The sky grew heavy with clouds, darker and more oppressive than ever before. It was a clear omen of a torrential rain, waiting for the perfect moment to wash over the earth. The wind turned feral, howling through the ruins as the disaster neared its climax. Carol and Erika clashed repeatedly, their strengths seemingly equal. Their weapons collided with monstrous force, sending shockwaves through the air and leaving a wake of debris and smoke across the battlefield.

  When Erika finally broke the clash, forcing both of them back, Carol immediately utilized her Corrupted Wind Agnis. She flickered out of existence, reappearing instantly in front of Erika to deliver a heavy, sweeping strike. Erika dodged by a hair's breadth, vanishing into the sky. Sensing her presence above, Carol sprouted wings of Dark Ender from her back. She stomped the ground with such force the earth shattered, launching herself toward Erika with her sword bared. Their gazes locked once more. Erika wore a thrill-seeking smile, while Carol remained as hollow and emotionless as a doll. Their blades screamed against each other in the heavens as the duel continued.

  "Looks like she’s having her fun," Grey mumbled to himself, exhaling a cloud of smoke as he pulled the tobacco from his lips.

  "Can’t blame her. She’s been waiting to do something this exciting for a long time, considering she’s been hibernating for decades," a man’s voice replied. He walked casually toward Grey and stopped beside him. It was Yuno. "But buddy, are you sure you want to return to that smoking habit of yours?"

  "Rather than asking about my habits, why don't you tell me the progress of the sealing ritual?" Grey asked, his voice sharp with impatience.

  "Almost in place. Erick and Dulcinia are ready with their binding spells, and Hana is prepared with her strongest purification magic," Yuno stated calmly.

  "Is that so?" Grey closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them with a look of cold resolve. "And what about your wounds? I heard from the other lecturers that you were injured."

  "You mean during the investigation at Neurn?" Yuno tipped his hat down, shadowing his eyes. "I'm more than okay. If you want to know, it happened when we discovered the third party."

  "I presume it was the Apostles. One of them managed to stop you from interfering with their plan, didn't they?" Grey turned his head toward Yuno.

  "Something like that. I'm sorry I couldn't prevent this."

  "No, it’s fine," Grey replied. He dropped the tobacco to the ground and crushed it under his boot. He pulled out his wand, casting a Vergus Spell to morph it into a heavy claymore. "If they’ve made their move, let them. Fate or not, they will never be able to control her choices."

  "You really have a lot of faith in Carol, don't you, Grey?"

  Grey snorted in amusement. "If my little sister could defy her destiny as a weapon, to live freely as a human, then I don’t see why Carol or Erika can’t make their own choices in the future."

  "Heh. That goes for you, too. The 'Child of Light' acting like some sort of mafia boss instead of the 'Chosen One' from the legends. You never fail to stay true to yourself, Grey."

  Grey cleared his throat, clearly unwilling to dwell on the embarrassing heroics of his past life.

  In the sky, Erika and Carol clashed repeatedly, flickering from one position to the next with equal, blinding speed. From the perspective of the survivors at the backline, it looked like a chaotic display of fireworks—reddish darkness warring against a grey, saintly light.

  As the two figures broke their clash and drifted apart, Erika wore a satisfied, prideful smile. "A fair showing for a Leviathan half-wrought! Yet it vexeth my soul that thy mortal self, that flickering human spark, refuseth to come forth," she said, holding her katana close to her body behind her back. "Nay, doubt it not! I shall strive with double might. For thy stubborn will is but the fuel I seek to kindle into flame!"

  Listening to Erika’s archaic blathering, Carol, for the first time, showed a glimpse of genuine annoyance. She gripped her sword with white-knuckled intensity, mirroring Erika’s stance before vanishing. She reappeared instantly in Erika’s face, thrusting the tip of her blade toward the Saint's heart.

  "Saint Style:" Erika began her chant, but an invisible force halted Carol’s strike mid-air, causing Carol’s red eyes to widen in shock.

  "Mirroring... Deltria," Erika finished in a voice of cold calm. An explosion of force erupted, slamming Carol back toward the cliffside. Carol found herself pinned against the stone by a mirror reflection of Erika. The reflection felt real:tangible and solid. Carol tried to use her raw strength to shove the blade aside, but it was in vain. The reflection pressed harder, crushing Carol against the rock until the cliffside demolished. With a heavy swing, the mirror image knocked Carol spiraling into the sea.

  Carol sprouted her Dark Ender wings just before hitting the water, levitating safely above the waves. As the reflection vanished, a small, bloody cut opened on her cheek. Brushing the blood away, Carol gripped her sword with both hands and closed her eyes, her blade vibrating with high-energy Dark Ender.

  Erika and a new mirror reflection appeared simultaneously, ready to slash at Carol from the front and back. However, Carol snapped her eyes open. She raised her sword above her head and swung it toward the sea with a Corrupted Wind Rush. The force was immense; the mirror reflection shattered instantly, while the real Erika was blasted back toward the center of the field.

