Trapped and directly targeted, one of the stone giant's arms exploded.
More precisely, only its "skin" burst apart.
The outer layer of rock shattered into fragments, shooting outward like bullets and piercing through the black aura binding it.
Freed, the giant swung both arms down toward Zyron and his mount, like swatting a flying insect.
Facing the incoming palms—like two massive stone walls tearing through the air—Zyron crushed a speed-enhancing magic item in his left hand.
It was a single-use artifact, granting only a brief burst of speed.
But that was all he needed.
In an instant, his mount shot forward, leaving behind a sonic boom as they barely escaped.
Maintaining that speed, Zyron and the beast slammed straight into Tris.
The protective barrier around him held for only a brief moment before shattering.
Zyron's black blade pierced through the boy's chest.
The impact sent the giant staggering backward.
But before Zyron could celebrate—
A massive shadow loomed over him.
The hands that had missed him earlier had never stopped.
They had continued chasing him the entire time—
And even after the sword struck true, the stone giant didn't collapse.
Instead, its hands continued forward at full speed—
And smashed directly into its own chest.
Right where both Zyron and Tris were.
A horrifying impact echoed.
Then came the giant's collapse.
Like a mountain crumbling, it buried everything around it.
Dust filled the air, obscuring the battlefield.
The battlefield resembled the aftermath of a natural disaster—an apocalyptic vision.
And yet—
Zyron survived.
He had prepared two magic items.
One was the speed booster used earlier.
The other created an emergency barrier.
But even so, his condition was miserable.
The white tiger puppet was destroyed.
The black armor puppet was nearly beyond repair.
His body was broken—multiple bones shattered, one leg crushed entirely.
From the pain alone, Zyron could tell his internal organs were in terrible condition.
Still, what filled him now wasn't pain—
But confusion.
'Why would he use a suicidal attack like that?
Was his desire for revenge really that strong?'
He also couldn't understand why the giant hadn't collapsed—even after being struck by his black blade.
No answer came.
Instead—
Attacks rained down.
Hidden within the dust, a flock of birds fired magic bullets from their beaks.
Every shot targeted Zyron—relentless, merciless, leaving no time to react.
Too fast. Too sudden.
Striking him at his weakest.
He completely lost the chance to defend—let alone heal.
"Stop…!" Zyron screamed helplessly.
The birds ignored him.
They continued firing mechanically, over and over.
After some time—
Or perhaps only seconds—
They stopped.
Beneath the rubble lay what was once a village chief.
Now nothing more than an unrecognizable mass of flesh.
Zyron—powerful, ambitious mage—
Met his end in a way no one could have imagined.
Soft footsteps echoed in the quiet.
As the dust settled, Tris appeared—completely unharmed.
At least, on the outside.
In truth, he was far from "fine."
The prolonged battle had nearly drained all his mana, leaving his mind exhausted.
He held a large potion, drinking it slowly to recover.
Looking down at Zyron's remains, Tris summoned the headless puppet to search the body.
He had deliberately avoided targeting Zyron's hands.
The storage ring should still be intact.
If the ring had been destroyed by the giant's strike, it would have been nothing more than a misfortune that we could do nothing about.
Glancing at the collapsed mountain of rubble—the remains of the giant—Tris sighed.
He wasn't sure if anything was left of "The Twin."
Yes—
From beginning to end, it had all been puppets fighting in his place.
The key lay in the compass Zyron used.
After obtaining Veylor's compass, Tris devised a plan around its limitations—
It only pointed in a direction, not height or distance.
So what if—
He placed a puppet at the mountain peak…
While his real body hid deep underground beneath it?
The result:
The hunter would find the puppet.
Not him.
This worked because his ability to control puppets remotely had never been revealed.
The importance of intelligence in a war is something that cannot be underestimated. And Tris made good use of it to fight against Zyron, weaving this intricate trap.
Even the earlier "swap" used to kill the masked assassin was just one piece of that larger deception.
It made it even harder for Zyron to realize—
That was the "Tris" he fought all along…
Was just the second puppet of "The Twin".
After some searching, the headless puppet retrieved the ring.
And more than that—
Tris also found the black sword Zyron had dropped.
Despite everything being destroyed, the sword remained intact.
Examining it, Tris thought:
'What an incredible weapon… The black aura isn't Zyron's magic—it's an inherent ability of the blade.'
Taking the storage ring, Tris smiled in satisfaction.
'Now this feels right. Defeating enemies should always drop loot.'
Especially when the enemy wasn't just a monster, but a boss.
After a brief moment of satisfaction, he let out a long breath.
The revenge for his father was finally complete.
Only when the burden on his shoulders was lifted did the sorrow of loss suddenly flood in.
Tris looked up at the distant sky, quietly sending words of comfort to his departed father.