Chapter 149: Vildras Ascends

The storm above Kyoto twisted into an unnatural spiral. Lightning that wasn't lightning lanced across the sky—threads of antimemory, coded to unravel not just matter but remembrance. It was the herald of Vildras.

Rei stood on the rooftop of the Flame Academy, the ten spirits rotating silently behind him like planets awaiting revolution. Their flames didn't flicker—they watched.

From the void above, it descended.

Vildras did not take form as the others had. It unmade form. A crack in existence that moved like a memory being forgotten in real time. Where it stepped, language faltered. Names erased themselves. Even time bent away.

Mireille gasped. "My records… they're blanking out!"

Noira stood before Rei. "You sure about this?"

He nodded.

"I've walked through sorrow, silence, arrogance, and void. If Vildras thinks I'll forget who I am now, it's already lost."

---

The Unmaking War

The battle began not with a strike, but with a null. Vildras extended an anti-field, where all resonance ceased. Rei's ten flames sputtered—but did not die. One by one, they adapted.

Kuralis extended structure through antimatter. Thrael countered erasure with remembrance. Nyssara devoured the void to feed Rei's core.

And then Rei struck. Not with flame, but identity.

A blow composed of every memory Vildras sought to erase. A scream of every spirit he had saved.

Vildras reeled—but it didn't scream. It echoed.

And that echo hurt.

---

System Threshold Breach

> [Sovereign Overdrive Activated] [All Flame Resonance Channels Fully Synced] [New Protocol Unlocked: Singularity Baptism]

Rei's hands were alight, but the light did not blind. It clarified. He stepped into the anti-field—willingly.

Vildras lunged.

And Rei embraced him.

The act stunned everyone. Mireille whispered, "What is he—"

But Eirenne understood.

"He's rewriting Vildras' code… with compassion."

Inside the embrace, Rei spoke.

"You were made to erase. But every being longs to be something."

Vildras convulsed. And the impossible happened. It began to remember.

Its screams became sobs. Its erasure became longing.

Then:

> [Integration Request Accepted: Vildras — Flame of Irreversible Ruin. Classification Changed: Remnant-Seeker. Slot 10 Secured. System Integrity Stabilized at 100%. Sovereign Tier Achieved.]

---

The Sky Restored

The storm cleared. Kyoto exhaled. The world tilted back into harmony.

Rei stood, flames dimmed to a gentle orbit. All ten spirits rested inside him—not as weapons, but as companions.

Mireille approached. "You did it."

Rei smiled faintly. "No. We did."

Noira crossed her arms. "So… what now? You've got all ten. You're technically a god."

Eirenne chuckled. "Gods break things. Rei fixes them."

A portal shimmered into view.

The system chimed:

> [New Realm Detected: Sovereign Council] [Invitation Issued — Kazenari Rei: The Complete Flame]

Rei turned to his team.

"Let's see what they want. And maybe… what they fear."