Inside the imperial palace of Heizen, the vast marble hall felt strangely heavy with tension. A tall figure walked back and forth across the polished floor, his footsteps echoing faintly against the high stone walls. His pace was restless and uneven, and his unease was obvious to anyone watching.

Roosevelt kept his hands clasped behind his back, but his fingers would not stay still. They trembled slightly as he paced across the hall again and again.

"Pleard… what do you think?"

His voice was tight, and there was a strain in it that he could not hide.

"Will they be alright?"

He suddenly stopped walking and turned toward the old man standing beside him. His brows were furrowed, and worry was written clearly on his face.

"I don't care if it fails, but I hope they will be alright."

Pleard looked at him quietly for a moment. A faint smile appeared on his wrinkled face.

Even though Roosevelt was the emperor of an empire, he still carried the heart of an ordinary man. What worried him was not victory or defeat. He was worried about the people involved.

How rare.

How noble.

Pleard slowly opened his mouth as if he was about to reply. However, before he could say a word, his body suddenly stiffened.

His expression changed instantly. The calm in his eyes disappeared, and he abruptly lifted his head to look toward the sky.

"This…"

"Wh—"

RUMBLE!

Before Roosevelt could finish his sentence, the entire world suddenly trembled.

The palace shook violently. The tall pillars vibrated, and dust fell from the ceiling. The grand chandeliers hanging above them swayed dangerously, and their chains rattled loudly.

Roosevelt swallowed the rest of his words. His eyes widened in alarm.

Without hesitation, he rushed outside the palace. His boots struck the stone floor quickly as he moved. Pleard followed right behind him, his expression unusually serious.

When Roosevelt stepped into the open courtyard and looked up, the sight before him made his body go completely still.

What he saw next was something he knew he would never forget for the rest of his life.

BOOM!

The sky above Heizen twisted unnaturally.

It was as if the heavens themselves had become unstable. Far in the distance, heavenly bodies seemed to collide with each other. The stars flickered rapidly as if their light was fading away.

The deep darkness of the night sky was suddenly swallowed by a terrifying crimson glow.

That red light spread across the heavens like a burning ocean. Slowly, it gathered together and formed a huge, hazy figure that towered high above the world.

Then a voice echoed across the sky.

It was deep and powerful, and it reached every corner of the world as if the heavens themselves were speaking.

"Everyone hear me…"

The sound shook the air and pressed heavily on every listener's chest.

"The Bane of Demons… The Slayer of Gods… The Destroyer of Dimensions…"

Inside the massive crimson glow, a pair of burning red eyes slowly appeared.

They stared down at the world like a ruler observing everything beneath him.

"Yes, that's me."

"Kael Veydrin… also known as Leonard… is finally back."

For a moment, there was a strange silence.

Then a wild and terrifying laugh exploded across the sky.

"HAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The sound echoed like thunder rolling across the heavens.

"WHATTT!" Roosevelt and Pleard shouted at the same time.

Both of them stared at the sky in disbelief.

Roosevelt felt his legs suddenly weaken. His body felt cold and heavy.

If he had not seen this with his own eyes, he would have never believed something like this could exist.

"Pleard… just what the hell is going on?"

His voice sounded hoarse.

"Are we hallucinating?"

Pleard slowly shook his head. His face had become pale.

"No."

His voice was low but firm.

"That's a realm breakthrough. It's the peak of Demi-God and beyond. A Demi-God blessed by divinity itself."

Roosevelt stood frozen as he tried to understand those words.

Before he could say anything else, another world-shattering sound erupted.

BOOM!

The heavens trembled violently again.

Then a massive vortex of darkness suddenly appeared in the sky. It twisted and expanded rapidly like a giant black whirlpool.

The vortex swallowed the crimson glow, the towering figure, and even the light of the stars.

Within seconds, the sky turned completely dark.

Everything became silent.

Roosevelt and Pleard continued staring upward, their minds struggling to understand what had just happened.

Then suddenly a sharp tearing sound echoed behind them.

SWOOOSH!

The air behind them distorted.

Space itself split open like a piece of cloth being violently ripped apart.

A dark rift appeared in the middle of the courtyard.

A moment later, several figures fell out of the rift and crashed heavily onto the stone ground.

"Kekeke…"

"Pighh!"

Their bodies hit the courtyard with dull thuds as dust scattered into the air.

"Martina!" Roosevelt shouted immediately.

He rushed forward without hesitation and grabbed his sister.

Martina looked dazed. Her eyes were unfocused, and she seemed completely disoriented.

Roosevelt held her shoulders firmly and shook her.

"Martina… Martina, are you alright?"

For a moment she did not respond.

Her head tilted slightly as if she was still trying to understand where she was.

Roosevelt became even more anxious. He shook her harder.

Suddenly—

BAAM!

"Stop it!" Martina roared.

Her hand moved quickly, and a loud slap landed across Roosevelt's face.

The sharp sound echoed in the courtyard.

Roosevelt froze for a second.

"Uh… sorry…" he muttered awkwardly while rubbing his cheek.

He stepped back slightly, looking a little embarrassed.

Around them, Elliot, Ramos, and Ruth slowly got up from the ground. They brushed dust and small pieces of debris from their clothes.

Their expressions were stiff, and shock was clearly written across their faces.

Ramos suddenly grabbed his own hair with both hands.

"What the fuck!"

His voice exploded loudly in the courtyard.

"What the actual fuck is going on?"

His eyes were wide and red as he looked around wildly.

"How did the kid become Leonard the Great? He doesn't have any sign of greatness, so how did he become so strong?"

"Stupid… stupid… this is unbelievably stupid…"

His voice cracked slightly as he paced back and forth like a madman.

The soldiers standing nearby were in no better condition.

Many of them looked pale and shaken.

"Did you hear that voice?"

"It said Kael Veydrin…"

"Leonard? The Leonard from the legends?"

"That's impossible… he died ages ago…"

Some soldiers slowly dropped to their knees as they stared at the dark sky above.

Their faces were filled with fear.

"Are the gods fighting?"

"Is the world ending?"

"We're going to die… aren't we?"

Fear spread through the courtyard like wildfire.

Roosevelt stood completely still.

His mind was in chaos, and he could not process everything happening around him.

But in the middle of all this confusion and fear, Martina remained quiet.

She slowly raised her hand and grabbed her left arm. Her fingers tightened around it as if she was trying to steady herself.

Her expression was different from everyone else.

It was not a shock.

It was sorrowful.

Unlike the others, she was not thinking about whether he was Kael or Leonard.

Her mind was focused on something else entirely.

Those women.

Those god-level women who had stood beside him in the sky.

The Queen of Flame.

The Queen of Ice Spirit.

They had stood shoulder to shoulder with him while facing gods.

And she…

She was just a weak and pathetic woman who could not even stay conscious during the battle.

She could not even remain standing beside him when he needed support.

Her chest tightened painfully.

A dull ache spread through her heart.

So how?

How was she supposed to compete with them?

How could she even dream of standing beside someone like him?

The thought hollowed her heart.

A quiet unease slowly crept into her mind and refused to leave.

While the others trembled in fear as they looked at the sky, Martina slowly lowered her gaze.

Her fingers dug tightly into the sleeve of her clothes as if she was trying to hold herself together.

'My heart…Why does it hurts so much?'