The arrows came at Haizer. He raised his sword with his left hand and deflected them, one after another. Every impact sent a sharp vibration through his arm. The first few arrows were easy enough to avoid, but the attack did not stop. More appeared through the rotating circle above him, each one moving faster than the last.
Haizer twisted his body and knocked another arrow aside. A second one followed immediately. He ducked beneath it and swung his sword upward, cutting through another projectile before it could reach his chest. Water exploded into droplets around him, shining beneath the moonlight before disappearing into the grass.
But the attack was changing.
The arrows became faster.
Stronger.
Sharper.
Their speed increased with every passing moment, forcing Haizer to move constantly. His injuries made everything worse. His missing right arm had destroyed his balance, and the pain from his wounds made every movement slower. Blood had stopped pouring from the stump at his elbow, but the pain had not disappeared. His wings were also damaged from the earlier battle, making it impossible for him to escape into the sky.
He gritted his teeth and continued defending himself.
Another arrow came.
He blocked it.
Another.
He deflected it.
Another came from an unexpected angle.
Haizer barely managed to move his head aside.
The arrow passed dangerously close to his cheek.
He turned quickly and struck another projectile.
For several moments, he managed to survive.
Then one arrow slipped past his attention.
Haizer was focused on the arrows coming from above when another suddenly appeared from his blind side. It was already within striking distance.
His eyes widened.
He couldn't move quickly enough.
But before the arrow could hit him, someone rushed between them.
Clang!
Roneth's katana struck the water arrow and sent it flying away.
Haizer stared at him in disbelief.
Roneth did not even look at him.
"Focus."
Another arrow came.
Roneth blocked it.
Haizer immediately followed, deflecting another with his sword.
For the next several seconds, the two men stood back-to-back, protecting each other from the endless rain of water arrows. Roneth's movements were precise despite his injuries, while Haizer relied on raw strength and experience.
Neither spoke.
They simply fought.
One defended the other's blind side.
Then the rotating circle above them finally began to disappear.
The last arrow vanished.
Silence returned.
Haizer slowly lowered his sword and turned toward Roneth.
He opened his mouth.
But Roneth had already walked away.
The swordsman returned to Eamon and Damien as if nothing had happened.
Eamon and Damien watched him approach.
Eamon understood that something was wrong, but he didn't stop Roneth.
Damien, however, couldn't hold back.
"Roneth, what are you doing? Why are you helping him?"
Roneth stopped.
Eamon looked at him seriously.
"Roneth, I know you have some connection with this man. But you need to tell us if you want us to help you."
Roneth sighed.
He looked toward the mermaid.
There was no escaping her.
Not for him.
Not for Eamon.
Not for Damien.
And certainly not for Haizer.
She had already shown them what she could do with a simple movement of her hand. If they wanted to survive, they had to stand together.
But Roneth had another reason.
He needed answers.
Answers that he had spent years searching for.
Answers that Haizer might be the only person alive who could give him.
Roneth finally spoke.
"I need some information from him about my family. So I can't let him die without getting answers."
Eamon frowned.
"What do you mean? Did you know him from your past?"
Before Roneth could answer, Haizer spoke from behind them.
"I don't think I've ever seen you, kid. What information do you need from me? What answers?"
Roneth slowly turned toward him.
His expression was serious.
"I need to know about the death of your king."
Haizer's face changed.
Roneth continued.
"The king of Kolark."
His voice became heavier.
"Zarek Vaeltris."
Damien and Eamon exchanged confused looks.
Neither had expected that name.
Haizer stared at Roneth.
"What?"
His voice was filled with disbelief.
"Why? What's that coward got to do with you?"
Haizer stepped forward.
"What relation do you have with him?"
Roneth took a deep breath.
His eyes remained fixed on Haizer.
For years, he had carried the truth inside himself.
He had never spoken about it easily.
Now there was no reason to hide anymore.
Everyone waited.
Even Eamon remained silent.
Roneth finally spoke.
"Because he was my father."
Haizer froze.
Roneth continued.
"And I am the last remaining member of Kolark's royal family."
His voice did not shake.
"I am the only remaining descendant of the Vaeltris family."
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Damien's eyes widened.
Eamon stared at Roneth as if he had suddenly become a completely different person.
Haizer looked utterly stunned.
"No..."
He shook his head.
"No, no. That's not possible."
His breathing became faster.
"The entire Vaeltris family died during the war."
He stared at Roneth.
"Your king betrayed us and ran away. You can't be that man's son."
His voice became louder.
"His entire family burned to death."
Haizer's remaining hand trembled.
"I saw their bodies."
"I saw the bodies of the royal family with my own eyes."
Roneth's expression suddenly changed.
His fists tightened.
His eyes burned with anger.
"Shut up!"
The words echoed across the riverbank.
Haizer fell silent.
Roneth stepped forward.
"My father didn't betray anybody."
