The wind died long before they saw him.
Mist choked the forest path, smothering the air until even the sound of their steps vanished.
Each tree leaned inward as if listening. The scent of metal and ozone clung to the fog, thick enough to taste.
Then—movement.
A figure emerged, tall and deliberate, the edges of his form bending the light itself.
Vaelis.
His presence was pressure. The grass wilted beneath his boots, and mana swirled like a living storm around him. Every breath they took seemed thinner, as though the world had been rewritten to accommodate only him.
Elira's hand went instinctively to her sword. The hilt felt colder than usual.
Kael's stance lowered beside her. Mira's rings flickered with red and blue light.
But the one who moved first—was Haco.
He stepped forward, cloak brushing the soil.
"Stay back," he said.
It wasn't a request.
Vaelis's lips curved into a smile. "Ah, the fox who dares bare his fangs." His voice rippled through the air like silk over steel. "You've grown slower, Haco. Without your contract spirit, you are… diminished. A shadow of the warrior you once were."
Haco didn't blink. "Still talking like power was ever yours."
For a heartbeat, silence. Then the world tore open.
Sound exploded before they saw the movement.
A line of darkness slashed through the fog; Haco intercepted it midair, his curved saber catching the blow in a flash of gold. The collision shattered the ground beneath them, throwing dust into a spiral storm.
Kael barely held his footing. "That—wasn't a normal strike."
"No," Mira whispered. "That was space."
Each swing from Vaelis distorted the world—trees bent, shadows stretched, even the mist refused to return to shape. Haco answered every cut with precision, each parry ringing like thunder restrained inside a bell.
Nakea's eyes gleamed faintly crimson as she watched. "He's still that fast…"
The two clashed again. Gold met violet.
Light and shadow twisted into arcs that scorched the trees.
Vaelis lifted a hand. The air folded.
Ten after-images of himself stepped out, surrounding Haco in a perfect circle.
Haco's tails flared faintly under his cloak, gold bleeding through the fabric.
"Still relying on tricks," he murmured.
He slid his foot back, the edge of his saber catching a ray of dying sunlight.
"Heavenrend — Ninefold Sever!"
The name struck the air like a drum.
Nine arcs of golden light tore outward, fracturing each illusion one by one. The final cut reached Vaelis himself, raking across his shoulder in a streak of blood.
The fog recoiled. For the first time, Vaelis bled.
Mira gasped. "He… he hit him."
Kael's fists clenched. "He can bleed.*"
Vaelis looked down at the wound, then smiled almost fondly. "So the relic fox still bites."
"Only when cornered," Haco replied.
Kael's gauntlets sparked. "Our turn."
He dropped low, palms touching the soil. Lightning ran across his arms, coiling into his hands.
"Mira, veil me!"
She spun her twin rings, summoning a burst of fire and ice that erupted into dense, hissing steam.
Kael charged through it, shouting over the storm.
"Thunder Break!"
The air flashed white. A sphere of condensed electricity exploded from his palm, slamming into Vaelis's side. The blast cracked through the mist like a cannonshot, distorting the Dominion field around them. For an instant, the psychic pressure thinned.
Vaelis slid half a step back. His eyes narrowed—amused.
"Clever boy," he said softly. "But tricks don't win wars."
He raised his hand. The black sphere around him pulsed once.
Gravity inverted.
Kael and Mira hit the ground hard, forced to their knees. Trees bent sideways; stones cracked under invisible weight.
Elira tried to move, her fingers tightening around Lumeveil.
"Lumeveil," she whispered. "Please—answer me."
Nothing.
The blade stayed dim, no radiance, no hum—only dead steel.
Vaelis turned his gaze toward her, his voice smooth and cruel.
"Even your spirit knows futility when it sees it."
Rage and fear tangled in her chest.
Why now? Why won't you—?
She raised the sword anyway, forcing her body forward.
"Lumeveil!" she screamed. "Radiant—!"
No light.
Vaelis's shadow arced toward her, black energy coiling like a whip.
And then—gold.
Haco flashed between them, his tails bursting through the cloak—nine streams of golden flame cutting sigils into the fog. His saber burned white, brighter than sunlight.
"You talk too much," he said, low and steady.
Then he vanished.
"Starlight Reversal!"
The forest erupted.
A pillar of gold carved upward, shredding Vaelis's shadow barrier. The air ignited in a perfect spiral, devouring every trace of darkness in its path. The explosion swallowed all sound, leaving only a silent storm of light.
When the haze cleared, Vaelis stood at the center—robe torn, part of his arm burned raw.
He brushed the ash from his shoulder. "Without your spirit, you'll never surpass me."
Haco's golden eyes dimmed slightly, his breathing ragged. "Then I'll just keep clawing."
They vanished again, colliding midair. Each impact sent rings of mana rippling outward, the forest crumbling beneath them.
Nakea shouted over the chaos, "He'll tear himself apart!"
Kael gritted his teeth, charging lightning along his gauntlets. "Then we pull him out!"
Mira threw a flare of frost and flame, creating a wall of steam.
Through the haze, Elira saw Haco land—his blade cracked, one knee on the ground. Vaelis raised his hand, forming another sphere of darkness.
"Haco—!" she cried.
He turned, a faint smile on his bloodied face.
"Not your fight. Not yet."
He drove his sword into the ground.
"Nine-Tail Step—Veil Gate!"
The forest shattered into light.
They were gone before the echo of his words faded.
When vision returned, they were lying on cracked stone, miles from the battlefield.
The night air was cold; their breaths came in ragged gasps.
Haco knelt in the center, hands braced against the ground, blood dripping from his fingertips. His tails flickered weakly behind him before fading into nothing.
Nakea stared. "You actually hurt him."
Haco wiped the corner of his mouth. "Barely. And he let me."
Kael's voice was rough. "If even you can't beat him…"
"Then learn faster," Haco said simply. "Power isn't the gap—it's the climb."
Mira pressed her ring against a wound on Kael's arm, sealing it with frost. "You almost burned through your mana core."
"Worth it," Kael muttered, forcing a grin. "I hit him, didn't I?"
Haco didn't answer. He was watching the far horizon—the faint pulse of black energy still glowing where Vaelis stood.
They made camp among the ruins, silence settling heavy around the fire. Mira and Kael fell asleep fast, exhaustion claiming them. Nakea stood watch, arms folded, her crimson gaze half-shadowed by the flames.
Elira sat apart, staring at Lumeveil laid across her knees. The blade reflected no light, only her face—pale, uncertain, afraid.
"If this is my light…" she whispered, voice trembling, "why does it feel like his shadow?"
The sword gave no answer.
Only the wind moved, carrying the faint echo of thunder far away.
And somewhere beyond the horizon, Vaelis smiled into the mist—blood drying at the corner of his mouth.