  Landing on the ground, Erika snorted with excitement. She looked up to see Carol transforming her sword into a gargantuan blade of darkness that roared into the sky.

  "At last, the scene mends! It mirrors a tale I hold dear—" Erika gripped her katana, covering it in an unnaturally calm yet destructive bright flame, a unique element that transcended normal Ignis. "—where rivals clash to show which craft holds the greater majesty!"

  Carol chanted her spell, her voice as cold and hollow as a doll’s. "Destructive Whirlwind."

  She swung the giant blade toward the earth. Without fear, Erika leaped to meet it, her katana wreathed in fire. "Saint Style: Haven Flame!" she roared, slamming her blade against the dark titan of a sword.

  The survivors in the backline watched in awe from afar, while Grey and Yuno watched from the corner of the field, their expressions etched with worry. Erika’s body began to strain; the sheer pressure of the power she was fighting started to tear at her from the inside. Yet, she didn't give in. She smiled through the pain, finding it trivial compared to her decades of past as a homunculus.

  Suddenly, Carol let out a harrowing war cry, a sound that startled Grey and Yuno. Erika matched it with a joyful cry of her own, straining to keep the dark blade from hitting the ground. To Grey and Yuno, that scream was a revelation; it was proof that Carol’s emotions still existed, an 'impure' human trait that the Leviathan had not yet consumed.

  Both blades shattered under the pressure. Carol stood in shock while Erika’s katana snapped in half. But Erika didn't stop. She leaped toward Carol on the cliff, holding her broken hilt high as a blade of pure, haven flame manifested from the stump. Carol countered with a surge of Dark Ender, and the weapons clashed with a deafening ring.

  Carol struggled to hold her ground, her face twisting in frustration, while Erika smiled with wild excitement, pushing Carol down until the cliff edge gave way. Carol plummeted to the ground below. Though she landed safely, a mirror reflection of Erika appeared instantly, swinging its blade. Carol’s barrier held, but the force of the impact launched her back into the sky.

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  Seeing her opening, the real Erika charged. Even though Carol managed to defend herself, she was knocked farther and farther away. The mirror reflection hounded her from below, forcing Carol into a frantic defense. She was bounced across the battlefield, panted heavily as she struggled to maintain her barriers.

  Gritting her teeth in frustration at Erika’s games, Carol manifested a second sword of Dark Ender in her right hand. Erika and her reflection charged simultaneously from both sides. Carol spun her body in a violent whirlwind, shattering the mirror reflection and halting Erika’s advance.

  Seeing a signal from Grey, Erika immediately retreated to the far cliffside. Carol, operating on pure instinct, took the bait and charged after her with both swords bared.

  "Now!" Grey’s voice boomed across the field.

  The moment Carol’s feet hit the cliff, ethereal chains manifested from thin air, binding her limbs. A brilliant white magic circle erupted beneath her. Hana, Erick, and Dulcinia emerged from their hiding spots. Erick looked on with disgust; Dulcinia trembled with fear at the sight of the Leviathan’s daughter. Only Hana showed a look of deep sympathy, pointing her enlightened wand toward the trapped girl.

  "Don’t worry, dear. This is going to be over. I promise," Hana whispered, closing her eyes to begin the ritual.

  The wind within the ritual circle grew increasingly violent. Erick, Dulcinia, and Hana strained to maintain the sealing magic despite the howling gale. Carol thrashed against her bonds, her Dark Ender escalating as it reacted to her mounting fury. The chains began to hiss and corrode, eaten away by her corrosive negativity.

  "Just how much Ender does that monster actually have?!" Erick shouted, shielding his face from the flying debris.

  With a final, explosive surge, the chains shattered. Carol lunged forward, swinging her blade with lethal intent toward Hana.

  "Stubborn as always... even when you’ve become something else," Grey said. He moved with casual, veteran grace to intervene, raising his claymore to shield Hana. Their weapons clashed with a deafening ring, Carol’s face contorted in a mask of frustration.

  "Don't forget, Carol. This battle... the chaos you’ve unleashed... shall be the lesson you learn from today," Grey grunted. He broke the clash, delivering a powerful kick to Carol’s stomach that sent her skidding back across the field.

  "Hana, let me borrow your wand for a moment," Grey said, his eyes never leaving Carol.

  "S-sure... but what for?"

  "To finish the separation ritual, and also ending her suffering." Without looking back, he took the wand, tucked it into his pocket, and leaped toward Carol.

  Carol regained her footing, watching as Grey descended upon her with his claymore wreathed in flame. Pushed past her limit, convinced that every human was merely playing with her like a toy, Carol slammed both swords into the earth. Massive, corrupted magic circles erupted behind her, manifesting a barrage of giant blades. One by one, the titans of steel launched toward Grey.

  He didn't break a sweat, weaving through the projectiles and using the flats of the blades as platforms to continue his advance. In desperation, Carol opened her arms, merging two massive needles into a singular, monstrous abomination of Dark Ender. She thrust her palms forward, launching the mass at Grey. He raised his claymore, the impact of the needles screaming across the battlefield.

  (Why do you keep trying? Why do you keep moving forward?) a whisper hissed within Grey’s mind.

