The scene was one that would make lesser men tremble—if not from the raw power on display, then from the implications alone.
Even advanced humans at the Ethereal Physiology Master level would shake their heads at the sight. It mirrored the makings of a nightmare—one they hoped would never become their reality.
A massive Dreadnought sent by the Lunaris Throne loomed above them, its crescent-shaped vessel dominating the skies. Its Phase Crescent Cannons—weapons that could decimate Ethereal Physiology Masters—were all aimed directly at them.
And yet, Achilles floated upward.
His purple and golden pupils stared at the ship with defiance, his gaze cutting through the threat with unfathomable coldness.
As if he were the one asking the Dreadnought—how dare it stand above him? How dare it presume to impose over him!?
And those within the ship? They saw it. They felt the pressure rolling off of him, especially the man whose aura felt like a sea of purple flames ready to explode at any moment.
The Judge of Lunaris.
Achilles could sense all of it—Ecological Empathy III connecting him to the being now standing in the Dreadnought's command center. He saw his expression twist in real time, the rage coiling through him as Zerrion's voice thundered from the vessel's speakers.
"The authority of the Lunaris Throne stands above you. You've been deemed Heretics, and yet—you look at us defiantly? As if you intend to fight? Would you dare raise your hand against the Lunaris Throne? What kind of fantasy is that? Where do you think that path leads you? What do you—a mere Ethereal Physiology chickling—think you can do against the might of the Throne?! Stop this foolishness. Stand down peacefully…I would rather not drag your corpses from this place."
The might of an entire dynasty.
That was what this Dreadnought represented.
Who would be foolish enough to resist the power of one of the Thirteen Dynasties?
And yet—Achilles looked toward the vessel with a colder expression than before.
His voice rose—firm, authoritative, and echoing outward so that all within the ship could hear.
"It's just one of Thirteen Dynasties in this world. It didn't exist hundreds of years ago… and it may not exist in the years to come."
The words were devastating. Brazen. Utterly devoid of reverence or respect!
Those who heard them turned toward Achilles with wide eyes, unable to comprehend that someone had actually dared to say such a thing aloud.
Nyxaria, caught mid-awakening as terrifying energy surged through her, heard the words as she anchored her ninth and final star. Her mind buzzed.
The fear and uncertainty that had begun to rise within her—the burden of being branded a heretic, the pressure of Zerrion Draal's presence—vanished in the face of Achilles' unyielding voice.
He reminded her of who she was.
If she was a monster bent on revenge, then so be it. She would not lose her identity in the face of death.
They called her a Monster for a reason. Now, she was becoming something even more terrifying with this Empowerment. The least she could do was emulate the man ahead of her.
He showed no fear—even with a Dreadnought above him and the will of the Lunaris Overseers pressing down!
He had said the dynasty may not even exist in the years to come.
Those words kindled something inside her—and inside many others as strength surged in their chests in the face of the impossible challenge before them. Their minds, their resolve…all revitalized.
While they held onto that, the Judge of Lunaris—Zerrion Draal—grew deathly solemn.
Multiple hatches on the crescent-shaped vessel opened.
His figure floated upward from the command room and shot out rapidly.
Twenty-one Ethereal Physiology Masters followed him out. Over two hundred Meridian Transformation advanced humans rose on Evolutius-Bound Hoverboards.
Each of them wore elite armaments marked with silver moons on their chests, armor that shimmered in hues of silver and violet, regal and battle-worn.
Like a terrifying battalion, they moved as one—led by Zerrion Draal himself. They drifted down from the Dreadnought like stars falling from the heavens, moving steadily toward Achilles, Rose, and Nyxaria Moonveil Lunaris.
Zerrion Draal wore the Royal Guard Captain's armament, regal and unmistakable. Beneath it, heavy evolutius-reinforced armor protected him, and a purple robe fluttered behind him as it was declaring power and authority with every movement.
Behind him, the other Royal Colony Guards floated like immovable statues. Soldiers of will, unwavering and ready to obey any order.
Their expressions were carved from stone as their loyalty was absolute!
The Meridian Transformation warriors each carried Nuclear-Primed Evolutius Blasters—heavy weapons of violet and silver that could even wound Minor Ethereal Physiology Masters.
Above the Ethereal Masters, illusory and solid stars floated—signifying their rank and power. Every one of them was poised to act, no matter the cost.
Zerrion Draal's gaze sharpened.
He looked at Achilles, then to Nyxaria, and finally spoke.
"Little princess…look at the company you keep. These are the ones who say a Dynasty like the Lunaris Throne may not even exist in the future? These are the hands you chose to join? They don't even understand the grandeur that bore you into this world. They know nothing of nobility. But today…I will show them. I will show you what nobility means. And what it demands from those who stand beneath it."
The Judge of Lunaris turned to Achilles, his glare sharpened by silent fury, his body glowing with purple light.
"This Judge commands you, Little Chickling—kneel."
The Judge of Lunaris had commanded Achilles Adrastia, the Ninth Emperor King, to kneel.
As he did, his body flared with violent brilliance. Waves of purple radiance poured from him, forcing even his own soldiers to pull back—not out of fear, but from experience.
They knew that when their Commander's 's power awakened, it could not be contained.
Such was the nature of a Dharma Manifestation Entity.
And now, Zerrion Draal activated the core strength of such beings.
He called forth his Dharmic Ethereal Self.
A massive, illusory titan formed around him—a celestial image of himself, wreathed in ethereal flame and regal light.
A Manifestation of epic proportions now hovered in the sky!