The world itself seemed to tremble.
Golden light and black flames clashed high above the Sanctuary.
The explosion painted the sky in two colors.
Gold…
And darkness.
BOOOOOOM!!
The shockwave ripped through the mountains surrounding the Sanctuary.
Ancient statues cracked.
Massive pillars collapsed.
Chunks of stone rained onto the glowing football pitch.
McCall shielded his face with his arm.
“What…
is this power?”
Arthur stood before the three Legacy Candidates.
His golden aura burned brighter than the sun.
“This…”
“…is only a fraction of what the Kings once possessed.”
Victor floated above the battlefield.
His cloak fluttered behind him.
He looked almost disappointed.
“So this is all that’s left of the Eleven?”
The Dragon General laughed.
“I expected more.”
The Tiger General cracked his knuckles.
“Should I destroy the Sanctuary now?”
Victor slowly raised one hand.
“No.”
He looked toward McCall.
“The Heart is still inside him.”
“If we destroy the Sanctuary…”
“We may damage the Legacy.”
The Seven Generals immediately stopped.
Every order from Victor was absolute.
Arthur turned toward McCall, Ethan and Kai.
His voice became firm.
“Listen carefully.”
“You cannot defeat them.”
McCall clenched his fists.
“Then what do we do?”
“You survive.”
Kai frowned.
“Running won’t solve anything.”
Arthur looked directly into Kai’s eyes.
“It will.”
“Because today isn’t your battle.”
“It’s ours.”
The Eleven Kings stepped forward together.
Each spirit released a different color of energy.
Silver.
Blue.
Crimson.
Emerald.
Golden.
The football beneath Arthur’s feet floated into the air.
He gently kicked it.
The pass traveled to Leo.
Leo smiled.
“My turn.”
He flicked the ball without looking.
Another King trapped it.
Then another.
Then another.
McCall watched in disbelief.
“They’re…”
“They’re passing.”
Rowan nodded proudly.
“The Kings never fight alone.”
The football moved faster.
Every pass increased its speed.
Its glow became brighter.
Soon…
It looked like a tiny golden star racing across the field.
“Kings’ Combination!”
The Eleven completed one final pass.
Arthur volleyed the football into the sky.
BOOOOOOM!!
A gigantic lion made of golden light erupted from the ball.
It roared so loudly that the mountains shook.
Even Victor’s smile faded.
“So…”
“You can still use that technique.”
The Dragon General charged first.
His black football burned with dark lightning.
“I’ll destroy it!”
He kicked.
Arthur answered immediately.
The golden lion swallowed the attack whole.
Dark lightning disappeared.
The Dragon General’s eyes widened.
“Impossible!”
Arthur smiled.
“Light born from trust…”
“…cannot be consumed by darkness born from fear.”
Meanwhile…
Rowan grabbed McCall’s shoulder.
“We have to move.”
McCall looked shocked.
“What about them?”
“They know what they’re doing.”
“But if you stay…”
“…everything they’ve protected will be lost.”
Ethan nodded.
“He’s right.”
Kai reluctantly agreed.
“Tch.”
“I hate retreating.”
The three boys sprinted toward the northern exit of the Sanctuary.
Behind them…
The battle became even more violent.
Entire sections of the ancient stadium collapsed.
Golden explosions lit up the sky.
McCall couldn’t stop looking back.
Arthur noticed.
He smiled.
“Don’t worry about us.”
“Become strong enough…”
“…that next time…”
“…you can stand beside us.”
Those words burned themselves into McCall’s heart.
As the boys reached the giant stone gates…
The System suddenly flashed.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Emergency Mission
Protect Fellow Legacy Candidates.
Escort Ethan Hartman and Kai Volkov to safety.
Failure Condition:
Death of any Legacy Candidate.
Reward:
+5 Leadership
Hidden Reward:
???
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
McCall nodded.
“I won’t let anyone die.”
Outside the Sanctuary…
The mountain path twisted through thick forests.
For several minutes…
Nobody spoke.
Finally Ethan broke the silence.
“So…” Find the original chapter at g.com.
Kai glanced sideways.
“What?”
“You fight pretty well.”
Kai smirked.
“You too.”
McCall laughed.
“I can’t believe you two are complimenting each other.”
Kai shrugged.
“If someone earns my respect…”
“I say it.”
Ethan smiled.
“Fair enough.”
For the first time…
The tension eased.
The three boys were beginning to trust one another.
Then—
WHOOSH!!
A black spear shot from the trees.
Kai reacted instantly.
He kicked a nearby football.
BANG!!
The spear shattered.
A slow clap echoed through the forest.
“Excellent.”
A woman stepped out from the shadows.
She wore a sleek black cloak.
A silver fox mask covered half of her face.
Unlike the Seven Generals…
She looked young.
Perhaps only nineteen.
Her long white hair swayed in the breeze.
She smiled playfully.
“So these are the famous successors.”
Victor’s voice echoed from a communication crystal hanging at her waist.
“Capture the Heart.”
She bowed slightly.
“With pleasure.”
Kai immediately stepped forward.
“I’ll handle her.”
The woman laughed.
“You?”
She disappeared.
McCall’s eyes widened.
“So fast!”
A second later…
Kai flew backward through three trees.
CRAAASH!!
Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.
Ethan’s expression hardened.
“She’s stronger than the Generals we fought.”
“No.”
The woman corrected him.
“They’re commanders.”
“I’m…”
She removed her fox mask.
A beautiful young face appeared beneath it.
Golden eyes.
A calm smile.
“My name is Selena.”
“The Eighth General.”
“And unlike the others…”
She looked directly at McCall.
“I’ve been waiting years to meet the boy carrying the Heart.”
The three Legacy Candidates instinctively formed a triangle.
Back-to-back.
Three future Kings.
Against a single enemy.
Selena smiled.
“Perfect.”
“Now…”
“Let’s see whether the future of football…”
“…can survive its first true hunt.”