The mountain hall was magnificent in every sense of the word.
On top of a towering peak that pierced the dark clouds, a massive circular hall rose, built from ancient black stone, as if it were part of the mountain itself.
It had no real walls, only immense rows of colossal pillars that embraced the sky, while cold winds passed between them like whispers of ancient spirits that had witnessed the wars of this world for thousands of years.
And in this hall…
The rulers of the world had gathered.
On the eastern side, the High Priest sat on a white seat decorated with gold, surrounded by an elite of priests and bishops.
Their faces were as rigid as stone, while the sacred banners of humanity rose behind them.
On the western side, the Emperor of Darkness sat upon his black throne, with the four emperors standing behind him in heavy silence.
Their mere presence made the air charged with tension.
As for the northern side…
The seats were empty.
The High Priest looked toward them for a moment, then said coldly:
“The fairies… did not attend.”
The Fire Emperor laughed sarcastically, crossing his arms:
“As usual.
They hide behind their crystal trees until the wars end.”
But the Water Emperor said quietly:
“Or perhaps… they know something we do not.”
The Earth Emperor raised his gaze slightly:
“The fairies have not moved for decades.
Their absence today is not ordinary.”
Silence fell for a moment.
Then the High Priest slowly raised his hand.
“If they do not wish to attend… then we will begin without them.”
No one objected.
And the atmosphere suddenly turned into real weight.
“The Summit Council meeting… begins now.”
One of the high priests stood up, extending his hand toward a massive stone table upon which a map of the world appeared.
He said in a serious voice:
“Weeks ago, an unknown energy was detected in the Eternal Desert.”
Everyone’s eyes moved toward him.
“We sent three exploration teams.”
He paused briefly.
“No one returned.”
Silence fell inside the hall.
Even the wind seemed calmer.
The priest continued:
“After analyzing the remnants of energy at the site of their disappearance… we found traces of something that does not resemble any known creature.”
He slowly raised his head.
“A black dragon.”
The faces stiffened.
“As large as mountains… and eyes that foretell death.”
Whispers immediately rose inside the hall.
But the Fire Emperor struck the arm of his chair violently and said:
“Nonsense!”
The pillars shook with his voice.
“Dragons went extinct thousands of years ago!
These are just myths the Church uses to frighten human children!”
But the High Priest did not even move.
Instead, he smiled coldly and said:
“Then give me an explanation for the disappearance of three complete teams.”
The Fire Emperor fell silent.
Then the Wind Emperor intervened:
“And what do you want from us?
To declare war on a legend?”
The High Priest answered:
“No.”
He looked at everyone with sharp eyes.
“I want something simpler from you.”
He paused for a moment.
“To realize that this being… if it truly returns… will not distinguish between humans and demons.”
His voice lowered further.
“Everyone will die.”
A heavy silence fell over the hall.
But suddenly…
The old man in the gray cloak, who had been standing in the shadows throughout the meeting, moved.
He slowly raised his head, and the candlelight reflected over his aged eyes.
Then he said in a quiet voice… but one that made the air suddenly colder:
“Children thrown into hell…”
Breaths stopped.
“…either die.”
He looked at everyone one by one.
“Or return as monsters.”
Silence fell inside the hall.
Even the Fire Emperor found nothing to mock this time.
As for the High Priest…
He merely watched the old man with narrowed eyes, as if he knew that his words were not merely the ravings of a mad old man.
And finally…
The Emperor of Darkness spoke.
“We will not ally today.”
He raised his eyes toward the High Priest.
“But we will watch.”
The High Priest slowly shook his head.
And that was the closest thing to an agreement between them.
Deep within the Dark Forest…
The trees shook violently, as if a hurricane was passing through them.
But the cause…
Was not the wind.
It was the battle.
A massive body crashed into the ground, shattering the rocks beneath its weight.
Kentro leaped back quickly, while blood flowed from his left shoulder.
He stood panting slightly…
Then he smiled.
Before him stood a massive black creature, about four meters tall, with wings like those of bats, and claws as sharp as swords.
A small dragon.
But it was never weak.
Its red eyes were full of savagery, and its black breath had burned the nearby trees.
Kentro wiped the blood from his mouth and said with an excited smile:
“Finally… an opponent who doesn’t fall from the first strike.”
The dragon roared violently, then opened its mouth.
And in the next moment…
A beam of black fire exploded toward Kentro.
“CRAAAASH!”
Kentro leaped high just before the flames swallowed him, then spun in the air and landed directly on the dragon’s head, delivering a massive kick to its right wing.
“CRACK!”
The sound of breaking bones was clear.
The dragon screamed in rage and swung its massive tail with terrifying speed.
“WHOOOSH!”
Kentro retreated back quickly, but the tip of the tail struck his thigh.
He felt as if the bone in his leg had broken.
He fell to the ground violently, rolling several times among the rocks.
He breathed with difficulty…
Then he began to laugh.
A short, crazy laugh.
“This is it… this is what I was looking for.”
