CHAPTER 415: RIGHT TO ISOLATE....WORK OF ART

[Billion’s PoV]

I looked around until my eyes landed on Leo. He was standing stiff, his face pale like he’d just seen a ghost. I pushed Essence down into my legs, letting it explode outward. The ground cracked under my feet, and in the blink, I crossed the distance between us, air whistling around me as I stopped just a step away.

"Hey, Leo." I reached out and patted his shoulder.

He flinched hard and jumped back, his eyes wide.

"Commander... Commander Billion."

I raised a brow. "What happened to you? Why do you look so shocked?"

Before he could answer, shadows rippled beside me like a living curtain, and Knight stepped out, silent as death. A gust of wind followed, and Silver descended from above with a single beat of his massive wings, his talons shaking the earth as he landed. Lyrate stood tall on his back, her gaze sharp as ever.

Leo’s eyes darted between the three of them then back to me. His lips trembled as he tried to find words.

"I... I’m not sure, Commander. I feel like... I’m in a dream."

"Don’t worry about it," I told him, keeping my tone calm. "Get used to it. Things like this, you’ll hear about them more often from now on. Anyway, can you start cleaning up here? I’ll go help Cassian in the meantime."

Leo gave a stiff nod. I turned, my gaze sliding toward the battlefield where Cassian stood facing the three grandmasters, all of them already staring our way.

Lyrate’s voice broke the silence. "So... should we go and deal with them?"

I shook my head. "No, Lyrate. I need some levels for myself. I’ll be taking them on."

Her expression didn’t change, but she tilted her head slightly. "But you can take the butterfly for yourself."

Silver’s voice rumbled in agreement. "Yeah. I feel like this fight ended too early."

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, you two. You just killed hundreds of them. I’m only asking to fight four."

Lyrate locked her eyes with mine, studying me for a long five seconds before finally giving a small nod.

I bowed my head deeply. "Thank you, my lady, for this graciousness."

Behind me, Knight and Silver both chuckled under their breath.

"You guys stay here, I will be back in a few minutes."

Essence stirred in my body, eager to be unleashed.

My feet left the ground as I lifted into the air. Since my rank up, I could now fly without relying on my wings.

The Essence carried me easily, but I could already feel the difference: this was stable and smooth, but it would never reach the raw speed or force of flight powered by wings. Still, for now, this was enough.

Essence shot out from my legs, blasting me into the sky. It felt strange, flying without wings, just my body cutting through the wind. My chest tightened from the force, my bones shook, but the rush was amazing.

The world below blurred, shrinking fast, and before I could even count to two, I was already closing the gap. Cassian’s figure grew clear in my vision. And then, just like that, I was there, standing beside him in the middle of the fight.

"General Cassian, I hope you didn’t miss me too much."

He turned his head, eyes locking with mine, and for a few seconds he just stared. The silence stretched, and I scratched the back of my head, a little awkward.

"Uhh... General? You still with me?"

Cassian blinked, as if snapping out of a daze. "Yeah, sorry about that. Congratulations on becoming a grandmaster. The empire is lucky to have you in our ranks."

I straightened and gave him a salute. "Thank you, general. It’s my honor."

My gaze slid toward the three abominations nearby. They weren’t attacking, just frozen in place, as if waiting. "Why are they just standing there?"

Cassian glanced at the trembling rodent, then back at me. "Because of you. There’s an aura radiating from you, making it hard for them to move."

I tilted my head. "Ohh." It clicked then, he was talking about the passive halo I carried without even trying.

[Executor’s Halo (Passive)]:

A passive aura of absolute authority. Reality subtly aligns around you, enhancing Essence flow and suppressing disorder. Beings that defy the Original Command instinctively recognize you as an enemy and react with fear or hostility.

’Maybe it increased even more after ranking up,’ I thought.

I smiled and turned toward the floating rodent. Its red eyes glared at me, its thin body twitching in the air.

"Absolute Domain," I whispered. A violet wave spread around me, wrapping the space in my will.

And then, for the first time, I saw it. Inside the haze, runes flickered across my vision—lines, threads, and tiny streams of light weaving in and out of the abomination. They tied it to the world, to Essence, to elements, even to space itself.

"Right to Isolate."

The runes sharpened, glowing as if waiting for my command.

The first thread pulsed, Essence. I reached out with my will and severed it. The rodent shrieked, its body shaking violently. Its connection to the world’s Essence was gone; only the little energy stored inside its body remained.

The next thread shimmered, space. A faint anchor held it in the air, keeping it balanced. I cut it. Instantly, it froze midair, locked in place, unable to move even a claw.

I stepped closer. The abomination’s red eyes darted wildly, trembling as if it understood what was happening.

The runes shifted again, showing me the flow of elements wrapped around it. Fire, shadow, wind, all whispering to its twisted body. I snapped each thread one after another. Sparks of resistance flickered, then died. The rodent screamed, but its voice was ragged, broken.

I took another step. My domain tightened, and I focused on the vibrations running through its throat. Sound itself was another tie, another connection. I sliced it cleanly. Silence crashed down. Its mouth opened wide, but nothing came out.

The creature shook, trapped in stillness, its body locked, its cries stolen.

I stopped in front of it. Slowly, I lifted my hand and pressed a single finger against its head.

Flames erupted. They burst from its body in an instant, feeding on the Essence it had left inside. The fire spread so fast that the abomination didn’t even writhe, it was gone in a breath, burning to smoke under my touch.

The runes faded, leaving the air quiet.

I exhaled softly.