Chapter 269: Chapter 269: Ocean of Blood [END]
Chapter 269 – Ocean of Blood [END]
[The Breaker] had been integrated with Kaden’s Will of the Harvester. That process made it so that his Will could bend the world in his favor. if his will was strong enough, of course.
Which it was.
And that was precisely what rendered all the surrounding runic barriers useless and causing Brain’s attack to fail miserably.
Then, a rain of blood plummeted from the shattered ceiling as if the heavens themselves were bleeding.
It was the blood from above the surface of Waverith, the ocean of crimson that had been flowing through Thornspire and Elamin’s territories, born from the deaths of millions, both soldiers and common men.
That blood had been called by Kaden. And so, it answered...like mortals kneeling before a divine being.
Brain watched in shock as the ocean of blood fell toward them. In that instant of paralyzing disbelief, he seemed incapable of using the very brain he had once been so proud of. Which, in a cruel twist of irony, made perfect sense, for it was he himself who had severed his consciousness and soul in two, chasing a foolish dream of perfection.
His power was no longer like it was . His mind was no longer sharp.
So in that moment, as time slowed to a crawl like a bloody snail, Brain’s thoughts short-circuited like a dying light bulb, plunging his awareness into darkness as thick as oil.
But Kaden was not.
He watched the coming deluge of blood with a calm, wicked grin, his arms spread wide in a theatrical fashion.
He had imagined many ways to kill Brain —and with him, all the remaining Cerveau — once and for all.
It was a massive gamble. He hadn’t known whether the surface of Waverith was truly drenched in blood as it had been in the Wilderness before setting his plan in motion. But he had been willing to take the risk.
And his gamble had paid off. He had far more blood than he had ever dreamed of and that made everything even more perfect.
As he watched the flood of crimson descend, Kaden couldn’t help but remember the moment of his evolution quest for Master rank. More precisely, the moment he awakened his Will while sitting atop the white dragon.
Dragon.
His eyes brightened like a child’s, gleaming with sudden inspiration. His hands twisted, and his Authority over Blood burst outward, shrouding the descending rain of crimson entirely.
He began to move his arms...up, down, left, right, a twist here, one finger up, another bent down...a perfect rhythm, a deadly choreography.
Kaden looked like a conductor before a divine orchestra, guiding the crescendo of a symphony born of blood.
Behind him, Reditha appeared, her crimson form even redder than before, her eyes glowing with glee, with love, as she too moved her arms, imitating her master.
Soon, the blood on the ceiling began to twist, swirling inwardly and outwardly as it started to take on a defined shape. The shape of a snake at first, one that seemed to hiss with a living snarl. But it did not end there. Scales as large as a knight’s shield began to appear across its length, shimmering with a mesmerizing scarlet that reflected the clouded, darkened sky. Its face warped and stretched until it became that of a dragon, two great horns emerging from its skull and pointing toward the heavens menacingly.
Its mouth widened, filled with countless teeth, and two protruding canines as sharp as knives jutted from its upper and lower jaws.
Its red eyes opened...wide, slitted, and glowing with eerie, vicious light.
Kaden started to sweat, his body trembling, but his smile was wider than it had ever been. Beside him, Brain was no longer able to move, his entire body trapped within the embrace of Reditha’s blood. With the abundance of blood saturating the air, Reditha had become terrifying beyond reason.
Kaden didn’t stop his movements...or rather, his dance. Unconsciously, his mind drifted to Sora, and her song... the Song of Fire and Blood.
He had only heard it once.
But Kaden had memorized it perfectly.
He parted his lips, his body still in motion, his footsteps chaotic yet mesmerizing, as he began to sing Sora’s song.
The world seemed to fall silent. His power surged. And soon, wings began to form. Enormous crimson wings, their span enveloping the entire Evolution Room.
High above the shattered ceiling, two women hovered in the air, watching the scene unfold in stunned silence. One had scarlet hair, the other purple. Moments later, two more figures arrived — a man and a young woman, both with black hair and red eyes.
Their gazes were fixed below, upon the song echoing through all of Waverith. Slowly, the commoners began to emerge from their crumbling homes, their minds entranced, drawn by the haunting melody.
Before long, the center of Waverith was crowded. Above the sky, Serena, Garros, Daela, and Mayari watched with hearts trembling in anticipation. The people looked on in awe as the dragon’s form completed, its body fully revealed — vast and magnificent, floating above the gaping hole in the ceiling.
