Chapter 289: Expectations

(Blackthorn Castle, Garrick Blackthorn’s POV)

Garrick Blackthorn stared towards the heavens in disbelief as the enormous phoenix descended upon his ancestral castle, its blazing wings stretching across the sky while the surrounding air shimmered beneath the unbearable heat.

For a moment, his mind struggled to comprehend what he was witnessing, as the sheer concentration of Flame Aether contained within the approaching attack surpassed anything he had encountered throughout his life.

"DEFENSIVE FORMATIONS! ACTIVATE EVERY DEFENSIVE FORMATION WE HAVE!"

Garrick screamed, his voice cracking with desperation as the soldiers stationed upon the battlements scrambled to obey his orders.

The castle’s protective formations immediately came alive, with translucent barriers rising above its walls as the defensive runes embedded throughout the fortress began glowing beneath the tremendous influx of Aether.

Yet even as those barriers formed, Garrick understood that they would never withstand the approaching phoenix, whose overwhelming presence made the castle’s strongest defenses appear almost laughably insignificant.

"Oh Minerva, please protect us....’

He begged, while thrusting both hands towards the sky as every ounce of Light Aether within his Soul Vessel surged through his arms.

[Heaven’s Shield]

A brilliant golden shield covered the space above him, expanding rapidly until it covered the central keep.

For an instant, the Blackthorn soldiers looked towards their lord with renewed hope, believing that his personal intervention might somehow protect them from the approaching catastrophe.

Then the phoenix struck.

CRAAAAACK!

Both the castle’s defensive formations and Garrick’s personal shield shattered upon contact, offering no more resistance than a thin sheet of paper before a pair of scissors.

"NOOOOO!"

Garrick screamed as the enormous phoenix descended directly upon him, its blazing body engulfing the Blackthorn lord before he could even attempt to escape.

His flesh turned to ash almost instantly, his bones disintegrating beneath the unimaginable heat as the man who had dreamed of ruling the East vanished without leaving so much as a corpse behind.

Yet the phoenix did not stop.

It smashed through the uppermost tower, tearing apart reinforced stone walls that had stood for centuries while sending enormous chunks of masonry hurtling into the courtyards below.

One of Garrick’s counselors was crushed beneath a falling pillar, his skull bursting against the stone floor as the impact scattered blood across the shattered tiles.

Another retainer attempted to flee through the council chamber, only for a collapsing beam to pin him beneath the wreckage as the approaching flames consumed his screaming body.

The phoenix continued descending through the castle, smashing through floor after floor as wooden beams, stone pillars, and reinforced ceilings disintegrated beneath its passage.

Within the upper chambers, servants and guards barely had time to recognize the danger before the floors collapsed, sending dozens plunging into the burning depths below.

A soldier was impaled upon a broken iron railing, his body hanging helplessly as flames engulfed him, while another was struck by flying masonry that tore away half his face.

Elsewhere, a terrified servant stumbled through a burning corridor, her skin blistering beneath the heat before the ceiling collapsed and buried her beneath several tons of stone.

The phoenix continued carving its blazing path through the heart of Blackthorn Castle until it finally reached the underground foundations.

And there, deep beneath the fortress, the accumulated Flame Aether erupted.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

A tremendous explosion tore through the castle from below, sending a devastating shockwave outward as the foundations supporting the enormous structure were ripped apart.

The central keep collapsed inward, its surviving towers breaking apart as enormous sections of stone crashed into the courtyards, crushing everyone unfortunate enough to remain beneath them.

Walls that had endured countless sieges crumbled within seconds, while the castle’s magnificent halls disappeared beneath mountains of shattered masonry, broken bodies, and burning debris.

The shockwave swept across the outer battlements, hurling soldiers from their positions as the remaining defensive structures collapsed beneath the force of the explosion.

Some struck the ground with sickening force, their bodies twisted beyond recognition, while others disappeared beneath collapsing walls before their screams could even escape their throats.

Flames erupted through shattered windows and broken rooftops, spreading rapidly across the fortress as burning fragments rained upon the buildings surrounding the central keep.

Within moments, Blackthorn Castle had become an enormous inferno.

The air filled with the thunderous roar of collapsing stone, accompanied by desperate screams, agonized howls, and the choking cries of those trapped beneath the burning wreckage.

Some survivors stumbled through the courtyards with their clothes and hair aflame, desperately clawing at their burning skin as they searched for somewhere to escape.

Others dragged themselves across the bloodstained stones, their broken limbs trailing uselessly behind them as they begged passing soldiers to help them reach safety.

Yet every attempted rescue was met with another falling tower, another eruption of fire, or another section of the fortress crumbling beneath the devastation.

Hundreds of people had occupied Blackthorn Castle when the phoenix descended, from trained soldiers and noble retainers to cooks, stablehands, servants, and ordinary workers.

Most had never participated in Garrick Blackthorn’s political schemes, nor had they possessed any influence over the decisions that had brought the Eastern Duke to their doorstep.

Nevertheless, they had all been caught within the reach of a single attack, their lives extinguished or shattered alongside the ancestral home they had believed would protect them.

And as the flames continued consuming the ruins, the distinction between powerful warriors and ordinary mortals became meaningless before the overwhelming might of Drew Dawnriver.

---

(Meanwhile, above Blackthorn Castle, Riven’s POV)

Riven stared at his father in absolute awe, struggling to comprehend the enormous difference in strength between the two of them.

’Just what was that attack? I could feel its heat even from this distance. That power... he could destroy the entire Ashfang Tribe in a second!’

Riven thought, as he saw what true Ascendants were capable of for the first time.

’And he doesn’t even look exhausted...’

Riven realized, tightening his grip around Sky-Cleaver as he gazed towards Drew, who stood atop the carriage with an expression of complete satisfaction.

Even Garrick Blackthorn and all his palace guards who were sure to be powerful Ascendants in their own right, had been utterly helpless before Drew’s attack, their castle defence shattering without offering the slightest resistance.

And judging by his father’s relaxed expression, Riven suspected that [Phoenix Descends] was nowhere near the limit of what he could accomplish.

’Just how powerful is Father?’

The question filled Riven with excitement, alongside an unmistakable sense of pride at belonging to a family protected by such an extraordinary individual.

For all the dangers gathering around House Dawnriver, he found it difficult to imagine anyone successfully threatening them while his father remained standing.

"That was incredible, Father! I knew you were powerful, but I never imagined you could destroy an entire castle with a single spell!"

Riven exclaimed as Drew climbed back into the carriage, his admiration unmistakable.

"HAHAHAHA! Impressed, are you, boy? Well, you haven’t seen anything yet. That was merely a little warm-up!"

Drew replied, laughing heartily before his expression gradually became more serious.

"There’s a reason I wanted you to see that boy...."

Drew began, his tone turning more stern.

"Soon, I’m going to send you to a master who will help you become considerably stronger than you are today."

Drew declared, leaning forward slightly as Riven listened with renewed interest.

"There’s a war looming over our family, boy, and if you intend to participate in that war and play a useful role, I suggest you become at least capable of destroying castles like these by yourself.

This war will likely go on for many years before reaching a conclusion.

So, the next time you return to White Castle, boy, I expect you to be strong enough to replicate what you just witnessed."

Drew declared with a challenging smile, causing Riven’s heart to pound with excitement as he contemplated the extraordinary expectations placed upon his shoulders.

’Father wants me to help the family?’

He wondered, as rather than feeling intimidated by the seemingly impossible challenge, he found himself smiling at the thought of someday standing beside his father as someone useful.