Episode 80 – Trial of Living Shadows

The fractured horizon pulsed faintly beneath a twilight that never settled. The winds carried dust and fragments of forgotten voices, whispering through the broken landscape like prayers of the damned. Kuro's emberblade hung loosely in his grip, still resonating faintly with the remnants of the last battle. Elira stood beside him, frostfire gleaming against the gloom. Her expression was calm and unreadable, a quiet strength that steadied the wild chaos within him.

For a moment, silence ruled.

Then, the air trembled.

"Thrum... thrum..."

It was faint at first—a heartbeat, but not his. The ground beneath them began to ripple like disturbed water. Kuro tensed, flames rising instinctively from his shoulders, as Elira's frostfire spiraled defensively. It merged the air into a swirl of opposing yet harmonious energy.

"The horizon's shifting again," she murmured. "Something's calling us forward."

Kuro's eyes followed the distortion ahead—a valley of black glass and bleeding light that seemed to stretch endlessly. It looked like the reflection of another world trying to merge with this one. "Then that's where we're going," he said, his voice firm even though his pulse thundered with unease.

Every step into that valley felt heavier, as if invisible chains tried to drag them back. The obsidian shards beneath their boots reflected distorted faces—not their enemies', but their own. Each reflection moved a half second too late, eyes flickering with crimson flame and icy blue frost that weren't entirely theirs.

Elira slowed her pace, glancing at the reflection that mirrored her hesitation. "It's reacting to us."

Kuro crouched, pressing a gloved hand against the reflective surface. The moment his skin touched the glass, the reflection blinked out of sync and smiled. His real self did not.

"Welcome home, Monarch."

The voice came from the glass, sharp and smooth, almost mocking. The reflection stepped out of the surface like liquid taking shape. Flames poured from its hands—Kuro's flames—but darker and deeper, tinted with the sickly crimson of Nihil's corruption.

Elira's frostfire pulsed. "It's you... but twisted."

The corrupted Kuro tilted his head, eyes glowing with emberlight. "No, Elira. I'm not him. I'm what he's hiding—what he fears becoming."

The moment stretched thin. Then—

THUND!

The ground cracked open as the real Kuro drew his blade, fire igniting with a roar that scattered burning dust. Sparks exploded outward, mixing with the frostfire dancing from Elira's side. "You're nothing but a reflection," Kuro said through clenched teeth, stepping forward. "And I burn away illusions."

The reflection smirked. "Illusions? Then why does the Monarch flame listen to me?"

Before he could react, a searing pulse ripped through the horizon—BOOOOM!—forcing Kuro backward as flames erupted not from his hand but from the reflection's. They surged into a column that tore through the sky. The heat bent the world itself.

Elira rushed forward, summoning crystalline frost barriers that melted the instant they formed. Ssshhh-crack!—the air shattered like ice under strain, forcing her back a step.

Kuro's flame countered violently. Fwoooosh!—emberlight cut through the explosion, scattering burning fragments like meteor shards. He lunged, the emberblade slashing through distortion.

Clang! Slash! Whummmm!

Each strike met equal force. His reflection matched his movements perfectly. Every swing of the emberblade was mirrored and answered with ruthless precision. Sparks rained, echoes of clang! thund! fsshk! resonating like war drums.

The two flames collided, one pure and controlled, the other writhing with raw, corrupted hunger.

Elira shouted over the chaos, "Kuro! It's mirroring your emotions—stop feeding it your anger!"

Her words sliced through his focus, but the reflection's grin widened, hearing the command as well. "Yes, Monarch," it whispered mockingly. "Control me… if you can."

The next blow came fast—too fast. Slash! Slash!—the reflection's movements blurred, flame turning almost liquid as it twisted midair, slamming its blade against Kuro's guard. KRAAAANG!

The shockwave rippled through the ground, sending shards of burning glass into the air. The horizon itself groaned in protest.

Kuro gritted his teeth, pushing back with all his strength, sweat mixing with ash. His muscles screamed. "Elira! Don't—interfere! I need to face this!"

