As he pushed forward with steady steps toward the summons, through smoke and clinging sparks, Adam rolled up the tatters still hanging from his arms after the explosion. The fabric clung to scorched skin, revealing a mosaic of fresh burns still smoldering.
"I can't conjure anymore. If I fire off a spell like this, the backlash will shred me."He thought bitterly, turning just enough to glimpse Fidelis. In that instant, he understood the price paid was fair."I denied what I am. I tried to break it. Now this is the cost."
"Well then… if my own magic hurts me—!"He crossed both arms against his chest, teeth clenched."It doesn't matter at all!"He raised his arms to the sky, let them fall slightly, though still held high."I'll find a way out of this damned tower, one way or another!"
His left arm swept in an arc, pointing at the fulgoris closing in. He had to choose fast. He could no longer invoke the name of his element; he had lied when accepting his true nature, he had denied it, tried to destroy the invocation itself. Now he needed to expel a spell he had devoured—without the lack of conjuring ripping him apart from inside.
"Shockwave? No. Too much for a single target."His lips curled.
"And you won't stop me," he murmured, smiling faintly.
He summoned his white-bound grimoire etched in gold. The book surged from inside his coat and snapped open. From its pages, golden eyes emerged—staring directly at the fulgoris. The creatures froze, trembling as if hearing a voice no one else could. They had no mouths, no clear awareness… yet something within the book spoke to them. They seemed to listen—to someone not present.
"Fire's too risky without conjuring. No."
Moments passed—eternal. The pages slid beneath his fingers as he weighed which spell to regurgitate."Got it."
He raised his index finger toward the nearest one. "Hope it doesn't hurt too much."
He exhaled.A compressed wind projectile burst from his fingertip, cutting air with a sharp whistle. The recoil tore several gashes—one from the last phalanx, slicing sideways to nearly the knuckle.
The projectile struck the fulgoris' torso—right side of the chest. The creature shattered like glass, its magical body collapsing into a cloud of glittering smoke.
"Good! One down."He clenched his fist against the pain, forcing it open again, panting."Only fourteen more…"
The next shot came faster, harsher. More gashes bloomed.
"Shit… didn't think it'd hurt this much."
He kept firing—every finger, one by one. Blood flowed down his hand, staining the floor. Cuts spread across his palm, his wrist, his forearm. Every spell made him tremble—but also grin.
When only five fulgoris remained, they finally began to strike back more freely. Still, none had managed to take down a single creature on their own.
"One more round!" he roared, trying to smother the pain."Group them, damn it! Closer!"
He aimed again with his index.This time, the air roared.
Like the claws of an unseen beast, the wind condensed and, upon firing, carved a crosswise gash from his fingertip to his elbow. The projectile streaked across the field like white lightning—tearing flame, hurling dust—and pierced three fulgoris at once.
Adam staggered.
The pain he'd been resisting finally crashed into him, breaking his breath. He dropped to one knee, gasping, his arm shaking, blood dripping in heavy beads onto the blackened floor.
He breathed raggedly, tasting metal in the air mixed with his own blood. He tried to rise, pressing a hand to the scorched ground, but his body no longer answered the same way—his arm trembled; his knees buckled.
"I've got plenty of mana… so why the hell am I fading?"His fingers traced his face, confused."Losing strength? I thought not conjuring only hit physically…"
"No… whatever."He muttered through clenched teeth, a broken laugh."I'm… not done yet."
The book remained open.Its golden letters flickered as if the text itself judged him.Adam gritted his teeth and forced himself upright.The ground trembled beneath his boots.
"Come on… just two more."
He stretched out his arm, though he barely felt it. His breath grew harsh, uneven. Blood dripped from his fingertips; the wind he tried to summon resisted—clumsy, directionless.
Then something shifted.The tremor beneath him deepened.Not magic.
A different vibration—low, heavy—crawled through the air.The ship's natural creaks went silent.Dust began to lift.For a moment, everything seemed to tilt.
