Ethan froze for a heartbeat—

Just one.

Then his fingers flew across the interface, summoning a full system scan. Data cascaded down the screen in a blur of numbers and schematics.

"Kormaldor's ships… they're all light-class models."

His brow furrowed.

"Thin armor, limited weapons… but there are too many of them."

Kaelira's face had gone pale. "If they all attack at once…"

Sol'Rakka would be wiped off the map.

But Ethan remained unnervingly calm.

He reached forward and nudged the control lever.

BOOM—!!!

The Sky Fortress roared to life like a beast roused from slumber.

Its central weapon core began to rotate, runes flaring so bright they seared the air.

THOOM!!!

A massive energy sphere launched from the main cannon, trailing a tail of blinding light as it arced through the sky—

CRASH!!!

Two of the smaller Sky Fortresses didn't even have time to dodge. The blast swallowed them whole, tearing them apart midair, their remains disintegrating into ash and sparks.

Kaelira stared, stunned. "That was… the weapon you just activated?"

Ethan's lips curled into a faint smile. "Not bad, right?"

But before he could fire again—

A shrill alarm blared from the console.

—[Main Cannon Cooling: 10 Minutes Remaining]

Ethan blinked. "Ten minutes?!"

Kaelira's face drained of color. "Ten minutes… Sol'Rakka won't survive that long!"

Ethan exhaled softly, but didn't panic.

He issued a command to pull the Sky Fortress back, out of direct fire range.

At the same time, he activated all secondary weapons—missile pods, beam turrets, kinetic cannons—unleashing a barrage to suppress the enemy from afar.

Kaelira, meanwhile, had already given her final order.

"All forces—prepare for the last stand!"

She drew a deep breath, though her fingers trembled.

This was the hardest decision she'd ever made as queen.

But just as doubt began to claw at her—

Ethan's hand settled gently on her shoulder.

And in that moment, it was like something anchored her.

"Your Majesty," Ethan said, his voice steady as stone, "there's something I haven't told you."

Kaelira turned, startled. "What…?"

Ethan's gaze remained fixed on the distant swarm of Kormaldor warships. His voice was calm, resolute.

"I am the Lord of Emerald Castle."

Kaelira's eyes widened. Her breath caught.

"You… you're—"

"I didn't tell you before because I didn't want to cause confusion," Ethan said, lifting his hand and pointing toward the desert horizon. "But now, there's no reason to hide."

He raised his arm higher, as if issuing a silent command.

And then—

The desert trembled.

"ROOOAAARRR!!!"

"CHARGE!!!"

From beneath the sands, from behind the cliffs, from the cracks of dry ravines, they came.

The armies of Emerald Castle.

Exploding from the earth like a long-buried storm, they surged forward—armor gleaming, banners snapping in the wind, warbeasts thundering beneath their riders.

A legion of shadows, waiting only for his signal.

Kaelira stood frozen, eyes wide with disbelief. "You… you had an army hidden this whole time?"

Ethan didn't look at her. His voice was calm, almost offhand. "I never let my allies fight alone."

Then, with a single command, he raised his voice.

"All units—charge!"

"ROOOAAARRR!!"

"For the Lord!!"

"CHARGE!!"

The Sky Fortress trembled under the thunder of war cries.

Two armies collided—one from the sky, one from the sand—crashing together in a storm of steel and fury.

The clash of metal, the roar of energy blasts, the screams of warriors locked in combat—it all fused into a single, deafening symphony.

The battlefield lit up in a blaze of fire and blood.

Kormaldor's light-class Sky Fortresses began raining down energy bombs. Each impact tore craters into the earth, sending bodies flying.

Sol'Rakka's warriors were blasted off their feet.

Emerald Castle's soldiers fought tooth and nail, blood soaking their armor.

Kaelira watched, her face draining of color.

"They're… too strong…"

Her voice was barely a whisper.

But Ethan had already turned back to the console. The system display blinked with the main cannon's cooldown timer:

—[8 minutes 31 seconds]

He clenched his fist.

"Hold the line."

His gaze swept across the battlefield, unwavering, carved from pure resolve.

"Just eight more minutes… and I'll erase every last one of them."

The battle raged on, a storm of fire and steel.

And for the first time, Ethan's expression hardened into something grim and razor-sharp.

The screams, the clash of blades, the thunder of explosions—it all surged around him.

He stared up at the swarm of enemy Sky Fortresses blotting out the sky, his brow furrowed deep.

If this kept up, the cost would be unbearable.

Emerald Castle and Sol'Rakka would bleed dry.

He needed another way in.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something—tucked into a corner of the control room, half-hidden behind a bulkhead.

A small, pristine console. Sleek. Out of place.

It didn't match the rest of the Sky Fortress's architecture. It looked newer. Modular. Like it had been added later.

Ethan's instincts flared.

He opened a system scan.

Data poured in.

—[Remote Fleet Link Control Detected]

—[Available Access: 12 nearby light-class Sky Fortresses]

—[Risk Level: High]

—[Authorization Required: Rune Band Frequency Match]

Ethan's eyes lit up.

A remote hijack console.

He didn't hesitate.

Gripping the twin control levers, he muttered, "Let's see what you can do…"

He pulled.

VMMM!

In the distance, two of the enemy Sky Fortresses suddenly froze midair. Their thrusters cut out, leaving them hovering like dead weight, as if someone had yanked the plug on their power cores.

Kaelira saw it happen and nearly dropped her weapon.

"You—what did you just do?!"

Ethan didn't answer. His focus was locked on the console, fingers flying as he fed in the system's projected override commands.

Moments later, the two hijacked Sky Fortresses began to stir.

Weapon systems unlocked.

Energy cannons rotated.

Mechanical arms reactivated.

But they weren't aiming at Sol'Rakka.

And they weren't targeting Emerald Castle.

They turned—

On the Kormaldor army.

BOOM!!!

Twin beams of searing light tore across the battlefield, carving through the sand like twin dragons made of fire.

Kormaldor soldiers dropped by the dozens, vaporized before they could even scream.

...