Just then—
A laugh came from inside the dust and smoke.
A laugh that sounded like a god mocking a mortal's knife.
"Do you think my own teeth can bite me," the Covenant-Breaker called. His voice was thick with scorn. "I am Collapse. I am the closing of structure. I cannot be unmade by the shape of my own power."
The smoke thinned.
He stood there.
Wounded.
But the wounds were shallow, and already knitting. The staff glowed with a sickly light, feeding him recovery through corruption.
Lucien raised his brows.
"Of course," he said quietly. "You are that stubborn."
Lucien shifted tactics and summoned his other book. His Book answered.
The Covenant-Breaker's gaze flicked to Lucien's hand.
To the Monsterdex.
Recognition sharpened into something hungry.
His lips pulled back.
"I see," he said softly. "You are the new bearer of the codices."
His eyes turned colder than before.
"Then you must die here," he whispered as if reciting a prophecy.
Lucien's instincts screamed.
