In Freyâs eyes...
there was nothing but contempt and hatred for that man.
Yet at the same time...
a faint trace of respect had taken root.
Respect for someone who devoted his entire existence to his master ..
fighting alone in the shadows for countless years against demons.
But right now ..
in this exact moment ..
Frey could not forgive him.
Because German was the one who allowed his fatherâs corpse ..
Abraham Starlight .. to fall into Weskerâs hands.
The Engineer was the one to blame... no one else.
Frey wanted to say it to him, but he never got the chance.
"Youâre the one who did this to my father..."
You handed him over to the demons, forcing him to fight the very people he died protecting.
Frey didnât speak these words, yet German understood them without needing to hear them ..Freyâs eyes alone conveyed everything.
In response, German did nothing but quietly laughâan unusual reaction from him, especially in a moment like this.
Meanwhile, the pressure of the surrounding aura intensified as Wesker unleashed his full power.
"Whatâs your plan now, Namelessâ follower?! What will you do in this situation?! What have you prepared?! What do you even have in your hands to use against me?!"
Wesker roared, pushing German to reveal his hand now that he was fully cornered.
But German showed no reaction. Instead, he simply adjusted his stance, preparing for battle.
"No plans this time, Fourth-Rank Demon... we fight to the death, here and now. And by the end of this day, neither you nor the Tenth-Rank Demon will leave this place alive. Thatâs all I can tell you."
German spoke as his body ignited with a celestial blue light.
"Arm yourself... the battle has already begun."
The instant his words fell, everything within the battlefield shifted. Even the air grew heavier. For the first time, Weskerâs smile faded.
Germanâs power... was no joke.
"...Impossible. Isnât his vessel supposed to be shattered?"
Wesker tried to deny what he sensedâbut the level of power radiating from German was unmistakably close to what he once possessed at his peak.
"How?" the demon muttered.
He had fought German and Abraham in the past... back then the Engineer was so weak he couldnât have stood his ground without Abrahamâs help.
So how had everything flipped now?
At that moment, German closed his eyes as a deep voice echoed in his memory.
It was from the day he met a certain being .. just one day before this battle began.
A man? No...
Not a man.
A monster.
German had stood there, wearing his usual black cloak, but the ground beneath him was unfamiliar... even the sky was different.
"German, my old friend... I wonder if anything weâve been doing still holds meaning."
The speakerâs voice was so deep it shook the world, its echo rolling like thunder.
Then, slowly, came the sound of hooves striking the ground.
"Weâve fought for too long... time has worn us down."
The thunderous steps continued, until at last that being reached German.
The Engineer slowly raised his head .. because it was the only way he could meet the otherâs gaze.
The creature standing before him was no human... nor anything ordinary.
Its lower half walked on four massive limbs, while its upper body resembled that of a colossal man .. broad arms, a battered suit of armor, a head covered by an iron helm, and long red hair flowing behind it like a burning banner. It looked like some twisted centaur born from a nightmare.
A terrifying giant .. easily over ten meters tall.
The monster loomed over German, its eyes glowing with a bright, piercing yellow beneath the helmet.
German rose into the air to match its height.
"What we do does have meaning, my friend. It absolutely does... for this is the will of the Master we all chose to follow."
Standing before that creature, Germanâs expression softened .. he even smiled lightly. This being was perhaps the only one who suffered as much as he had for the sake of their mission.
"Fulghor... I apologize. I came today to ask for your strength."
"I am already aware. It has always been this way," Fulghor replied ..his normal voice naturally thunderous due to his colossal size.
Fulghor, known as the Planet, was unique.
Unlike the other warriors of the Shadow Sect, he had never died.
Nameless had never reconstructed him.
He chose to follow Nameless from the very beginning, enchanted by him.
And because of thatâunlike every other member of the Sectâ
He still possessed his original body. His original power.
"I will join you in this battle. So youâd better not lose, German."
Fulghor extended his hand .. heâs radiant light washing over Germanâs entire body, illuminating the world around them.
"Thank you... old friend."
German opened his eyes in the present moment.
Before him stood Wesker.
Below him, Zibar.
"Thereâs much at stake... and far more that must be done... and finished."
"But right now, there is only one thing I desire .. to give this body a worthy battle... just like the old days."
German smiled as his aura exploded violently, unleashing a wave of impossible cold that swept across the entire regionâits chilling force shaking the souls of everyone present.
For a moment... he no longer resembled the broken vessel time had ruined.
He was now the Saint .. Saint German, the one who once terrified the demons.
