The chamber quaked with fire and steel. Aurelia's blade clashed against Setar's whip of flame, each strike bursting in sparks that scarred the walls. Blood streamed from her side, but her grip never faltered. Setar's laughter filled the room, cruel and resonant, as if the heat itself obeyed him.
"You think you can stand against me, Princess?" he taunted, the fire swirling around his body like a living inferno. "The collar may be gone, but your strength is nothing before mine. You will kneel."
Aurelia's breaths came heavy, yet her eyes burned with defiance. "You will find no crown in ashes, Setar. Only ruin."
Their weapons collided again, the shockwave shattering stone pillars. Lior, Junia, and Aryan stood at the chamber's edge, watching with clenched fists, unable to intervene. This battle was hers, demanded by her pride.
From the side, Alma staggered to her feet, clutching her injured wrist. Tears stained her cheeks, her dagger long lost. She looked at Setar with desperation. "Setar! Stop fighting her! Please—don't waste your flame for her. I love you! I have always loved you!"
Her voice cracked, dripping with sincerity and madness alike. She took a step closer, trembling. "You don't need her, you never did! Let me fight beside you—let me kill her for you!"
For a moment, Setar's flames paused. His eyes shifted toward Alma. She smiled faintly through her tears, as if the fire's light finally acknowledged her.
But his expression twisted into disgust. "Love?" His laugh was cruel and sharp. "Do you think your pitiful devotion means anything to me? You are nothing but a shadow in my halls."
Alma's face froze, her lips parting in shock. "S-Setar… I—"
Without hesitation, Setar's whip lashed out, curling around Alma's chest. With a single, merciless pull, flames erupted, piercing through her body. Her scream echoed as fire consumed her, the scent of burning flesh filling the chamber.
Junia gasped, covering her mouth. Lior's sword trembled in fury. Aryan cursed under his breath.
Alma's body fell to the floor, charred and broken. Her hand stretched weakly toward him one last time. "I… only wanted… you to see me…" Her voice faded, eyes glazing as her life flickered out.
Setar sneered, stepping over her corpse without a second glance. "Pathetic."
Aurelia's grip on her sword tightened, rage igniting within her veins. "You monster…"
He grinned, raising his whip again. "And you will share her fate."
The battle resumed, fiercer than before. Aurelia's strikes came swift, guided not by desperation but by conviction. Every swing of her sword carried Alma's wasted devotion, every parry a vow to end this cruelty.
Setar's whip cracked against her blade, searing heat licking at her skin. Aurelia countered with a downward slash, sparks raining. The ground split beneath them as flame and steel collided again and again.
"You are weak," Setar growled, pressing forward. "You may swing a sword, but you have no fire of your own."
Aurelia's eyes narrowed. "Then I will take yours."
Her blade shimmered as she drove it into his chest plate, sparks exploding. Setar roared, staggering back, his whip flailing wildly. His hand reached for his grimoire—an ancient tome bound in crimson leather, hanging from his belt. Flames surged from its pages, feeding his strength.
The realization struck Aurelia—this was his core, the source of his amplified fire.
Setar laughed again, flames crawling across his body. "This grimoire is my father's legacy. Through it, even gods will kneel before me!"
Aurelia steadied herself, blood dripping from her side. Her voice rose, firm and unyielding. "Legacies built on cruelty deserve only to burn."
She lunged, her sword flashing. Setar swung his whip, but Aurelia ducked beneath it, rolling forward. She rose with a fierce upward slash, striking the grimoire at his side.
The blade connected.
A thunderous crack split the chamber as the grimoire's binding tore. Flames erupted violently, swirling uncontrollably. Setar screamed, his whip vanishing in a burst of sparks. The book writhed in his grasp, glowing brighter, until Aurelia's blade sliced through it entirely.
With a final shatter, the grimoire exploded, sending shards of burning parchment across the room. Setar's body convulsed, his armor melting under the backlash of broken magic.
"No!" he roared, eyes wide with disbelief. "My power… my destiny—!"
Aurelia stood firm, her sword glowing faintly with the grimoire's remnants. She raised it high, her voice cutting through his scream.
"Your destiny ends here, Setar. Not by fire. Not by crown. But by justice!"
With a final strike, she plunged her sword through his chest.
The flames around him sputtered, then roared in one last eruption before collapsing into nothingness. Setar's body crumpled, his eyes wide, the cruel grin finally erased. He fell beside Alma's lifeless form, his hand twitching once before going still.
The chamber fell silent, smoke curling in the air.
Aurelia lowered her sword, her breaths ragged, her wounds bleeding freely. Yet her eyes did not waver. She turned slowly to her allies.
Junia was the first to move, rushing to her side. "Princess… you—"
Aurelia raised a hand, stopping her words. "It's over. He will harm no one again."
Lior sheathed his blade, exhaling deeply. Aryan stepped forward, his gaze hard. "Then our path is clear. Michi needs us."
Aurelia nodded, steadying herself on her sword. She looked at the charred remains of Alma and Setar once more, her expression a mix of sorrow and steel. "Let their ashes remain as warning. Devotion twisted into chains and power fed by cruelty will always be destroyed."
With that, she turned toward the exit. Lior moved to support her, but Aurelia shook her head, forcing her steps forward.
Junia and Aryan fell in beside them, silent yet resolute. The four of them left the ruined chamber, their shadows stretching long in the dim light.
Far beyond, where the war still raged, Michi awaited.
And together, they would bring their strength to him.