No ripple was visible on Rayuka's face, but his steps suddenly quickened.
He disappeared his sword into the shadows and moved down the corridor like a black flash of lightning.
The shadows along the walls retreated from him, as if they themselves feared what awaited outside.
In the frigid stillness of the throne room, everything stood motionless—except for one small object.
The Orb stirred in Rintal's pocket.
First, it only pulsed… then it began to tremble, as if something were calling to it.
Something deeper, darker, more ancient.
Areday looked up, blood dripping from his mouth.
— "Rintal… do you feel this? It… it wants to connect to that light… to that… horror."
Rintal's hand involuntarily shot to his pocket, the Seal practically burning his skin.
— "It's drawing the Prince to itself… or vice versa…"
Areday grabbed Rintal's shoulder.
— "I don't care! We have to get out of here! Now!"
Both were barely standing, but fear snapped them back to reality in moments.
The Seal's red flared, and Rintal broke free from the shadow grip, as if another force had torn him from the path.
— "The tower…" Areday gasped.
— "We can break Rayuka's technique on the top floor. We can get out of here from there."
Rintal nodded—and they began to run.
---
The stairs coiled upwards in a spiral, the walls covered in cracks, as if the tower itself were terrified of what had happened below.
Black rain fell through the windows—acidic shadow-tears conjured by Rayuka's presence.
A dark light flowed between the stones, as if some corruption were spreading inside the castle.
The air was thick, metallic-tasting, as if the world were dying.
Areday hissed with every step, and Rintal coughed up blood, but the Seal kept shoving them forward.
---
Rayuka stepped out of the throne room through the shattered passageway, and what he saw…
even he was unprepared for it.
At the end of the corridor stood the figure of light.
As the blinding radiance slowly dissipated, outlines appeared.
Vaynar. The Demon Prince.
His body was tall, almost superhuman.
His skin was pale ash-grey, streaked with black, cracked patterns, as if constantly being torn anew.
His horns curved slightly backwards, their tips glowing red.
His hair was long, snow-white, like freshly fallen ash.
And his eyes… two blood-red abysses where entire worlds seemed to have burned out.
Behind him, the body of the Pack Leader lay in pieces, and Geremisz was on his knees, gasping for air.
Vaynar slowly opened his palm—light and darkness swirled within it, as if night and day obeyed him simultaneously.
His voice was deep, echoing, yet clear:
— "Finally… I am free from the curse. The curse that Christ cast upon me… so I could not reach the Orb. Your God sent his only son to protect you in this prison, a place he and my father can no longer access."
— "How ironic…" Vaynar smiled.
— "Two omnipotent beings banished from their own creation."
A cold smile crossed his face.
— "And look… on the day of my resurrection, they tried to save you again."
When he spotted Rayuka, the smile turned savage.
— "And here he is… Christ's chosen one. The spawn of the shadow."
Rayuka remained motionless for a moment.
Then he gestured to the side.
— "Back, all of you."
Gnatz and Xnaider immediately retreated.
Geremisz pointed at Vaynar:
— "This won't be easy… you'll need help, Rayuka."
Rayuka closed his eyes.
When he looked up again…
his eyes were completely black.
— "You would be in my way, brothers."
The air around him began to vibrate, the shadows seemed to celebrate.
Geremisz took a step back.
— "Everyone back to the ship!" he roared.
— "Rayuka… is shifting into Feral Eclipse form!"
The darkness began to gather around Rayuka, as if he were sucking the shadow out of the entire castle.
The atmosphere cracked.
The world began to darken.
---
Climbing towards the upper level of the tower, the staircase suddenly moved beneath them, as if the building itself were protesting their presence.
The Orb in Rintal's pocket did not calm down—it pulsed, as if something lived inside it, and that something was awakening.
Areday leaned against the wall with great difficulty, black smoke seeping from his wounds due to Rayuka's poisoned shadows.
— "Faster, Rintal… we're almost there…" he breathed.
They reached the penultimate level of the tower.
Cracks ran along the walls, and some black substance flowed through them, as if darkness itself were trying to tear apart the castle's law.
---
At the top lay a circular hall.
In the center stood an old, ancient stone altar.
The walls bore angelic and demonic patterns—all scratched and mutilated.
The tower was windowless, yet a faint red light glimmered within.
Areday leaned against the altar, gasping.
— "Place the Orb on it… we need to break out before Rayuka—"
But Rintal did not reply.
The Seal on his arm screamed.
The Orb began to vibrate as if it wanted to tear Rintal's ribs apart.
The Seal adapted to this, making Rintal feel the pain.
Areday's face was contorted in pain, and black smoke was now seeping through his skin.
— "Rintal… hurry…"
Then it happened.
---
The Seal Darkens
The Seal suddenly darkened.
The red light was extinguished for a moment—then reignited with a black flame.
And Rintal fell silent.
His pupil contracted.
The world around him trembled.
A thin, black thread originated from the Orb—and connected to the Seal.
