I stepped through the threshold of Rin's mind, her spectral figure watching silently as I passed. The moment I crossed, the world around me began to twist, as though reality itself had been wrung out like a damp cloth. Shapes bent unnaturally, light and shadow flickering in chaotic harmony, until finally, solid ground materialized beneath my feet.
And with it, chaos.
"Quick, move! The aerial troops are falling like flies!" a booming voice bellowed from somewhere in the distance. The command hung heavy in the air, laden with urgency. I glanced up and saw the skies alive with action—aircraft, aerial carriers, and sleek metallic planes darting through the clouds, only to be ripped apart by tendrils of dark mana erupting like jagged lightning. Each explosion painted the heavens in fiery streaks of orange and red.
I swallowed hard, my steps hesitant but steady. My instincts screamed at me to turn back, but I pushed forward. It didn't take long to understand where I was.
This wasn't just a battleground.
This was war.
Not the kind you read about in history books or watch unfold in the safety of a distant screen. This was war in its rawest, most visceral form. The earth trembled beneath my feet as tanks rolled forward, their steel bodies scarred and blackened from relentless bombardment. Soldiers clashed their magic and aura against waves of black mana in a deadly dance. Above them, aerial carriers sputtered and fell from the sky, their metallic carcasses crashing into the ground with deafening roars.
The air stank of ozone, oil, and iron. And then there was the ground.
At first, I thought it was simply wet, but as I continued forward, the realization hit me with a sickening weight. The dampness wasn't rain or dew. It was blood—dark, sticky, and pooling around the corpses of soldiers. The ground was littered with the detritus of war: shattered weapons, torn banners, and lifeless bodies, their faces twisted in expressions of agony and fear.
My steps faltered, but I forced myself to keep moving. This wasn't just carnage; this was annihilation on an unimaginable scale.
In The Saga of the Divine Swordsman, the story of this world, certain individuals were labeled as Calamities—beings so powerful that their mere existence spelled ruin for entire civilizations. Legends whispered their names like a prayer and a curse.
The First Calamity was Caladros, the Vampire Monarch, whose wrath consumed the Eastern Continent in a tide of crimson night.
The Second Calamity was Jack Blazespout, the Hellflame Emperor, whose infernos reduced the Southern Continent to smoldering ash.
And now, standing at the center of this cataclysmic vision, was the Third Calamity.
Rin Ashbluff.
I stopped in my tracks as the realization hit me like a blow to the chest. This wasn't merely a war.
This was a natural disaster. A hurricane of death. An unstoppable force of destruction given human form.
This wasn't the past, nor was it fiction.
This was the future.
A vision of what would come to pass if Rin broke through her father's seal. If the black mana consumed her entirely, the Western Continent wouldn't merely fall. It would be erased, swept from existence like sand beneath a tidal wave.
I clenched my fists, my breath heavy and uneven. The weight of this vision was suffocating, but I couldn't stop now. Rin's future—the future of an entire continent—hung in the balance.
"Not on my watch," I muttered under my breath, stepping forward once more, the damp ground squelching beneath my feet. Whatever this vision demanded of me, I would see it through. Rin Ashbluff wasn't a Calamity yet—and I intended to ensure she never would be.
"When will we get our reinforcements?" a general demanded, his voice quivering despite the armor that gleamed darkly under the blood-red sky. He was no ordinary man—a low Immortal-rank Dark Knight, a rarity among soldiers—but even his strength was laughable in the face of what lay ahead. His question hung in the air, unanswered, for there was no reassurance to be given.
The battlefield was chaos incarnate, a cacophony of screams, explosions, and the ceaseless hum of black mana suffocating the air. I wove through the pandemonium, my eyes fixed on the epicenter of it all.
Rin.
She stood at the heart of the storm, her presence both magnificent and terrifying. A semi-transparent Domain shimmered around her—not a true Domain, but an ominous construct that acted as both shield and filter. It repelled the soldiers surrounding her, sending them staggering back like leaves caught in a gale. Unlike a true Domain, it didn't imprison its victims—it annihilated their will before they even crossed the threshold.
