Raa's attack was a beam of yellow light, but one more lethal and sustained. Raa staggered his head again and again, attempting to kill Erynor; Erynor, however, was barely able to dodge the fatal strike, twisting and spinning over and over. Things had grown worse: if Raa's beam ever struck even part of Erynor's body, there would be no chance of survival—he would be consumed until he turned to ash, scattered by the wind.
Rin decided to act rather than stand by idle and merely watch. He flew into the air to unleash his long-range assaults of prismatic light spires and razor-sharp wind blades, but to no avail; his attacks scarcely stirred Raa. Raa's thick, bronze hide served as an impenetrable shield. Rin cursed incessantly:
"Damn! None of my strikes affect him… what can I possibly do now?"
At that moment, Erynor dropped to the ground and sprinted with all his might to evade Raa's beam. He had thought that on solid earth he might dodge more easily, but the opposite proved true: Raa's beam tracked him even more precisely on land than in the sky. The beam cleaved the golden sands in Erynor's footsteps, the heat searing them like black-and-red volcanic lava. If this continued, the entire western desert might fracture into lone desert isles.
Erynor strove desperately to put distance between himself and his comrades for their safety, but at that instant Rin hovered directly above Raa. Anger writhed across Rin's features as he climbed ever higher, until he reached the gray clouds obscuring the crimson moonlight. Erynor saw Rin there, charging a bolt of lightning from the clouds into his sword, which glowed continuously with electric sparks.
Challenging, Rin cried out: "Enough of this—one strike and it's over!"
He launched himself downward at breakneck speed from the clouds, as if he were the very essence of light. From afar he resembled a meteor streaking through a serene, full-moon night.
Boom! A violent impact made everyone's heads swivel instantly. Raa crashed into the ground, carving a massive crater into the golden sand as dust electrified with lightning shrouded the view. Rin landed atop Raa's head, his sword embedded in Raa's skull, and he smiled the smile of victory. Raa's entire body quivered from the force of Rin's blow.
Rin glanced at his blade and saw it had only pierced Raa's thick bronze skin. Despondency clouded his face. Raa's eyes were closed—yet just as Rin thought he had won, those eyes flared open with a blood-red glow. Rin shuddered in fear and recoiled.
Raa rose instantly, unfurling his wings and unleashing a metallic roar of fury that felled everyone unconscious—even the winged serpents couldn't withstand it. Only Rin remained aware, blood gushing from all seven of his wounds, his vision a blur of red. He muttered to himself:
"Hold on… endure… I can't fall now, please body, just hold on. I must stay conscious to protect them… I cannot collapse now."
Then Raa lashed out with his tail, sending Rin soaring into the sky. Boom! Rin crashed to the ground, arms splayed helplessly, staring only at the crimson moon's red radiance as the clouds drifted on. He lay in pitiful state: his sword lay by his right hand, his finger too weak even to reach it. His face was drenched in blood; he coughed gout after gout of it. He resolved to surrender and accept his fate, writhing as he whispered:
"If I'm to die today… I never expected it so soon… I swore false vows to myself that I would annihilate all demonic creatures, but that was mere rage-driven talk after I gained some power… I'm a failure; I couldn't even protect those I love… Father, Mother… I'm sorry. Your foolish son couldn't protect or avenge you… I hope you forgive me when we meet again."
Raa crept forward slowly, readying to finish him. Rin, however, waited eagerly for the killing blow. His heart was calm, free of fear or regret—he had done all he could, but fate is merciless: the strong devour the weak; such is the law of this world. He accepted his destiny as a weakling who could not keep his promise.
Rin taunted: "If you've come this far… kill me quickly!" He raised his head slowly, eyes locked on Raa's.
"Finally you've arrived… kill me now— I hate waiting for death. If it's to happen, let it be now!"
Raa bellowed, drenching Rin's face in spittle. Rin spat back bitterly, "At least I'll die first… I'm glad of that; I can't bear to see my friends die before me." He dropped his head to the ground and fixed his gaze on the crimson moon: "This moon really is something special… come on, Raa—aren't you going to kill me?"
Raa opened his maw to fire again. Rin had closed his eyes, awaiting his end—when suddenly everything changed.
