Author's Preface
Silence filled the grand chamber before it broke with a short exhale.
A blue-haired young man slowly opened his eyes.
...My heart hurts.
Yet his expression remained calm.
Yuma sat at the edge of his bed, one hand pressing lightly against his chest as if confirming the rhythm of his heartbeat.
His crimson eyes shifted toward the window. A faint golden shimmer glowed within his pupils - power he could never fully conceal.
He was looking far beyond the palace walls.
"...How long do they plan to hide it from me?" he murmured coldly.
His gaze moved to the tightly closed oak door.
"Bell."
"Yes, Your Highness?" came the reply from outside.
"Enter."
Knock. Knock.
A young man with a boyish face stepped inside and bowed deeply.
"Is there something you wish to tell me?" Yuma asked.
Bell hesitated.
"How long were you planning to keep this from me?"
Cold sweat gathered at Bell's temples.
He dared to raise his head.
Calm.
Too calm.
"It has been two days since the attacks began," Yuma continued.
"Th-"
"Report."
Bell inhaled sharply.
"The attacks began Tuesday at four in the morning. Districts Five and Seven were struck first - three Shadows. Five hours later, all districts were attacked simultaneously. Current Shadow count: approximately three hundred."
"Three hundred?"
"It was four hundred initially. But every time the number decreases, a Death God appears and restores it to three hundred."
"A Summoner."
"That is the Captains' conclusion. Eliminating the Summoner would be the fastest solution... but the Shadow count is too large to handle at once."
Yuma closed his eyes.
A soft blue light flickered around him, swirling as his awareness expanded across district after district.
"There are two Rank B Death Gods in each of Districts One through Eleven. Five in the Central District. None below Rank B."
Bell stiffened. His Commander was never wrong.
"You intended to resolve this without informing me?"
"...We did not want you to intervene too soon."
Silence.
Excessive loyalty.
Always their weakness.
"Return to your post."
"In front of this door?"
"To the battlefield."
"But there will be no one guarding you-"
"Do you wish to be punished?"
Bell flinched.
"If I go back now, the Archery Captain will beat me for letting you find out..."
For a brief moment, the air lightened.
But Yuma's gaze did not soften.
"Return."
"...Yes, Commander."
Bell bowed and rushed out.
The door closed.
Yuma touched the ornament at his ear.
"Arfy."
"C-Commander?"
"The situation."
A pause.
"...We're in chaos."
"I will give you five minutes."
"Five minutes?"
"You handle the Death Gods. I will eliminate the Shadows and the Summoner."
"No! You will exhaust yourself-"
"It has already been two days. Reinforcements from other districts are nearing their limits."
Silence.
"...Understood."
"Prepare everyone."
"Yes, Commander."
The connection ended.
Yuma put on his uniform calmly.
Tonight, he would descend.
District Six - First Defensive Line
Five minutes was not long.
Amid burning buildings and streets drowned in black shadows-
"WHY WON'T THEY END?!" Lavis shouted.
His blade flashed, cutting down two Shadows at once.
Another lunged from his blind spot-
Zeb!
An arrow pierced through its forehead before it reached him.
"Focus, Lavis."
Rue stood atop a collapsed structure, positioned higher than the front line. His hands moved steadily, releasing arrows without pause.
Behind him, seventeen elite archers maintained layered firing formation.
Voices filled the communication channel.
"Unit A7 fall back. B4 replace the front line."
"B5 and B3, three-minute recovery. A2 move in."
"Healing team to eastern sector."
The formation shifted swiftly yet cleanly.
Suddenly-
"Unit A3 is trapped in close combat with a Death God!"
"Two Death Gods moving toward A15!"
Lavis clicked his tongue.
"Rue! You heard that?!"
"A15 is north. Move now. I'll clear the path."
Two arrows shot forward, carving open a route.
Lavis dashed.
Shadows split apart beneath his blade.
But before he could reach A15-
"Ugh!"
He turned sharply.
Diana had fallen.
A Shadow's black limb was wrapped around her ankle.
In one swift motion, Lavis severed it.
"Status?"
"Exhausted... minor injury... contamination below threshold."
"P8 en route. Sixty seconds."
Another soldier emerged from smoke.
"A14 reporting! We'll secure this position!"
Lavis nodded.
"Don't die before the Commander arrives."
"Yes, Captain!"
He moved again toward A15.
Then-
The air froze.
Instinct moved faster than thought.
He drove his blade into the ground and vaulted upward.
A massive scythe swept beneath him.
"There are two..."
Clang!
Rue's arrow struck one scythe mid-swing.
"I'll take the right!"
"The left one moves faster."
"Ugh."
Steel collided.
Energy roared.
The second Death God broke through A15's formation.
"Sorry, Captain!" one soldier shouted. "I lost focus!"
"Don't apologize in the middle of a fight!" Lavis snapped.
He twisted midair, kicking away one scythe while blocking the other.
For a second-
He hovered.
"...I'm still nowhere near Little Yuma's level," he muttered.
Soul energy gathered.
A white blade manifested over his sword.
He descended.
TANG!!
The explosion of soul energy obliterated surrounding Shadows.
The first Death God staggered.
In a heartbeat-
Lavis was behind it.
Zeb.
His blade pierced through.
The second attempted to retreat-
Clang!
Rue's arrow pinned its movement.
A15 surrounded it.
Seconds later-
It fell.
Lavis gasped for breath.
His hands were beginning to tremble.
"Damn it... where's the Summoner?" he muttered.
"Don't lose your temper. You look even more foolish when you're angry. And you're too slow."
"Look at my hands! They're shaking already! How fast do you want me to move?!"
"Camelia has cut down twice as many as you."
"...Don't compare me to that battle-crazed woman."
"Heh."
"You just laughed, didn't you?!"
Three Shadows lunged at him at once.
"Where's my support?!"
Arrows fell like a thin rain, clearing his left flank.
"Focus," Rue's voice came again.
He was about to retort-
Tok. Tok. Tok. Tok. Tok.
Five sharp knocks echoed through every communication channel.
All voices stopped.
Even the clash of steel seemed to dim.
"This is the Scout Captain."
Silence across the battlefield.
"The Commander is giving us five minutes."
Hope spread faster than fear.
On the highest tower of the palace-
Yuma looked toward the sky.
On the battlefield-
Lavis smirked.
"Five minutes? We're still alive. That's enough."
"Countdown begins."