The scythe user didn't wait.
The moment the smoke cleared, he moved.
Fast.
Faster than before.
His body cut through the air, closing the distance in an instant, the curved blade dragging behind him before rising in a deadly arc.
Rio forced himself to stand straight.
His legs felt heavy.
His breathing uneven.
His mana—
Almost gone.
"That was good," the man said as he approached, his voice calm despite the damage running through his body. Frost still clung to his arms, faint sparks of lightning cracking along the surface.
"But it seems like you've overexerted yourself."
Rio didn't deny it.
Didn't have the energy to.
"What's your name?"
A strange question.
In the middle of a battlefield.
Rio let out a weak breath.
"…Noctis."
The man nodded once.
"Good."
He raised his scythe.
"Goodbye, Noctis."
Rio smiled.
Tired.
But real.
"…Goodbye?"
The man paused.
Just for a fraction of a second.
"Look behind you."
Something in Rio's tone—
Made him turn.
And his eyes widened.
Reina stood there.
Her posture was unsteady.
But her presence—
Had changed.
Golden light gathered in her hand.
Soft.
Warm.
Yet—
Overwhelming.
The air stilled.
Completely.
She spoke.
"Divine Words: Pillar of Grace."
The sky answered.
Light descended.
Not like fire.
Not like lightning.
Something purer.
A pillar of radiant gold tore through the heavens, crashing down with absolute authority. It didn't explode—it erased.
Everything in its path was swallowed.
The ground shattered.
The air itself trembled.
The scythe user didn't even have time to react.
The light consumed him instantly.
No resistance.
No struggle.
Just—
Gone.
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Unreal.
Rio stood there, frozen.
His eyes wide.
His body refusing to move.
"…What…"
The light slowly faded.
Fragments of golden particles drifted through the air before disappearing.
Reina stood at the center of it.
Still.
Quiet.
Then—
She fell.
"…!"
Rio moved instantly, catching her before she hit the ground.
Her body was light.
Too light.
"…Hey."
No response.
Her breathing was faint.
Unconscious.
Rio exhaled slowly, his body finally giving in as he dropped to one knee, still holding her.
"…Haaah…"
His arms trembled.
His vision blurred again.
Everything hurt.
"…What the hell was that…"
High above—
The sky was still breaking.
Leon and Veylan's clash continued, shockwaves rippling across the horizon as their battle distorted the very space around them.
Rio looked up.
Then back down at Reina.
"…This mission is insane."
_____
High above the fractured sky—
They stopped.
For the first time since their clash began, Leon and Veylan stood still, suspended in the open air as the world beneath them burned in distant echoes of battle.
Their blades lowered slightly.
Not in weakness.
In pause.
A pillar of golden light tore through the heavens in the distance.
Brilliant.
Absolute.
Leon's eyes shifted toward it.
"Oh?"
A small grin tugged at his lips.
"…Looks like they're done over there."
Veylan followed his gaze.
His expression didn't change much—
But his eyes narrowed slightly.
The air between them grew heavier.
Denser.
Veylan rolled his neck once.
A sharp crack echoed.
"I suppose…"
His voice was calm.
Controlled.
"…we should end this now."
Leon exhaled softly.
"…Yeah."
Then—
He reached up.
And removed the blindfold.
For a brief moment—
Nothing happened.
Then—
Light.
His eyes opened.
Brilliant golden irises shone with an intensity that didn't feel human. They didn't just glow—they commanded. The space around him subtly distorted, as if reality itself bent to acknowledge him.
Below—
The battlefield stilled.
Even those still fighting felt it.
That pressure.
That authority.
Veylan watched.
And for the first time—
He smiled.
"…So that's what you've been hiding."
Dark energy began to gather around him.
Violent.
Precise.
Lightning coiled around his blade, black and dense, tearing through the air with a sound heavier than thunder itself.
The sky dimmed.
Two forces rose.
Opposing.
Equal.
Then—
They both raised their swords.
Leon lifted Victoria high into the sky.
Golden light erupted from the blade, flooding the heavens as the air bent inward, structured, controlled.
Veylan raised his own blade.
Black lightning screamed across the sky, tearing through space as storm clouds twisted violently around him.
For a single moment—
Silence.
Then—
They shouted.
"SWORD FIELD: CELESTIAL LAW!"
"SWORD FIELD: THUNDER ORDINANCE!"
Their voices didn't just echo—
They shook the sky.
The world answered instantly.
Golden constructs spread across the heavens, forming a domain of absolute order, every inch governed under Leon's will.
At the same time, a storm of black lightning devoured the sky, raw power tearing through everything as Veylan's domain expanded violently outward.
Then—
They collided.
For one impossible second—
Everything went silent.
Then—
Impact.
A shockwave exploded outward, ripping through the sky like reality itself had been torn apart. The collision of their Sword Fields didn't clash—it detonated.
Below—
Rio felt it.
Before he could react—
It hit.
His body was thrown back instantly, the pressure crushing into him as if the air itself had turned solid.
"Haa—!"
His breath vanished.
His vision shattered into fragments.
The ground cracked beneath him.
Even at this distance—
It was too much.
His grip on Reina slipped.
His body refused to respond.
"…This… is…"
The sky above him broke apart—gold and black lightning tearing through each other like opposing gods.
Sound vanished.
Thoughts drowned.
And then—
Darkness.
Rio's consciousness faded completely.
Gone.
High above—
Leon and Veylan stood within the collapsing remains of their domains.
Unaffected.
Unmoved.
Their blades met again.