Chapter 200 – The King of the Cyclone
The silhouette felt the cold barrel of Vesper against his neck.
He didn't flinch.
Just… a small sigh, as if he were bored.
His appearance finally came into view:
long black hair, two dark‑green horns curved backward, a torso completely bare, muscles gleaming, and massive pants held up by a belt that literally had its own gravity.
In short: a mix between a king, a demon, and a fitness influencer.
The silhouette slowly turned toward Blackstar.
Blackstar, pressing Vesper's barrel against his forehead, declared:
— "You must be seriously stubborn to look me in the eyes like that."
The silhouette smiled.
He raised his fist.
Blackstar holstered Vesper and caught the punch with one hand… all while holding Aeris under his other arm like a grocery bag.
The silhouette introduced himself proudly:
— "I am the King of the Storm Wardens. I am… Azevran Tempesthorn."
Blackstar exhaled.
— "Yeah, great, I didn't ask."
He leapt back twice, set Aeris down on the ground like a lost kitten, then asked him:
— "So, do you want me to smash him alone, or do you want to test your courage?"
Aeris timidly raised his hand:
— "I‑I want to help… I want to reach rank S by my own effort…"
Blackstar ruffled his hair:
— "That's the right spirit. Do your best. I'll handle the rest."
Aeris, panicked:
— "B‑but I'm a ranged fighter! And so are you! How do we—"
Azevran drew his sword.
The entire cyclone vibrated.
Aeris stifled a scream.
Blackstar merely raised an eyebrow.
Azevran sneered:
— "Ranged fighters, really?"
Blackstar activated one of his eyes, glowing with astral blue.
— "Don't mistake me. I'm ranged… when I feel like it."
He raised Vesper and Orion.
— "Stellar Cadence: Harmony of the Void."
Instantly, Blackstar became a deluge of stellar fire.
Azevran dodged at absurd speed, his steps creating flashes of wind.
Aeris couldn't even follow the scene anymore.
**Blackstar shouted:**
— "USE YOUR AERIAL PERCEPTION!"
— "A‑ah! Yes!!"
Aeris activated his gift.
In a second, everything became clearer:
he could see the air currents moving around Azevran like luminous serpents.
Blackstar then opened astral rifts everywhere.
Stellar shards erupted from every direction.
At the same time, thanks to Orion's vibrations, Blackstar teleported between the shards:
— "Astral Trail Ignition."
Azevran could no longer see anything:
Blackstar appeared everywhere at once.
Then — **BAM**
A kick to the face hurled Azevran backward.
— "Not bad," murmured Blackstar, surprised.
He placed Vesper and Orion before him.
A disk of astral energy formed.
— "Nova Breaker…"
Orion vibrated, compressing the air.
— "…and Crushing Echo."
The two attacks fused into a mad spiral:
— "Astral Rift Obliterator!"
The attack struck Azevran head‑on.
An explosion of light illuminated the entire cyclone.
Blackstar teleported back.
— "Your turn, Aeris. Show me what you've got."
Aeris panicked but closed his eyes and focused his wind.
— "…piercing hurricane…
Gale… Skyshatter Lance!!!"
A massive lance of wind shot toward Azevran.
… and Azevran, charred and regenerating, sighed:
— "Is this a joke?"
He swept the attack aside with a flick of his hand.
— "What do you think you are, human? A protagonist?
Such a weak strike…"
In an instant, he vanished.
Reappeared before Aeris.
Grabbed him by the throat and lifted him like trash.
— "You really thought you could scratch me?"
Then—
**SCHTAAK**
His arm fell to the ground.
Azevran looked at his stump, shocked.
Blackstar was behind him.
In his hand:
a sword entirely made of condensed stellar energy,
its hilt a six‑branched star,
the blade the sixth branch,
and at its center… a tiny pulsing black hole.
Blackstar exhaled, resting the sword on his shoulder:
— "Hands off, I said."
Aeris collapsed to the ground, breathing in relief.
Azevran stepped back, for the first time truly threatened.
Blackstar smiled:
— "Come on, Storm King.
You wanted a fight?
You've found it."
Chapter 201 – Azevran Tempesthorn, the Storm King
Azevran Tempesthorn, King of the Storm Wardens, stood before them with a predatory smile, as if he had finally found an opponent worth taking seriously.
Blackstar, holding his newly‑formed sword — a blade of pure stellar energy — spun it between his fingers before saying calmly:
— "Let me introduce my sword… Astral Eclipse."
The weapon pulsed like a star's heart, making the entire ether cyclone vibrate.
And before Azevran could respond, Blackstar vanished in a burst of distorted light.
