(Refined International Version)
The blue beam shot straight into the sky.Piercing through the clouds.The air trembled.Like something—Was awakening.
A mechanical voice echoed across the field.
"Command authority… confirmed."
The wind roared.
Van Thien stood at the center of the разрушed field.A faint blue aura flickered around his body.Unstable.In front of him—The black-armored creature slowly rose.Dust fell from its body.
Its red eyes locked onto him.
"…So it's true."
"You really are that existence."
Van Thien frowned.
"…What are you talking about?"
"Who are you?"
No answer.Only—
BOOM!!
The ground exploded.
The creature vanished—Then reappeared in front of him.A kick—Fast.
Heavy.
Like a falling axe.
DOOM!!
Van Thien was sent flying.His body crashed across the field—Rolling—Slamming hard into the ground.He coughed violently.
Pain crushed his chest.
"…Damn it…"
He forced himself up.
Barely.
The creature walked toward him.Each step cracked the earth.
"Weaker than I expected."
Van Thien clenched his fists.
"…What are you?"
Still—No answer.
Instead—Red energy extended from its arm.Forming a blade.Burning.
Distorting the air.
"…Purge."
It moved.A flash of red—
BOOM!!
Van Thien barely dodged.The ground behind him split open.He rolled aside.Grinding his teeth.But the attacks didn't stop.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Strike after strike—The field was torn apart.
Van Thien's breathing grew heavier.His body screamed.
"…I can't win…"
The creature stopped.Watching him.
"That's all?"
It raised the blade.
"Then I'll end this."
Red energy gathered.Condensed into a sphere.
The air shook violently.Pressure crushed the ground.
Van Thien's heart pounded.
"…If that hits…"
"I'm dead."
Then—Images flashed in his mind.
Stars.
Warships.An endless fleet.And a voice—
"Captain."
"—!"
He grabbed his head.
"Ah…!"
The creature spoke.
"Die."
The energy sphere fell—In that instant—
His pendant ignited.Blue light exploded outward.
A barrier formed.
BOOOOOOM!!!
The explosion swallowed everything.Smoke.
Fire.
Silence.
"…Finished."
The creature stood still.Watching.Then—Wind.A sudden gust tore through the smoke.Revealing—The center of the crater.
Van Thien—Still standing.Blue light surrounded him.His eyes—Cold.
Calm.
Different.
"…Impossible…"
The creature stepped back.For the first time—Uncertain.
Van Thien slowly raised his head.
"Counterattack… initiated."
"…!"
He vanished.Reappeared—Right in front of it.
A punch—
BOOM!!
Impact.
The creature was sent flying.Crashing across the field—Before slamming into the ground.
DOOOOM!!!
Silence.Dust drifted.
Van Thien swayed.The blue light flickered.
Fading.
"…What… was that…?"
His vision blurred.His legs gave out.He dropped to one knee—Then collapsed.In the distance—The creature rose again.Its armor cracked.
A deep fracture across its body.
"…So it's confirmed."
"You really are that existence."
But it didn't attack.Instead—It looked up.Into the sky.The warship—Watching.
A voice echoed down.
"Confirmation?"
"…Confirmed."
A soft laugh followed.
"…Interesting."
The creature looked back at Van Thien.
Unconscious.
"…I'll let you live."
"For now."
"But next time—"
"You won't survive."
It launched into the sky.Gone within seconds.Silence returned.The wind moved gently across the ruined field.At the center—
Van Thien lay unconscious.
Alone.
The battlefield—Fell quiet.But it wasn't peace.
It was only—The calm before the storm.