The wind surrounding the village grew stronger with every passing second, leaving no room for anyone to feel at ease. The sound of swaying grass echoed in Carol’s ears, while visions of her younger self flickered in her mind's eye, playing happily with the other children. Watching these echoes of her childhood, Carol closed her eyes and chose to let them go, letting the visions dissolve into thin air. When she opened them again, her gaze was fixed on Dein in the sky, her expression hardened.

  "It seems you have finally been reborn as a full-fledged Leviathan, Priestess!" Dein exclaimed, offering a wide smile toward her. "Now, are you ready to burn this world apart?"

  Hearing his statement, Carol snorted in annoyance. "Why should I?" she said, her voice dripping with disgust at Dein’s demand. "In the first place, I’m not a full-fledged Leviathan and I would rather not embrace it just yet."

  "Is that so?" Dein extended his palm toward Carol, manifesting countless spikes of Dark Ender as he moved. His eyes radiated a reddish menace, looking down at her as his smile vanished. "Then, what are you exactly?"

  "I’m just 'myself.' Not Leviathan Irene, or even Human Carol. Just 'myself'," Carol responded, her usual nonchalant smile returning to her face.

  Dein chuckled, finding Carol’s explanation utterly absurd. "That’s funny coming from you. Are you trying to say that you are now 'whole'?"

  Carol remained silent, refusing to answer as her smile faded into a look of cold focus.

  "Well, not that it disturbs my plans anyway," Dein made a gesture with his palm, his fingers poised to snap. "If you still want to rebel against your fate, then I have no choice but to kill you," he declared, a maniacal grin spreading across his face. "But of course, I would gladly take your place. You don't mind if I take your power, do you?"

  He snapped his fingers. It was a direct command for the spikes to charge toward Carol all at once.

  Carol let out a heavy sigh. "The way you talk really reminds me of something," she said, extending her hand toward the ruins of the throne room. She called upon her violet sword, and it flew into her palm. She gripped it tightly, drawing the blade behind her like a tail, ready to strike. "A manipulator of lives... ending up as the final villain."

  As the spikes closed in on her position, she manifested dark-green magic circles beneath her boots and stomped down, vanishing instantly. She reappeared a moment later, having already swung her blade behind the incoming spikes. In that slow, suspended moment, she whispered her spell. "Windiria...Horizon."

  As she finished the cast, a barrage of thin, grey wind-blades shattered the spikes into dust.

  "Oh?" Dein’s tone was taunting; he was unimpressed by the display.

  Carol didn’t mind of his taunted tone, only moved forward she could only do. For that, she cast another magic circle beneath her feet to use as a platform. She leaped toward Dein, her sword swung back and ready for the clash. A loud, metallic clang echoed throughout the village as their blades met—a sound that awoke everyone, including Mary, who pushed herself out from beneath the rubble.

  "Is that... Carol?" Mary asked herself, lifting her head as the deafening metallic clangs caught her attention. Although Carol and Dein were mere blurs, clashing in every direction with equal speed, Mary’s heart fluttered with relief; she realized the Carol she once knew and loved had finally returned. However, her focus shifted instantly as she noticed the group. Mira, in particular, was struggling to wake after being hurled into a ruined house, her body wounded by the impact. Mary forced herself to stand, rushing toward them even as her legs buckled from the deep bruises caused by the jagged stone. Despite the pain, she did not stop. She knew that if she didn't act now, she would regret it for the rest of her life.

  As the duel between Carol and Dein intensified, their colliding Dark Ender manifested into giant blades of energy that accidentally surged toward the group.

  Saria, still prone on the ground, watched in horror as the dark waves of energy hurtled toward them. She tried to push herself up, her hands trembling as she forced her muscles to move, but it was in vain. Her body collapsed back into the dirt, her exhaustion overwhelming her as blood trickled from her forehead.

  (Ah... right... the impact from the tree...) Saria thought. She touched the blood on her forehead, watching it coat her fingers. She ground her teeth, an expression of pure frustration crossing her face.

