Ashes of Hero
The mountain burned.
Crimson flame washed over the sky.
Phoenix fire swept down the slopes like a divine flood, purging everything in its path.
But it wasn't enough.
From beneath the earth, the Hive pulsed.
---
Skarax lunged forward again.
His body had already begun adapting — Void Chitin shimmered with heat resistance, his claws twisting into curved sickles capable of catching Kael's flaming sword mid-strike.
The clash shook the mountain.
Shockwaves split open the earth.
Sky Crawlers fell like hail.
---
Kael backstepped, flame wings extended behind him.
He wasn't tired.
He was calculating.
The commander was fast.
But the one behind him…
Kael turned his eyes to Seo Hae-jin.
Floating above the battlefield. Calm. Silent.
His insect-hybrid form shimmered with layered mana, Void and Biomass fused into one.
A threat beyond calculation.
---
Kael narrowed his stance.
"Alright, bug king."
"Let's see what bleeds."
He raised both hands.
Fire exploded from his palms, forming a ring of phoenix sigils in the air.
The sigils spun, merged—then detonated.
"Flame Starfall!"
A barrage of living fire dropped from the sky.
Hundreds of miniature suns fell onto the Hive.
The mountain cracked.
Egg chambers ignited.
Chitin towers collapsed.
Half of Nest 3 disintegrated in light.
---
> > [Hive Damage: 32%]
[Egg Loss: 4,911]
[Casualties: 114 Predator Units]
[Emergency Evolution Triggered]
Seo Hae-jin didn't flinch.
He simply whispered:
"Evolve."
---
Beneath the rubble, larvae began twitching violently.
Their forms melted, twisted, reshaped.
Fire-resistant membranes wrapped around their cores.
Flame-hungry glands formed in their jaws.
> > [New Breed: Pyro-Eater Bug]
[Skill: Flame Absorb / Heat Redirect / Detonation Core]
Dozens hatched instantly.
They rose from ash—screeching—and launched themselves straight into Kael's inferno.
---
Kael blinked.
"What—"
The Pyro-Eaters devoured the fire, consumed it like honey, then exploded in chain bursts near Kael's wings.
He shot backward, cloak ablaze.
Before he could recover, Skarax dropped from the smoke, Void Claw extended.
It slashed across Kael's chest—golden blood sprayed across the air.
For the first time…
Kael bled.
---
Inside the Hive, Seo Hae-jin extended one hand.
Mana and biomass surged into his body.
He spoke softly:
"Let's end your legend."
---
Kael landed hard. Knees bent. Eyes glowing.
His voice was calm.
"I see. You're not a monster."
"You're extinction made flesh."
He held his sword high.
The phoenix emblem on his armor ignited—his body flared in radiant light.
Final form: Flame Ascension.
His skin glowed like molten steel.
His heartbeat shook the air.
Even the Hive froze.
---
Skarax leapt again.
But Kael was faster now.
He parried mid-air, blasted Skarax into the canyon wall.
Then, in one blink, he appeared in front of Seo Hae-jin.
He thrust the flaming sword toward the MC's heart.
---
Seo Hae-jin caught it.
With his bare hand.
The sword hissed, melting his flesh—but his gaze never wavered.
He whispered:
"Your fire is bright."
"But it doesn't blind me."
---
He pulled the sword closer.
Then his body erupted in Void Bloom — an explosion of black mana that twisted around Kael like a shell.
> > [Skill Activated: Hive Emperor Form – Partial Mode]
[Void Skin + Phase Rift + Core Drain Initiated]
---
Kael screamed.
His flames began flickering.
Not dimming—being devoured.
His armor cracked.
His wings failed.
His limbs burned in reverse, the flame stolen from his own soul.
---
Skarax stood again, torn, cracked, but alive.
He limped forward and dropped to one knee.
"My Sovereign… shall I finish him?"
Seo Hae-jin looked at the burning wreck that was Kael.
A legend brought to ruin in minutes.
A hero, broken.
Still breathing.
Still aware.
---
"No," Seo Hae-jin said coldly.
"Let him crawl back."
"Let them know what comes."
---
Skarax bowed.
Kael coughed blood, barely managing to portal himself away—broken, burned, and defeated.
---
Back inside the Hive, Seo Hae-jin stood at the Core.
The Symbol on his hand flared bright.
> > [Hero Data Absorbed.]
[New Evolution Paths: Flame Shell, Emberborn Wings, Phoenix Rebirth Core.]
[New Title Gained: Hero-Bane.]
[Hive Fear Rating Increased – Global Detection Risk: Rising Rapidly.]
---
He turned to the Hive.
Thousands of new bugs were hatching.
Stronger. Meaner. Built from fire and void.
And this was only one hero.
One.
---
The universe was full of them.
He would face them all.
And the Hive would grow each time.
---
"We're ready for planets now," he said softly.
The Hive roared.
---