The Hollow Sentinel lunged.
Its bladed arms split apart, extending unnaturally as it slashed through the air. The ground beneath it cracked under the sheer force of its movement.
Too fast!
His instincts screamed at him to move, but his body was slow—too slow. The attack was coming. He couldn't dodge.
Then—
Elya appeared before him.
A single step. A flick of her wrist. Silver light burst from her palm, forming a barrier just as the Sentinel's blade struck.
CRACK!
The impact shook the air. The barrier shattered, but Elya had already moved again, twisting her body mid-air. A silver streak of energy formed a spear in her hands, and she threw it.
BOOM!
The spear pierced straight through the Sentinel's chest, sending it staggering backward. A black mist hissed from the wound, twisting unnaturally in the air.
But it wasn't enough.
The Sentinel didn't bleed. It didn't fall. It simply reformed, its body shifting like a living void.
Elya cursed under her breath. "It's regenerating."
He clenched his fists. Useless. He was just standing there, watching her fight. Watching her protect him.
He hated it.
"Elya!" he shouted. "What do I do? How do I fight?"
She didn't turn. "You already have the answer."
"What—?"
She pointed at his chest. "It's inside you. You just don't know how to use it."
The golden veins beneath his skin flickered faintly. That strange energy inside him—it was there, waiting. But how was he supposed to call it out?
The Sentinel roared.
It rushed toward them again, this time even faster.
Elya moved, but she wouldn't make it in time.
And then—something snapped inside him.
A spark.
Heat exploded through his body. His vision blurred, and for a brief moment, he saw something—
Not just the Sentinel.
But the world.
The air around him rippled. The energy that made up the planet, the sky, even Elya herself—it all became visible. A network of flowing light and shifting currents.
And within himself—
A core of golden fire.
A voice—his own, yet different—whispered in his mind.
"Burn."
His hands moved before he could think.
Golden flames erupted from his arms, coiling like living serpents. Time slowed as he stepped forward, raising his fist.
The Sentinel's blade swung down—
And he struck.
BOOM!
The impact ripped through the air. Golden fire and black mist clashed in an explosion that shook the entire battlefield. The Sentinel's arm shattered, its dark form warping violently as the golden energy burned through it.
For the first time—it screamed.
He stumbled back, panting, his arms still glowing with power. His body felt weightless, yet burning hot, as if something ancient had just awakened inside him.
Elya landed beside him, a smirk playing on her lips.
"…Not bad."
The Sentinel was not dead. But now—it was afraid.
And for the first time in his life—
He felt alive.