Chapter 30: The River of Blood
The second night of war was quiet.
Too quiet.
Thousands of campfires illuminated the Human Army’s encampment, but unlike before, almost nobody spoke.
The battlefield had changed them.
Yesterday many soldiers believed they would return home as heroes.
Now they understood the truth.
This war was far crueler than anything they had imagined.
Rows upon rows of wounded soldiers filled the medical tents.
Some screamed in pain.
Others silently stared at the ceiling.
Many would never fight again.
Commander Aria Valencrest walked through the camp.
Everywhere she looked, soldiers stood and saluted.
Yet she could see the fear hidden in their eyes.
A young soldier suddenly spoke.
"Commander."
Aria stopped.
The boy couldn’t have been older than eighteen.
"Yes?"
The soldier hesitated.
Then finally asked,
"Can we really win?"
Silence followed.
Several nearby soldiers stopped what they were doing and listened.
Aria looked toward the distant battlefield.
The smell of blood still lingered in the wind.
Then she answered.
"I don’t know."
The soldiers froze.
Many expected reassurance.
Many expected comforting words.
Instead-
Aria spoke honestly.
"I don’t know if we’ll win."
The camp became silent.
"But I know this."
She looked directly into the young soldier’s eyes.
"If we stop fighting, humanity loses everything."
The soldier clenched his fists.
Aria continued.
"The moment you doubt yourself, Dominion weakens."
"The moment you lose faith, Dominion weakens."
"The moment you surrender, Dominion dies."
Golden energy slowly appeared around her.
A calm and steady aura.
"So stand."
The soldiers watched silently.
"Fight."
The golden aura expanded.
"And believe."
Many soldiers felt their hearts steady.
Their Dominion responded.
Golden sparks began appearing around them.
Aria smiled slightly.
"That’s enough."
The young soldier nodded firmly.
"Yes, Commander."
Not far away, Roland Ashford sat beside a campfire.
Several soldiers had gathered around him.
Unlike Aria, Roland wasn’t good at speeches.
But he had another way of inspiring people.
A soldier nervously asked,
"Commander Roland."
"What?"
"Are you afraid of Kajkha?"
The nearby soldiers immediately became nervous.
Roland stared at the fire.
Then laughed.
A loud laugh.
The soldiers looked confused.
Roland pointed toward the battlefield.
"Of course he’s strong."
The soldiers listened carefully.
"Good."
"...Good?"
Roland grinned.
"If the enemy isn’t stronger than me, where’s the fun?"
The soldiers blinked.
Then burst into laughter.
Roland stood.
His massive sword rested on his shoulder.
Golden Dominion slowly emerged around him.
"Listen carefully."
His voice became serious.
"We weren’t born to lose."
The air trembled.
"We weren’t born to kneel."
Golden lightning crackled around him.
"We weren’t born to fear monsters."
The nearby soldiers felt their Dominion rise.
Roland smirked.
"So tomorrow..."
He pointed toward the demon camp.
"We kill more demons."
The camp erupted with cheers.
For the first time that night-
Hope returned.
Far away.
Inside the demon encampment.
Thousands of demons sat around rivers of lava.
Unlike the humans, they showed no concern.
No fear.
No hesitation.
At the center of the camp sat Kajkha.
His crimson eyes remained fixed on the distant human camp.
A demon warrior approached.
"General."
Kajkha remained silent.
"The humans continue rebuilding their morale."
The demon expected concern.
Instead-
Kajkha laughed.
"They should."
The warrior lowered his head.
Kajkha slowly stood.
The pressure surrounding him distorted reality.
Nearby space cracked.
"Only weak prey loses hope immediately."
The demon warrior remained silent.
Kajkha looked toward the stars.
"Let them believe."
A cruel smile appeared.
"The brighter the flame..."
Dark Bonimeris erupted around him.
"The more satisfying it is to extinguish."
The next morning.
The third day of war began.
The battlefield quickly erupted into chaos.
Humanity launched the first attack.
