Chapter: The Nightmare of the Abyss
The sky above the ruined battlefield had turned the color of bruised iron.
Clouds churned violently, spiraling around the epicenter of two titanic powers.
At the center of that devastation stood two figures.
One cloaked in demonic darkness.
The other radiating golden knightly glory.
And the world itself seemed to tremble beneath them.
Draven hovered slightly above the corrupted ground, his full demon form finally unleashed.
Two enormous wings of black shadow stretched behind his back, each feather flickering like living flames. Horns of twisted darkness curled from his temples, and his eyes glowed like burning embers within a bottomless abyss.
Black lightning crackled around his body.
In his hand—
The Abyssal Blade pulsed hungrily.
Across from him stood the battered yet unyielding Lion Knight Order Leader.
His armor was cracked.
Blood soaked his chest.
But his back remained straight.
Behind him, the spirit of the mystical lion Leon roared, golden flames spiraling across its spectral mane.
The battlefield had gone silent.
Even the screams of soldiers and monsters had faded.
Everyone knew what was about to happen.
This was the final strike.
The Gathering of Power
Draven slowly lifted his blade.
The corrupted land beneath his feet began to tremble.
Black energy gathered around him like a collapsing star.
The abyssal sword began absorbing the surrounding darkness, its runes glowing an eerie sickly green.
A vortex of shadow spiraled around the blade.
The temperature dropped.
Even the air seemed to rot.
Draven spoke calmly.
"Abyssal Slash…"
The sky above him darkened.
A massive fissure of black lightning split the heavens.
"…of Complete Destruction."
The abyssal blade roared with power.
Across from him, the Lion Knight leader planted his sword into the ground and took a slow breath.
Golden energy exploded from his body.
His armor shone like the sun itself.
Behind him, Leon let out a thunderous roar.
Golden flames erupted around them both.
The knight raised his blade.
His voice echoed across the ruined battlefield.
"Lion Knight Final Strike…"
Leon merged with him in a burst of radiant light.
"…Slash of Final Judgment."
Golden light condensed along the knight's blade.
It burned so brightly that shadows themselves began retreating.
Two ultimate attacks.
Two warriors standing at the very edge of life and death.
Then—
They moved.
Collision
Draven launched forward like a falling meteor.
Black lightning tore through the sky as he descended.
At the same moment—
The Lion Knight leader surged upward in a streak of golden fire.
Time seemed to slow.
For a brief moment, the entire battlefield froze.
Monsters.
Soldiers.
Generals.
Everyone watched.
Then the blades met.
The moment they collided—
The world broke.
A blinding explosion of black and gold tore across the battlefield.
The shockwave blasted outward like a planetary detonation.
Mountains trembled.
Rivers surged.
The entire Eastern Empire war front shook violently as if struck by thousands of earthquakes simultaneously.
The demon tyrant vanished instantly, dissolving into shadow to escape the catastrophic impact.
Leon roared in agony as the spirit was forcibly unsummoned by the overwhelming collision.
Entire sections of corrupted forest were flattened.
The crater formed by the blast stretched for kilometers.
Dust swallowed everything.
Silence followed.
After the Storm
Minutes passed.
Eventually, the dust began to settle.
Slowly…
The battlefield emerged.
At the center of the crater—
Two bodies lay motionless.
Draven lay on the cracked ground.
A sword was buried deep into his chest.
Blood slowly pooled beneath him.
Not far away—
The Lion Knight leader lay on his back.
Draven's abyssal blade had pierced straight through his abdomen.
Both warriors were dying.
Both were barely breathing.
For a long moment, neither spoke.
Then the knight chuckled weakly.
"…looks like we killed each other."
Draven coughed, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
"…maybe."
The knight slowly turned his head toward him.
His voice was faint.
"What was your purpose…?"
Draven remained silent.
The knight continued.
"Why choose destruction?"
His breathing grew heavier.
"Was it revenge…?"
A pause.
"Anger…?"
Blood seeped through his armor.
"Greed…?"
His voice trembled.
"…survival?"
Draven suddenly smirked.
"…none of those."
The knight frowned weakly.
"…then what?"
Draven's red eyes glowed faintly.
"Ego."
The knight blinked.
Draven continued calmly.
"Ego is the only emotion strong enough to make someone break their limits."
Silence followed.
Then—
The Lion Knight leader laughed.
A weak, tired laugh.
"…maybe you're right."
He stared at the sky.
"For my entire life… I fought for the empire."
His voice became distant.
"For the king."
"For the people."
"I accepted every order."
"Without questioning anything."
Blood bubbled from his lips.
"But when monsters attacked the capital…"
His hands trembled.
"…no one came to save my wife."
His eyes grew watery.
"She was pregnant."
His voice cracked.
"When I returned…"
Tears rolled down his cheeks.
"…the room was soaked in blood."
"My wife…"
"…stabbed dozens of times."
His breathing faltered.
"But it wasn't monsters who killed her."
His voice trembled with quiet hatred.
"…it was other knights."
"Some from another order."
"…some from my own."
The battlefield remained silent.
No one dared interrupt.
The knight's voice softened.
"But it doesn't matter now."
His eyes slowly closed.
"…I can finally go meet her."
His chest rose once.
Then fell.
Silence.
Then—
Draven spoke.
"…no."
The knight's eyes slowly opened again.
"…what?"
Draven suddenly stood.
The sword embedded in his chest dissolved into black liquid.
The abyssal blade stabbed into the knight's body also melted into dark matter and flowed back into Draven's arm.
Draven looked down at him calmly.
He extended his hand.
The knight's eyes widened.
"…what is this…?"
Draven smiled faintly.
"Because you were never dying."
The knight's pupils shrank.
Draven spoke softly.
"From the very beginning…"
"…you were already inside my Psychic Nightmare."
The battlefield around them flickered.
Like shattered glass.
The crater.
The wounds.
The corpses.
Everything began distorting.
Reality peeled away.
And the Lion Knight leader realized something horrifying.
The battle…
The final clash…
The fatal injuries…
All of it—
Had been an illusion.
Draven's red eyes glowed like two burning stars.
And the nightmare was only just beginning.
TO BE CONTINUED.....