The telepathic connection between the four Dragonborns remained silent for several long moments after that realization. Only the sound of storms roaring across distant skies accompanied the heavy tension spreading between their minds.

"So what now?" Then Eccar finally spoke first. He asked grimly. "Do we go back?"

Nobody answered immediately because all of them already understood how terrible the situation had become.

If the kingdoms truly were under attack right now, then there was a possibility that countless people would die every minute they remained away from them. But at the same time, abandoning the expeditions would create another disaster entirely.

The five fragments of the Sky Anchor still needed to be recovered. Without those fragments, the Sky Anchor could never be rewritten. And if that failed, then eventually the entire world itself would collapse no matter how many civilians they managed to save now.

"We can’t simply abandon the expeditions," Sylven finally said heavily. "Not after coming this far."

"But if the kingdoms fall before we return, then what are we even protecting?" Aesa replied tensely.

The dilemma immediately deepened.

Far above the canyon, Erend remained completely silent while the storm winds rushed violently around him. His mind rapidly searched for solutions but every possibility only led toward another problem.

Should he return to help the kingdoms?

But if he left, the expedition below would never survive alone. The corrupted regions ahead were far too dangerous without Dragonborn protection.

Then another thought emerged. Should he make more clones?

Erend’s eyes narrowed slightly.

But even that solution carried enormous risks. He had already divided himself once. Creating even more clones would weaken him further. Each divided body reduced the overall strength he could exert. And against the growing dangers unleashed by the Void Architect, weakening himself too much could become fatal. Especially now.

The Void Architect was clearly escalating His actions.

Erend slowly clenched his fists. "What should I do...?"

Then suddenly, Aesa spoke again through the telepathic channel.

"We have to move faster," she said firmly.

The others immediately focused on her.

"We must retrieve the fragments as quickly as possible and then return to the kingdoms immediately afterward. If the Void Architect truly attacked the kingdoms, then splitting ourselves further only plays into His plan. We finish the mission first as fast as possible."

Sylven slowly nodded to himself afterward. "She’s right," he said. "The kingdoms still have armies, barriers, kings, and defenders. They should be able to hold out for a while." A brief pause followed. "...I hope."

Eccar released a long breath afterward. "Damn it..."

Then finally, Erend slowly closed his eyes for a moment before reopening them again.

He understood now. This was exactly the choice the Void Architect wanted to force onto them. Panic and divide themselves further until they became too weak to accomplish anything.

They could not fall for that.

"Alright. We continue," Erend finally said firmly. "But we move much faster from now on just like Aesa said."

The others immediately agreed.

Moments later, Erend descended rapidly from the skies toward the expedition below him. The violent wind swept around his body before he landed heavily near the front lines of the moving formation.

The surrounding knights and mages immediately looked toward him with alarm after seeing the expression on his face.

Erend wasted no time.

"The kingdoms may already be under attack," he said directly.

Shock immediately spread throughout the expedition. Several mages visibly paled while some knights instinctively tightened their grips around their weapons.

"But we cannot stop," Erend continued firmly. "From this point onward, we move at maximum speed. There will be no unnecessary breaks. We retrieve the fragment and return immediately."

The tension among the expedition members instantly worsened after hearing that. Some exchanged nervous glances while others looked toward the dark storm clouds above with growing fear.

But thankfully, none of them protested. Because they already understood the situation had become far more dangerous than before.

"We move!" the expedition leader immediately shouted after Erend was done.

The entire formation accelerated almost instantly. The expedition began pushing through the canyon terrain at speeds far beyond before.

Boots slammed heavily against rocky ground while cloaks whipped violently beneath the storm winds. Mages continuously cast movement reinforcement spells to reduce exhaustion while scouts rushed farther ahead to clear paths through the dangerous terrain.

Above them, Erend returned to the skies once more while the expedition rapidly advanced.

They now moved like people racing against the collapse of the world itself.

—

Meanwhile, the situation inside Leonora had already descended into complete chaos. King Garrie no longer remained atop the battlements.

The moment the flesh tendrils erupted throughout the city, the king immediately threw himself directly into the battle alongside his soldiers.

Golden Magic exploded violently around his body as his sword cleaved downward into one of the gigantic flesh roots lunging through the streets. The corrupted mass immediately split apart while black blood scattered across the shattered stone roads.

But before the destroyed tendril even stopped moving, two more burst upward from another widening crack nearby.

"Protect the civilians!" King Garrie roared.

The defenders immediately moved.

Knights charged through the streets while archers atop damaged rooftops continuously fired enchanted arrows into the writhing masses below. Flaming arrows, explosive arrows, and purification arrows streaked across the city while the sounds of battle and terrified screams echoed everywhere.

But despite all their efforts, the flesh tendrils kept emerging endlessly from beneath the ground.

Some of the corrupted roots smashed through buildings while others slithered rapidly along the streets searching for civilians to seize.

"MOVE THE PEOPLE OUT OF THIS DISTRICT!" one of the captains shouted desperately while hacking his sword.

But actually, the kingdom’s mages already focused almost entirely on evacuation efforts instead of direct combat. They just couldn’t keep up. Spirit Magic formations continuously glowed throughout the city while groups of terrified civilians were transported away from the collapsing districts toward emergency shelters deeper inside the kingdom.

Blue and silver teleportation circles repeatedly activated beneath crowds of panicked people.

Children cried while injured civilians screamed for help. Some desperately searched for missing family members while others fled through the rain-covered streets as the corruption spread wider behind them.

King Garrie cut apart another flesh tendril before quickly turning toward the chaos surrounding him.

His chest felt unbearably heavy. Despair continuously clawed at his mind every time he looked around the city.

This was his kingdom. His people. And now the corruption had already breached directly into the heart of Leonora itself.

The king could already see flames spreading through distant districts while parts of the streets continued collapsing inward from the expanding fractures below.

For a moment there, desperation almost surfaced across his face.

"How are we supposed to stop this...?"

But the feeling vanished almost immediately afterward. Because another scream suddenly echoed nearby.

King Garrie immediately gritted his teeth before charging forward once more. Golden Magic erupted violently around him as he leaped directly toward another cluster of flesh tendrils attacking trapped civilians beneath the storm. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Despair or not, fear or not, he still had to fight. Because if the king himself stopped fighting now, then the entire kingdom would collapse with him.

—