Barbatos really moves fast when his own statue is on the line.
Kaito shot upward through the storm, the thought flashing through his mind with a crooked grin.
That mysterious force that had twisted the black tornado away—saving the Statue of The Seven from being torn apart—could only belong to one being.
The Anemo Archon.
Barbatos, watching from the shadows.
Without hesitation, Kaito plunged straight into the black cyclone that had swallowed Lumine.
A normal person would be shredded instantly inside a vortex like this.
But both of them could wield Anemo.
Barely—just barely—they could hold themselves together.
The tornado hurled them above the clouds.
One moment: darkness, debris, screaming wind.
The next: blue sky and harsh sunlight.
The contrast hit so hard it stung.
With their gliders open, they drifted down through the cloud layer—
"Kaito… why did you rush in?" Lumine asked, staring at him. Her eyes were bright—and unsettled.
She'd seen it clearly. He hadn't been caught.
He'd chosen to dive in.
"Because I didn't want you getting hurt," Kaito said simply. "And I did warn you to be careful."
Lumine's cheeks warmed. "…I was distracted. I froze for a second."
Kaito was about to answer when his expression shifted.
His eyes snapped sideways.
"It's here."
He hooked an arm around Lumine's waist and twisted them hard in midair—
A massive maw tore past, so close the wind pressure made their bones hum.
Stormterror's body swept by like a living stormfront.
The shockwave spun them. They tumbled once—twice—three times—before Kaito finally forced them steady again.
"Are you alright?" he asked, breathing out.
"I… I'm fine," Lumine said, her voice suddenly quieter.
She'd sensed the danger too.
She'd even tried to reach for him—
…but her body had been a fraction too slow.
And now the roles had flipped.
She was being held like a princess.
A tiny voice drifted in, far too cheerful for the situation.
"Lumine, you're flashing!"
Paimon popped into view like she'd been there the whole time.
"Ah!" Lumine jolted.
The wind had flipped her skirt up—revealing a strip of pale thigh above her over-the-knee stockings. She had shorts underneath, but still—
Too much.
She yanked her skirt down, face burning.
Then Paimon blinked at something else.
"Wait… why aren't we falling?" she asked, peering around. "Kaito, can your glider just… hover like this?"
Before Kaito could answer—
a gentle voice slipped into their ears.
Not loud. Not close.
Like the wind itself had spoken.
"I lend you the thousand-year winds so you will not fall… Now imagine it—gather that wind… and let it pierce the clouds."
As the voice faded, an Anemo sigil condensed in front of them—bright, clean, humming with power.
Kaito felt it instantly.
He could shape that sigil.
Compress the ancient wind into a single point…
…and fire it like a wind arrow.
Paimon spun in a frantic circle, searching the empty sky. "Who was that?! Where are you?!"
"Barbatos," Kaito answered.
Lumine's eyes widened. "The Anemo Archon…?"
She hadn't expected divine help—not like this.
"Kaito," Lumine said quickly. "Let me control it."
Kaito nodded and steadied her. "Open your glider. Hold position."
"And you?" Lumine asked, tense.
Kaito flexed his hand.
It felt like he was gripping something invisible—something heavy.
"I'm going to test Stormterror."
Lumine didn't push.
She focused.
Guided by Barbatos's wind, she fired the condensed Anemo arrows into Stormterror's path—again and again—always staying behind him, always in his blind spot.
No matter how violently the dragon twisted through the sky, he couldn't find a clean angle to strike them.
ROAR!
Stormterror's howl carried frustration—raw and furious.
His gaze burned with hate—not just for them, but for the unseen presence supporting them.
Then he beat his wings and climbed.
Higher.
Trying to break away.
"He's running!" Lumine shouted.
Kaito narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah."
Then he spoke, clear and sharp—
"Wind King's Barrier."
An explosive surge of Anemo erupted from him.
His glider snapped with power, as if it had turned into something else entirely.
And Kaito shot forward.
Fast.
Too fast.
As if the wind itself had become an engine beneath him.
Even Barbatos sounded faintly surprised.
"Oh?"
He spoke again—curious now, like a bard watching an unexpected trick.
"Compressing wind into a single burst… creating pressure and vacuum… propelling oneself forward."
"And reducing resistance mid-flight…"
"That speed is like chaining acceleration wind-rings without limit—enough to catch Dvalin."
Lumine's brows knit.
Boss Kaito…?
She latched onto the odd detail immediately.
It made sense for Mondstadters to call him that.
But a god?
Paimon squeaked. "Kaito's gonna hit him!"
High above, in the open sky—
Kaito's right hand clenched around an invisible greatsword.
He brought it down with brutal force—
BOOM!
The strike slammed into the violet-red crystal embedded in Stormterror's back.
Dvalin's body jolted.
His climb broke, and he dropped hard, roaring in pain.
He twisted midair, glaring back at Kaito—then flared his wings and shot upward again.
He didn't want to fight.
To Dvalin, this looked like Barbatos blessing a mortal—an Archon pushing someone forward.
And he refused to be dragged into a direct confrontation.
Kaito hovered in the air, watching him retreat with faint irritation.
Then his gaze dropped—toward Mondstadt.
Toward several points on the ground where strange light was beginning to shimmer.
His eyes cooled.
"The power of the Four Winds' Temples…"
"So it's already that strong?"
He exhaled, almost disappointed.
"I thought the World Level was still low. He's fighting on enemy ground… I might've been able to end this right here."
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