(Location: peak of blood peak; First layer)
The climb ended without warning.
One step there was pressure and resistance—
The next, stillness.
Flat ground. Dry. Lifeless.
Zael stopped.
Not because he was tired.
Because the silence here wasn't natural.
Behind him, Zane slowed, eyes already scanning. Auralis frowned, rolling her shoulder.
"…That's it?"
No one answered.
At the center of the peak stood a lone altar.
Ancient. Cracked. Untouched.
Everything around it felt drained—like the life had been pulled out and never returned.
Even the blood mist avoided it.
Aurelia's eyes glowed faintly.
"…Be careful."
Zael didn't move.
He had already felt them.
Two presences.
Waiting.
The air shifted.
Then—
They appeared.
A woman.
And a man.
The man stepped forward first, aura flaring uncontrollably, cracking the ground beneath him. His eyes locked onto Zael with open hostility.
"…You."
His voice was tight.
"…You killed Draven."
Zael met his gaze calmly.
"…He tried to kill me."
The man's jaw clenched.
Energy surged around him.
"…So you killed him."
"…Yes."
The pressure spiked.
For a moment, it looked like he'd attack immediately—
"Enough."
The woman's voice cut in.
Calm. Flat.
The pressure stabilized instantly.
She stepped forward, composed, her presence controlled in a way the man's wasn't. Her eyes settled on Zael—not angry, not emotional.
Just assessing.
"…So this is the one."
Auralis muttered under her breath.
"…She doesn't even care."
And she was right.
There was no grief. No anger.
Draven's death meant nothing to her.
Only the result did.
Her gaze shifted briefly—landing on Zael's hand, it was empty.
"…The Watcher's Key."
Zael's fingers clenched slightly.
"…You've been hunting me for it."
She gave a small nod.
"…Of course."
No hesitation.
No denial.
"…An item like that doesn't stay ownerless."
The man's voice came again, colder now.
"…Our families would tear worlds apart for less."
Zane's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…So you drove the creatures."
"…We hunted you," the man corrected sharply.
Aurelia's voice came low.
"…And now you've found him."
The woman's lips curved faintly.
"…Yes."
A pause.
"…And now we take it."
Auralis grinned.
"…You can try."
The man stepped forward again, this time not holding back. His aura surged outward, heavy and violent.
"…I'm not Draven."
Zael stepped forward to meet him.
Calm.
Steady.
"…I know and it doesn't make a difference."
That answer made the man's expression twist slightly—
Not anger.
Something sharper.
Then—
He moved.
Fast.
The ground shattered beneath his step as he closed the distance instantly.
Zael didn't retreat.
Didn't hesitate.
Void Step activated—
He vanished—
Reappeared at an angle—
Blade already in motion.
The clash cracked the air.
The peak of Blood Peak, silent for so long—
Exploded into violence.
Behind them, Auralis laughed under her breath and stepped in.
"Finally."
Zane moved with her, silent, precise.
Aurelia stayed back—but her glowing eyes tracked everything.
And near the altar—
The woman didn't move.
Didn't interfere.
She simply watched.
Because this—
This was what mattered.
Not Draven.
Not the hunt.
But how soon she could get the key....
The clash didn't stabilize.
It escalated.
Fast.
The male royal came in hard—power first, overwhelming force meant to crush before resistance could form.
Zael met him head-on.
No hesitation.
No testing.
Blade Domain spread instantly, slicing through the space around him as Void Step chained seamlessly between movements. Every reappearance came with pressure—real pressure—stacking faster than the royal could properly react.
The first exchange already told the story.
The second confirmed it.
By the third—
It wasn't a fight.
It was control.
The royal tried to push back, aura surging violently as he threw out a crushing strike meant to break Zael's rhythm—
Zael slipped past it.
Too clean.
Too precise.
Resonance Strike landed.
Direct.
The impact folded the royal's stance inward, forcing him back a full step—something that hadn't happened before.
Not against anyone.
His eyes widened.
Just slightly.
Too late.
Zael was already there again.
Phantom Split—
Two angles.
One real.
One not.
He chose wrong.
Night Sever tore across his side, drawing a deep line as dark energy bit into his defenses.
The royal staggered.
Actually staggered.
Behind them, Auralis had already stepped in once—hammer ready—
But she stopped mid-swing.
"…Can't even get in."
Zane didn't move.
His eyes tracked the fight, sharp.
"…He doesn't need us."
It wasn't arrogance.
It was fact.
Because right now—
Zael was overwhelming him.
Alone.
The royal tried to recover, slamming both feet into the ground as his aura erupted outward in a violent burst meant to reset space—
Zael walked through it.
Not unharmed.
But unaffected enough that it didn't matter.
Adaptive Evolution was already working.
Already adjusting.
Already closing the gap faster than the royal could widen it.
"Impossible—"
The royal's voice broke slightly as he blocked another strike—barely—
Zael's blade pressed down, forcing him lower.
"…You weren't like this—"
Void Step.
Gone.
Reappeared behind him.
Abyss Rend.
The hit landed clean.
The royal was driven forward, crashing across the cracked ground before barely catching himself.
Breathing heavier now.
Unstable.
For the first time—
Fear crept in.
Real fear.
His eyes locked onto Zael again.
This time—
There was no arrogance left.
"…What… did you do…?"
Zael didn't answer.
He stepped forward again.
Calm.
Unstoppable.
That silence—
Was worse.
The royal's thoughts spiraled.
Too fast.
Too strong.
Too precise.
This wasn't the same person he had been hunting.
Something had changed.
Something had gone wrong.
Badly wrong.
Another exchange—
Short.
Violent.
One-sided.
Zael broke through his guard again, forcing him back, deeper, closer to the altar without even realizing it.
The royal's breathing turned ragged.
His body wasn't failing yet—
But it was getting there.
And he knew it.
Knew it clearly.
He wasn't going to win this.
Not alone.
Not like this.
For the first time since the fight began—
He looked away from Zael.
Toward her.
"…He's much stronger than before…"
His voice wasn't steady anymore.
"…Whatever happened when he disappeared…"
A step back.
Another.
"…it changed him."
Zael didn't stop advancing.
Didn't give him space.
Didn't give him time.
The royal's composure cracked.
"If you don't help me—"
He forced the words out, eyes tightening as Zael closed in again—
"…and he kills me—"
A pause.
Sharp.
Desperate.
"…you think you can escape?!"
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Zael didn't look at her.
Didn't slow.
Didn't care.
Because to him—
This was already over.
But near the altar—
The woman's gaze shifted.
For the first time—
There was something there.
Not emotion.
Not concern.
But attention.
Focused.
Interested.
Because now—
The outcome mattered.
And she had a decision to make.
To be continued…