They both stared at each other for a while.
Grey thought to himself.
"This bastard… he saved my life twice ha…! seeing him now makes me want to kill him less."
His fist tightened as he frowned. Yet part of his mind was elsewhere.
Back at the Ivory Waste, Marcus had been walking toward the wounded Grey. He still wanted to continue their fight, even though it was already clear who the winner was.
Marcus dashed forward, his gaze dark.
Grey staggered back—but then he saw something.
Rather, the system that had been silent suddenly responded.
"The egg of the last Stormborn is hatching."
Grey froze.
The last… Stormborn?
"The egg of the last Stormborn is hatching."
Hearing that familiar voice only he could hear made him wince for a moment.
And in that instant, Marcus closed in.
But then—
A golden egg appeared between both combatants.
It cracked open unlike anything Grey had ever seen.
From it emerged a majestic creature formed entirely of golden light.
A golden eagle.
Its tail feathers shimmered with Phoenix-like brilliance, and neon-purple sigils burned across its wings and feathers. Its body radiated a brilliant gold and violet glow.
The newborn released a wave of light upon its birth.
Lightning struck outward, forcing Marcus back as he grunted.
Grey, still wounded and stunned, slowly stretched out his left hand toward the creature.
Its glowing eyes locked onto him.
It gently pecked his palm.
In that instant, lightning surged violently—spreading through the surrounding energy, even the power resisting Marcus's charge.
It all flowed into Grey's arm in a burning surge.
"Gah—!"
He yelled and pulled his hand back.
But it was already too late.
A contract had formed.
A crest like a tattoo appeared on his palm, then spread up his arm and across his injured shoulder and back like a jagged lightning patch.
The lightning-patterned mark pulsed faintly with the same golden-purple glow as the creature.
The wound on his back began to heal.
The eagle was small—no larger than a normal bird—but compared to its presence, it felt overwhelming.
Grey exhaled slowly, opening one eye.
"A baby… so you are the last Skyborn's daughter?"
A system window appeared.
*The last Skyborn's egg has hatched.*
*A bond has been formed with the last Skyborn's kin.*
*A name is required.*
Grey looked at the creature strangely.
A summon, huh…
The eagle circled him excitedly, chirping without care for the deadly situation around them.
"Pa… Pa… Papa."
Grey coughed—not from pain, but pure shock, as though something had caught in his throat.
"…What?"
He stared at her.
"Sorry, Mom… but what the hell?"
He scratched his head.
Then sighed.
"…Fine… I'll call you Sky. How's that?"
"Sky…! Sky…"
The she glowed brightly, clearly delighted.
Grey couldn't help but smile faintly.
"Great… seems you like it."
Suddenly—
Marcus moved again.
A devastating strike came down—
But golden lightning erupted and blocked it.
Grey and Sky were pushed back by the impact.
Marcus landed lightly, grinning.
"…So you have a summon. Cute. You should see mine."
A crimson flash tore through the sky.
Steel met steel.
Grey's wooden-gold sword clashed with Marcus's dagger artifact.
The forest exploded into motion—attack after attack, shockwaves ripping through trees and ground.
Grey clicked his tongue.
This bastard… I thought I saved him from that husk. He was just holding back.
Marcus was far stronger than he had shown before.
Grey blocked a dagger aimed at his chest and was sent crashing into a tree.
"Gah!"
He winced.
He could have killed that monster anytime. He didn't even use his aura or Ekrin…
Without warning, a red aura surged toward him.
Sky intercepted it with lightning, taking the hit for him.
Grey ducked another slash, barely avoiding a kick that shattered the ground beside him.
Marcus was relentless.
Sky began to adjust—one of her newly awakened abilities.
Whenever Grey was about to be struck, she would switch positions with him through bound teleportation, turning into pure lightning just before impact.
Marcus clicked his tongue.
"Tch… annoying."
Grey realized it immediately.
This combo… we can survive—but not win.
Sky covered his blind spots. Grey handled what he could. Together, they kept Marcus at bay.
The forest turned into a battlefield of gold lightning and crimson flashes.
But Marcus began to change.
His speed increased again.
Purple Ekrin now coated his entire body.
Grey barely registered it.
One moment Marcus was far away—
The next, he was already at Grey's neck.
Sky glowed, preparing to switch—
Too slow.
Marcus's kick was already there.
And then—
A massive reptilian monster erupted into the space between them.
It roared, unleashing a blast of fire that shattered the forest around them.
Trees collapsed. The ground cracked.
It was the same terror they had encountered before—the one they fled during Noah's order to retreat.
Grey dropped from above near Sky.
Marcus skidded back across the earth, crossing his arms in defense as debris flew everywhere.
The monster turned its elongated armored head toward him.
Its scales burned crimson-orange as it unleashed a beam of flames of magma.
Marcus narrowed his eyes.
"You fiend… how dare you interrupt my battle with my new friend?"
He raised both hands, after he had retract the dagger into his system.
Aura surged into his left hand.
Ekrin into his right.
Trying to merge Aura and Ekrin inside the body was madness. A failed attempt meant death—either through overload or complete self destruction… success would grant you a major power burst. But would still lead to quivck death.
But Marcus didn't fuse them inside his body.
He fused them through his hands.
Then—
Everything went dark.
His hands opened as if spiraling something unseen.
They looked charred… ancient… as though reality itself had burned into them.
Cracks of light formed across his palms.
He wasn't grabbing the enemy.
He was grabbing space itself.
At the center, a white-hot singularity ignited—a four-pointed star of collapsing force.
Reality screamed inward.
Then he crushed his hands shut.
The attack released.
Space folded violently.
The monster's fire beam was swallowed and shattered.
The impact blasted Marcus upward.
Grey saw his chance.
"Sky—now!"
She immediately transformed into lightning and shot away toward the direction of camp.
Grey followed, grabbing Marcus mid-air as the monster roared behind him.
A bolt of lightning replaced what would have been a fatal strike, and the terror got zapped.
Moments later—
They reappeared near the camp.
Grey threw Marcus onto the ground and recalled Sky, who reformed beside him in a flash of light.
Grey exhaled heavily.
"Finally… I don't owe you anything anymore."
He wiped his face.
"I can't believe you tried to kill me after dragging me there. But it also felt like I should have expected it from a mile away." He hit his head softly. "Jeez… such a moron."
Marcus sat on the ground, exhausted but still conscious.
"It was a battle."
Grey glared.
"That's not a battle—that's called a duel. A friendly duel. You know… where people don't die."
Marcus frowned as he slowly stood.
"That's not how it works in my family."
Grey froze.
"…Haa? What do you…?
He stared at him for a moment.
Then sighed.
'Only God knows what these nobles are raised into…'
"Forget it. I don't want to know."
He walked past Marcus.
"Just stay away from me."
Marcus watched him, then smiled faintly.
"Interesting…."
For a moment, his desire to kill Grey faded—replaced by curiosity.
Maybe this wasn't just another opponent.
Maybe this was something more.
He stood and followed.
Back at the duplex, Marcus sat quietly, thinking.
'Next time… maybe another duel, less bloody though.'
Then Noah walked in, already dressed. They were all surprised to see him. He had some stuff to take care of.
He told he was heading out.
Grey immediately asked to come along.
Noah didn't refuse.