Rin opened his eyes to find Selene standing before Raa, arms outstretched behind her. Raa paid no heed; one beam could kill them both in an instant. Rin's expression remained grim:
"What are you doing? Have you gone mad? I wanted only death… to avoid seeing you die… and now you bring us both into this!" he cried, coughing blood again and again.
Selene looked at him with a sad smile: "I'm sorry, Rin, but I cannot bear to see you die alone. If we are to die, we will die together—that is better."
Rin replied sorrowfully, "What are you saying? I want to die alone… I don't need someone else to die with me. I did my best to defeat this demonic monster, but all my efforts failed. I couldn't protect anyone—I'm nothing but a failure…"
Rin's eyes welled with tears as his emotions overflowed. Selene's own sorrow deepened; she stepped forward and embraced him:
"Don't despair… I have always seen you as a hero, and I still do. Let us live our final moments together—smile, and let us die happy."
Rin surrendered to her plea, and they resolved to face death side by side. Raa was still charging his next, deadlier attack. Rin and Selene grinned at him—but before Raa could strike, everything changed…
Theron intervened, cleaving Raa's skull with one blow of his giant axe, sealing his mouth shut. Shock registered on Rin's and Selene's faces. Theron declared, "As long as I draw breath, no creature shall harm a single hair on my daughter's head!" Though he knew he stood no chance against the dragon Raa, he refused to yield while his only child lay on death's brink.
Theron's power had reached some 7,400 in a single day—perhaps a record in the history of this demonic calamity. Theron and Raa clashed in brutal melee: Theron was utterly exhausted, his blows slowing; he could not hold out long. Raa, in total command, attacked and evaded with ease—the disparity was stark.
Amid the fray, Raa struck Theron; it seemed Theron was but a puppet to be torn at will. Blood gushed from his chest as Raa's claws rent it open, his rib bones laid bare. Selene stood in shock, unable to comprehend the carnage.
Theron coughed blood into his hand pressed to his wound, then murmured in despair, staring at the gore:
"I will not last much longer… this must be my end."
He lifted his head to the heavens and whispered one word: "I will die."
Rin watched with an impassive face, but Selene was paralyzed, crawling toward her father, sand-smeared and trembling. Rin cursed hoarsely:
"Why must everything horrible happen at once? Every muscle of my body screams with pain… all my bones are shattered… I can do nothing but watch her die."
Tears streamed down Rin's cheeks, helplessness choking him. Selene's face, smudged with sand, twitched in terror. Raa's fangs were but inches from her; a breeze stirred her purple hair.
As Raa lunged to bite Selene, Theron stepped in front of her, blood raining at his feet like crimson hail, forming a pool under him. He glanced at Rin and smiled weakly: "Please… protect my daughter." Then Raa bit into Theron's torso; only his legs remained upright before his child. He died there, before Selene's eyes.
Rin crawled forward to reach his sword, gasping for breath. He spoke to his blade:
"Do not fail me… we have fought together through everything; we can overcome this. I will not give up. Theron entrusted me with his daughter's safety—I could never forgive myself if I failed."
Rin's sword flared, and his consciousness was drawn elsewhere.
He opened his eyes to find himself above the clouds in a sky of brilliant blue, the world hushed beneath him in serene stillness. He felt a tranquility that calmed his mind.
Behind him floated a woman resembling Selene but older, drifting in the blue expanse in a long white gown. She was breathtakingly beautiful, beyond description.
Rin could only stare in awe. He stammered, "What is happening? Where am I, and who are you?"
The girl halted her drift and faced him: "It matters not who I am or this place. Are you certain you seek only power?"
Rin regarded her strangely, then bowed his head in sorrowful resolve: "Yes, I want power—to protect those I love and to avenge these demonic beasts. I must become stronger. This world honors only the strong; the weak have no place in this vast, merciless realm."
She looked at him with pity: "Very well. I will aid you. I am your sword from this moment onward; we shall be one and fight together. But beware—the price of power is great."
Rin answered without hesitation: "I care not for its cost. Even if it lasts only this moment, I will be satisfied. I will strive unrelentingly to grow stronger. I will never yield."
