Chapter 7.
The sky above the battle area began to change color, signaling that a high-level spell was being prepared. The wind blew fiercely, the ground trembled, and the air was filled with an incredibly dense magical field.
The 40 Archmages formed a giant triangular formation in the middle of the battlefield. At the northern point of the triangle stood the 13 Archmages who had fought the Adult Dragon; at the southwestern point, the 13 Archmages who had fought the Elder Lich; and at the southeastern point, the 14 Archmages who had faced the Primordial Water Elemental.
"Remember, you must synchronize your mana perfectly. A single mistake, and we will all die," came the stern warning from Archmage Theron, who stood at the center of the formation.
The Adult Dragon, Elder Lich, and Primordial Water Elemental sensed a great threat. The three of them, who had been fighting separately, now gathered together, forming a defensive line against the Archmages.
"Begin!" shouted Archmage Theron.
The 40 Archmages began to chant in unison. The sound of ancient incantations echoed throughout the battle area, creating a magical resonance that made the air vibrate.
"By the ancient pact of trinity..."
"We call upon the forbidden power..."
"Merge our souls, merge our magic..."
"Trinity Fusion!"
Golden, silver, and bronze lights emerged from the three points of the triangle, spiraling toward the center of the formation. When the three lights met, a massive explosion of energy occurred.
Archmage Theron, at the center, began to transform. His body levitated, his hair turned a shining white, and his eyes glowed with three different colors. He was no longer an ordinary human but the combined embodiment of the power of 40 Archmages.
"ROARRR!" the Adult Dragon roared, but there was fear in its eyes.
The usually calm Elder Lich began to grow restless. It sensed a power that could even threaten its existence as a high-level undead.
The ever-changing Primordial Water Elemental now crystallized into a humanoid form, a sign that it was focusing all its power on defense.
Archmage Theron—or more accurately, the Trinity Fusion—raised his hand. On his palm, a small energy sphere appeared, spinning with three colors: gold, silver, and bronze.
"Judgment of Trinity," his voice echoed like a chorus of dozens of people.
The energy sphere shot out at the speed of light toward the three monsters. Although small, the energy contained within it was enough to destroy a city.
The Adult Dragon immediately spewed its strongest fire breath. "Infernal Dragon Breath!"
The Elder Lich cast its ultimate protective spell. "Necromantic Absolute Defense!"
The Primordial Water Elemental created a multi-layered wall of water. "Aqua Fortress!"
The three defensive attacks clashed with the Judgment of Trinity.
BOOOOOMMMM!
A massive explosion thundered, creating a crater 100 meters deep and 500 meters wide. The shockwave from the explosion was felt all the way to the districts of the capital.
When the smoke and dust cleared, the Adult Dragon was seen collapsed with its left wing severed and its body covered in burns. The Elder Lich had lost half of its body; only its skull and right ribcage remained. The Primordial Water Elemental had turned into an ordinary, unmoving pool of water.
"We did it!" shouted one of the Archmages who was still conscious.
But that victory came at a very high price. The Trinity Fusion Theron fell to the ground, his body returning to normal, but his hair was now completely white, and blood flowed from his eyes, nose, and ears.
Around the triangular formation, 15 Archmages were lifeless. Their bodies were dry like mummies, all their mana and life force having been sucked away for the Trinity Fusion. The other 20 Archmages lay weakly, some already unconscious. Only 5 Archmages could still stand, and even they were in critical condition.
"Theron!" Archmage Valerius ran to his fallen superior.
Archmage Theron opened his eyes with great difficulty. His pupils had turned white, a sign that he had lost his sight.
"Valerius... did we win?" he asked in a hoarse voice.
"Yes, the three S-rank monsters have been defeated," Valerius replied, holding back tears.
Theron smiled faintly. "Good... take care of the living... and... tell the Emperor... we have done our duty..."
His breathing grew weaker. "Protect... the capital..."
Theron's Point of View
I saw the tears in the corner of Valerius's eyes. You crybaby. You're a grown man, yet you're still crying.
Suddenly, my vision went black. Valerius disappeared from my sight. I was in total darkness.
I stood in that darkness, looking around in confusion. But in front of me was a screen? I don't know, but it was replaying my happiest memories.
I smiled, my heart grew warm, and a tear fell from the corner of my eye. Look how ridiculous I am. I was just teasing Valerius, but I'm crying myself.
Memories of being spoiled by my parents, of my birthdays, of laughing with my friends at the Ostrivien Grand Academy. The memory of proposing to the woman I loved and being accepted, of my children being born, of laughing happily with my small family.
I clenched both my fists, my whole body trembled, and tears streamed down my face.