  Seeing the desperation in Saria’s eyes and the blades closing in, Mary summoned her staff. She cast a spell, manifesting wooden trunks beneath her boots to accelerate her speed. She skidded to a halt in front of Saria and spun around, instantly casting a three-layered barrier of reinforced leaves and wood to shield the group.

  "Miss... Mary..?" Mira mumbled. She caught a glimpse of Mary’s silhouette protecting them as she struggled to open her eyes. Saria looked on in shock, watching Mary stand as their lone defender.

  "Stay still. You don't want to make your wounds worse, do you?" Mary stated. She held her ground, gripping her staff with white-knuckled intensity even as dark mud began to drip from her mouth—a sign of the strain on her body.

  The energy blades struck the barrier and the surrounding ruins repeatedly, causing total destruction. The barrier was half-shattered by the time the energy finally faded. Mary released the spell, but the side effects hit her instantly; she nearly lost consciousness, her body tilting toward the earth. Sensing this, Mira forced herself to stand despite the dark mud leaking from her own stomach wound. She caught Mary, supporting her shoulder to keep her upright as the barrier dissolved into thin air.

  "Quite a bold move you made, Miss Mary," Mira stated, clenching her hand over her stomach wound. Her expression hardened as she fought to suppress the agony. "But are you sure about this?"

  "About what? Saving a bunch of people?" Mary stated, her gaze fixed on Carol, who was fighting desperately against Dein as he slowly began to take the advantage. "I already said that I only serve the 'real' Carol, the daughter of Lydia and Lord Erlikh. If her will is to live among humans, then I'll gladly follow her to the end."

  "Even if Lord Erlikh... chose to be a monster?" Mira countered, testing her master’s resolve.

  "...Yeah. Even if it comes to that," Mary replied. Her expression was set with such absolute determination that it caught Mira off guard; it was a side of her master she had never seen before.

  Meanwhile, Dein easily overpowered Carol, shoving her back with his blade grinding against the length of hers. He extended his palm toward her, a direct command for the jagged chains at his back to strike. In response, Carol manifested dark wings and took to the sky, weaving through the air to evade the onslaught. However, the chains pursued her relentlessly. The more she accelerated, the faster they followed. Realizing she was being entrapped as the chains closed in from both sides, Carol ceased her flight. In that moment, she manifested a second dark blade in her free hand, channeling a massive surge of Dark Ender into both weapons. She spun her body in a violent whirlwind, releasing a dozen waves of energy that vaporized the lead chains in a blast of power.

  Dein only snorted in amusement. He commanded the chains to retreat, folding them back into wings. He threw his left arm wide, his hand glowing with a sinister light. As a response, countless stone bricks from the castle ruins began to levitate, drawing gasps of shock from Saria, Mary, and Mira. With a casual swing of his arm, Dein sent the masonry hurtling toward Carol. One after another, the heavy stones rushed her, and Carol met them head-on. She slashed through the debris, her twin swords blurring as she reduced the boulders to dust. As the barrage intensified, Carol manifested magic circles beneath her boots, kicking off them with enough force to accelerate into a straight, lethal path through the storm of stone. Shedding her wings, she funneled that energy into her blades. Closing the distance to Dein, she swung both swords in a synchronized strike—only to be stopped instantly as the chains snared her arms.

  "You really have a long way to go, Priestess," Dein stated. His red eyes radiated malice as he looked down at Carol, who struggled in vain to break the chains' iron grip. "Haven't you follow your heart, I might have taught you how to wield the full strength of the grimoire. But sadly, it seems like it will never happen."

  The chains responded the moment he finished, releasing one of Carol’s arms only to hurl her violently against the massive dark barrier surrounding the village. She coughed up blood from the heavy impact, her body creating a visible crack in the energy wall. Before she could recover, the chains took the opportunity, thrusting forward at high speed to impale her against the barrier.

