Xers stood up. There was no trace of his wounds. He saw Nystral in the distance. He wanted to fight immediately.
''Gomerai.''
A purple sword suddenly appeared in Xers's right hand. At that moment, a voice echoed inside his head.
''You forgot about me...''
''T-That's Koberai's voice! Don't tell me... is he going to take over my body?''
Gomerai:
''No, Xers. As long as I'm here, he can't do anything. He will only continue his existence within your body...''
''I see... Koberai.''
A white sword appeared in Xers's left hand.
''Another sword? I don't have dual-wield training!''
Koberai:
''You don't need it, idiot!''
Xers walked through the ruined castle walls toward Nystral. It was night, and rain was pouring. Nystral noticed Xers.
''T-This is impossible! H-How?! HOW ARE YOU NOT DEAD?!''
Xers, in a cold tone:
''So this is what celestial power feels like...''
''W-What? Divine power? Even his aura has changed... Doesn't matter! You still can't defeat me.''
Xers and Nystral stared each other down.
''Well, Nystral? Are you done being shocked?''
''Come on then, Xers. Let's see what you've gained!''
Nystral lunges at Xers. With both swords, Xers effortlessly deflects Nystral's attacks. Despite having no dual-wield training, he uses both swords like a master.
''Gomerai!''
Gomerai emerges from underground, roaring toward Nystral.
''G-Gomerai? Still the same Gomerai! Looks like you gained nothing but appearance, hahaha!''
''Your provocations will be your end, Nystral!''
''I doubt that! Low Steps!''
Nystral suddenly becomes invisible.
''Where did you go, Nystral?! What are you planning now? I need to be careful... K-Koberai! Can I summon him? Koberai!''
Koberai descends from the sky in his dragon form.
''Looks like controlling my aura is enough to command him!''
Koberai begins spewing slashes from his mouth. The slashes are so dense that even a flying insect would be cut into twenty pieces. His pure white magnificence illuminates the night.
Suddenly, Nystral's invisibility breaks, and he leaps to the right.
''W-What was that?! Must be a new ability. If I wasn't fast enough, I would've been torn into hundreds of pieces!''
''What's wrong, Nystral? Are you scared?''
''Scared of you?! Haha! Take this! Red Crescent!''
Nystral creates five clones of himself. At that moment, Hanken arrives from behind.
''X-XERS YOU'RE ALIVE!''
''H-HANKEN, BEHIND YOU!''
''W-What?! CHRONOSIS!''
Hanken stops the vibration of atoms, freezing time.
''So Xers is alive... and there are five Nystrals. Only one is within my range. Unfortunately, I can only eliminate one.''
Hanken cuts down one of Nystral's clones with his scythe.
''Let time flow again...''
Atoms begin vibrating again, and time resumes.
Nystral:
''Now I have to fight both of you? Where is Tsurogami?''
''I cut his head off with my scythe...''
''So you managed to kill Tsurogami! Impressive... Golden Punch!''
Nystral punches Hanken using Golden Punch, sending him flying hundreds of meters back.
''H-HANKEN! YOU BASTARD! GOMERAI, KOBERAI!''
Both dragons fly toward Nystral.
''This is bad! Low Steps!''
Nystral and all his clones turn invisible again.
At that moment, Koberai whispers to Xers.
''Whenever you want, just tell me to stop time...''
''S-stop time? Could this be related to Hanken?''
Silence fills the battlefield. Only the sound of rain hitting the ground remains.
Suddenly, Nystral tears through space with his hand and appears behind Xers.
''YOUR END HAS COME, XERS! I WILL SEND YOU OFF ONCE AGAI—''
''KOBERAI, STOP TIME!''
All atoms suddenly stop vibrating, and time freezes.
''S-So this is what stopping time feels like... Everything is frozen. I can observe every detail.''
Xers raises one of his swords.
''Ahh! I feel like my stamina is drained. I guess I only have a few moves.''
Xers thrusts his sword into Nystral's stomach. Time suddenly resumes on its own.
''W-WHAT?! AHHHH! H-H-HOW?! HOW DID YOU REACT AND STRIKE SO FAST?!''
''That's what we call stopping time...''
''S-s-stopping time...?''
Blood flows from Nystral's mouth.
''M-My wounds—''
Xers suddenly unleashes a combo with both swords. While Gomerai breathes flames, Koberai unleashes thousands of heavenly slashes. Xers strikes from every direction as the dragons tear Nystral apart. This continues for 10 seconds. Suddenly, Xers and the dragons stop.
Nystral stands there in shock, and these words leave his mouth:
''Maybe in another dimension, we could have shaken hands. But fate chose this path for me. There was nothing I could do...''
Suddenly, his body splits into 2000 pieces. Each piece falls to the ground. Blood floods the area. Nystral dies.
''No, Nystral... Fate didn't choose you. Your ego did. I lost my friends on this path. Gein, Kiminage, my comrades... Maybe you're burning in hell right now. I don't know. But I lived through hell in heaven.''
Xers turns his back. The rain drenches his brown hair. He breathes heavily.
''H-HANKEN!''
Xers runs toward Hanken. Hanken is standing but struggling.
''Are you okay, Hanken?!''
''I-I'm fine, Xers. Just shaken. Did you kill Nystral?''
''Yes. By stopping time.''
''S-Stopping time?!''
''Yeah, long story. Let's return to headquarters. I'll explain on the way.''
Xers, Hanken, and a few remaining sorcerers return to headquarters.
''That's how it happened, Hanken. Now I have a new dragon named Koberai.''
''W-Wow! We need to speed up the training.''
Xers enters the army headquarters.
''WE WON!''
The entire headquarters applauds Xers. Cheers echo everywhere.
The next day, the news headlines read:
Year: 561
01/15
The great sorcerer organization Kurogiri has officially collapsed. In last night's battle between Thend Xers and Aze Nystral, Thend Xers emerged victorious, leading to the fall of Kurogiri. The Tshusenkai clan has become the sole ruler of Shadowia.
The entire Tshusenkai clan attends a memorial ceremony for the sorcerers who lost their lives in the war.
In front of the headquarters, statues are built: Chroma representing Gein, and Red Crescent representing Kiminage.
Xers gives a speech.
''All my fellow sorcerers. This victory belongs to all of us. For nearly a year, we fought against the threat known as Kurogiri. In the end, we achieved our goal. We lost many comrades along the way. Even I barely survived. I am much stronger now, but there is something we must never forget. No sorcerer can ever reach absolute power, and never will. As we've seen, there will always be those who harm others on this path. But you and I will cleanse this world from hatred, anger, and all evil. Thank you.''
The entire crowd supports Xers. Cheers rise into the air.
''LONG LIVE TSHUSENKAI''
''LONG LIVE TSHUSENKAI''
''LONG LIVE TSHUSENKAI''
''LONG LIVE TSHUSENKAI''
Author's Note:
''Dear readers, we have reached the end of Season 3. I will continue writing this journey. However, my school exams are approaching, so I have to take a break. After a one-month break, we will continue with the new season.''