Olympia was breaking.
Not falling.
Breaking.
Minotaurs flooded the platforms.
Cerberus units crawled through reality cracks.
Everything alive was being erased.
Zane moved.
Water Acranum: Endless Tide.
One step - one death.
No hesitation.
No waste.
Water Acranum: Flow of the Current.
The battlefield bent around him.
Controlled. Clean. Absolute.
Kaelios dropped from above a collapsing structure.
"…You guys really started the apocalypse without me?"
A Cerberus lunged at him.
He didn't even look at it.
Thunder Acranum: Split Sky Step.
Lightning cracked.
He vanished.
The attack hit empty air.
Kaelios reappeared behind it mid-fall.
"…You missed. That's kind of embarrassing, honestly."
Instant Judgment.
It dropped instantly.
He landed beside Zane like nothing happened.
"You always look like you're about to fail a job interview, or is that just your face?"
Zane didn't look at him.
"You're loud."
Kaelios nodded.
"Correct. I'm socially gifted."
Water Acranum: Weight of the Deep.
Zane struck.
The ground collapsed inward.
A Minotaur didn't fall.
It was erased under pressure.
Kaelios whistled.
"…Okay yeah, that's borderline rude to physics."
Thunder Acranum: Vanishing Thunder.
He disappeared again.
Three enemies fell instantly.
The battlefield shifted.
Not size.
Rhythm.
Zane controlled space.
Kaelios invaded it.
Neither slowed.
Neither hesitated.
Water Acranum: Endless Tide.
Kills chained without pause.
Kaelios reappeared walking through chaos.
"You ever consider hobbies? Like knitting? Or not looking serious 24/7?"
Zane answered instantly.
"No."
Kaelios smiled wider.
"Yeah, I figured. You're boring professionally."
A Minotaur charged Kaelios.
He finally glanced at it.
"…You really chose the wrong guy."
Thunder Acranum: Instant Judgment.
Gone.
Zane exhaled once.
"…Focus."
Kaelios shrugged mid-fight.
"I am focused. I'm just multitasking humiliation and war."
Thunder Acranum: Split Sky Step.
Lightning tore space again.
Kaelios reappeared above a collapsing tower.
"Question, if I left you alone for five minutes, would the world improve or collapse faster?"
Zane didn't answer.
Kaelios nodded.
"Yeah… that's concerning."
Then-
A roar.
Not beast.
Something deeper.
Heavier.
Wrong.
The ground cracked open.
Reality split upward.
Something began to rise.
Not entering.
Emerging.
Zane stopped.
Kaelios stopped.
Kaelios tilted his head.
"…Okay, that one looks like it has tax debt."
Zane tightened his grip.
"…That's not a Minotaur."
Kaelios sighed.
"Yeah, I was hoping you'd say yes so I could go home early."
Shadow erupted upward.
Kaelios stretched.
"…Alright, I guess I can stop joking for like two seconds."
Zane nodded once.
"…Now."
Thunder Acranum: Split Sky Step.
Thunder Acranum: Vanishing Thunder.
Water Acranum: Endless Tide.
Water Acranum: Flow of the Current.
Kaelios appeared beside Zane mid-motion.
"If we survive this, I'm charging you emotional damage fees."
Zane replied instantly.
"You won't survive billing me."
Kaelios grinned.
"Fair enough."
Lightning and water collided.
The battlefield collapsed into motion.
Olympia kept breaking.
And Kaelios kept talking.
"…I think I'm carrying the emotional tone of this entire apocalypse-
Zane finally spoke again.
"…This isn't local."
Kaelios tilted his head.
"You think?"
Zane's grip tightened.
"…Olympia is only the start."
A deeper distortion opened in the sky.
More shadows spilled out.
Not attack.
Expansion.
Kaelios stopped joking for half a second.
"…That's not just an invasion."
Zane nodded once.
"…It's spreading toward the Paragon camps."
That changed everything.
Kaelios exhaled.
"…Yeah. That's annoying."
He looked toward the horizon.
For once, not smiling.
"…We should move."
Zane agreed instantly.
"…Now."
Thunder Acranum: Split Sky Step.
Water Acranum: Flow of the Current.
Kaelios stretched slightly mid-motion.
"…If the other Paragons are fighting this blind, they're going to die before we even get there."
Zane didn't answer.
But his speed increased.
Kaelios glanced sideways.
"Try to keep up, number two."
Zane replied coldly.
"Try not to slow down, number one."
Kaelios smiled again.
"Impossible."
They moved.
Not away from battle.
Toward the training camp.
And behind them-
Hades' shadows kept spreading.
END OF CHAPTER