Kairos 91: Travian Dawn

The altar crumbled as a sun was born anew.

Rook and Kairos had already taken flight by the time Helios’ light dimmed, allowing them to perceive him. The handsome, five-meter tall figure that arose from the altar’s flames looked every bit like a god. His skin was the color of brass, his armor made of gold, and his helmet crowned with flames. Two burning wings of light carried him in the air.

However, a few elements revealed the rot beneath the glamour. The face of a screaming woman grew out of his chest; Circe’s soul intertwined with her progenitor’s body. And Helios’ eyes, instead of shining with the light of dawn, oozed only darkness.

A fallen god, Kairos thought, the shadow of lost glory.

A true deity was manifesting from the fragments of Orgonos’ summoning tablet, smokes and shadows gathering in the form of a great cyclops.

But the damage was already done. A crack spread in the Gate of Tartarus and a giant red eye peeked through it. Kairos could only hope that Orgonos would manifest fast enough to prevent anyone from passing through.

Agron was the first to reach the altar’s summit even as it crumbled, followed closely by Cassandra. Though Andromache and Sertorius had unleashed a barrage of lightning bolts at Helios, Circe’s face let out a shriek and quickly dispelled the spells.

“Mine!” Agron shouted with a mad zeal, his eyes burning with berserk rage and his Songaxe humming thundering beats. “Your fire is mine!”

“Be cursed!” Helios replied before manifesting a whip of flames in his left hand and a sword of light in his right. His sword clashed with Agron’s axe, the former sun deity using his bigger size and reach to force the minotaur on the defensive.

Cassandra attempted to flank Helios while Kairos had Rook make circles around the altar, intending to cover the front-liners with wind blasts. However, the [Demigod] was no fool. His whip entangled around Agron’s neck and swiftly tossed the minotaur at Kairos. The Travian King dodged and redirected the winds to soften his ally’s fall, allowing Agron to land next to Thales at the altar’s feet. The crafter was grabbing bombs and calculated the right angle to throw them.

“You dare raise your weapon against me, Cassandra?” Helios asked with indignation as he raised his sword. “I, who granted you the gift of a second life?”

“I shall forever be grateful for it,” she replied, blocking the fallen deity’s blade with her shield and retaliating with thrusts of her fork. Helios opened his mouth to breathe divine fire on Cassandra, his flames licking her flesh without bypassing her [Fire] immunity. “But my gratitude only extends so far.”

Kairos prepared to assist her when a powerful voice howled from the other side of the Gate of Tartarus. To his horror, a giant grey hand with fingers thicker than an adult man went through the crack and tried to widen it further.

A Titan was trying to break through and Orgonos hadn’t yet fully manifested.

“Andromache, Sertorius, protect the gate!” Kairos ordered as he activated his [Invisibility] Skill, the effect extending to Rook. “Hold the line!”

The mages immediately launched lightning bolts at the titan’s hand, and though they were no more effective than insect stings, Kairos hoped that they could buy a few precious seconds.

Damaged by the titanic clashes of weapons and quakes, Helios’ altar fully collapsed. Cassandra leaped into the air to avoid being buried alive, unleashing flames from her fork to better control her fall. Helios himself took flight and expanded his wings, only to receive a bomb to the face.

Each of Thales’ four hands had grabbed a projectile and a bag full of them lay at his feet. He threw them at the fallen deity in quick succession, with Helios having to cover his face to protect himself. The [Demigod] attempted to fly out of the automaton’s line of fire, but the invisible Kairos created an artificial wind current to pin him in place. Rogue and crafter proved more effective at keeping Helios immobilized than the fighters.

Unable to fly, Cassandra and Agron switched tactics. The former assisted the mages by burning the titan’s hand with flames, while the latter grabbed some of Thales’ bombs and tossed them at Helios.

It’s too easy, Kairos thought, as their foe wrapped himself in his wings to resist the onslaught. Was Helios saving his strength for Orgonos? Or was he preparing some kind of attack?

“Father…”

The voice’s whispers were barely audible but they chilled Kairos to the bone all the same. Andromache froze too, her head snapping in Helios’ direction.

