Chapter 656 The Crown Cracks — The Return of a World With Names

The sky had transformed into a network of cracks. Not from lightning. Not from magic. But because the very structure of the world rejected emptiness.

The world had endured enough erasure.

From all directions, a rumbling echoed, signaling the void that crept in like a shadow of darkness. The ground trembled beneath their feet, as if awakening to the presence of two entities filled with rage and purpose. Each step carried deeper consequences, awakening hidden powers within the layers of a reality that was incredibly fragile.

And in the midst of it all, two figures stood:

Althur, the wielder of Excalibur: Judicium Totalis, stood as the last throne that sought to rewrite everything. The sword in his grasp glowed faintly, signaling the darkness that dared to confront him. His hair billowed as if blown by the wind generated by the impending clash.

Fitran, now calling forth his true sword, Voidlight—the sword of existence that absorbed the world to declare that life is never born from rules. As the weapon emerged, the atmosphere shifted; objects around seemed to vanish for a moment, trapped in the shadows of something greater than just a battle between two champions.

At that moment, the world felt pinched between time. Every second added pressure, making the air hum like a wire stretched to its limit. Outside the fight, unreal creatures could be seen, witnessing the tension with frozen bodies. They felt the rising energy, torn between wanting to flee and witnessing an event that hadn't occurred in thousands of years.

Voidlight — The Blade of Ruptured Reality

Voidlight was not luminous. It did not shine. It devoured. Absorbing air, magic, even doubt, and transforming it into destructive elemental magic—not symbolic, not conceptual. Pure destruction.

As Fitran gripped Voidlight, the sky collapsed behind him, and a line of earth peeled away across the arena.

Outside the arena, the sound of thunder roared as if reflecting the intensity of this battle. The wind swirled, vibrating with the pressure of the released energy. It was as if the entire universe trembled, adjusting to the tension between these great warriors.

"Excalibur tries to rewrite names. But Voidlight…

only wants to know who remains when everything is gone."

Althur struck first.

Excalibur: Judicium Totalis – Sentence of All Roots

One swing of the sword split the island of air in the sky of Stones. All roots beneath it were shattered and erased.

The sharp clang filled the air, while debris from Althur's attack fell to the ground. From afar, people watched with wide eyes, realizing that these two forces could change the face of the world, creating fear and awe in a single breath.

Fitran responded:

Voidlight – Infernal Reversal: Flame of the Forgotten

Voidlight absorbed existence from rocks, from water, from air... and unleashed a wave of red-purple fire that burned not names, but matter. A line of fire sliced through Althur's abdomen.

The flames that erupted carried a brilliant light, creating shadows in the vibrating atmosphere. The red-purple blaze surged like a river, burning everything in its path and signaling that this battle was not merely a duel, but an existential contest between emptiness and existence.

There was no philosophy here.

No poetry.

Only pure slashes that sought to survive.

Outside the battlefield, the air felt tense, as if every breath could summon a storm. The ground trembled beneath the heartbeat of the escalating fight. Witnesses could not look away, trapped in the unavoidable tension, feeling the vibrations of power enveloping everything.

Excalibur erased.

Voidlight destroyed.

Excalibur purified.

Voidlight shattered structures to their foundations.

Each clash produced a sound not of clanging, but of the world's screams.

Smoke and dust swirled in the air, enveloping everything in a fog of fury. Rays of light danced among the shattered remnants of life, while the clashing powers created waves of energy, tearing the sky above them. The optics of reality seemed challenged, and each side struggled to maintain the world they faced.

The series of ancient cities beneath Stones began to collapse.

The sky darkened from the exhaustion of magic.

And the witnesses—Sibylla, Sheena, even the roots—could only watch.

As one structure crumbled, its rumble signaled the end of something that once existed. The fragments of the collapse sounded like a dirge, singing the departure of history beneath the shadows of their power. Behind the battle that made nature anxious, it witnessed the inevitable void, while the world was bound in despair.

