"Fufufu... Why are you all running off to?"
Just as the Four House leaders were fleeing, a sudden silken voice echoed like a predator’s lullaby across the wind.
The air twisted as shimmering golden chains burst forth, wrapping around the necks and limbs of the Four House Leaders in an instant. Each link of the chain glowed with divine light, etched with ancient runes that shimmered like judgment incarnate.
Evernight hovered in the sky above them, her eyes glowing with dual-colored light. One side radiated divine brilliance, the other seethed with a demonic flame.
"You will not leave," she whispered coldly. "Not without penance."
The Divine Chains of Judgment constricted further, forcing the leaders of House Ecrox, Woodinson, Vermal, and Brown to their knees. Despite their high cultivation, they struggled like captured animals before a goddess of retribution.
Dominic gritted his teeth. "Break the damn chains!"
Zeref poured his energy into his arms, muscles bulging as he tried to pry the bindings apart, but to no avail. The chains were unmoving, unbreakable.
"These are not ordinary bindings," said the leader of House Vermal, eyes wide with disbelief. "They’re divine. They respond to her will, not ours. And I can also sense terryfying curse in it."
"Yes, If the curse settles in..." muttered the leader of House Brown, his voice low with dread. "Then not even a divine pill will save us."
Evernight narrowed her gaze and unleashed the Eternal Curse.
A swirling miasma of violet-black smoke spiraled down, seeping into the pores of the captured leaders. They howled in pain, falling to the ground with veins darkening and skin tightening unnaturally.
"There is no cure. Not unless I permit it." she said coldly.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, two cowardly figures bolted toward the sea.
Adrian Ecrox and Lucius Vermal ran as fast as their legs would carry them, panic overriding reason. They jumped off the deck of the last remaining ship, hoping the ocean would swallow them before judgment did.
A soft, soothing melody fluttered through the air like a breeze dancing through a spring forest.
Shirley descended in their path, dressed in her heavenly red phoenix robe, her golden hair flowing like silk in moonlight. The zither resting on her lap glowed faintly with ancient spirit energy.
With a gentle brush of her fingers across the strings, the melody changed.
Adrian stumbled in the air. Lucius’s legs gave way beneath him. Both of their eyes glazed over, minds trapped in a world of illusion and enchantment.
"You bullied my darling in the past," Shirley said softly, her eyes locked on theirs with a quiet fury. "You broke his legs. Tried to take what you had no right to. Now... you’ll understand the price of arrogance."
Her melody sank deeper into their minds, locking them in a prison of hallucinations and suppressed will.
On the battlefield, the warriors of the Four Houses watched their leaders collapse. They saw Adrian and Lucius helpless before the Phoenix Enchantress. Even, the other mythical was killed by Igaris.
Seeing all those, their confidence shattered. There was no hope of winning.
At one corner, Igaris calmly stood before the 2 Mythical World Divers. He got himself busy acquiring the enemy’s power.
[ Congratulations! You have acquired a mew ability: Space-Time Domain ]
It was only ability that interested him from the two Mythical powerhouses.
Afterward, Igaris rose above the battlefield, floating calmly in the sky. His dark hair rippled in the afternoon breeze, blue eyes glowing with a brilliance that made even the clouds hesitate. The corpses of war drifted below him, the sea stained with blood, the air thick with silence.
Beneath him, thousands of soldiers knelt in silence. His own army stood tall, proud, unflinching despite their wounds.
The enemy had been defeated. Even the bravest among them dared not lift their gaze.
A single breath escaped Igaris’ lips.
Then his voice boomed like thunder across the city and the shattered sea.
It echoed far and wide, through every alleyway of Stargaze City, through the collapsed decks of ships, through the hearts of warriors on both sides.
"This city no longer belongs to the Four Houses. It no longer belongs to Skadi Empire. It belongs to the people who bled for it. It belongs to those who endured torment, exile, and betrayal."
He opened his arms slowly, eyes blazing with celestial light.
"I am Igaris Vance. I am the son of Iskarth Vance, rightful heir of the Vance bloodline. And I have returned to build a world where justice is not bound by bloodline or wealth, but by will. By strength. By loyalty."
He paused, letting the weight of his words crash into them like waves.
"You came to crush me with 150,000 men. But look around you. Your ships burned. Your leaders are bound. Your pride lies in the sea."
He looked directly at the trembling soldiers of the Four Houses.
"I offer you a choice."
His hand slowly extended.
"Kneel before me not as slaves, but as warriors. Kneel, and earn redemption through battle. Kneel, and become part of a future that will shake this Empire to its core."
Then one soldier lowered his head.
Dozens fell to their knees with faces full of despair, then hope.
Thousands more joined.
One by one, the remainder of the 70,000 who once came to destroy him bowed before the one who could not be broken.
Igaris looked down at them, then toward the horizon.
The Sky has changed its colour.
He clenched his fist and spoke once more.
"This is only the beginning. Today, Stargaze stands. Tomorrow, the Skadi Empire falls."
A roar exploded from his army, so loud it made the ships tremble and the sky shake.
A single name spoken on trembling lips:
"Long Live The Overlord’s Empire!"
"Long Live House Vance!"
From the freedom Alliance, an old man watched Igaris from afar. Beside him stood, Iskarth Vance.
"Is he truly your Son, Iskarth?" the old man’s tone was half disbelief, half astonishment. Everything about the young man felt surreal.
Iskarth snorted with amusement, arms crossed. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮
"Of course he is. Look at him. He carries the blood of Vance, and something far older... He was born to change this world."
The old man exhaled slowly, then glanced sideways at Iskarth. "Then do you still want our alliance?"
"I want you to keep your word," Iskarth said firmly, his voice unwavering. "You promised that if my son accomplished what no other dared, you would follow him. Now is that moment."
The old man’s gaze returned to Igaris. He could feel the shift in fate, like a giant wheel turning in the sky.
"...Very well. The Promise shall be honored." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖
And behind him, over a dozen cloaked warriors of the Freedom Alliance followed suit, one by one lowering themselves to a knee.
"The Freedom Alliance shall serve the Overlord’s Empire."
Seeing this, Iskarth grinned. His 2nd son was becoming someone who will shake the Skadi Empire.
Even he, in his prime, wasn’t able to achieve this much against the empire.
This made him proud, and excited for the future to come.