Reeve kept walking.
The clash behind him—king-level mana ripping the air apart—didn't slow his steps. His vision was sharp, his body light, every movement guided by something deeper than instinct.
Then—
Another presence appeared.
Closer.
Sharper.
Intent honed to a single purpose.
"Behind—!" Yuzora gasped.
But before she could move—
Reeve vanished.
No distortion.
No trail.
He was suddenly beside the Fairy King.
Reeve's eyes flicked across the battlefield.
Two figures stood there now.
Cloaked. Masked. Their mana folded so tightly it looked like shadows stitched into human form.
The Fairy King spoke, calm but heavy.
"Why did you come here?"
The figures didn't answer.
Then the king's gaze shifted.
His pupils narrowed.
"…So it wasn't just two."
The air changed.
From the far edge of the kingdom—
The border turned black.
Not darkness.
Absence.
Mana vanished where the black spread, devoured without resistance.
Yuzora's breath caught.
"That's… a demon formation—"
Reeve vanished again.
This time—
He reappeared inside the formation.
His fist drove forward.
One of the figures standing before him didn't even scream.
The impact crushed chest, core, and mana together.
The body collapsed—empty.
At the same instant—
The Fairy King moved.
One step.
One punch.
The second attacker ceased to exist.
No explosion.
No blood.
Just… erased.
Reeve and the king turned together.
Toward the border.
Before either could move—
BOOM.
A massive explosion erupted.
But not from the kingdom.
From the demon army itself.
Screams echoed.
Formation shattered.
Mana spiraled out of control.
By the time Reeve and the Fairy King reached the edge—
There was only one demon left.
He tried to flee.
A blade of light flashed.
Lunareth.
She stood behind him as he fell, expression unreadable.
Silence settled.
Then—
Mist rolled in.
Thick.
Cold.
Two silhouettes emerged from within it.
Slow.
Unhurried.
Watching.
Reeve felt it.
Whatever just arrived—
They weren't scouts.
They weren't assassins.
They were something else entirely.