The night fell quickly, as if the heavens themselves were urging them to move swiftly. Ezra stood at the edge of the castle grounds, his hand gripping the cold stone wall. The weight of the decision to act was heavy in his chest, but there was no time for hesitation. The countdown ticked on, relentless.
[Countdown to the Main Story: 135,080 Hours.]
He couldn't afford to waste a single second.
The palace courtyard behind him was quiet, save for the faint whispers of the wind and the rustling of banners. The usual sounds of Liones—people chatting, children playing, the hustle of the market—had all but disappeared. A palpable silence had settled over the kingdom, the calm before the storm.
Ezra's mind raced as he thought of the conversations earlier. The king was right to be worried. The whispers he had heard, the dark presence that had been growing in the shadows—it was real. Something was stirring beneath the surface, and whatever it was, it wasn't something that could be stopped easily.
Escanor's heavy footsteps approached, and Ezra turned to see the towering figure of the Lion's Sin of Pride walking toward him. The sun was already beginning to rise, and Escanor's golden form seemed to shimmer with an ethereal light.
"You're still up," Escanor remarked, his voice deep but calm. "Can't sleep, huh?"
Ezra shook his head. "There's too much at stake. I keep thinking about the system, about what it means. It feels like we're being pulled toward something we don't understand."
Escanor stepped beside him, glancing at the distant horizon. "It's never easy. But we've fought our way through worse, haven't we?"
Ezra nodded slowly. "Yeah. We have. But this time… this time feels different."
Escanor turned to face him, his expression serious. "I've seen that look in your eyes before, Ezra. It's fear. Fear of losing control. Fear of what you might become."
Ezra clenched his fists, the familiar hum of the system flickering in the back of his mind. "I'm not afraid of losing control. I'm afraid of what's behind all this. The thing pulling the strings. And I'm afraid of what will happen when it finally shows itself."
Escanor's gaze softened, and he placed a hand on Ezra's shoulder. "Whatever comes, we face it together. All of us."
A heavy silence fell over them, but it was interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps. Meliodas, Merlin, and Ban appeared, their faces grim but determined. They had been preparing for the battle ahead, gathering intelligence, and coordinating their strategy.
"We've got word from the scouts," Meliodas said, his voice low. "The enemy is gathering forces near the outskirts of the kingdom. We don't have much time."
Merlin held out a map, tracing her finger over the dotted lines that represented the enemy's movement. "They've been using the cover of darkness, but we've pinpointed their location. It's not just demons we're dealing with anymore. We're looking at an army of corrupted beings, a mix of dark magic and twisted souls."
Ezra's stomach tightened. The kind of force they were facing wasn't something that could be fought with brute strength alone. "What's their goal? What do they want?"
Merlin's face darkened. "They're after something—something in Liones. We don't know what yet, but they're not just here to destroy. They're here for something much more dangerous."
Ban stepped forward, his usual carefree demeanor gone. "Whatever it is, we can't let them get it. We need to stop them before they bring it into the city."
Ezra's heart raced. He looked at his companions, his friends. "Then we move out now. We can't afford to wait any longer."
Meliodas nodded. "Agreed. Let's go."
The group moved quickly, gathering their weapons and preparing for the inevitable confrontation. As they made their way out of the castle gates and into the night, Ezra felt the weight of the situation pressing down on him even more. This was it—the final push. The enemy was here, and they had to stop them, no matter the cost.
As they approached the outskirts of Liones, Ezra could feel the air grow colder, thicker with dark magic. The ground beneath them seemed to tremble with a force that wasn't natural. They were getting closer.
Then, as they rounded a bend in the road, they saw it—an army. A massive, twisted force of corrupted creatures, marching toward the heart of Liones. But there was something else. Something that sent a chill down Ezra's spine.
At the front of the army stood a figure. Tall, cloaked in shadows, with eyes that glowed like burning coals. The figure turned slowly to face them, and Ezra's blood ran cold as he recognized the presence—one that he had felt before.
"The Watcher," Ezra whispered, his voice barely audible.
The figure tilted its head, as if it could hear his words, and then it spoke, its voice deep and resonant, echoing in Ezra's mind.
"Ezra… you have come at last. But it is too late. The end is inevitable."
Ezra's heart pounded in his chest as the army behind the Watcher began to advance, the corrupted souls moving in unison like a dark tide sweeping over the land.
"This is where it ends," the Watcher intoned, its voice filled with finality. "The balance between light and dark will be shattered. The world will fall, and all that remains will be mine."
Ezra drew his sword, the weight of the blade in his hand a reminder of the responsibility he carried. "Not if we can help it."
The Watcher's eyes burned with a fiery intensity, and for a moment, Ezra felt the weight of the system, the countdown, everything, pressing against him. He knew what he had to do. The battle for the soul of the world had begun, and there was no turning back.
[Countdown to the Main Story: 134,700 Hours.]
With a deep breath, Ezra steeled himself for what was to come. It was time to fight.