Greywatch Fortress stood like a scar carved into the mountains.
Once, it had been a symbol of stability—a gate between the northern valleys and the rest of Dicathen. Now, it was barely holding together. The stone walls were cracked, banners torn, and the soldiers stationed there carried the look of men who had been fighting too long without rest.
When Cael arrived, no one noticed at first.
There was no grand entrance.
No explosion of mana.
He simply stepped onto the fortress walls as if he had always been there.
A soldier froze mid-sentence when he saw him.
"…L-Lance…"
The word spread quickly.
Within minutes, the entire atmosphere shifted.
Hope.
Not loud, not triumphant—but fragile, cautious hope.
The commander of Greywatch, a broad-shouldered man with a tired expression, rushed toward him and bowed stiffly.
"Lance Cael, we didn't expect reinforcements so soon—"
"You weren't supposed to," Cael replied calmly.
His gaze moved past the commander, scanning the horizon.
The mountains were too quiet.
No movement.
No visible enemy.
But that meant nothing.
"They're here," Cael said.
The commander stiffened. "Where?"
Cael's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Everywhere."
Silence fell.
The soldiers around them shifted uneasily.
Ambush.
They all understood what that meant.
Cael turned toward the gathered troops.
"Form defensive lines. Reinforce the eastern wall. Keep your mages behind the front line."
The commander blinked. "Shouldn't we—"
"Do it."
There was no aggression in his voice.
No force.
But something in it made hesitation impossible.
Orders were carried out instantly.
Soldiers moved.
Formations shifted.
Mages began gathering mana, their spells trembling slightly from tension.
Cael stepped forward, standing at the very edge of the wall.
The wind brushed against his face.
Carrying with it—
Mana.
Distorted.
Corrupted.
Enhanced.
His eyes glowed faintly.
"They're already moving."
And then—
The world erupted.
The ground beneath the fortress exploded outward as dozens of Alacryan soldiers burst from hidden tunnels.
At the same time, the mountainside lit up with spells raining down from concealed positions.
The ambush had begun.
Screams filled the air.
Spells collided mid-air.
The first wave crashed against the fortress like a tidal wave.
And then—
Cael moved.
No chant.
No buildup.
Just a thought.
The air twisted.
A massive wall of wind formed instantly, deflecting the incoming barrage of spells and scattering them harmlessly across the sky.
The soldiers froze.
They had never seen mana move like that.
Cael stepped forward.
Lightning gathered above him.
Not from incantation.
Not from effort.
But from will.
The sky cracked open.
A storm descended.
Bolts of lightning rained down with terrifying precision, striking the advancing Alacryan forces one after another.
Each strike erased groups of soldiers instantly.
No resistance.
No survival.
Just annihilation.
The battlefield fell into chaos.
"Advance!" the commander shouted, his voice filled with renewed energy.
But it didn't matter.
Because Cael had already stepped off the wall.
He landed in the middle of the battlefield.
Alone.
Hundreds of enemies surrounded him.
For a brief moment—
They hesitated.
Then they charged.
Cael exhaled softly.
"Too slow."
The ground beneath him shattered.
Spikes of earth erupted outward in all directions, impaling dozens of soldiers instantly.
Fire followed.
A sweeping wave that consumed everything in front of him.
Wind compressed.
Exploded.
Bodies were thrown into the air like leaves in a storm.
Lightning struck again.
And again.
And again.
The battlefield became a massacre.
No strategy.
No resistance.
Just overwhelming power.
The soldiers on the fortress walls could only watch in stunned silence.
This wasn't a battle.
This was a Lance.
No—
This was something else entirely.
Cael moved through the battlefield like a force of nature.
Untouchable.
Unstoppable.
Mana bent around him as if afraid to disobey.
Within minutes—
The Alacryan army was gone.
Not defeated.
Erased.
Silence fell over the battlefield.
Smoke rose from the scorched earth.
The air smelled of ash and ozone.
Cael stood alone in the center of it all.
Unharmed.
Untouched.
He closed his eyes briefly.
Then—
A presence appeared.
Subtle.
But unmistakable.
Different from the rest.
Stronger.
Watching.
Cael's eyes opened slowly.
A faint smile formed on his lips.
"So you finally decided to show up."
The wind shifted.
And from the lingering smoke—
A figure stepped forward.
Tall.
Still.
Silent.
Its presence distorted the air around it.
But its face remained hidden.
Cael's smile widened slightly.
"Good."
The battlefield, already destroyed—
Was about to become something far worse