Chapter 330: Dragon Grief

Isvarn’s eyes narrowed.

The shock was gone now. Erza had finally accepted what had happened, and as her aura continued to rise over the ruined city, Isvarn understood that everything until this moment had merely been the silence before the storm.

Here it comes.

The real disaster.

Isvarn’s attention shifted when he noticed Erza’s fingers move. It was only a tiny reaction, barely noticeable to anyone else, but he understood her well enough to know what it meant. His expression immediately became serious as he looked down at Elena, who was still sleeping peacefully in his arms, completely unaware of everything happening around her.

He gently touched two fingers against Elena’s forehead and placed a spell around her. Whatever happened next, he didn’t want the child to hear it. The sounds of destruction, the arguments, and whatever Erza might say in the state she was in would never reach Elena’s ears.

Then Erza turned her head.

Her violet eyes found Isvarn.

The old dragon met her gaze without moving.

For a brief moment, nothing happened. The Agency soldiers remained frozen around the battlefield, Sara and Sister Mary watched from among them, and even the surviving Shadow Corps seemed to sense that something had changed.

Then Erza disappeared.

No one saw her move.

There wasn’t enough time for Sara to blink, much less understand what was happening. One instant Erza was standing inside the crater, and in the next, she was directly in front of Isvarn with her fist already driving toward his face.

BOOM!

Isvarn had anticipated it.

His free hand rose at the last possible moment and caught Erza’s fist in his palm. The impact between them exploded outward with enough force to shake the surrounding city, sending a circular shockwave racing through the ruined streets.

The road beneath Isvarn’s feet fractured instantly. Cracks spread outward like a giant spiderweb, tearing across the asphalt and running beneath nearby buildings as dust erupted from the ground. Several Agency soldiers stumbled backward, while others were knocked completely off balance by the sudden pressure.

Sara raised one arm across her face and struggled to remain standing. Beside her, Sister Mary staggered several steps backward, her clothes and hair whipping violently in the wind created by nothing more than the collision of one fist against one palm.

Neither Erza nor Isvarn moved.

Erza’s fist remained buried against his open hand, every muscle in her arm tense. There had been no restraint behind that punch, and Isvarn knew it immediately. She hadn’t attacked him as a granddaughter lashing out at her grandfather.

She had struck him with everything she had.

Isvarn held her fist firmly while keeping Elena protected against his other arm. His expression carried no anger over the attack. Instead, he looked down at Erza with quiet sorrow, already understanding exactly why she had come for him.

Erza’s head remained lowered.

A tear slipped from beneath her white hair and struck the broken road.

"Why...?"

Her voice trembled.

Isvarn remained silent.

Erza’s fingers tightened against his palm as another tear fell from her face. When she spoke again, her voice was louder, but the trembling hadn’t disappeared.

"Why did you let him go?"

Isvarn looked at her for several seconds before answering.

"There are laws that bind beings like me, Erza. Laws that even I cannot simply ignore."

Erza’s expression didn’t change.

"Why did you let him go?"

The exact same question came again.

Isvarn released a quiet sigh.

He understood immediately.

Erza hadn’t attacked him because she wanted an explanation about ancient laws. She didn’t care about the Law of Deity right now, nor did she want to hear why Allen had been allowed to leave.

She wanted one answer.

One that would somehow make what had happened acceptable.

And Isvarn knew there wasn’t one.

That had always been one of Erza’s greatest flaws. Once she believed something was right, she could become impossibly stubborn, refusing to accept anything that contradicted the answer she had already decided should exist.

But there was another reason Isvarn was worried, one that had nothing to do with Erza’s stubbornness. Dragons were powerful creatures, yet that power came with weaknesses of its own. When a dragon truly fell in love, that bond could become frighteningly deep, and losing the one they loved could make even the strongest among them unstable and vulnerable.

Isvarn had known this for a very long time.

Now he was watching it happen directly in front of him.

Erza’s fist remained pressed against his palm as tears continued falling from beneath her white hair. For the first time, the anger on her face seemed to weaken, revealing the grief underneath it as she looked up at him.

