I donned my armor, feeling the familiar weight settle around my shoulders as I left the cave.


    The moment I emerged, Medea''s voice sliced through the silence, sharp and questioning. "Who are you?" Her eyes, usually soposed, were now focused intently on a figure hovering above us, her gaze filled with hostility.


    I followed Medea''s line of sight. The figure before us was no ordinary being. She was something otherworldly, an ethereal presence that radiated power and beauty beyond the realm of mortals. Her long, jet-ck hair cascaded down her back, reaching her waist like a dark waterfall.


    Her eyes, a striking shade of white, held an ancient wisdom, as if she had seen the rise and fall of countless civilizations.


    "The Hero of Darkness," she whispered, her voice carrying a weight of recognition.


    Medea''s eyes narrowed, her tone growing more demanding, "Who are you?"


    The woman turned her gaze towards me, and when she spoke, her words wereced with authority. "Kaguya. The most loyal servant of Goddess Amaterasu," she dered.


    But Medea remained unmoved by the divine connection Kaguya imed. Her voice was cool, almost dismissive as she asked, "Why are you looking for Lord Samael?" Herck of reverence for the goddess was obvious/


    Kaguya''s eyes locked onto mine, her expression unreadable as she spoke with purpose. "I am here to recover one of my Heroes. Where is Yanagi Rena?" Her cold voice rang.


    Medea, ever the embodiment of cold detachment, shrugged with an air of indifference. "Who knows?" she replied, her tone as icy as her demeanor.


    In that moment, I couldn''t help but feel a deep appreciation for Medea. She was perfect as my firstpanion. Her mind worked in ways so simr to mine, always calcting, always focused on the end goal. Like me, she held little regard for the gods, their whims, or their desires. Once obsessed with something she would never leave it alone.


    It was one of the main reasons I chose her to be one of my Knights. It was a kind of devotion that could move mountains, and I intended to harness that power.


    Kaguya''s eyes fluttered shut for a moment, her head shaking slightly as if to clear away some unwee thought. When she opened them again, they were colder than before.


    "Hero of Darkness," she began, her voice low and foreboding, "for the sin of having killed one of the Heroes of Kastoria, Goddess Amaterasu has sentenced you to death. I will be the one to carry out that judgment."


    A slow, cold smile spread across my lips as I stepped forward, my every movement exuding confidence and defiance. "Sins?" I echoed, my voice dripping with contempt. "If I recall correctly, it was your heroes who crossed into our territory with hostile intentions. You should be grateful that I spared the lives of the rest of your precious Heroes.


    I could have easily in everyst one of those weaklings before you even arrived, Kaguya."


    The only reason I had let them live was because of Ayaka and Akane, two people from my past who still held a small piece of my heart, despite everything. After all these years, it seemed that some remnants of care and affection lingered within me.


    Kaguya''s expression hardened, her eyes narrowing as she raised her hand. In an instant, a long, white weapon materialized in her grasp. It was a ive, the kind used by ancient warriors, its de gleaming with a deadly purpose.


    "Medea," I said, my voice calm but firm, "I will deal with her. Get back Rena."


    Medea''s lips curved into a small smile, and she inclined her head slightly in acknowledgment. "As you wish, Samael."


    I watched her go, confident in her abilities, and then turned my attention back to Kaguya. I was certain of my strength, of my ability to win this battle. But in the back of my mind, I kept a contingency n—if things went south, I wouldn''t hesitate to use Rena as a shield.


    Kaguya''s figure blurred, vanishing from sight, and before I could even blink, I felt her presence looming behind me. Instinct kicked in. I swung my hand back, and in an instant, a ck sword materialized in my grip, intercepting her de with a resounding sh.


    BADOOM!


    The sheer force of the impact sent both of us hurtling backward, the air crackling with energy.


    But Kaguya was relentless. She regained her footing in an instant, her eyes locked on me with lethal intent. She propelled herself forward again, moving with blinding speed, her de gleaming with a deadly light.


    I had only a split second to react. Summoning my darkness magic, I conjured a wall of shadow between us, thick and imprable.


    Darkness swirled at my fingertips, twisting and churning like a storm about to be unleashed. The wall I conjured sprang to life, a solid barrier of pitch-ck energy, dense and imprable. But Kaguya, in her relentless pursuit, was undeterred. Her eyes glinted fiercely as she spun mid-air, her ive poised to strike.


