The heavy silence that blanketed the Silver Peak Coliseum was eventually broken by the hesitant, fearful applause of the commoners in the lower stands. They had no idea who Vane was, but they knew they had just witnessed a display of absolute, unadulterated power.Aroan walked back into the dark, stone tunnel beneath the arena. The heavy iron gates slammed shut behind him, isolating him from the scorching midday sun and the chaotic murmurs of the crowd outside.Inside the quiet tunnel, Aroan finally removed his black half-mask, allowing his skin to breathe. He wiped a thin layer of sweat from his temple. "You showed a bit too much teeth back there, Nyx," Aroan murmured softly, feeling a slight strain on his Void meridians. Suppressing a Rank B- Primal Lord from completely annihilating a Rank C+ opponent—and the arena itself—in a single strike required incredibly precise magical control. If Nyx had unleashed his true, abyssal aura, the sheer density of the darkness would have immediat

"Your crippled Prince has returned."The sentence echoed, ricocheting off the white marble walls of the Silver Peak Coliseum before finally sinking into the suffocating, absolute silence of the hundred thousand spectators.The pitch-black mask lay discarded on the bloodstained sand. Beneath the scorching sun, Aroan’s face displayed not a single trace of fear, regret, or longing. There was only the absolute, cold arrogance of an emperor staring down at a kingdom he was about to dismantle.In the highest VIP balcony, time seemed to freeze entirely.Alpha Kaelor gripped the armrests of his throne so tightly his knuckles turned white and the velvet padding tore. His golden eyes widened in sheer, paralyzing disbelief. The veins on his forehead and neck pulsed violently. His mind aggressively rejected the reality unfolding before his eyes.The son born without light. The boy whose mother he had allowed to be poisoned for the sake of the clan. The child whose Achilles tendons he had personal

The freezing night wind whipped against Aroan’s face, yet his core temperature boiled. He stared intently at Sargon—the man he now knew as Silas—who stood perfectly composed amidst the snow."You allowed me to make the wrong choice merely to teach me a lesson?" Aroan hissed, the tip of the Eclipse Blade pointed directly at Silas’s throat.Silas did not flinch. He casually crossed his massive arms over his chest. "An emperor who acts on blind rage will destroy his own kingdom before the enemy even has a chance to strike. You despise Kaelor. That is justified. But allowing your true enemy to laugh over the burning corpses of the subjects who should be serving you? That is sheer stupidity."Aroan ground his teeth. Silas was right. The Solari Kingdom was the grand architect of his suffering. Letting the Solari envoy slaughter a hundred thousand people and effortlessly seize control of Silver Peak was tantamount to handing them absolute victory on a silver platter."Gael," Aroan called out

The campfire crackled softly inside the ice cave of the Frostfang Mountains, breaking the suffocating silence.Silas had fallen asleep in the corner of the cave, his breathing heavy and rhythmic. Outside, the hundred warriors of The Hollowed stood guard through the howling blizzard, while Nyx lay across the cave entrance, serving as a warm, massive shield for his master against the elements.Aroan could not sleep. He sat with his arms resting on his knees, staring intently at the dancing flames. His hand instinctively reached up to touch the left side of his chest. Behind his Abyssal Obsidian ribs resided half of the original Void Core belonging to the ancient Shadow King. A terrifying legacy that had been paid for with his mother’s life, Luna Arlene.An icy, methodical fury crept into his heart. For years, he had despised Alpha Kaelor, his father, for mercilessly exiling him to Velmora. However, the truth he had uncovered mere hours ago was infinitely more agonizing. Kaelor was a b

The coastline of the Solari Continent stood in stark contrast to the freezing winds of Silver Peak. The sand here was a brilliant, burning gold, aggressively reflecting the harsh midday sun that baked the skin. Atop the towering red-rock cliffs encircling the Bay of the Fallen Sun, thousands of soldiers belonging to The Scorched Legion had already assumed absolute combat formation.They wore heavy bronze armor that passively radiated fire mana, causing the air around them to shimmer and distort from the intense heat. Dozens of large-caliber magical cannons were aimed directly at the open sea, primed to spew fireballs capable of melting steel-plated warships into slag.In the center of the coastal defense line stood General Kaelar. He was a Blazing Lion shifter (Rank A-), with spiky crimson hair that perfectly mimicked a lion's mane. He stared out at the open ocean, his face marred by terrifying burn scars."One of our Galleons has been spotted on the horizon, General!" a scout shoute