She hesitated—frostfire burning around her hands—but then slowly lowered them. "Then face it, Kuro. But remember—you're not alone."

Her words steadied him. The emberlight around his body dimmed slightly, contracting inward. It became more focused and deliberate.

The reflection hissed. "Weakness… dependence…"

"No," Kuro growled, tightening his grip. "Trust."

He vanished in a burst of heat—SHHHK!—reappearing behind his reflection, the emberblade cutting upward in a perfect arc.

THRAAAANG!—the impact shattered part of the glass valley, sending molten fragments flying. The reflection staggered, half its face breaking into shards of glowing emberlight before reforming.

It laughed. "You think this ends with me? Every time you doubt yourself, every time you lose control, I grow stronger. I am your shadow, Monarch."

The flame within Kuro stirred violently—whispers clawing at his thoughts, Nihil's laugh echoing faintly in the background. He stumbled slightly, clutching his chest as flickers of corruption bled into his aura.

Elira rushed to his side, her frostfire flaring brilliantly blue. She pressed her hand to his back, the cold aura mixing with the fire, creating a sharp hiss of steam. "Breathe! Don't let it take root!"

Kuro inhaled deeply—HAAH!—his flame stabilizing, though his reflection's smirk widened.

"Pathetic," it sneered, "relying on others to hold you together. You were meant to be a god, not a man."

Kuro raised his head slowly, eyes burning with golden fire. "And that's exactly why you'll lose. Because gods forget what they're fighting for."

He surged forward—BOOM!—every bit of power concentrated into his next strike. The world bent around him, flame forming a burning arc that cleaved through both reflection and space itself.

SLAAAAASH!

Light exploded outward—white-hot and endless. The reflection screamed, its body fracturing into thousands of shards that burned to ash midair.

Silence followed.

Only the faint sound of crackling emberlight remained.

Elira exhaled slowly, lowering her hands. "It's over?"

Kuro didn't answer immediately. He looked at the reflection's fading remnants, then knelt, touching the ground. The surface was warm—still alive. "No," he said softly. "This was just the first."

As the ashes settled, faint shapes shimmered in the distance—more reflections, countless, emerging from the broken glass plains. Each moved differently, their forms echoing not just Kuro but also Elira, Akira, and even faint distortions of allies they hadn't met yet.

The reflection he destroyed had only been the beginning.

The Trial of Living Shadows had begun.

Elira drew in a sharp breath. "They're… endless."

Kuro rose, the emberblade glowing faintly in his hand. His tone was steady but cold. "Then we'll cut through every single one until the horizon runs out of glass."

The nearest reflection stepped forward, eyes burning with mismatched light. This one spoke in a familiar voice—Akira's. "You abandoned me once, Kuro. Will you do it again when the fire turns?"

The question hung heavy in the ash-filled air.

Kuro's jaw tightened. His voice was low and dangerous. "You're not him. But I'll answer you anyway—never."

The reflection smiled sadly. "Then prove it."

The next battle erupted.

THUND! CRASH! SHHHH-KRAAAANG!

Flame and frostfire tore through the plains, scattering molten shards that rained like meteors. Elira's voice rose in chants of frostbinding, while Kuro's flame formed massive arcs that split through distortion. The air screamed under the pressure—BOOM! BOOOOM!

Each shadow fell—but for every one destroyed, two more crawled from the fissures.

Sweat dripped down Kuro's temple. His vision blurred from exhaustion. The Monarch flame pulsed erratically, whispering louder—until a voice broke through, smooth and cruel:

"You can't fight shadows forever, my vessel."

Nihil.

The whisper came from within, curling like smoke beneath his thoughts.

Kuro's grip faltered for a fraction of a second. The flame flickered dark.

Elira saw it—and in that instant, frostfire flared violently, forming a protective barrier that threw back a wave of shadows. "Don't listen!" she shouted. "You control the flame, not the other way around!"

He shook his head violently, forcing the whispers down, forcing his body to obey his will. "I—won't—be—your—vessel!"

He roared, flames bursting outward in a wave that consumed the nearest ten shadows at once. FWOOOOOM!