Thousands of Dominion users surged forward.
Golden energy illuminated the plains.
Aria led the charge.
Her sword cut through the battlefield like a beam of sunlight.
Demons fell continuously.
The human army advanced rapidly.
For several hours it seemed as though humanity was gaining momentum.
Then-
The eastern flank collapsed.
A massive wave of demons smashed into the formation.
Hundreds of soldiers died instantly.
Panic spread.
"THE EASTERN LINE IS BREAKING!"
"REINFORCEMENTS!"
"WE NEED REINFORCEMENTS!"
Aria immediately turned.
"Damn it."
Without hesitation she rushed toward the eastern battlefield.
Meanwhile Roland was already there.
His greatsword tore through demon ranks.
Yet even he was struggling to contain the overwhelming numbers.
A captain shouted,
"Commander Roland!"
"What?!"
"The line won’t hold!"
Roland looked around.
Thousands of exhausted soldiers.
Hundreds of wounded warriors.
Countless demons.
The situation was worsening.
Then suddenly-
Roland stepped forward.
Golden Dominion exploded around him.
The battlefield froze.
Every soldier looked toward him.
His voice thundered across the plains.
"A lion doesn’t ask how many sheep stand before him."
The soldiers blinked.
Roland raised his sword.
"The sky doesn’t ask permission to storm."
Golden lightning erupted around him.
"The sun doesn’t seek approval to rise."
The human soldiers felt their Dominion surge.
Roland pointed toward the demons.
"So why are you asking whether you can win?"
The battlefield erupted.
Golden auras ignited everywhere.
Morale skyrocketed.
The soldiers charged once more.
The eastern line stabilized.
Moments later Aria arrived.
She watched the renewed offensive.
A faint smile appeared.
"Not bad."
Roland laughed.
"Of course."
Then-
Everything changed.
The sky suddenly darkened.
A terrible pressure descended.
Human soldiers stopped moving.
Demons stopped moving.
Even Aria and Roland became serious.
Because they recognized that pressure.
Kajkha.
The Demon General had entered the battlefield again.
Far away.
At the center of the demon army.
Kajkha slowly began walking forward.
One step.
The ground cracked.
Another step.
Mountains collapsed.
A third step.
The sky shattered.
Countless cracks spread across reality itself.
The battlefield fell silent.
Aria narrowed her eyes.
Roland gripped his sword.
This time-
Kajkha wasn’t observing.
This time-
He had come to fight.
The Demon General raised one hand.
Millions of crimson runes appeared throughout the sky.
Human soldiers stared upward.
Fear spread rapidly.
Kajkha spoke calmly.
"Bonimeris Art."
The heavens trembled.
"Blood Moon Devourer."
A gigantic crimson moon appeared above the battlefield.
Its size dwarfed mountains.
Its presence alone distorted reality.
Several nearby universes instantly collapsed.
The moon slowly began descending.
Human soldiers froze.
The pressure was overwhelming.
Some soldiers even dropped their weapons.
Dominion weakened.
Despair spread.
Then-
A golden light appeared.
Aria stepped forward.
Her sword pointed toward the heavens.
Golden Dominion erupted around her.
The battlefield shook violently.
Millions of golden runes materialized.
"Dominion Art."
Her voice echoed across the world.
"Radiance of the Unyielding King."
A colossal golden sun appeared behind her.
The darkness retreated.
Human soldiers felt warmth return.
Hope returned.
Belief returned.
The golden sun collided with the crimson moon.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
The explosion shattered reality.
Five nearby universes disappeared instantly.
Shockwaves swept across existence.
The battlefield became a storm of golden and crimson energy.
Aria gritted her teeth.
Kajkha smiled.
And for the first time-
The Demon General looked genuinely interested.
"Excellent."
His voice echoed across the battlefield.
"Show me more, Commander."
As the collision between the two powers continued, every soldier on both sides understood one thing.
The war was escalating.
And the true battle between Aria Valencrest and Kajkha had only just begun.