In Eldoralth, grandmasters were the backbone of any war effort.
These were individuals of extraordinary strength, capable of single-handedly altering the outcome of a battle with their mere presence.
A single grandmaster could reduce entire cities to rubble in hours or face entire armies without faltering. Their abilities elevated them beyond warriors, they were living weapons.
Every race in Eldoralth, humanity included, understood their immense value. The number of grandmasters across the domain was significant but not limitless; they remained a rare and precious resource.
Each grandmaster represented decades, sometimes centuries, of rigorous training and experience. Losing even one was a devastating blow to any faction.
Which was why it was utterly shocking to see over thirty grandmasters fall, all at the hands of a single 17-year-old boy.
A rage-filled voice shattered the suffocating silence.
"HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU KILL THE SPIRITS!"
The heads of Veylor and the twins snapped to the side, their eyes landing on Elder Lorthan, who was seething with fury.
As soon as Veylor had shot into the skies, Elder Lorthan had instinctively grabbed Kaelan and retreated as far as he could.
He was utterly shocked, so shocked it defied explanation.
Of all people, Elder Lorthan had expected Atticus to emerge from the spiritual lake completely drained and helpless.
Even for a genius of unprecedented caliber, the synchronization process should have left him exhausted. If a battle were to break out, Elder Lorthan hadn't worried about being discovered.
After all, they were under the eternal canopy, a colossal tree emanating an incomprehensible amount of spiritual energy that blanketed the entire sector.
The spiritual energy was so dense that even Seraphina, a paragon, would be unable to detect any fluctuations unless she was physically present in the underground world herself.
But she was not.
Even after witnessing Atticus emerge from the lake unscathed, Elder Lorthan had remained unconcerned. If they all worked together, using their varied abilities, they should have been able to take him down.
That had been Elder Lorthan's confident belief.
However, the events that followed turned his blood ice-cold.
The moment Atticus stepped out of the lake, he nearly obliterated their three strongest men without hesitation.
Overwhelmed by a primal fear that surged through his experienced body, Elder Lorthan had instinctively grabbed Kaelan and created as much distance as possible. It turned out to be the best decision he had ever made.
But there was no relief in his heart.
As he watched the carnage unfold, all Elder Lorthan felt was unrelenting anger.
He didn't care about the grandmasters. In fact, even if millions of humans perished before his eyes, he likely wouldn't have batted an eye.
But watching the spirits, beings he had revered and worshipped his entire life? be annihilated before him?
Something inside him broke.
Elder Lorthan completely ignored Kaelan, who trembled behind him. With his eyes blazing red and fury burning through his veins, he opened his mouth.
"Manifest!"
His voice boomed like thunder, shaking the battlefield to its core.
The spiritual energy around him condensed, thickening to an oppressive degree. It grew suffocating, crushing down on everything like a massive invisible weight.
A blinding purple light erupted from his chest, piercing the underground sky like a violent explosion.
The light surged outward with incredible momentum, and from its center, a colossal form began to emerge.
The creature's body resembled a whale, its massive frame shimmering with translucent scales that refracted the purple glow like a living jewel.
Its presence exuded raw, unrestrained power, filling the battlefield with an overwhelming sense of dominance.
The spirit roared, its deafening cry echoing like a tempest, shaking the earth itself to its very foundation.
As the spirit expanded to its full size, the ground beneath Elder Lorthan's feet shattered, unable to withstand the force, and purple mist swirled around its form. The sight was awe-inspiring and terrifying all at once.
Every gaze turned to Elder Lorthan as his spirit towered over the entire battlefield.
Even Veylor and the twins high in the air stared at Elder Lorthan. Compared to the other grandmasters that Atticus had just annihilated, Elder Lorthan's spirit and spiritual energy were thicker, stronger.
A feeling of hope surged through their bodies. 'His speed was incredible, but we were never on the same level as the grandmasters he killed. We should be able to take him,' Veylor quickly analyzed the whole situation and started planning, gesturing to the twins behind him.
"Get ready to jump in," he commanded.
They both sent reluctant glances at Veylor. It was obvious they wanted nothing more than to move as far away from that monstrous boy as possible. But it seemed they had no choice.
However, they had each only taken their eyes off Atticus for a brief moment. A moment so brief it was akin to a blink.
But when they turned back to Atticus…
He was gone.
The world fell silent.
A surge of fear crept into their hearts. They had seen what happened the last time he disappeared, and that thought sent waves of panic through their entire beings. Even the colossal spirit's glow dimmed slightly.
Just as each of them was about to make a run for it, they heard it.
A muffled sound began to fill the space. It was faint at first, almost imperceptible, but it grew louder with each passing second, spreading through the quiet area like an echo.
Elder Lorthan's heart skipped a beat, his blood turning cold. That sound… it wasn't coming from a random place.
It was behind him.
Every single shred of anger he had been feeling vanished into thin air as he slowly turned. And then, he saw it.
Him.
The 17-year-old boy who had caused so much devastation.
Atticus held Kaelan by the mouth, lifting him off the ground effortlessly.
Kaelan's body trembled violently, his face twisted with utter fear as Atticus's grip dug into his skin so tightly it contorted his features. The boy's muffled screams barely escaped through Atticus's crushing hold.
Elder Lorthan froze.
Atticus and Elder Lorthan couldn't be said to be close. In fact, they had only just met a few moments ago, but it didn't change the fact that Elder Lorthan was supposed to be a trustworthy guide for Atticus.
They had met briefly, and Lorthan was an elder of the lake, someone Celestial herself had sent to guide him.
However, it was now glaringly obvious that the elder had betrayed him and instead planned to have him killed. Considering all of this, the elder had expected something, anything, from Atticus.
A word. A question.
A look of betrayal or disbelief.
But there was nothing.
Not a single word left Atticus's lips. He hadn't asked why. He hadn't even looked at him.
The elder's breath cracked as the truth set in.
He was already dead.
And the one who had condemned him hadn't even spared him a glance.
All of Atticus's attention was on Kaelan, his cold, icy gaze fixed on the trembling boy.
It wasn't directed at Lorthan, but the elder could still feel it, the bone-chilling coldness of that gaze as it bore down on Kaelan in his arms.
Kaelan's fate was sealed.
Atticus was going to kill him.
Lorthan's mind reeled, his body frozen in place.
"What a monster."