Chương 63: Light That Burns the Night Sky

"Well, my dear comrades…" Luna stepped forward, her smile bright with excitement.

"I should probably inform you that I'm already using my Soul Release." Noah's eyes narrowed. Luna spread her arms.

"I've been in this state my entire life." The air around her began to shimmer. Silver light spilled across the ruined arena as countless stars appeared beneath her feet. They twisted together, forming the outline of two figures standing side by side. Twins. Luna raised one hand toward the sky.

"Heavenly Twins of the Stars…" Her laughter echoed throughout the arena.

"Allow me to reveal the full power of my Regalia." The constellation above her burned brighter.

"Gemini!" Light erupted across the battlefield. One Luna became two. Two became four. Then eight. Within seconds, dozens of identical women surrounded Nameless from every direction. Each wore the same smile. Each carried the same presence. Each looked completely real. Nameless slowly turned, studying them.

"I see." His voice remained quiet.

"So that's how you survived." The Lunas tilted their heads in perfect unison.

"The real you isn't even here." For a moment, the clones fell silent. Then every Luna began clapping.

"Smart, smart!" Their voices overlapped, filling the arena.

"You figured out my trick." Luna's smile sharpened.

"But I have plenty more." Each clone reached into her sleeve. Then every one of them pulled out a stuffed teddy bear. Noah stared. Cyrus adjusted his glasses.

"That cannot be good." One Luna pointed toward Cyrus.

"Alright, Glasses." Cyrus's eye twitched.

"Bind his legs." Then she pointed toward Noah.

"And Dumb Puppy…" Noah frowned.

"Go for the big attack." Noah and Cyrus exchanged a glance. Then nodded. Cyrus slammed one hand against the ground.

"Ability Activate—Niflheim!" Ice spread across the arena. It raced beneath Nameless's feet, coating the sand in frost before erupting into dozens of pale flowers. Their petals opened beautifully, but beneath them, thick frozen roots twisted downward and wrapped around Nameless's legs. The ice hardened instantly. Nameless looked down. Then the Luna clones moved. They leapt into the air from every direction, their laughter echoing above the arena. Each raised a teddy bear. The toys began to glow.

Nameless's hidden gaze lifted. The first bear reached him. It exploded. Fire and smoke swallowed the center of the arena. Then another detonated. And another. Dozens of explosions erupted around Nameless, tearing through the frozen flowers and filling the battlefield with heat, light, and shattered ice. The clones continued diving into the smoke, sacrificing themselves one after another. That was the plan. Cyrus would keep Nameless rooted. Luna would overwhelm his senses.

And while the Sixth Hero was trapped beneath ice and explosions— Noah would deliver the finishing blow. The black spots across his body flared. He felt everything. The fear of the contestants who had fled. The worry spreading through the crowd. The tension in Cyrus. The pain of Luna's clones as they exploded. Even the stomachache Lord Ars had given himself by eating too much fried food. Noah absorbed it all. Every trace of fear. Every fragment of pain. Every drop of resentment.

Darkness poured into him until he shone like a black star beneath the arena lights. Then he forced all of it into the Lion King of Heroes. The Regalia devoured the negative energy greedily. Darkness vanished into the golden blade. In its place, brilliant light erupted. The sword roared. The explosions around Nameless continued, but Noah did not attack. Not yet. Instead, he raised the blade and smiled.

"Hero of Perfection." The crowd quieted.

"The man whose shadow has consumed my entire life…" Nameless lifted his head. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Noah pointed the Lion King of Heroes toward him.

"I challenge you here and now." Luna stared at him.

"Hey!" Her clones turned toward Noah in perfect unison.

"This was supposed to be a surprise attack!" Noah ignored her. The golden light around his sword grew brighter.

"I'm not grand enough to be given a proper heroic title." His voice carried throughout the arena.

"But one day, I'll earn one." Cyrus looked toward him. Lux smiled from the stands. Noah tightened his grip around the sword.

"Let today be my debut." The darkness across his skin continued to shrink as the light around him grew.

"A declaration for everyone watching." He raised his blade toward the sky.

"I am the Eighth Hero." The arena fell silent.

"Noah Fafnir!" His voice thundered through the stands.

"And I want everyone watching to know that this era will not belong to fear!" The Lion King of Heroes roared.

"It will be an era filled with hope!" For a moment, no one moved. Then Nameless laughed quietly beneath his coverings. The ice around his legs cracked. The smoke parted. Conviction burned in his hidden eyes.

"Fine, then." He tightened both hands around his axe.

"Survive my next attack, and I shall forfeit." Noah lowered his stance. Nameless smiled.

"Good luck." The air around the Sixth Hero changed. Every strand of cloth wrapped around him trembled beneath the pressure pouring from his body. He raised the axe.

"I call upon your name…" The sand split beneath his feet.

"The constellation that blessed me." An emerald star ignited above the arena.