The ground cracked open, molten rivers spilling forth, and the distorted sky fractured further, bleeding streaks of crimson light. The battlefield became a chaos of fire and ice, noise and silence, life and illusion.

And at its center stood Kuro and Elira, their combined light the only truth left amid endless lies.

---

(Part 2 continues the same moment—Perfect, partner.

We'll continue right from where Chapter 79 ("Embers of Alliance") ended. Kuro and Elira are standing in the fractured landscape after Lyren's departure. The faint echo of Nihil's laugh whispers within the Monarch flame.

Here begins—

---

Episode 80 – Trial of Living Shadows (Part 1)

The fractured horizon pulsed faintly beneath a twilight that never settled. The winds carried dust and fragments of forgotten voices, whispering through the broken landscape like prayers of the damned. Kuro's emberblade hung loosely in his grip, still resonating faintly with the remnants of the last battle. Elira stood beside him, frostfire gleaming against the gloom. Her expression was calm and unreadable, a quiet strength that steadied the wild chaos within him.

For a moment, silence ruled.

Then, the air trembled.

"Thrum... thrum..."

It was faint at first—a heartbeat, but not his. The ground beneath them began to ripple like disturbed water. Kuro tensed, flames rising instinctively from his shoulders, as Elira's frostfire spiraled defensively. It merged the air into a swirl of opposing yet harmonious energy.

"The horizon's shifting again," she murmured. "Something's calling us forward."

Kuro's eyes followed the distortion ahead—a valley of black glass and bleeding light that seemed to stretch endlessly. It looked like the reflection of another world trying to merge with this one. "Then that's where we're going," he said, his voice firm even though his pulse thundered with unease.

Every step into that valley felt heavier, as if invisible chains tried to drag them back. The obsidian shards beneath their boots reflected distorted faces—not their enemies', but their own. Each reflection moved a half second too late, eyes flickering with crimson flame and icy blue frost that weren't entirely theirs.

Elira slowed her pace, glancing at the reflection that mirrored her hesitation. "It's reacting to us."

Kuro crouched, pressing a gloved hand against the reflective surface. The moment his skin touched the glass, the reflection blinked out of sync and smiled. His real self did not.

"Welcome home, Monarch."

The voice came from the glass, sharp and smooth, almost mocking. The reflection stepped out of the surface like liquid taking shape. Flames poured from its hands—Kuro's flames—but darker and deeper, tinted with the sickly crimson of Nihil's corruption.

Elira's frostfire pulsed. "It's you... but twisted."

The corrupted Kuro tilted his head, eyes glowing with emberlight. "No, Elira. I'm not him. I'm what he's hiding—what he fears becoming."

The moment stretched thin. Then—

THUND!

The ground cracked open as the real Kuro drew his blade, fire igniting with a roar that scattered burning dust. Sparks exploded outward, mixing with the frostfire dancing from Elira's side. "You're nothing but a reflection," Kuro said through clenched teeth, stepping forward. "And I burn away illusions."

The reflection smirked. "Illusions? Then why does the Monarch flame listen to me?"

Before he could react, a searing pulse ripped through the horizon—BOOOOM!—forcing Kuro backward as flames erupted not from his hand but from the reflection's. They surged into a column that tore through the sky. The heat bent the world itself.

Elira rushed forward, summoning crystalline frost barriers that melted the instant they formed. Ssshhh-crack!—the air shattered like ice under strain, forcing her back a step.

Kuro's flame countered violently. Fwoooosh!—emberlight cut through the explosion, scattering burning fragments like meteor shards. He lunged, the emberblade slashing through distortion.

Clang! Slash! Whummmm!

Each strike met equal force. His reflection matched his movements perfectly. Every swing of the emberblade was mirrored and answered with ruthless precision. Sparks rained, echoes of clang! thund! fsshk! resonating like war drums.

The two flames collided, one pure and controlled, the other writhing with raw, corrupted hunger.

Elira shouted over the chaos, "Kuro! It's mirroring your emotions—stop feeding it your anger!"