Incantations echoed in the cavern and a red spherical barrier surrounded Helios. Thales’ projectiles bounced off it as the [Demigod] unfurled his wings, the face on his armor having regained some lucidity.

“My daughter?” Helios asked with fatherly warmth as he glanced at Circe’s face. “Have you recovered?”

“Yes, father.” Kairos thought that the witch-queen had lost all reasons, but he had clearly underestimated her mental strength. “I sense my killer… he is coming… my heart burns with revenge…”

“Not for long!” Andromache said as she turned her attention from the titan to her former tormentor. “[Dispel]!”

She unleashed a wave of energy from her staff, but failed to disrupt the barrier. It did, however, bring Circe’s attention to the nymph.

“Do you recognize me?” Andromache asked. There was no anger in her voice, no fury built over centuries, but her tone was cold all the same. “The woman you cursed into a beast? I was but one of your many victims. Do you remember?”

Circe’s answer was short and to the point.

“No,” Circe replied dismissively. Kairos couldn’t tell if the witch-queen had forgotten either because of her torment or because she had ruined so many lives that she had lost count. Andromache didn’t even look surprised, having expected that answer. The witch-queen hadn’t changed one bit. “But if a beast you were… a beast you shall remain. [Animal Curse].”

Kairos sensed a dark force spreading through the cavern and trying to take root in his body, only to miss him utterly.

[Luck] check successful.

But not all of his allies proved as fortunate.

Agron, who was already half a bull, became one in full. His Songaxe dropped from his hands as they turned into hooves, while Cassandra’s armor cracked as her body transformed into that of a lean lioness. Sertorius looked as if he would be affected for a moment, but one of his Skills seemed to repel the curse.

Only Thales and Andromache completely ignored the spell; the former because of his automaton nature, the latter because of her immunities. The nymph looked horrified at Cassandra’s transformed state before focusing back on Circe.

“[Exorcism]!” Andromache shouted as she pointed her staff at the witch-queen. No wave of magic came out of her weapon but the effect quickly became clear all the same: Circe let out a scream of pain and surprise, to her father’s horror.

“As I thought,” Andromache said as she prepared to cast the spell again. Her eyes burnt not with the fires of anger, but a fierce desire to bring Circe to justice. “Your father may be alive, but you remain a paltry undead in your state… and I am a [Necromancer].”

“My will is stronger… than yours,” Circe replied as she prepared to cast another offensive spell. Kairos immediately attacked with wind blasts and Thales with bombs, but only the Travian King’s [Legend Slayer]-enhanced attacks bypassed the shield. Helios used a wing to cover his daughter from the sharpened wind. “I shall smite you…”

“No, my daughter,” Helios said as light flared from the darkness of his eyes. “We must widen the gate before Orgonos arrives. Let my servants deal with them. [Summon Sun Horses].”

No sooner did he utter these words that monsters appeared on the ground in bursts of smoke. Four horses wreathed in flames and shining light attacked Kairos’ allies, two charging at Thales and the others assaulting the mages.

The transformed Cassandra and Agron immediately entered the melee to protect their allies even in their transformed states, but claws and horns proved far less effective than forks and axes. Cassandra let out a roar as she forcefully backed down with burned paws, while the maddened Agron disemboweled the closest sun-horse even as his skin caught flame. He seemed to enjoy it.

Thales quickly switched his focus from Helios to his minions and blasted one to dust. The mages, however, found their focus disrupted. One of the fire horses unleashed a stream of flames at them, forcing Sertorius to abandon his attacks on the Titan’s hand to take cover. Andromache turned her skin to steel to survive the flames and turned her attention against Helios’ minions rather than his daughter.

Kairos ordered Rook to take Helios from behind, the Travian King hitting the [Demigod]’s shield with his spear. His weapon pierced through the magical defenses like butter, but Helios quickly turned around while unleashing his fire whip. Rook had to pull back to avoid being caught while Circe continued to spellcast.

To Kairos’ horror, the crack in the Gate of Tartarus grew slightly wider as the witch’s magic unraveled its protections. The Titan took his hand back into the darkness beyond the doors… only for his head to butt through the growing rift. A hideous, red-eyes visage of grey stone peeked through the gates, trying to force his way through while Kairos’ allies were too busy dealing with Helios’ minions to interrupt.

