Scene: Frost and Fury
General Zoke's plea hung in the frozen air: "We seek peace!"
Nero's hood shifted, voice like shattering ice. "Peace built on children's graves? Your hypocrisy chokes me."
Arata lunged, lightning blade shattering against Nero's barrier. "Hiding behind shields, coward!"
Kenta froze—those piercing blue eyes...
"No time for fools," Nero murmured. "Summon: Calamity of Frost."
The sky ripped open.
A three-headed serpent of glacial rage descended, each maw dripping entropy. Soldiers screamed—"SSS-Rank! Battle of Infinity legends—!"
As Arata and Kenta pursued Nero, Zoke's body fractured into swirling void-energy. "I'll handle this abomination."
Scene: Whispers of the Past
Nero halted mid-flight, letting the generals catch up. Their attacks were sparks against a hurricane—he flowed through strikes like wind, then blurred.
THUD! THUD!
Arata and Kenta cratered the earth. Nero's hand blazed with cosmic fire—the same blue flame that killed Nero Almik two years prior.
Arata gasped. "Who are you? Are you... his kin?"
Nero leaned close, voice a venomous whisper only Arata heard:
"Your name echoes in my nightmares, General. We'll settle our score... soon."
Then—vanished.
Scene: Void's Embrace
Zoke stood panting, void-energy receding. Three frost serpent heads lay scattered—already regenerating. Kenta stared. "You replicated its death?"
Zoke wiped void-blood from his cheek. "It clones itself. That man didn't summon a monster... he unleashed an ecosystem of annihilation."
Scene: Throne of Lies
In Aryavarta's gold-veined throne room, the king's fist shook. "Nero Almik lives? Impossible!"
Arata's smile turned serpentine. "Then let's flush out his beloved sister. She'll crawl from the shadows... to save her friends."
Scene: The Reunion
Nero sensed Takeshi's flame first—a beacon in the forest. Sayuri's blade was at his throat before he spoke.
"Long time, Sayuri-san."
Her strike passed through air. When the hood fell, Sayuri stumbled. "Ghosts don't breathe...!"
"BIG BROTHER!"
Miku cannonballed into Nero's arms. He spun her, laughing—until her tiny finger tapped his left horn. "New fashion?"
"Demons are trendy," Nero winked. "Want one?"
"YES! Sparkly please!"
Scene: Takeshi's Oath
The flame spirit materialized, bowing deeply. "Lord Nero. Miku is unharmed."
Nero nodded. "Your service honors me." He turned—and pulled Eri from his own shadow, her alchemical body shimmering like starlight.
Miku gasped. "Ooh! Big-sis is pretty! Is she your wife?"
Nero flushed crimson. "Miku! No adult thoughts before coffee—"
Eri lifted Miku, who immediately poked her chest. "So squishy!"
THWACK! Eri smacked Nero's head. "Control your sister's hands!"
Scene: Dungeon of Deceit
Nero's smile died. "Where are the idiots?"
Sayuri paled. "Keisuke and Yoshito sought Alesta's Blessing in the Sunless Crypt..."
Nero's mind blurred—cross-referencing every scrap of intel. "Alesta vanished a year ago. It's a trap—Aryavarta knows they're my weakness!"
He seized Eri's hand. "That alchemical body can handle 5% of my power—don't exceed it."
To Darky's shadow: "Prep the Void-Shrike. We fly in sixty!"
Scene: False Altar
Keisuke's hand snapped out—yanking Yoshito backward as a claw of pure shadow shredded the space where they'd knelt.
Above the empty altar hovered Calignar—a being of living void, eyes like dying stars.
"Clever little human," it rasped, pointing at Keisuke. "But not clever enough."
Yoshito's sword flared. "Where's Alesta?!"
Calignar's laugh echoed like collapsing galaxies.
"Goddess? Sacrifice? Same thing."