Her words sliced through his focus, but the reflection's grin widened, hearing the command as well. "Yes, Monarch," it whispered mockingly. "Control me… if you can."

The next blow came fast—too fast. Slash! Slash!—the reflection's movements blurred, flame turning almost liquid as it twisted midair, slamming its blade against Kuro's guard. KRAAAANG!

The shockwave rippled through the ground, sending shards of burning glass into the air. The horizon itself groaned in protest.

Kuro gritted his teeth, pushing back with all his strength, sweat mixing with ash. His muscles screamed. "Elira! Don't—interfere! I need to face this!"

She hesitated—frostfire burning around her hands—but then slowly lowered them. "Then face it, Kuro. But remember—you're not alone."

Her words steadied him. The emberlight around his body dimmed slightly, contracting inward. It became more focused and deliberate.

The reflection hissed. "Weakness… dependence…"

"No," Kuro growled, tightening his grip. "Trust."

He vanished in a burst of heat—SHHHK!—reappearing behind his reflection, the emberblade cutting upward in a perfect arc.

THRAAAANG!—the impact shattered part of the glass valley, sending molten fragments flying. The reflection staggered, half its face breaking into shards of glowing emberlight before reforming.

It laughed. "You think this ends with me? Every time you doubt yourself, every time you lose control, I grow stronger. I am your shadow, Monarch."

The flame within Kuro stirred violently—whispers clawing at his thoughts, Nihil's laugh echoing faintly in the background. He stumbled slightly, clutching his chest as flickers of corruption bled into his aura.

Elira rushed to his side, her frostfire flaring brilliantly blue. She pressed her hand to his back, the cold aura mixing with the fire, creating a sharp hiss of steam. "Breathe! Don't let it take root!"

Kuro inhaled deeply—HAAH!—his flame stabilizing, though his reflection's smirk widened.

"Pathetic," it sneered, "relying on others to hold you together. You were meant to be a god, not a man."

Kuro raised his head slowly, eyes burning with golden fire. "And that's exactly why you'll lose. Because gods forget what they're fighting for."

He surged forward—BOOM!—every bit of power concentrated into his next strike. The world bent around him, flame forming a burning arc that cleaved through both reflection and space itself.

SLAAAAASH!

Light exploded outward—white-hot and endless. The reflection screamed, its body fracturing into thousands of shards that burned to ash midair.

Silence followed.

Only the faint sound of crackling emberlight remained.

Elira exhaled slowly, lowering her hands. "It's over?"

Kuro didn't answer immediately. He looked at the reflection's fading remnants, then knelt, touching the ground. The surface was warm—still alive. "No," he said softly. "This was just the first."

As the ashes settled, faint shapes shimmered in the distance—more reflections, countless, emerging from the broken glass plains. Each moved differently, their forms echoing not just Kuro but also Elira, Akira, and even faint distortions of allies they hadn't met yet.

The reflection he destroyed had only been the beginning.

The Trial of Living Shadows had begun.

Elira drew in a sharp breath. "They're… endless."

Kuro rose, the emberblade glowing faintly in his hand. His tone was steady but cold. "Then we'll cut through every single one until the horizon runs out of glass."

The nearest reflection stepped forward, eyes burning with mismatched light. This one spoke in a familiar voice—Akira's. "You abandoned me once, Kuro. Will you do it again when the fire turns?"

The question hung heavy in the ash-filled air.

Kuro's jaw tightened. His voice was low and dangerous. "You're not him. But I'll answer you anyway—never."

The reflection smiled sadly. "Then prove it."

The next battle erupted.

THUND! CRASH! SHHHH-KRAAAANG!

Flame and frostfire tore through the plains, scattering molten shards that rained like meteors. Elira's voice rose in chants of frostbinding, while Kuro's flame formed massive arcs that split through distortion. The air screamed under the pressure—BOOM! BOOOOM!

Each shadow fell—but for every one destroyed, two more crawled from the fissures.