**CLANG!**
The clash between Astral Eclipse and the king's colossal sword rang out like thunder tearing the skies. Their weapons collided at such speed that even Aeris could only see streaks of light.
Then Blackstar raised his other arm — the one holding Vesper.
He aimed it directly at Azevran.
The weapon glowed as if it were swallowing the light around it.
— "HERE WE GO."
He unleashed an attack: **Stellar Pulse Overdrive**, a wave of compressed stellar energy that exploded against the king's chest.
**BOOOM!**
Azevran was hurled kilometers away with a single kick, tearing off an entire chunk of the ether cyclone as if it were cardboard scenery.
He regenerated almost instantly, looking slightly vexed:
— "Do not think you can defeat me so easily, human…"
Blackstar rested his sword on his shoulder, Vesper in the other hand, and replied in a perfectly casual tone:
— "Honestly, the way you fly, I'll give you an 8/10 in aerial performance."
He pointed his thumb at Aeris.
— "The student here should be taking notes."
Aeris flushed red.
— "HUH?! Why me?!"
Azevran, irritated at being ignored in his own domain, swept the air with a sword strike, unleashing a monstrous slash of energy.
Blackstar cut it with a simple motion of Astral Eclipse, then countered with a sharp strike that carved deep into the king's torso.
Azevran growled.
— "It seems… difficult to defeat you, Blackstar."
Blackstar smirked:
— "You're only realizing that now? I already had the punchline ready for when you collapsed, so do me a favor and hurry up."
The king stepped back, gripping his sword.
— "I must… take my original form."
Aeris paled.
— "Blackstar! Do something before he transforms! This is the moment to stop him! RIGHT NOW!"
Blackstar shrugged, looking absolutely delighted:
— "No, let him. If he wants to shine, let him shine. I want to see if he really deserves the title of 'king.' Go on, big guy."
Azevran roared, his aura exploding in every direction.
**VRRRRROOOOOOOOM!**
The cyclone cracked apart. Arcs of wind tore chunks of reality itself. Aeris would have been swept out of the domain if not for Blackstar, who grabbed him by the collar like a kitten.
— "Don't move, or you'll just spin around."
— "I‑I'm trying my best!!"
The king transformed.
Brilliant green scales covered his body, his horns doubled in size and became translucent like storm crystal. His arms grew massive, inscribed with runes of wind carved into his flesh. His torso seemed made of compressed hurricanes, swirling beneath a semi‑transparent layer.
Two wings of pure wind — literally — unfolded with a shrill howl, leaving behind pressure rings that ripped the sky apart.
A crown appeared on his head, composed of spiraling green lightning.
He now stood nearly the size of a titanic Storm Warden.
**Aeris:**
— "…Okay, no, yeah… we're dead."
**Blackstar, arms crossed:**
— "Very stylish."
He observed for a few seconds.
— "A bit cliché, but stylish."
**Azevran, voice resonating with a thousand turbulences:**
— "BEHOLD MY TRUE FORM!
Are you ready, human?!"
Blackstar inhaled deeply, cracked his neck, rested Astral Eclipse on his shoulder…
— "Aeris… fasten your seatbelt."
— "I DON'T HAVE ONE!!"
— "Then stick to me and pray."
— "WHAT?!"
The king charged.
The ground collapsed.
The domain screamed.
And Blackstar…
…smiled like a child about to have fun.
Chapter 202 – The Wind, the Stars… and Aeris Panicking
Blackstar smiled, slid Vesper into his belt, drew Orion, and declared:
— "So… the king's true form. Show me it's not bluff. I hope you're not just a lion that roars but doesn't bite."
Aeris, off to the side, timidly raised his hand:
— "Uh… lions do bite, normally…"
Blackstar placed a barrier around him:
— "You. Silence. Hide. Breathe. And stay alive if possible."
Aeris nodded so fast the wind whistled around him.
Then Blackstar continued, grinning:
— "Alright Mister King… let's get serious."
He launched forward, opening a rain of rifts all around Azevran Tempesthorn.
Hyper‑fast shots erupted from every direction—Vesper to the left, Orion to the right, and even shots from above as Blackstar teleported through vibrations, appearing right, left, above, then again elsewhere.
Aeris couldn't keep up, panicked:
— "What is this?!"
Azevran exhaled with disdain:
— "The same technique again? Who do you take me for?"
Then his aura exploded—literally—and a cataclysmic gale burst from his body.
— **STORM REJECTION!**
The wind was so violent it shattered space‑time, breaking reality like glass.
Blackstar was hurled so hard he spun three times and landed right in front of Aeris.