He raised his gaze toward the dragon.
Then he slowly grabbed the black sword.
“Let’s see… what you can do.”
In one moment…
Kentro vanished.
The dragon’s eyes widened immediately.
Kentro appeared directly before it with terrifying speed, and the black sword clashed with the dragon’s claws.
“CRAAAASH!”
Black sparks exploded from the point of impact.
The dragon retreated two steps, but Kentro gave it no chance.
He charged toward it like a storm.
A stab.
A kick.
An elbow strike.
A headbutt.
A sideways leap.
He moved at a speed that even the dragon found difficult to follow.
The dragon screamed in rage and tried to bite him, but Kentro dropped below its jaw, driving his knee into its neck with all his strength.
Then he turned and struck its left eye with his fist.
“CRAAASH!”
The dragon staggered for a moment.
But the beast did not fall.
Instead, it suddenly opened its wings and lunged its massive body toward Kentro.
The two collided with trees and rocks like a black storm.
Kentro coughed blood after crashing into a massive rock, but he stood immediately.
His body was bleeding.
But his eyes…
Were growing more insane.
“Didn’t I say… this is fun?”
The dragon roared violently, then charged again.
But this time…
Kentro vanished completely from before it.
He appeared directly above it.
And raised the black sword with both hands.
Then…
He drove it into the back of the dragon’s neck.
“SHHHH!”
The beast froze for a moment.
Then it erupted with a massive roar that shook the entire forest.
Strange dark energy began to seep from the wound into the sword itself.
Kentro’s eyes widened slightly.
“The sword… is absorbing its energy?”
The dragon began losing control of its body gradually.
It struck the ground violently.
Smashed trees.
Tried to fly.
But its movements became slower.
And weaker.
Kentro stood panting, blood covering his body.
Then he said in a low voice:
“It’s over.”
He raised the sword violently…
And the dragon finally fell.
The ground shook with its fall.
And silence fell.
But…
At that same moment…
A massive black wave erupted from both the dragon’s body and the sword together.
“WHOOOOOM!”
The entire forest shook.
The beasts fled in panic.
And the ground cracked for dozens of meters.
As for Kentro…
His eyes widened in shock.
Was not normal.
In the mountain hall…
Everyone suddenly stopped.
They felt a terrifying weight descend upon their bodies.
As if the air itself had turned into a mountain.
One of the priests immediately fell to his knees.
Breaths choked.
Even the emperors felt difficulty moving.
The Water Emperor said with difficulty:
“What… is this power?”
No one answered.
Then…
The weight suddenly disappeared.
Everyone began panting as if they had emerged from the depths of the sea.
Those present looked at each other in astonishment.
One of the priests whispered:
“Was that… the dragon?”
But before anyone could answer…
“WHOOOOOM!”
The wave returned again.
But this time…
It was more violent.
The stone cracked beneath their feet.
And some seats flew from the force of the pressure.
The Emperor of Darkness suddenly raised his head.
Then he said with dangerous coldness:
“It is not a single wave.”
He looked toward the distant horizon.
“It is coming from a specific location.”
Then he turned directly toward the Wind Emperor.
“You are the fastest.”
A brief silence.
“Go.”
The Wind Emperor immediately bowed.
“As you command, my lord.”
And before he could depart…
The Wind Emperor suddenly spoke:
“And what about our exiled heir?”
The king’s features stiffened immediately.
And the temperature of the hall suddenly dropped.
“Do not speak his name.”
Silence fell inside the hall.
But the Earth Emperor did not take his eyes off the king.
He noticed that slight tremor in his fingers on the armrest of the throne.
And the fleeting gleam in his eyes when the heir’s name was mentioned.
Everything disappeared quickly…
But the Earth Emperor saw it clearly.
He whispered quietly to himself:
“So… you still remember him.”
Then the king returned to his usual coldness, as if nothing had happened.
As for the Wind Emperor…
He simply smiled faintly before departing.
And in an instant…
He disappeared into a storm of wind.
He shot across the sky at immense speed, piercing the clouds like lightning.
But the closer he got…
The more terrifying that energy became.
Then he felt it.
The third wave.
Coming directly toward him.
His eyes widened.
“Damn…!”
“BOOOOOOM!”
The force struck him directly.
He felt as if his body had been crushed beneath a massive mountain.
He lost his balance in the air for a moment, and nearly lost consciousness.
But he raised his head with difficulty…
And looked toward the source of the energy.
Then…
He froze completely.
The Dark Forest was before him.
The sky above it had turned into a turbulent dark vortex.
Beasts fled in panic from every direction.
And in the midst of that chaos…
One person stood atop the corpse of a massive dragon.
His long black hair moved with the wind.
His dark energy exploded from his body like smoke.
And a black sword was gripped in his hand.
As for his crimson eyes…
They were looking directly at the sky.
The Wind Emperor’s eyes widened in genuine shock.
And his mind stopped for a moment.
“…Impossible.”
And only then…
Did the true catastrophe begin.
To be continued…