The black eye above the canyon throbbed once, dark and huge, and then it pulled back. It started to rise slowly, leaving the broken landscape below in an uneasy silence.Kael and Eron stayed still and watched the shadow go away, but neither of them felt safe enough to relax. Every instinct screamed that this pause was temporary.Kael exhaled slowly, flexing his fingers. The veins along his hands had darkened further, but the movement of the black eye had eased the immediate pressure on the seal inside him. He had survived the god’s direct gaze, but the strain had left him raw and wary.Eron stepped closer, eyes scanning the sky for any sign of returning danger. “Do you think it will come back immediately?” he asked cautiously.Kael shook his head. “Not immediately,” he said. “The presence above is calculating, not impulsive. It will wait, observe, and test.” He glanced at the crater below, where the God of Judgment was trapped. Its faint silver glow pulsed irregularly, reflecting the

The rumors that spread after the canyon battle did not slow down. Instead, they grew stronger and more dangerous with every passing day.At first, most people focused on the same story. Many witnesses claimed that someone had fought the God of Judgment and survived. That claim alone was enough to send shockwaves across kingdoms and territories.However, a second rumor began to appear soon after. This rumor carried a darker name.The Demon King.The first report surfaced in a remote farming village several hundred miles east of the canyon. The village was quiet and rarely appeared on any official maps, but its residents began telling a story that quickly traveled beyond their borders.A group of farmers had been working late in the fields when the sky suddenly got dark. One of them said that a tall person had shown up on the hilltop nearby. The figure stood still while the wind pushed across the land, and the farmer swore that dark energy surrounded him like smoke.When the farmer appr

Kael and Eron kept going, and the plains stretched on and on in front of them. The meeting with the strange person had left them both feeling tense. After the man went out of sight, neither of them said anything for a few minutes.Eron walked beside Kael, but his thoughts were far from the path ahead. The stranger’s words continued to echo in his mind.The world once feared you.The phrase felt heavy. Eron had always believed that Kael was dangerous, but he had also believed that Kael was still human. The idea that ancient records described him as something closer to a myth unsettled him more than he wanted to admit.Finally, Eron broke the silence. “You knew what he meant.”Kael glanced at him briefly. “I understood part of it,” he replied.“That is not the same thing as answering my question.”Kael kept walking. “I know.”Eron exhaled slowly. “You could have explained something back there.”Kael’s voice remained calm. “Explaining would not have changed anything.”Eron shook his head

The stone gates continued to open as the ancient structure rose higher from the fractured earth. Dust rolled across the plain in thick waves as broken stone slid from the sides of the emerging walls. The structure looked older than anything Eron had seen before. Every surface carried marks of erosion and ancient carvings that had faded with time.Eron stared in disbelief. “This place has been buried for centuries.”Kael nodded slightly. “Yes.”The commander of the Judgment Guard stepped forward while keeping his eyes fixed on the massive structure.“This region has been mapped by the Church for generations,” he said. “There has never been any record of a ruin here.”Kael responded calmly. “That does not mean it did not exist.”The rumbling ground slowly settled as the fortress completed its ascent. The enormous gates stood fully open now, revealing darkness inside.No one spoke for several seconds.Eron felt uneasy as he studied the shadowed entrance. “It looks abandoned,” he said.Ka

The angel’s arrival changed the battlefield instantly. The glowing figure stood within the crater of divine light while its radiant wings stretched wide behind it. The sword in its hand burned with a steady flame that illuminated the fractured ground around it.Every creature on the battlefield stopped moving. The gray prisoners froze where they stood, and the Judgment Guard lowered their weapons slightly as they recognized the divine presence.Eron shielded his eyes from the brightness. “That is not one of the envoys from earlier.”Kael kept his gaze fixed on the angel. “No,” he said quietly. “This one is different.”The commander of the Judgment Guard stepped forward and dropped to one knee immediately. “Divine messenger,” he said respectfully. “We did not expect direct intervention.”The angel did not look at him.Its attention remained locked on Kael. “The gods have observed your actions long enough,” the angel said. “Your continued existence has created instability.”Eron looked