"What's wrong?" Bagu taunted, his voice dripping into the air like oil. It came from everywhere and nowhere at once.

"Why did you stop? Attack me!!… come on.. show me that hate!!."

Lord Zedd surged forward. Even with the battlefield's sound twisted beyond reason, his hands sliced through the air as he unleashed wave after wave of cutting wind at the massive Dragon.

But the battlefield was utter chaos. I was merely a spectator at this point; this was a battle beyond my level of comprehension. The power was incredible.

One of Zedd's wind blades struck bagu.

Yet the sound of the impact detonated right beside Morgana.

She flinched violently, whipping her sword up to block—

But Nothing was there to begin with.

Her blade met only air.

Bagu chuckled.

His hulking body, which Zedd's attack appeared to have done no damage to, began to blur, shimmer—and vanished completely.

From what I knew, a creature of Bagu's size should not have been able to just disappear, completely.

But before I could even process that, another sound came immediately, giving us no time to rest—

WHAM!!

A massive set of claws tore into reality.

"I've got you now, little mouse," Bagu's voice sneered.

The claws were long enough to smash into Lord Zedd, driving him straight to the ground with a brutal force—a sickening quake strong enough to splat anyone like a tomato. The ground ruptured, blasting dirt skyward and leaving a fresh crater where his body had struck.

Even Morgana froze in disbelief, stunned by how fast everything had played out. Why was Bagu this strong? Was it his constant feeding—the taboo sacrifice of the children? How far had he gone to become this powerful?

Watching Zedd—Lord Zedd—swatted aside like an insect was unthinkable. This was the same man who had an impossible aura about him. Truly, what could possibly kill the likes of Bagu? If not for Lord Zedd's protective wind barrier, the debris from that strike would have killed us for sure.

Bagu's laugh slithered back through the domain.

"Is that all? I decide to take you even a fraction seriously, and you crumble this easily. How pathetic."

Lord Zedd spat out blood. His hair was wild, clothes shredded, skin streaked crimson—but he stood there, a man who clearly only wanted one thing: revenge.

Zuchin reacted instantly. Her massive jaws opened wide, releasing a beam of superheated water that carved a perfect, slicing circle around her—an attack meant to strike anything that dared hide.

From where I stood, I understood Zuchin's plan: if the enemy can't be located, attack every single angle until he's forced out.

But when the steam and debris cleared, Nothing was the end result. Still no sign of that demon, Bagu.

How do we fight what we can't even perceive? I thought to myself. The situation was becoming increasingly hopeless. It was as though Bagu wasn't in this domain at all.

Lord Zedd extended both arms. Air gathered into a cyclone, condensing into a dozen swirling Air Bombs. His expression twisted into cold fury—but he didn't speak. In this place, even his voice was no longer his own.

His intent roared clearly: destroy everything till he comes out

He hurled the air bombs in every direction. Explosions ripped through the terrain, shockwaves battering even the places I thought were safe.

He was only fourth in line to the throne? Yet this was the scale of his power.

If we wanted to leave alive, I had to help… Enough watching. Think of something, Astraga, I said to myself, smacking my face with my hands to bring me back to reality. Morad was still recovering. I couldn't summon and was unable to cast spells, but I had to find a way. Father, Astraya, I will find a way out of this place.

But I was out of mana. My core was damaged. I could barely stand.

Still—we needed a way out.

Zedd launched another barrage of wind blades, shredding the air—

And then it happened.

Two colossal foreclaws erupted from pure emptiness, clamping around Lord Zedd mid-cast. My breath stopped—that ability again!

"I shall crush every bone in your body now! Die, join your grandfather!" Bagu's voice roared.

Bagu's claws began to tighten, crushing him like a vice. Zedd fought desperately, compressing air around his body to push back—but he was losing. Fast.

"No one dies on my watch!" Morgana roared.

In an instant she was there—

Her blade, Wood Steel, arcing in a perfect crescent. A gleam of impossible sharpness.

SHRRK!

Both of Bagu's forelimbs fell, severed cleanly, crashing onto the ground with a sickening thud. Zedd collapsed to his knees, gasping.

As the severed limbs began to regenerate, Bagu spoke, "It appears your sword would be a problem."

"Sooo close," Morgana exhaled, her voice trembling but firm. She immediately clutched her throat. "We can speak again… why? The silence—"

The realization hit everyone at once: we could all speak now.

"Morgana!" Zedd yelled. "Your potion was supposed to counter his hypnosis—what's happening?!"

Zuchin's voice cut through the madness, strained but certain. "It is working. He hasn't used any hypnosis yet. This is just… his pure ability."

"Our only chance is to break free of his domain," Zuchin growled, her wings trembling. "I cannot reach full strength while trapped inside it."

Zedd nodded, jaw set.

"Morgana… let's do it," Zuchin urged.

Morgana's face twisted with fear. "Please, Lady Zuchin, no! I won't allow it! There must be another way." Morgana resisted her friend's wish.

Zuchin's reply was absolute. "If this abomination of a Dragon reaches the outer world, the terror he would bring would be unimaginable, which means I will have failed every oath I ever swore about protecting you, Morgana. Let me do this. You remember, we both carry the burden of our ancestors… I am willing to sacrifice my life—my very will—to stop him."

