"Are you willing to kill me, brother?"
My voice was quiet. Almost gentle.
The battlefield burned around us, but for a moment… it was just the two of us.
"It seems you have betrayed everything you stood for. You're no longer worthy of wielding Excalibur."
King Arthur looked at me—truly looked at me. Not as a king. Not as an enemy.
But as my brother.
"You are a traitor," he said, voice steady despite the blood on his lips. "A disgrace to Camelot."
His grip tightened.
"I will kill you."
I exhaled softly.
"…Then try."
"Magda mani achtenebris."
The spell left my lips like a whisper of inevitability.
Excalibur trembled.
The golden light flickered—
Then shattered.
The blade tore itself from Arthur's hand, flying violently through the air before slamming into stone with a thunderous crack.
And then—
A fracture.
Running along its surface.
Arthur's eyes widened.
"No…"
He moved to retrieve it—
But it didn't respond.
For the first time…
The sword refused him.
And that was the moment I chose.
I stepped through shadow.
And appeared behind him.
The staff formed in my hand instantly—
Skathe-Hrün
There was no hesitation.
I drove it forward.
Straight through his heart.
Time didn't slow this time.
It didn't hesitate.
The impact was… final.
Arthur gasped—
A sharp, broken sound.
His body stiffened.
Then… slackened.
I stood there, frozen.
The staff still embedded in his chest.
"…Arthur…"
The name barely left my lips.
For a moment…
I wasn't a conqueror.
Not a sorceress.
Not a queen.
Just a sister.
A few tears slipped down my face before I could stop them.
Warm.
Unwanted.
And then—
Magic surged.
I turned.
Merlin stood there.
And he was furious.
"You—"
His voice broke—not with weakness, but with rage so absolute it barely held form.
"You killed him!"
I didn't answer.
Because I didn't need to.
He raised his staff.
I raised my hand.
And the world exploded.
Golden magic slammed into me like a tidal wave.
I barely had time to react—
A shield formed instantly, violet and dense, but the force still drove me backward, tearing through the ground beneath my feet as I slid across shattered stone.
I retaliated instantly.
A storm of purple energy erupted from my hands—beams, blasts, waves of shadow that twisted through the air like living things, each one aimed to kill.
Merlin didn't dodge.
He advanced.
Golden sigils formed around him, intercepting my attacks mid-air, dissolving them into nothing before they could reach him.
He was faster now.
Stronger.
Angrier.
"You chose this!" he roared.
I vanished.
A shadow portal swallowed me whole—
And I reappeared above him, both hands already igniting with dark flame.
I unleashed it.
A massive torrent of purple fire crashed downward—
Merlin thrust his staff upward—
And golden fire met mine.
The collision detonated.
The explosion ripped through what remained of the throne room, walls collapsing, stone disintegrating as the two forces annihilated each other in a violent clash of opposing magic.
I landed hard—
And didn't stop.
Portals opened around him—
Dozens.
Hundreds.
From each one, weapons surged forward—blades, spears, raw constructs of shadow, all striking at once from every direction.
Merlin slammed his staff into the ground.
A pulse of golden energy erupted outward—
And everything I summoned… shattered instantly.
I clicked my tongue.
"Still annoying."
He was in front of me in an instant.
Faster than before.
A blade of pure golden energy formed in his hand—
And he swung.
I blocked with my staff—
The impact cracked the air.
We clashed at close range, weapon against weapon, magic flaring with every strike.
He was relentless.
Every movement precise.
Every attack fueled by fury and grief.
"You were my student!" he shouted, striking again and again.
"I trusted you!"
I twisted, deflecting a blow and countering with a burst of shadow that sent him skidding back.
"And you tried to control me!" I snapped back.
I raised my hand—
Time bent.
The world slowed again—
Not fully stopped, but enough.
I moved through it, circling him, layering spell after spell—binding curses, destructive runes, traps hidden in the fabric of reality itself.
Time snapped back.
Everything triggered at once.
Explosions.
Bindings.
Shadow constructs erupting from the ground.
Merlin roared—
Golden light exploded outward—
And he broke through it all.
Barely.
He was breathing heavier now.
So was I.
Good.
This was a real fight.
He raised his staff again—
And the sky itself responded.
A massive column of golden energy descended from above, aimed directly at me, carrying enough power to erase everything in its path.
I didn't dodge.
I met it.
Everything I had surged forward—
Shadow.
Magic.
The Grail's power roaring through me.
Purple collided with gold once more.
The battlefield vanished in light.
For a moment…
Nothing else existed.
Just us.
And the question of who would fall next.