Adam tried to step, but his foot found nothing—like it slipped past the floor.The ground vanished beneath him.
"What…?"He asked, as he seemed to rise into the air.
The fulgoris dissolved into pure smoke, their bodies drawn upward—as if the air itself folded.
The ship was now in freefall.
He barely had time to react before he was flung against what remained of the floor. The ship tilted without warning; a crushing force hurled him toward a broken column.
The grimoire slammed shut, sealing its golden eyes.
"What the hell is happening now?!" he spat, clinging to a shattered pillar with his good hand.
Dull cracks.The structure writhed like a dying beast.
The fall—no, the descent—accelerated.A deep rumble pulsed from below, like a titanic throat roaring from inside the ship's core.
Adam's mangled arm bled freely.Each heartbeat pumped hot blood; his vision blurred. He tried to steady himself, but the weight of the descent tore his legs free.
He flew.Slammed into a metal railing.The impact punched the air from his lungs.
In the last moment before losing consciousness, he saw Fidelis in the same condition—broken, covered in dust. Yet the scarf around him lashed wildly, runes tearing free, flying toward Adam as if desperate to reach him.
When he finally came to, Adam lay upon barren ground.Around him, the ship's remains sprawled like twisted bones—metal shards, scrap, smoke. He tried to rise; he barely managed to kneel. His vision was fogged.
The crystal that powered the ship glowed faintly several dozen meters away, half-buried in sand.
"Fidelis?"He strained his eyes, trying to focus on figures moving through the dust.
"Young master!"Fidelis' voice rose through smoke and scorching haze."Where are you!?"
Despite the ringing in his ears, Adam recognized him.
"Fidelis…"He whispered, exhausted, but with a faint shade of relief.
He pressed his hands to the ground and pushed himself up, swaying, struggling to keep balance. With effort, he stood. He took a few steps, leaning on a chunk of debris so he wouldn't collapse, and walked toward Fidelis.
He kept his gaze low, watching each step to avoid tripping over the wreckage scattered everywhere.
"Help him!"Fidelis shouted when he saw Adam appear through the haze. His voice tense, almost desperate."Please! If not for him, everything would've been worse…"His tone broke, fading on the last words, almost whispered to himself.
Despite the group's hesitation, one man—the same who had surrounded him before—approached, supporting Adam so he could walk.
Adam didn't raise his head when he reached Fidelis."His leg…"The wound twisted his gut—burned skin, the stench of charred flesh."Disgusting…""I…""I did that."
He couldn't meet his eyes—not from disgust at the wound, but at who caused it.
"Sir, are you all right? How do you feel?"Fidelis asked, voice trembling, but sincere."I tried to use the pendant's magic to cover you, and—"
"I'm fine," Adam cut him off, voice dry."Don't worry."
He let go of the man supporting him and sank onto a piece of wreckage, still staring at the ground. His hands trembled. He looked at the burns and slashes—some already beginning to close, half-sealed by lingering magic from Fidelis' pendant. He ran his fingers over one, guilty, while glancing at Fidelis' leg. The charred flesh remained exposed, untreated.
"Help will be here soon!"One of the surviving officers shouted."Everyone gather! Get away from the ship!"He blew a whistle, its sharp cry cutting through smoke and ash.
Some began whispering. Rumor had it there had been four similar accidents in recent weeks, but under the officer's authoritative voice, all obeyed.All except Adam.
He stayed seated, gaze lost in his blackened hands.
"Sir, we should move," Fidelis said, tired but firm, before following the others.
Adam clicked his tongue."Tsk…"He clenched his fists, holding down the rage—then released them with a harsh sigh."I'll catch up."
Without lifting his gaze, he watched Fidelis and the other passengers disappear into sand and smoke. Their shapes faded like shadows refusing to die.When the last silhouette vanished into the dust, he finally raised his head.
Before him stretched a graveyard of iron and fire.
