The summit detonated with a bone-shaking roar, the thunder of the blast echoing through the valleys. Snow and shattered bedrock poured from the heavens like the burning embers of a collapsing sky.
The crystalline monolith, its hand still clamped firmly around Lunethia's arm, tumbled through the void. Its translucent husk caught the dying rays of the sunset, flickering with an eerie, pallid light—a cold monument to an unyielding fate.
But Rhine was still there, his grip a death-lock on the very arm that imprisoned her.
"I said... LET HER GO!"
He roared, and a surge of divine fire erupted from his palm. It was as if a fragment of the sun had been torn from his very veins, a heat so intense it warped the air and seared the soul. Even the indestructible crystal could not withstand the focused agony of that flame.
Fractures began to web across the surface, spreading with violent speed.
SNAP—!
The sound cracked like a whip in the high altitude. The fire bored through the crystal, and with a guttural heave, Rhine tore the severed limb clean away from the monolith's torso.
With a brutal kick, he sent the remains of the automaton spiraling into the deeper darkness of the abyss. The monolith rolled away into the shadows, its crimson eyes still burning with mechanical hatred, until the valley swallowed it whole.
Rhine swept his arm around Lunethia's waist, pulling her small frame tightly against his chest. The gale tore between them, whipping her long hair into a frantic veil of mist and silk.
Lunethia clung to him, her voice trembling against the roar of the wind. "What do we do!? Are we... are we going to die!?"
"What else is there to do?" Rhine yanked a small, leather-bound bundle from his coat. His breathing was ragged, yet a ghost of a wry smile touched his lips. "We gamble."
"What is that?"
"Have you ever heard of a Flying Squirrel?"
"A squirrel?" Lunethia stammered, shaking her head in a daze.
"In the Far East, there's a creature that climbs trees—but it can also 'fly,'" Rhine explained, tearing the bundle open even as they plummeted. "They leap from the heights, gliding on the membranes between their limbs."
The heavy leather unfurled in his hands.
The wind howled, a predatory shriek in their ears.
"The old man and I built this thing based on those squirrels... the little runts can certainly fly," Rhine grunted, a flicker of helpless irony crossing his face. "As for the two of us—we've never actually had a successful test run."
Hearing this, Lunethia snapped her head back. She squinted into the biting gale, her voice a desperate, melodic plea: "Eagles... ravens... any creature of the sky... please, help us!!"
Her cry was instantly shredded by the wind, scattering into the void.
But above them, there was only a tomb-like silence. The birds startled by the earlier explosion had long since fled; those that remained stayed hushed and indifferent beneath the oppressive shroud of black clouds.
She slowly lowered her head, her voice barely a whisper. "...They refused."
"Hmph," Rhine let out a cold, sharp laugh. "I was never going to trust my life to a bunch of animals anyway."
Before the words had even fully left his lips, he yanked the rest of the bundle open, discarding the surplus wrappings into the abyss. He rapidly wound the leather cords around his forearms, bracing his muscles as the heavy hide unfurled against the wind—like a pair of crude, clumsy wings.
WHOOSH—!
The air resistance hit them like a physical blow. Their bodies jerked violently as their terminal velocity hit a sudden snag—yet it wasn't enough to stop the frantic plunge toward the abyss.
The scream of the wind grew shriller. The jagged silhouette of the valley floor was racing up to meet them.
Lunethia stared down at the rapidly expanding darkness below. Her eyes shivered for a moment, and she spoke in a soft, hollow tone: "Maybe... you should let me go."
"You might still have a chance to survive."
"What did you say?" Rhine's head snapped toward her, his pupils constricting into needle-points.
"I mean... as long as you—"
"YOU UTTER IDIOT!!!" he roared!
A fury so volatile it seemed to fracture his very brow erupted from him. "You're actually thinking of sacrificing yourself!?"
"Why do you think—WHY DO YOU THINK I GRABBED YOU IN THE FIRST PLACE!?"
The moment the roar left his throat—BOOM!!
The Divine Flame detonated once more! Searing, blinding fire surged from within him, completely enveloping them both. The light churned and boiled, a Great Beast howling in the heart of the storm!
