Chapter 60 – The Battlefield's Moonlit ShadowA Storm on the Horizon
The battlefield stretched endlessly, a wasteland of shattered weapons and blood-soaked earth. The war between the Aurelius Empire and the Vermillion Kingdom had reached its breaking point.
For one year, Leonhardt had led the empire's forces to victory after victory. The once-mighty army of the Sun God's followers was crumbling, their desperate cries drowned in the chaos of war.
But something was changing.
As Leonhardt stood atop a ridge, his crimson eyes gleaming in the dimming light, a strange feeling gnawed at him.
A presence.
Faint. Distant. Yet undeniable.
A cold shiver ran down his spine—one he had not felt in centuries.
His fingers curled around the hilt of his sword. His heartbeat slowed.
Something was coming.
Something that called to his very soul.
The Queen's Arrival
Far from the battlefield, a lone figure stood on the steps of the Moonlit Temple.
Aetheria Nyx Lunaris Solis, the Demigod of the Moon and Stars, gazed toward the horizon, her violet eyes unreadable.
The request from the Vermillion Kingdom still echoed in her ears.
"Your Majesty, the enemy is too strong. Please, if you do not intervene, our kingdom will fall."
She had no reason to care for mortal conflicts.
She had no interest in human wars.
But the Vermillion King was different.
A true believer of the Sun God. One without corruption, without greed, without cruelty.
And so, for the first time in centuries, she decided to step onto the battlefield.
The sky darkened as she moved. The stars flickered in response to her presence.
And then—
For the first time in 800,000 years—
She felt him.
Two Souls Calling
Leonhardt clenched his fists.
This feeling… this strange, overwhelming pull…
It wasn't possible.
His lover was sealed.
She was still trapped in the abyss of time, waiting for him to tear apart fate itself.
And yet—
His breath hitched.
Aetheria froze mid-step.
A cold, electric rush surged through her veins.
No.
It couldn't be.
He was sealed.
He was supposed to be locked away in the ruins of eternity, beyond even the reach of the gods.
But this presence…
It was him.
Their gazes had yet to meet.
Their voices had yet to be spoken.
But in that moment, they knew.
He was here.
She was here.
The War's Turning Point
The Vermillion Army, on the verge of collapse, suddenly stopped retreating.
The soldiers trembled, their weapons shaking in their hands.
"W-We have reinforcements?"
"No… This feeling… What is this power?"
Above them, the moon burned brighter. The night sky thickened, blanketing the battlefield in a strange, celestial glow.
The soldiers of the Aurelius Empire shifted uneasily.
Even Leonhardt's commanders hesitated, sensing the unnatural shift in the air.
Leonhardt, however, remained still.
His gaze lifted toward the sky.
His voice, a whisper.
"…Aetheria."
At the same time, across the battlefield, the Queen of the Moon and Stars whispered back.
"…Leonhardt."
The Next Move
Neither side understood what was happening.
Neither army knew that the fate of gods and demons was unfolding before their very eyes.
Only two people mattered in this moment.
The King of Gods.
The Queen of Night.
And then—without a word—
Both vanished from the battlefield.
One second they were there.
The next, they were gone.