"Kill!"
"Charge!"
"Destroy them!"
"..."
At General An Cheng's command, the Dark Giants surged toward the Giants of Light in the sky.
With darkness shrouding the heavens, the Dark Giants gained a clear advantage. Under this oppressive sky, fighting the Giants of Light became far easier.
Hudra shot upward into the air, firing purple light bolts in rapid succession at the Giants of Light. Their speed far exceeded expectations. In mere moments, several newly transformed Giants of Light were pierced through the chest. Their Colour Timers flashed red before quickly going dark, and their bodies plummeted toward the ground.
Darramb, on the other hand, charged straight into the ranks of the Giants of Light like a rampaging beast. Gripping a crimson energy shield, he slaughtered indiscriminately.
Light particles—blood of the Giants of Light—splashed outward wherever he passed.
Under General An Cheng's command, the Dark Giants engaged in brutal close combat with the Giants of Light, while Hudra directed part of their forces to provide long-range beam support.
"Surround them! Encircle them!"
Yuzare watched as the Dark Giants recklessly plunged into the formation of the Giants of Light and immediately issued her order.
Since the enemy feared no death, they would use their numerical superiority to surround them completely.
At this moment, Yuzare showed no hesitation.
If she softened toward her former companions—the Dark Giants—then the Earth itself would be destroyed in this battle.
"Fire beams! Break their encirclement!"
Outside the ring, Hudra reacted instantly upon seeing the Dark Giants trapped in close combat. He ordered them to unleash their beams to assist their comrades in breaking out.
In unison, the Dark Giants concentrated their beams on a single point in the encirclement, attempting to smash through.
"Barrier!"
Noticing the focused attack, Cain immediately gave the order for the Giants of Light to erect a shield.
A loud hum echoed as a massive barrier formed, supported by several Giants of Light, blocking the front line.
Dark beams slammed directly into the barrier.
For the moment, the attacks were stopped outside, unable to disrupt the encirclement.
Fortunately for the Dark Giants, although Darramb was trapped within the ring, he was both resilient and ferocious, continuing to kill numerous Giants of Light.
Crack!
Suddenly, a golden whip lashed against the barrier. The enormous shield trembled violently, then shattered and dissipated.
At the same time, the Dark Giants' beams successfully struck the Giants of Light. Explosions erupted one after another, and several Giants of Light fell in battle.
"Excellent. The encirclement has been broken."
Hudra nodded in satisfaction, then looked toward the sky, where Cain was firing beams at the Dark Giants within the ring.
Raising his arm, Hudra released a light bolt straight at Cain.
Caught completely off guard, Cain saw the incoming attack but had no time to evade.
"Woof!"
Smack!
The purple light bolt struck Guardie instead.
"Guardie! How could this be?!"
Guardie shielded his master, taking the blow in Cain's place. His body immediately fell straight toward the ground.
Hudra was no ordinary Dark Giant—his combat power far surpassed that of common Dark Giants.
Guardie could not possibly withstand such an attack.
Dispersing the beam in his hands, Cain dove toward the ground.
"Guardie!"
Cradling Guardie in his arms, Cain cried out in anguish.
"Woof..."
Guardie let out a faint whimper. Tears welled in his golden eyes, which slowly closed.
Cain held Guardie tightly, about to cry out in despair—only to realize that Guardie was not dead.
He had entered a state of suspended animation.
"Guardie has entered a self-protection state!"
Cain immediately understood.
Although a small crater had been blasted into Guardie's chest, he had not exploded. Instead, he had concentrated all remaining energy into a single point, maintaining only the most basic life functions.
I must save him!
Holding Guardie, Cain flew straight out of the battlefield.
He could no longer concern himself with the war between the Giants of Light and Darkness. No matter which side suffered casualties, it felt like needles piercing his heart.
"Sister… I'm sorry."
As he flew toward the city, Cain glanced back at Yuzare and spoke silently.
This heart-wrenching burden would have to be borne by his sister alone for now.
If he did not save Guardie, there would never be another chance.
Entering the royal city, Cain went directly to find Keshiva.
"Mr. Keshiva, please. I beg you—save Guardie!"
Lowering his massive head, Cain pleaded in the plaza.
"This is…"
Keshiva examined Guardie and saw black smoke rising from his chest, along with traces of frost erosion.
"He was hit by Hudra's purple light bolt while saving me!" Cain explained urgently.
"Hudra's attack?" Keshiva paused, then said, "Let me think."
The scene of Camearra, Hudra, and Darramb transforming into Dark Giants was still vividly etched in his memory—like a thorn embedded in his heart.
From that transformation, Keshiva had realized that the two originally balanced forces of ice and fire within Camearra had split, merging separately into Hudra and Darramb.
In other words, Hudra's power carried an element of extreme cold.
Back then, that cold had been suppressed by An Meng, the lord of Fuhuo City.
The method of suppression had been shared with Keshiva—and at its core was overwhelming light energy.
"Your Highness, to save Guardie, the cold damage within his body must be completely erased," Keshiva concluded after analysing the situation. "You have already seen the method when it was used on Camearra."
"But the required light energy…"
Keshiva looked up at the pitch-black sky. "It is now blocked by darkness. It cannot enter the Earth."
"Light energy…"
Cain also looked toward the sky; his voice filled with resolve.
"Guardie, I'll take you to find the light!"
With that, Cain held Guardie tightly and rushed straight into the boundless darkness above.
Wrapped in intense radiance, Cain shot upward like a rocket, piercing through the darkness and breaking free of the atmosphere.
"I made it out!"
After succeeding, Cain looked back.
The darkness he had just torn through reformed in less than a second.
"It seems completely breaking this darkness won't be easy…"
With a quiet sigh, Cain turned his gaze toward the vast universe beyond.