Kevin was in an unstable stage. He didn’t know what exactly Emma had done to him, but he had connected with that presence once again, the same entity that had helped him back then when they were ambushed.

The one who had saved his life. The one who had given him a sudden surge of strength and made him realize just how far he was from his true potential.

That power had returned to him, not from sheer desperation to survive. This time, someone had triggered it, forcing him to awaken that dormant side.

"What...am I..." Kevin asked himself. Looking down at his arms, burning with golden flames, he tilted his head.

He wasn’t burning. Instead, he felt awakened, as if every wound he had suffered, every crushing strike from the light spear, had turned into fuel, pumping strength into his muscles and bones.

He felt more alive than ever.

"Are you done mesmerizing yourself?" A voice reached his ears. Unpleasant.

Kevin looked up and raised his sword, pointing it at the creature. "Did I promise you something earlier?"

Zagreus tilted his head. "Oh, yes. You said you were going to see me dead today."

Kevin nodded slowly, his blade lowering once again.

From behind the golden flames, his face finally emerged, his eyes cold, his expression devoid of emotion.

He took one step forward.

"Then..." Another step, before he asked, "...why are you still breathing?"

Zagreus instantly shot several black tentacles toward him.

The moment they touched Kevin, they disintegrated into cinders.

Zagreus grinned and braced himself.

Kevin didn’t hesitate. He wasn’t looking for feints or distractions. He stepped in and brought his blade down.

"Khuk!" Zagreus groaned as he barely dodged, yet the aether released from the strike still tore through his flesh and muscles. Blood splattered, but he recovered quickly. He wasn’t going to fall so easily.

"Dark Arts: Full Moon!"

Sliding across the ground, he slammed his palms against the surface. Intricate lines spread across the hall, encircling Kevin.

Kevin seemed unfazed as he took another step forward.

Emma, however, felt the change immediately. Her breath turned shallow, her vision slightly blurred. The overwhelming pressure she felt wasn’t from a being, but from the spell itself.

"The nyx in the air is rising..." Emma realized staying here would cost her dearly, so she tried to get up and move.

"Ah!" Suddenly, dark tendrils burst from the ground, coiling around her legs and wrists.

"Not so fast, missy," Zagreus mocked, making her realize his attention had never left her.

But Zagreus wasn’t allowed to enjoy the scowl on Emma’s face for long, as the behemoth charged at him once again.

The amplification of Nyx in the hall didn’t affect Kevin, whose body was overloaded with aether, but it did strengthen Zagreus’ defense.

CLANG

The impact rang out as Zagreus parried the strike aimed at his chest and immediately launched his claws at Kevin.

This time, his hand didn’t burn. But the attack meant nothing when Kevin’s aether was operating at such an extreme level.

"It’s futile for you to even think of standing in my presence. Kneel, and I will offer you an honorable death," Kevin said, stepping back and resting his sword on his shoulder.

Zagreus chuckled. "You’ve let that power go to your head."

He slammed his palms together. In response, the ground split open, and a massive jaw tore its way out from beneath.

Emma flinched at the sight of the giant beast about to chew Kevin into pieces.

Before it could snap shut, Kevin swung his sword twice. The creature was reduced to cinders in an instant.

Zagreus snickered. "Wrong move, bud."

As he spoke, the remains of the beast twisted and deformed, turning into something far more grotesque, like living tar.

It surged forward and began wrapping around Kevin at an alarming speed.

Kevin snarled and crossed his arms over his body. His swords dissolved back into him.

The black substance started to wither and peel against his skin. It looked as though it would strip him down completely, burning through flesh and bone.

Then—

"ABYSS EYE!" Zagreus roared, veins bulging along his neck and around his darkened eyes.

Kevin froze.

Something shifted in the air.

Emma’s breath caught in her throat as she saw it.

A massive eye opened above Kevin, staring down at him.

From its center, a hand emerged, stretching outward, reaching for him.

"W-What is this..." For the first time in her life, Emma felt such a draining presence. It was as if hope itself was being siphoned away just by its existence.

Neither of the aether users could breathe.

Zagreus was no exception, though not for the same reason.

He had poured nearly all of his energy into that spell, one that required Kevin to remain still for just a few seconds.

And he had succeeded.

Kevin groaned in pain, his body refusing to move from the spot.

His muscles strained, his eyes turning red with rage as he poured all his will and divinity into breaking the restraint.

Zagreus snarled, "Not so fast, hero." He burst into a dash and appeared right in front of Kevin.

"Khuk!" Kevin coughed as something phased through the golden armor and pierced his stomach.

He looked down at the claws buried deep in his gut.

He...failed?

After coming this far...was he really going to fail?

All those students who died, the sacrifices, the courage Emma had shown...was it all for nothing?

Was he just going to accept it and fall here?

"No... I refuse to believe this."

Suddenly, several golden spears burst out from his back, shooting upward and stabbing into the night eye above him.

KHIEEEEEK

A piercing screech tore through the air as the eye recoiled. Black smog spread across it, as if trying to shield the entity.

Kevin began to regain control over his body.

Zagreus tried to move, but Kevin suddenly returned the greeting he had given earlier.

SQUELCH

His hand shot forward, and to Zagreus’s wide-eyed shock, Kevin drove his fist straight into his chest.

"BWAAAH!" Zagreus vomited blood, his eyes turning crimson as his legs trembled.

Kevin snarled, "You really are a heartless bastard."

He had aimed to crush the creature’s heart, but there was nothing there.

Kevin gritted his teeth and, with his other hand, grabbed the monster’s claw lodged inside him.

KREECH

"Aaaaah!" With a final, violent pull, he tore it out. His wound began to heal rapidly as he stared at the dying monster before him.

Zagreus’s face had gone pale as a sheet, his eyes sunken, his skin peeling away. There was no doubt that Kevin’s overflowing aether had destroyed something vital within him.

Kevin narrowed his eyes behind the golden armor, then swatted the creature aside, sending him crashing to the ground like a rag.

He turned toward Emma, who had somehow freed herself, though she looked completely exhausted.

He was about to step toward her when something twisted behind him.

No, it wasn’t a sound his ears caught.

It was his senses.

His instincts gave him only one command.

Run.

°°°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thank you for reading. William would return in action soon, don’t worry. Drop a comment.