The ground trembled as the Veil Warden emerged fully from the depths, a towering figure of twisted bone and corrupted steel. His presence distorted the air itself—colors bled into each other, time lagged, and even Kai's heartbeat faltered as the Warden's masked face turned toward him.
Herin stepped in front of Kai, arms spread wide.
"You'll have to go through me first!" she shouted.
But the Warden only laughed—a hollow, echoing sound like chains dragging on stone.
"The sins are not yours, girl. But you stand beside him. That is enough."
With a swipe of his arm, a shockwave blasted Herin aside, slamming her into the stone wall of the battlefield. She fell, unconscious.
"HERIN!" Kai shouted.
Rage boiled in his chest. The sword in his hand pulsed wildly, sensing his fury. It responded—changing shape. The blade lengthened, edges crackling with red-blue lightning, and an aura of his ancestors shimmered around him.
The Warden stepped forward, summoning chains from the earth, each one marked with the names of the dead. They whipped toward Kai.
"You fight not just for your life," the Warden intoned, "but for your soul."
---
Legacy Ignited
Kai dodged left, then up—his feet tapping off a ruined column. With one spin, he cleaved through three of the chains, sending sparks into the air. The power of the Crimson Veil Sword surged through his veins. He felt the memories of past swordmasters guiding him, whispering in the wind.
"Father… Grandfather… lend me your strength!"
A vision flickered in his mind—his father standing in this very field years ago, defiant until the end. Then another flash—his grandfather forging the sword, his hands bloodied and burning, saying:
"This sword shall not just kill… it shall remember."
Kai gritted his teeth and rushed forward.
---
The Dance of Death
The Veil Warden raised a pillar of skulls from the ground, swinging it like a club. Kai ducked beneath it and struck the Warden's leg. A splash of black mist burst from the wound—but it wasn't blood. It was memory.
Kai blinked.
He saw a vision: the Warden as a man once—a general, loyal to Kai's grandfather, betrayed and sacrificed to seal the Crimson Veil. His pain was eternal.
"You were one of us…" Kai whispered.
"I WAS THE FIRST!" the Warden roared. "And your bloodline left me to rot in the veil!"
The fight grew faster. Each blow shook the ground. Kai's blade met claw, chain, bone, and memory. The battlefield lit up like thunderstorm lightning. The old magic of the veil began to crack.
---
Herin Awakens
Across the rubble, Herin stirred. Blood streaked her face, but her eyes burned with purpose.
She clutched the journal again—flipping to a page her instincts led her to.
"'When the Swordmaster fights alone, he shall fall. But if heart meets heart, the veil will break.'"
She stood up.
She ran.
She leapt—
"Kai!"
Her voice reached him as the Warden raised his claw for the final strike.
Kai turned.
The Warden slammed down.
But Herin's hand touched Kai's shoulder.
And in that moment—the sword glowed white.
Time slowed.
---
Unity of Flame and Memory
A radiant explosion of light burst from the Crimson Veil Sword, repelling the Warden backwards. The runes on the blade shifted, rearranged, and then engraved two names across the hilt:
Kai Hitari. Herin Rai.
The sword had accepted not just Kai, but Herin too.
Together, they charged.
She stood at his back, channeling her will through his strength. He swung with the power of two souls—no longer alone.
Each strike chipped away the Warden's form.
Each step forward shattered chains of the past.
The Warden fell to his knees.
"You… remind me of him…" he muttered.
"Then remember this," Kai said. "We won't make the same mistakes."
And with a final roar, he stabbed the blade through the Warden's chest.
Light surged.
The Warden smiled—finally free—and turned to dust.
---
A Moment of Peace
Silence returned.
The battlefield was still.
Kai dropped to his knees. Herin hugged him from behind, burying her face in his shoulder. For a long time, neither of them spoke.
Only the wind carried their story now.
Finally, Herin whispered, "You never have to carry it alone again."
Kai reached up and placed his hand over hers.
"I know."
---
Far Away… A New Threat Awakens
But elsewhere, deep beyond the Crimson Veil, a black mirror cracked.
A figure emerged—masked in obsidian, eyes glowing green.
"The Warden is dead," it said.
Another figure stepped forward. A woman, cloaked in red mist.
"The sword has awakened… then the true war begins."
The screen faded to darkness.
---
To be continued in Chapter 21…