In The Whispering Ruins, the giant tree that blocked a portion of the red moonlight trembled violently. Leaves cascaded down from the shockwaves generated by the nine-meter-tall behemoth shaking the ground beneath its feet. Vincent, who had just been preparing to unleash his highest-level spell, was forced to halt his advance and shield himself from the shockwave that nearly uprooted Tiger from where he stood.
Hearing that roar, Regon—standing amidst the storm of death—realized that The Silent Stage was about to be utterly devastated. The shockwave even grazed the nearly submerged consciousness of Black, causing Lina, who was far away with the old woman in tattered animal hides, to tremble as well.
Moving away from The Silent Stage, Mira and Kacuk continued to haul Black along the city's back alleys until they reached a quieter corner. However, right at that spot, Kacuk suddenly stopped in his tracks. Overwhelming fear crept into him, halting his movement and making him shiver violently, as though the threat they had left behind could still grip them from afar.
Black's sudden scream startled Mira and Kacuk. Black struggled weakly, his eyes glaring fiercely toward The Silent Stage as he shouted, "Let me go!"
Facing that reality, Black realized that the massive wave could still reach him; the threat of Gopis's massive shockwave still loomed over their safety.
A stunned Kacuk could only glance backward. His voice shook fiercely while cold sweat poured down his forehead. "What is happening over there?" Kacuk saw the towering figure of Gopis in the distance, destroying everything around him with extraordinary power, plunging the atmosphere into sheer tension and despair.
"Never mind that, we have to hurry! Black, we want to save you!" Mira shouted in a panic, trying to make them realize that running away was the best option.
"Y-you... the woman from Glosum Maws?" Black stammered.
Meanwhile, in the front courtyard of The Silent Stage, the devastating thuds from Gopis's rampage eroded Vincent's focus, as he now found himself cornered by Tiger's invisible attacks. With ragged breath, Vincent immediately concentrated all his energy. "Gravity Sphere!" he shouted aloud. Instantly, the air around them vibrated, forming a high-pressure dome that created a shield to protect him from any sudden, unseen attacks.
Tiger smirked, his gaze sharp as it pierced through the gaps of darkness. "Good thing you were saved by your brainless giant friend," he said cynically, stepping away from the high-pressure dome of the Gravity Sphere, which had begun to spread and threatened to crush his body.
"Arrogant. Maybe you're the one who was saved, Tiger! Don't you think you can run away from me," Vincent retorted.
The rumbling that had echoed continuously suddenly prompted all the high-ranking officials of The Whispering Ruins to surface, moving toward a single point: The Silent Stage.
Tiger, who had already realized that Gopis's threat was merely the beginning of all the trouble to come, immediately left Vincent behind. As he stepped away, he cast a cold glare and said, "Pay attention, troublesome people are about to arrive! It seems our meeting ends here."
"Don't try to run away from me, Tiger!" Vincent uttered. But before the sentence could finish, Tiger had already vanished before him. Instantly, several high-ranking officials of The Whispering Ruins appeared, surrounding The Silent Stage from all directions.
As the higher-ups of The Whispering Ruins closed their ranks, a chilling aura immediately seized the arena. The air grew heavier and more tense—not merely from dust, but from the undeniable pressure of their absolute power.
With ragged breath, Vincent fought desperately to break free from the closing encirclement of The Whispering Ruins' elites. The moment he set foot on the roof of The Silent Stage arena, the sight before him was astonishing: Gopis had completely lost control of himself.
From the roof, Vincent looked down into the arena of The Silent Stage and saw Regon sprawled out helplessly, lying like a worthless chunk of meat resulting from Gopis's devastating rampage.
"Damn it, Gopis! You always cause trouble whenever we're together," Vincent growled, his jaw tightening.
Down below, the high-ranking officials of The Whispering Ruins tightened their ranks, led by a young man in iron and leather armor wielding a trident. Wearing a red headband, he shouted loudly, "Surround him! Form a high-level barrier, don't let them escape!"
"Gopis! Gopis! Snap out of it, we have to get out of here right now!" Vincent yelled in fury.
Waves of fireballs and magic kept raining down, forcing Vincent to move with agility to avoid death. Amidst the chaos, Gopis suddenly turned his head. With eyes still wild, he leaped high into the air, parting the thick fog of dust.
Meanwhile, the soldiers of The Whispering Ruins who were busy focusing on erecting the high-level barrier suddenly jerked in surprise. Their concentration shattered instantly when a horrifying giant silhouette suddenly emerged from behind the fog, looming over them from above.
"Do not flinch!" Master Vane commanded loudly, positioning himself at the forefront of the soldiers' ranks. "Focus on chanting the spell!" he stated firmly while raising his trident high.
Master Vane then closed his eyes. At that very second, the air surrounding them vibrated violently, sparking blinding magical light.
"O wind that carries voices, deliver my voice to the ruler of the world, unite within my body, grant us the strength you have exhaled!"
A second later, a shield formed from wind and dimensions, creating a translucent, fast-spinning energy dome. It looked like a dense vortex of wind shimmering with fractured light, reflecting an impenetrable defense from all directions.
"Absolute Dimensional Boundary Shield!"
Right as Gopis slammed into the Absolute Dimensional Boundary Shield, the devastating collision created a tornado vortex that sent all the dust flying. The extraordinary force of the wind forced the soldiers who were chanting the spell to stop, driving their spears deep into the ground to avoid being blown away.
Gathering every ounce of his remaining strength, Master Vane struggled to withstand the devastating impact, sending the echoes of the collision resounding all the way to the edges of The Whispering Ruins with a deafening blast. Alongside that, the world tree—which had been blocking the moonlight—trembled violently once more, finally granting a gap for the red moonlight to illuminate the surroundings.
At the same time, Lina, realizing that the shockwave of wind from the crumbling debris was about to hit them, quickly pulled the old woman into her embrace. She shielded them from the devastating impact with her own back.
Not long after, Tiger's figure suddenly emerged from behind the shadows, landing silently nearby while smashing a flying boulder that almost struck them.
Lina gasped, her body tensing when Tiger suddenly materialized out of the dust cloud to save them. "Tiger," Lina uttered briefly, her voice still trembling amidst the roaring battle.
"You're welcome," Tiger replied curtly. He narrowed his eyes, staring into the distance, realizing that his hope of settling matters there had now vanished.
Lina turned toward Tiger's line of sight with wide eyes, her voice catching in her throat, "What is happening over there?"
Tiger turned quickly toward Lina and the old woman, his expression growing even more tense. With an urgent tone, he said, "Forget it, Lina. We need to leave this place immediately. And what about this old woman?"
"I will take care of this old woman. You need to return to PETERUMMAN, as fast as possible. Don't make me repeat myself, Tiger."
Tiger fell silent for a moment, his jaw tightening at the firmness in Lina's voice. Yet, recognizing the worsening situation at The Silent Stage as Gopis's rampage shattered the defenses, he knew there was no time to argue.
"Take care of yourself," Tiger replied coldly.
Amidst this silent ruin, the buried veils of mystery would slowly come to light, bringing clarity to a sea of unanswered questions. The giant tree—the largest world tree in existence that protected them from the moonlight—stood in mute silence, bearing silent witness that the fate of the world was once again on the brink of destruction.