Armed with the truth, I stood my ground. "You were cast out, King! You have no right to this light!" I roared, the Sword of Noor erupting in a golden flame that cleared the darkness. The King laughed, a sound that cracked the floor. "Rights are written by the powerful, boy!" He attacked, his shadow claws shredding my protective spells.
But then, the final twist of this chapter happened. I didn't order the djinns to fight. I released them. "You are no longer bound by the contract!" I shouted to the 1600. "Choose! Will you serve a tyrant who created you as slaves, or will you stand with a human who treats you as brothers?" For a moment, there was silence. Then, one by one, the djinns began to glow with a new, independent light. Khairul Nafas stood up, his eyes burning with defiance. "We choose the light!" he screamed. All 1600 djinns combined their energy, not into the sword, but into me. I became a pillar of celestial fire. The Shadow King shrieked as he was burned by the collective will of his former slaves. He vanished, but as he left, he whispered a chilling promise: "The 1600 are free, Emon. But who will protect you from them now that the contract is broken?"