The chamber fell silent for a few seconds. Dragon Gon stood facing the Warriors of Darkness, ready for another clash. Kael slowly closed his eyes, and his thoughts returned to the moment just before he entered the portal.
Earlier
Before Noah could step into the portal, Kael grabbed him by the arm.
"Wait… I'd like to check something." — Kael said.
Noah turned toward him, and just then, a small sphere of white energy began to form in Kael's right hand.
"What's that?" — Noah asked.
"It's magic Luna gave me. Holy Liberation." — Kael replied. — "With this, we'll save the Warriors of Darkness."
A thin thread of energy shot out from the white orb and immediately touched Noah's head. The boy felt no pain, but his eyes widened suddenly. A flood of memories and thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant, as if Kael's magic were trying to find something hidden deep within his consciousness.
After a moment, the white energy vanished. Kael staggered and sank to one knee, but quickly got back up.
"We're ready… let's go."
Noah looked at him for a moment, then nodded and headed toward the portal.
Now
Kael opened his eyes again. He looked at Noah, Arwen, Mayuri, and Valdor, and then at Elia, Sylphia, Emi, Leo, and Arthur standing on the other side. Everyone was ready for battle, but Kael knew that their true goal wasn't to defeat the Warriors of Darkness.
They were supposed to save them.
Suddenly, a low laugh echoed through the entire chamber, coming from above.
"Hahaha…"
Everyone immediately looked up.
A mysterious figure appeared in one of the higher parts of the chamber. It stood calmly, observing the entire battlefield from above.
"It looks like everyone's gathered already…"
A figure slowly emerged from the darkness and began to descend toward the ground. It was Nathan, the ruler of the demons. His presence immediately filled the entire chamber with a heavy, oppressive energy.
Valdor raised his head and looked at him, his eyebrows furrowing slightly.
"Nathan…" — he whispered.
Nathan calmly descended to the ground and looked at everyone gathered there.
"I won't let you run amok in my castle."
As soon as he spoke, a red magical circle appeared on Nathan's right hand. Energy began to build up rapidly within it, and after a moment, a powerful beam of red light shot from his palm. The glow instantly filled the entire chamber.
"What's going on?!"— Noah shouted.
Everyone instinctively closed their eyes, trying to shield themselves from the blinding light. For a few seconds, they couldn't see a thing, until finally the glow began to fade gradually.
Kael slowly opened his eyes.
His expression changed instantly.
They were no longer in the chamber.
A vast clearing surrounded by tall trees stretched out around them. Above their heads was a dark sky, and the wind rustled the grass and branches. They were all standing in a completely different place, as if they had been transported from the castle in the blink of an eye.
Noah looked around in disbelief.
"Where are we…?"
Arwen clenched her hands around her daggers, and Kael immediately began surveying their surroundings.
"Nathan transported us…" — he said calmly.
Mayuri looked up, her violet eyes narrowing.
"So he wants to fight outside the castle…"
Nathan stood on the other side of the clearing. Then Leo, Arthur, Elio, Sylphia, and Emi slowly appeared.
Nathan looked at the entire group with a cool smile.
Valdor, who was still barely able to stand, looked at Nathan, then at Leo.
A moment later, a silver sword plunged into the ground in front of Valdor. A magical circle immediately appeared around its blade, enveloping Valdor in bright energy.
"This will help you regain your strength, and we'll take care of them." — said Kael.
He then stood next to Noah. The boy's fists were ablaze, and his gaze was fixed on Leo.
"Time to get started. Keep them busy for a bit, friends." — said Kael, then clasped his hands together and began slowly moving them apart. A sphere of white energy, growing larger and larger, formed between his hands.
Noah nodded and prepared for battle, leaning his body slightly forward. Leo looked at him and took a few steps forward.
At the same time, Emi looked at Nathan and nodded slightly. Nathan responded with the same gesture. The girl approached Leo, who looked at her with displeasure.
"Go away. You'll just get in my way…" — Leo said.
Emi just smiled. Suddenly, her Demon Arc flashed with a yellow light, and her body began to crumble into fine dust. In an instant, all of Emi's energy rushed toward Leo and penetrated his body.
Leo's eyes turned an even more intense shade of yellow.
Suddenly, an explosion occurred beneath Noah's feet, propelling him forward. At that very moment, Leo also charged forward. The force of his charge left a small indentation in the ground.
Noah braced himself for a collision with Leo's blade. He pulled his right hand back, clenching his flaming fist, while Leo raised his sword high above his head. When the two found themselves face to face, Noah struck the blade directly with his right fist. For a moment, the force of their attacks remained in balance, but after a moment, they were both thrown in opposite directions.
Noah quickly regained his balance and charged at Leo once more. He leaped high into the air, then used the momentum to violently increase his speed. His right fist was already poised for another strike.