Searing air currents surged violently beneath the leather wings—
HUM—! In that heartbeat, the air itself was forcibly torn asunder!
A powerful updraft, birthed from the sheer intensity of the Divine Flame, acted like an invisible hand thrusting upward, catching the uncontrolled descent!
Their bodies—
Jerked violently!
The lethal momentum of their fall was ground to a staggering halt.
They shuddered in the mid-air currents, like a flickering spark suspended on the razor's edge of life and death. Lunethia's eyes went wide, her voice breaking into frantic fragments.
"We... we stopped..."
"We actually... stopped!"
Rhine, however, could only manage a strained, ghost of a smirk.
His face—
Was already a deathly, chalky pale.
His flames—
Flickered like a candle gutting in the wind.
His breathing was a chaotic ruin, his voice dropping to a whisper that barely reached her ears.
"...Damn it..."
"I think... I've reached my limit..."
In the final second before impact—
Rhine summoned the very last dregs of his strength. He pulled Lunethia tightly into his embrace, twisting his body mid-air to take the brunt of the collision with his back.
CRASH—!!! The snow exploded!
Durt, pine needles, and ice shards erupted into the air!
They slammed into the earth with bone-shaking force, the leather wings tattering like broken feathers. Rhine's body plowed a long, jagged trench through the deep snow, skidding for dozens of yards before the terrifying momentum finally died.
"Rhine—!!"
Lunethia had been thrown clear by the impact. She scrambled to her feet, stumbling and crawling back to his side. She pressed a trembling hand against his chest.
—A faint, thudding heartbeat.
Weak, but still there.
She froze for a moment, then let out a soft, breathless laugh that was half-sob. "You absolute fool..."
However—
She was not even granted a moment to catch her breath.
CRUNCH—!!! Another violent roar tore through the mountain forest!
In the distance, massive pines were being shoved aside like mere twigs, the sound of snapping timber echoing through the valley. A path of destruction was rapidly extending through the snow toward them.
It—
Was here.
The crystalline monolith, missing its left arm, emerged from the treeline once more.
The crimson light within its ocular cores churned like an undying coal—the cold, mechanical stare of a reaper. Step by heavy step, it crushed the frozen earth, closing in on them.
Cold sweat beaded on Lunethia's brow. She stood frozen for a heartbeat, her muscles locking in the face of the approaching monolith. Then—slowly—she stood up.
She stole a single, lingering look at the unconscious Rhine. Drawing a deep breath, her voice was a whisper, a promise intended only for herself.
"Now... I can only rely on myself."
At the foot of Starfall Cliff.
The blizzard cut like a serrated blade. The fires of war had fully ignited across the snowy plains at the mountain's base.
"Tch."
Gareth clicked his tongue as he watched the ranks of soldiers advancing in a relentless, synchronized crawl. He drew his bow with violent speed—not one, but two arrows tipped with explosive charges whistled through the air!
BOOM! CRACK—!!
Twin detonations tore through the silence! Pillars of fire clawed at the sky, hurling the front-rank soldiers into the air. The rigid formation buckled instantly, a brief, jagged gap ripped into their line of defense.
"CHARGE!" Gareth roared. Without a second's hesitation, he was the first to plunge into the flaming breach!
"Are you certain!?" Rena spun on her heel, her spear a blur of steel as she repelled a lunging white wolf. Her voice was frantic. "We're not just facing a few men!"
Gareth shot a grin back over his shoulder, but his eyes were filled with a predatory ruthlessness. "To stop is to die! Aside from pushing through—there is no other way!"
"Dammit!" Owen spat a curse, sprinting forward with the unconscious Gerald bouncing on his back. "This guy picked a hell of a time to take a nap!? Fine—let's do it!"
He let out a guttural growl. "Better to fight men than feed the wolves!"
Nearby, the enemy captain issued a frigid command: "They're clearing a path! Shield-bearers, front and center! Block their momentum! Pin them down!"
Steel met steel. The skirmish erupted into a chaotic, bloody mess.