Kairos immediately had Rook move towards the gate in a last-ditch attempt to prevent the Titan’s escape. His [Legend Slayer] shouldn’t work on a [God]-Rank foe, but they had no other choice. The Travian King raised his spear as the Titan roared in triumph…

And Orgonos’ hand pushed the prisoner right back into Hell.

The Cyclops god had finally manifested out of smoke and lightning, towering over everyone present. His single eye shone with bright red light as he spoke ancient incantations, the doors reacting to his will while he forced the titan back into his hole.

“Orgonos!” Circe interrupted her incantation in her fury. The shield around her father faltered as the sight of her killer disrupted her concentration. “Face me, cyclops! I want to see your rotting eye before I blind you again… the same way Apollo did!”

Orgonos looked over his shoulder, his shining eye glancing at Circe’s face with a look of utter contempt. Helios attempted to use the opportunity to attack the cyclops with his whip, only for his fiery weapon to bounce off the New God.

[Helios, the Sun that Was] couldn’t bypass [Fire] Immunity.

The God of Magic had come prepared.

“Return to dust,” Orgonos told Circe with the same dismissive tone she had used with Andromache only a few minutes ago. “You do not matter anymore.”

Circe let out a gasp of shock and surprise, her crimson shield breaking into multiple pieces; the sheer dismissiveness of the response had shattered her confidence. Then she let out a roar of rage while her father tried to calm her down. “My daughter, do not—”

"[Exorcism]!"

Another voice drowned the witch-queen’s and turned Circe’s furious screams into a howl of despair. Kairos looked at his allies while smiling ear to ear. Sertorius had repelled Helios’ summoned minions with a barrier, allowing his teammate to get to work. She trained a long time for it.

“He broke your concentration, you fool,” Andromache explained as her staff burnt with magical power. She had waited centuries for this moment and her patience was finally being rewarded. “You may not remember your victims, but we certainly never forgot. I speak for all of them when I say these words...”

“No!” Helios snarled, but his plea was in vain.

“Be cursed!” Andromache ordered. “Leave us alone!”

Circe’s face let out a scream before turning silent, a ghostly light exiting from her mouth. The soul only enjoyed its freedom for a few seconds before an invisible force pulled her through the crack in the Gate of Tartarus.

The witch-queen, tormentor of Andromache and countless others, had joined her forefathers in imprisonment.

A look of utter despair passed over Helios’ eyes, and for a second Kairos pitied the deity… albeit not enough to pull his punches. The Travian King unleashed another wind blast at the fallen sun god’s back, making him flinch.

The pain broke Helios from his sadness. Anger swelled in his heart as he flew straight at Orgonos with his weapons raised. Now he didn’t only fight to free his kindred, but to save his daughter from the eternal torment she richly deserved.

But his sun had long set.

Orgonos’ eye unleashed a blast of pure, focused magic. A green ray of light swallowed Helios and returned him to the dust from which he came, before melting the wall on the opposite side of the cavern.

A [Demigod], slain in the blink of an eye. Kairos couldn’t help but freeze in awe at seeing a New God’s power at work.

But no sooner did Helios perish that his corpse erupted in a burning pyre, a bright light illuminating the cavern. Kairos and Rook covered their eyes to avoid going blind, but they distinguished the shadow of a winged man at the center of the flames.

Helios had returned to life like a phoenix.

Orgonos focused his attention back on the Gate of Tartarus and his incantations bore fruit. The rift started to close, the doors repairing themselves. Without the planetary alignment to give Circe’s spell the power to fully shatter the frontier between afterlives, Orgonos only had to put a bandage on a wound.

Helios had lost.

His plans in ruins, the [Demigod] let out a roar of fury and flew upward at a speed that matched Rook at his best. Kairos and his griffin barely had the time to fly out of Helios’ way before he hit the ceiling like an arrow. The stone shattered at the impact with boulders raining down on the people below.

“Take cover!” Kairos shouted as Rook swiftly dodged the falling rocks, his rider destroying a few with his spear. Thales, Sertorius, and Andromache attempted to protect their allies by either destroying the boulder with bombs or spells, but the whole ceiling started collapsing on their heads.

