2025-04-23 09:45:49The blood-red sun clawed its way above the jagged horizon, staining the peaks of the Northern Crags in hues of fire and shadow. Ethan Lockwood and Celestia Draconyx stood at the final ridge, overlooking a scorched plateau marred by melted stone and sulfuric steam. This was the hellhounds' den.
Charred pine stumps jutted from the earth like broken spears, and the acrid scent of brimstone clung to every breath. Ethan tightened his grip on the Void-Cleaving Blade, knuckles white beneath his gauntlet.
"They’re close," Celestia whispered through their mental link, her claw resting over the lunar runes etched into her cuirass. "I can feel the heat pulsing beneath the rock."
Ethan gave a slow nod. "Let’s test our plan."
Sliding down a loose slope of shale, they reac
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CHAPTER 164: Dark Secrets
Ethan gently laid Seraphina against a smooth section of the cavern wall. Her breathing was shallow, but steady; Eileen’s swift healing ministrations had halted the worst of the curse. Though Seraphina remained pale and weak, she forced her eyes open. “I’m alright,” she insisted softly, even as Celestia and Nina knelt beside her in concern. The saint was determined not to become a burden—not when so many others still needed saving.Further down the tunnel, a massive wooden gate reinforced with iron vines barred the way forward—Theros’s doing, no doubt, to seal off his retreat. Beyond that gate likely lay the heart of his operation. Ethan approached the obstacle, sword in hand, and saw strange symbols carved into the wood—runes glimmering with residual magic. It was a lock, and a formidable one at that.“Stand
CHAPTER 163: The Saint’s Peril
Seraphina’s instincts kicked in a heartbeat before Theros’s dark spell could pierce her. She threw up both hands and a dome of shimmering golden light flared around her body. Theros’s fingers, crackling with malevolent energy, struck the holy barrier instead of her flesh. There was a crack like thunder. Seraphina staggered under the impact, her boots skidding on the rocky ground as her barrier trembled.Theros’s form flickered, and for an instant his eyes glowed a hellish blackish-purple in the dark. He pressed against her barrier, face contorting with effort and glee. “Ah, a lively one,” he hissed. “Your soul shines so brightly, little saint... it will make the perfect offering to the dark god of the Black Market.”Seraphina’s heart pounded. The pressure of his attack was unlike anything she had felt—
CHAPTER 162: Shadow Peaks
The celebration had scarcely ended when grim new tidings forced Ethan to action. That evening, he gathered his closest allies and the elven envoys in the war room. Under guard stood General Cassaran—one of the captured conspirators—sweating and shaking under their stares.“Tell us everything,” Ethan demanded, his tone brooking no disobedience.Cassaran’s resolve crumbled instantly. “It… it was all planned by that monster,” he blurted, eyes darting around as if Theros might somehow hear him. “Theros orchestrated everything from the start!”At the mention of that name, Celestia’s expression turned icy. “Monster? What is he?” she asked sharply.Cassaran trembled. “He’s not human&helli
CHAPTER 161: Step-Out
A warm noon sun bathed Carosso’s central courtyard, where humans and elves gathered in a momentous celebration of their hard-won victory. Emperor Ethan stood before the assembled crowd with Celestia at his side. Around them were their loyal companions—Nina, Eileen, Seraphina, Israya, Lyssandra—and the high elf envoys Lucianna, Tyriel, Aetherlyn, and others from the hidden forests. Every face in the courtyard, whether human or elf, shone with cautious hope.“Today,” Ethan announced, his voice carrying proudly over the murmuring throng, “we stand as one united family, having fought together under the banner of justice to save the people of Avelline. Let this victory—and our unity—be a beacon for the future.” He turned to the foremost high elves, who were now rested and bandaged from their ordeals. For the first time in centuries, the reclusive High Elves
CHAPTER 160: Liberators
Moments later, a battered iron grate was pried open on the edge of the courtyard – a stairwell leading up from Malric’s dungeons. Tyriel emerged first, soot-stained and anxious, supporting a pale but smiling Aetherlyn. Selena and several soldiers followed behind, helping a line of gaunt prisoners climb up into the cool morning air. Elven faces, human faces – the victims of Malric’s cruelty – blinked at the dawn sky as if seeing it for the first time in ages.Near the front of the freed captives, Aetherlyn nearly buckled as the fresh breeze hit her face, but Tyriel caught her and gently eased her to sit on a fallen stone column. “Aetherlyn… we’re here,” he whispered, voice choked with emotion. The elven bard was filthy and shivering, silver hair matted and cheeks sunken, yet to Tyriel she had never looked more beautiful.
CHAPTER 159: Blood and Ashes
By the time dawn’s first light crept over Avelline City, Duke Malric’s reign of terror had definitively ended. Under heavy guard, Malric was dragged from his hiding place and forced to his knees in the courtyard of his own half-ruined manor. The once-proud Duke was barely recognizable now – his fine velvet doublet torn and soot-stained, one eye swollen shut, his powdered wig lost in the scramble to capture him. Two Carosso knights hauled him forward and kept him bowed on the blood-spattered marble.Emperor Ethan approached with measured steps, his black armor glinting with the red hues of sunrise filtering through the collapsed roof. Celestia strode just behind him, expression as pitiless as an avenging angel’s. Lucianna and the other companions gathered around – exhausted, bloodied, but resolute – to witness judgment.Malric lifted his head, trembling. Gone wa
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