Master Bolt's light faded.
Smoke drifted across the battlefield.
General Saijew stood unmoving.
His left shoulder bled freely, his sleeve hanging in scorched strips.
Across from him…
Baron breathed heavily.
His chest rose and fell with each labored breath.
Neither man spoke.
The soldiers surrounding them instinctively backed away.
This battle no longer belonged to armies.
It belonged to two warriors.
Saijew slowly rolled his injured shoulder.
Bone shifted back into place with a sickening pop.
He exhaled.
"I've had worse."
Baron's brow furrowed.
"You should've died."
Saijew nodded.
"I've heard that before."
He raised his sword once more.
"When I was your age."
Baron charged.
No hesitation.
His blade crashed downward.
Saijew met it head-on.
The impact shattered another section of the palace courtyard.
Stone burst upward.
Their swords locked.
"You rely on power."
Saijew twisted his blade.
Baron was forced off balance.
"You rely on experience."
Baron answered immediately, spinning into another slash.
Steel screamed.
Saijew blocked.
"And experience is winning."
Baron's jaw tightened.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Every strike became faster.
Every exchange heavier.
Baron's movements began changing.
The reckless swings Magnolia had exploited were gone.
His footwork shortened.
His shoulders relaxed.
His strikes became cleaner.
Saijew noticed.
"…Good."
Baron glared.
"Don't praise me."
"I wasn't."
Saijew drove his elbow into Baron's ribs before sweeping his legs.
Baron hit the ground hard.
The General didn't pursue.
Instead…
He waited.
Baron slowly stood.
"You still don't understand."
Baron wiped blood from his lip.
"Then tell me."
Saijew lowered his sword.
"The strongest warrior isn't the one who wins."
He gestured toward the battlefield behind them.
"It's the one everyone returns home because of."
Baron looked around.
Egyptian medics carried wounded soldiers from the front lines.
Captains reorganized formations.
Emma and Luna treated civilians caught beneath fallen stone.
Valentina stood between injured soldiers and incoming attacks.
Everyone…
Protected someone.
Baron remained silent.
Saijew's voice softened.
"Who are you protecting?"
The question lingered.
Baron's grip tightened.
His answer never came.
Across the battlefield…
Magnolia continued pressing the Pharaoh.
Sunlight erupted from his hands.
A spear.
Gone.
A sword.
Gone.
Golden chains wrapped around the Pharaoh's arm.
They dissolved before tightening.
Magnolia stepped backward.
"…Why?"
The Pharaoh answered calmly.
"Because you still think contracts are weapons."
Magnolia frowned.
"They're not?"
"They are inheritances."
The words settled heavily.
"You borrow a god's ideals."
"You do not command them."
For the first time…
Ra spoke again.
Not to the battlefield.
Only to Magnolia.
Listen.
Magnolia hesitated.
The Pharaoh noticed.
A nearly invisible smile crossed his face.
"So."
"You hear him now."
High above…
Nero watched in silence.
Kronos remained equally quiet.
At last, Nero spoke.
"He grows quickly."
No answer.
Nero smiled to himself.
"I know."
"If he survives…"
"…history changes."
Ren leaned against a fractured column.
Every breath hurt.
Yet his eyes never left the Pharaoh.
Sous approached carefully.
"You can't fight him."
"I know."
"Then why are you standing?"
Ren slowly picked up his sword.
"…Because Magnolia will."
He looked toward the contractor of Ra.
"And he doesn't understand."
A violent explosion interrupted them.
Helena crashed into the ground.
Kibo landed moments later.
One wing hung uselessly behind him.
His breathing had become ragged.
Helena wiped blood from her cheek.
"You refuse to stay down."
Kibo smiled.
"I made a promise."
"To whom?"
He looked toward Magnolia.
"…Hope."
Without another word…
He launched himself into the sky again.
Helena watched him disappear into the clouds.
"…Stubborn."
She followed.
Saijew's duel continued.
Baron attacked relentlessly.
Yet each exchange ended the same.
A deflection.
A counter.
Another lesson.
Baron stumbled backward.
Frustration returned.
"Fight me!"
Saijew tilted his head.
"I have been."
"No."
Baron pointed toward Magnolia.
"You fought him seriously."
Saijew's expression remained unreadable.
"I fight everyone seriously."
"You lie."
"I don't."
Baron roared.
Divine lightning gathered once more.
Master Bolt.
The heavens answered.
Saijew didn't move.
He simply closed his eyes.
"…Your control has improved."
Baron swung.
This time…
Saijew stepped into the attack.
Not away.
Forward.
His blade slid along Baron's.
Their swords sparked violently.
Then…
Saijew struck.
The flat of his blade slammed against Baron's wrist.
Master Bolt vanished instantly.
Baron's sword flew from his hand.
It spun through the air before embedding itself deep within the fractured earth.
Silence.
Saijew pointed his sword toward Baron's throat.
"Pick it up."
Baron stared.
"…What?"
"Pick."
"It."
"Up."
No one understood.
Not Magnolia.
Not Emma.
Not even the Pharaoh.