  "Carol!" Saria roared, her eyes widening in horror at Carol’s vulnerable state.

  The chains jerked Carol away from the barrier, and Dein manifested even more links to impale her from behind. She became a piece of 'gore art' for everyone to see, her blood dripping from the jagged wounds. Her body hung motionless, held aloft like prey caught in a predator’s trap. Her consciousness began to slip away, her grip on her sword hilts loosening. Frustration surged in her heart as she caught a final glimpse of Dein, smiling at her.

  Her eyes closed tight, but then...

  "I know you’re far stronger than this!"

  As a familiar voice, the voice of a child her own age, echoed within her mind, Carol snapped her eyes open. Her gaze was now a piercing red, fueled by absolute determination. She reclaimed her grip on her swords, unleashing a vast explosion of Dark Ender that blinded everyone, including Dein.

  As Dein shielded his eyes with his arm, forced to retract his chains and release Carol, a dark violet scythe came spinning toward him. Dein extended his palm, attempting to arrest its movement with his levitation, but Carol appeared instantly. Her hair had turned completely snowy-white as she gripped the scythe with both hands. Catching Dein in the split second he was still blinded by the light, Carol swung the scythe with crushing force, hurling him down toward the earth.

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  Despite managed to land properly, and allowing his Dark Ender to begin knitting the wounds on his left arm, Dein found that the injuries would not heal completely. (I should have expected that. Her weapon is still a product of the Grimoire, especially with its specific abilities,) he thought. However, Dein did not allow negativity to dwell within him for long. He drew a confident smile across his face and looked toward Carol, who was using magic circles as platforms to stand mid-air, clutching the wounds across her body to keep from bleeding out.

  "You think this wound is enough to stop me, Priestess?" Dein asked loudly, raising his eyebrows in a taunt. Carol offered no response, refusing to play his game.

  "Think again for what you've done, then!" He manifested countless small dark blades beside him, while several gigantic ones roared into existence behind his back. "Don't let this get to your head, Priestess!" Dein exclaimed, extending his palm toward her. On his command, every blade surged forward at once.

  Watching the coordinated assault, Carol morphed her dark scythe into a bow, manifesting an arrow as she prepared to fire. She closed her eyes, reminiscing about a specific speech from a villager in her childhood memories. In her mind’s eye, the figure of an old man appeared behind her, guiding her stance and showing her how to draw the string.

  "Don't forget," the villager stated.

  "Targeting... Concentrating..." Carol and the memory of the villager spoke in unison.

  In response to her focus, countless dark arrows manifested beside her, and several massive spikes appeared behind her.

  "And..." The villager released his hold on Carol’s arm, dissolving into the air as he let her finish the thought. "...Release." She snapped her eyes open and loosed her arrow. Every projectile responded, charging toward their counterparts. The arrows and blades collided, evaporating upon impact. Although some of Carol’s giant spikes were overpowered by Dein’s blades, her own strikes managed to shatter a significant portion of his arsenal.

  One of Carol’s arrows slipped through the chaos. As it drew closer to the ground, it exploded, creating a thick mist. Dein’s sight was interrupted; he scanned the area but could see no sign of Carol. Annoyed as his eyebrows twitching, Dein levitated a giant stone behind him and hurled it into the mist to clear the air. His tactic worked, but Carol was nowhere to be found—until she emerged from a shadow pool directly behind him. Her weapon had already shifted into a broadsword, which she gripped with both hands and rested against her shoulder. Her eyes radiated a reddish menace, her expression hardened and ready. Dein turned his head, but he was too late. She swung swiftly, sent him hurtling high above the village.

  Seeing her opportunity, Carol cast magic circles beneath her boots, accelerating her speed to chase the vulnerable Dein. She gripped her sword tightly, slashing him as she blurred past. She vanished and reappeared repeatedly, striking from his left, then his right, her speed escalating with every passing second. Dein’s body was carved with more and more wounds, some growing deeper, fueling his mounting frustration.