  "Shut it, you bastard. You, the Dark Ender that feeds on guilt, are the last thing I want to hear," Grey muttered. He put pressure on his blade, the needles beginning to crack under his strength.

  (You had a chance in the past. You could have killed her when she was vulnerable to end her pain. Yet you took her in. If not for your weakness, she would never have known this agony.) The whisper clawed at Grey’s grief, trying to break his resolve.

  "Hmph. I can't deny that. I’ve often thought that ending her life might have been a mercy... that she’d be better off with her mother in the afterlife than in this rotten world." The needles finally shattered, but Carol clenched her fists, forcing the shards to converge and trap Grey inside a crushing cube of void.

  "But," Grey’s voice echoed from within the darkness, "I’m not the type to take the easy path!"

  A flickering flame erupted from the cracks of the cube, incinerating the void as Grey continued his descent toward her. Desperation etched across her face, Carol channelled a high-density wind rush toward him.

  (Why do you think so? You, the former Child of Light... you could have kept your power. You could have stopped their plan if you had simply killed your brother-in-law.)

  Grey ignored the ghost of his failure, holding his ground against the gale. "Because I have faith in her! 'Holy magic' or not, 'Child of Light' is just a title. And her title as the Leviathan's daughter shall remain just that, a title!"

  He roared, swinging his own Haven flame-wreathed wind rush, completely overpowering Carol’s spell. The blast caught her off guard. She raised her sword and retreated, but Grey used the smoke as cover. He rushed forward, pointing Hana’s wand toward Carol’s heart.

  Instinctively, Carol slashed out. Her blade cut deep into Grey’s right arm.

  Grey’s eyes widened in shock, but he didn't stop. As Carol blinked, her human persona briefly flickered back to the surface. Her hollow red eyes returned to a dark, human hue. She froze, horrified to see her blade buried in her uncle’s arm, blood slicking the steel.

  "Un...cle..?"

  Despite the agony, Grey pressed the wand against her chest. "I’m sorry for not helping you sooner, Carol."

  The wand erupted in a brilliant light. Carol’s Leviathan form began to dissolve, her body wracked with such intense pain that she clutched her head, screaming until her lungs burned. Beside her, a dark shadow, Irene, was forcibly torn away. Both girls shrieked in unison as their souls were severed.

  "I'm sorry..." Grey whispered as the light faded. He collapsed to the ground, his lifeblood draining rapidly into the dirt. "...that I couldn't give you... a proper lesson." He let the wand slip from his fingers and lost consciousness.

  Carol, back in her human form, stared at the destruction she had wrought. When her eyes fell to the ground, she finally felt the weight of her choices. Her uncle lay in a pool of blood that slowly spread toward her, tainting her boots and her hands. She lifted her palms, staring at the crimson stain with empty, hollow eyes.

  The rain began to fall; first a drizzle, then a torrential downpour, washing the blood into the earth. Carol’s shattered sword reverted to a snapped wand beside Grey. The rain soaked through Carol’s wrecked uniform, but it couldn't wash away the sound of her mind finally snapping. The trauma was too much; her consciousness faded into blackness as she slumped into the mud.

  Nearby, Irene grunted, her shadow-form struggling against the residue of Hana’s spell. She glared at the unconscious Carol, her red eye glowing violently. She manifested shadow-hands to drag Carol away, but Erika intervened, her katana flashing as she cut the shadows back.

  "All of you will pay..." Irene hissed, retreating into a pool of shadow. "All of you will pay for what you’ve done! For Carol... for us... we shall have our revenge against this world!"

  Irene vanished, leaving a broken Carol alone on the field.

  "Is everyone okay, Erika?!" Yuno shouted, rushing toward them with the others.

  "Their lives hang by a thread!" Erika cried out, panicked as she tried to stem the flow of Grey’s blood. "Bind their wounds! Now!"

  (A Former Village: A forest far from Holder influence)

  Irene stepped out of the shadows into the ruins of her childhood home. The village was a graveyard of burnt wood and silence.

  "I'm home... Mom..." Irene whispered, walking into the charred remains of the house.

  "We’ve been waiting for you, Priestess." A man’s voice greeted her. Dein, Mary, Chris and two other hooded figures knelt in the dirt. Dein looked up, acting like a true leader behind everything as he smile proudly.

  "Who are you? Why are you in this house?" Irene demanded, a Dark Ender blade manifesting in her hand.

  "Do not be angry, Priestess. We are here to serve you. That is what we, the Apostles, have always existed for."

  Irene snorted in disbelief, pressing the blade against Dein’s throat. "Serve me? I suppose you have an 'interest' in me, then?"

  "Not at all, Priestess. We serve of our own will."

  "Is that so?" Irene pulled the blade away and walked past them into her mother’s room. "Do as you please. So long as you do not interfere with my goal."

  Dein grinned with predatory excitement. "As you wish, Priestess."

  Outside, the crows cawed loudly into the night, a dark omen that the greatest threat to humanity had finally made its move.

  [Arc 4:Ended]