Kaden and Reditha sang together.
And all who witnessed it — noble, soldier, and commoner alike — were struck silent by the sight and the sound.
For it was not anyone singing.
And it was not any song.
It was a sword and her master. And above them, a crimson dragon born from the blood of the forsaken.
And it was a beautiful song made by the Sun.
So when the final note fell, and their voices ceased...
The world held its breath.
Then the dragon’s body ignited. Black flames coiled around it, enveloping its form like armor made of flickering stars.
Kaden and Reditha stood side by side, arms still raised, their mouths curved into a shared grin. Slowly, ever so slowly, they began to lower their hands.
Everyone watched with rapt intensity...hearts pounding, breath caught in their throats, bodies trembling, faces flushed.
Brain could do nothing. Powerless, he laughed, a bitter, broken laugh, his voice trembling with madness.
"Warborn! Oh, Warborn! Magnificent! Magnificent! But you are a fool if you think it ends with me! You are a fool!" he shouted, spitting blood with every word. "No one can eradicate us! No one!"
Finally, Kaden’s arms rested at his sides. Reditha wrapped her arms lovingly around his neck.
Kaden looked at Brain and smiled.
"Don’t worry. The rest of your family you hid in the East of Darklore will follow you."
Brain’s laughter stopped instantly. His eyes went wide. "H–How?"
Above, the Scarlet Dragon opened its colossal jaws, and deep within, a swirling sphere of black fire began to form, spinning violently like a storm trapped in a bottle.
"How?" Kaden chuckled. "Don’t worry about that. And also..." he grinned madly.
Above him, a deafening roar burst forth — a roar so absolute that sound itself ceased to exist for a heartbeat — and the black fire erupted from the dragon’s gaping jaws like a newborn ebony sun.
Everything within the Evolution Room was consumed by that infernal flame. It looked as if the apocalypse itself had descended upon mankind.
Mana was devoured.
Bloodlines were burned.
Lifespans were swallowed.
And Brain Cerveau died, as the last words of Kaden echoed through his collapsing consciousness like the whisper of a fallen god.
"...Your son will be next."
Silence followed.
The underground glowed with black flames that refused to die down.
Garros watched the devastation with a wide grin. Serena’s eyes shimmered with pride. Daela, for the first time in her life, smiled openly in front of others besides Kaden. And Mayari stood frozen, stunned by what she witnessed.
The commoners, encircling the pit of black fire, held their breath. They waited for something to change, for something to rise.
And as if the gods themselves decided to play their part for once, the sky above Waverith cleared completely. The heavy dark clouds split apart, revealing a brilliant blue sky and a blazing orange sun that shone directly upon the pit.
There, the dragon and the sea of black fire began to compress — slowly, steadily — revealing the silhouette of a man all had longed to see.
He stood within the pit, a crimson, steamy woman draped over him, her arms around his neck. His body bore not a single wound. His black hair was neatly tied with a red band, and his crimson eyes reflected the fire and blood swirling before him.
The silence was sacred.
And then he reached out, took hold of the condensed orb of fire and blood, and swallowed it whole.
The tension shattered instantly, melting away like salt in boiling water.
And the commoners — not knowing why, only that their souls demanded it — opened their mouths and screamed, their voices trembling between laughter and tears:
"WARBORN! WARBORN! WARBORN!"
The very space trembled, unable to bear the sheer weight of emotion pouring from those freed from slaughter and despair.
Kaden stood there, Reditha beside him, smiling and his smile widened even more as something soared from the sky toward him at immense speed.
In an instant, it pierced through the air and dove into the pit, landing softly atop Kaden’s head.
A black crow with deep red eyes.
Kaden smirked.
"What a timing to be back..." he said quietly.
"WARBORN! WARBORN! WARBORN!"
"...Little Rory."
"Master!!!" Rory chirped.
Kaden laughed as Rory hopped upon his head, an expression spreading across his face that made everyone watching smile in return.
A hero. A villain. A killer.
Kaden didn’t know what he truly was. And he didn’t need to.
Because in that instant, at that time, on that day when the sun rose above Waverith after a calamitous battle...
Kaden was no killer.
He was no villain.
He was not even a brother.
He was a hero.
The Hero of Waverith.
Because Waverith needed a hero.
And the world had given it one to hail.
—End of Chapter 269—