The first-floor hall of the palace had become a true battlefield.
Heavy breaths, sweat, shadows intertwining with the faint light from the high windows, and the cries of children growing louder with every fall.
In a corner of the corridor, Steve stepped forward first, waving his arms to release sharp air blades from his palms:
"We won't let you... reach Jonathan!"
The air blades shot forth... but one of the cleaver-wielding copies swung its weapon, slicing through the waves as if they were mere smoke.
Behind him, Edward charged, his body glowing with blue flames, leaping high to strike one of the copies:
"Go to hell!!!"
But...
Before he could land, a copy wielding a long spear raised its arm and struck him sideways...
Edward was sent flying.
In the blink of an eye...
Both Steve and Edward lay on the ground.
As if their bodies were nothing but leaves in a green storm.
...
The copies moved without pause.
One leaped from the ceiling, raining down on Kai.
Another attacked Noor with a scream that pierced directly into her mind.
The difference in power... was unbelievable.
The light dimmed.
Hope evaporated.
The children retreated. Every cry grew weaker than the last.
...
And then suddenly...
BOOOM!!!
A silent explosion shook the air.
The ground trembled for a moment.
Then... a faint, transparent wall enveloped the battlefield.
A bubble... pulsing softly in a blackish-green hue.
At its center stood Vlad.
The boy who rarely spoke.
The pale one who never laughed.
The quiet one who went unnoticed.
But now...
His eyes gleamed darkly, his arms trembling as he maintained the dome's shape.
"You... won't touch them."
Vlad muttered, the bubble glowing brighter.
The copies froze.
Some knocked against the barrier, but the dome repelled them with faint black flickers.
"What kind of energy... is this?"
One of the copies asked in a distorted voice, but it remained trapped outside.
...
Mike sat on the ground, panting.
"Vlad... are you...?"
Vlad shook his head slowly, sweat dripping down his forehead.
"I'm fine. But... it won't last. This bubble... can't hold for more than two minutes."
...
The children stared at him in awe...
But one thing was clear:
The battle wasn't over yet... but it wasn't decided either.
...
Vlad's bubble began to crack...
And the children's breaths quickened.
The copies still pounded against the barrier from the outside, their emotionless masks hiding whether they rejoiced at the nearing end... or seethed at the delayed victory.
But then...
Fzzzt...
A faint blue light appeared out of nowhere, forming a mirror-like door in the middle of the room.
The mirror floated in the air, its edges silver and cracked, as if torn from another world.
"What now?!"
One of the children exclaimed, pressing against the wall nervously.
First came a dim light... then the sound of heavy footsteps.
He wore armor—dark as midnight shadows,
cracked at the edges, creaking like ancient iron with every move.
It wasn't Maomao.
It was the Knight.
"It's... the Phantom Knight!"
Sarah cried out, clutching Noor's hand in shock.
And though it was the first time they'd seen him...
All the children felt something familiar... something buried deep...
As if this knight had always been there... watching them from the palace's shadows.
...
The copies froze.
One of them screamed in rage:
"That thing... again...!
How did it escape my grasp?!"
...
The Knight didn't speak. He only moved when his sword suddenly unsheathed itself from his back.
A long blade, soft blue, unpolished... yet exuding a cold, strange energy.
Then... he charged!
BOOOM!!!
A single strike was enough to send one copy crashing into a pillar, shattered.
The second tried attacking from behind, but the Knight turned in half a step, blocked with his shoulder, then sent it flying with a single kick.
His movements were calm... precise... lethal.
...
Mike whispered:
"Is he... protecting us?"
Sara replied, eyes wide:
"It's like... his soul knows ours...
Like he's been waiting for something..."
The children exchanged glances...
The Knight fought... destroying the copies one after another...
Yet he never approached the children.
Instead, he stood before them... like a shield from the past...
Fighting in silence... on their behalf.