The air thickened.
A low, guttural rumble rippled through the battlefield, a sound so deep it made the earth itself vibrate. From the gnarled shadows at the forest's edge, something vast and ancient stirred. The dark elves halted their advance, their twisted faces lifting in awe and fear.
A figure emerged — a dragon.
But not like the ethereal one that fought alongside Tsukasa before. This creature was massive, its scales a sickly, obsidian black, edges shimmering like oiled metal. Its eyes glowed with a poisonous, violet light, and every breath it exhaled filled the air with a heavy, choking mist.
Lumi clutched Elara's arm. "Tsukasa…" she whispered, voice cracking.
Tsukasa felt it before he saw it. A pressure in the air, like the weight of a collapsing world. The Drag Blazer in his grip hummed, reacting to the dragon's presence.
"This isn't just some beast," he muttered, taking a step forward. "It's a weapon."
The dark elf leader smirked, his eyes reflecting the hellish glow of the creature. "Behold, mortal. The Shadow Wyrm, born from the remnants of Zorc's soul and forged in the depths of the Black Hollow. You killed our god, so we made a new one."
The creature let out a roar that splintered nearby trees and sent cracks running through the earth. The elves braced themselves, shields raised, but fear was evident in their faces.
Tsukasa drew a card from his belt — a Final Vent card. He hesitated.
Not yet.
He couldn't afford to waste his strongest attack on a gamble. This thing felt… wrong. Like attacking it head-on would only feed it.
"Fall back to the inner perimeter!" the Elven Elder shouted. "Protect the wounded and the young!"
Elara stayed rooted, staring at the beast. "We can't beat that, can we?"
Tsukasa glanced at her, the faintest flicker of a grin tugging at his lips. "Beats me. But I've never been good at running away."
The dark dragon lunged.
Tsukasa moved.
The impact shook the ground, dust and shattered stone erupting around them as Ryuki parried the dragon's claw with the Drag Blazer. Even with his enhanced strength, it was like trying to hold back a landslide. His legs buckled, the force of the blow sending tremors through his bones.
"Damn it!"
He shifted, using the dragon's momentum to roll away, slicing at its forelimb. Sparks burst from the black scales, but the cut was shallow.
The beast was faster than something its size should be. It struck again — a swipe of its tail catching Tsukasa and hurling him into the village barricade. The wood shattered like twigs.
"Tsukasa!" Lumi screamed, darting toward him.
Elara caught her arm. "Wait — it's not over."
From where he lay, Tsukasa coughed, tasting blood. The armor's HUD flickered in his visor, warning icons flashing.
But then he saw it.
The Dragreder, his ethereal dragon partner, still burned brightly in the air above. Wounded, but alive.
They weren't done yet.
He staggered to his feet, wiping blood from his mouth. "Alright, ugly. Round two."
The elves rallied around him, firing enchanted arrows that streaked with light, striking the Shadow Wyrm's flanks. The beast snarled, swiping at them, but it bought Tsukasa the moment he needed.
He grabbed a new card from his deck. Not a Final Vent, but something riskier. An Advent Card pulsing with unfamiliar power — one of the Elves' mages must have imbued it during the battle.
He slid it into the Drag Visor.
"Advent Fusion: Flame Warden."
The Drag Blazer erupted with blazing fire, its edge now glowing like molten metal. The flame wasn't normal — it carried the same ancient energy as the forest's oldest trees, and the dragon above responded, roaring in unison.
Tsukasa gritted his teeth.
One shot.
He charged.
The world narrowed to the space between him and the Shadow Wyrm's throat. The beast lunged to meet him, its violet eyes locked onto his.
And then, Tsukasa leapt — propelled by Dragreder's burning breath. The Drag Blazer met the creature's exposed neck in a searing, blinding slash. The blow cleaved through corrupted scales and sinew, a burst of black mist erupting from the wound.
The Shadow Wyrm shrieked, a sound so terrible it seemed to tear the night sky itself.
Elara, Lumi, and the elves shielded their eyes as the monster's body convulsed — and then crumbled into ash.
For a moment, no one moved.
Only Tsukasa remained standing in the clearing smoke, chest heaving. His armor was scorched, the Drag Blazer's flame guttering out. Dragreder flickered, then faded, spent.
The dark elf leader snarled. "This isn't the end, Human. You'll fall like the rest of your kind."
Tsukasa didn't even hesitate. He hurled the smoldering Drag Blazer like a spear. It struck the dark elf leader clean through the chest, pinning him to a twisted tree.
The elf gasped — and then went still.
Silence.
The Elves lowered their weapons. The forest, for the first time in days, was still.
Tsukasa let out a long breath and slumped to one knee.
Elara was the first to reach him, catching his shoulder.
"You did it," she whispered, tears streaking the soot on her face.
He managed a weary grin. "Told you. Not good at running."
And though the battle was over, all of them felt it — in the cold, uneasy wind that blew through the trees.
Something worse was watching.
Waiting.
The war for this world had only just begun.