Dawn's light clawed through the acrid smoke that still curled across the courtyard. Scorched marble lay cracked beneath splintered shields; banners fluttered limp on singed poles. All around, the groans of wounded A-rank knights pierced the morning hush. Even victory felt hollow.
Tonio knelt over Sir Edrin's shattered arm, pressing a living vine to stem the bleeding.
Sir Edrin (weakly): "I… believed in legends."
Tonio (softly): "Then live to see them."
Yeon propped himself against a broken pillar, his cloak spattered with blood and frost. He watched as gouts of flame flared from the second rift—still pulsing, still hungry.
Yeon (bitter smile): "Breakfast's overrated anyway."
Cezar, half-wolf fur singed and furrows of ash on his muzzle, helped a second-year cadet to her feet. Each of his breaths came in sharp, electric surges.
Cadet (awed): "I… thank you."
Cezar (gruff): "Don't thank a wolf for cleaning his teeth."
At the ramparts, Rayan and Prince Kael stood side by side. Kael's broken wing lay swathed in healing silk; his eyes glowed with fierce resolve. But even he looked weary.
Rayan (quietly): "We can't hold them forever."
Kael (voice unsteady): "If we stay… more will die."
I. Envoy's Gauntlet
From the rift's yawning maw strode the Demon King's Envoy, his war-axe leaving trails of shadowed flame. Skeletal war-engines clanked behind him, their infernal bellows drowning out every heartbeat.
He paused at the courtyard's edge, surveying the battered line of S- and A-rank defenders. With a single, cruel smile, he lifted his axe.
Envoy (voice like rolling thunder): "Only the broken kneel at dawn. Prove your worth… or be trampled under demon hordes."
He slammed the axe into the ground. A shockwave of brimstone wind sent knights reeling. Shields shattered, bones cracked. The line wavered.
Elira Vance stood atop the rampart, storm-blue magic flaring in her palms as she tried to reinforce her Time-Ward. But the Envoy's presence frayed even her ancient runes.
II. Blood by Blood, Death by Death
The counterattack began in a storm of steel and sorrow:
Cezar, snarling in hybrid form, barred the Envoy's path. He unleashed "Alpha Storm Charge"—a vortex of lightning-tipped claws. Each strike rang like thunder; flesh and bone sparkled away.
Cezar (roar): "Feel this!"
Yet with every boomerang-fast blow, another skeletal knight flooded the courtyard. For each one he felled, two more took its place.
Yeon darted between flaming columns of smoke, fingertips sparks as he carved "Dark Thunder Spear" into the war-engines. Electrified in their cogs until they jammed in grinding terror.
Yeon: "Stun, you metal monstrosities!"
But the machines shuddered, then roared back to life—hissing steam scalding his legs.
Tonio raised both arms, chanting urgently. From cracks in the stone sprang vines that wrapped around wounded knights' limbs—each "Life-Root Paradox" both healed flesh and constricted demon coils.
Tonio (voice cracking): "Grow… protect…"
Still, every vine he summoned was sliced through by hellfire-drakes that swooped with shrieks.
Rayan and Kael pressed the assault on the Envoy himself. Rayan's Null Hour Strike ripped time's seam around the Envoy's axe—yet the demon simply braced and turned the blast aside. Kael met the sickle-bright edge with "Sunflare Aegis," a shield of blazing light that crackled and shattered the Envoy's flank.
Kael: "For Arcania!"
Still, the Envoy retaliated with a single swing, sending both flying into shattered pillars.
By mid-battle, the courtyard was a mosaic of agony: knights missing limbs, magic torrents sputtering out, the Envoy's laughter booming through the pain.
III. Decision to Retreat
Rayan staggered to his feet, crimson light bleeding across his armor. He looked at the battered ranks—dozens of A- and A+-rank knights fallen or broken.
Rayan (hoarse): "Kael… we have to fall back."
Kael's wings flared weakly. His breath came in painful rasp:
Kael: "If we stay… we'll all die."
Elira's Time-Ward shimmered, on the brink of collapse. She raised her staff in silent agreement.
IV. The Envoy's Mercy
As the defenders retreated behind the academy gates, the Envoy lifted his axe once more—eyes glowing with triumph. A moment of tense silence followed.
Envoy (low bow): "Live… to see your ruin."
With that, he stepped back through the rift. Its crimson maw sealed with a thunderous crack. The courtyard fell into stunned quiet—death's echo drifting on the dawn breeze.
V. Summoned Home
Inside the stillness, the air shimmered with dark sigils. The Envoy knelt before a colossal throne in the Demon Realm. The Demon King—a silhouette of living flame and shadow—rose and spoke:
Demon King: "You have done well. The mortals yielded blood and fear. Soon, their world will be ours."
Obediently, the Envoy bowed.
Envoy: "My lord's will be done."
VI. The Dragonoid's Watch
High above Arcania—hidden in the bell tower—the Dragonoid observed through silver-lensed eyes. He had witnessed every blade clash, every life extinguished. Now the portals were quiet once more.
He flexed his clawed hand, scales gleaming in the fading dawn.
Dragonoid (whisper): "Elzure's gambit… the Envoy's mercy. They run, but fear calls them back."
His eyes drifted to the Timeless Blade's rune—etched in his memory from that fateful duel.
Dragonoid: "Soon, the balance will shift again. And when it does, I will be there."
With a silent flap of his great silver wings, he disappeared into the morning mist—already plotting his next move in the war that would decide Arcania's fate.
End of Chapter 22
Explanations:
Kael vs. Elzure (Ground Clash)
After Elzure's earth-shattering shockwave sent Prince Kael crashing into a pillar, Kael rose—wings aflame—to unleash Sunlight Requiem, only for Elzure to catch and shatter the beam one-handed.
Sky-High Duel (Bell-Tower Leap)
From his hidden perch in the Academy's bell tower, the Dragonoid vaulted into the air and joined Elzure above the courtyard. Their clash—flame against storm—ripped shockwaves through the trees and stunned every onlooker below.
Demon King's Summons (Elzure's Departure)
Mid-duel, the Demon King's command echoed through the veil. Elzure broke off combat, answered the call, and vanished back through a one-way portal into the Demon Realm.
Silent Sentinel (Dragonoid's Vigil)
With Elzure gone, the Dragonoid hovered momentarily over the shattered marble, scales glinting in the dusk, before slipping back into the Academy's shadows—his mission only half-complete.
A Guardian's Choice (Delay in Departure)
Though the summons threatened to tear him away, the Dragonoid's gaze lingered first on Rayan's still-pulsing Timeless Blade and then on the distant horizon where its original resting place lay. He chose to remain—watching.
No Realm were Involved (Demon Realm)
Though it looked otherworldly, the entire sequence remained within Arcania's walls. Elzure never crossed back into the Demon Realm until after the Dragonoid's blade‐vs‐claw barrage forced him to answer the Demon King's summons.