As they made their way down the mountain, the air grew darker.
The moon hid completely behind thick clouds; a cold wind whistled through the rocks.
Aurelia:
> "The world… has changed so much.
These slopes were once covered in forests.
Birds singing, flowers blooming… now there's only dust and stone."
Swen:
> "If we can stop Michael's army, everything will grow again.
Once the earth remembers the light, life will return."
Koharu:
> "I remember the Land of Angels.
Everything was green, even the rivers shimmered with light.
Maybe… we stole that life from here."
A short silence fell.
The moon peeked out from behind the clouds as Shinju lifted his gaze to the sky.
Shinju:
> "Do you think we'll ever see those days again?"
Swen glanced at him with a faint smile.
> "If we want to see them, first we have to earn them back."
Koharu lowered her head, her smile touched with sadness.
> "Maybe that's what this journey is for… to earn back what we lost."
---
They continued down the narrow path.
The sky had turned completely black now.
The moon was swallowed by clouds, and the wind howled between the stones.
Suddenly, Swen froze. Her eyes shifted upward.
> "Something… is flying," he whispered.
Dark shadows moved across the sky.
At first, just a few… then dozens… hundreds.
The fluttering sound of wings filled the air — sharp, shrill, and chaotic.
Shinju:
> "Void bats… be careful.
They always attack in groups — one mistake can be deadly."
Aurelia smiled, a confident spark in her eyes.
> "Perfect. A chance to see your strength in action.
I'll leave these little bugs to you, Shinju."
Shinju shot her a sideways look.
> "Bugs? These things are far from harmless.
I've never seen such a swarm before.
Since the Void collapsed, they've gathered together like this…
and I'm nowhere near my former power."
Aurelia crossed her arms, the challenge plain in her tone.
> "Stop making excuses and get to work.
Let's see what that proud 'power of nothingness' can actually do."
Swen sighed, stepping back with a grimace.
> "Wonderful… an ego contest.
And I'm sharing airspace with the bats."
The shadows dived down at them.
They shifted direction every second; Shinju's eyes struggled to follow their movements.
He gathered Yin energy — dark sparks flickered in his palms.
He launched several bursts of force, gray streaks slicing through the night sky.
But the bats were too fast.
His attacks tore through the air, missing every target.
Koharu:
> "I believe in you, Shinju! You can do this!"
Shinju glanced at her and smiled faintly.
He formed a single Yin Needle and shot it upward.
The needle chased one of the bats, but the creature was faster than his eyes could follow.
After a long pursuit, he finally managed to strike one down.
> "There!" he exhaled. "I'm getting used to their speed — I can track them now."
The sky trembled.
The remaining bats let out a high-pitched, piercing shriek.
The sound vibrated through their bones.
> "Ugh… that frequency—!" Swen groaned, clutching her ears.
Shinju's Yin flow faltered. The Yin Needle trembled, then shattered.
Shinju:
> "Damn it… another sound-based attack?!"
The bats sensed his disrupted aura and circled him in a frenzy.
Every wave of Yin energy he tried to summon was dissolved within their shrieking resonance.
Koharu and Swen dropped to their knees, unable to breathe under the pressure.
Aurelia stepped forward, her voice calm but sharp.
> "So that's your limit, huh?"
Her crimson eyes turned upward.
Her expression shifted — from calm serenity to royal power.
She took a deep breath.
And the sky exploded in flame.
Fire spread like an ocean above them, bathing the world in light.
Bats screamed as they burned, falling like fiery rain.
The air reeked of scorched flesh.
Shinju stared, speechless.
> "It didn't even take a minute…"
What insane power… so she wasn't even using her full strength when she fought me…
When Aurelia's flames finally faded, only ashes and blackened feathers remained.
Shinju exhaled slowly, surrounded by silence.
> "I was fighting for half an hour," he said, exhausted. "You ended it in one breath."
Aurelia walked toward him with quiet grace.
> "No creature alive can withstand dragonfire," she said softly.
She placed a hand on his shoulder.
> "I don't understand you. You rely on that cursed power,
yet inside you is something much greater — the power of a dragon.
Why won't you use it?"
Shinju:
> "I tried… but it doesn't work.
I've always cultivated the essence of the Void.
I can't seem to awaken that new energy."
Aurelia folded her arms, her eyes gleaming with wisdom.
> "Yin and Yang are the two hearts of the universe.
We dragons command Yang — the essence of creation.
Yang gives birth to life and form."
She raised her finger and traced a glowing circle of fire in the air;
it flared for a moment before fading into smoke.
> "To create fire, you must desire the flame itself.
To call forth a storm, you must create the wind.
To bring floods, you must birth the water."
Her voice softened, almost like a teacher's.
> "But your energy, Shinju… is Yin.
Yin is destruction — the power of returning everything to nothing.
If you wish to control Yang, you must reverse the intent of your Yin.
Yin drives you to break apart; Yang compels you to unite.
Your Yin was born to erase —
so if you wish to awaken Yang…
you must feel the act of creation itself."