At Skull Ridge, Pyros and Glacien were locked in combat, driving Stoneveil toward collapse under relentless pressure. This was meant to be their final trial.
Victory was seconds away.
Then six figures tore through the air above them.
"Stop!"
Rowan's voice thundered across the battlefield as he appeared alongside Vexar and the four Dragon Kings.
Pyros froze.
Glacien's eyes widened.
"Father? Uncle… Aunt… How are you all here?"
Aegiron was supposed to be bound to the ocean's great seal. The other Dragon Kings were meant to be imprisoned. None of them should have been able to leave their posts.
Stoneveil, battered and cracking, seized the opportunity and retreated, shrinking back into her humanoid form.
On the outskirts of the field, a young attendant overseeing the trial went pale.
Without a word, he turned and fled, dragging the capture squads with him.
Only one figure remained.
A stout, round-faced man in robes, staring in stunned silence.
Amagiri Rōen.
"What… exactly is going on?"
Rowan stepped forward and gave a concise account of everything that had happened.
By the time he finished, Amagiri Rōen looked as though the ground had vanished beneath his feet.
"This is madness… Absolute madness."
Pyros erupted.
"That bastard nearly wiped out Harbor Pass! If Rowan hadn't intervened, my family would be dead!"
Dark fire leaked from his body as fury boiled over.
Glacien turned to Aegiron.
"Father… what happens now?"
Aegiron spoke heavily.
"The dragon race cannot remain in the open. We'll retreat to the deep eastern seas and seek protection from allies within the Tidebound Covenant."
Until Archsage Solarian emerged from seclusion and rendered judgment, no formal punishment could be enforced.
Vexar still controlled the Radiant Order.
And after what they had done inside the Sanctum, retaliation was inevitable.
Glacien looked toward Pyros.
"Come with us. Bring your parents. Stay hidden for a while."
Pyros shook his head.
"My parents won't leave Harbor Pass. I won't abandon them either."
Amagiri Rōen placed a hand on Pyros's shoulder.
"I'll contact two old friends of mine. They'll confront Vexar directly. He won't dare touch Harbor Pass again."
Nearby, Rowan approached Stoneveil.
"You heard everything. That 'trial' was never about judgment. If you stay, they'll keep sending people until you're dead."
Stoneveil's eyes burned with resentment.
"I've never harmed anyone. I've never left this mountain. And they still tried to turn me into fuel."
Rowan nodded.
"Come with us. There are factions in the eastern seas that accept non-humans openly. You won't be hunted there."
She didn't hesitate.
"I'm coming."
Plans solidified quickly.
Amagiri Rōen departed with Pyros, returning toward Harbor Pass.
Rowan, the Dragon Kings, Vexar, Glacien, and Stoneveil gathered the sea host and moved east.
Pyros and Glacien parted reluctantly, promising to meet again once the storm passed.
Three days later, they reached a chain of luminous islands floating above a silver-blue sea.
Threefold Isle.
Vexar pointed toward the largest island.
"The rulers here are known as the Three Sisters. They're among the strongest figures within the Tidebound Covenant. If they agree to shelter the dragon race, no one will dare touch you."
Rowan studied the distant silhouettes of the islands.
If even half the rumors were true, this was one of the safest places in the world.
Aegiron ordered the sea host to remain submerged offshore while the core group approached the island.
They had barely set foot on shore when a streak of green light descended in front of them.
A small girl in emerald robes appeared, hands behind her back, eyes bright with curiosity.
"Well, well. Look who washed up."
She smiled sweetly at Vexar.
"It's been a while, little leopard."