Rosielle threw her head back and screamed in agony. Tears spilled from her eyes uncontrollably, mixed with pain she could no longer suppress.
Sylvara's vines began crawling upward from Rosielle's feet, tightening more and more as they climbed her body. The higher they rose, the more Rosielle's screams grew desperate and broken.
Watching this from a distance, Sylvara burst into loud laughter. Then her expression sharpened, her gaze locking onto Rosielle with icy intensity.
"Did you really think I would give you a chance to attack me?"
She tilted her head slightly, as if amused.
"Perhaps I would have… if you were someone else. But you weren't."
Sylvara paused, studying Rosielle closely. Rosielle was in no condition to reply , her eyes flooded with tears, her breathing ragged.
The vines had slowed after reaching her waist, creeping upward more deliberately now, as if Sylvara had intentionally reduced their pace.
Seeing this, Sylvara continued calmly ,
"When you arrived here, Azerion had already analyzed everyone's strength at least to some extent. But do you know what surprised him?"
Her eyes narrowed.
"He couldn't sense anything from you. Not even a trace. As if something terrifying slept inside you , something beyond even his ability to perceive."
She smiled faintly.
"And that's why I never gave you a chance. I didn't want to regret it later."
Despite the unbearable pain, Rosielle forced herself to speak.
"So you're saying you were afraid? Or are you simply too weak to even grant your enemy an opening?"
For a moment, Sylvara fell silent. Then she spoke slowly,
"Afraid? Weak? Courage-less?"
Her voice was eerily calm.
"Rosielle… do those things really matter? Look at yourself now. You're going to die. And when this ends, do you think anyone will care whether I gave you a chance or not?"
Her gaze hardened.
"They'll only say you died because of your own foolishness because you underestimated your enemy without knowing them."
Those words shattered Rosielle from the inside.
Only one thought echoed in her mind
Who… is this woman ?
Suddenly, the vines tightened again, accelerating their movement. Wherever the thorns touched, flesh tore open. Blood streamed freely. Rosielle screamed, writhing in agony but struggling only made the thorns dig deeper, slicing her body further.
She could do nothing.
Not far away, Varen's condition was no better.
A single moment of carelessness had led to his defeat and what angered him most was that he had lost to someone like Ignara.
At first glance, Ignara had seemed annoying. Insignificant.
She was sitting atop him now. Varen's body was utterly spent so weak that launching another attack felt impossible.
But then… his eyes caught sight of Rosielle.
The moment he saw her condition, something inside him ignited.
Blood surged through his veins like molten fire. His eyes burned with fury as they locked onto Sylvara.
Ignara noticed the change immediately. She understood why.
Before she could react, Varen suddenly rose his body moving as if every ounce of strength he had ever trained was pouring into this single moment.
Rosielle's condition worsened.
Blood now streamed from her eyes. Her mouth hung open as she gasped desperately for air. Her screams had faded into hoarse, broken breaths.
She felt empty.
She thought this was the end.
In her final moments, one truth etched itself into her heart
Never underestimate the opposing side. Even someone who looks ordinary , whose existence you've never heard of can be enough to shatter your pride like stone thrown against glass.
Rosielle closed her eyes , but then suddenly she felt something change ...
The vines that had been tightly wrapped around her body began to feel lighter… thinner… as if their grip was weakening. She couldn't understand what was happening. She didn't even want to open her eyes. Instead, she told herself maybe I've already died. That's why everything feels so light.And then Rosielle collapsed straight onto the ground, as if her consciousness had finally slipped away.
Moments earlier,When Varen saw Rosielle in that state, he could no longer control himself. His weakened body already on the verge of collapse after Ignara's attack
should not have been able to stand again.
Yet at that moment, something different awakened within him.
From deep inside his body surged a final strength power he had restrained and preserved through years of harsh discipline.
In the blink of an eye, Varen vanished from where he stood.
He reappeared behind Sylvara moving straight in for a fatal strike.
Sylvara was focused entirely on Rosielle. She never sensed death rushing toward her from behind.
A crushing impact struck her.
Before she could even comprehend what was happening, Varen wrapped his arms tightly around her from behind and And then, without hesitation, Varen drove his hand straight into Sylvara's abdomen, pouring every last ounce of his strength into the strike.
Sylvara froze unable to understand, unable to react. She had never imagined something like this could occur.
Sylvara faltered , her mind drawing blank in the face of the sudden turn.
Instinct took over.
She withdrew her thorn bound vines from Rosielle at once. In that same fleeting breath of time, the rigid vines concealed behind her surged upward from beneath Varen, striking with ruthless precision.
Varen sensed the danger instantly. But he closed the distance, crushing her in a brutal grip. With raw force, he hoisted her up and hurled her down to the ground.
But the vines had already reached Varen's body, wrapping tightly around him climbing nearly to his waist.
"They both fell"
It felt as if everything had ended.
And yet… it also felt
As if no one had truly won..
As if no one had truly lost..
Ignara watched the scene silently.
The Varen she had seen moments ago weak, defeated now looked like a beast driven by pure instinct.
Dust swirled violently around Lyanna, clinging to her hair and skin, but her eyes found him immediately Vaelith .
He lay sprawled over Azerion, toppled yet strangely serene, afaint, almost imperceptible smile etched onto his face. It was as if he had fulfilled some sacred duty, the weight of which only he could comprehend. This… this was what mattered most to him more than honor, more than life itself.
Had he fallen to Azerion, Lyanna might have been lost too.
So instead of dying helplessly, he had chosen the path between life and death.
At least this way… Lyanna might live.
Lyanna froze, unable to breathe. Seeing Vaelith like this half-alive, half-broken sent a shiver through her.
Her eyes welled up, tears slipping silently without her realizing it.
and when she turned her gaze to the battlefield around her, the devastation struck her fully. Vaelith, Rosielle, Varen all lay prone on the ground. Alive? Perhaps. Whole? Never. They were broken, spent, and mercilessly stripped of strength.
The sight left Lyanna trembling, and for a moment, words failed her.
"So… no one won?" Lyanna whispered.
Before she could finish speaking, a voice echoed from ahead
"I… won."
Lyanna's head snapped forward. There, standing a little ahead, was Ignara.
Ignara Thalrein
Her presence radiated control, calm, and an unshakable authority that pressed down like a physical weight...
Azerion lay fallen. Sylvara lay fallen.
Only two figures remained standing in this grim arena...
Lyanna…
and Ignara.
Ignara began walking toward her slowly.