The battle for Milix raged on, and the fate of the kingdom hung in the balance.

The storm raged around them, but Katsuo’s mind was focused. He could feel the weight of the battle ahead, but he wasn’t afraid. This was what he had trained for. This was his moment.

As the floating swords carried them toward Izana’s ice castle, the air grew colder, the wind sharper. The higher they climbed, the more oppressive the storm became.

Shards of ice whipped past them, cutting through the air like daggers, but Katsuo and Xanus pressed on, their eyes locked on the massive fortress that loomed above them. The walls of the ice castle were covered in jagged spikes, and the air around it seemed to hum with dark magic.

Izana, standing on a balcony of the castle, watched their approach with a wicked smile. His red eyes gleamed with anticipation, and his hands crackled with icy energy.

“So, you’ve come to face me after all,” he called out, his voice carrying over the roar of the storm.

“How brave of you... and how foolish. This castle is my domain now, and within it, I am invincible.”

Katsuo didn’t respond. He had no time for taunts. With a determined look, he gripped his sword tighter and readied himself for the battle to come.

The floating swords brought them to the edge of the castle, and as they landed on the frozen balcony, the temperature dropped even further. The cold bit into Katsuo’s skin, but he forced himself to ignore it. There was no turning back now. This was the final confrontation.

Xanus, his magical swords glowing beside him, stepped forward, his eyes locked on Izana.

“This ends now, Izana,” he growled, his voice filled with righteous fury. “You’ve manipulated me, used me... but no more. I’ve come to pay you back for everything you’ve done.”

Izana chuckled darkly, his icy breath visible in the air.

“Bold words, Xanus. But I think you overestimate your importance. You were always a means to an end, nothing more.” He raised his hands, and the ice storm intensified, the wind howling around them like a living force.

“But now that I have no use for you... I suppose I’ll have to dispose of you.”

With a flick of his wrist, Izana summoned a massive wave of ice, the sharp shards crashing toward Katsuo and Xanus with the force of a tidal wave.

Katsuo reacted instantly, his sword flashing as he deflected the first wave of ice, slicing through the frozen projectiles with precision. Xanus, using his floating swords, blocked the incoming attacks with a barrier of magical energy, the ice shattering harmlessly against the glowing blades.

Izana sneered, raising his staff high above his head. The ice storm swirled around him, growing in size and ferocity.

“You cannot win!” he shouted, his voice booming over the howling wind.

“This is my power! This is my domain! You are nothing but insects beneath my feet!”

Katsuo knew they had to act fast. The blizzard was growing too powerful, and Izana was gaining the upper hand. They needed to get closer, to strike at the heart of his power before the storm consumed them.

With a quick nod to Xanus, Katsuo charged forward, his sword raised as he aimed for Izana. Xanus followed suit, his magical swords hovering at his side as he moved in perfect sync with Katsuo.

Together, they split off, attacking Izana from both sides. Katsuo’s Bladestorm unleashed a flurry of rapid strikes, his sword moving with blinding speed as he closed in on Izana.

Xanus, with his “Rainfall” technique, summoned dozens of magic swords that hurtled toward Izana like a storm of their own. The two warriors moved as one, their attacks perfectly coordinated. Xanus summons his sword once again and rides on it to catch Izana from above

But Izana was prepared. With a wave of his staff, he summoned a mini blizzard, the winds swirling violently around him as jagged icicles formed in the air.

The icy spears shot toward Katsuo and Xanus, their deadly tips gleaming in the dim light. Katsuo dodged with fluid precision, his body moving like water as he weaved through the frozen projectiles. Xanus, using his floating swords as a shield, deflected the attacks.

The battle raged on, each strike bringing them closer to Izana. The ice castle trembled under the force of their attacks, but Izana’s magic was relentless.

His staff crackled with icy energy as he summoned wave after wave of ice to defend himself. But Katsuo and Xanus refused to back down. With every step, they closed the distance, their swords cutting through the storm with precision.

Izana snarled, frustration flickering in his eyes as he realized that his magic was not enough to keep them at bay. With a furious roar, he summoned a massive spear of ice, its tip glowing with deadly energy.

He hurled it toward Xanus, the spear moving too fast to dodge. Xanus barely had time to react before the spear struck him, the force of the impact sending him crashing to the ground.

Xanus hit the frozen ground with a sickening thud, the massive ice spear having pierced through his side. His body convulsed as blood began to seep into the frost-covered surface beneath him, the red staining the pure white of the ice.

Katsuo’s heart skipped a beat as he saw his companion fall, but there was no time to react emotionally. Izana loomed over them, his malicious grin widening as he watched Xanus writhe in agony.

“Did you really think you stood a chance?” Izana sneered, his voice dripping with contempt.

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“You were always weak, Xanus. A failure of a prince, and now, a failure in battle.”

Katsuo’s grip on his sword tightened, his knuckles turning white. His muscles tensed as fury coursed through him, his blood boiling with the desire for retribution.

Xanus had been many things, but weak wasn’t one of them.

Izana, the manipulative sorcerer who had toyed with Xanus’s life and twisted him into a tool, would pay for his cruelty.

“You’ve gone too far, Izana,” Katsuo growled through gritted teeth, his voice low but filled with venom.

He could feel the air around him freeze as his rage met the icy magic that surrounded them. This was no longer just a fight for survival. It was personal.

Izana let out a dark chuckle, twirling his staff between his fingers as he watched Katsuo with amusement.

“Oh, have I?” he mocked, raising one eyebrow.

“And what will you do about it, Katsuo? You’re as helpless as the prince there.” He gestured dismissively toward Xanus, who lay motionless on the ice, his breaths shallow and labored.

“You’re both just flies caught in my web. No matter how much you struggle, I will always be stronger.”

