The battlefield fell silent.
Daniel and McLone stood nearly twenty meters apart.
Between them lay broken stone, shattered weapons, and the bodies of defeated ghost soldiers.
The wind carried ash through the ruined academy.
McLone rested her spear on her shoulder.
"You've changed."
Daniel didn't reply.
"You've stopped fighting with anger."
Still no answer.
McLone smiled.
"Good."
"That makes this more interesting."
She disappeared.
BOOOOM!
Daniel barely raised his sword in time.
The spear slammed against it with incredible force.
The impact drove Daniel backward, carving a deep trench through the courtyard.
He planted his feet.
Stopped.
Then pushed back.
The two weapons separated with a deafening explosion.
McLone spun gracefully through the air before landing lightly on the broken roof of a building.
"You've become faster."
Daniel looked up.
"So have you."
She laughed.
"I haven't even started."
In the distance, the Great Eight fought desperately.
Felix punched through dozens of ghost soldiers.
Each strike released a burst of blue lightning.
Noah created another stone barrier.
Zoya froze the enemies climbing over it.
Lily's enchanted arrows flew one after another, each finding its target.
Lucy healed everyone she could reach, despite her fading strength.
David closed his eyes.
The whispers guided every movement.
"Right."
Felix ducked.
A ghost blade passed harmlessly overhead.
"Behind."
Mary turned instantly and cut down an enemy trying to ambush Noah.
The Great Eight trusted David completely.
His mind-reading ability had become their greatest weapon.
But even with perfect teamwork—
They couldn't reach Daniel.
Every path was blocked.
The Executioner stood before Bill.
Another elite commander challenged Mr. Stone.
The battlefield had split into dozens of smaller wars.
Back in the center—
McLone pointed her spear toward Daniel.
"Show me."
Red energy exploded around her.
The air itself trembled.
Daniel took a deep breath.
His black aura slowly spread across the battlefield.
Unlike before—
It remained calm.
Controlled.
The Queen's voice echoed softly inside his mind.
"Do not chase power."
"Control it."
Daniel closed his eyes for a single second.
Then opened them again.
His fear had disappeared.
His anger had disappeared.
Only determination remained.
McLone smiled.
"There it is."
She rushed forward.
Daniel rushed too.
BOOOOM!!
The collision cracked the academy courtyard in half.
Their weapons clashed again and again.
Each impact created another crater.
Daniel swung low.
McLone leaped over the attack.
She spun in midair.
Her spear descended toward Daniel's shoulder.
Daniel twisted his body.
The blade missed by centimeters.
He countered immediately.
His sword cut through the air.
McLone barely blocked.
The force pushed her backward.
For the first time—
She was forced onto the defensive.
Daniel didn't stop.
One strike.
Two.
Five.
Ten.
His attacks became smoother.
Cleaner.
Every movement flowed into the next.
Mr. Stone watched in amazement.
"He's adapting..."
Bill nodded.
"During the fight."
McLone blocked another attack.
Then another.
Then another.
Her smile slowly disappeared.
Daniel's swordsmanship wasn't becoming stronger because of power.
It was becoming stronger because he was learning.
Every exchange made him better.
McLone suddenly jumped backward.
She landed on the remains of the academy gate.
"Enough."
She raised her left hand.
A crimson circle appeared beneath every ghost soldier.
Daniel's eyes widened.
"No..."
The circles glowed.
Thousands of ghost soldiers suddenly began dissolving into red mist.
Everyone stopped fighting.
"What is happening?"
The mist rose into the sky.
It swirled together.
Faster.
Higher.
Denser.
Then it rushed toward McLone.
She absorbed every fragment.
Her aura exploded.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!
A violent shockwave spread across the battlefield.
Teachers were thrown backward.
Several academy towers collapsed.
The sky turned crimson.
Mary covered her face against the powerful wind.
"No..."
David whispered.
"She sacrificed her own army."
The remaining ghost soldiers had willingly given their lives.
To make McLone stronger.
The crimson aura surrounding her had doubled.
She smiled once again.
"This..."
She looked directly at Daniel.
"...is my true strength."
Daniel tightened his grip on his sword.
His breathing slowed.
He knew he couldn't defeat her by force alone.
Then he remembered something.
His master.
Mr. Stone.
Years ago.
"Power without control is meaningless."
Daniel smiled faintly.
"I understand now."
McLone frowned.
"What?"
Daniel lowered his sword.
The black aura around him became smaller.
Much smaller.
Mary's eyes widened.
"Daniel..."
Bill smiled.
"He figured it out."
McLone laughed.
"You've given up."
Daniel shook his head.
"No."
He raised his sword once more.
The black aura condensed around the blade until it became as thin as a ribbon.
No energy exploded.
No darkness filled the sky.
Everything became... quiet.
Even the wind stopped.
McLone's smile slowly vanished.
She could no longer sense Daniel's power.
It had completely disappeared.
"No..."
She whispered.
"What did you do?"
Daniel looked at her calmly.
"I stopped wasting my strength."
For the first time since the battle began—
McLone felt uncertainty.
Because the Vessel standing before her no longer fought like a frightened student.
He fought like a Ghost Killer.
And somewhere in the distance...
Hidden among the clouds...
Finn Foster watched the battlefield in silence.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"So..."
"The Vessel has finally taken his first real step."
To Be Continued...