Suddenly, the memory vanished, replaced by a 9-year-old boy. It was me. He stood there, looking at me with innocent eyes. I spoke first. "What do you want to be when you grow up?"
His mouth opened wide, a smile gracing his face, his eyes narrowing into slits, and my younger self said, "I want to be a hero!"
I smiled gently at him. "Yes, you are."
A few minutes later - The Sage Battle Area
In a different area, not far from the Archmages' battlefield, 20 Sages gathered to face the two remaining SS-rank monsters: an Elder Dragon and a Celestial Fallen.
The 30-meter-tall Elder Dragon with gleaming black scales and glowing red eyes faced 10 Sages. Meanwhile, the Celestial Fallen—a fallen angel with tattered wings and black armor—was confronted by the other 10 Sages.
Sage Aldric, a 67-year-old member of the royal council, led the group facing the Elder Dragon.
"Be careful. Its power is far beyond the S-rank monsters from before," he warned his comrades.
The Elder Dragon opened its mouth, releasing a dragon breath that was not just ordinary fire, but hellfire that could burn the soul. The blackish-purple flames swept across the area where the Sages stood. They immediately formed a combined barrier.
"Combined Mana Shield!"
Ten mana shields merged to form a giant protective dome. But the Elder Dragon's hellfire was too hot. Their shield began to crack.
"It won't hold for long!" shouted Sage Aldric. "Counterattack now!"
"Meteor Storm!" Sage Gorath summoned a meteor shower from the sky.
"Lightning Spear!" Sage Elara fired a giant spear of lightning.
"Absolute Zero!" Sage Frida froze the area around the Elder Dragon.
But these attacks only left small scratches on the Elder Dragon's scales. An SS-rank monster was truly on a different level.
The Elder Dragon attacked back with its claws, each the size of an oak tree.
"Dragon Claw Massacre!"
The giant claws swept horizontally, hitting three Sages at once. Sage Aldric managed to dodge, but Sage Gorath and Sage Geraldi took a direct hit. Sage Gorath's body was thrown 50 meters, smashing into rocks until his ribs broke. Fresh blood poured from his mouth. Sage Geraldi was even worse off. The dragon's claws tore through his mana shield and armor, creating a deep wound in his chest. He fell in critical condition.
"Gorath! Geraldi!" Sage Elara screamed hysterically seeing her comrades severely injured.
On the other side, the 10 Sages facing the Celestial Fallen were experiencing similar difficulties. The Celestial Fallen, once an angel, had now fallen to darkness. Its once-white wings were now tattered and black, its armor cracked but still radiating a terrifying aura.
"Fallen Grace!" The Celestial Fallen swung its greatsword, which was cloaked in dark energy. The slash created a wave of dark energy that cut through the ground for 100 meters. The Sages leaped to avoid it, but Sage Beatrice reacted too late. The energy wave hit her leg, severing her right leg from the knee.
"AAAHHH!" Her scream was heartbreaking as she fell to the ground, clutching her severed leg.
"Beatrice!" Sage Damien immediately ran to help her, using emergency healing magic to stop the bleeding.
Sage Lysander, who led this group, gritted his teeth. "We can't keep fighting defensively. Attack with maximum formation!"
"Sage Formation: Elemental Convergence!"
The 9 Sages who could still fight formed a nine-sided formation, each representing a different element. They began to channel all their mana for a single combined attack.
But the Celestial Fallen gave them no chance. It flew high with its tattered wings, then dove down at full speed.
"Divine Destruction!"
The Celestial Fallen's body was cloaked in black light, creating an explosion when it hit the ground in the middle of the Sage formation.
BOOM!
The formation shattered, and the Sages were thrown in all directions. Sage Lysander vomited blood, the bones in his hand broken. Sage Cordelia fainted with a severe concussion.
The situation became even more chaotic when the Elder Dragon and the Celestial Fallen began to coordinate. They attacked alternately, giving the Sages no chance to regroup or strategize.
Of the 20 Sages at the start of the battle, 3 were now dead, 8 were severely wounded and needed immediate evacuation, and the remaining 9 could still fight but were in a very weakened state. One Sage left the battle area, carrying the 8 severely wounded to the soldiers in charge of evacuation.
At the evacuation point - District 6
Alex ran frantically, carrying the unconscious Sage Gorath. The Sage's blood flowed from the wound in his chest, soaking Alex's clothes.
"Alicia! Alicia!" he shouted in panic.
Alicia, who was treating another victim, immediately turned. Her eyes widened when she saw Alex carrying someone wearing a Sage's robe.
"Put him down on the right, slowly!" Alicia guided Alex as he placed Sage Gorath on a prepared cloth.