Leo was still regaining his balance when he suddenly looked up and his eyes widened. Noah struck him in the stomach with his right fist with full force. Leo doubled over from the blow, and Noah immediately landed a series of follow-up punches.
Leo, however, had no intention of giving up. At one point, he grabbed Noah's flaming fist with his hand. Fire began to engulf his hand, but Leo didn't even flinch.
"Weak!" — he shouted.
He pulled his right leg back, then slammed his knee into Noah's stomach. The boy was sent flying backward, and at that very moment, Leo's sword began to glow with an even more intense green energy.
"A sharp cut…" — Leo whispered.
He swung his sword, and a green wave of energy shot from the blade, resembling the technique Valdor had used earlier. The attack hit Noah and sent him flying even farther.
Noah, however, did not lose his focus. He pulled both hands back and used the flames to slow his momentum. After a moment, he came to a stop in midair, and his feet touched the ground.
He raised his head and looked straight at Leo.
Behind Noah stood Kael, who was still gathering energy. The sphere of white light between his hands grew larger and larger until it finally reached a size nearly equal to his own. Kael clenched his teeth, drawing on the last of his mana, and then a powerful white flash suddenly burst from the sphere.
Thin threads of energy shot out from within it, instantly darting toward the remaining Warriors of Darkness and the light. Each thread touched the head of one of the warriors. Arthur jerked violently and his eyes widened as the energy penetrated his mind. Elio and Sylphia also shifted slightly, but their gazes remained fixed on their opponents.
One of the strands also reached Valdor.
The prince slowly opened his eyes. An image of the battle immediately flashed through his mind. He saw the Warriors of Light and Darkness fighting each other, but after a moment, the situation spiraled out of control. One by one, the warriors began to fall, until finally they were all gone. Their bodies crumbled into fine dust, leaving only the Demon Arci lying on the ground.
Valdor stared at this vision in disbelief until the image suddenly vanished.
He regained consciousness once more. He looked around and saw the warriors standing face to face.
"What was that…?" — he thought.
Meanwhile, Kael staggered, and all the white energy around him vanished. He had used up almost all of his mana. He sank to one knee and breathed heavily, trying to stay conscious.
Noah was also barely standing. He raised his head and looked toward Kael.
"Did it work…?" — he whispered, mustering what little strength he had left.
Noah glanced over his shoulder at Kael, who was breathing heavily, trying to stay on his feet. After a moment, he turned his gaze back to Leo. He clenched his blazing fists and charged forward, determined not to give his opponent a moment to rest.
Meanwhile, Elio stood motionless. Suddenly, he felt the scene around him begin to change. He closed his eyes, but when he opened them again, he found himself in a completely different place.
"Where am I…?" — he whispered.
A forest stretched out around him, and among the trees stood a burning, ruined house. Elio slowly approached and peered through a gaping hole in the wall. Inside, he saw a living room that was almost entirely engulfed in flames. In the middle of the room, a woman was kneeling, holding a little girl tightly to her chest. Nathan was standing above them.
Elio's eyes widened.
Suddenly, Nathan turned around, and Elio also turned his head in the opposite direction because he heard voices coming from the left.
His eyes widened even more.
He saw himself, but much younger. The young Elio held a sword in his right hand — with a crystal set in its hilt — and stretched out his other hand in front of him, as if trying to stop someone. Standing next to him was a young boy wearing armor with the symbol of the Black Guard on his chest.
Both of them suddenly looked toward the house as a woman's terrified scream rang out. After a moment, the scream died down.
Elio spun around toward the house and his eyes widened. A little girl lay on the ground, and her mother was crouched over her, trying to protect her. The woman wasn't moving. A sword was lodged in her back.
Elio looked up, but Nathan was no longer there.
Instead, he saw a knight. The man slowly turned his head, and then the image began to fade.
"Sana… Yūko… so it was Nathan who killed them… Not this knight…" — Elio thought.
Everything around him suddenly vanished. Only darkness remained, and his body began to drift slowly through the void.
Elio clenched his fists.
"So… Nathan planned this. He manipulated me… Now I have confirmation of who's really the villain…"
His eyes slowly opened. He returned to reality, but this time his gaze was completely different. Lightning still surrounded his body, but he no longer looked at Kael or Noah as enemies.
He looked straight at Nathan.
"I'm coming for you…"
Meanwhile, Valdor found himself in a completely black void. There was neither earth nor sky here, only endless darkness. Valdor slowly looked around, trying to understand where he was.
"Another vision…" — he thought.
Suddenly, a faint sound rang out behind him. Valdor froze and slowly turned his head.
Valdor spun around abruptly.
His eyes widened.
Before him, a familiar figure began to emerge from the darkness, surrounded by yellow energy