Lack of sound.

  Lack of weight.

  Lack of light.

  Lack of self.

  The emptiest of realms revealed itself to Olivia and Yivern.

  A place where thought ceased and breath had no meaning.

  Where nothing possessed volume, not even the grandest of beings.

  The two opponents stood fixed in place, their forms solidified, eyes locked on one another.

  There were no plans.

  No hesitation.

  No sense of time.

  Only distance.

  Then they moved.

  Yivern’s form within this realm had recovered its full shape. Its wings unfurled, propelling the monster forward without resistance.

  In the same heartbeat, Olivia spread her wings and launched herself ahead. A shockwave rippled behind her, even in a space devoid of air.

  Both raised their right arms, flattening them into sharp, lethal forms.

  As the distance collapsed, time itself seemed to stretch. An eternity passed in an instant.

  They crossed.

  A deep gash opened across Olivia’s left shoulder.

  Three of Yivern’s appendages fell away, dissolving into the surrounding abyss as if consumed by nothingness.

  They turned in unison.

  They crossed again.

  Blows were exchanged faster, heavier.

  Olivia's blows were precise, while Yivern's were powerful.

  But one of them was winning.

  And that one was Olivia.

  Yivern tore at her limbs and face, striking with relentless force. Olivia accepted every blow meant for her body, yielding only when her face was threatened.

  Each counterstrike she delivered carved deep cavities into Yivern’s flesh.

  But not every strike met its mark.

  She missed again and again, adjusting her aim with each exchange.

  Again.

  And again.

  Until her hand drove straight through its body, leaving hollow wounds where substance had once existed.

  The Devourer slowed.

  Its strength bled away with every exchange, its movements losing sharpness.

  Olivia pressed the assault, unrelenting, until the moment presented itself.

  Yivern’s mouth fell open. Blood flowed freely. Its gaze dropped, its reactions dulled.

  The Valkyrie title revealed itself, carrying with it the power needed to end her enemy.

  Her eyes burned a darker red as a deep crimson aura enveloped her hand.

  She lifted her arm overhead.

  Emotion surged within her soul, yet she felt none of it.

  There was only the Devourer.

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  And its ending.

  At the final instant, Yivern raised its head and arms, claws lunging toward her chest.

  It was too slow.

  Her arm fell like a guillotine.

  Yivern’s eyes met Olivia’s as it understood. In this realm, where its rules held no power, she was stronger.

  In absolute silence, the Elder One’s head separated from its body. Its claws halted inches from her skin as the severed form collapsed.

  Olivia’s fingers remained buried at the nape of its neck.

  For a moment, she simply stood there, understanding arriving only after action.

  She drew a breath.

  The ceiling of darkness tilted in her vision as Yivern’s body slid aside and lay still.

  Then the world turned white.

  —

  Olivia was still mid-step when the resonance released her.

  Reality rushed back with a sharp gasp. Sound flooded her ears, and light blinded her for a heartbeat.

  Her foot came down hard, the one she had lifted while advancing toward Yivern.

  A profound stillness filled the air.

  Keleanos and the maids stared as the Devourer leaned backward in a slow, unnatural motion.

  Its arms hung limp at its sides.

  The glow in its eyes faded.

  At the center of its chest, the shattered core pulsed weakly, its heartbeat slowing at a terrifying pace.

  Breathing shallowly, hands trembling, Olivia tried to grasp the moment.

  What just happened?

  Did I…?

  She looked down at her right hand.

  The memory of ending the Elder One’s life was still vivid.

  Too vivid to deny.

  Suddenly, as Olivia was still recovering from her confusion, footsteps echoed beside her.

  They were light. Too light for the shattered terrain beneath them.

  Yet Olivia did not move. A bead of cold sweat slid down her temple.

  Her eyes trembled for a heartbeat as an unfamiliar pressure crept closer, coiling around her senses.

  “My. An ending most rare indeed.”

  “A Devourer undone, whilst no soul was claimed.”

  An umbrella entered her field of view. Olivia slowly turned her head, meeting the serene smile of a blonde woman.

  The maids froze.

  Not one of them dared to approach Olivia, their instincts screaming for flight.

  Still, they endured. They stood their ground, refusing to give way.

  For a long moment, the woman lingered beside Olivia, twirling her umbrella with idle grace.

  “Shall this be named worthy of commendation?”

  “Even among great captains, such cohesion is seldom achieved.”

  Tilting her head, she brought a finger to her lips, as though pondering an idle thought.

  Then she stepped forward.

  With each step, glass-like matter bloomed beneath her feet. Olivia remained perfectly still.

  This being…

  Her soul screamed to flee. Her heart skipped a beat.

  Yivern had been terrifying. But this woman existed on another plane entirely. Something older. More primal. More devastating than anything Olivia had ever encountered.

  She forced herself not to tremble. Every breath was held. Every instinct crushed down through sheer will.

  “To have one’s mind torn from itself… a most pitiable state.”

  “For a being that endured through ages, such an end was ill-met.”

  The woman halted, then stepped onto empty air.

  Glass formed beneath her feet as she ascended toward the Devourer’s head.

  There, a monstrous form appeared as her reflection.

  “Truly, with this one, three of the ancients have been brought low.”

  “Most curious. Beings of realms beyond do wield powers most remarkable.”

  She stopped beside Yivern’s beak, golden eyes calmly studying its lifeless face.

  “Such vacant eyes. A sight most dreadful to behold.”

  “If only those of thy lineage might comprehend.”

  Slowly, she raised her left hand. Shifting the umbrella to her other hand, she placed her palm against Yivern’s beak.

  That was when Olivia shouted.

  “To me!”

  Magic flared with terrifying speed.

  Martha, Alisa, and Noelle warped instantly, gathering the scattered maids to Olivia’s side. Zara, having regained her footing, seized Keleanos and the angels attending her and brought them back as well.

  “To Tenebrisis! Now!” Olivia barked, panic cutting through her composure.

  Without hesitation, the maids warped the entire group onto the dragon’s back.

  “Tenebrisis! Run! As fast as you can!”

  The dragon’s instincts screamed. He did not hesitate.

  Turning sharply, Tenebrisis bolted forward, earth shattering beneath his charge.

  “It’s not enough!” Olivia shouted, already turning to the angels.

  They understood instantly.

  Kneeling, they pressed their hands to the dragon’s scales. Light flowed into his massive body, reinforcing muscle and sinew, driving his speed beyond its limits.

  Behind them, the woman watched in silence as a mirror-like world spread beneath Yivern’s corpse, slowly swallowing it whole.

  “Truly, such bonds are of uncommon strength.”

  “Art thou, perchance, numbered among that strange man’s cherished?”

  She lowered her umbrella, hiding her eyes, leaving only her smile visible.

  “I must needs behold him once more, that these bonds be witnessed anew.”

  “Yet the hour is not come. Other endings yet await their witness.”

  As Yivern vanished into the glass beneath her, she turned her gaze skyward, eyes reflecting the pale blue above.

  “I find myself most curious indeed.”

  “Which shall stand victorious in this conflict?”

  “A question of no small interest.”

  Glass spread across the ruined city, sealing what remained of Yivern’s domain.

  Then the woman stepped forward and fell gently into the mirrored surface below.

  “Surely, one that shall hold my interest yet awhile.”

  The glass swallowed her.

  Leaving a deserted land behind her.