He had assumed standard aggro tactics would work. But the Spectral Kraken was a hard counter to a physical tank.

"Change of plans," Alvian ordered. "Valeria, fall back! Guard Elara! Seraphina, keep Ursula busy. Don't engage, just harass. I'll take the ghost."

"You?" Seraphina asked, dodging a glob of acid. "You can't tank soul damage either!"

"I don't intend to tank it," Alvian said. "I intend to eat it."

He equipped [Voidpiercer] in his right hand and the [Sanctified Soul Vessel]—the box he had used to kill Harvey—in his left.

"Hey! Calamari!" Alvian shouted at the ghost.

The Spectral Kraken turned its hollow eyes toward him. It sensed the [Sanctified Soul Vessel]. To a creature of the void, that holy light was anathema. It shrieked and charged.

Alvian waited. The massive ghost tentacle swept toward him.

"[Void Step]."

He teleported inside the ghost's body.

The cold was absolute. It was like swimming in liquid death. His HP began to tick down rapidly.

[-500 Soul Damage/sec]

"System. Activate [Sanctified Soul Vessel]. Vacuum Mode."

Alvian opened the box. The holy light inside didn't shoot out; it created a suction vortex. It began to pull the spectral essence of the Kraken into the box.

"SCREEEEE!" The ghost thrashed, its form flickering. It tried to expel Alvian, but he activated [Void Anchor], pinning himself to the metaphysical center of the monster.

"You want my soul?" Alvian gritted his teeth, his vision blurring from the pain. "Take this instead!"

He thrust [Voidpiercer] into the core of the ghost.

"[Dimensional Bleed]."

The dagger cut a wound in the spirit that couldn't heal. The essence bled out, flowing directly into the Soul Vessel. The Kraken shrank, its form losing cohesion.

"NO!" Ursula screamed, realizing her guardian was being consumed. She tried to rush Alvian, but Seraphina was there.

"Eyes on me, ugly!" Seraphina threw a bandolier of mana grenades at Ursula's face. The explosions blinded the Queen, buying Alvian the seconds he needed.

The Spectral Kraken dissolved, sucked entirely into the wooden box.

[Item Updated: Sanctified Soul Vessel (Charged).]

[You have banished The Spectral Kraken!]

Alvian fell from the empty space where the monster had been. He landed on the ground, breathing hard. His soul felt bruised, but he was alive.

He put the box away and turned to Ursula.

"Your pet is gone," Alvian said. "Just you and me."

Ursula looked at him with pure hatred. "You think you've won? The ritual is self-sustaining now! The Draconic Seal is opening!"

Behind her, the massive bone gates began to crack. A red light, far deeper and more terrible than the Syndicate's tech, began to spill out.

"The Dragon," Valeria whispered, looking at the gate.

"She's right," Alvian realized. "We took too long."

Ursula laughed maniacally. "The Eighth Faction rises! And they will sweep you all away!"

She grabbed the [Pearl of the Deep] which had fallen during the fight. She slammed it into her own chest.

"I offer myself! I am the key!"

Her body began to mutate again. She wasn't just a Kraken anymore. She was becoming a portal. The Syndicate tech fused with the Pearl, turning her into a living gateway for the energy behind the door.

[Boss Phase 3: The Living Gate]

[Status: Invulnerable]

"She's using her own life force to bridge the gap," Alvian analyzed. "If we kill her, the energy releases and blows up the city. If we leave her, the Dragon comes out."

"So we're screwed?" Seraphina asked.

"No," Alvian said. He looked at the [Lance of the Void Winter]. He looked at his mana bar.

"We need to freeze the gate," Alvian said. "Not just the door. The concept of the opening."

"That requires S-Rank magic," Seraphina said. "Or a miracle."

"I have something better," Alvian said. He pulled out the [Tidal Core] he had looted from Warlord Kulit. "I have the ocean."

"Valeria, get Elara out of here," Alvian ordered. "Seraphina, go with them."

"You're staying?" Valeria asked.

"Someone has to close the door," Alvian said. "And I'm the only one with the keys."

He walked toward the mutating Queen.

"Go!"

Valeria hesitated, then grabbed Elara and ran. Seraphina looked at him one last time, nodded, and vanished.

Alvian stood alone before the Queen and the cracking gate. The pressure was immense.

"Let's see if a winter storm can stop a dragon's fire," Alvian whispered.

He crushed the [Tidal Core] in his hand.

The [Tidal Core] shattered, releasing the condensed essence of a thousand storms. Alvian didn't let it dissipate. He inhaled it. He pulled the raw hydro-energy into his mana channels, mixing it with the void energy of his core.

His body screamed. It was too much power.

[Warning! Mana Overload.]

[System Adaptation: [Void Monarch] Armor stabilizing flow.]

Alvian glowed with a blinding blue-black light. He levitated off the ground, the water around him swirling in a massive vortex.

Ursula, now more gate than woman, shrieked. "YOU CANNOT STOP THE AWAKENING!"

The gate behind her shattered.

"BOOM!"

A massive, reptilian head pushed through the opening. It wasn't flesh. It was a phantom, composed of ancient red mana and the souls of the Draconic Legion. It was the avatar of the Dragon God.

[Calamity Event: The Draconic Phantom]

[Status: Manifesting]

The Phantom roared. The sound wave vaporized the water in front of it, creating a tunnel of superheated steam. It aimed for Alvian.

Alvian didn't flinch. He raised the [Lance of the Void Winter].

"System. Activate [Genesis Mode]. Final Charge."

[Warning! Soul Integrity Critical.]

"Burn it."

His stats doubled. His mana became infinite. He combined the [Tidal Core] energy, the [Frost Heart] mana, and the [Void] essence into a single point on the tip of his lance.

"[Glacial Age]: Absolute Zero Singularity."

He didn't throw the lance. He flew. He launched himself straight at the Dragon's open maw.

"YOU ARE AN INSECT!" The Dragon's voice boomed in his mind.

"And you are history," Alvian replied.

He slammed into the Dragon.

"CRACK-BOOM!"

The collision defied physics. The ocean flash-froze for a mile in every direction. The Dragon's phantom form turned from red energy to blue ice instantly. The gate, Ursula, the water—everything froze.

Alvian stood suspended in the center of a massive block of ice, his hand still gripping the lance embedded in the frozen phantom's forehead.

[Target Neutralized.]

[The Draconic Seal has been re-frozen.]

The ice began to crack. Not from the dragon breaking out, but from the water pressure returning. The phantom shattered into a trillion sparkles of light. Ursula's frozen form crumbled into dust.

Alvian floated in the dark water. He was exhausted. His armor was cracked. His mana bar was grey.

He looked at the gate. It was sealed shut, covered in a thick layer of Void Ice that would last for a hundred years.

"Job done," Alvian whispered.

He activated the last bit of energy in his boots. He began the long, slow ascent to the surface.

When he broke the surface of the water near the Sea Temple, the sun was rising. The city of Azureus was safe. The grid was back online. The Syndicate fleet had fled.

Valeria was waiting on the dock. She waded into the water, grabbing him before he could sink back down.

"You idiot," she whispered, her voice thick with emotion. "You actually did it."

"I told you," Alvian mumbled, leaning his weight on her armored shoulder. "I'm the executioner."

He looked at the city. He looked at his friends.

"Now," Alvian said, his eyes closing. "I think I'll take that nap."

[Arc Complete: The Conspiracy of the Deep.]

[Next Arc: The Draconic Awakening (Delayed).]

[Current Status: Legend of the Sea.]

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