Chapter 2388: The death of the Scarlet King (I)
Cain clenched his teeth and raised his fists, preparing himself for another battle. He was exhausted and baldly wounded, but it did not matter. This was not the first time he had to fight after burning all his energy, and just like those battles, he would win no matter what!
"There is no need for that. There will be no more fighting."
The voice did not come from the towering phantom above, but from the soul of Sozing itself.
The translucent figure of the Immortal Knight hovered above the ruined city, a faint smile on his face as he gazed across the shattered streets before turning his attention to the Scarlet King.
"This place was meant to be our stronghold," Sozing said calmly. "A foothold for a future campaign across the Nine Empyrean Suns Universe. No one at the Third Realm should have been able to break it... but we came prety damm close."
There was genuine amusement in his voice, almost pride, as he surveyed the devastation. Cain, however, did not relax for even a moment. His stance remained firm, his senses stretched to their limits as he used every second to recover whatever power he could.
Sozing noticed—and simply shrugged.
"Do as you wish. The battle is over," he continued. "I came here prepared to die, but also prepared to defeat you. I could have done that either by destroying you outright... or by being defeated and activating my final card."
As he reached that point, Sozing turned his gaze toward the massive Reaper-like figure looming above, his gaze cold and merciless, ready fulfill its goal.
"I truly wanted to defeat you in a head-on battle," he admitted, a trace of regret in his voice. "But I suppose I’ll have to leave the rest to Kazo."
A sense of resolution and success shone in the Immortal Knight’s spectral eyes as he looked back at Cain and smiled radiantly.
"If there is an afterlife," Sozing said softly, "I hope we meet again. This was the most fun I’ve had in a billion years."