Phaestus was stuck in his office going through a massive mound of paperwork in Lenmos.

"This really piled up… I really need to pay Douglas and Ella more." Phaestus took another page from Ruby.

"It's okay Papa, at least Auntie Tanya volunteered to help here instead of the embassy."

Dite was on the other side of the desk, going through paperwork as well, her mother assisting her.

Athena was watching over the kids while they worked. Athena attempted to help with the paperwork before but made repeated mistakes, so she voluntarily banned herself from helping beyond moving the paperwork around and watching the children.

"It is nice not having to wake up, wondering if I will live or die. Here is the next page." Tanya handed a new page to Dite.

"Phaestus, it seems your crop rotation idea is paying off. The report states that harvest will be larger than last year." Dite said, handing the page over to Phaestus.

"Good, I am glad I bought that book to help with my gardening, though it ended up being of little use to me since I accidentally purchased the one for a much larger scale…." Phaestus somewhat lamented his mistake but was happy it worked out in the end.

Their butler, Allen, entered the room.

"Yes, Allen?" Phaestus asked.

"Master Hephaestus, there seems to be an urgent messenger from the Allied Council downstairs."

Phaestus headed downstairs to meet the messenger with Allen.

Phaestus entered the room where the messenger awaited him. The man dropped down, kneeling before Phaestus.

"Thank you for seeing me, milord."

"Please, stand, I am not for formalities, especially if it is something urgent." Phaestus helped the man to his feet.

"Thank you, milord."

"Now, the message?"

"Yes, milord. Here is the message." He handed Phaestus a magically sealed tube.

Phaestus channeled his magic into the tube and thought of the password. The tube clicked and opened up. Phaestus crafted special tubes that the rulers of each kingdom could send letters without any worry of someone seeing the contents if it was stolen. The carrier was set that it would destroy the contents without fail if someone forced it or tried anything other than using the password.

Phaestus read through the letter, which changed his expression to a troubled one.

"Thank you. Take this marker and head to the barracks. Feel free to rest for the night until the next train in the morning."

The messenger thanked Phaestus and left the estate. Phaestus shifted back to his office.

"What did the message say?" Dite asked, seeing the troubled look on her husband's face.

"Goun has fallen." Phaestus stated.

Everyone stiffened at his statement.

"Dawn has usurped the ruling family of Goun. Seems like they had their own loyalist agents serving as the general of their armies. So the entire military force of Goun is in the hands of Dawn. The report also stated that the bridge connecting Goun and Alta has been obliterated." He sighed heavily.

"It's war."

Lenmos had a standing army of one thousand soldiers. Tanya took the reigns as commander of their forces since she was a commander during the war centuries ago. They arrived at the encampment of the allied forces near the only path between the kingdoms and Dawn.

Phaestus used his magic to bring a large standing force from Moona that would follow the commands of Lady Lucia, as well as several elves with Queen Ami, to be a part of his forces.

Phaestus, Tanya, an adult version of Queen Ami, and Lady Lucia entered the main tent where the rulers and their commanders were gathered.

"Good of you to arrive, brother." Queen Delvirra welcomed him.

"Hah, I was expecting the king." He replied.

"He lost a bet, and here I am." She replied cheerily.

The uncle of the King of Merluka was present as his representative. The council members of Alta were Eli of the Adventurer's Guild, Poundpuffer of the Hunters Guild, and Mr. Barlett of the Merchants to handle supply lines. Lady Leelu, Ella's elder sister, was in command of a force of beast-kin. The various leaders welcomed Phaestus to the meeting. From Meerka, King Alan and his retired father were present.

"Thank you all for coming." King Alan began, standing and pointing at a world map.

"Now, most know that the northern bridge connecting Alta to Goun has been destroyed, making it very difficult to send forces across."

"Alta has a force stationed there with frequent scouting to ensure that Dawn forces do not cross there somehow." Councilwoman Eli stated.

"So that leaves only one path other than by sea for them to get forces to us." King Alan stated, turning to Lord Taelba.

"Merluka has stationed multiple water knight units with ship sinking tools, keeping an eye out for any sea invasions." Lord Taelba added.

"My flying troops scouted their side. They have a sizable force there, but they have shown no signs of movement." Lady Leelu added.

King Alan noticed Phaestus had an odd look on his face, deep in thought.

"Is something the matter Lord Hephaestus?" He asked.

Phaestus looked up from his thoughts.

"Something doesn't feel right. Ever since I learned of their plans to invade, I kept trying to think of how they would do it. Destroying bridge and limiting themselves to only attacking through this one bottleneck just seems strange. Queen Ami, do you think the Pope would be able to use a spell like Mass Teleport to smuggle troops over?" Phaestus asked her.

"No, Lord Lystmour made sure to seal such spatial magic from his grasp." She replied.

Phaestus fell back into thought. "I feel like we are missing something…."

"Papa! Why don't we deploy the Beholder Eyes and check around?" Ruby called out from the Haven.

"Good idea Ruby. Everyone, I will be deploying some tools to investigate the movements of the enemy forces. If we find anything, I will call for a meeting."

They agreed and went about to try to gather more information as well.