'She's absurdly powerful,' I thought, my chest tightening. This wasn't the frail girl sealed behind the Ashbluff doors. This was Rin, the Third Calamity. Her mana core burned with the intensity of a low Radiant-rank mage, a tier above me in strength. Worse still, her skill and instincts far surpassed what Valen had displayed.
I pressed forward, the chaos around me thinning as I neared her Domain. My feet moved instinctively, even as doubt clawed at the edges of my mind.
"Wait, what are you doing?" a soldier yelled, reaching out to stop me. Fear etched across his face, but I ignored him, brushing past his grasp.
The shimmering barrier of Rin's Domain loomed ahead. With bated breath, I stepped closer, and the moment my body touched its edge, the strangest thing happened.
It parted for me.
I stepped inside.
"Oh?" Rin's voice was soft but laced with malice. Her dark eyes gleamed as her gaze landed on me. "Someone strong has come to die. I'll kill you."
Her black mana surged outward in waves, each pulse carrying an oppressive weight that made the air feel thicker, heavier. A chill ran down my spine despite my resolve.
"Apologies," I said, steadying myself. "But I won't be killing you."
Her mana crackled like a living thing, coiling and uncoiling in anticipation of destruction. My hands curled into fists, and I summoned the full breadth of my strength. 'At least I have everything here,' I thought, my focus sharpening.
My Domain expanded.
Divine Emperor's Throne.
A golden light erupted around me, carving out a stark contrast to the abyssal darkness of Rin's mana. The ground beneath my feet glimmered faintly, as though the heavens themselves had laid a path before me. Unlike Rin's chaotic shield, my Domain radiated purpose, a calm yet unyielding authority.
This time, I chose to keep its boundary open. The world outside could see everything within—every gleaming facet of my Domain, every moment of the battle that was about to unfold. I didn't need another headache in the form of the Western continent's forces bombarding me with mana or missiles while I faced someone of Rin's caliber.
'At least she doesn't have a good Legendary-grade artifact,' I noted, my eyes flicking to her chest. Valen's Black Heart.
It was a powerful artifact, but it wasn't suitable for her—not in a one-on-one fight. The Black Heart thrived in large-scale battles and for necromancers, where its ability to manipulate vast quantities of mana could tip the tide of war. Against me, however, its potency was diminished.
A golden crown descended onto my head, placed by a seraphic figure of pure light. Its touch was weightless, yet it carried the weight of a thousand promises. Radiance cascaded around me, bathing me in a celestial glow that felt both otherworldly and resolute.
I was using everything—every fragment of strength and skill at my disposal, every lesson learned through hardship and pain. Lucent Harmony flowed through me like a melody written by the stars themselves, balancing the chaos of battle with the serenity of purpose. My body, honed through Mythic Body and perfected by Mythic Transplant, was a vessel of unparalleled power. Astral Manifestation coursed through my veins, its brilliance illuminating even the darkest recesses of Rin's corrupted world.
I could see everything—truly see everything—with Soul Vision. Every thread of mana, every tremor in the air, every flicker of blackness that Rin unleashed was laid bare before me. Saintess, a Gift I had once copied, wove its divine light into my very being, amplifying my strength beyond mortal comprehension. Mythweaver, the fabricator of legends, intertwined with my essence, turning my intent into reality.
And at the heart of it all was my True Domain—Divine Emperor's Throne. It stood as a testament to my will, unyielding and sovereign. Its golden expanse clashed with the abyssal black of Rin's chaotic power, a battlefield of light and shadow suspended in eternity.
In my hand, Nyxthar gleamed like a fragment of heaven's wrath, its edge singing with power as my arts guided every motion. My movements were not just precise—they were inevitable, written into the very laws of this fleeting battlefield.
I wouldn't lose. I couldn't lose.
Because this wasn't just a fight. It wasn't about power or pride or proving myself stronger. This was about her.
Rin.
Because I needed to free her. Because I would free her. Whatever it took. Whatever the cost.