Sweat dripped down Kuro's temple. His vision blurred from exhaustion. The Monarch flame pulsed erratically, whispering louder—until a voice broke through, smooth and cruel:

"You can't fight shadows forever, my vessel."

Nihil.

The whisper came from within, curling like smoke beneath his thoughts.

Kuro's grip faltered for a fraction of a second. The flame flickered dark.

Elira saw it—and in that instant, frostfire flared violently, forming a protective barrier that threw back a wave of shadows. "Don't listen!" she shouted. "You control the flame, not the other way around!"

He shook his head violently, forcing the whispers down, forcing his body to obey his will. "I—won't—be—your—vessel!"

He roared, flames bursting outward in a wave that consumed the nearest ten shadows at once. FWOOOOOM!

The ground cracked open, molten rivers spilling forth, and the distorted sky fractured further, bleeding streaks of crimson light. The battlefield became a chaos of fire and ice, noise and silence, life and illusion.

And at its center stood Kuro and Elira, their combined light the only truth left amid endless lies.

---

The storm that engulfed the Sanctum felt endless. Each flash of lightning colored the world in shattered hues, with blues twisting into reds and shadows bending like liquid glass. Kuro stood at the edge of the crumbling chamber, his chest heaving and his corrupted flame thrashing like a beast trying to break free.

Elira's hands shook against the sigil she had just activated; its light faded under the chaos. Akira staggered back, a mixture of anger and confusion in his eyes. He sensed it—the increasing distance, the growing rift that no battle could close.

The Echo of Nihil hung around them, a ghostly figure laughing quietly. Its voice was taunting and cold, reverberating everywhere. "You think purification can erase what you've become?"

Kuro clenched his jaw. The laughter burrowed into his mind, mingling truths and lies until he couldn't tell them apart. His fire pulsed, veins glowing with crimson light.

"Shut up," he growled. The echo grinned. "You can't silence me. I am your flame now."

"KURO!" Elira's voice cut through the noise. "Don't let it—"

THUND! The ground fractured beneath them, sending a shockwave through the temple.

Kuro fell to one knee, gripping his sword as dark flames erupted from his palm. The floor cracked, molten energy oozing from the wounds of the world. The corrupted energy coiled upward, forming chains that clamped around his arm.

"Damn it," he hissed, slashing through them. But each swing only made the flames grow fiercer. Slash! Crack! Fwshhhh! Each sound echoed, distorted like a mocking song.

Elira rushed forward, her sigil glowing with frantic pulses. "I can stabilize it—just don't fight it!"

"I can't—if I stop, it'll consume everything!"

"Kuro!"

Akira's voice interjected, raw and pained. "You said you could control it! You lied!"

Kuro turned sharply, his crimson eyes flashing with traces of corruption. "Do you think I want this?"

"Then stop acting like you're the only one suffering!"

THUND THUND THUND! Lightning crashed again, shaking the Sanctum as the walls folded inward, reshaping reality with each heartbeat.

Elira thrust her palms outward. "Enough! Both of you—look!"

Above them, the sigil fragments spiraled into pure light. The Sanctum reacted to their discord, drawing power from their imbalance. Every word and every rush of emotion twisted into raw force, weaponized by the temple's cursed law.

"Emotion fuels it…" Elira murmured. "Our anger is making it worse!"

Kuro's breathing slowed, but the whisper inside him—Nihil's voice—stoked the flame. "She'll fail you again, just like before. And when she does… I'll be waiting."

Kuro roared, slamming his palm to the floor. The entire Sanctum erupted into blinding fire.

BOOOOOOOM!

When the smoke cleared, silence blanketed the area. Kuro knelt in the ruins, black fire flickering faintly across his arm, dancing between life and death.

Elira stumbled toward him, blood trickling from her temple.

"Kuro…"

Her voice trembled, not from fear, but from heartbreak. He didn't respond. His gaze was fixed on his reflection in a puddle of molten glass—and for a split second, the reflection smirked back.

It wasn't him.

"He's growing stronger, isn't he?" Nihil's voice dripped with false sympathy. "Every flame you summon, every bit of strength you use—it all feeds me."