— "GRH! He did that on purpose… It's a stratagem, he wants you to panic so I'm forced to protect you. Honestly… he's heavy."
**Aeris:**
— "You mean… I'm bait?"
**Blackstar:**
— "Exactly. Congratulations. You finally serve a purpose."
Aeris nearly fainted.
---
### Void Anchor
Blackstar stood, placed his fingers on the ground, and murmured:
— "Void Anchor: Anchor of Nothingness."
His body became immobile, locked into a perfect frequency, as if welded to reality itself.
**Explanation:**
"I adjust all the vibrations of my body—heart, organs, blood, energy—into a neutral frequency (absolute zero), neither positive nor negative.
Result: I become impossible to repel. Any force is absorbed, dispersed into vibratory void."
Aeris touched the barrier and said:
— "Feels like a cosmic fridge…"
— "Shut up. I'm trying to be stylish."
The king's overpowering wind struck Blackstar—no reaction. Everything exploded around him, but he remained standing, perfectly stable.
— "There you go, Aeris, you're safe."
He sheathed his sword on his back, reset his stance, Orion aimed, Vesper at his side.
Then he drew Vesper, raised it, and said:
— "Stellaris Volley!"
A rain of condensed stellar shards fell upon the king.
Azevran deflected them with blades of wind.
— "You think your star toys will—"
— "Not finished yet, Mister Living Windmill."
Blackstar opened Orion and Vesper simultaneously.
Orion vibrated, then charged:
— "Orion: Black Echo Pulse!"
This time, the stellar echoes were black, heavy, violent—each impact shook the entire domain.
The more Blackstar fired, the faster the cadence.
The faster the cadence, the more destructive the shots became, as if each star were on the verge of collapse.
Aeris, trembling:
— "Is it… normal to increase cadence infinitely like that?!"
— "For me, yes."
The king staggered under the combined force, his scales vibrating.
---
### Overdrive Finisher
Blackstar flipped backward in the air—a totally unnecessary flip, just stylish—and froze in place thanks to Void Anchor, before declaring:
— "Stellar Resonance Overdrive!"
His energy condensed into his weapons.
Vesper and Orion fused for an instant: Vesper gave the stars, Orion gave the vibrations.
A spiral blue‑black beam (**Dark Hypernova Resonance**) swallowed the king.
The attack engulfed him.
A silent explosion.
A flash that made reality itself vibrate.
Azevran emerged, panting, his scales cracked, his body smoking.
— "Impressive… but not enough."
Before noticing that Blackstar had simply placed his hand on his chest.
— "Internal Pulse Collapse."
He amplified the king's internal vibrations—heart, blood, organs—until creating a shockwave that inflicted massive internal damage.
Everything resonated chaotically.
Azevran spat blood, his face twisted:
— "Wh… what have you done…?"
— "I shook your insides like a soda bottle."
The king roared and swung his sword.
The blade split the ether cyclone in two.
The entire domain trembled.
---
### Nullwave Reversal
Blackstar raised his hand.
— "Nullwave Reversal."
The king's attack disintegrated.
All vibrations of the strike—echoes, sound waves, magic—were canceled as if reality had been put on mute.
The energy dissipated like a muffled sound in absolute void.
The king stared, stunned.
— "You… canceled my technique."
— "Yes. And so what? Surprised? I've been trolling everyone for ten chapters."
Then Blackstar snapped his fingers: a blade of sound materialized, sharp, white, whistling.
(He had amplified the sound of the snap and condensed it into a sword.)
He slashed the king in short, rapid bursts.
Blackstar fired several bullets… which vanished into the void. Then he snapped his fingers.
A circular black zone appeared around the king.
— "Quietus Sphere."
Inside this space, everything was reduced to silence: no wind, no energy, no magic.
As if the world had cut the sound.
— "Here… it's ABSOLUTE SILENCE."
He explained for Aeris:
— "Basically everything: everything he does in there is muffled. Wind, ether, brute force, all of it."
The king panicked:
— "I… I can't… my powers… MY FORM—"
— "Yeah yeah. I switched your domain to airplane mode. You're grounded."
Aeris behind the barrier:
— "Cosmic airplane mode…"
Blackstar approached calmly, Vesper and Orion tucked into his belt, Astral Eclipse on his back.
— "It's not me who will finish you.
It's Aeris."
Blackstar opened a passage in his barrier.
— "Aeris. Your turn."
Aeris panicked:
— "M‑me? But I… I'm just… uh… me."
Blackstar placed his hand on him, covering him with a protective aura of energy.