Katsuo said nothing in response. His focus shifted entirely to his breathing, drawing in slow, deep breaths as he felt the weight of the moment settle over him.

His vision narrowed until all he could see was Izana, standing atop his frozen throne, taunting him with every word.

Izana’s ice magic was formidable, and the storm surrounding them had reached a fever pitch, but Katsuo had something Izana didn’t: the will to protect those who mattered to him, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

Katsuo lowered his stance, bringing his sword up in a defensive position as he entered a new state of calm. He had seen this moment before, in countless battles where his life hung by a thread, but this time it was different.

He felt the flow of energy around him, the rhythm of the wind, and the pulse of his own heart. The world seemed to slow as he focused inward, his breath now steady and measured.

He closed his eyes, letting the chaos of the storm fade into the background. It was just him and Izana now.

Izana, sensing that something had changed, narrowed his eyes.

“What is this?” he muttered under his breath, his amusement fading. He raised his staff and fired a massive spear of ice toward Katsuo, the deadly projectile cutting through the air with terrifying speed. But Katsuo didn’t flinch.

At the last possible moment, he sidestepped the spear with effortless grace, his movements fluid and precise. Izana’s eyes widened in shock, but before he could react, Katsuo was already moving.

With his eyes still closed, Katsuo advanced on Izana, his body moving with a speed and agility that defied the storm around him.

Izana, now threatened, unleashed a flurry of ice spears, each one more deadly than the last. But Katsuo dodged them all, weaving through the onslaught as if he could see the attacks coming before they were even launched.

It was a dance of death, but Katsuo moved like a shadow, slipping through the gaps in Izana’s defense with ease.

“Impossible!” Izana snarled, his frustration growing with each missed strike.

He raised his staff again, summoning his most powerful attack yet: a massive blizzard that engulfed the entire ice castle. The wind howled with the fury of a thousand storms, and sharp icicles rained down from the sky like deadly shards of glass.

The blizzard was so thick that it was impossible to see through the wall of snow and ice, but Katsuo moved through it with practiced ease. His instincts guided him, his senses attuned to every shift in the storm.

As Katsuo closed in on Izana, the sorcerer raised his staff for one final strike, his eyes wild with desperation.

“I’ll end you!” he screamed, his voice barely audible over the roar of the storm. He thrust his staff forward, firing a barrage of icicles directly at Katsuo’s heart. But Katsuo had already moved. In one fluid motion, he sidestepped the attack and closed the distance between them, his sword flashing in the icy light.

“Flash Strike,” Katsuo whispered, his voice calm and steady. The world seemed to pause for a split second, and then, in a blur of motion, Katsuo’s blade struck.

The force of the attack was so fast, so precise, that it seemed as though time itself had slowed to witness the blow. Katsuo landed gracefully behind Izana, his sword already sheathed as the final echoes of the strike faded into the storm. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, Izana gasped, his eyes wide with disbelief as he looked down at his chest. A deep, jagged slash ran across his torso, blood beginning to seep through his dark robes.

He staggered forward, dropping his staff as his body gave out.

“No... this can’t be,” Izana choked, his voice weak and filled with shock.

“My power... my empire...” He reached out as if to grasp the icy air itself, but his strength failed him. With a final, pitiful gasp, Izana collapsed to the ground, his body crumpling in defeat.

Katsuo stood tall, his breathing steady as he looked down at the fallen sorcerer.

Izana, the man who had manipulated and destroyed so many lives, was finally defeated. The storm that had raged above them began to dissipate, the wind dying down as the ice castle trembled under the weight of its creator’s death.

The massive structure, once a symbol of Izana’s might, began to crack and crumble. Ice shards fell from the sky like fragile pieces of glass, the fortress collapsing around them.

Katsuo’s thoughts immediately shifted to Xanus. He turned and sprinted toward his fallen comrade, his heart pounding in his chest.

The castle was coming apart at the seams, and there was no time to waste. As he reached Xanus’s side, Katsuo knelt down, his hands shaking slightly as he lifted the prince into his arms.

Xanus’s face was pale, his breathing shallow, but he was alive.

“Xanus, stay with me,” Katsuo urged, his voice filled with urgency. “We’re getting out of here.”

The ice castle was collapsing faster now, massive chunks of ice falling from the ceiling as the entire structure began to disintegrate. Katsuo hoisted Xanus onto his shoulder, his muscles straining from the effort, but he pushed through the pain.

He could see the entrance to the castle just ahead, the way out barely holding together as the walls around them crumbled. Katsuo’s legs burned as he ran, but he didn’t stop. He couldn’t stop. Not now.

The ice castle was collapsing around them, shards of crystal raining down like pieces of a shattered dream.

Katsuo stood at the edge of the crumbling balcony, his heart pounding in his chest. Xanus was unconscious in his arms, barely hanging on to life after the brutal battle.

The wind howled in his ears, and the ground below seemed impossibly far away. His legs trembled—not from exhaustion, but from the gnawing fear that gripped him.

“We might not make it,” Katsuo whispered to himself, his voice barely audible over the roaring wind. His grip tightened around Xanus, his mind racing with doubt.

He had fought so hard, risked everything, but now, standing on the precipice, the weight of uncertainty crushed him. Was this really the end? Could they survive this fall? The destruction of the castle felt like the collapse of everything around him.

His heart clenched as the icy structure cracked beneath him, the stones slipping away into the void below.

There was no time left. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the worst, and without another moment of hesitation, he jumped.

The sensation of falling was terrifying. The wind whipped through his hair, and his heart raced in his chest. The ground rushed up to meet him, and Katsuo felt a cold, creeping fear wash over him.

He kept his eyes shut, unwilling to see the end. He didn’t know if they would survive this fall, but he wasn’t ready to give up. Not now. Not after everything they had fought for.