoke consumed what remained of it. The missiles continued to fall relentlessly, as though they had made the decision to annihilation all living things.
—
End of Season.