Solomon pivoted on his heel, letting the heavy momentum of the blade carry his body. He unleashed the First Form, sending a vertical wave of silver energy that launched the paralyzed angel high into the air.

Before Uriel could reach the apex of his flight, Vlad threw his spear, piercing Uriel’s wing and pinning him to the side of a surviving palace tower.

Solomon kicked off the ground and reached the pinned Uriel in a heartbeat.

Uriel’s eyes widened in sheer panic. He frantically summoned barriers, halberds, and spheres of fire, but Solomon ignored all of it. Fuelled entirely by the paladin’s rage, the swordsman unleashed a relentless, unbroken chain of the Imperial Sword Arts.

He dragged the blade into the Second Form, unleashing a wide horizontal slash that shattered the magical weapons. He immediately shifted his stance and executed the Third Form again, sending a diagonal strike that carved through the barriers.

Finally, he pulled his arm back and delivered the Fourth Form. The silver pierce thrust directly through Uriel’s remaining defenses and impaled his shoulder.

Every time Uriel’s divine energy tried to stitch a wound closed, Solomon’s blade opened two more. Silver flashes painted the night sky as Solomon carved through pristine flesh in a relentless chain of attacks.

Uriel’s eyes burned with golden fire as the blade pierced his shoulder. He grabbed the glowing silver steel with both hands. Holy flames erupted from his palms and traveled down the length of the weapon.

Solomon grunted and pulled Eden’s Penance free, kicking off the tower wall to land back in the courtyard next to Vlad.

Uriel ripped the spear from his wing and tossed it aside. The hole in his feathers and the massive gash in his shoulder sealed perfectly in a flash of blinding light. He descended back to the ground, completely unharmed, and summoned two more blazing halberds.

Solomon rested the greatsword on his shoulder. He watched Uriel regenerate with total apathy. Vlad walked up beside him and caught his returning spear with a swift spin.

"You know," Vlad smirked, wiping sweat from his brow, "for a flawless being of eternal light, you certainly bleed a lot of dirt."

Uriel snarled and pointed both halberds at them. "I will turn your ashes into glass!"

Solomon glanced at Vlad. "Are you going to use that last resort anytime soon? I am going to run out of stamina eventually."

Vlad caught his breath and gave a short nod.

"I think you don’t know the meaning of last resort."

Uriel bathed himself in a cascade of brilliant golden light. He spread his three wings and extended his arms to the sides, hovering high above the shattered courtyard.

"Just who exactly are you?" Uriel demanded, his voice ringing across the stones. "You share the exact name of that heretic. You wield his cursed sword. You even execute his sword arts. Do you honestly believe mimicking a dead man will bring you victory today?"

Uriel tilted his head back and laughed. "Even the original Paladin failed to defeat me during the war. That fool spent his entire life trying to protect the weak. He died choking on his own blood while I ascended. You are merely playing dress-up with the legacy of a complete failure. The Paladin was a fragile coward who begged for mercy at the end." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Solomon tightened his grip on the hilt of Eden’s Penance.

’He knows absolutely nothing about the Paladin,’ Solomon thought, a burning anger igniting in his chest.

Uriel’s mockery insulted the only mentor Solomon ever truly respected.

"I will now show you the true might of divinity," Uriel announced. His eyes flared with a blinding white glare. "You will finally understand the vast difference between flawless immortality and worthless mortality. Humans are weak, diseased creatures meant only to grovel at my feet."

Uriel discarded his conjured weapons and clapped his hands together. A blinding sphere of white fire erupted from his palms. He unleashed a completely new combat style on a whole other level.

Uriel transformed his physical form into a conduit of pure, destructive light. He rained down beams of concentrated energy and darted across the sky at terrifying speeds.

Solomon and Vlad launched themselves forward to intercept the barrage. Vlad spun his spear to deflect the incoming beams of light. His swings declined in speed and his footwork faltered.

Vlad had been fighting Uriel since the very beginning of the cathedral clash and possessed far more injuries than Solomon. The blue lightning fading from his weapon signaled his rapidly depleting stamina.

A beam of white fire targeted Vlad’s exposed flank. Solomon dashed across the courtyard and swung his silver-coated blade to shatter the projectile. He stepped directly in front of Vlad, raising his greatsword to block three consecutive blasts.

Solomon took over the vanguard completely. He parried the endless magical strikes and covered Vlad’s retreats, effectively carrying the entire fight to keep them both alive.

Uriel soared higher into the dark clouds. He raised both arms toward the atmosphere and channeled his divine power. The clouds swirled into a massive vortex as a burning celestial body broke through the sky.

Uriel pulled a miniature star straight down from space, illuminating the entire ruined kingdom in a crimson glare.

"This is the end for you insects!" Uriel shrieked from the sky. "Burn away into nothingness along with this worthless land!"

Vlad wiped a stream of blood from his eyes and looked up at the descending star. He slid his spear into his back armory and reached for the weapon at his waist.

"This is exactly what the last resort is for," Vlad muttered, his voice barely audible over the roaring heat above.

Vlad pulled the sheathed dagger from his belt and planted his boots firmly into the cracked marble. He raised the weapon horizontally with both hands, holding it exactly at eye level. His fingers gripped the golden hilt.

He slowly drew the blade from its sheath.

A brilliant flash erupted from the steel, matching the intensity of a midday sun. Liquid gold aura actively dripped from the pristine edge and pooled onto the dirt. The overwhelming light cut straight through the crimson shadow of the falling star.

Uriel’s eyes widened as his smirk disappeared from his face.

"A celestial... weapon?"