  Carol decided to deliver a fatal blow. She charged one last time, channeling all her Dark Ender into the broadsword. With her gaze fixed on Dein, she raised the blade high, ready to cleave him in two. However, Dein suddenly returned her look with a maniacal smile, filling Carol with a sudden sense of dread that made her hesitate for a fraction of a second.

  In that heartbeat, Dein manifested a gigantic blade from the ground, commanding it to thrust upward. The blade impaled Carol in the stomach, carrying her into the air and slamming her into the dark barrier. The impact shattered a portion of the barrier, hurling Carol outside the perimeter. Dein didn't stop there; he manifested another gargantuan blade above her that seemed to roar into the sky. Everyone in the Qtiryn Territory turned their attention toward the massive weapon, paralyzed by fear. Even Yuno, watching from the infirmary window while tending to the unconscious Grey, felt his nerves fray.

  Carol’s eyes widened in horror at the monstrous blade hanging over her; she felt powerless to stop such a force with her current strength. Even if her Dark Ender was superior, her knowledge of its true depth was still limited. The blade descended, pinning Carol down with absolute force as its monstrous power slammed heavily into the ground.

  (It hurts...) Carol thought. Her gaze was fixed on the scarlet, blood-like sky. Her expression grew gloomy; the pain was too immense to process. The wounds riddling her body, especially the jagged tear in her stomach, bled freely, soaking both the earth and her dress in crimson.

  (Is this... what karma feels like?) Carol tried to extend her left hand toward the massive blade impaling her. (For pushing everyone away... for the sake of my own selfish, destructive goals?) Her strength depleted rapidly, until the sword finally slipped from her numbing grip.

  "Hmm. This wound might take some time to heal. But nonetheless, that attack should teach the Priestess well," Dein said, snapping his fingers. The dark barrier surrounding the village shattered completely. He ascended further into the sky, lifting his hand to manifest a final, deadly spike. "I hope you’ve learned enough!" he exclaimed with a jubilant smile. "That no matter how far you run or how much you reject it... Fate will always find you." He swung his hand downward, commanding the spike to deliver the final blow.

  As Carol watched the spike descend, she felt an emotion she hadn't experienced since the Nariens Field; a pure despair in the face of death. She closed her eyes, ready to accept the fate Dein had demanded for her.

  But within her mind, a voice revolted. (No. It’s still too early to give up. Karma or not, I will pay my debts, but not like this.) Her hand instinctively reached toward the gigantic blade pinning her down. She exhaled a calm, concentrated breath, focusing her Dark Ender. The massive blade responded to her touch, cracks spiderwebbing across its surface. Dein watched from above, his smile faltering into a look of suspicious confusion as his creation began to crumble.

  (Until then... I have to live...) Her other hand grasped the violet sword lying beside her. With a deafening crack, the gigantic blade shattered into a falling snow of Dark Ender. Carol forced herself to her feet despite the agony in her stomach, instinctively swinging her sword to shatter the descending spike into a thousand pieces.

  "...Because that’s what I truly want!" Carol declared. Her emotions surged as she forged a new purpose. She manifested her magic circles and vanished. Reappearing instantly before Dein, she met his longsword in a violent clash. "Wind Agnis!" She channeled the element of wind instead of Dark Ender, her blade striking his with a loud clang that echoed across the ruins.

  Dein couldn't believe his eyes. Carol’s expression was one of absolute determination; she was no longer a puppet of her power, but a master of her heart. Blood dripped from her mouth as she ground her teeth, pushing herself with a strength that wasn't derived from the Leviathan. Her hair shifted back to its natural dark hue, though her eyes remained a piercing, resolute red.

  Dein’s frustration boiled over as he was forced into a defensive struggle. Seizing an opening, Carol swung with a force that broke their clash and hurled Dein toward the edge of the cliff.

  "You will pay for this... all of you... for everything you’ve done!" Visions of the burning village flashed in her mind, and the voice of her younger self echoed as she stood upon the same cliff she had seen in her nightmares.