Still keeping the Gates closed with one hand, Orgonos summoned a barrier with the other. A sphere of green fire protected him and Kairos’ allies on the ground, the boulders turning to cinders when they touched it. Only Rook and his rider remained outside it, while Helios vanished through the hole he had made.

“Go, Kairos,” Orgonos all but ordered, his barriers protecting Kairos’ allies on the ground but also preventing them from following their leader. “I cannot deal with him and repair the barrier. Only you among the people here can extinguish this fire permanently.”

Only me? Kairos wondered before putting the two and two together. If Helios’ resurrective immortality counted as a magical defense, then [Legend Slayer] would bypass it. The Travian King sent one last glance at Andromache, Cassandra, and his companions; all of them answering his gaze with silent support.

This was his Quest.

This was his destiny.

With a final nod, Kairos faced the hole in the ceiling with newfound resolve. “Rook.”

His griffin responded with a roar of triumph as they followed Helios in his ascent. The cave collapsed behind them, burying Orgonos and his allies underneath tons of rubble.

The griffin rider and his mount followed after Helios as he opened a blazing path through the ruins of Hades’ palace. Kairos created an air tunnel to help them gain ground on the escaping [Demigod], following him through the blazing path he had opened between the dungeon’s third and second level.

Is he trying to escape? Kairos wondered as Rook dodged falling stones. Helios forced his way through every floor the party had worked so hard to descend through. I took him for the kind of warrior that fights to the bitter end.

After minutes of continuous ascent through Helios’ molten tunnel, Kairos and Rook finally emerged from the Necromanteion’s mountain. They flew underneath a starry sky and a new moon, briefly enjoying the feeling of a fresh breeze on their face.

Besides letting his allies rest, Kairos had chosen to delay the confrontation with Helios specifically until nightfall. He thought the [Demigod] might still draw strength from the sun outside and that darkness would weaken him.

Kairos couldn’t say if Helios had lost a measure of strength, but the night made him very visible. The [Demigod] had a large head start on his pursuers and used it to fly south, completely ignoring the camp at the dungeon’s entrance. By now Helios looked like the burning beacon of a lighthouse.

And from his flight’s direction…

“Kairos, he’s going after our nest!” Rook panicked.

Helios was moving towards Histria at full speed.

Kairos’ heart skipped a beat as he realized what the former sun god had in mind. “Rook, quick!” he ordered, bending the winds to create an air tunnel and erase friction. “He’s going to burn our city in revenge!”

Rook flew as swiftly as the winds his best friend commanded. A mad dash began as they pursued Helios across the whole island. At their speed, the world below became a blur and the trees on the ground looked no taller than grass.

Had Julia returned to Histria? Had his mother? These were Kairos’ only thoughts as he desperately clung to his spear.

Helios reached his sleeping capital city first.

The [Demigod] had moved high above the city among the clouds; too far for arrows and ballistae to even reach him. His light shone upon Histria like a new dawn, but one that promised only destruction. The fallen sun glanced at the Travian-Lycean fleet anchored at the port, the Foresight among them, before his eyes examined Kairos’ keep and the houses around it.

Having chosen his target, Helios opened his mouth.

A colossal ray of light descended upon Kairos’ fortress to incinerate it.

The Travian King thought time froze as he watched divine fire descend upon his home, with his wife and unborn child perhaps still inside.

But the countless wards set up inside his keep’s walls activated. Barriers and [Fire Protection] spells triggered all at once and shielded the building. The light of heaven glided off the magical defenses like water on a rock.

Kairos’ relief lasted only a second, as the furious Helios turned his attention to the rest of the city. His ray of light fell on the district closest to the keep and set houses ablaze. Stymphalian birds sounded the alarm and the city woke up in a panic as flames spread.

“Rook,” Kairos whispered. “If death faces us today, we answer.”

If they failed, hundreds of thousands would pay the price. They had to stop Helios now, even if it cost them their lives.

“Silly Kairos, when death calls you can only tell her one thing,” Rook replied with determination. “Not today!”

Kairos couldn’t help but smile. Watch us, Nessus, he thought as his griffin silently moved above Helios. Thanks to the cover of [Invisibility] and Kairos’ erasing all sound around them, the rampaging [Demigod] didn’t notice them; he was too occupied burning down people who couldn’t defend themselves.