"Why, Grandpa...?"

Her voice cracked.

"Why did you let him go?"

Before Isvarn could answer, Erza raised her other hand.

Isvarn’s eyes sharpened.

He immediately jumped backward.

Erza’s fist crashed into the place where he had been standing.

BOOM!

The road collapsed beneath her strike as a new crater exploded outward, throwing broken asphalt and stone high into the air. Agency soldiers retreated immediately while Sara pulled Sister Mary farther away, realizing that remaining anywhere near the two of them was becoming increasingly dangerous.

Isvarn landed several dozen feet away, still holding the sleeping Elena securely against himself. The spell surrounding the little girl remained intact despite the violent shockwaves, keeping her peacefully asleep and completely unaware of what was happening around her.

Erza didn’t give him even a second.

She launched herself from the crater.

The ground beneath her feet shattered as she accelerated, appearing in front of Isvarn almost instantly. Her body twisted in midair and one leg swept toward his head with enough force to make the surrounding air explode.

Isvarn raised his hand and caught her leg.

The impact thundered across Yuno City.

Clouds above them were pushed apart by the pressure, while another heavy shockwave descended over the streets below. Sara planted her feet against the broken road to keep herself upright as soldiers around her staggered backward, several forced to cover their faces against the violent wind.

Isvarn’s hand tightened around Erza’s ankle.

"Calm down, Erza."

There was no response.

Erza’s violet eyes remained fixed on him, tears still running down her face even as her expression hardened further. Isvarn’s concern deepened when he recognized the condition she was slipping into.

Dragon Grief.

She hadn’t fallen deeply into it yet. There was still enough awareness left for her to recognize him and understand what was around her, but Isvarn knew that could change quickly. If her grief continued consuming her until she reached a deeper state, controlling her would become far more difficult.

"Erza, listen to me."

Erza suddenly opened her mouth.

Isvarn immediately sensed the surge of energy.

Cold gathered between Erza’s lips as pale light rapidly condensed inside her mouth. Frost spread through the air around her face, and the temperature dropped so violently that tiny crystals formed around them before the attack had even been released.

Isvarn’s eyes widened.

The ice energy erupted directly into his face.

BOOM!

Isvarn’s eyes glowed as he opened his mouth, forming a barrier directly between himself and the incoming blast. The ice beam crashed against it at point-blank range, exploding outward in a storm of frozen energy that filled the sky around them.

The barrier held.

Isvarn immediately used the hand still gripping Erza’s leg and threw her away from him. Erza was sent several feet through the air, but instead of falling, she twisted her body and stabilized herself almost instantly.

She remained suspended in the sky.

Isvarn slowly rose after her, keeping Elena protected against his chest as he hovered opposite Erza. Frozen particles drifted between them while the clouds continued moving from the force of their earlier collision.

For several seconds, neither attacked.

"Enough, Erza."

Isvarn’s voice had become firmer.

Erza stared at him without answering.

Then she slowly raised one hand.

Isvarn initially expected another attack, but the moment he sensed what was gathering around her fingers, his expression changed. His eyes widened as energy began twisting around Erza’s raised hand, gradually taking a shape he had never expected her to summon against him.

For the first time since their fight began, genuine disbelief appeared on the old dragon’s face.

"The Sword of Vel’Thairon..."

The Sword of Vel’Thairon.

Isvarn’s expression hardened the moment he recognized it. This was no ordinary weapon summoned in a moment of anger. It was the very sword that had cut through countless Atlantian rebels and noble dragons like wheat, leaving blood behind wherever its master carried it.

More importantly, Vel’Thairon had chosen Erza.

The sword had accepted her as its master and ruler, becoming one of the symbols of the authority she carried over Atlantis. Seeing Erza summon such a weapon against him made Isvarn’s jaw tighten, because her grief had clearly pushed her far beyond a simple outburst.

"What is the meaning of this, Erza?"

His voice carried across the sky as he stared directly at her.

"Why are you acting as though Yuuta is dead?"

Erza remained silent.

