Chapter 22: Bonds of Frost and the Demon's Gambit
Prologue: The False Hope
Calignar's laughter echoed through the dungeon, a sound like grinding bones. Keisuke's dagger trembled in his grip, blood trickling from a gash on his temple. Yoshito's cursed eye flickered—its dark energy waning.
Calignar (mocking):
"You think your friendship can topple a king? Pathetic."
Yoshito spat. "We don't need friendship. We have rage."
The demon grinned, claws elongating. "Let's see it burn."
Scene 1: The Sovereign's Blade
Nero's roar split the air. "Yoshito—CATCH!"
The sword arced through the collapsing dimension, its blade seething with Darky's malevolent energy. Yoshito snatched it mid-fall, the hilt scorching his palm.
Yoshito (to Calignar):
"You talk too much."
The strike was clean—a flash of obsidian steel. Calignar's arms thudded to the ground, ichor hissing.
Nero (outside the dimensional cage):
Hurry. Hurry.
Scene 2: Primordial Cage
The explosion swelled, a sun compressed into a sphere. Nero's hands bled as he wove the Primordial Cage—a lattice of hellvine energy.
Eri (urgent):
"It's not enough!"
Nero (gritting):
"It has to be."
The blast consumed Calignar, but the cage held—barely. When the smoke cleared, Yoshito and Keisuke lay battered, alive.
Yoshito (groaning):
"Took you… long enough."
Scene 3: The Horned Jester
Darky materialized in a swirl of shadows, leering at Sayuri. "Miss me, ice queen?"
Sayuri (kicking him):
"Like a toothache."
Yoshito stared. "He's… you?"
Nero (deadpan):
"Regrettably."
Keisuke's laughter broke the tension—a rare, raspy sound. "Same idiot. Just hornier."
Scene 4: The Devil's Plaything
Miku skipped into the camp, Verlord trailing like a shadow. The air thickened with dread.
Yoshito (whispering):
"Miku—run."
Miku (cheerful):
"Uncle Verlord saved me! He's nice!"
Verlord's smile didn't reach his hollow eyes. "Your brother owes me a debt, little star."
Nero's hellvine aura ignited. "Touch her, and your son dies screaming."
Epilogue: The King's Shadow
Fernando's Sanctum — Midnight
A raven cawed, its vision shared. The king stroked the Primordial's chains, their hum harmonizing with Nero's rage.
Fernando (softly):
"Soon, Hellvine Sovereign. Soon, you'll kneel."
Author's Note:
Allies and enemies blur as Verlord's gambit unfolds. Nero's power grows—but so does the Primordial's hunger. Next: Throne of Shattered Chains, where debts are paid in blood.
—Where even demons fear the dark.