"Zuchin…" Morgana whispered.

Zuchin replied, "You have always treated me with kindness. Now, let us protect the world as we have promised, Morgana. Whatever happens, I will never forget the time we have shared."

Zuchin… what was she…?

"You think by sacrificing yourself, you can stop me? Nothing you do or sacrifice will ever match my conviction to bring forth a new age. This world needs a new horizon, and that is me." Bagu sneered.

"Shut up! SHUT UP!!!" Morgana barked, her tone weak and heartbroken. She said aloud, "I will always remember you. Thank you, Zuchin."

All I could think of was: What was she planning to sacrifice? What fate awaited her?

Zuchin's eyes flared bright blue.

Morgana raised her sword, the blade glowing as it pointed toward the heavens. Zuchin's body dissolved into raw cerulean energy—

And streaked toward the sword. This was it! The power that would change the whole dynamic. What was I about to witness…?

"Zuchin, your sacrifice shall not be forgotten…" Bagu's voice came, chillingly serene. Out of emptiness, a colossal dragon jaw—spectral, ancient, impossibly vast—materialized and swallowed Zuchin's energy whole.

Bagu's laugh boomed, echoing with insane triumph.

"So this is what convergence feels like! Finally, I can feel the power flowing! The time has begun! I am complete now… I shall transcend into my true form! Your Ikigai is far more nourishing than I expected, Zuchin. As for the children—"

His voice slithered with cold dismissal.

"—I have no need for thier Ikigais anymore."

The stakes surged. Something horrible was unfolding, and we were seconds too late to stop it.

"Thank you, Zuchin. Your foolishness marks the beginning of humanity's end!" thunderous shockwave tore outward as Bagu's true body materialized—visible, towering, no longer hiding.

Had he simply lost interest in toying with us?

Or was he finally free to unleash his full power?

A hundred possibilities raced through my mind

But everything stopped when I saw Morgana.

Her eyes were frozen wide.

Motionless.

What she saw

What had just happened was beyond anything I was ready to understand.

"What have you done to Zuchin, you bastard?" Morgana called out, her voice raw with anger.

Bagu's voice echoed, cold and mocking. "I have devoured her, as simple as that, Bounty Hunter. You have lost your Mana Beast."

An arc of slicing wind, massive in its scope, impacted on Bagu's neck, but still, nothing registered. Lord Zedd appeared beside Morgana, bloody but focused.

"What do we do now?" Zedd asked.

Morgana didn't even reply. Her restraint vanished, replaced by pure, furious speed. She immediately launched herself into a blur of motion, her sword slashing at Bagu.

Morgana moved so quickly.The air around her longsword ignited with pure mana energy, tracing silver shockwaves that pulsed outward with every strike. Bagu, though massive, was forced onto the defensive, tilting his head and using his foreclaws to deflect the barrage of furious, high-speed strikes.

She didn't attempt complex maneuvers; this was sheer, overwhelming offense driven by anger. She targeted the his neck same place she had move earlier, driving her blade forward in a piston-like series of thrusts.

KSHING! KSHING! KSHING!

Each blow, though parried by the Dragon's hardened scales, sent jarring vibrations through Bagu's massive frame. Morgana utilized the sonic distortion against the Dragon, attacking based purely on muscle memory and visual openings, ignoring the deceptive sound cues.

Suddenly, Zedd joined the assault. Instead of casting external wind spells, he focused his white aura inward, turning his hands into weapons. He moved in synchronized counterpoint to Morgana, punching Bagu's legs and side with devastating, force, each hit carrying the power of a compressed air bomb.

The combined assault was relentless, a silent hurricane of blade and fist.

Bagu roared in frustration, a sound that, even twisted by the domain, showed genuine strain.

But morgana was out for blood as she vanished in a burst of dust and reappeared behind him, sword descending hard—

—only for Bagu's image to dissolve again

Then—

WHAM!

A shockwave slammed into both of them from nowhere, hurling both fighters across the fractured battlefield. Even with their combined strength, it was still not enough.

Then, a sound that cut through the silence: a sharp, high-pitched CRACK!

The scenery around the Dragon began to creak, not like wood, but like shattering glass. One by one, geometric pieces of Bagu's domain started to fall away. What was happening? Was this some hypnosis? I thought we were immune! The twisted shadows dissipated, and the deep gloom vanished. The oppressive, false night broke, and the brilliant light of the Sun was visible again.

A familiar, booming voice, loud and clear outside the breaking domain, cut through the returning noise.

"Sorry it took us so long to break through, my lord! Commander Bratan called out to Lord Zedd. Commander?"

But how did he… umm… Before I could finish my confused thought, Bratan answered it: "All thanks to Mr. Vaulgabread!"

Bagu looked stunned. "Impossible!my realm!" His voice, now laced with raw, unadulterated anger, echoed in the real world once more.

"Hold on!" Zedd yelled, anchoring us Lord Zedd seized the fleeting moment of chaos. He instantly teleported, grabbing Morgana and us out there, and we reappeared outside the collapsing domain.

The oppressive reality of Bagu's realm began to completely shatter, peeling away to reveal the true forest.

I felt a strong pat on my head and a quick hug. "Son! Father hugged me so tight. I thought I lost you!"