After Trido James infiltrated the competition, the Kingdom of Salimar entered a dangerous stage it had not experienced for decades.
Trido was convinced that the royal family of Salimar, along with the Kryo family, were responsible for his father's death. It was not a foolish accusation. The suspicion had grown inside him since the wedding of Prince John and Lara Kars. During one of the meetings that day, he noticed the king whispering secretly with Lowy Kryo, the head of the Kryo family, as if they were hiding a dangerous secret.
From that moment on… Trido began planning.
When rumors began spreading, the King of Salimar moved quickly. He prepared a large group of royal guards and personally headed toward the royal palace. At the same time, the commanders belonging to the Eternal Dawn Council sent an urgent message to the Emperor, informing him about what was happening in the Kingdom of Salimar.
Meanwhile, Lowy Kryo returned to his palace.
But what he saw there made his blood run cold.
A massive army stood waiting outside.
Rows upon rows of soldiers stretched as far as the eye could see, their banners fluttering in the wind and their eyes burning with the thirst for battle.
A heavy silence fell.
Then everyone realized the truth.
Trido James had planned everything in advance. He knew he could never face both the royal family and the Kryo family alone, so he sought the support of the Kingdom of Castera, Salimar's long-time enemy. Soon, the armies of Castera united with the forces of the James family.
The King of Salimar stepped forward before his army, his eyes burning with anger, and declared in a voice that shook the battlefield:
"Trido James… You brought foreign armies into your homeland. This is a betrayal that will never be forgiven."
But Trido did not retreat.
He was still young, yet his eyes held the cold determination of a man who had already made his decision.
The armies lined up against each other.
The air became heavy.
The ground trembled beneath the steps of thousands of soldiers.
Then…
War erupted.
Swords clashed, battle cries filled the sky, and soldiers fell one after another. It was a brutal battle that showed no mercy.
On one side stood the armies of Salimar and its noble families.
On the other stood the James family, supported by the forces of the Kingdom of Castera.
As the battle continued, the balance slowly began to tilt in favor of the King of Salimar and Lowy Kryo. They possessed nearly ten powerful commanders in the Ruin Body Realm, and their strength was enough to turn the tide of war.
The armies of Castera and the James family began to retreat.
Hope started to return to the soldiers of Salimar.
But suddenly…
Everything changed.
In the distance, enormous armies appeared, marching slowly toward the battlefield.
The banners were unfamiliar.
They were the armies of the Kingdom of Nirafin.
They had come to support the James family and the Kingdom of Castera.
At that moment, the King of Salimar understood the terrifying truth.
They were now facing two entire kingdoms.
Defeat was approaching.
But before the three great armies could clash again…
The sky suddenly turned dark.
The sun disappeared behind a massive black cloud, and a frightening silence spread across the battlefield.
Then…
A mysterious light split the sky.
A strange figure slowly descended from above.
His presence alone was enough to freeze the commanders in place.
Everyone lowered their heads in respect.
He was one of the ministers of the Normadia Empire.
A direct envoy of the Emperor himself… a man said to possess a mind more dangerous than any army.
Minister Sumiel walked calmly between the armies, as if the battlefield were nothing more than an ordinary road.
He then opened an imperial decree and spoke in a calm voice filled with undeniable authority:
"By the order of the Emperor of Normadia… all parties must cease fighting immediately."
Silence spread across the battlefield.
No one dared to oppose the Emperor's command.
He continued:
"A council will be held immediately to resolve this conflict."
As soon as the imperial decree was announced, the armies withdrew.
The King of Salimar, the King of Castera, and the King of Nirafin, along with Trido James and Lowy Kryo, headed toward the imperial council hall of the Normadia Empire.
As for the other great families, such as Novera and Veradis, they chose to remain silent and stay away from the conflict.
Far from all of this chaos…
Tenebras was fighting his own battle.
After losing his duel against Grace Kars, he returned to his room carrying the heavy weight of defeat.
He closed the door behind him.
And from that day on…
He never left his room.
He sat in the darkness, no longer caring about what was happening in the world outside.
Yet deep inside him…
Something was slowly beginning to awaken.