“[Spellblade],” Kairos said as his griffin dived towards Helios below, his Skill empowering his spear. [Heartseeker] informed the Travian that their foe’s only vital areas were the armored heart and the small gap in his helmet.

The griffin rider and his mount fell upon the [Demigod] like a bird of prey on a dove, their speed so great that they could probably outpace an arrow. But even without being able to hear or see them, Helios sensed their presence somehow. The fallen sun god interrupted his assault to look up right as Kairos prepared to impale his foul heart.

Helios’ wings flapped and pushed him to the right; early enough to save his miserable life, but too late to avoid a collision. Kairos’ spear hit him in the left shoulder and tore it apart, cutting off the arm while at it. The griffin rider continued his descent as Helios’ wound showered him with his warm golden blood, the severed limb turning to ash.

Helios let out a roar of rage, his eyes and wings burning with sunlight. “Let there be light!”

A perfect fireball with black spots erupted behind Helios and soon grew as big as an ox. The sphere hovered in the air, its divine light dispelling Kairos and Rook’s invisibility. The night became as bright as day.

Helios has summoned a [Sun].

[Fire] and [Light] Resistance will be ignored. The light of truth shall dispel [Invisibility] and [Illusions]!

The second sun heralded in Prometheus’ prophecies, Kairos thought as the star grew larger and larger. If it reaches a certain size, it might engulf all of Histria.

“You have taken my daughter from me, and so I shall burn your kingdom to cinders in return,” Helios said with cold rage while raising his remaining arm. Smaller fireballs formed around his sun like burning moons, each of them the size of Rook. “This is divine justice.”

“Your ‘justice’ makes me nauseous!” Kairos replied with disdain as he and Rook circled the [Demigod] from a respectable distance, looking for an opening. “You could have burnt my fleet and crushed my ambitions, but instead you turned your gaze to helpless civilians! How is that justice?”

“We are the light that paves the way for mortals and burns sinners who stray from the path,” Helios declared with godly arrogance. “All we do is righteous.”

His fireballs swirled around Helios’ new sun, before throwing themselves as Kairos and Rook. The duo dodged them all and danced around the flames. From below, the battle probably looked like a rain of shooting stars around a second sun; Kairos wondered if Julia watched it from their home’s balcony, praying for his safety.

“You cannot live without divine order,” Helios declared, producing more and more flames as his sun grew to eclipse him in size. “You live short lives without learning from your mistakes. Only us immortals can grant you the heaven you seek.”

And now he shows his true face, Kairos thought in disdain. It seemed the fallen sun god was only honorable when it didn’t cost him anything. “Look around you, Helios. Look at what we built without you.”

“The shiniest nest there is!” Rook added as he skillfully dived underneath a fireball.

“At the heart of your words is fear!” Kairos continued as he dispelled Helios’ flames with his winds. “Your fear of being wrong! Fear of being unnecessary! You are the one who hasn’t learned anything!”

Nessus had used his immortality to grow wise and protect the future; Helios squandered it trying to recapture his glorious past, and Kairos would bury him with it.

The griffin rider sensed an opening and went back on the offensive. Rook danced around the projectiles and flew straight at Helios, his rider raising his [Anemoi Spear] while meeting his foe’s gaze. The light of the new sun hurt Kairos’ eyes, but he didn’t falter.

“[Telchine Sorcery]!” he said while trying to [Blind] Helios.

[Charisma] insufficient!

Helios let out a roar, a beam of light erupting from his sun and targeting Rook. The griffin narrowly managed to avoid a deadly blow by diving down, aborting the attack.

Though he was too far away to hit Helios with his spear, Kairos was close enough to activate [Stygian Curse]. He breathed a cloud of poison at the [Demigod] and had the winds blow it straight in his face. The surprised Helios could only wince as the Underworld’s miasma swallowed him whole, the poison seeping into his shoulder’s stump. His golden flesh turned purple as the curse of the Telchine took root.

You have [Poisoned] Helios.