Fitran struck the ground. The rumble shook the earth as if nature responded to the unleashed power. Dust and stones flew, creating a chilling atmosphere that enveloped the battlefield. Voidlight absorbed the existence from the Tree of Scars that remained.

Voidlight – Elementum Fractura: Tempest of Shattered Water

A storm of water and earth erupted from the whirlpool of chaos and struck Althur's body from the side, breaking one of his six spiral crowns. Each crown fragment sparkled before falling to the ground, adding a dark tone to the atmosphere of battle. The dark sky seemed to feel the pain, rolling clouds into a deeper shade.

Althur retaliated:

Excalibur – Law Reversal: Inheritance Denial Protocol

This attack did not strike Fitran's body but attempted to erase the memory that Fitran ever held the sword. However, an extraordinary energy enveloped the sword, creating a terrifying aura that disrupted the balance of nature around it. The wind swirled violently, as if influenced by the battle between legacy and pure power.

Yet Fitran chuckled softly. His voice broke the tension in the air, spreading a confidence that was almost contagious.

"Voidlight is not a legacy. It… was born from wounds that no one inherited."

Clash after clash occurred, and above the cracked sky, a line appeared on Excalibur. The rumble from the battle shook the very earth; each attack radiated light that shattered the darkness of the night, as if the sky felt the tension of the fight.

The whispering wind became sharp, as if listening to the uncertainty filling the hearts of the warriors. Worry and hope mingled, igniting the spirits of the spectators around the arena. Each felt the flow of power radiating from this titanic duel.

Althur paused for a moment.

"You make him… doubt."

Fitran bled from his mouth.

Yet he stood tall. In his struggle, he felt the roots of his soul connecting deeper with the earth, as if the power of nature urged him to rise again despite his wounds. His strength and determination radiated, creating a terrifying and majestic aura.

"It's not doubt.

He just sees that the world is no longer still."

And Althur's first crown—cracked.

On the side of the arena, Rinoa raised her hand and touched the path of harmony she had created earlier, beyond the roots.

She sang a single note. The sound was melodious and flowed gently, trying to ease the tension. The energy from the path of harmony swirled around, creating a calming aura, as a sense of peace flowed to touch weary hearts.

Yet, behind the beauty of that atmosphere, a threat still lurked. Every note sung offered hope, but also affirmed the danger that loomed as if the world prepared to follow its rhythm. Like swimming against the current of time that kept moving forward, Rinoa struggled to instill notes of peace that reminded of the good that once was.

Cantus Remissio: Fragmentum Requiem

Not to attack. But to respond to a world that still wanted to speak.

And from the sky, a line of Proto-Speech that had not perished wrote:

"ꦤꦼꦩ ꦲꦸꦤꦺꦴ ꦩꦸꦤ꧀ꦢꦺꦁ —" Nema Uno Mundeng

(One name will remain… even after everything fades.)

Althur and Fitran stood facing each other.

Around them, the tense atmosphere radiated an aura of impending battle. The wind blew fiercely, carrying fragments of dust and remnants of the boiling anger from both. In the distance, the dark sky began to swirl, signaling a wave of magical energy surging between them.

Voidlight ignited in the form of Elemental Form Absolute.

Excalibur trembled, its tip beginning to crack with light.

Both leaped.

And as they soared into the air, the world seemed to halt, as if witnessing this defining moment in disbelief. The tension in the atmosphere was almost palpable, as every living creature held its breath, feeling the fractures of reality around them due to the power being unleashed. Each heartbeat felt heavier, as if wanting to run past the limits to escape the impending battle.

The world could not watch.

The world could only endure.

Vibrations and small explosions shook the ground, rattling the roots of trees and shattering the silence that enveloped. As the battle erupted, flashes of light and energy tore through the night sky, replacing darkness with a terrifying magical glow. Each wave of attack left its mark, marking a once-beautiful place now tainted by a grand conflict.