Kuro clenched his fists.

"I'll burn you out of existence."

"And burn yourself with me?"

Laughter echoed again—low, metallic, haunting.

Elira placed her hand on his shoulder. "There's a way," she whispered. "The Sanctum's heart—it connects to the Balance Crystal. If I can reach it before the corruption does…"

"You'll die," Kuro interrupted. "You've seen what it does to anyone who touches that core."

"I'll take that risk. For you."

Before he could reply, Akira stepped closer, sword drawn and eyes shadowed.

"Do you even hear yourself? Everything revolves around him now. You're risking your life for the same guy who's becoming a monster."

Elira shot him a sharp look. "He's not—"

"Yes, he is!" Akira yelled, his voice cracking. "Every mission, every scar—it's all about him! When do we matter?"

Silence fell, heavy as ash.

Kuro looked up slowly. "Akira… I never asked—"

"That's the problem," Akira spat. "You never had to ask. You just took, and we followed."

A faint tremor shook the ground beneath them. The temple responded again, the walls echoing their words back to them in distorted tones.

"You never had to ask… ask… ask…"

"Monster… monster… monster…"

The echoes swelled, forming ghostly apparitions from sound itself. Shadows of their anger. Their voices turned into their enemies.

"Akira, stop!" Elira shouted, but it was too late.

SLACK! THUND! FWSSHH!

The echoes surged, mirroring Akira's rage in twisted humanoid forms, their mouths stretched in silent screams.

Kuro spun, blade igniting mid-swing.

Clash! Thund! Crack!

Fire collided with shadow, and for each one he struck, three more sprang from the sound of his own heartbeat.

Elira created a barrier of resonance, the sigil trembling in her grasp. "I can't hold it forever—!"

Akira dashed between them, slicing through an echo that mimicked his own face. The distortion screamed before vanishing. "This place is feeding off us!" he shouted.

Kuro twisted his blade, his fire flickering erratically—purple and black veins coursing through it.

"No," he said darkly. "It's feeding off me."

His aura surged outward.

THUND THUND THUND!

The energy exploded, casting chaos across the battlefield.

Every echo, every illusion ignited and dissolved, but in their place emerged something worse—

A figure strode out of the flames, calm and unhurried. The Echo of Nihil, fully formed now.

It resembled Kuro—same face, same voice—but its eyes were hollow pits of crimson fire.

"You've done well," the echo said, its voice smooth and layered with static. "Now step aside. The Monarch within you deserves freedom."

Elira staggered back. "Kuro, it's your corruption—given form!"

Akira raised his blade. "Then we kill it before it kills us."

Kuro remained silent. He simply stepped forward. His corrupted flame rippled, murmuring with a thousand voices.

The echo smiled. "Or maybe, you let me kill the weak one for you."

Kuro lunged.

THUND! FWSSHH! CLANG!

Blades clashed, each impact resonating with metallic thunder. Fire and shadow spun together in chaotic harmony, burning holes through the shattered temple floor.

The echo's laughter sliced through the chaos. "You fight like me—because you are me!"

"Then die like me too!"

THUND THUND SLASH SLACK FWSSHH!

The world faded.

Kuro's flames morphed into black lightning, his sword carving a path of destruction through space. But no matter how hard he struck, the echo mirrored each move perfectly—like a cursed reflection that refused to fall.

Elira tried to intervene, summoning the sigil's light to separate them—but the energy contorted. The temple recognized two identical essences and began to crumble.

"Kuro!" she yelled. "If you don't end this now, the Sanctum will erase you both!"

"I know!" he shouted back, clashing blades with his echo as both struggled against each other's power.

The echo grinned, leaning closer. "End me? You can't end what you are."

For a moment, everything went white.

A burst of sound so sharp it silenced even the storm—then the Sanctum fell silent.

When the light faded, Elira opened her eyes slowly. Kuro stood at the center of the ruins, surrounded by ashes. His sword was half-melted, his flames extinguished.

But when he looked up, his eyes glowed faintly… with Nihil's crimson light.

---

[To Be Continued...]

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.