The ice collapsed in a violent burst, shards scattering across the ruined chamber as the Frost Wall finally gave out under sustained pressure. Cold mist lingered in the air for a brief moment before heat and mana turbulence tore it apart. Noel didn't move immediately. He stayed where he was, shoulders rising and falling as he forced his breathing back under control, eyes fixed on the guardian standing across from him.

This wasn't sustainable.

He could feel it in the way his ribs protested with every breath, in the constant drain of mana required just to maintain parity, in the subtle lag creeping into his reactions. Trading spell for spell like this would end one way only, and it wouldn't be in his favor.

"…Alright," Noel murmured, voice low. "Enough."

Mana surged inward instead of outward, drawn into Revenant Fang in a sharp, focused pull. Heat flared along the blade as the weapon responded, runes igniting one after another as power flooded through its core.

"Ignition Surge."

Fire wrapped around the blade in a violent sheath, the temperature spiking instantly as sparks tore free and scattered across the broken floor. The air screamed as Noel launched himself forward, closing the distance in a blur as steel met steel, flame crashing against condensed mana.

The impact was brutal.

The guardian met him head-on, chains snapping tight as it blocked the first strike, sparks exploding outward as fire and ice remnants shattered on contact. Noel followed through without pause, blade moving in tight, efficient arcs as he pressed the exchange into close quarters. Each clash sent tremors through the floor, fragments of ice and scorched stone breaking apart beneath their feet.

This was no longer about space or positioning.

It was strength against strength.

The Shard Warden countered with raw force, its blows heavy and direct, driving Noel back step by step as fire washed over its armor and cracked frozen residue apart. Noel twisted aside from one strike only to feel another glance off his side, pain flaring sharp and immediate as blood darkened his coat further.

He grit his teeth and pushed through it.

Mana surged again.

"Stormpiercer."

The spell detonated outward in a concentrated line of compressed lightning and force, ripping through the chamber and straight into the wall behind the guardian. The impact carried both of them forward as the structure failed, tearing through one room after another in a cascade of collapsing stone and snapping chains. Armor plating fractured under the sustained pressure, pieces shearing off and embedding themselves deep into the surrounding walls.

They crashed into the next space in a storm of debris.

Dust filled the air as Noel skidded across the floor, barely catching himself before rolling back to his feet. The guardian emerged from the wreckage moments later, damaged, cracked, but still standing, its mana flow steady despite the visible destruction.

Noel exhaled slowly.

'Still up,' he realized. 'Unbelievable.'

There was one option left.

He raised his hand and the world seemed to recoil.

"Dark Sun."

A sphere of compressed void and mana began to form above his palm, blackness folding inward on itself as the air warped violently around it. Light bent and fractured, shadows stretching unnaturally across the ruined chamber as the spell grew denser, heavier, its presence pressing down on everything nearby.

The building screamed.

The guardian reacted instantly, abandoning defense as it surged forward with reckless speed, strikes coming fast and hard as it tried to break Noel's focus. Blows slammed into his arms and shoulders, pain flashing white-hot through his nerves as the structure around them shook violently, entire sections collapsing under the strain.

Noel held the spell just long enough.

Then he released it.

Not forward.

Inward.

The Dark Sun collapsed without firing, its pressure snapping away abruptly as Noel cut the flow by force. The sudden absence left a void in the guardian's perception, its momentum carrying it forward a fraction too far, its guard opening just enough to matter.

That was the mistake.

Noel staggered back a step, blood dripping from his chin now, chest heaving as exhaustion crashed into him all at once. His vision blurred at the edges, mana reserves burning low, body screaming for rest.

But his eyes were sharp.

He saw it.

The opening.

And this time, he wasn't going to miss it.

Noel moved first.

Not with hesitation, but with intent born from certainty, his body acting before the fatigue could slow him down. Shadow surged under his feet as Noir moved in perfect sync, her presence sliding into the guardian's awareness from the opposite angle, forcing its attention to split for the briefest instant.

That was all they needed.

"Shadow Step."

Noel vanished and reappeared inside the guardian's blind angle, close enough to feel the distorted flow of its mana as it tried to recover its guard. Revenant Fang was already moving, shadow and lightning twisting together along the blade as power compressed inward instead of exploding outward.

"Eclipse Rend."

The strike didn't announce itself.

The void cut cleanly through space, slicing across the guardian's frame in absolute silence before the aftermath caught up. Armor, chains, and core disintegrated at once, reduced to drifting fragments as the structure holding the Shard Warden together failed completely. The body collapsed inward and vanished, erased by the cut as if it had never existed.

The pressure vanished.

What remained was silence and a single object falling to the cracked floor.

The Shard.

It hit the stone with a sharp, hollow sound, rolling once before coming to a stop amid the debris.

A translucent window appeared before Noel's eyes.

[You have slain Shard Warden (Archmage – Common). You have received 0.30% Core Progress.]

Another line followed almost immediately.

[Current Core Progress: 2.00% — Mana Core: Archmage]

Noel blinked.

"…0.30?" he muttered, genuine disbelief cutting through the exhaustion.

He let out a rough breath, leaning his weight against what remained of a fractured pillar as his legs finally threatened to give out. Blood dripped steadily from his chin now, spotting the stone beneath him as his breathing slowly began to steady.

'No wonder it gives that much,' he thought, gaze flicking back to where the guardian had stood moments ago. 'For what it was… damn.'

His eyes shifted to the Shard lying there, inert and exposed.

'Let's hope there aren't many more like you ahead,' he added grimly.

Noir padded over to his side, brushing against his leg as if checking he was still standing. Outside the ruined chamber, distant impacts still echoed through the island, the sound of ongoing battle carrying faintly through collapsing corridors.

Noel straightened with effort, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand as he stepped toward the Shard.

The heart of the island had just fallen.

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