A large military force traveled through a forest. In the middle was a man on horseback in pure mithril armor. A scout ran up to him nimbly.

"Milord."

"Report." The man gruffly ordered.

"Our forces are gathering near the exit of the forest Lord General."

"Good, how long until we arrive?" The man demanded to know.

"Roughly twenty minutes Lord General."

The man estimated that his forces would be ready in an hour to begin the invasion.

"Very good. Continue your duties." The man ordered.

The Pope himself prepared this army for me. His loyal, brainwashed people will willingly lay down their lives for my glory. The man smirked beneath his helmet.

The General arrived at the edge of the forest around the time the scout estimated, looking out at the open fields.

They would never expect us to travel through the impassible forest. But the Pope has many tricks up his sleeve.

"Lord General." A scout knelt before him.

"Report."

"No signs of enemies in the area."

"Very good. Commander, send the order to take up formation. Once in formation, we march north to flank the enemy from behind."

The commander accepted the order, and his men began gathering out in the open field. The General rode out into the open area but had a tingling feeling run down his spine.

Something is off… He looked out toward the open plains, only to notice the very air begin to wave and shimmer.

"No. TO ARMS! THE ENEMY IS HERE!" He cried out as the illusion broke.

Phaestus ended his illusion spell that hid his allied forces, revealing them to the unsuspecting army. Thanks to the Phaestus family's efforts, they found the enemy force of six thousand sneaking through the forest. After Phaestus called the meeting to update the rulers, they split their forces, sending their fastest, around four thousand, to ambush the enemy.

"Archers! Casters! Loose!" Tanya yelled.

Arrows and spells rained down on the enemy forces. The forces of Dawn were in chaos, but several officers were able to get their soldiers together and begin their counteroffensive. Phaestus shifted several metal posts with circular disks on their tops amongst the enemies.

"[Amplify Voice]. Attention forces of Dawn! Those who surrender will be treated fairly! Those who fight will be dealt with as an enemy of the Allied Kingdoms!" He called out.

Many of the enemy forces seemed to become confused as if coming out of a daze.

The poles that Phaestus moved into their forces were something he asked Queen Ami and her people to make replicas of the amulet she gave him. These ones had an area effect that would help to clear the brainwashing power of the Pope. Some of Dawn's forces decided to surrender by dropping their weapons and running from the battle. The more loyal or fearful of being killed by their superiors charged at the allied forces.

The battle raged on, gradually, one man on horseback trotted forward in his mithril armor. Drawing his sword and with a single swing, he cut a swath of land, killing several soldiers of both sides.

"What?!" Tanya exclaimed.

The forces of Dawn who watched the attack turned and attacked the allied forces even harder, out of fear of their General.

"Damn. That has to be a Hero. Tanya, we will deal with him." Phaestus said, summoning Yilan to his hand. With a flip of his wrist, he and the General were shifted outside the primary battle. He continued to shift the man farther until the battle could only be heard in the distance.

Phaestus summoned his family from the Haven, each of them ready to fight. Phaestus held out a drawn Yilan.

"We don't need to fight! I can help you! You don't have to be a slave to that madman!" Phaestus cried out.

The man in mithril laughed at Phaestus.

"You think me one of those pathetic slaves? I willingly accepted the mark!" The General replied.

Shit, the one thing I was worried about most…

"Listen to me, the Pope will only lead this world to ruin. You don't have to do this." Phaestus tried to reason with the man

To answer Phaestus, the General charged toward them, swinging his blade for Phaestus' head.

"Not on my watch!" White blocked the heavy blow.

Dite appeared at his side and struck out with her blade, only for it to be blocked and countered with a powerful kick to the gut.

"Guwah!" Dite flew backward several feet.

Ruby charged forward and unleashed a flurry of kicks, only for them to be blocked by the General's shield.

"Not good enough." The General slammed the hilt of his blade into his shield, causing an explosion of power that knocked them all back.

How is this guy so powerful!?

"HAHAHA! I can see the look on your face. You are wondering how I am so strong? Simple really. I have been around since the beginning! I am the one who has served Lord Lucasi all this time. I was among his first summons to this world. Thanks to him, I gained access to immortality! Using the lives of these pathetic people, my youth has been preserved! Dragons, Giants, Beast-kin, Demon-kin, Humans, they are all fodder to me!" The General explained with manic joy in his voice.

"Soon, your strength will be mine as well." He cruelly stated, pointing his blade toward Phaestus.

"If you are this strong, the battle against the Pope will be worse." Athena said.

"Hah! The Pope stronger than me? He is bound by the rules of this world, while I am not! But he is useful to me as I to him, so I will preserve his life, search him out, and raise him up in power."

The one-sided battle continued, Phaestus and his family continuing their struggle. Every attempt Dite made to strike at the final Hero was countered. Thanks to her equipment, the damage was minimized. Ruby attempted a boosted attack, but it was easily blocked, and she was tossed away by the General's strength. Athena chose not to make herself a bigger target and used every bit of her enormous strength to overpower his defense, but he brushed her attacks aside quickly. When they began getting a good grove in their attack patterns, the General would slam his hilt into his shield, blasting them back. Phaestus was using his spells to support, but the General's shield had a similar reflection enchantment to Ruby's leggings.