— "There. Otherwise your powers would've been sealed in the Quietus Sphere too.
Now it's fine. It's your choice."
Aeris turned tomato red.
— "I… I don't know what to do…"
— "Then think! You're a rank A hunter, not a pigeon that got lost here."
Aeris inhaled, trembling, raised his hands…
Blackstar smiled:
— "Come on kid. I believe in you.
— …
— …well, a little."
**Aeris:**
— "Thanks I… that's… keind…?"
— "Don't get used to it."
Chapter 203 – Aeris, the Choice of the Wind
King Azevran Tempesthorn was still trapped inside the Quietus Sphere.
He struggled, but nothing responded: not the wind, not the ether, not even his own aura.
Just absolute silence.
A humiliating silence.
Blackstar crossed his arms, completely calm:
— "Alright, Aeris… it's now. You decide what we do with Mister Hurricane."
Aeris swallowed hard. Very hard.
The *glup* was audible through the barrier. Even Blackstar blinked:
— "Wow. Nice glup."
Aeris stepped forward, trembling. He looked at the King, then at Blackstar, then back at the King.
— "What exactly am I supposed to… do?"
Blackstar shrugged:
— "Two options.
1. You eliminate him.
2. You do something… useful for yourself.
— It's your call."
**Aeris:**
— "No third option? Like… I go home?"
— "Not possible. The King blocks the exit of the domain with his aura."
Blackstar pointed at Azevran:
— "Him. He's the lock.
— You. You're the key."
Aeris turned pale.
— "Oh no…"
---
### The Least Heroic Inner Monologue in History
Aeris thought:
*I'm not made for this… I'm not Blackstar, not Oris, not Valor… I'm just Aeris. The guy who can't even make coffee without spilling the cup.*
Then he fixed his eyes on Azevran.
The King looked back with a mix of anger and… worry.
Aeris felt something.
Not courage.
Not power.
No.
An idea.
A weird idea.
An Aeris idea.
— "I think I know what to do."
Blackstar smiled:
— "Finally! Go on."
Aeris took a deep breath, stepped to the edge of the Quietus Sphere, placed his hand against the silent surface, and said:
— "I'm not going to eliminate you."
The King's eyes widened in surprise.
— "I'm going to… drain you."
Blackstar froze.
— "…wait, what?"
Aeris continued, serious for once:
— "Your power is the wind. Air control. Pressure. Currents. Invisible flows.
— And me… I have that too.
— But at a ridiculous level compared to you.
— So I'll take what remains of yours… and make it my strength."
Blackstar blinked.
— "Wait, you came up with that yourself?"
— "…I think?"
— "Damn, I'm proud of you right now. Keep going."
Aeris placed both hands on the sphere.
In the total silence, he felt the last traces of Azevran's aura, all compressed, blocked, waiting.
— "I don't want to kill you, King Tempesthorn.
— I want to understand.
— I want to learn."
The King, even weakened, murmured:
— "You want… to inherit my storm?"
Aeris nodded:
— "Yes. I want to become better.
— And you're the only one who can help me."
Blackstar whispered with a grin:
— "Aeris… you're turning into a real protagonist here. Stop, you're stealing my spotlight."
---
Aeris closed his eyes.
He used his aerial perception to the maximum, sensing the flows, pressures, residual currents of the King.
He didn't rip anything away.
He didn't force.
He harmonized.
As if two winds were blending.
The domain trembled slightly.
Aeris's hair lifted.
His aura became denser, more fluid, yet lighter at the same time.
Azevran, surprised, breathed:
— "You… you're synchronizing your wind with mine…
— Without violence…
— You are… a child of the wind."
Aeris trembled:
— "I just want… to be useful."
Blackstar sighed:
— "You're not useful.
— You're essential.
— Now stop trembling, you look like a bird in the rain."
---
### The Result
The transfer ended like a long exhale.
Aeris stepped back, panting. His aura… floated. Like a conscious breeze around him.
Blackstar's eyes widened:
— "Oh.
— OH DAMN.
— You've become Aeris Tempestborne, how's that feel?!"
**Aeris:**
— "I… I just… learned."
The King, weakened yet calmed, collapsed to his knees (without gore), looking at Aeris with respect:
— "You didn't take my power.
— You transformed it."
Aeris blushed:
— "Thank you… I… I just want to protect people."
Blackstar placed a hand on his head:
— "And you just pulled off the smartest move of the month.
— No murder, no chaos…
— Just… growth.
— It annoys me.
— I wanted to blow something up."
**Aeris:**
— "S‑sorry…"
— "No, keep it up.
— You're on the right path."