Chapter: On the Brink of Vengeance – The Shadow of Avelon
Deep within the Sky Kingdom, a steep peak rose, hidden behind the veil of time and stars. This place was known as the "Staircase of Silence," a location so feared that even in Heaven, its name was whispered with dread. It was the residence of Avelon, the third of the Apocalyptic Twins. Even the stars themselves hesitated to cast their light here.
Thanks to the "Star Traveler" ability he had inherited from Iskandir, Kael had managed to reach this peak. He walked with heavy steps, as if carrying the weight of the heavens on his shoulders. His sword trembled with the echoes of time, twisted by Samira's manipulation of it. The soul thief had become an instinctual power within him—a mere glance or touch would draw in, consume, and strengthen every weak soul around him. But now... Now, he faced a planner. Not the master of the weak, but the master of fear...
At the summit, a stone throne awaited. From the shadows emerged a silhouette: Avelon. Cloaked in pure black, the wind whispered around him, as if narrating nightmares of the future. His eyes were closed, yet Kael could feel his gaze. A tremor rose within Kael's body—this enemy was fighting not just with power, but with intellect as well.
"The screams of your family still echo in my ears, Kael," Avelon said, his voice like a nightmare torn from a dream. "This was the plan. Your destruction meant my freedom."
Kael's heart felt like it could no longer contain itself in that moment. His pupils widened. "Why?" he asked, his voice not trembling, but like a silent volcano. "I had no quarrel with you..."
Avelon smiled. "There's a saying in the kingdom: 'The greatest danger hides behind the things you love most.' Your rise was meant to be my fall. I saw it. Even when you were just a child, you were a threat to me. Not just because of your cursed blood, but the bond between you and the Princess... the King's eye upon you... No, Kael. You had to be stopped. If you had risen, everything would have been destroyed. Your family... they were just chains binding you."
These words shattered the chains in Kael's mind. In that moment, the soul thief rose within him and blazed like fire. But Kael held his composure. This was a reckoning that needed to be dealt with not in anger, but in wisdom.
The battle began.
Avelon's tactics were clever. The battlefield constantly shifted. At times, Kael found himself in his childhood cabin, other times surrounded by the corpses of his family in a field. Each vision struck at his mind, bending his heart. But Kael had also inherited the power of the Mental Twin. He had learned to distinguish between reality and illusion.
At one point, Kael called upon the energy of the stars. The sky cracked with Iskandir's legacy, and the starlight shattered Avelon's illusions. In that instant, Avelon stood before him, stripped of his illusions.
"Your last words?" Kael asked.
Avelon lowered his head, for the first time showing true fear on his face. "I wanted to stop you... but you have come to destroy not just yourself, but destiny itself."
Kael raised his sword. "And you, are just the beginning."
The slash cut through the silence. Avelon's body fell to the ground, but before his soul could retreat, a spark passed to Kael: "Mind Armor." This was a power that would allow him to sense enemy plans in advance and break through illusions.
Kael stood before the throne. The battle was over, but the rage within him only grew.
He had killed the murderer of his family, but peace was still far out of reach.
Two Apocalyptic Twins remained: Vennette – The Dawn of Purification and... the nameless unknown being.