Two weeks slipped by in a blur of red and white since the day Solace's banners burned and its bells rang dark.
The palace of Velora rose anew.
Scarlet flags whipped in the wind from its towers, and the once-broken gates now soared forty feet high, carved from a single slab of forged iron veined with streams of molten ruby that never cooled.
Inside, the halls were laid with alternating panels of snowy stone and crimson glass, each step feeling like a walk over frozen fire.
The throne room stretched beneath a vaulted ceiling, illuminated by chandeliers of Ash's phoenix flames that drifted harmless embers to the floor.
Ash stood on the tallest balcony, hands resting on a railing of warm crimson crystal. Behind him stood the five pillars of his new world.
Nia, glowing in a dress of white silk edged with flame.
Vaeloria, her crimson battledress clinging to every dangerous curve.
Thalion, silver hair catching light like moon on steel.
Seris, arms crossed, the crimson general's cloak still carrying the scent of old battlefields.
Ash turned, his gaze gliding over them like a blade choosing its first cut.
"Have you made your decision?" he asked Nia.
The seed he'd planted weeks ago had taken root and bloomed.
He'd let her witness him dismantle an entire kingdom's pride, given her a glimpse of true power, and now she was ready—ready to start forging her own path.
Nia clenched her fist, nodded, and stepped forward to wrap both arms around his. "Yes. You'll be fine without me for a few months, right?" Her smile was a perfect mix of love and wildfire.
Ash brushed his thumb over her cheek.
"Of course, it's not like we won't see each other. The Haven's waiting, and Vaeloria will train you there. Once you hit A-rank, the Greater Chamber will open. You'll get there fast."
His voice softened into a purr. "I'll drop by now and then to give you a personal boost~"
He sealed the promise with a slow, claiming kiss.
Vaeloria huffed with unabashed possessiveness. "Hmph. I'd better get the same boost." She strode forward, claiming his lips for herself, while Nia laughed softly against his shoulder, and Seris fixed her gaze anywhere else, cheeks blazing red.
[Seris Kaelthar's Affection 85%]
Ash ignored the status as he pulled away only to slide one hand down each woman's back to their soft asses and squeezed, shamelessly and absolute.
"Of course. We'll have plenty time for that. Now go. Make sure to have fun~"
The two women vanished in twin spirals of crimson and white flame, leaving only the scent of smoke and roses.
Then in the next moment Ash the loving and lustful incarnate was gone.
What turned to face Thalion and Seris was ambition made flesh.
"Where did they go?" Seris snapped, arms folding tighter. "You didn't forget we have a wager today, did you?"
Truthfully, she was more worried about Vaeloria.
'That thing.... Her power may be needed.' She thought
Ash's grin was all teeth. "No, General, I didn't forget. Us three will be enough."
He looked at Thalion. "Tell me, old pal… how many paths show us bringing home victory?"
Thalion adjusted his glasses, the lenses catching the light. He glanced once at Seris, sighed the sigh of a man who had already seen the ending, and answered.
"All paths, Your Majesty. I see no failures."
Ash's smile widened until it could have cut the sky.
"As expected,. Now let's go meet this so-called kingdom."
---
The coliseum floated above the continent's central plains like a continent itself.
A million cultivators filled the stands, while floating viewing boxes drifted above like storm clouds, each adorned in the colors of a different kingdom.
At the eastern gate, the banner of Thalor snapped in the hot wind, its deep ocean blue bearing a silver kraken wrapped around a shattered crown.
King Thalor stood at the head of his hundred chosen, a towering six-foot-seven of sun-bronzed muscle marked by old scars, his black coral trident slung casually over one shoulder as if weightless.
Sea-green hair, braided with pearl-like beads, framed his face, while golden eyes swept the deserted western gate with a look of lazy disdain.
"Velora," he sneered, voice carrying over the roar of the crowd without effort. "To think such a pathetic Kingdom dares to be late." He laughed, deep and rolling like a storm tide.
Behind him, his champion a woman with a shark-tooth smile and twin storm-swords spat into the sand.
"I wonder who they'll send to die first."
Another warrior, clad in armor that shimmered like oil on water, gave a derisive snort. "Heard their king's been stuck at the same rank for two hundred years. Just a worthless relic now."
Darius lifted a hand, and the hundred fell silent as the grave.
"Let's get this over with," he muttered, golden eyes glinting.
High above, the floating announcement crystals blazed crimson.
WESTERN GATE – VELORA KINGDOM
PARTICIPANTS: 3
A heartbeat of stunned silence.
Then the coliseum erupted into a tidal wave of bloodthirsty laughter that shook the sky itself.
And from the shadows of the western entrance tunnel, three figures stepped into the blinding light.
First Thalion, silver hair whipping like moonlight.
Then Seris, crimson cloak snapping like a war banner.
And finally
King Alaric?!