Max did not allow anyone to know where he was taking Light. He flew fast and high, traveling back to Stonehollow, the place where he had first met them all. It took him a few hours, but when he finally drew close, he saw the familiar desolate land beneath him, the product of his endless testing, drained of mana until almost nothing remained.

He allowed mana to escape his body, nurturing the broken place below. Slowly, faint greenery began to grow from the dead soil, thin and fragile, like the land itself was trying to breathe again. Only then did he land beside the hut that had long since been claimed by wind, rain, and his own magic. Only a few planks still remained buried in the ground.

Max extended his hand, carving a deep hole before rushing down and laying Light inside with more care than his trembling hands could hide.

"Funny, isn’t it? I promised to lead you to greatness, yet now I’m the one laying you to rest. Such potential... so many experiences you could have had... why... why you... out of all people... why did you have to die... little brother..."

Tears began to slip from his eyes, no matter how much he tried to control them. He did not want anyone to see him like this. He had formed a bond with the kid, each of them thinking of the other as brothers for life.

Max had even wanted to make Light his most trusted general one day. They would have stood together and looked at the empire that rose from a small village, laughing about how they once did not even have enough food. Laughing about the day Light brought him stale bread and water, which Max secretly shared with him.

But now, there was no general.

No brother standing beside him.

Only a cold body in the ground, and a king who had arrived too late.

--------

Days passed.

Max sat beside Rosalia’s bed as she slowly recovered from her injuries.

His face was solemn, thousands of thoughts running through his mind, from ways to quickly solidify his rule over the dragon region to ways of surviving after offending yet another terrifying force.

"The Imperial Court Empire has more than twenty million warriors who are barely weaker than the prince you killed. The only reason they haven’t invaded the dragon region yet is because it holds nothing that interests them. But now that you killed Emperor Augustus’s most beloved son, you are going to face annihilation. No matter how strong you are, you cannot face them and their allies. Believe me when I say this, King Maximus. No kingdom or empire will support you in this fight."

The words Senuna had spoken to him days ago still echoed in his mind. Somehow, they drew a soft laugh from him.

"How do I always run into trouble like this in this world?" he muttered, looking out the window toward the far horizon. There was no panic in his eyes, only exhaustion and that strange calm of a man who had already stepped too far to turn back.

During the past few days, Max had mobilized the troops and ordered the warriors to keep a close watch over the palace. Nobody else was allowed to slip past them again. The security failure had been worse than anything he could have imagined. Agnia, Gertrud, and Freya had woken up the next day after the catastrophe, and they were ordered to quickly appoint the heads of the noble houses.

Max got up, kissed Rosalia on the forehead, and walked out of the room.

Four men were waiting for him there. They were all middle-aged, wise, and strong, their frames lowering before Max in respectful bows.

"King Maximus," the four said at once. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

He had already met Sigmund and Marcus, but the other two were new to him. He learned their names quickly. The wind dragon was Eberhard, and the thunder dragon was Arvid.

"We need to move the capital away from here and speed up the construction of the new fortress somewhere far from this place. Prepare for a possible war in the future. The times ahead won’t be kind to our Voidstar Kingdom. I need the four of you to remain strong. After we survive and become a superpower, we will be able to live peaceful lives. But for that, we will have to suffer a little first."

"Yes, King." The four bowed again before leading him to the temporary conference room.

"We have some news about the wind and thunder empires," Marcus started as the five of them sat down at the round table.

"Speak," Max said with a dark expression.

"Lately, the Wind Dragon Empire has suffered numerous attacks from the elven lands, slowly eating away at their territory."

"And what do they gain from this?" Max raised an eyebrow. He had little time to study the elves, but from what he had learned, they refused to live anywhere outside their forest, so it made no sense.

"There are rumors that it has something to do with the dwarven kingdoms, but the spies the three families had placed there remained loyal to the old empires. Even the Fire Dragon Clan member stationed in the elven lands has decided to turn on us..." Marcus’s eyes were dark. He did not have any family members in those lands, but betrayal was still betrayal.

"What is Emperor Oswald doing about it?" Max leaned back into his chair, his eyes losing focus for a second as if he had fallen into thought.

"So far, he has yet to respond, allowing the enemy forces to invade." Arvid took over the conversation. "Emperor Thor sent aid to the Wind Empire, but was rejected. It is believed that Emperor Oswald has given up."

"Is that so?" Max looked at Eberhard. "Do you believe you could convince him to fully submit to me?"

"That... my king, I—"

"I understand. He used to be your emperor." Max’s voice remained calm, but there was no softness in it. "But now, the wind dragons would benefit more under my rule. If we allow the elves to roam free, your home will be swallowed by forces that will never allow you to return. Which is better, them or me?"