----Page 29----
The clearing trembled under Aureon's presence. Even restrained, the monster snarled, black smoke curling from its mouth, but it was nothing compared to the figure before us.
Aureon's golden eyes scanned the battlefield, flicking past Rubal, Kraust, Tauren, and Lysera. A slow smirk curved his lips.
"Pathetic," he whispered, voice low but cutting.
"I was expecting something… a real challenge."
Kraust roared, swinging his axe in a wide arc to strike Aureon's flank. Aureon tilted his head lazily and sidestepped, boots barely brushing the dirt. The swing tore into nothing but air.
"You're too slow," he said, almost bored.
He flicked the Death Punisher, sending a wave of blood-magic energy toward Kraust, blasting him into the earth. Dust and pebbles flew in every direction, and Rubal rolled, hitting the ground hard, teeth gritting as he struggled to rise.
Rubal charged, shield raised, sword glowing faintly. He tried to corner Aureon, but each step forward was met with effortless sidesteps. A casual flick of Aureon's wrist sent him staggering back, shield dented, boots skidding over the cracked soil.
Aureon's attention shifted to Lysera. The first spark of interest appeared in his eyes. She lunged, ice forming along her blade as she unleashed the Frozen Dominion. A wall of frost shot toward Aureon.
He leaned into it, letting a jagged shard graze his shoulder. The cold bit, but it barely drew blood. He laughed lightly.
"Is that all? Come on… try harder."
Lysera struck again, faster this time, slicing arcs of ice toward his legs. Aureon danced through the attack, moving with precision that made her flinch. Her blows barely nicked his armor.
"Finally," he said, a spark of interest in his eyes.
"Some fight."
Then, with casual cruelty, he struck. The Death Punisher swung in a wide arc. Lysera barely parried, shockwaves rolling up her arms and boots skidding across the frost. The ice under her boots shattered into glittering dust.
Rubal and Kraust scrambled to assist, but Aureon's attention shifted effortlessly, swinging the massive blade in ways that made their combined attacks fumble.
Dust, ice, and sparks flew around the clearing. He blocked Kraust's sword with one hand, casually brushing Rubal's axe aside with the other.
Tauren dove between them, claws and wings flashing, only to be sent tumbling by a flick of Aureon's wrist.
"All of you…" Aureon sighed dramatically, as if disappointed in the spectacle before him.
"I was hoping for something better. You're barely worth my time."
A jagged line snaked through the dirt at our feet, splitting open with a dry crack as black-and-red energy from the Codex mingled with his blood-magic aura. My hands shook as I knelt, desperate, pouring every ounce of mana into the Codex, praying the fifth Pageborn would answer.
"Please… I need you… now!" I cried.
Aureon paused mid-swing, sensing the shift. His golden eyes narrowed, a cruel smile tugging at his lips.
"Ah… so that's what you're planning."
Ignoring Lysera, he surged forward, boots barely touching the cracked earth, Death Punisher swinging down toward me. Frost crackled along Lysera's blade as she threw herself between us, trying to hold him off.
"You won't touch him!" she shouted.
Aureon laughed, easily sending her tumbling backward. Frost shattered beneath her, spraying like glittering shards into the air.
I gritted my teeth, pouring desperation into the Codex. Shadows wrapped tighter around the restrained monster, keeping it contained, but Aureon's speed was terrifying. Each strike he avoided, each parry he countered, amplified the sense of hopelessness around me.
Lumina's voice cut through the chaos.
"Kinon! Keep going! You can do this!"
I closed my eyes, focusing entirely. The Codex pulsed violently in my hands, black and red sparks twisting outward like living veins.
And then, faint at first, the white plane opened in my mind—the space where I could call the fifth Pageborn. Electricity hummed along his massive spear, armor gleaming black and gold, lightning arcing from every joint.
"Ha ha ha… then let the storm answer," he said, amusement blazing across his features.
Back in the clearing, Aureon sensed the shift. His eyes snapped to me, a dark shadow of fury and anticipation passing over his face.
"No… you little…"
He sprinted, Death Punisher raised high, boots smashing into the cracked earth, ignoring Lysera completely.
Lysera, bruised and battered, rose to her feet, frost still clinging to her blade. She lunged toward Aureon again, shouting, "Kinon! Keep summoning!"
Each swing of her blade created arcs of frozen energy, but Aureon moved with terrifying precision, dodging, parrying, and striking with cruel efficiency.
Dust, shards, and ice flew in all directions. He even taunted her, stepping close enough to let the tip of his sword brush her shoulder.
"Is that the best you've got?"
I gritted my teeth, Codex glowing, desperately reaching out to the fifth Pageborn. Lightning sparked in the white plane.
The fifth Pageborn stirred, massive black-and-gold armor gleaming. Electricity danced along his spear. A grin spread across his face.
"Finally… the time has come. Let's see what all the fuss is about," he said, stepping forward into the bond.
The Codex's energy flared, black and red tendrils lashing outward, intertwining with the lightning around the Pageborn. Aureon froze mid-step, sensing something beyond even his perception.
The battle had shifted. The storm was coming.
°°°°
Lightning and blood magic collided in a storm of raw power. The fifth Pageborn's spear slammed against Aureon's Death Punisher again and again, each strike sending shockwaves through the clearing. Codex tendrils lashed at Aureon, constricting him with a furious grip.
Aureon's bored smirk twisted into a scowl. He had expected a worthy duel, but the combined persistence of the fifth Pageborn and the Codex was… remarkable.
He stepped back, letting the spear swipe through empty air, boots scarring the earth, measuring his next move.
"You've gotten… interesting," he muttered, eyes flicking to me briefly, then back to the lightning-wreathed warrior. "But I tire of this game."
