The city of Chagas, once alive, was now a distorted painting of ruin.

  Tears of snow fell slowly onto the burning rubble, swallowed by the mist that whispered stories of pain.

  The silence was heavy.

  Every breath of wind carried memories of the freshly ended battle—a confrontation that had altered the world’s course.

  In the center of that chaos, Kaien stood motionless.

  His youthful form, shaped by ancient strength, enveloped Akari with the care of a divine monster—

  not as a warrior, but as a dragon watching over its own nest.

  His black wings curved in a protective arc, covering the young woman as if to hide her from the world.

  His thick, sinister tail coiled gently around her, as though saying, “No one may touch her.”

  The mist danced around them, intertwined with the spiritual energy still seething in the air—

  a living, almost conscious presence, born of the emotional explosion that battle had unleashed.

  Yuzuki approached slowly.

  His steps were cautious, not from fear, but from respect.

  When the mist parted like theater curtains, he saw.

  Kaien was watching him.

  His eyes, once calm, now shone with the silent fury of a legendary being.

  They said it all: “She is under my protection. And I am the wall you will never ignore again.”

  “She’s asleep,” Kaien murmured in a voice as deep as distant thunder.

  “She was too exhausted… barely able to stand.

  I promised to protect her with my life… and she smiled. Smiled as if, for an instant, the world was good.”

  Yuzuki halted. Something inside him snapped.

  The creature he once underestimated now radiated a purpose equal to the Golden Tree’s distant light.

  Not in power… but in resolve.

  Kaien was no longer just an ally. He was a pillar.

  The black wings unfurled slowly, like an invitation.

  Without a word, Yuzuki approached Akari with reverence.

  He scooped her up—she was as light as a broken promise—

  and laid her gently on the dragon’s back.

  Kaien bowed his head, as one accepting a sacred mission.

  “Gotier and Zeke… are fighting to the death, far from here. I sensed their auras,” the dragon said, his voice cutting through the mist.

  “I know,” Yuzuki replied without hesitation, gazing toward where their energies still flickered.

  He climbed onto Kaien’s back, the wind whipping his hair as if calling them to duty.

  With a low, majestic roar, Kaien rose.

  His paws struck the ground with divine weight.

  The snow dispersed.

  The mist gave way.

  And the dragon took flight.

  Elsewhere…

  Gotier and Zeke lay on the shattered earth, gasping.

  The battlefield was an abyss.

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  Ruined houses, collapsed roofs, fallen bodies—and at the center, putrid mud mixed with freshly spilled blood.

  The fight against Ezra had ended, but it left its scars.

  Zeke coughed, the metallic taste of blood still in his mouth.

  Gotier stared at the sky, sweating, eyes dim.

  “That was close…” he murmured.

  Then… a sound. A shadow. The wind shifted.

  Both turned with effort.

  Above, the mist tore the firmament like a shredded veil.

  Through it came a colossal shape—

  black wings cutting the air, golden eyes blazing like forgotten suns.

  “What… is that?” Zeke asked, his voice husky.

  Gotier rose with difficulty, knees trembling.

  “It’s… Kaien.

  And it seems… he’s changed.”

  Hope, for the first time in hours, returned to their eyes.

  The war was not over.

  But reinforcements had arrived.

  Gotier and Zeke were the first to notice.

  Kaien… was different.

  “Holy shit…” Zeke murmured, appraising him head to toe. “You’re… monstrously beautiful.”

  “Is this… a miracle?” Gotier smiled, genuinely surprised. “Kaien, you look like a legendary hero!”

  Kaien, embarrassed, scratched the back of his head and made a theatrical pout. Then he puffed out his chest like a fighting cock and winked as if he were a pop star.

  Zeke raised an eyebrow. Gotier burst into laughter.

  Yuzuki laughed for the first time in days—a dry, muffled sound that tasted of life.

  A relief cut the air like a warm breeze. For a second… it seemed everything would be alright.

  But then Zeke’s eyes fell on Akari.

  She lay unmoving in Yuzuki’s arms—her body exhausted, eyes half?closed, dried blood under her nails.

  “What… what happened to her?” Zeke whispered.

  “Did she fight?” Gotier approached. “Yuzuki?”

  Yuzuki did not meet their eyes. He only answered softly:

  “It’s been taken care of.

  And now?” Gotier pressed.

  “I’ll explain when it’s safe.”

  Silence.

  The moon, once a mere detail in the sky, now watched like a vigilant eye.

  Bluer than usual. An almost cruel hue.

  The Golden Tree’s distant glow mingled with the night’s silver light. Everything reflected in their eyes like a divine warning.

  Gotier looked around. His face… froze.

  “What is it?” Zeke asked.

  “Gotier?”

  The ex-priest swallowed hard. His shoulders trembled. His voice came out weak.

  “Salem… is being destroyed.”

  Zeke fell silent. Yuzuki turned slowly, eyes fixed. His fingers dug into Akari’s body.

  Gotier brought a hand to his head, as if something still echoed in his mind.

  “When you were away, I heard… Ezra.”

  He lowered his gaze.

  “He spoke to me in the rubble. As if he were… inside my skin.”

  “What do you mean…?” Zeke took a step forward.

  “His tone… was sweet. Warm. Pleasurable. A hot whisper in the ear. Like someone undressing for the one they love.”

  The memory seemed to corrode Gotier.

  “‘You killed Kubo,’ he said. ‘The King’s favorite. So Salem… is no longer worthy.’

  His voice faltered, his eyes wavered.

  “‘We will destroy every piece. Every child. Every woman. No one shall be born in Salem. Ever again. It will be a city without a future. Without children. Without purpose. Only madness, death… and suicide.’”

  “My God…” Zeke stepped back.

  “‘Ooooooh, great King… Ooooooh, King Lepra…’” Gotier repeated, like a diseased echo. “He raised his arms to the moon. And the moon… the moon smiled. Like a scythe in the sky.”

  Yuzuki shuddered.

  The scythe.

  Ezra had prayed. And the moon… answered.

  Kaien, behind them, murmured almost inaudibly:

  “Isabela…”

  They all turned.

  Yuzuki stood frozen.

  “Isabela…” he repeated. “Her father, the blacksmith… the one I swore to protect…”

  The silence was more suffocating than a scream.

  “I’m sorry, Kaien,” Gotier said.

  Yuzuki closed his eyes. His arms tightened around Akari.

  “He’s there. Alone. Defending a doomed city.”

  Pain burned within him. He knew. He knew this would happen. The group knew. But not this soon. Not like this.

  “We have to go. NOW.” Zeke shouted.

  Kaien unfurled his wings. Enormous. Black. Scarred.

  Gotier and Zeke climbed onto his back.

  Yuzuki stayed one moment longer, the weight of Akari in his arms, his heart breaking in silence.

  He looked up at the sky.

  The moon was still smiling.

  Then he rose.

  Flying.

  Toward the hell called Salem.