  She manifested more circles, vanished, and reappeared behind Dein. Without a moment's hesitation, she unleashed her next spell. "Wind Edge!" The strike connected, sending Dein spiraling toward the sky as he coughed up dark mud.

  "Hey, Carol. Why don't you leave this village already?" A memory of a child her age appeared, standing in a field of swaying grass. "You're a prodigy, you know? You can't just let your talent go to waste like that."

  Despite the memories, Carol did not falter. She stomped onto a magic circle with enough force to propel her above Dein.

  Noticing her silhouette above him, Dein lashed out in a fit of rage. "You really love getting on my nerves, don't you... Priestess!" he screamed. He unleashed everything—gigantic blades roared behind him, countless spikes filled the air, and the very ruins of the houses rose around him, all aimed at Carol.

  Carol manifested circles beneath her boots, using them as platforms to charge directly into the storm, showing no fear of his raw power.

  "Heck no! My mom says the outside world is too scary!" her younger self replied in the memory, her voice full of confident disgust. "I'm more than happy to live here! Everyone is so nice to each other!"

  Dein’s blades surged toward Carol, but she used them as stepping stones, leaping from one to the other. As a massive piece of masonry flew at her, she kicked off its surface to accelerate her charge.

  "But what if that scary world... is also what helps us grow as a person?" the child asked, leaving young Carol confused. "I mean, that’s what my mom says! You need the darkness to balance out the light. Just like everyone else has!"

  Annoyed, his silent fury igniting into a blaze, Dein swung his arms wide. His chains gripped the hilts of his remaining giant blades, swinging them toward Carol from both sides. She leaped at the last second, and the two massive weapons collided with each other, shattering into fragments. Carol landed on a piece of floating rubble and lunged forward again, slicing through every obstacle Dein threw her way.

  "How about you, Carol? If you have darkness in your heart, do you feel allured by it? Or do you want to deny it? Or maybe..." the child offered a teasing smile that sent a shock through Carol, gently took Carol's small hand. "...You accept it alongside the light as your way to grow?"

  Feeling the pressure as Carol drew near, Dein channeled every ounce of his Ender into his sword, levitating the remaining debris to stall her. It wasn't enough. She pushed through the wreckage, her eyes locked on him.

  In one final act of desperation, Dein manifested magic circles from his horns and his longsword, unleashing an enormous beam of combined Dark Ender. The devastating energy tore through the battlefield.

  Carol raised her sword above her head, gripping the hilt with both hands. "Destructive Whirlwind!" The blade transformed into an enlarged, grey gale that roared into the sky as she swung it downward to meet the beam.

  The energy was nearly too much to handle. The surrounding trees and grass withered instantly under the pressure. Carol’s body was riddled with fresh wounds from the radiating Ender, the air feeling like a live bomb. Her grip faltered, her hands trembling with instinctive fear. But then, a miracle occurred. A spirit from her memories, the woman Carol loved most, appeared. Lydia hugged her from behind, her spectral hands gently steadying Carol’s trembling ones. Carol’s eyes widened in profound shock.

  "Don't forget, my dear Carol. The moment you step into this world... is the moment you must choose your own path," the memory of her mother whispered. "But if you finally grow... if you decide to follow what is truly in your heart... then that is more than enough for me."

  Carol listened, a small stream of tears escaping her eyes as she fought to hold back her grief.

  "And I’m sorry... for being a bad mother," the memory said, slowly releasing its embrace. "Whatever life you choose in the future... I will always be rooting for you. For that is mother’s only wish..."

  As Lydia’s figure faded into nothingness, Carol let out a final sob, looking at the ground for a fleeting second before lifting her head with renewed focus. Her grip became like iron. With a fierce war cry, she pushed her sword through the destructive beam. No longer able to be repelled, Carol carved through the darkness and delivered a heavy, final slash as she passed behind Dein.

  As the energy dissipated, the curtains finally closed on the battle, and the mastermind faced his consequences.