The command bridge of the Ebon Citadel was a masterpiece of sleek dark metal and glowing holographic interfaces.

Arthur Sterling sat casually in the captain’s chair. He leaned back, holding a glass of looted celestial wine.

Through the massive viewport, the breathtaking, swirling nebulae of the Apex Realm stretched out like a living painting.

"The Apex Realm is divided into three primary sectors," Lyra explained.

The rogue thief had fully embraced her new role as the Chief IntelligenceOfficer. She stood by a holographic projection table and swiped her hand to bring up a glowing 3D map.

"Each sector is ruled by one of the Three Heavenly Sovereigns. Time, Space, and Karma," Lyra continued. "Below them are the ruling families known as the Apex Council."

"And where are we?" Arthur asked, taking a slow sip of his wine.

"We are in the central neutral zone." Lyra pointed to a blinking red dot on the map. "The Blackwood Estate was historically a buffer zone. It is why they got away with managing the mortal battery farms."

She looked up, her expression turning serious. "But by killing the Silverleaf King, you have triggered the Vanguard pact. The remaining Council families are combining their forces."

"Let them combine," Morwenna purred.

She paced slowly behind Arthur’s chair, her sharp claws lightly tracing the dark metal of his throne. "It just means we do not have to hunt them down one by one."

"BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!"

The main console suddenly flashed bright red.

Sylvia Thorne’s hands flew across the glowing runes. Her icy blue eyes narrowed in concentration.

"Arthur. We are being hailed," Sylvia warned. "An encrypted high-tier transmission is trying to force its way through our communication arrays."

"Put it on screen," Arthur ordered.

The holographic map vanished instantly.

In its place, a massive, life-sized projection flickered into existence. It was a woman clad in immaculate, form-fitting golden armor that seemed to radiate its own internal sunlight.

Six magnificent golden wings flared out behind her back!

Her face was a sculpture of divine perfection, and her sharp, judgmental eyes glared directly into Arthur’s soul.

"I am Aurelia," the projection announced. Her voice echoed through the bridge with righteous, overwhelming authority. "Valkyrie Commander of the Golden Armada. Vanguard of the Heavens."

Arthur just raised an eyebrow. He took an appreciative sip of his wine and slowly looked her up and down.

"She is gorgeous," Arthur noted casually. "And completely full of crap."

Aurelia’s flawless face twitched with utter disgust.

"Mortal anomaly. You have trespassed on sacred ground!" she spat. "You have spilled the blood of a Divine King. The Heavens do not negotiate with parasites."

She pointed a glowing, armored finger at him.

"You will surrender your Citadel immediately. You will submit to the divine chains, and you will face self-mutilation for your crimes before your soul is burned to ash!"

"A little aggressive for a first date," Arthur chuckled. He lazily swirled the dark wine in his glass. "System. Give me her stats."

[Ding!]

[Target Lock: Aurelia.]

[Entity Type: Undefeated Valkyrie Commander.]

[Special Physique Detected: Aegis of the Sun. A body forged from pure conceptual solar energy. Highly resistant to all forms of magical and physical trauma.]

Arthur’s dark eyes gleamed with pure greed.

The Aegis of the Sun wasn’t just a good ability. It wasn’t just a strong defense. It was premium, high-grade fuel for his Primordial Flame!

She wasn’t an enemy. She was a walking upgrade!

"An undefeated Valkyrie?" Arthur mused aloud, his signature predatory smile returning to his face. "Sounds like a perfect fourth slot for the team."

Sylvia rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. Behind the throne, Morwenna let out a dark, amused chuckle.

"You dare mock the Heavens?!" Aurelia roared.

Her golden aura flared violently, distorting the holographic projection. "Look outside, arrogant fool! Your time is up!"

The transmission abruptly cut to black.

"Commander," Sylvia warned, pointing out the massive viewport. "Incoming."

The breathtaking violet and gold nebulae outside the window suddenly darkened.

Tearing through the celestial clouds were massive, sun-forged galleons. They were not just ships. They were flying fortresses of pure, blinding light armed with rows of devastating cannons!

Ten. Fifty. A hundred.

Three hundred galleons violently breached the atmosphere!

They perfectly surrounded the Ebon Citadel, trapping Arthur’s ship in a suffocating net of divine artillery. The Golden Armada had arrived, and the sheer atmospheric pressure of their combined engines made the entire Citadel vibrate.

But Arthur didn’t panic at all. In fact, he wasn’t even paying attention to the imposing fleet.

Deep in his mind, a sudden string of beautiful system notifications began to chime.

[Ding!]

[Employee Target Caden Cross has engaged a hidden Abyssal Fiend in The Mortal Domain!]

[Target is utilizing life and death combat instincts!]

[10,000x ROI Multiplier Activated!]

[Host is passively receiving massive sensory and reflex enhancements!]

Arthur’s pupils dilated immediately. A rush of compressed, godly adrenaline flooded his brain!

Back in the mud of the lower realms, his hard-working protagonist was fighting for his life against a monster in the dark.

And up here in the heavens, Arthur was reaping all the rewards.

His senses expanded exponentially. He could suddenly hear the hum of every individual engine on the three hundred galleons outside. He could see right through the blinding glare of their golden armor.

He immediately spotted the flagship floating in the center of the massive formation.

Zooming in with his newly acquired God-tier visual acuity, Arthur could see Aurelia standing proudly on the bow with her spear raised. He could count the individual glowing feathers on her wings from five miles away!

"Beautiful," Arthur whispered. He rolled his neck until it cracked loudly in the silent bridge.

"They are charging their main cannons," Sylvia reported.

Her hands glowed with Absolute Zero magic as she prepared to raise the Citadel’s shields.

"Let them," Arthur said.

He stood up from his dark throne and walked slowly toward the massive viewport.

The Ebonheart Cube floated off his shoulder. With a sickeningly wet crunch, it snapped and elongated into the pitch-black longsword in his hand.

Arthur looked at the three hundred heavily armed warships. He grinned like a starving shark staring at a school of very shiny, and very fragile fish.

Arthur rested the heavy black blade against his shoulder, without ever taking his eyes off Aurelia’s flagship.

"In five minutes," Arthur stated smoothly. "We are going to have a whole lot of scrap metal falling from the sky."