"This person is a Sage?" Alicia asked, shocked. Seeing such a severe wound on a Sage made her realize just how devastating the battle on the front lines was.
"Yeah, I found him in the Sage's battle area. The situation is really bad, Alicia. The Sages are being overwhelmed by the SS-rank monsters," Alex explained, wiping away his sweat.
"Just how intense is the fighting on the front lines?" Alicia asked as she began to examine Sage Gorath's wound.
"It's extremely intense, Alicia. I heard from another soldier that there are S and SS-rank monsters. Even now, Emperor Arthur is fighting them alone," Alex replied.
Hearing this, Alicia clenched her fists. "I thought I was strong enough. I was wrong. It turns out I'm just an ant."
"Yeah, you're right. Not just you, me too. Alright, let's focus. Where's Clara?" Alex asked.
"She's healing victims on the right side."
Alex looked and saw the healers there, but he couldn't find Clara.
"She's not there. Don't lie to me, Alicia. This is important, you idiot."
"What do you mean? Clara was right there..."
"Wait, where did she go? I swear I just saw her there."
"Alright, I'll look for her later."
"Why? What's the problem?"
"Emm... our Empire isn't just being attacked by monsters. It's also being attacked by four other kingdoms."
"What the fuck."
"That's the reason I'm looking for Clara."
"Because she's from the Moonstone Empire, right?"
Suddenly, another soldier arrived in a hurry, carrying Sage Beatrice, whose leg had been severed.
"Help! Sage Beatrice has lost a lot of blood!" the soldier shouted.
The healers at the evacuation point immediately rushed to help. The situation grew more chaotic as high-level casualties continued to arrive.
"This can't go on," Alex muttered, clenching his fists. "I have to go back to the battlefield."
"Are you crazy? Even the Sages couldn't..."
"Not the front lines, but a battle I can actually participate in. Our Empire is being attacked in a circle, so I'll go to where the A-rank monsters are," Alex cut in.
"Wait, Alex," Alicia said, holding his arm. "You're exhausted, and the wound on your shoulder hasn't fully healed."
"But I can't just stand by when..."
Their conversation was cut short when a massive explosion was heard from the direction of the front lines. A bright light blinded them for a moment, followed by a shockwave that made the buildings in the evacuation district tremble.
"What was that?" Clara asked, running toward them with a pale face.
Before anyone could answer, a communications soldier ran in, his face panicked.
"Report! Emperor Arthur has arrived on the Sage battlefield! He has engaged both SS-rank monsters!"
Hearing the news, a glimmer of hope appeared in the eyes of the conscious victims. Their Emperor—the only Transcendent in the Empire—had finally joined the fight.
"But..." the soldier continued hesitantly, "according to the last report, his condition is also not optimal. He just finished fighting another Elder Dragon."
The hope that had just appeared faded again. Everyone realized that this might be the final battle to determine the fate of the Stellaris Empire.
They were unaware that these monsters were only the first phase. The second phase would be the arrival of the emperors from the other kingdoms. This was a strategy to weaken the Stellaris Empire first.
Back on the Sage battlefield
Arthur von Stellaris appeared via teleportation in the middle of the chaotic battle. His body was unblemished due to his healing, his previous kimono now replaced by a set of battle armor. His sapphire blue eyes, a hallmark of the Stellaris family, burned with strong determination.
In his hand, he held the gleaming golden Excalibur, the legendary sword that could only be wielded by the Emperor of Stellaris.
"Fall back! Let me handle them!" he commanded the 9 remaining Sages.
Sage Aldric felt both relief and worry at the Emperor's arrival. "Your Majesty, but..."
"I'm fine," Arthur cut in without turning his head. His eyes were focused on the Elder Dragon and the Celestial Fallen, who were now facing him with high alert.
The Elder Dragon sneered at Arthur. "So this is the strongest emperor of the current era? You remind me of Cassian von Sunstone."
The Celestial Fallen raised its greatsword. "A human Transcendent... let's see if you are worthy of that title."
Arthur didn't reply. He just raised Excalibur and prepared to fight.
I won't use 100 percent of my power right away or exhaust my stamina, Arthur monologued. I knew from the beginning that this was an attempt to weaken the Stellaris Empire.
A strange smile formed on his face.
Even if this Empire falls, I will at least take their heads...
The heads Arthur was referring to were Alaric, Oberon, Lucien, and Valen.
The wind blew fiercely, making the Emperor's silver hair float dramatically. Around him, the wounded Sages retreated to a safe distance, giving room for the highest-level battle that would decide the fate of this war.
The sky was still dark, signaling that the night still reigned.