The ship's remains smoldered under a copper sky; the air reeked of ozone and burnt blood. Metal scraps sank into the hot sand, twisted, glowing like dying embers.
At the center, the energy crystal rose—half-buried—throbbing with feverish light.Its glow was unstable: pulsing, breathing, as if something inside wanted out.
The world held its breath.
Air pressure shifted; a vibration crawled up from the ground into Adam's chest.Then—the crystal burst in a blinding flare.
From its core, a ring of light emerged—an emblem suspended midair.It began to spin slowly… then faster… faster.
The sound built—first a hum, then a roar that pierced bone.
"Shit…"Adam staggered, spitting dust."Whatever!" he roared—his voice swallowed by burning wind.
He drew the book from beneath his clothes.His fingers trembled, yet his lips moved with precision—an ancient tongue, broken by pain and fury.
Threads of violet flame slipped from his mouth, dancing like smoky serpents. Fire bloomed in his palms, crawled up his arms, down to his feet.
A purple burst launched him forward.
The ground melted beneath his steps; sand turned to glass as he sprinted toward Fidelis.
Behind him, the magic circle spun out of control.Mana filaments unraveled from its edges—whips of pure energy lashing the air, pulverizing everything they touched.
The crystal levitated, trembling, roaring with a fury not of this world.
"Fidelis!" Adam shouted, pointing at his chest."Shield!"
Fidelis, breathless, clutched his pendant. He squeezed it tight between his hands and muttered a trembling prayer, barely audible between the howling winds.A golden circle unfolded before him—expanding with faint light, sheltering whoever it could reach.
Adam collapsed at his feet just as the energy wave arrived.
The impact was brutal.
The mana blast didn't sound—it thundered.It crushed the air, a weight falling upon the world.The earth arched as if breathing; stones quivered; and the sky… the sky folded upon itself, torn by a roar from the bottom of creation.
For a moment, time meant nothing.
Fidelis' shield held—But only for an instant.
As soon as the wave touched it, it shattered into thousands of golden shards—scattering like dust in the wind.
From the crystal, rays of light shot through the wreckage.One pierced the sky, splitting clouds—a gash of pure light.Two more streaked toward the horizon like divine spears.
The crystal moved.
Fidelis, voice broken, tried to summon another barrier; his scarf lashed, runes glowing—yet each attempt disintegrated before taking form.
It moved slowly at first—then, with impossible acceleration, the crystal shot away, vanishing in the distance.
And then—the sky lit.
The beam that had torn the heavens began to branch, sketching a colossal magic circle—so vast it swallowed the horizon.
From the opposite end of the sky, another crystal—twice as large—descended in ethereal fire, following the same trajectory.
Every second was more violent than the last.The earth shook like a war drum; the wind tore skin from flesh.
Dust surged in impossible spirals, blinding everyone who tried to flee the circle.
The crystals began to orbit—crossing in a dizzying dance.They flickered—appearing, vanishing—like lightning devouring the sky.
Then, as all turned their eyes upward—It happened.
The air burned.
Bodies dissolved before a scream; flesh turned to smoke; shadows to ash.People, beasts—even birds crossing the firmament—were swallowed, transformed into crimson shades.
Thousands—tens of thousands—rose toward the circle's center.
Adam looked beyond the immediate disaster.He gazed at the horizon—toward the cities beyond the mountains.There, too, the same red sparks rose:Millions of souls torn from flesh, dragged into the heavens.
He glanced at Fidelis—both frozen at what unfolded.
All the souls converged at a single point.
The circle's heart.A vortex.
The world itself seemed to spin around that core of light, devouring all that breathed.
And when the radiance reached its peak—When nothing remained but the roar of the wind and the echoes of the fallen—
Only two figures stayed standing.
Adam and Fidelis—dust-covered, blood-stained—In the middle of absolute silence.
The sky burned like a liquid ocean.The ground was melted glass.
And they—the last—stared at the end of this world once sealed inside the eternal tower.