With a sudden roar, Aureon unleashed a surge of blood magic, a crimson wave ripping through the clearing, sending Rubal and Kraust tumbling backward.
Lysera held her ground, frost crackling along her rapier, but her barrier shattered in places, and a jagged chip appeared along the blade's edge.
The fifth Pageborn surged again, lightning arcing along his spear, but Aureon pivoted mid-air, retreating several dozen feet, leaving streaks of red and green energy behind him.
"You think you can stop me?" Aureon growled.
"Pathetic."
The restrained monster let out a guttural roar, clawing at the ground. Aureon's gaze flicked to it, and a cruel smile stretched across his face.
"You're nothing but a snack," he said coldly.
Before anyone could react, Aureon extended the Death Punisher. Blood magic surged outward, shattering the Codex's tendrils and sending the monster thrashing in panic.
Aureon stepped forward, spinning his blade in a wide, precise arc. The monster erupted into black smoke and shrieking energy, feeding its essence into the blade. One final roar echoed through the clearing, then silence.
The air quivered with residual magic, sparks of red and black dissipating slowly as Aureon sheathed the Death Punisher. His red-and-gold horns glinted in the sunlight, eyes scanning the battlefield one last time.
"Times up," Aureon muttered, stepping back, letting the wind whip around him. Red smoke swirled at his feet, curling upward like living fire.
Before any of us could move, he was gone, carried by the wind, leaving scorched earth, shattered trees, and the lingering pulse of the Codex.
A faint whisper lingered:
"I'm sure we will meet again, so don't die easily, young keeper of the Chronicles."
°°°°
The clearing fell silent. Dust and debris hung in the air. The fifth Pageborn lowered his spear, electricity crackling faintly, eyes flicking to me.
"You called me for this," he said, voice low but steady.
"We've won this stage, but the enemy has not been defeated. We will face him again."
Lysera sank to her knees, exhaustion etched across her face. Her rapier had a small crack along the edge, frost magic waning.
Rubal and Kraust lay sprawled on the grass, battered but alive.
"I've had enough of this! Why do we always lose in a terrible way?" Rubal groaned.
Tauren hovered near me, wings drooping with fatigue.
I sank to my knees as well, Codex pulsating, black-and-red energy whispering like living shadows. Aureon… he wasn't gone forever. The pulse was a warning.
"This is only the beginning," Lumina whispered, stepping through the debris, amber eyes scanning the horizon.
"The Nullscribes will not wait long. He will return, and next time… he will not hold back."
A crackle of electricity drew our gaze to a new figure stepping from the shadows. Massive, armored in black-and-gold, lightning crawling across his body. His voice rolled like thunder.
"Let him be… now that I'm here, I'm Kaien, the Stormbound Warden and I will show them how terrifying my spear was.
Ha ha ha."
°°°°
The sun broke through the clouds, casting long shafts of light across the devastated clearing. Shadows stretched across shattered stone and broken trees. The Codex's pulse throbbed like a heartbeat against my chest.
We were battered, yet standing. Aureon had tested our strength, and he would return. The wind stirred the remnants of red smoke in the distance. The warning was clear: the Nullscribes were coming.
We managed to survive, but the princess was still in their hands. The thought weighed heavily on my chest, a cold reminder that our victory had been incomplete.
The battle was far from over.
°°°°
Meanwhile...
Far beyond the devastated clearing where Kinon and his allies struggled to breathe, the world was quiet.
A lonely field stretched beneath a pale sky, grass rippling in cold breezes.
At its center sat Princess Verline, wrists bound by intricate chains of black sigils, Nullscribe magic that pulsed like a heartbeat.
No matter how she pulled or twisted, the bindings clung to her skin like living ink. Escape was impossible.
A few steps away, a woman lounged lazily, idly kicking a bright lollipop along the ground with the tip of her boot.
A half-mask hid her face—white on one side, ink-black on the other, shaped like the top half of a skull. Her visible eye gleamed with odd amusement.
She was one of the Nullscribe Elite.
The grass rustled.
A swirl of red smoke curled into existence, and Aureon stepped out of the haze, brushing dirt from his gauntlet as though returning from a casual stroll.
The masked woman grinned.
"Welcome back."
Aureon stretched his shoulders with a tired sigh.
"Ah… so how's the princess doing?"
"Same as before."
The masked elite replied, nudging her lollipop forward again.
"Just sitting there. Not a single word out of her. Creepy calm, honestly."
Aureon blinked, genuinely impressed.
"Wahh… that's crazy. I haven't seen anyone in my entire life as calm as the princess."
For the first time since her capture, Verline slowly lifted her head.
Her voice was quiet—controlled, despite the chains.
"May I ask something?"
Aureon arched a brow.
"Oh? She can speak."
He stepped closer, Death Punisher resting against his shoulder.
"Uhmmm… sure. Ask. But don't expect an answer. Well… it depends."
Verline's gaze sharpened.
"What purpose will I serve for the Nullscribes?"
Aureon paused, then exhaled a soft laugh.
"That… I can't answer. Not yet. But soon, you'll find out."
Her eyes narrowed.
"If you're thinking to use me to trade for the Chronicles, then—"
"Ah ah ah…"
Aureon raised a finger, cutting her off.
"Don't say that, princess."
He leaned down, whispering something only she could hear.
Whatever the words were, her composure shattered.
Her breath caught. Her shoulders trembled.
"H-How could you—"
"Okay, that's enough for now... Nap time, now princess."
He snapped his fingers.
The masked woman giggled, spinning her lollipop once before she extended a hand.
A ripple of Nullscribe magic pulsed outward.
Princess Verline's eyes fluttered.
And she slumped, unconscious, the chains tightening as the field fell silent again.