Chapter 20: The Flame Reckoning
The Vault shook with the howling cry of the Flame Remnant Ascended. The phoenix-shaped wraith of fire soared into the air, its wings trailing streaks of molten darkness, circling the chamber like a sun consumed by its own wrath.
Kael braced himself, flames bursting from his boots as he launched toward the creature. His sword shimmered with Sin-forged light, responding to the divine chaos swirling around him.
> [Boss Status: Flame Remnant Ascended — HP: 92% — Phase 2] [Warning: Entity Emits Constant Burn Aura — -3 HP/s within 20m Radius]
Selene and Thalaria spread out to flank the beast. Vaeloria hovered above a broken pillar, incanting complex protective barriers around the group.
Kael narrowed his eyes. "It's faster now. Smarter too."
The phoenix shrieked and dove.
Kael barely rolled aside as its talons scraped the ground, leaving molten gouges. Thalaria leapt high, twirling her glaive with expert timing, slashing one wing. Flames erupted on contact, but she flipped backward before they could consume her.
Selene's blade flashed, catching the light of the Vault's corrupted crystals. She darted under the phoenix as it rose, slicing at the tendons of its belly.
> [Effective Strike: -6% HP]
The phoenix screeched in fury. The temperature spiked.
> [Status Effect: Heatwave Pulse Incoming — Brace or Evade]
"Move!" Kael shouted.
The wave hit like a furnace blast. Vaeloria's shield flared gold, barely holding.
Kael gritted his teeth and dashed through the heat. He activated his latest System function.
> [Sin Surge Channeling: Focused Flame Mode Activated — Damage +20% / Defense -10%]
Kael blurred upward, sword first. He spun once in midair, slicing through the wraith's left wing. It screamed. The wing exploded into ash, slowing its flight.
> [Critical Strike! — -11% HP]
It retaliated with a burst of flame breath, black and alive. Kael raised his arm, his fire clashing against it in a stream of red and gold.
Thalaria's voice echoed from below. "Now! Strike the eye!"
Kael surged forward, piercing the eye-like core glowing within its chest.
> [Direct Core Impact: -15% HP — Phoenix Wounded!]
Selene hurled her blade like a comet. It buried itself in the beast's other wing.
The phoenix shrieked again, but its movements began to stutter.
Vaeloria's incantation reached its crescendo.
> [Celestial Bind — Time Lock (3s)]
Golden glyphs surrounded the phoenix. It froze midair, every feather halted like a statue of fire.
Kael didn't waste the chance.
"Thalaria! Together!"
They both leapt.
Kael's blade struck center mass. Thalaria's glaive plunged into its throat.
> [Combined Ultimate: Twin Fang of Ruin — -27% HP]
The phoenix collapsed in a whirl of flame and ash, crashing to the Vault floor.
> [Boss HP: 0%] [Victory Achieved — Divine Remnant Purged]
Silence fell. The heat vanished like mist. Cracks along the Vault's walls began to seal.
Kael collapsed to one knee, gasping.
> [System Notice: Quest Complete — "Fate of the Remnant"] Reward:
EXP +9000
System Level Up — Level 10 Achieved
New Function Unlocked: Sin Market
Attribute Increase: Strength +3 / Agility +2 / Mana +4 / Charisma +1
Trait Gained: Flame Sovereign's Echo (Reduced Damage from Fire / Can Sense Divine Residuals)
The Crown of Sin pulsed.
> [Sin Market Now Available — Browse New Features?]
Kael exhaled. "Later. Much later."
Selene crouched beside him, pulling him close. "That was reckless and stupid."
"But brilliant," Vaeloria added, landing beside them with grace, her hair singed at the edges but eyes fierce.
Thalaria wiped soot from her cheek and grinned. "Gods, I love when you almost die."
Kael laughed tiredly. "That makes one of us."
He took a moment to look at each of them — their bodies marked by battle, but still whole. It reminded him that every fight he survived wasn't just his own; it was theirs too. These women weren't side characters in his journey. They were threads in the tapestry of his destiny.
Their moment was short-lived. From the spot where the phoenix fell, a glowing ember hovered, faint and alive, hovering just above the charred ground.
Vaeloria approached it cautiously. "It's a Divine Spark… a remnant of the god's true essence."
> [Optional Quest Triggered: Inherit the Hollow Flame — Integrate or Seal the Spark?]
Kael stood slowly. His armor steamed, eyes glowing faintly. "Not yet. We need to rest. Regroup. Then I'll decide."
He looked around at his wives — battered, breathless, but alive.
They had survived the wrath of a forgotten god. But the Vault was more than just a tomb; it was a promise of deeper wars, older powers, and ancient truths that would no longer stay buried.
"I want to leave this place," Thalaria murmured, resting a hand on his shoulder. "But I know we'll be back."
Selene nodded. "This wasn't the end. It was a door."
Kael's gaze rose to the ceiling, where cracked celestial murals shimmered faintly above the ruin.
He felt it too. A path had opened. A reckoning had begun.
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End of Chapter 20