Chapter 49. Breaking the Chains

The air in the Council courtyard was no longer silver-heavy; it was thick with the raw, dying essence of a god’s sacrifice.

Caius stood before the scaffold, impaled by his own sworn vow. The rhythmic, unnatural thump of his heart—a spiritual drumbeat fueled by the Hearthstone’s power and his absolute devotion—slammed against the Silver Cage. His life force was draining with every beat, turning his death into the ultimate weapon.

Inside the cage, the silver chains around Neriah’s throat were scorching hot. The anti-magic field, designed to crush her power, was instead absorbing the colossal, pure spiritual surge from Caius’s dying heart. The Ashen Flame, dormant and defeated moments before, was now not just returning; it was being resurrected by the most powerful, focused sacrifice of love the world had ever known.

Neriah threw back her head, an unheard sound of agony and genesis tearing from her lips. She didn’t feel the pain of the silver; she felt the profound, o