To be honest, Ethan hadn't expected the battle to end this quickly.
The moment Gathramor fell, the sky went eerily still.
Shattered energy slowly began to settle, like the world was finally exhaling after holding its breath.
He was just about to give the order to regroup and pull everyone back to Emerald Castle when—
BZZZZM.
A low, strange hum rolled in from the horizon.
It wasn't thunder.
It wasn't an energy detonation either.
It sounded more like—
Space itself groaning.
BZZZZM—
BZZZZM—
BZZZZM—
The next instant, the sky tore open like it had been ripped by an invisible hand.
A massive rift split the heavens, its jagged black edges twisting and stretching outward.
From deep within that crack, a thick, unfamiliar power poured out in waves.
In a blink, all of Emerald Castle was swallowed by it.
It wasn't just pressure.
It felt like—
They were being watched.
"Heh heh heh…"
A low, rasping laugh echoed from the depths of the rift.
"I knew it."
