The dead world was saturated with death to a degree that none of the four Dragonborn had ever experienced before. Death existed everywhere around them. It filled the surrounding atmosphere, seeped from the cracked black earth beneath them, and flowed through every current of Magic energy lingering across the ruined planet.

There was no distinction between ordinary energy and death energy anymore because both had become one and the same.

Every breath carried traces of decay. Every fluctuation of power carried the feeling of extinction. The moment Erend, Eccar, Aesa, and Sylven fully sensed the world’s condition, an involuntary shudder passed through their bodies.

Deep frowns immediately appeared across their faces as discomfort settled over them. Even standing still felt wrong.

Their instincts screamed that they were trespassing inside a place where life itself no longer existed.

"What is this..." Sylven muttered.

Among all of them, the Plant Dragonborn suffered the most severe reaction.

His powers had always been deeply connected to life, growth, renewal, and natural balance. Throughout his incredibly long existence he had encountered corrupted forests, cursed lands, and worlds scarred by war, yet none of those experiences had prepared him for something like this.

This was not a dying world or a corrupted world. This was a world where death had completely triumphed and erased life from existence.

The overwhelming presence of death energy pressed against his senses from every direction. His face gradually became paler and even his breathing grew slightly uneven.

Erend, Eccar, and Aesa immediately noticed the change.

In his youthful appearance, Sylven suddenly looked far more vulnerable than usual.

A soft chuckle escaped Nyssara. Her serpent-like eyes gleamed with amusement as she studied him.

"Oh, poor child," she said. "Are you not accustomed to the air of this world?"

Of course, Nyssara knew perfectly well that Sylven was not actually a child. A Dragonborn could live for centuries or even millennia. Compared to most races, Sylven was unimaginably ancient. But that only made the teasing more entertaining to her.

Sylven clenched his fists. His eyes blazed with anger as he stared directly at her.

"What did you do to this world?" he asked, his voice carrying a low growl.

Nyssara’s smile widened.

"I killed it." The answer came instantly. There was no hesitation, guilt, or remorse within her voice. If anything, she sounded proud. "I consumed its energy. What you see now is merely the empty shell left behind. This world was actually the first world I devoured after my ascension. It possessed an unusually large Magical foundation and contained vast quantities of energy. Because of that, even after its destruction, traces of its power remained behind."

Her gaze drifted across the wasteland below. She pointed toward the countless undead wandering the ruins.

"Eventually those remnants mutated. The death energy became so dense that it began animating the former inhabitants. Even now the world continues to move despite being dead. Fascinating, isn’t it?"

The four Dragonborn followed her gaze.

Below them, endless hordes of skeletons wandered across ruined plains. Ancient corpses staggered through forgotten cities. Gigantic skeletal monsters roamed distant valleys while spectral armies continued fighting meaningless wars that had ended ages ago.

A cold feeling settled deeper into their hearts.

The reality of what Nyssara represented became even more terrifying.

This was not simply a powerful enemy, but a being capable of turning an entire living world into something like this.

"This is where we shall hold our contest," Nyssara said. Excitement became increasingly obvious within her voice as she looked around the dead world. "It has been a very long time since I have enjoyed myself like this. Thank you for proposing such an entertaining idea. Hehehe."

The four Dragonborn felt their throats become slightly dry. But none of them allowed their anxiety and worry to show.

"You sound very certain you’ll win," Eccar said with a sneer.

Nyssara laughed softly.

"It is inevitable. You may believe yourselves powerful, but that is only because your perspective has always been confined to worlds and civilizations. Every enemy you have ever faced existed within those limits. I do not. I am an entirely different kind of existence from anything you have encountered before."

Aesa stepped forward slightly.

"Then let’s stop wasting time," she said in her usual cold tone. "Let’s begin. If you lose, you leave our world and never interfere with it again."

"Yes." Nyssara answered immediately. The response came without even a second of consideration. "If you lose, you will stop interfering with me."

"Fine." This time Erend answered.

The moment the final agreement was spoken aloud, a strange sensation washed through all four Dragonborn simultaneously.

It felt as if an invisible force had reached directly into the deepest part of their souls. The sensation bypassed their bodies entirely and touched something far more fundamental in their existence.

Their expressions immediately tightened as they instinctively looked around. Ancient power settled upon them like unseen chains before disappearing again.

For several moments none of them spoke.

The sensation vanished as quickly as it had appeared, yet its presence lingered within their minds.

Nyssara’s smile deepened when she saw their reactions.

"You have just felt the oath," she explained. "That is the power of an agreement formed with a being of my level."

Erend, Eccar, Aesa, and Sylven exchanged glances.

None of them had ever experienced anything like this before. This was something entirely different.

Nyssara suddenly drifted through the air and moved several kilometers away before descending toward a vast plain of cracked black stone. Pale green death energy swirled around her feet as she landed.

She folded her arms and looked toward the four Dragonborn.

"We will begin now," Nyssara said casually. "You may attack me one at a time or all together. It makes no difference to me."

A telepathic connection immediately activated between the Dragonborn.

"We need to probe her abilities first," Aesa said. "One on one is the best option."

"I agree," Eccar replied. "Besides, she won’t go all out yet. I’m certain of it. She’ll choose to toy with us first and enjoy herself before becoming serious."

Sylven silently agreed.

Erend looked toward Nyssara and nodded slightly. "Then one on one it is."

Aesa’s eyes narrowed. "I’ll go first."

The telepathic discussion ended.

Without another word, Aesa separated from the group and began walking forward across the dead wasteland.

Nyssara’s smile widened.

—