Sensing true danger, Zibar extended his arm, lifting Frey toward German.
"Donât get ahead of yourself, Namelessâ follower! What you want is already in my hand!"
Zibar threatened, using Frey as a bargaining chip.
"You canât possibly win here!!" the Tenth-Rank Demon bellowed.
German answered with a wicked smile.
"Who do you think I am? Who do you think youâre speaking to, Tenth-Rank Demon... and you, Wesker?"
His voice grew heavy .. before he dropped a bombshell.
"Itâs impossible for me to fail... or be unable to perceive what that pathetic eye of yours can see. Remember my words, Wesker..."
At that moment, a strange window materialized before Freyâs barely conscious eyes ..
A system notification that appeared out of nowhere...
Carrying words that made Freyâs eyes widen slowly.
Ding!
Synchronization in progress...
96%
97%
98%
99%
As if he could see those rising numbers, German burst into loud laughter, finishing his declaration:
"No matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, Wiskar... I will always remain one step ahead.
And all creatures like you can ever hope to do... is chase my shadow."
Between the engineerâs laughter and Wiskarâs tightening scowl... it finally reached its end.
100%
Synchronization complete.
The notification hit ..
and then ..
SLAASH!!!
From an unexpected place .. down below.
Everyone heard the sound of blade slicing through flesh...
and the unmistakable spill of blood.
Every pair of eyes focused on the same spot .. eyes filled with countless emotions, the strongest of them being shock.
Out of nowhere, a blade of pure light cleaved through Zibarâs arm ..
the very arm holding Frey.
The demonâs hand was severed mercilessly,
leaving him frozen in disbelief.
Unable to comprehend what had happened, Zibar tried to turn ..
only to be met by a roaring shockwave, a rocket-like kick that sent him flying across the crater, smashing him into the distant wall.
And the one responsible...
was none other than the man who, until this moment, had been nothing but an emotionless killing machine.
"Synchronization complete.
User: Abraham Starlight."
Freyâs eyes widened unconsciously as he stared at the broad back now standing between him and death ..
The one who struck Zibar...
was Abraham.
His back still faced his fallen son.
Abraham was still himself ..
The merciless weapon of slaughter.
Yet somehow... he felt different.
With trembling, tear-filled eyes, Frey forced himself upward.
"Father..."
His voice was barely a whisper, desperately trying to make him turn around.
He wanted to see his face.
To confirm...
Was it still the same empty expression?
The same merciless killer who attacked him without hesitation?
Frey reached out, but his body refused to move any further.
And then, after a few agonizing seconds...
Abraham turned.
Slowly ..
but steadily ..
until Frey finally saw his fatherâs face.
And in that moment, time itself froze.
For Abraham was smiling.
A warm, gentle smile that swept Freyâs pain away like a fading nightmare.
"I donât fully understand what is happening...
nor do I grasp the current situation clearly..."
"But Iâm truly happy to see you, my son."
Abraham extended his hand and placed it gently on Freyâs head.
Freyâs entire world flipped upside down.
His father spoke.
His father recognized him.
Abraham was confused .. far more confused than anyone present.
His last memory was dying after fighting Weskar.
But the Star of the Starlight family adapted quickly ..
astonishingly fast.
He didnât need anyone to explain that the young man before him was his son.
He knew instantly.
He had already noticed Ada as well.
And in this exact moment ..
despite the comforting words he offered Frey ..
Abraham Starlight was seething with rage.
A rage his demonic enemies were about to endure.
Before Freyâs teary gaze fixed on his father...
and before the astonished demons .. most of all Weskar, whose face had completely changed ..
Abraham Starlight had returned.
Truly returned.
Geppetto was the most devastated of all ..
he had completely lost control over his ultimate puppet.
Abrahamâs soul shattered the demonâs domination with ease.
It was a catastrophic shock ...
one only German had prepared for.
"You may have taken the body...
but the soul was always mine."
German spoke, ready for battle.
"You cannot win, Weskar.
For the power of my Master remains with me."
"You bastard...!" Weskar roared, charging at German.
Meanwhile, Zibar re-emerged only to find Abraham standing before him ..
A colossal battle was moments away from igniting.
And the Shadow Sect had just flipped the entire table on the High Demons.
Now... everything had changed.
Only a fight to the death remained to determine the victor.
One thing was certain:
The Shadow Sect had come with the intent to slay the High Demons ..
to remind the world, once more,
of who the followers of Nameless truly were...
the ones who led the Great War in ages past.
Thus... the conflict reached its ultimate peak.
And legends clashed with the intent to devour each other whole.