“If you are so mighty, why would something as quaint as [Poison] affect you?” Kairos asked mockingly as Rook ran circles around the [Demigod]. On the ground, while many houses had caught fire, the blaze didn’t spread far; the city’s magical defenses and its fire brigade had quickly reacted to extinguish it.

Helios' body briefly shone with the same glow as a healing spell. Kairos’ [Magical Knack] told him he was attempting to call upon his phoenix immortality, to immolate himself and be reborn free from wounds and poison.

But he couldn’t. The light died inside Helios, his stump and rotting flesh remaining.

With [Legend Slayer] bypassing all magical defenses, nothing could purge the poison coursing in his veins.

Helios, former herald of the sun itself, would perish from an ailment. The [Demigod]’s confident expression turned to grim despair as he realized that the end had come.

“You have ruined everything, Kairos. All my daughter’s work has been reduced to cinders. My life is forfeit. The Golden Age will never return. Only ashes will remain…” Helios raised his last arm, his sun vibrating behind him. The artificial star had now grown as large as the Foresight. “Starting with yours.”

Helios lowered his hand.

His second sun started slowly falling down on the city below, with Kairos’ own keep as the main target.

The Travian king’s smugness turned to fear and then fury. They had to kill Helios now, in the hope it would destroy his conjured sun. “Rook!” he shouted. “All in!”

His griffin shrieked with determination as he made a circle in the skies, gathering momentum while the winds swirled around them. Helios positioned himself above his own sun to protect it from interference. A sword of light as long as the Foresight’s mast appeared in his hand.

This was the last joust.

Once he had become a blur, Rook charged straight at Helios while Kairos raised his spear for the fatal blow. They crossed the distance separating them from the [Demigod] in an instant, a boom echoing across the skies.

Helios let out a roar as he swung his sword, the weapon turning into an arc of fire and light cutting clouds in half. The wall of fire advanced to meet the griffin and his rider while the artificial sun bathed them in its radiance.

At the last second, Kairos turned his spear down and unleashed a burst of wind.

The blow tossed him off Rook’s back as his griffin dived down, the flames cutting only the empty space between them.

Helios looked up in panic as Kairos descended on him with his spear raised. The [Demigod] opened his mouth, and the same flames that burnt Histria swallowed its king.

There was no word to describe the pain that followed. Even though the winds swirled around him and deflected the worst of the fire, no barrier of air could stop the burning sunlight. Kairos felt his armor and clothes melt. His fingers burnt until only bones held his silvery spear. His hair caught fire, his skin was flayed off his smoldering flesh, and his eyes whitened. His entire body burnt while even his crown of hydra fangs failed to help him regenerate. Only his [Golden Fleece] cloak and his spear remained untouched by the divine fire, enduring even as their wielder melted alive.

It took all of Kairos’ strength not to scream. The pain eclipsed even that of the wounds he received from Jason of Iolcus. He became a burning corpse with barely a layer of flesh covering his bones and the struggling organs underneath. Death would have been a mercy, a release.

But Kairos endured. He kept his jaw shut even as his lips burnt off, refusing to scream, refusing to die. His subjects, his family, needed him to win. Nessus had given his life and dreams of oblivion to make sure Kairos would get his happy ending; and the captain refused to let his friend’s sacrifice go to waste.

When Kairos emerged from the flames, he only saw the dark shadow of Helios and the blinding light of the sun behind him. He no longer had eyelids to protect his eyes, but even as his vision weakened, he still noticed the fear in his foe’s gaze. One thought crossed Kairos’ mind as he gathered whatever strength remained in his melting muscle.

For Travia.

Kairos rammed the [Anemoi Spear] in the helmet’s gap and impaled Helios between the eyes.

The sheer power behind the blow tore off the [Demigod]’s head from his shoulders. The beheaded corpse and the mortally wounded Kairos both fell into the sun below them; the solar flames swallowed the Travian King, with the panicked shouts of Rook echoing in the background.

Was this how Kairos would die? On the verge of ascension, like his brother Taulas before him?

But as the light consumed him, Kairos didn’t feel pain. He felt warmth, yes, but not the burning inferno of Helios’ attack. It wasn’t the unforgiving light of the desert sun drying out the lands and rivers.

It was the sunlight that gave life to the world.

