The moment the light touched the horizon, Duke Orion's breath stopped for a second.

It wasn't the sheer brightness that stunned him, but the aura emitting from it.

To him, and to everyone else, the light felt warmer, even though it looked devastating, it's not causing any harm to them.

It was as if it was meant to be like this. In the face of absolute darkness, a true star does not hide its radiance. It forces the world to witness it.

He did not know why that crossed his mind. He did not want to acknowledge what the light reminded him of.

But his body reacted before he could form the thought clearly.

Orion's eyes moved back to the crater, and for a moment, he could not see anything inside. The center was drowned in pure radiance. Only a single shadow stood against that brightness.

A silhouette holding a long white sword.

The ground beneath him trembled. And the sky above him ignited in gold.

Orion's eyes widened as the memories struck him. He had read this description before. He had seen it in ancient records and in stories passed down for centuries.

A column of golden white light?

A radiance that erased darkness at its root?

There's only one existence described in every tale of the one who stood closest to godhood.

The Moon Calamity, Everbright.

The resemblance of the pillar of light was so perfect that Orion stepped off his horse without realizing it.

His feet moved on their own toward the crater.

"Impossible…" he muttered, barely hearing his own voice.

Even the soldiers whispered among themselves, but Orion barely processed them.

As the light finally began to dim, the pillar thinned and broke apart into drifting particles. Golden sparks scattered across the sky, falling like gentle rain.

Orion looked across the crater and found Veronica.

Her expression was a strange mixture of pride and something…. something close to worry.

'That look…' he thought, he had never seen her look at anyone like that.

'Is that regret or pride?' Orion didn't get it.

He turned to the center again.

Leon's figure cleared through the fading glow. His body was fully visible now.

Light still radiated from him in a slow pulse phase, with each heartbeat, it sent a faint hum through the sword he carried.

Leon wasn't looking at any of them, he wasn't even acknowledging their presence.

His attention was entirely fixed on the ground in front of him. Where a small pile of white ash rested.

It was the ash that replaced the boy who had been there seconds ago.

The boy whose skin had turned transparent, whose mana core had twisted into something foul a second ago, was reduced to ash by the same light that hadn't harmed anyone else here.

Orion stared in disbelief.

He was starting to understand.

With that attack… With that power…

"With that… light?" he whispered.

His mind tried to reject the idea.

But the light affinity was a myth. And none in several centuries ever wielded it before. The one who was last seen using it had long ascended to godhood.

There was no other explanation.

"That was light affinity," he said again, this time with full awareness.

Leon looked down at the ash with narrowed eyes, then turned away.

He sheathed the white sword calmly, without a single tremor of hesitation, and began climbing out of the crater, towards Veronica.

Orion just watched all of this. And with him, half of the royal knights and shoulders were the witness.

– – –

Leon climbed out of the crater, dusting his sleeve once as if nothing unusual had happened.

The moment his boots reached the upper ground, his eyes drifted to Eula first. She stood completely frozen, staring at him as if he had just committed the biggest mistake of the century.

Her expression screamed one clear thing. 'What were you even thinking?!'

Leon almost sighed. He could read her without effort.

Professor Theo stood beside her, mouth slightly open, eyes wide behind his monocoles. He looked like someone who had waited his entire life to finally witness something worth remembering on his deathbed. If this was the kind of sight that gave old men a reason to stay alive, then Leon had just added ten more years to his lifespan.

Leon resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

Of course he knew what he had done. He regretted it a little, anyone would after realizing a pillar of light shot up from him to the sky above. A light that every citizen across several towns probably saw. A light described in the old tales of Everbright.

He knew damn well that the rumors would spread soon enough.

Still, Leon smirked to himself.

'That turned out perfectly.'

He exhaled once and walked toward Veronica, who had been waiting with that unreadable expression of hers.

"I stopped the core corruption, and the Demon God's vessel is destroyed," Leon said plainly.

He purposely used the word destroyed. He had no intention of killing the vessel himself because of the Demon God's curse. He was not foolish enough to test that rule.

Veronica looked at him and smiled.

