Darius stood firm at the center of the ruined battlefield, shovel resting lightly against his shoulder, eyes fixed on the figure before him. Xekar. The name alone carried the weight of everything that had gone wrong inside the ruins. The broken seals. The corrupted beasts. The near-collapse of everything they were fighting to protect.
Xekar noticed the others approaching from the sidelines and turned his burning gaze toward them. His red eyes glowed brighter, veins along his charcoal-black skin pulsing like living fire.
"So," he said, his guttural voice echoing across the open space, "each of them turned out to be useless. How disappointing."
Without warning, he raised one hand and formed a dense orb of dark energy. The air twisted around it, screaming softly as the corruption compressed further.
"I suppose it doesn't matter," he continued coldly. "I'll just end you all myself."
The orb shot forward.
Everyone reacted instantly. Caelus pulled back. Alex leapt aside. Movern shifted his stance. Lucien moved Hugo away just in time. The orb crashed into the ground behind them, detonating with a deafening blast. The earth cracked outward in a wide circle, and corrupted energy lingered in the air like poisonous smoke.
The sheer power of the attack made one thing painfully clear.
Xekar wasn't testing them. He was showing them how easily he could erase them.
"I don't have time to waste," Xekar said, tilting his head slightly. "If you all want to come at once, that would be ideal. It'll save me the trouble of killing you one by one."
No one laughed. No one replied. Faces hardened. Weapons tightened in trembling grips.
From the sidelines, Caelus stepped forward first. Alex moved beside him, his colossal pickaxe resting on his shoulder. Movern followed, calm but alert. Lucien and Lunis took position just behind them, flames and moonlight faintly glowing.
Clara stayed back, breathing heavily, her mana nearly depleted. Hugo lay on the ground, barely conscious, while Iria and Sera worked desperately to keep him alive.
Xekar's gaze swept across the group.
"You truly don't understand your limits," he said. "What I am doing is for the betterment of the world. Anyone who stands in the way of that vision… is an obstacle."
A dark smile crept across his face.
"And obstacles," he continued, summoning his massive scythe into his grasp, "must be eliminated."
"Crimson Reave."
Xekar swung the scythe in a wide arc. Dark energy condensed along the blade and tore free as a massive crescent wave, ripping through the air toward them.
Everyone scattered at once. The crescent sliced through the space they had occupied moments earlier, carving a deep scar into the battlefield.
"It is futile to delay the certain," Xekar said calmly, already drawing his scythe back again.
He swung once more.
This time, Lunis barely escaped. The crescent tore past him, close enough to cut through his fur. Lucien moved instantly, stepping in front of Lunis and deflecting part of the attack, flames bursting outward from the impact.
Lunis growled low and activated Lunar Goddess Blessings. A pale, moonlit shield spread outward, wrapping around each of them. His instincts screamed danger. This was not a fight they could endure without protection.
Lucien stepped forward.
"Stillfire Execution!"
The crystallized flames along his spear ignited, burning brighter than before. He hurled the attack straight at Xekar, the spear of flame screaming through the air.
Xekar didn't move.
The attack struck him head-on, engulfing his body in searing fire. For a moment, hope flickered.
Then Xekar stepped forward.
His body was scorched. Parts of his flesh were burned away. Bone was visible beneath the charred remains.
And yet… he smiled.
His hand reached out and grabbed Lucien's spear mid-shaft. The burned flesh began to writhe, regenerate, reforming grotesquely before their eyes.
"Can't you see?" Xekar said softly, eyes locking onto Lucien. "You cannot win."
With a sudden movement, he ripped the spear from Lucien's grasp and swung it brutally, smashing Lucien aside. Lucien crashed across the ground, rolling violently before coming to a stop.
Caelus moved next.
"Petal Flash."
His body blurred. His sword glowed faintly as he dashed across the battlefield, slashing again and again. Dreamlike petals filled the air, floating beautifully for a moment, then detonating in delayed bursts.
When the smoke cleared, Xekar was still standing.
Unmoved. Unharmed.
"Now," Xekar said, rotating his shoulders slowly, "my turn."
"Scythe Spiral Massacre."
He spun.
His body moved at terrifying speed, the scythe extending, splitting into overlapping blades. Dark energy screamed outward as everything within range was shredded. The ground split apart. The air howled.
Everyone fled in different directions, throwing up barriers, launching attacks, trying desperately to slow him down.
It wasn't enough.
Xekar broke through Lunis's defenses. Three brutal strikes landed almost instantly. Blood sprayed as Lunis howled in pain, collapsing on the ground.
Lucien saw red. Rage overtook him completely.
"Ember Bridge!"
He raised his spear high, flames gathering at its tip, crystallized fire burning brighter than ever before. He slammed it down, releasing a massive wave of flame that crashed toward Xekar.
Xekar didn't dodge.
He stood there, arms open slightly, amused.
"How foolish."
The flames engulfed him entirely, roaring high into the air. Heat distorted the battlefield. For a moment, nothing could be seen.
Then… footsteps.
Xekar emerged from the fire.
His body was burned. Flesh torn away. Bones exposed.
And yet, step by step, his body regenerated. Charred muscle reformed. Veins pulsed. Skin closed over bone. The process was grotesque, horrifying to witness.
"Doesn't it boil your blood," Xekar said calmly, "when someone hurts those you love?"
His body finished regenerating.
"I shall free you all from that suffering."
Silence fell.
"The world is imperfect," Xekar continued, spreading his arms slightly. "He will make a new world. A world without discrimination. Without suffering."
His crimson aura flared.
"So rejoice," he said coldly. "Your deaths will become part of that grand path."
No one moved. They understood now.
The threat before them was far worse than they had imagined.
But retreat… was not an option.
And the war, far from ending, had only just revealed its true monster.