The air in the tower cracked.
As if the gate to a memory had opened within him.
---
Everything suddenly EXPLODED in Rintal's head.
All the images of his life flashed by:
the shipwreck,
the orphanage,
the forest of wolves,
his mother's death—which Areday witnessed,
Zofia's death,
the screaming of the Seal,
Areday's smile… which was still so evil,
Areday's cry… which seemed to demand his life,
Rintal searching for Zofia.
The images did not come in sequence.
But all at once.
As if a thousand hands were tearing apart his brain.
Areday watched in a daze as Rintal sank to his knees.
— "Rintal? What's happening? What is the Seal doing—?"
But Rintal looked up at him…
…and saw no friend.
But a shadow-monster.
A demonic grotesque.
A murderous pit digging out his eyes.
The Seal distorted Areday's figure as if Rintal's deepest fear had returned.
— "GET-AWAY-FROM-ME!!!" Rintal screamed, and jumped back.
His eyes were weeping blood, and red lightning flashed through his brain.
And the voice of the Seal spoke to him.
Not humanly.
Not understandably.
But like a thousand intertwined chorus of worms:
"He. Is. Not. Your. Friend."
"He. Is. Why. You. Suffer."
"He. Is. The key. To get out of here."
"Kill. Evolve. Ascend."
"Kill him."
"Avenge your fiancée."
"Avenge your mother and father."
"AVENGE EVERYTHING."
"KILL. EVOLVE. ASCEND."
Areday's breath caught in his throat.
— "Rintal… please… it's me! Your brother! Can't you see?!"
But there was no recognition in Rintal's eyes.
The Seal had completely taken over his consciousness.
The world around him began to distort.
The tower walls seemed to draw closer.
The stone altar began to crack.
The shadows grew fatter.
Rintal screamed.
His body was seized by spasms, his muscles stiffened, and black veins lined up beneath his skin like a spiderweb.
Areday fell to his knees before him.
— "Please, Rintal… come back… this isn't you…"
But Rintal's face was contorted.
His eyes turned blood-black, with a red frame.
His voice became double—as if two souls were speaking at once: him and something else.
— "TRAITOR."
Areday tried to crawl closer through his tears.
— "Rintal… my brother… please…"
The Seal-entity growled from Rintal's throat:
— "YOU… ARE… THE ENEMY."
At that moment, the top of the tower began to crumble.
Outside, the energy from Rayuka and Vaynar's attacks reached the apex.
The tower trembled.
And the Seal…
took complete control.
Rintal's body twitched convulsively.
Blood gathered in his eyes instead of tears.
And he looked at Areday…
…like a predator looks at its prey.
Areday, even kneeling, raised his hand:
— "Rintal… CAN YOU HEAR ME?"
But Rintal clutched his head, screaming as the Seal tore reality from his consciousness.
The memories clashed again:
Zofia's scream.
The roar of the sea.
The red light.
The cold word of the Orb.
Areday's face—blending with all the pain.
The Seal showed him Areday as a shadow demon.
A smiling killer.
The source of his losses.
And then—
Rintal disappeared.
When Areday looked up…
…Rintal was already behind him.
His hand was burning with black light.
Screams came from the Seal.
And the Orb merged with his movement.
Areday smiled. Weakly. Sadly. Accepting.
— "If this is how it must be… even so… I'm proud of you…"
Rintal's throat twitched, but his eyes were empty.
He whispered a single word:
— "…DIE."
Rintal's hand lunged forward.
Not with a fist.
Not with a weapon.
But with the Seal's extended, black claw.
The black energy tore through Areday's chest—and ripped out the light surrounding his heart.
Areday's body stiffened.
His eyes widened.
Then…
…he fell apart.
With a single, soundless sigh, Areday collapsed in Rintal's arms.
And the Seal—
as if it had obtained what it desired—
exploded the Orb in Rintal's hand with black flame.
The Orb shattered in LIGHT, then turned into complete nothingness.
No ash remained.
No light remained.
No fragments remained.
As if it had never existed.
And with that…
The curse holding the island captive—which was a blessing to the outside world—ceased to exist.
The destruction of the Orb shook the island with such force that even Rayuka stepped back.
The Demon Prince, Vaynar, stopped.
His body trembled.
As if the chains wrapped around his soul had snapped taut.
Then…
they broke.
Black light burst from his chest.
— "My soul… finally free."
Rayuka did not wait.
Total darkness covered his body, shadows swirled around him, and his eyes glowed like two black suns.
A single sentence left his mouth:
— "Finally, an opponent."
Vaynar laughed.
— "I am weak… just reborn… but my blood still burns with the blood of kings. A mortal is no match for me—especially while you are only a shadow of your master."
The two figures vanished.
The air split in two.
The ground exploded.
Shadow and demon-light clashed.
Vaynar's strike would have split mountains in two—
Rayuka stopped it with one hand.