Kairos felt the light fill his bones, his very soul. A power surged inside him, regrowing his flesh and skin, infusing his body with new strength. The sun had turned into an egg gestating a new being.

Helios had lost most of his former glory, but an ember of his divinity remained. This flame found a new vessel in Kairos and ignited once more. It was more intoxicating than wine, more arousing than sex, more pleasurable than conquest.

Kairos felt like a god.

The sun imploded, its light and warmth absorbed into the Travian King’s body. Rook descended below him and Kairos safely on his back as the feeling of overwhelming power receded.

He was naked, wearing only his [Golden Fleece] and fanged crown. Everything else had melted or burnt away. His iris had turned golden and glowed in the dark. Though the winter air was chill, he felt naturally warm, his body healthier than ever.

His [Anemoi Spear] too had changed. The silver had turned to gold, the ancient artifact regaining a sliver of its lost power. Or maybe the strength of Kairos’ [Legend] had subsumed that of the weapon and fully bent it to his will.

Kairos had transcended humanity and became closer to the gods.

Congratulations. You have completed a Quest and achieved the rank of [Demigod]. You gained 30 Skill points and strengthened your Legend!

Your Legend evolved into [Sunslayer King]!

You upgraded your Personal Rank from [Hero] to [Demigod]. You can now progress up to level 80, and rank-up your stats all the way to the maximum S-Rank if you have sufficient SP. You earned the Legendary Skill: [Sun of War] and upgraded your other Legendary Skills.

You gained ten levels (total 68) and 40 Skill points.

[Sun of War]: Legendary Skill, 4 Stars. You have slain an old sun and taken its light for yourself. You are immune to hostile [Fire] and [Light] effects, and can see perfectly through [Invisibility] and [Illusions]. Additionally, you can imbue your weapons with solar energy at will, making them shine with sunlight and inflict additional [Light] and [Fire] damage; if hit by a solar weapon, any creature vulnerable to sunlight is instantly incinerated.

[Monster Lure] has been upgraded to [Monster King]: Legendary Skill, 4 Stars. You gain a degree of authority over monsters. Any [Hero] or lesser unintelligent monster with a lesser [Charisma] than yours instantly recognizes you as a powerful alpha and will submit to your will. Intelligent monsters with lower [Charisma] are not instantly dominated, but will be well-disposed towards you and stricken with [Terror] if they try to act against you. Finally, you can decide to activate an aura attracting local monsters to your location or turn it off at will.

[Legend Slayer] has been upgraded to [Godslayer]: Legendary Skill, 4 Stars. If you attack [Hero], [Demigod], or [God] rank enemies, you ignore their magical defenses and damage resistance.

[Shipbound: Foresight, Monstrous Ship] has been upgraded to [Shipbound: Foresight, Monstrous Admiral]: Legendary Skill, 4 Stars. When the [Foresight] sinks another ship, that vessel instantly rises from beneath the waves as a living ship with the same abilities as the [Foresight, Monstrous Ship]; these lesser ships are counted as a Three Stars Legendary Item, and can be ‘loaned’ to another captain of your choice (you can retract this loan at will). If the [Foresight, Monstrous Admiral] is destroyed, all its tributary ships will follow.

The [Foresight, Monstrous Admiral] is now a Four Stars Legendary Item. Once per day, it can utter a call that will instantly summon Cetae to its location. The number of sea monsters summoned and the speed at which they arrive depends on the circumstances.

Rook had also changed. His feathers had turned golden… no, into true gold. His eyes shone like twin stars and every movement of his wings left a trail of stardust behind.

“I have collected so many shinies that I became one!” Rook gloated as he extended his wings, light reflecting on his feathers. “Praise my brightness!”

Rook, Winged Sun

Legend: Sunslayer’s Dawn (Demigod).

Race: Solar Griffin (Mythic).

Class: Monster (Animal Companion, Divine Beast, Sunsteed).

Level: 67.

As they flew above Histria and watched the citizens extinguish the flames, Kairos glanced at the horizon. The sun—the true sun—was rising beyond the ocean, filling the winter air with its warmth.

The dawn belonged to him.

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A/N: chapter made possible by you, dear patrons.

Next one will be the second volume's epilogue.