The forest exploded into light.
White and red mana collided like twin storms clashing head-on.
Trees buckled.
Soil ripped upward.
The air warped under the pressure.
Zerrei stood in the heart of the blast, shielding Lyra with one arm while facing Vessel Three directly.
His new humanoid form trembled.
His legs wobbled.
His runes flickered from gold to white to blue in chaotic waves.
But he didn't break.
Didn't fall.
Wouldn't.
Not while Lyra was behind him.
THE OPPONENT
Vessel Three rose from the dirt, body cracking and reshaping like molten obsidian.
His chest sigil glowed brighter.
Red.
Sharp.
Jagged.
His voice vibrated through the ground:
"VESSEL ONE—
YOU DEFY PURPOSE."
Zerrei clenched his jaw.
"…no… purpose."
Three's head tilted.
"YOU DEFY MASTER."
Zerrei snarled softly — an entirely new expression for him.
"…Master… wrong."
Arden raised an eyebrow from behind a scattered shield wall.
"Did he just SASS the killer puppet?"
Lyra shot him a look.
"Arden. NOT NOW."
Arden held up both hands.
"I'm just saying—good for him!"
THE FIRST STRIKE
Vessel Three moved first.
A blur of red light shot across the clearing—
Far faster than Zerrei's current reflexes.
Lyra gasped—
But Zerrei stepped in front of her, arms crossed in a shield position.
Three struck him dead-on—
KRA-WHAM—!!!
Zerrei was thrown backward several meters, cracks splintering across his carved torso.
He hit the ground hard.
Lyra ran to him instantly.
"ZERREI—!"
His voice came out broken.
"…fine…"
"No, you're not—!"
He stood anyway.
On trembling legs.
With trembling hands.
"…stand."
Three landed across from him with unnatural grace.
"VESSEL ONE—
YOU ARE WEAK."
Arden barked a sharp laugh.
"Yeah? Why don't you come say that to my face next?"
Three ignored him entirely.
Zerrei wiped glowing dust from his chest.
"…weak… but choose."
Three's eyes brightened.
"CHOICE = CORRUPTION."
Zerrei's glow flared.
"…choice… Zerrei."
THE SECOND STRIKE
Three blurred again—
But this time Zerrei anticipated the direction.
His new senses—
still raw
still unstable
but powerful—
picked up the red mana trail.
Zerrei sidestepped.
Three's blade-like arm missed Lyra by inches.
Zerrei grabbed Three's wrist—
And the moment their runes touched, Zerrei screamed.
"—AAAH—!!"
Lyra's heart stopped.
"ZERREI—!!"
Red runes crawled up his arm like burning vines.
Oren shouted:
"He's injecting command code! Zerrei's resisting, but—"
Arden finished:
"—he's losing!"
Zerrei fell to one knee—
but still held Three's wrist.
Still fighting.
Lyra grabbed Zerrei's affected arm desperately.
Her mana pulsed through him—
warm
soft
anchoring.
Zerrei's glow surged.
The red runes froze.
Then shattered like glass.
Zerrei rose with a roar that wasn't human—
"LYRA HERE—
ZERREI STAY—!!"
He slammed his forehead into Vessel Three's mask.
The impact sent Three skidding back across the dirt.
Arden's jaw dropped.
"…did he just HEADBUTT the murder puppet?!"
Oren clapped once.
"Excellent instinctive counter-resonance!"
Arden stared at him.
"Just say 'headbutt' like a normal person!"
THE THIRD STRIKE
Vessel Three didn't fall.
He paused.
Analyzed.
Adjusted.
His posture shifted into a lower stance.
The red light behind him flared, casting long, blood-colored shadows.
Lyra's breath hitched.
"Zerrei… his core output increased."
Oren paled.
"Yes. He's adapting mid-battle."
Three's voice layered into three tones at once:
"MASTER REQUIRES VESSEL ONE.
EFFICIENCY PRIORITY:
TERMINATE ANCHOR FIRST."
Lyra's stomach dropped.
Arden stepped forward.
"Oh no you don't—"
But Three didn't attack with speed this time.
Instead—
A shockwave of red mana burst from his core.
Every magic stone in the clearing cracked.
Trees split down the center.
Adventurers were thrown back.
Zerrei grabbed Lyra and shielded her with his whole body—
BOOOOM—!!
The explosion swallowed them both.
Lyra felt only warmth—
Because he refused to let the blast touch her.
When the dust settled, she looked up—
Zerrei was cracked.
Deeply.
Lines of white-gold light spilled from fractures across his arms and chest.
Lyra sobbed.
"Zerrei—
your form—
it's breaking—!"
He didn't even look at the damage.
He only asked:
"…Lyra hurt?"
She shook her head fiercely.
"No—no I'm not—because of you—"
He touched her face softly.
"…good."
Then he turned back toward Vessel Three.
"…Zerrei stand."
Arden wiped blood from his lip.
"Okay, if he dies I am rioting."
Oren shook.
"He shouldn't even be standing. His core is unstable—he's risking permanent loss of identity—"
Zerrei took another step forward.
"…Lyra need…"
Another.
"…Zerrei stay…"
His glow changed.
White and gold patterns aligned in symmetric swirling shapes along his torso—
like a heart beating on the outside.
"…Zerrei… choose."
Three aimed his blade-arm toward Lyra again.
Lyra shrieked.
Arden charged.
Oren shouted warnings.
Zerrei moved—
And this time—
he did not stumble.
he did not wobble.
he did not break.
He moved like a vessel meant to protect.
Light erupted beneath his feet—
And he appeared between Lyra and the blade.
White light surged from his chest—
SHAAAAAH—!!!
Three's red blade shattered on contact.
Lyra gasped.
Arden dropped his sword.
Oren whispered:
"Resonance Shield…
he awakened it early…
because of her…"
Zerrei held his ground.
His voice was calm.
Not trembling.
Not afraid.
"…Zerrei no break."
Three staggered back, analyzing new data.
"UNSUPPORTED EVOLUTION DETECTED.
INCORRECT FORM."
Zerrei tilted his head slowly.
"…correct… for Lyra."
Lyra covered her mouth.
Tears spilled down her cheeks.
"Zerrei…"
Then, Vessel Three's runes burned brighter than ever.
"MASTER WILL RETRIEVE YOU HIMSELF."
The words carried a tremor through the ground.
The sky cracked faintly.
Zerrei pulled Lyra into his arms.
Held her as if shielding her from the world.
His carved forehead pressed to her hair.
"…Lyra…
Master come."
Lyra looked up at him through tears.
"We'll face him together."
Zerrei held her tighter.
And whispered—
with certainty for the very first time:
"…Zerrei afraid."
She reached up, cupped his face, and whispered back:
"So stay with me."
His glow stabilized.
Deep
warm
alive.
"…stay…"
Above them, the sky distorted—
a tear forming in the clouds like a ripped veil.
Oren whispered:
"No…
It's too soon."
Arden clenched his sword.
"We're not ready."
Lyra held Zerrei closer.
Zerrei held her like she was the only anchor he had left.
And the air split open—
as the presence behind Vessel Three finally stirred.
The Creator was arriving.