Rayuka's punch would have torn continents apart—
Vaynar's body collapsed into black ash and reformed.
Vaynar was too fresh.
Too weak.
Too raw.
And he underestimated the strongest.
He slowly retreated.
Rayuka finally grabbed Vaynar's throat… and slammed him into the ground.
The ground opened up like a black crater.
Vaynar looked up with glowing red eyes.
— "I may be weak now… but NOW I am free."
Rayuka summoned his sword.
The blade emanated shadows.
— "Then this is the end."
And he cut off Vaynar's head.
The light disappeared.
The ground fell silent.
But Vaynar's voice laughed in the air:
— "This is not over, little shadow… we will meet again."
The body crumbled to dust—but the dust did not vanish.
It swept on towards the forest as a dark wind.
A Demon Prince does not die.
He only leaves the body.
Rayuka whispered:
— "He probably used this body because of the curse…"
— "But what broke the curse…?"
And then it occurred to him:
The Orb.
The two thieves.
The throne room.
And he sensed:
his technique that sealed the island had ceased to exist.
Nothing bound Vaynar to the island anymore.
---
The tower crumbled around him.
The ceiling exploded into a cloud of dust.
The stones fell one after another.
But Rintal did not look up.
He only held Areday's body.
The Seal pulsed on his arm…
in a dull, satisfied rhythm.
As if it were satiated.
As if it were smiling.
Rintal rose to his feet, the lifeless body in his arms.
The world trembled.
The shadows murmured.
The ground split open in several places.
The Seal was no longer directing him.
No longer compelling him.
It just watched.
As he carried Areday… out of the tower… out of the ruins… onto the dying island.
When the first staircase broke off behind him, suddenly…
A memory burst into his head.
Rain poured down.
The night was cold.
The ground was full of mud, and the sky was covered with black clouds.
Rintal was a small boy then.
Skinny.
Hungry.
Bones and skin.
And someone was carrying him, just as he was now carrying Areday.
Areday.
A boy only slightly older.
Stronger, more defiant, more determined.
He took Rintal into his arms when the orphanage threw them onto the street.
— "Come on… brother." he had said then.
His voice was clear. Human. Warm.
Rintal could not walk from weakness.
Areday carried him through the dark alleys.
— "You will live. Even if I break myself for it. We live together. We die together. Understand?"
Rintal could only nod then.
The present tore apart.
The past disappeared.
Rintal stepped out of the castle gate…
and the island's air hit his face like a death rattle.
---
Red tornadoes surged up from the sea.
Columns of shadow stretched along the shore.
The ground cracked open, and black lava oozed out.
The sky split for a moment, as if the gods were looking away.
The Sons of Dawn rushed toward the shore, Rayuka's voice cutting through them:
— "To the ship! Immediately! The Prince's body has disintegrated… But I am following his soul!"
Geremisz turned back, terror on his face.
— "And the two thieves…?"
Rayuka paused for a moment.
His eyes undulated like a tar-black sea.
— "We will deal with them later."
— "The Orb has been destroyed… I probably can no longer acquire its power."
The Sons of Dawn boarded the ship.
Rayuka took one last look at the island.
Somewhere… they had left a boy.
And a corpse.
---
Rintal found a clearing in front of the castle.
A place… where flowers might once have been.
He knelt down.
He laid Areday's body down.
And began to dig.
With bleeding fingers.
With torn nails.
The earth was bone-hard, as if protesting.
Every handful of earth was a new pain.
Every scratch a new memory.
The Seal watched without a word.
Then another memory flashed.
A mountainside.
A cold wind.
Two graves.
His mother's.
His father's.
Rintal was bleeding then, too.
His hands were full of mud.
The shovel was too big for him.
Areday was there beside him.
Just the same.
Kneeling.
Helping.
— "You don't have to dig alone." he had said then.
— "As long as I live… I will be by your side."
The image dissolved.
The present returned.
---
Rintal finally finished the grave.
He placed Areday's body in it.
He smoothed the earth.
His hand trembled.
He knelt down.
He did not cry.
He did not scream.
He only whispered:
— "You were everything to me, brother…"
— "I will never ask for redemption for being weak…"
— "I will never forgive myself…"
— "And our dream will never come true again… because I was weak…"
His heart trembled.
His chest gasped.
His blood fell to the ground along with his tears.
---
Rintal stood up.
He drew his sword.
He raised it to his chest.
— "If there is no more meaning in living… then…"
The blade touched his heart.
— "…let it end… I give up."
And just as he was about to plunge it in—
A VOICE SPEAKS.
Cold.
Clear.
Filled with silent power.
— "Would he want you… to remain weak?"
Rintal turned around, the sword trembling in his hand.
— "Why…? Who are you?!"
The world fell silent.
The wind stopped moving.
The dark sky seemed to begin to watch.
And the voice spoke:
— "My name… is Anonime."
The outlines of a figure appeared in the darkness.
It did not move.
It just looked at Rintal.
And with that, a new chapter began.