VOIDBLADE: THE LAST SWORD OF THE END

The fall of Ironholt sent shockwaves through Briarstead. Rumors spread like wildfire — each one darker than the last. They spoke of a lord who had called for war and found only death. Of soldiers who vanished without screams, walls that rotted as if the keep itself had been cursed. But one truth remained clear:

Void God had declared his presence.

And no one knew who would fall next.

---

In the southern reaches of the county, three lords gathered in secret. Lord Dorian of Blackpine, Lady Elys Mournshade, and Lord Garrin Thornwright. Their strongholds lay close enough to the corrupted lands that they were already on edge — but this was a different kind of fear.

"We cannot stay isolated any longer," Dorian hissed, slamming a fist on the table. "Ironholt was the most fortified keep in the county! If it can fall, so can ours."

"Fortified against armies," Elys said coolly. "Not against… this."

"Is it even a man?" Garrin whispered. "I heard the walls decayed at his presence. That his blade rots flesh and steel alike."

"It's a player," Dorian spat. "And I refuse to be afraid of one man."

"And yet you called this meeting." Elys's eyes glinted with amusement — but even she couldn't quite mask her tension.

"Because we must act," Dorian said. "If we strike together, we can end this before it—"

The candlelight flickered.

And the room went cold.

Elys stood first, one hand resting on the hilt of her rapier. "We're not alone."

The shadows shifted.

And then they attacked.

---

The assassins came fast. Too fast. Dorian barely had time to draw his sword before the first was on him — a blur of dark cloth and gleaming steel. He blocked the strike — but the second blade found his throat.

Elys fared better. Her rapier danced, deflecting the flurry of attacks — but the assassins were relentless. Garrin fell in moments, his body hitting the floor without a sound.

And then the room went still.

Kaela Nightshade emerged from the darkness, her eyes cold and sharp. "Lord Dorian thought to unite you," she said softly. "But the Void does not suffer defiance."

Elys's knuckles whitened on her blade. "You think I'll fall so easily?"

Kaela smiled. "I hope not."

The fight was fast and brutal. Elys was skilled — her rapier a blur of silver and precision. But Kaela was faster. More patient. The duel ended with a single, perfect strike — and Elys crumpled to the ground.

---

The three lords died that night. And the county woke to find their strongholds… empty. No soldiers. No servants. Only silence and banners of black.

But the message didn't end there.

The people found their corpses hanging from the walls — each one bearing a single mark carved into their flesh. A sigil of perfect, endless void.

And the county knew fear.

---

Far from the chaos, Jin sat across from Void God in their private meeting place — a secluded mountain peak overlooking the corrupted lands. The wind howled, but neither paid it any mind.

Jin's face was pale. "You… you saw the realms beyond realms?"

Void God nodded slowly. "The Abyss. The Void God's waiting presence. And the power beyond even him." He met Jin's eyes. "This game isn't a game. It never was."

Jin swallowed hard. "So what do we do?"

"We prepare," Void God said. "We take Briarstead. We root out every spy, every rival. And when the time comes… we rise."

Jin's resolve hardened. "Then let's get to work."

And the culling continued.