"The Linden-Scarred Invincible." The constellation answered. An emerald gem manifested in the air and slammed into the head of Nameless's axe. It pulsed like a heartbeat. Once. Twice. Then crimson veins spread from the gem, crawling across the weapon and wrapping tightly around its blade. The axe began to breathe. The arena walls cracked beneath the pressure. Noah could feel the terror spreading through the crowd. More darkness. More power. More fuel for his blade. Nameless raised the living axe over his shoulder.

Noah pointed the Lion King of Heroes forward. Two Heroes stood across from one another. One defined by perfection. The other still struggling to earn his name. Lux leaned over the railing, her eyes shining with excitement.

"It's still as beautiful as I remember." Her smile widened as she stared at the emerald gem embedded in Nameless's axe.

"I can't help it. He might be my favorite of all the Heroes I've worked with." Noah kept his eyes fixed on his opponent. Lux laughed.

"Whatever that gem touches becomes a Regalia itself." Noah's grip tightened.

"That axe will multiply every imperfection in your attack," Lux continued.

"If your technique isn't flawless…" She grinned.

"You're fucked, young Hero." Noah swallowed. The power radiating from Nameless's weapon made the air tremble.

"Only a complete psycho would take him head-on." Lux rested her chin against her hands, watching with open delight.

"I was right." Her golden eyes moved between them.

"You two are definitely my favorite Heroes." Noah smiled despite the pressure crushing down on him.

"The strongest technique of the Royal Arts…" He slowly lifted the Lion King of Heroes above his head. Golden rings appeared along the blade.

"This attack can only be performed with this Regalia." The rings began to rotate. Light poured from the sword, reflecting between each circle. With every rotation, it was refracted, compressed, and condensed into something brighter. Something greater. Noah's arms trembled beneath the growing power.

"Here is my debut." The light swelled until the entire arena was drowned in gold.

"As I become someone great enough to engulf the night sky." Noah's smile sharpened.

"No holding back." The radiance became all-consuming. Even the people in the distant streets of Lævateinn could see it—a pillar of golden light rising above the arena like a second sun. Across from him, Nameless lowered his stance.

"I am holding back." The rings around his axe darkened.

"But out of respect…" Black energy poured from the emerald-veined weapon.

"I'll give you my strongest attack." The dark rings twisted together, forming the shape of an enormous serpent coiling around the axe. Its body strained against the technique holding it together. Barely contained. Hungry to destroy everything before it.

"Royal Arts—" The serpent opened its jaws.

"Jörmungandr!" Nameless swung. Noah brought his sword down.

"Here it is!" His voice thundered across the arena.

"Everything I've got!" The Lion King roared.

"Royal Arts—Light That Burns the Night Sky!" A colossal pillar of golden light crashed toward Nameless. At the same moment, Jörmungandr tore free from the axe. The black serpent surged upward, a slashing wave of pure destruction colliding with Noah's light. The world vanished. Gold and darkness consumed the arena. The walls shook. Stone shattered. The protective barriers surrounding the stands flickered violently as the crowd screamed.

For several seconds, there was nothing but light, destruction, and the deafening roar of two Heroes refusing to yield. Then silence. Dust covered the arena. No one moved. The spectators stared into the ruined field, waiting. A shadow stood within the smoke. Noah. Blood poured from his mouth. His clothes were torn. The Lion King of Heroes flickered weakly in his hand. But he was standing. His knees shook. His body screamed. Yet he remained on his feet. Across from him, Nameless rested his axe against the ground.

For a long moment, he studied Noah. Then he smiled beneath the cloth.

"I see." He lowered his weapon.

"This era is in good hands." Noah's eyes widened slightly. Nameless turned toward the arena gates.

"I forfeit." The crowd erupted. Nameless walked away without looking back, his enormous axe resting across his shoulder. Noah watched him leave. Then he slowly turned toward the two remaining competitors. Cyrus and Luna.

"So…" He coughed, wiping blood from his mouth.

"I guess it's just you two left." Cyrus studied Noah's trembling body. Then he shrugged.

"I wouldn't look very cool if I beat up a bleeding child." He adjusted his glasses.

"I give up." Noah stared at him.

"Cool…" He gave a weak laugh.

"Stupid ice pun." Cyrus smiled.

"You noticed." Luna clasped her hands behind her back.

"I've gathered enough data to keep me entertained." Her countless clones smiled alongside her.

"So I'll be leaving too." She removed her hat and dropped it onto the sand.

"Bye-bye, Puppy." Luna jumped headfirst into the tiny opening. One by one, her clones followed. Within seconds, every version of her had vanished. The hat collapsed flat against the ground. Noah stood alone in the ruined arena. Lord Ars rose from his reinforced balcony and began clapping, the structure groaning dangerously beneath him.

"The winner of the Group One qualifier…" His voice boomed over the arena.

"Noah Fafnir!" The crowd erupted into cheers. Noah raised the Lion King of Heroes weakly toward the sky. For the first time, the world was not cheering for the legacy of Noah Crest. They were cheering for him. The Eighth Hero. Noah Fafnir.