Zael's eyes narrowed suddenly.
Only now did he notice that the horned commander wasn't alone.
Standing several meters behind him in the air was another figure wrapped completely in a dark hooded robe.
The moment Zael saw that silhouette—
Recognition flashed through his mind instantly.
The central terminal.
The academy gates.
The subtle killing intent directed toward him repeatedly over the past few hours.
It was the same person.
The hooded figure slowly raised their head slightly afterward.
Although their face remained hidden beneath the darkness of the hood, Zael could feel the hatred directed toward him clearly now.
Raw.
Personal.
The horned commander noticed Zael's gaze and laughed deeply.
"So you recognize him."
Zael remained expressionless.
Truthfully speaking, he still had absolutely no idea who this person was.
Nor did he know how exactly he had apparently offended them enough to warrant this level of hatred.
But at this point—
He no longer cared.
Because one thing was already clear.
Anyone willing to collude with demonized awakeners…
Anyone willing to participate in an invasion that slaughtered students and civilians alike…
Deserved only one ending.
Death.
Void energy flickered faintly around Zael's fingertips afterward.
The hooded figure finally spoke then.
Their voice was distorted unnaturally, as though altered deliberately.
"You really don't remember me…"
Zael tilted his head slightly.
"…Should I?"
The surrounding air suddenly became colder.
Even the horned commander glanced sideways briefly at the figure as though amused by the reaction.
A dark laugh escaped beneath the hood.
"Interesting."
"So you killed them…"
"…and forgot entirely."
Zael's expression sharpened faintly.
Killed them?
Before he could think further, the hooded figure slowly removed one glove.
A scarred hand emerged.
Burned black.
Partially crystalline.
Corrupted.
Then the figure pointed directly at Zael.
"My son."
A suffocating killing intent exploded outward instantly.
"And my daughter."
BOOOOOOOOM!!!
The surrounding plaza cracked violently beneath the pressure.
Lily's eyes widened slightly.
Zael himself immediately understood.
Azure and Crimson.
The siblings from the dungeon.
The dragon incident.
The black-robed figure from before.
So this was their father.
Or perhaps guardian.
The hooded man's voice trembled with restrained madness afterward.
"They died because of you."
"You took everything from me."
Zael stared at him calmly for several seconds.
Then spoke in a cold voice devoid of sympathy.
"They attacked first."
The hooded figure laughed bitterly afterward.
"Of course they did."
"They were weak."
"They failed."
"Yet that changes nothing."
The man slowly raised one trembling hand as corrupted energy began gathering around him violently.
"In this world…"
"…the dead don't care who was right."
The horned commander grinned widely beside him.
Then finally—
Both of them released their full killing intent simultaneously.
The sky darkened instantly.
And for the first time since the invasion began—
Zael's expression became completely serious.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
BOOOOOOOOM!!!
The combined killing intent of the two figures descended like a collapsing mountain.
Nearby students instantly coughed blood and fell unconscious.
The shattered plaza beneath them cracked even further while the surrounding air became unbearably heavy.
Even Lily was forced to take a step back, her expression turning grim.
The horned commander alone was already terrifying.
But the hooded man beside him—
Though weaker—
Radiated the instability of someone who no longer cared whether he survived or not.
Those kinds of enemies were often the most dangerous.
Zael slowly exhaled.
Then black-and-silver energy began rising around him silently.
At the same time, abyssal energy flickered beneath his feet while spatial distortions warped around his body.
The surrounding students stared at him in disbelief.
Because the pressure coming from Zael was beginning to rival the enemies above him.
The horned commander's grin widened.
"Yes…"
"Show me more."
The demonized awakener suddenly vanished.
BOOM!!!
The space where he stood exploded apart.
Fast.
Far too fast for ordinary students to even perceive.
Yet Zael reacted instantly.
Void Step.
CRAAAAASH!!!
A black-scaled fist collided against Zael's forearm high above the plaza, generating a shockwave powerful enough to flatten nearby buildings.
The ground below collapsed further.
Zael's eyes narrowed slightly.
Strong.
Very strong.
The horned commander laughed wildly while attacking again.
Punches.
Kicks.
Claws infused with corrupted energy.
Every strike carried enough force to massacre lower-tier awakeners effortlessly.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Zael met every attack head-on.
The sky trembled continuously from their clashes.
Meanwhile below—
The hooded man turned toward Lily slowly.
"You…"
Corrupted flames ignited around his scarred hand.
"You were with him too."
Lily's expression sharpened instantly.
Ice exploded outward around her body.
"Guess that means you're dying here as well."
The hooded figure lunged downward immediately afterward.
BOOM!!!
The ground froze instantly as Lily counterattacked with dozens of compressed ice spears.
The battlefield split apart into two terrifying confrontations simultaneously.
High above—
Zael finally stopped defending.
The horned commander's claw descended toward his chest again.
But this time—
Zael caught it.
One hand.
The commander's grin faltered slightly.
Then Zael spoke calmly.
"You talk too much."
CRACK!!!
He twisted violently.
The horned commander's arm bent unnaturally before Zael slammed his knee directly into the demonized awakener's stomach.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!
The commander shot downward like a meteor before crashing through three academy structures consecutively.
Dust exploded into the air.
Students stared with pale faces.
A Tier Four commander—
Was getting overpowered.
Then suddenly—
[Ding!]
[Host combat output exceeds current level restrictions.]
[Warning: Unstable energy fluctuations detected.]
[Warning: Bloodline synchronization increasing.]
Zael ignored the notifications entirely.
Below him, crimson eyes suddenly lit up through the smoke.
Then laughter echoed.
Deep.
Excited.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
The horned commander emerged slowly from the rubble.
Except now—
The black markings across his body were spreading rapidly.
His horns elongated further while a massive amount of corrupted energy erupted outward uncontrollably.
The surrounding demonized awakeners immediately retreated instinctively.
Fearfully.
The commander stared upward at Zael with growing madness.
"Yes…"
"That's it…"
"THIS is what I wanted!"
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
A gigantic abyssal magic circle suddenly expanded beneath the commander's feet.
The sky darkened further.
Then dozens of spatial cracks began opening across the academy simultaneously.
Zael's expression finally changed slightly.
Because from within those cracks—
Something far worse was beginning to emerge.