Baron's pride screamed at him to refuse.
Instead…
He slowly walked toward his fallen weapon.
He retrieved it.
Turned.
Saijew nodded once.
"Again."
For the first time…
Baron smiled.
Not cruelly.
Not arrogantly.
Like a student who had finally found a teacher worthy of him.
Far away…
The Pharaoh observed the exchange.
His gaze lingered on Baron for only a moment.
Then shifted toward Magnolia.
Everything…
Was unfolding exactly as he expected.
Steel rang across the battlefield.
Again.
Again.
Again.
General Saijew and Baron had abandoned everything except the duel before them.
Neither noticed the armies.
Neither noticed the kings.
Only each other.
Baron swung.
Saijew deflected.
The General stepped inside Baron's guard and struck the younger warrior's shoulder with the pommel of his blade.
Baron stumbled.
Saijew did not pursue.
"Stand."
Baron looked up.
"…Why?"
"Because you're still alive."
Baron slowly rose.
His breathing was ragged.
His muscles burned.
Yet for the first time…
His stance resembled a swordsman's.
Saijew nodded.
"…Better."
Across the battlefield…
The Pharaoh finally moved.
Not toward Saijew.
Toward Magnolia.
Each step was measured.
Each step stole the confidence from those around him.
Magnolia noticed.
His golden blade reformed.
"I'm not letting you through."
The Pharaoh's eyes never left him.
"I know."
Then…
He disappeared.
Magnolia's eyes widened.
Too fast.
The Pharaoh was already behind him.
A single palm reached toward Magnolia's shoulder.
Instinct screamed.
Magnolia turned.
Too late.
Before the Pharaoh's hand could touch him…
Saijew appeared between them.
Steel flashed.
The General intercepted the strike.
The impact shook the palace courtyard.
Magnolia stared.
"…General…"
Saijew never looked back.
"I told you…"
His grip tightened.
"…I'd stand in your way."
The Pharaoh regarded him quietly.
"You have."
For the briefest instant…
The battlefield became still.
Then…
Baron saw the opening.
Every lesson.
Every strike.
Every correction.
Every failure.
All of them led to this single moment.
His body moved before his thoughts.
Master Bolt answered.
Lightning descended.
Saijew heard it.
He smiled.
"…Good."
He didn't turn.
If he blocked Baron…
The Pharaoh would reach Magnolia.
If he stopped the Pharaoh…
Baron would strike.
There was no winning move.
Only one choice.
Saijew chose Magnolia.
He shoved him backward.
"MOVE!"
Magnolia stumbled.
"GENERAL!"
Master Bolt struck.
The divine lightning tore through Saijew's side.
At the same instant…
The Pharaoh's hand pierced through the opening Baron had created.
His fingers drove into Saijew's chest.
Not violently.
Almost gently.
The General coughed.
Blood stained the front of his armor.
Silence.
The Pharaoh slowly withdrew his hand.
Saijew remained standing.
For one impossible heartbeat.
Then…
His sword slipped from his fingers.
It struck the ground.
He looked toward Magnolia.
A faint smile crossed his face.
"…Good…"
"…You finally learned…"
His knees buckled.
"…not…"
"…to fight…"
"…alone."
General Saijew collapsed.
The battlefield froze.
Magnolia ran.
"No!"
He caught the General before he struck the earth.
Blood stained Magnolia's hands.
"General…"
Saijew's breathing had become shallow.
His eyes slowly found Magnolia.
"You've…"
He smiled weakly.
"…become…"
"…a leader."
His gaze drifted upward.
Toward the endless blue sky.
"I can…"
"…rest."
His eyes closed.
The hand resting against Magnolia's arm fell away.
General Saijew.
Commander of Egypt.
Guardian of the Sun.
Was gone.
No one spoke.
Even Baron stood frozen.
His sword slowly lowered.
"…What…"
His voice trembled.
"…have I done?"
The Pharaoh answered without emotion.
"What you chose."
Far above the battlefield…
Kibo soared through the smoke.
His wounded wing barely obeyed him.
Each beat hurt more than the last.
Still…
He flew.
He searched.
He looked for survivors.
For hope.
For anyone needing rescue.
Then…
A voice reached him.
"Beautiful."
Kibo stopped.
The Pharaoh stood upon the highest remaining tower of the palace.
He had arrived there without anyone noticing.
His golden eyes followed the wounded young man.
"Even wounded…"
"…you still fly."
Kibo tightened his grip on his spear.
"…I'm not stopping."
"I know."
The Pharaoh extended one hand.
"Come."
Kibo shook his head.
"…No."
The Pharaoh lowered his hand.
"…A shame."
Below…
Ren finally reached Magnolia.
Both of them fell to their knees beside Saijew's body.
Neither spoke at first.
They simply looked at one another.
Magnolia's face was streaked with dirt and tears.
Ren's lip still bled from where the Pharaoh had thrown him.
Ren grabbed Magnolia's shoulders.
"You alright?"
Magnolia looked back.
"…Are you?"
Ren let out a weak laugh.
"I've had better days."
Magnolia managed the faintest smile.
"So have I."