She hovered opposite him with Vel’Thairon held firmly in one hand, her white hair drifting around her face while tears remained beneath her violet eyes. She didn’t attack, but she didn’t dismiss the sword either.

Isvarn watched her grip tighten.

She wasn’t backing down.

"Are you truly determined to go this far?"

Isvarn’s voice became firmer, though he made no move to attack her. Elena remained protected against his other arm, still sleeping peacefully beneath the spell he had placed around her.

"This will accomplish nothing, Erza. Fighting me is nothing but a waste of time. I am not your enemy."

Erza’s gaze remained fixed on him.

"Stop acting as though Yuuta is dead. He isn’t."

Those words finally caused a reaction.

Erza’s fingers shifted slightly around Vel’Thairon’s hilt.

"He is alive, Erza. Come to your senses."

Silence followed.

Isvarn didn’t say anything more. He had already understood that explanations about laws and obligations would accomplish nothing while Erza remained trapped inside her grief. What she needed now wasn’t another justification for why he had allowed Allen to leave.

She needed to remember what actually mattered.

Yuuta was still alive.

For several seconds, Erza remained suspended in the sky without moving. The Sword of Vel’Thairon stayed in her hand, its presence hanging dangerously between them while Isvarn waited to see whether his words had reached her.

Then Erza’s grip loosened.

Vel’Thairon disappeared.

The dangerous pressure surrounding the sword faded with it, and Isvarn finally felt the situation beginning to return under control. Erza’s shoulders slowly dropped as the anger that had driven her only moments earlier began giving way to something much more vulnerable.

"Then... what should I do, Grandpa?"

Her voice trembled. Another tear rolled down her cheek as she looked at him, but before Isvarn could answer, Erza spoke again.

"Why...?"

Isvarn remained silent.

"Why did you come into our lives, Grandpa?

Her voice cracked as she struggled to continue.

"Everything was going so peacefully. Yuuta was happy... Elena was happy... We were finally living together as a family."

Erza lowered her head, her fingers trembling.

"But ever since you appeared, everything changed. Yuuta suddenly wanted to become stronger. He started searching for things he shouldn’t have... and I was forced to..."

She stopped.

The words refused to leave her mouth. Her breathing became uneven as another wave of grief threatened to overwhelm her.

Isvarn watched her quietly. He understood that Erza was no longer speaking entirely out of anger. She was frightened, confused, and desperately searching for someone to blame for what had happened.

He could have reminded her that Yuuta had made his own choices. He could have defended himself or explained that none of this had been his intention.

But he didn’t.

Not now.

"Why did you let him go, Grandpa...?"

This time, there was no accusation behind the question.

Only pain.

Isvarn’s expression softened as he looked at her. The Dragon Grief had begun to recede before it could drag her any deeper, allowing Erza to think beyond the anger that had overwhelmed her.

"Calm yourself first, Erza."

He spoke gently now.

"You need to compose yourself. Yuuta is alive. As long as that remains true, this is not over."

Erza lowered her head.

Her hands rose to cover her face, and the tears she had been struggling to contain finally escaped freely between her fingers. The fear of having her husband taken away had overwhelmed everything else, leaving her unable to properly understand what had happened or what she should do next.

Isvarn didn’t interrupt her.

He simply remained nearby with Elena sleeping safely in his arms and allowed Erza to cry. There was nothing he could say that would immediately erase what she had experienced.

For the first time in her life, Erza had truly tasted defeat.

And Isvarn knew that some wounds could not be defeated with strength.

He had watched her overcome enemies that entire armies could not defeat.

Yet this was one battle he could not fight for her.

To Be Continued...

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Hey guys! Just a quick author’s note!

After receiving tons of reviews and feedback, I’ve finally decided to work on improving the novel’s pacing and writing style to make the reading experience even better.

I’ve started making some changes, and I’d genuinely love to hear what you think! Do you prefer this new style, or was the previous one better? Your feedback really helps me improve as a writer.

And seriously, thank you all for sticking with this story and supporting me throughout the journey. It means a lot!

I hope this story continues to steal your hearts, because trust me, things are only going to get Interesting from here!

The best is yet to come!