Dammit! We're getting nowhere with this.

Phaestus then had an idea and communicated to the others his plan. Phaestus then attempted a new battle technique. He began actively shifting the girls and himself about, putting each of them at unpredictable advantages. Things began to improve, but they still were getting played with.

"You have some fine ladies with you, Grand Heretic. Maybe I should save them for my enjoyment and deal with you?" The General activated a trinket that formed a bubble of magic around himself.

Ruby charged up her most decisive attack and struck the bubble to nothing. The others tried to break the magic shield, but none of their attacks weakened or damaged it.

"What the hell is that thing!?" Athena cried as her latest attack was also a failure.

"The Pope's strongest defense, [Barrier]. You will not break through it. Now to move my future toys out of the way." The General began chanting a spell, making them more desperate to defeat him, but they were too late.

"Mena Kul Gal. [Prison]." The General finished.

"Phaestus!" "Papa!" Dite, Athena, and Ruby vanished.

"NO!" Phaestus cried.

"Oh, one resisted?" White stood before Phaestus, her shield raised.

"Such pathetic magic will not work on me!" She cried defiantly.

Why... I should have... Phaestus was lost in despair.

"Phaestus, we can rescue them if we defeat him." White sternly said to him, bringing him back.

Phaestus nodded and cast several boosting magic spells upon the two of them. The two of them pressed harder, battling the General, getting nowhere closer to victory.

White would deflect and block the General's blows while Phaestus attacked with Yilan. He had to hold back while using the god blade, or else he might make their chances worse.

"Hahaha! With those others, you may have had a chance, but with the two of you… Boring." He knocked the two of them back effortlessly.

White was kneeling on the ground, and Phaestus was barely standing. They were both getting exhausted, but the two drank vials of divine water.

"Well, time to end this little game. Goodbye, Grand Heretic. I am sure Lord Lucasi will reward me greatly!"

Charging his blade with magic, the General unleashed a powerful attack, far stronger than the previous one he used to cleave the ground. The wave of magic flew toward Phaestus, only for White to get in its path.

"Not, not today." She said as she struggled to block the attack.

"White, get out of here…" Phaestus begged, losing hope.

The General charged his blade again, unleashing a chain of the same attack at her. Every attack she blocked whittled her down more each time.

"White!" Phaestus moved toward her.

"This is the end for you." Pouring more power into the blade, the General unleashed one final attack upon her.

I have to shift her away!

He tried to shift her into the Haven, but she resisted it.

"Why?" He asked.

"Sorry, Eric…" White disappeared into the light of the attack.

"LUUUUUUUNAAAAA!" Phaestus dropped to his knees.

Nothing was left of her but bits of scrap metal of her armor and shield.

"DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU!" Phaestus slammed the ground with his fists, then his head.

"Hmm? So her name was Luna, huh? Eh, what a waste of a fine woman. But you're next, so you'll be together soon." The General said with cruel glee.

Darkness shrouded Phaestus' face. The General charged up another attack to erase Phaestus from the world.

"Some hero you were." He unleashed his attack, only for it to be destroyed.

A golden sword vibrated furiously in Phaestus' hand as he stood.

"You will return my family." His words were a cold fury.

The General unleashed several more of his attacks, only for them to be destroyed by the golden blade.

"Impossible!" The General tried to deny what he was seeing, another of his attacks erased.

"I will erase your existence and reclaim my family." Phaestus said, his flaring magic flowing toward Yilan.

Yilan tried to calm Phaestus, but he continued to pour his magic into her. Phaestus could feel the strain to his body was getting worse with the more power he ran into her.

To the limit Yilan... This man must die. Phaestus gritted his teeth.

He sent his words to her, causing her to hum in agreement. Yilan awoke to her power, sending a pillar of light into the sky.

"W-What?! What is that sword!?" The General demanded, fear now in his voice as he felt himself beginning to weaken from Yilan's purifying aura.

"Something not meant for mortal hands. Forged by mine, Yilan will bring an end to this darkness."

The General continued to unleash his attacks, only for them to be absorbed into the pillar of light.

"NO! THIS CANNOT BE! YOU ARE FODDER! YOU ARE NOTHING!" The General desperately cried, his attacks doing nothing.

"No. I am Duke Hephaestus. Divine Smith of the Gods. Savior of the Allied Kingdoms. The Lord of Fire. And soon, the destroyer of darkness." Blood trickled from his mouth and eyes.

I am sorry, girls. I love you all…

Phaestus swung Yilan with all of his might.

Sound, time, all seemed to stop at once as a wall of golden light cleaved its way forward, overpowering all other light. The battle that was a short distance away came to a complete standstill as they gawked at the wall of light. As the light faded, the ground shook, and the crash of the attack could be heard throughout the world. A massive scar upon the continent was formed. It erased a large path through the forest, across Dawn's lands, and ended somewhere in the ocean.

There was nothing left of the General as Phaestus kept his promise. He erased his existence. With a bloodied and torn body, Phaestus smiled when he saw his loved ones reappear. He fell onto his back, falling into darkness.