Scene shifts to Ashveil Kenny, standing at the bow of his ship, his black cloak fluttering like a torn shadow behind him.
The vast sea stretched endlessly before him—quiet, deep, and deceptively calm.
Kenny's eyes narrowed as he replayed the events of the failed alliance meeting in his mind.
"Well… what happened, happened."
His voice was barely a whisper, swallowed by the sea breeze.
"Now what? Should I start searching for the King's Throne… but from where?"
His thoughts churned as endlessly as the waves below, but the rhythmic crash of the ocean carried a strange serenity, calming him despite the storm inside his mind.
He reached into his coat and pulled out a folded newspaper.
Across the front page, bold letters screamed:
"DEVIL BOY – ORIMO KUZAN ESCAPES AGAIN."
"NAVY WARSHIPS RETREAT — EVEN SORA NITHEL AND SERAPHEL DAWN FAILED TO CAPTURE HIM."
Kenny stared at the headline, the breeze lifting his hair, the weight of the moment settling in his chest.
"Orimo Kuzan…"
He lowered the paper slowly.
"I have a feeling… soon enough, he will turn the world upside down."
Kenny's eyes hardened—cold, sharp, decisive.
"And when that time comes… I must be the one to stop him."