The smile disappeared almost immediately.
Between them…
Saijew lay motionless.
Ren slowly looked toward the Pharaoh.
His expression hardened.
"…He took everything."
Magnolia followed his gaze.
His hands tightened into fists.
For the first time…
The contractor of Ra and the son of the Pharaoh shared the same thought.
They had to stop him.
No matter the cost.
The battlefield had forgotten how to breathe.
General Saijew's body rested where Magnolia still knelt.
No one dared disturb the silence.
Not even the wind.
High above…
Kibo beat his remaining wing.
Each movement hurt.
Each breath burned.
Still…
He climbed.
The Pharaoh watched him from the ruined tower.
"You continue."
Kibo tightened his grip around his spear.
"I always will."
"You cannot fly forever."
"I don't have to."
The Pharaoh's gaze remained steady.
"Only long enough?"
Kibo smiled.
"Exactly."
For the first time…
The Pharaoh nodded.
"A worthy answer."
Then…
Something moved.
Emma saw it first.
"…Magnolia."
He looked up.
Small black snakes emerged from beneath the Pharaoh's sleeves.
One coiled around his wrist.
Another slid across his shoulder.
A third disappeared beneath the golden collar resting around his neck.
More followed.
Dozens.
None hissed.
None struck.
They simply moved across his body as though he were ancient stone beneath the desert sun.
Valentina instinctively stepped backward.
"…What are those?"
Ren's expression changed.
His eyes widened.
"No…"
Magnolia frowned.
"…Snakes?"
The Pharaoh slowly extended one hand.
The serpents wrapped around his arm.
Around his fingers.
Around the ancient markings burned into his skin.
His contract answered.
The battlefield darkened.
Not because clouds gathered.
Because the sunlight itself seemed unwilling to touch him.
A voice echoed behind Magnolia.
Soft.
Ancient.
Filled with grief.
"Seth…"
Ra.
The single word carried no hatred.
Only disappointment.
The Pharaoh looked toward Magnolia.
"You recognize him."
Magnolia remained silent.
The Pharaoh closed his hand.
The snakes vanished beneath his skin.
Golden markings shifted.
Black replaced gold.
The earth trembled.
Far beneath the battlefield…
Something answered.
Ren whispered,
"…The royal contract…"
Emma looked toward him.
"What?"
Ren couldn't take his eyes off the Pharaoh.
"Every Pharaoh…"
"…inherits Seth."
The words struck Magnolia harder than any blade.
His gaze slowly drifted back toward Ren.
The same golden eyes.
The same posture.
The same calm.
For the first time…
There was no room left to doubt.
The Pharaoh truly was his father.
High above…
Kibo descended.
Spear ready.
"If I keep him busy…"
His remaining wing strained.
"…they'll escape."
The Pharaoh looked upward.
"You choose sacrifice."
Kibo laughed.
"I choose people."
"So did another."
The Pharaoh stepped forward.
No explosion.
No flash of divine light.
Only one motion.
The snakes erupted.
They became black streams racing across the shattered palace.
They climbed broken pillars.
Slithered across fallen banners.
Wrapped around Kibo's spear.
Kibo tore free.
The snakes followed.
He struck downward.
His spear split the stone where the Pharaoh had stood.
Nothing.
A whisper reached his ear.
"Behind you."
Kibo turned.
Too late.
The Pharaoh's palm rested lightly against his chest.
Nothing happened.
For one heartbeat…
Nothing.
Then…
The markings beneath Kibo's skin darkened.
Black veins spread outward from the point of contact.
His eyes widened.
"…What…"
The Pharaoh withdrew his hand.
"The desert buries everything."
Kibo staggered backward.
His remaining wing refused to move.
The black veins continued spreading.
His spear slipped from numb fingers.
Far below…
Magnolia looked up.
"KIBO!"
Kibo smiled.
Weakly.
His eyes found Magnolia.
"…Don't…"
His voice trembled.
"…stop flying…"
The black markings reached his heart.
Kibo's body became still.
For one final moment…
The wind caught his feathers.
He looked almost weightless.
Then…
He fell.
White feathers scattered across the battlefield.
Some landed beside Magnolia.
Some beside Ren.
One drifted across Saijew's body.
No one moved to catch him.
The earth did.
Silence.
The Pharaoh watched without triumph.
Without regret.
Only certainty.
He looked toward Magnolia once more.
The snakes slowly returned.
This time…
They did not disappear.
Instead…
They rested quietly across his shoulders.
Watching.
Waiting.
Ra spoke again.
His voice had become quieter.
"My sun…"
"Do not let them take you."
Magnolia's chest tightened.
Take me?
He looked toward the Pharaoh.
For the briefest instant…
He thought he saw one of the serpents raise its head.
Not toward him.
Toward the sands stretching beyond the battlefield.
Toward Egypt.
Toward something buried far beneath it.
The serpent lowered its head once more.
The Pharaoh turned away.
"The temple is waiting."
He had spoken so softly that no one else seemed to hear.
But Magnolia did.
And somewhere beneath endless layers of ancient sand…
Something ancient smiled