Years passed.
The road that Sora and Johan once walked as wandering rebels had long since turned into a battlefield.
By the time they reached the age of eighteen, their names had already spread across every kingdom in the continent.
Villages whispered about them.
Merchants spoke of them on long roads.
Soldiers cursed their existence.
Two unknown rebels.
Two young men who defeated royal guards, disrupted tax routes, destroyed military supply lines, and vanished before armies could capture them.
No one knew where they came from.
No one knew who trained them.
But every kingdom knew one thing.
They were dangerous.
Dangerous enough that the rulers of the continent did something they had not done for generations.
They formed a union.
Not to conquer land.
Not to fight each other.
But to hunt two people.
---
Inside a grand war hall lit by long rows of torches, several kings and military commanders stood around a massive stone table.
A map of the continent lay across it.
Red markings covered the land.
Reports.
Battles.
Sightings.
Failures.
One commander slammed his fist on the table.
"Two rebels!"
His voice echoed across the chamber.
"And none of our armies have captured them!"
Another commander spoke.
"They have defeated five magic squads already."
A king sitting at the far end of the room leaned forward.
"Then we send more."
One knight stepped forward from the shadows.
His armor was identical to the others.
His expression calm.
Too calm.
"...Permission to lead the next operation."
The room turned toward him.
The commander narrowed his eyes.
"You believe you can defeat them?"
The knight bowed slightly.
"If we corner them."
A faint smile appeared under the shadow of his helmet.
"...They will die."
No one in the room knew the truth.
That the man standing before them was not truly one of their knights.
His name was Riguta.
And he had already taken control of the body he now wore.
For Riguta, the war was not about the rebels.
It was about one person.
Johan.
---
Far away from the kingdoms' war halls, on a vast open battlefield surrounded by broken stone and ruined watchtowers—
Sora and Johan stood alone.
Across the plains in front of them stood an army.
Rows of armored soldiers stretched across the field.
Behind them stood several elite warriors.
The Magic Squads.
The most powerful fighters each kingdom possessed.
Mages who had trained their entire lives to control Aether.
Sora looked across the battlefield and whistled.
"...That's a lot of people."
Johan stood calmly beside him.
Water slowly moved around his hand like a living creature.
"Eight magic squads."
Sora blinked.
"You counted already?"
"Yes."
Sora scratched the back of his head.
"...That's annoying."
The wind swept across the battlefield.
Banners from multiple kingdoms waved behind the soldiers.
A commander stepped forward and shouted.
"REBELS!"
His voice thundered across the plains.
"You have nowhere left to run!"
Sora looked around.
Then he shrugged.
"...He's kind of right."
Johan glanced at him.
"You sound relaxed."
Sora smiled.
"I've been waiting for a real fight."
Across the field, one of the magic squad captains stepped forward.
Flames erupted around his body.
Another raised his staff as lightning crackled through the air.
Wind began swirling across the battlefield.
Earth trembled beneath the soldiers' feet.
Sora slowly drew his sword.
The metal reflected the gray sky.
"...Ready?"
Johan's water surged upward like a rising tide.
"I always am."
---
The battlefield exploded.
Firestorms crashed across the ground.
Lightning tore through the sky.
Waves of earth magic shattered the land itself.
But Sora and Johan did not retreat.
Sora moved through the chaos like a blade cutting through the storm.
His sword struck faster than most mages could react.
Meanwhile Johan's magic dominated the battlefield.
Rivers of water rose from underground streams.
They twisted into massive torrents that slammed entire squads of soldiers away.
Magic collided with magic.
The battlefield trembled.
Several magic squad members fell.
Others retreated.
Even the commanders watching from behind began to realize something terrifying.
Two rebels—
were holding back an army.
---
Among the soldiers watching the battle stood a quiet knight.
Riguta.
His eyes followed Johan.
Every movement.
Every spell.
Every breath.
Inside the stolen body, Riguta smiled.
Such power.
Such a perfect vessel.
He slowly raised his hand.
Dark magic gathered quietly behind the battlefield.
No one noticed.
Except Johan.
For a brief moment, Johan's eyes shifted.
Something felt wrong.
But the battle was too chaotic to focus.
Then it happened.
A magic squad captain hidden behind the battlefield launched a sudden attack.
A spear of condensed Aether.
It shot forward silently.
Straight toward Sora's back.
Sora didn't see it.
He was already fighting three mages in front of him.
Johan did.
For the first time since the battle began—
Johan's eyes widened.
"Sora!"
Sora turned slightly.
"What—"
The spear was already there.
In that instant—
Johan moved.
Water surged around him as he stepped between Sora and the attack.
The spear pierced through his chest.
Time seemed to stop.
The battlefield froze.
Water magic collapsed around Johan as the deadly Aether attack tore through his body.
Sora's eyes widened in shock.
"...Johan?"
Johan staggered.
Blood touched the ground.
Sora grabbed him before he fell.
The battlefield noise faded into distant echoes.
Sora stared at him.
"...Why?"
Johan looked at him calmly.
His voice weaker than before.
"You were… too slow."
Sora's hands trembled.
"That's not funny."
Johan coughed lightly.
"...You would have died."
Sora clenched his teeth.
"You idiot."
Johan's eyes shifted slightly toward the battlefield.
Toward the quiet knight watching from afar.
For a moment—
their eyes met.
Riguta smiled.
Johan understood.
But it was too late.
He looked back at Sora.
"...Looks like you win."
Sora shook his head.
"No."
Johan's breathing slowed.
"You'll… survive."
The wind passed softly across the battlefield.
And for the first time since they met in the ruined kingdom—
Johan smiled.
"...Don't lose."
Then his body went still.
Sora's grip tightened.
Silence fell across the battlefield.
The war had just changed forever.