She extended her hand; he took it. Their palms glowed, light scattering around them in blinding brilliance. Rin shut his eyes against the radiance—and when he opened them again, he lay on the battlefield once more, groggy with pain as if time had stopped. Raa still gnawed on Theron's remains, while Selene had lost all hope.
Rin stared at his right hand to see his sword floating above his chest. His body rose slowly, starting at his torso and lifting his head. His sword flared and then drove itself into his chest—slowly, without blood or pain—its light accelerating until it dissipated. Rin stood standing, unscathed, as though reborn. With every step he took, he left a trail of shimmering lights.
At that moment, Raa prepared to strike Selene; she shut her eyes in dread. Yet when she reopened them, she saw Rin upright, his sword jammed between Raa's jaws.
"Rin… is that really you?" she gasped.
Now Rin bore a new aura—his face glowed, his garments pristine. He spoke to Raa, eyes unwavering:
"Do you know, Selene, that there is life and death, the sun and the moon, white and black, day and night, light and darkness, beginning and end? None of what we have endured thus far can extinguish the flame of my spirit. Today will not be my end. Everything in this world exists with purpose; nothing is in vain."
Selene stared in wonder; the sight was magnificent.
Raa struggled against the blade. Rin raised his hand to the sky. Boom! He struck Raa's jaw as if a colossal hammer had fallen on his head. The sword vanished from Raa's mouth, and he staggered, dazed, wings lifting for flight.
Rin turned to Selene with a reassuring smile: "Fear not; all will be well."
He soared like an arrow toward Raa. They faced off, blade and beam poised. Raa opened his maw to unleash another beam—but Rin did not flinch. As Raa fired, Rin advanced, splitting the beam in two with his sword, then launched an inner fireball that detonated in a rainbow explosion, forcing them both back. Rin stepped back as though he willed it. The explosion painted the sky with iridescent hues.
Rin then closed to melee, smiling as he evaded Raa's attacks with balletic grace, leaving trails of multicolored light like a magical performance. His sword and body had become one. In a flash, he drew the blade through his finger tip and thrust it into Raa's left wing, blood gushing and throwing Raa off balance. Without pause, Rin withdrew and impaled Raa's abdomen with his other foot, then grasped the sword with both hands—Boom!—he drove it into Raa's back, creating a deep crater as Raa fell. Yet he rose again, furious, red eyes blazing.
Raa lunged forward, but thorn-like blades erupted around Rin like a spiked shield. Raa paused, then opened his maw for another strike, but Rin was ready: he drew his sword in his right hand and hurled a massive fireball. Raa countered with a plasma orb. Boom! The clash of fire and lightning exploded in a dazzling rainbow burst.
From afar, Selene watched, joy shining on her face. Rin smiled as his sword vanished into his body, his right hand crackling with lightning, his left ablaze with fire. He brought his hands together, forming a palm-sized sphere, then launched it at Raa's face. Boom! The sky blossomed in brilliant, vivid colors.
Raa's skull was shattered, but he remained standing, more dreadful than before. Rin laughed off his terror. He called out: "From this moment on, I will live my life in the best way I can—joyfully and peacefully."
He closed in for close-quarters strikes even as Raa's attacks grew stronger and denser. Still, it made no difference; the scales tipped ever in Rin's favor. He dodged Raa's blows as if performing on a stage, a beautiful spectacle.
One by one, the others awoke to behold this wondrous sight. After despair, fear, and horror came joy and delight. Rin danced through the sky like a free bird, their eyes alight with excitement.
Then, in the blink of an eye, Rin dropped back to earth, while Raa hovered above. Rin drew a sword from his right hand and hurled it like a lightning-covered spear. Raa dodged, but Rin did not intend to strike. The sword slowed as though poised to fall—directly above Raa.
In that instant, to everyone's astonishment, Rin appeared atop Raa, sword in hand. Some thought he had merged with it. Then Raa's blood erupted, blossoming like a red lotus on his back. No one understood, and thought no more of it. The lotus shape was so beautiful they forgot their worries as they watched Rin play in the sky.
Finally, Rin vanquished the king of beasts, the dragon Raa. Raa's corpse collapsed as Rin absorbed its blood into a lotus blossom. It was an unforgettable display, forever engraved in their memories.