    With a flick of her wrist, the weapon gleamed with an ethereal light, and she sliced through the air like a predator diving for its prey.


    "Break!" Shemanded, and the ive struck my darkness wall with a deafening ng, causing the air to ripple with the sheer force of her attack.


    For a moment, I thought my wall would hold, but Kaguya was not one to be so easily thwarted. The light surrounding her ive intensified, pushing against the darkness, causing cracks to splinter across the wall''s surface like lightning bolts in a stormy sky.


    "Not bad," I muttered under my breath, feeling the tremor in the air as her weapon inched closer to shattering my defense. "But you''re gonna have to do better than that."


    With a roar, I pumped more energy into the wall, fortifying it with everything I had. The darkness thickened, bing a swirling vortex of ck mes that licked at Kaguya''s ive, trying to consume it. But she gritted her teeth and pushed harder, her muscles straining as she poured more of her energy into the attack.


    And then, with a final, triumphant scream, she broke through. My wall shattered into a thousand shards of darkness, exploding outward in a violent burst. I was forced to leap back, barely avoiding the debris as it rained down like a storm of ckened ss.


    Kaguya was on me in an instant, her ive a blur of motion as she shed and stabbed, each strike aimed with deadly precision. I ducked and weaved, parrying when I could, but her speed was overwhelming. I could feel the edge of her weapon grazing my skin, each near-miss sending a thrill of adrenaline through my veins.


    "Is that all you''ve got, Hero of Darkness?" Kaguya said coldly, her voice dripping with condescension as she aimed a sweeping sh at my legs.


    I jumped, twisting in mid-air to avoid the blow, but she was already anticipating my move. With a swift motion, she brought the ive up, its de shimmering with a deadly light. I barely had time to summon a protective aura before the ive crashed down, the force of the impact sending a shockwave through the ground.


    The earth trembled beneath us, the ground cracking under the weight of our sh. I skidded back, digging my heels into the dirt to stop my momentum, but Kaguya was relentless. She closed the distance in a heartbeat, her ive spinning like a whirlwind, and I knew I had to act fast.


    With a surge of power, I called forth a torrent of dark energy, sending it spiraling toward her. The ground beneath her feet erupted in a geyser of ck mes, forcing her to retreat. But she was quick, far quicker than I anticipated. She leapt into the air, her body twisting gracefully as she dodged the darkness, and before I could react, she was upon me again.


    I raised my sword to block her strike. The impact jolted up my arm, nearly causing me to lose my grip. Kaguya pressed her advantage, hammering me with a relentless barrage of attacks, each one stronger and faster than thest. Her ive whistled through the air, a deadly blur of silver and light, and it took every ounce of my strength just to keep up.


    She was strong, stronger than the current me clearly.


    She wasn''t Amaterasu''s trusted servant for nothing I suppose?


    And it would be naive of my part to think I could beat with just another awakening and darkness magic after a mere week.


    "I will end your life now," Kaguya dered, her voice cold and resolute as she raised her ive high. She traced a glowing circle in the air, the white light intensifying until it ignited with divine mes.


    "mes of Amaterasu!"


    The air hummed with power, and I knew that if I took this hit, it would be my end. But I wasn''t about to let that happen.


    "Temporary Raise."


    I funneled everyst bit of my Luck Stats into my Speed, feeling a surge of energy flood through me.


    "Die, sinner!" Kaguya spat, her eyes burning with hatred. But in the blink of an eye, I was no longer there.


    Her re found only empty space.


    "What?!" she gasped, disoriented as she realized I had vanished from her sight.


    With her attack alreadyunched and my speed now divine, she didn''t even have a chance to react. I was behind her in an instant.


    I ced my hand gently on her back.


    "Celestial Magic: Freeze."


    In an instant, her body was encased in ice, a pir of frost extending from the ground to the sky. Her expression remained frozen, a look ofplete shock etched on her face.


    I reversed the Temporary Raise, feeling my stats return to their normal distribution. Stepping closer, I caressed her frozen cheek, a smile tugging at my lips.


    "Bring me Amaterasu," I whispered to her ear with a smirk.