His voice shook with emotion.
"He loved our country. He loved the citizens like they were his own family."
His eyes became wet, but he refused to look away.
"It was..."
His voice briefly broke.
"It was my uncle."
Haizer stared at him.
"My father's older brother."
Roneth clenched his fists.
"He was the one who betrayed him. He started the coup. He joined hands with the neighboring nations. He wanted my father's throne."
Haizer could barely process the words.
Everything he had believed for ten years was suddenly being questioned.
The king he had hated.
The man he believed had abandoned them.
The royal family he believed had died.
Could everything have been a lie?
Before either man could say anything more, the mermaid raised her hand again.
The river behind her moved.
Eamon immediately sensed danger.
"Get ready!"
Water gathered in the air.
The mermaid's fingers moved.
Then a new barrage of arrows exploded toward them.
This time, they weren't aimed only at Haizer.
They were aimed at both Haizer and Roneth.
Roneth instantly moved toward Haizer.
His swords came up.
Eamon and Damien followed.
Damien moved with vampire speed and reached Roneth's side just as the first arrow arrived.
The four men began defending themselves.
The arrows came like a storm.
Roneth blocked one.
Haizer deflected another.
Damien cut through two.
But there were too many.
"Eamon, do something!"
Eamon raised his left hand.
"Arcana Fire Wall!"
A massive wall of fire erupted before them.
The flames roared upward, forming a bright barrier between the four men and the incoming attack.
The water arrows struck the wall.
Hiss!
Every arrow touching the flames instantly melted into steam.
One after another, they disappeared.
The forest filled with steam.
Eamon continued feeding magic into the wall, his injured body trembling from the effort.
For nearly a minute, the attack continued.
Then the arrows stopped.
The magical circle above the mermaid disappeared.
The fire wall slowly weakened.
Eamon lowered his hand and breathed heavily.
Damien was also panting.
Roneth wiped sweat from his forehead.
Haizer remained silent.
His mind was still trapped in Roneth's words.
The mermaid's pale face slowly changed.
The calm expression was gone.
Her eyes narrowed.
Anger filled them.
She had expected the humans to fall.
Instead, they had survived again.
Eamon looked at her and swallowed.
Damien spoke while trying to catch his breath.
"Good job with the fire wall."
He glanced at Eamon.
"Your magic is her magic's natural enemy. Your fire is the only reason we're still alive."
Eamon gave a tired smile.
"Yeah. But you know my limitations, right?"
He looked down at his hands.
"I can't use anything above Tier 3. That's my limit."
"I know."
Damien looked toward the mermaid.
"But we have to manage somehow."
"We'll survive with whatever we have."
Haizer remained frozen in thought.
Roneth's words continued repeating inside his head.
The king's son.
The last member of the royal family.
Could it really be true?
Before Haizer could ask another question, something strange happened.
The mermaid's face became pale again.
Her anger disappeared.
She slowly moved her body as though she were about to sit down.
There was nothing beneath her.
Yet water suddenly gathered below her.
A chair formed from the river itself.
It rose from the ground in a smooth motion, shaped perfectly beneath her.
The mermaid sat upon it elegantly.
The sight was strangely beautiful.
And deeply frightening.
She looked like a queen sitting upon a throne made from the river.
Eamon stared at her.
She wasn't simply controlling water.
She was shaping it.
Changing it.
Commanding its very nature.
The mermaid slowly raised one hand.
Then she snapped her fingers.
For one second, nothing happened.
Eamon and the others looked around.
Then the ground beneath them began glowing.
Magic circles appeared.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
They started as tiny circles before expanding rapidly across the earth.
The symbols inside them rotated.
Water rose from the circles.
Figures slowly emerged.
They were tall.
Humanoid.
Completely made from water.
They had no faces.
No eyes.
No mouths.
Yet their bodies were shaped exactly like human warriors.
Each puppet carried a sword formed from hardened water.
Roneth looked at them.
"Done with shooting arrows, I guess."
Damien raised his blood sword.
"The real battle begins now."
Eamon clenched his burning fists.
"Don't die, guys."
He glanced toward Haizer.
"And that goes for you too. You're not dying before answering Roneth's questions."
He paused.
"Honestly, I have plenty of questions too. I'm still confused about half of this."
Haizer looked at him coldly.
"I'm not answerable to anyone, kid."
He raised his sword.
"First survive this monster of a mermaid."
His eyes moved toward Roneth.
"Then we'll see about the past."
Eamon smiled.
"Fair enough."
The mermaid finally moved her hand.
The four water puppets suddenly rushed forward.
Water splashed beneath their feet as they charged across the riverbank.
Eamon, Damien, Roneth, and Haizer also rushed toward them.
Four warriors.
Four puppets.
One impossible battle.
The distance between them disappeared in seconds.
Their weapons rose together.
Then, beneath the pale moonlight, their weapons collided.