"Yes. That was beautiful."

Leon stared at her for a second.

Beautiful? From what angle? He had literally turned a child's body into ash. What part of that was beautiful.

He decided to leave it alone and moved on. "Is there anything else?" he asked.

"No. That was all," Veronica replied before turning to Eula. "First Princess, did you see everything?"

Eula nodded. "I did. But I still do not understand why I had to be the witness. The knights were arriving. They could have been the witnesses too."

"That will not do," Veronica said, shaking her head. "Your role was the most important here."

"What do you mean by that?" Eula asked, clearly lost.

"You will understand soon enough," Veronica answered. She faced Leon and Professor Theo next. "Leon, you must be tired. Let us get you home. And Professor, thank you for coming. Please send all the reports to the Blood Tower by tomorrow morning."

"Understood, my lady," Theo said, still looking like he wanted to kneel before Leon and ask for an autograph.

Leon listened quietly.

He noticed Eula glancing at him every few seconds. She understood it too. She had figured out Veronica's intention.

Leon sighed inside. 'I was careless. No… we underestimate her.'

He finally accepted it.

He had been naive to think he could hide it from his sister. From the way things unfolded, it was clear Veronica had ensured they avoided a massive accusation by controlling the whole narrative.

It was impressive, to the point that Leon felt jealous of her intelligence.

After the conversation ended, several royal assassins appeared and surrounded Eula.

Veronica gave her one last instruction before they escorted her back to the castle.

Eula did not resist. She had realized the same truth as Leon.

Both of them got played today. By Veronica, and by the goddess guiding her.

After the assassins vanished into the shadows with both Eula and Professor Theo, the area fell unusually quiet. Only Leon and Veronica remained standing at the edge of the crater, looking toward the other side.

There were the Valentine knights, there were the royal knights. And at the very front, Duke Orion stood with his arms stiff at his sides, staring at them as if demanding an explanation.

Veronica sneered under her breath.

"Congrats, dear brother. You will get to see his real side now."

Leon's eye twitched.

"What?"

He did not like her phrasing at all, but he could not deny the strange feeling rising in his chest. Something heavy felt like it had been lifted off. It irritated him that he noticed it.

Veronica was still watching their father. Orion had snapped out of his shock and was now circling around the crater instead of walking through it. All the knights followed behind him, clearly confused by the sudden detour.

Without looking at Leon, Veronica continued, "Mother will be delighted. You managed to get close to both princesses today."

Leon stared at her in disbelief.

"Are you seriously joking at this time?"

She shrugged.

A moment later Orion finally reached them. His horse halted abruptly, and he jumped down without grace, running the rest of the distance. He stopped right in front of Leon, his eyes scanning him from head to toe.

When he found no injury, he exhaled and brought his hand to his temples.

He did not speak to Leon. His first words were directed at Veronica.

"Tell me I am misinterpreting this."

Veronica looked at Leon once before answering.

"Not at all, Father. You witnessed a future today."

Orion's mouth hung open again.

"So it was light affinity."

He turned to Leon and, for the first time in several years, asked a question he had never once bothered to ask him before.

"Are you hurt anywhere?"

Leon blinked.

Something about the question felt genuine. It was not forced.

Not because Orion suddenly saw value in him.

It was the tone, the shaken look in his eyes.

"I am fine," Leon replied automatically.

"That is good," Orion said. Then his expression shifted sharply. His brows tightened, and the anger followed. It wasn't directed at Leon but straight at Veronica.

Leon raised a brow at the sight. It was rare to see this.

"How could you push him to this extent," Orion said. "You know the consequences. That bastard of a king will call him soon and—"

"Father." Veronica's golden eyes sharpened. "I adore Leon. And I do not give away something I adore that easily."

Orion swallowed hard. He understood the hidden meaning in her tone. He realized she had planned more than she let on.

"What else did you do," he asked quietly. "No… what are you even trying to do?"

Veronica smiled with full confidence and said.

"I am saving him."

.

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[A/N: 2 more chapters if we cross 500 PS in 24 hours!]

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