Owen bellowed, his heavy hammer sweeping in a massive arc that sent several shield-bearers—and their shields—flying like ragdolls. Gareth's bow sang a continuous, lethal melody, his fire-arrows repeatedly fracturing the enemy's desperate attempts to reform. Meanwhile, Milia moved like a ghost through the fray, her silhouette lithe and swift. Her daggers flashed in the twilight, delivering precise, silent lethality to every throat she crossed.
Blade-light, roaring flames, and the shadows of wolves intertwined into a tapestry of slaughter.
The battlefield transformed in an instant—
A panoramic portrait of a chaotic hell.
The wolf pack and the royal soldiers both moved under the Queen's mandate, yet they possessed no cohesion. Claws tore through human infantry, while longswords decapitated white wolves. Men collapsed. Beasts wailed.
The tactical order vanished. It was a three-way slaughter.
"What is that—WHAT IS THAT!?" a soldier shrieked, pointing toward the distant mountainside, his voice cracking with terror.
The Grand General's brow furrowed as he followed the man's gaze. A crystalline silhouette was hurtling down the slope with terrifying velocity. A crimson light pulsed violently within its chest cavity, like a hemorrhaging star.
The wolves in its path scattered in a frenzy, the tide of beasts that had been crushing the infantry suddenly parting. But for the soldiers who had just caught their breath—there was no salvation. In the next heartbeat, they were swatted into the air by the monolith's massive palms, their armor crumpling like parchment.
"A magical construct!?" the General barked, his expression shifting from calm to clinical fury. "Did the explosion awaken this thing...? Dammit!"
"It makes no distinction between friend or foe!"
"REAR GUARD—DEPLOY THE ANTI-MAGIC ARSENAL!!"
The command rippled through the ranks. Dozens of soldiers scrambled to the rear, dragging heavy crates open to reveal ballistae, fire-pots, and complex mechanical contraptions.
Bolts were cranked onto strings.
Fire-vials were ignited.
Explosive stones were chambered.
War was baring its jagged, iron fangs.
On the front line—
Gareth's eyes lit up with predatory opportunism. "Now's our chance!"
"The soldiers and the wolves are tearing each other apart—RUN!"
"Don't you dare leave us behind!" Rena snarled, her spear a blur. "Owen is still carrying Gerald!"
"Don't sweat it!" Owen let out a jagged laugh, his massive hammer swinging in a devastating arc that sent an encroaching soldier flying. "These grunts... they can't hold me—"
The boast was cut short.
CRACK—! His lead foot hit a patch of slick ice beneath a pile of corpses. His balance vanished.
"—Ugh!"
He pitched forward, slamming into the frozen earth. Gerald, still strapped to his back, tumbled with him, both of them crashing heavily into the crimson-stained snow.
"OWEN!"
Rena let out a frantic cry, spinning on her heel. Her spear swept in a violent gale, the steel tip carving a bloody path through the encroaching infantry and forcing them back. But the Royal soldiers reacted with cold efficiency, their ranks closing the gap almost as quickly as she could tear it open.
"Milia!" she barked. "Follow Gareth and go! I'll cover Owen and Gerald for the breakout!"
Milia's dagger flashed, a precise, lethal arc that opened a soldier's throat. As the spray of crimson hit the snow, she replied without looking back: "Stay sharp! We meet at the extraction point!"
Before the words had even settled—Milia and Gareth vanished into the smoke and fire like twin shadows, slipping through the chaotic fray.
However—the shadow of death did not retreat with them.
CRASH—!!!
The crystalline monolith slammed into the earth from the heights! The ground groaned under the impact. It extended its massive arms in a brutal, sweeping arc—the frozen crystal tore through the air, sending dozens of soldiers flying. Bones shattered; armored forms were reduced to broken heaps of meat and steel.
The thick, metallic scent of fresh blood saturated the air instantly.
Driven to a frenzy by the gore, the wolf pack's primal instincts detonated. They lunged into the mass of men, teeth tearing into flesh in a blind, savage slaughter. The battlefield had descended into total, unmitigated chaos.
Through the madness, the monolith's crimson eyes slowly panned across the carnage. Cold. Calculating. Searching for its singular objective: Lunethia.
"FIRE—!!"
BOOM!
A heavy ballista roared, its massive bolt shrieking through the air to slam directly into the construct's chest. The impact was immense—yet it only succeeded in forcing the giant back three staggering steps.
