CHAPTER 144: CHAPTER 144 | MERCY

The man froze for just the faintest flicker of a second, his brows furrowing in confusion at the voice echoing within his mind.

But the hesitation quickly burned away beneath a surge of defiance, his teeth gritting hard enough that his jaw ached.

"You won’t fool me, deceiver!" he barked, his voice raw with anger.

*BANG!

His boots tore against the ground as he lunged forward in a blur, the azure glow of his eidra flaring violently along the length of his greatsword.

The air around the blade hummed, the heat of its energy distorting the space between them, before he swung with all the force he could muster—aimed straight for Jinn’s exposed side.

But Jinn was already moving.

With a sharp snap of his wrist and a sudden twist of his stance,

*CLANG!

Fangeryth met the descending strike in a bone-jarring clash.

The impact was so fierce that sparks burst from the point of contact, and the man’s blade was knocked back, recoiling violently under the sheer force of Jinn’s parry.

Then, before the man could reset his stance, the voice was back—calm, steady, yet carrying the weight of inevitability.

The army is about to hit your forces... your doom awaits. It is your choice to trust me or not.

The words weren’t just heard, they reverberated through the man’s thoughts, each syllable sinking deeper into his mind like an unshakable truth.

Retreat now and save what you can. I shall buy you time.

The echo of it was like the tolling of a great iron bell, impossible to ignore.

And though his hands still gripped his weapon, the man felt an unwelcome seed of doubt take root within him.

This enemy... this "invader"... was offering him a way to spare lives.

For the first time in the fight, his eyes didn’t just burn with rage—

they flickered with uncertainty.

*rumbling! *march!

The engines roared ever louder in the distance, blending with the thunderous rhythm of countless boots pounding against the earth.

The army of the Zerafhon was closing in fast, their presence like a wave about to crash down upon the city’s walls.

There was no more time for weighing options—

only for action.

"EVERYONE, FALL BACK INTO THE CITY—WE MUST EVACUATE THE CITIZENS!" the long-haired man bellowed, his voice slicing through the chaos like a whip.

Panic erupted through the ranks almost instantly.

*Rumbling!

Soldiers broke formation, some tossing aside their weapons in desperation, others clutching them tightly as if afraid to let go, all while their eyes darted wildly toward the looming gates.

"Run! RUN!"

"They’re almost here—move!"

"I have to save my family, get out of the way!"

"READY THE SHIPS, NOW!"

*CLUTTERING!

The way leading to the gates became a flood of bodies, armor clattering against armor, and breathless cries echoing beneath the looming walls.

Above it all, the massive azure eidra gate hummed and crackled with raw power, casting an otherworldly glow as its sigils shifted and pulsed.

With a deep, resonant whir, it parted just enough to allow the frantic soldiers through, swallowing them into the safety of the city beyond while the distant rumble of the approaching enemy grew ever nearer.

The commanding officer—still wearing that conflicted look—gave Jinn one final glance, his expression caught somewhere between suspicion and reluctant trust, before finally turning and sprinting toward the glowing gate alongside the retreating soldiers.

"Oh no you don’t!" Dreilla’s voice cut through the chaos, sharp and full of intent.

She swung her arms forward in a fluid, practiced motion, her energy rifle already charged and humming with power.

The barrel lit up, the coils inside glowing a bright gold as her finger tightened on the trigger.

The rifle barked.

*BANG!

A bolt of condensed eidra screamed out from the chamber, trailing faint arcs of light in its wake as it hurtled toward the officer’s unprotected back.

But before it could find its mark, a blur of crimson intercepted it.

Jinn stepped in without hesitation, his blade flashing upward in a sharp, decisive arc.

The sword’s crimson-imbued eidra swallowed the projectile completely, dispersing it into harmless motes that faded into the air.

"W-What the...?" Dreilla’s voice faltered, shock flashing across her face before it hardened into a glare.

Her hands tightened on the rifle.

"Jinn... you..."

Jinn didn’t answer.

Not a word.

His gaze was fixed ahead, his body shifting as he drew the sword close to his hip, crimson energy already crawling along the edge like sparks before a storm.

Jinn’s gaze sharpened, locking on the line of massive artillery pieces pounding away at the Zerafhon army.

Without a breath wasted, his body moved—

one smooth motion, a surge of crimson energy racing down his blade before he unleashed it in a flurry.

*slash! *slash! *slash! *slash! *slash!

Five eidra waves, each one wide and seething with destructive force, tore from his sword in rapid succession, their trails splitting the air with a deafening roar.

They streaked forward like crimson comets, each wave finding its mark with precision so sharp it looked almost choreographed.

The first impact shook the ground

the second rattled the bones

by the third, the horizon was a wall of fire.

One after another, each cannon erupted in synchronized bursts, metal bending and shattering before being swallowed by raging flames.

In seconds, the constant pounding of artillery went silent—

*creaaaaaaaak...!

replaced only by the groan of twisted steel and the hiss of burning debris.

Around him, only a scattering of enemy soldiers remained, scattered and disoriented who are currently retreating back into the safety of the city walls.

*rumbling.....

Behind Jinn, the ground trembled—not from enemy fire, but from the thunderous march of the Zerafhon army closing in.

*VWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

Over it all, the city’s alarms wailed, a piercing cry that bled into the sky.

He looked upward.

Through the haze of smoke and heat shimmer, he spotted them—hundreds of ships, from nimble crafts to massive freighters, rising in steady lines.

Their hulls glinted against the distant light before vanishing into the upper atmosphere.

Civilian evacuation.

Families crammed aboard, fleeing in hope the void beyond their skies would be safer than the city soon to be under siege.

For a brief moment, he stood still, eyelids lowering as memory pulled him back—to the day his own home fell.

To the moment laughter and safety had been replaced by screams and fire.

To Nevi’s smile, her soft voice as she read aloud stories of far-off adventures to him and the others, back when dreams seemed endless and danger only lived in books.

The weight of it pressed in—

*thud!

until a sudden,

*THUD! *THUD! *THUD!

heavy set of footsteps approached from behind.

He opened his eyes, the present snapping back into focus.

He barely had time to glance over his shoulder before Dreilla’s hand seized his collar, jerking him halfway around.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?"

she shouted, her voice raw with a mix of anger, confusion, and disbelief, her grip unyielding as the echoes of the destroyed cannons still rolled across the battlefield.