Hunter of the Lost Gates-Chapter 41 - : When Kings Collide

The battlefield was no longer just stone and ruins. It was **alive.**

The Abyss pulsed through the air, thick with raw power, twisting and bending reality itself. The abyssal creatures surrounding Sai moved in unison, no longer wild, no longer chaotic. **They were waiting for his command.**

And across from him, **Ezren Vale stood unshaken.**

Golden abyssal energy flickered around the Warden's form, his black armor gleaming under the swirling sky. His sword pulsed with restrained power, each breath measured, each movement calculated. **He had been waiting for this.**

For Sai to **stop resisting.**

For Sai to **become what the Abyss wanted him to be.**

Sai tightened his grip on his daggers. His body still ached from Ezren's earlier attacks, but now, something **was different.**

Before, he had fought **against** the Abyss inside him.

Now, he fought **with it.**

Ezren raised his blade slightly, tilting his head. "Better," he murmured, almost approving. "But let's see how much better."

And then—**he vanished.**

---

### **The Storm Breaks**

Sai didn't hesitate.

He **moved** before Ezren's attack even landed, his instincts sharper than ever.

Steel **clashed against steel**, sparks flying as their blades met midair.

Ezren's movements were still **blindingly fast**, but now Sai could **see them.** He wasn't just reacting—**he was predicting.**

He twisted, dodging Ezren's second strike by mere inches before driving his dagger forward—aiming for the gap between his armor plates.

Ezren deflected the attack effortlessly, but Sai had already **moved again.**

He stepped **through the Abyss**, flickering behind Ezren—**a move that should have been impossible to counter.**

But Ezren **expected it.**

The Warden spun, his abyssal blade slashing toward Sai's throat—**only for Sai to block it with a hand.**

Ezren's eyes flickered with surprise.

Abyssal energy **burned through Sai's veins**, and where he **should have been cut**, his body instead absorbed the force. The wound **sealed instantly, the power feeding back into him.**

Sai exhaled, his voice steady. "Your tricks don't work on me anymore."

Ezren studied him for a moment. Then—**he smiled.**

"Good," he said, and then **he attacked in earnest.**

---

### **Command of the Abyss**

Ezren's strikes came faster, sharper—**a whirlwind of death.** But Sai wasn't just defending anymore.

He was **controlling the battlefield.**

Abyssal creatures surged forward at his silent command, **weaving through the battle, intercepting Ezren's movements.**

One lunged toward the Warden's flank—only to be **cut down in a single strike.**

Another leapt from above—**Ezren twisted midair, bisecting it before landing gracefully.**

Lena was still locked in combat with the Order's soldiers, her chakrams carving through their ranks. She risked a glance at Sai, eyes widening. **He wasn't just fighting. He was leading.**

Sai's movements were different now—**fluid, precise, effortless.**

The Abyss didn't resist him anymore.

It obeyed.

Ezren seemed to realize it too. He stepped back slightly, golden abyssal flames flickering at his fingertips.

"You're learning fast," he admitted. "Faster than I expected."

Sai didn't give him time to say more.

He **attacked.**

---

### **Breaking the Warden**

Sai **moved like the Abyss itself—shifting, unpredictable, unstoppable.**

He wasn't bound by human limitations anymore.

He could **see** the flows of power, **feel** the space between reality and the void.

Ezren parried, countered, adapted—but **Sai was adapting faster.**

Their blades met again, but this time, **Sai wasn't the one struggling.**

Ezren's golden eyes narrowed.

For the first time, **he was the one on the defensive.**

Sai **vanished**, reappearing in the Warden's blind spot, his dagger already mid-swing.

Ezren twisted—**but he wasn't fast enough.**

Sai's blade **sank into his side**, piercing through armor.

Ezren exhaled sharply. Not in pain—**but in understanding.**

Sai yanked the dagger free, stepping back as abyssal mist **bled from the wound.**

Ezren straightened, looking down at the injury. Then, he chuckled softly.

"You are finally becoming something real."

Sai's breath was steady. "I don't need your approval."

Ezren smirked. "No. But you have it anyway."

Then—**he lifted his hand.**

And the **sky cracked open.**

---

### **The Abyss Answers**

Abyssal energy **erupted** from Ezren's form, a golden inferno that **split the ruins apart.**

Sai's creatures **howled**, stumbling back under the force.

Lena barely managed to avoid the explosion, shielding herself with a last-second barrier of abyssal energy.

Sai **stood firm.**

Ezren **was done playing.**

The Warden raised his blade, pointing it directly at Sai.

"Do you know why I've been testing you?"

Sai's grip on his daggers tightened. "Because you don't think I'm strong enough."

Ezren shook his head. "Because I needed to know if you were ready."

Sai hesitated. "Ready for what?"

Ezren's golden eyes **burned brighter.**

"To stand against what's coming."

A pulse of energy **rushed through the air**, pressing against Sai's chest like a heartbeat.

And suddenly—**Sai saw it.**

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A vision.

Not of the past.

But of the **future.**

---

### **A Glimpse of the End**

The Abyss was **breaking.**

The Lost Gates, shattered.

The world **drowning in shadows.**

And at the center of it all—**a throne.**

Empty.

Waiting.

For him.

For the **Heir.**

Sai **gasped**, the vision disappearing as quickly as it had come.

Ezren watched him carefully. "Now do you see?"

Sai's fists clenched. "The Abyss is waking up."

Ezren nodded. "And you're the only one who can control it."

Lena, still catching her breath, glared at the both of them. "Okay, can we talk about the fact that you two just tried to kill each other?"

Ezren chuckled. "If we were trying to kill each other, one of us would be dead."

Sai exhaled sharply. He wanted to argue. But **Ezren was right.**

This wasn't a fight to the death.

It was a **lesson.**

And now, Sai understood the stakes.

The Abyss had chosen him.

But something else was coming.

Something that would take everything if he wasn't strong enough to **stop it.**

Sai turned to Ezren. "Then tell me what's next."

Ezren sheathed his blade. "Now?"

He gestured toward the battlefield, where the **last of the Hidden Order's forces were retreating into the shadows.**

"Now, you decide if you're going to be a king."

Sai exhaled. His body still ached. His mind still reeled from the vision.

But one thing was clear.

**There was no turning back.**