The Grand General's face turned a livid shade of iron-grey. "Even a siege-bolt can't pierce it!?"
"BRING THE FIRE!!"
The command was absolute. Oil and black powder were unleashed as catapults cranked into motion, hurling a barrage of incendiary vials and explosive canisters at the crystalline titan.
WH-BOOM—!!!
A wall of flame erupted toward the sky! The inferno swept across the clearing, forcing even the maddened wolves to recoil in terror.
"Now's the time!" Gareth hissed from the periphery. He expertly whipped several satchels of black powder from his belt, hurling the explosive charges toward the edge of the circle where Rena and the others were pinned.
WH-BOOM! BOOM! CRACK—!!!
A rhythmic chain of detonations tore through the formation! The wall of soldiers was forcibly ripped open, a jagged breach appearing in the heart of the encirclement.
"GO!!"
Under the dual veils of searing fire and acrid black smoke, Gareth and Milia vanished, their silhouettes dissolving into the shadows beyond the periphery of the light.
Owen pushed himself up from the crimson snow, his chest heaving with ragged breaths as he stared back at the churning sea of fire. "That explosion... did it... is that monster dead?"
"Who cares if it's dead!?" Rena snapped, her voice a frantic roar as she grabbed him by the shoulder. "If we don't move now—the three of us are joining it in the grave!"
Without waiting for a reply, she hauled Owen up. Together, supporting the unconscious weight of Gerald, they plunged headlong into the depths of the dense, dark forest.
At that moment—the collective gaze of the battlefield remained locked onto the crystalline monolith.
It stood amidst the burning snow, its translucent body stained a visceral scarlet by the reflection of the flames. Bathed in the inferno, it looked like a god of war stepping out of the bowels of hell. The fire swirled around it, scorching its crystalline hide, yet—
It failed to force the titan back even a single step.
The monolith slowly raised its remaining arm.
WHOOSH—!
A sudden, violent gale erupted! The wind scoured the earth in every direction, snuffed out the roaring fires in a single, colossal gust.
The Grand General's pupils constricted. He swept a clinical gaze across the carnage: The heavy ballistae were ineffective. The explosive powder had failed to breach the main chassis. And the specialized anti-magic weaponry was being depleted at an unsustainable rate.
If they continued this attrition—it wouldn't just cost lives. They would lose their rarest heavy armaments. By the time they found the actual target, they would be toothless.
This battle—was no longer profitable.
"...This is a King-class magical construct," he said, his voice dropping to a glacial cold as he made his final calculation. "Leave one squad to hold the rear. Everyone else—RETREAT!"
"Take every anti-magic weapon with us. Move!"
The command hit the air like a physical weight. For a heartbeat, time seemed to stagnate.
To hold the rear—meant certain death. Many of the soldiers' faces paled; their knuckles turned white as they gripped their weapons, the silence echoing with the unspoken weight of their sacrifice.
They all understood the cold arithmetic of war.
Without a rearguard to anchor the line, the entire army would be routed in a chaotic slaughter.
But to stay—was to embrace a certainty of death.
No one spoke. There were no grand speeches, no frantic protests.
In the next heartbeat—
A single squad of soldiers stepped out from the ranks, their movements synchronized and rhythmic. They didn't roar with artificial bravado; they didn't hesitate.
They simply—
Walked forward.
Marching into the shadow of the invincible titan.
The crystalline monolith slowly spread its massive palm.
Mana began to condense, humming with a lethal frequency.
One by one, frost-white spikes materialized at its fingertips, whetted to a supernatural sharpness.
In the following instant—
A rain of ice descended.
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH—!!AAAAAAAGH—!!!
Agonized screams tore through the snowy plains.
The soldiers of the rearguard collapsed one after another, their warm blood blossoming into vivid, spreading crimson against the virgin white snow.
Yet—
Not a single man retreated.
With their final strength, they lunged forward, using their broken bodies to tangle the limbs of the unspeakable colossus. They traded their lives for a single currency:
A sliver of a chance for their comrades to escape.
The blizzard did not cease.
The fires gradually flickered out.
And that blood-stained patch of earth finally returned to a heavy, suffocating silence.