Winter's Reign
"It's been so long since I last spoke to Venya. Since the day the Eternal War ended, she vanished, conquering new galaxies for the Empire. She orchestrated the Iron Concord's attack as a gift to us. The Ashen Empire's fall… That was her plan, too."
Bai pauses, her voice edged with something between resignation and knowing weariness. "Why am I not surprised?"
"I suppose we just wait, then. Who knows? Maybe she'll rally the last of those who aren't under our rule yet, turning them against us. That would make it easy to crush them all in one decisive stroke," Talia mused with a cheeky smile.
Emperor Shadow stood in the domain, contemplating the past. "We should have taken everything during the Eternal War—claimed it all, instead of just Asia. Had we done so, we would already be shaping new worlds, exploring untamed lands, and witnessing the realities beyond our reach."
Yuki entered the chamber alongside the other generals, her commanding and serene presence. She had fully adapted to her immortal body and newfound abilities—her essence now echoes the legend that bore her name. Like the fabled Yuki-onna, her transformation was complete: once-black hair streaked with white had turned entirely to snow. Clad in her battle armour, she stood before them and spoke.
"I have come to report—the last remnants of the Zenith-Vastros Union have fallen. They have submitted fully to the Eternal Empire."
She turned toward Ren, a smile playing at her lips. "My grandfather asks when the wedding shall commence."
His wives watched him in quiet expectation, awaiting his answer.
Ren leaned back, contemplative. "Your family desires grandeur—so why not hold it when the snow falls? It would be a spectacle, wouldn't it? A perfect moment for them to witness how effortlessly you blend with winter, now that your hair is as white as the snow itself."
She inclined her head, a serene acceptance in her gaze. "If that is your wish, Ren, I shall inform my family. Finally meeting your parents and your twin sister, Venya, will be wonderful. We shall take our leave."
Eternal Empire Ascendant
Cecillia materialised effortlessly, settling onto Ren's lap with that signature, unreadable grin—mischievous, knowing, dangerous.
"After you marry Yuki," she murmured, her fingers tracing the edges of his mask, slow, deliberate, possessive. "You should marry me, my sweet, lovely Ren."
With a fluid motion, she pulled the mask away, exposing the gaze she had always known was hers.
Then, without hesitation, she kissed him. Bold. Certain. As if this moment had been waiting for them all along.
Elsewhere, Venya sat upon her throne, her gaze cold, measured, utterly unmoved by the mortals who had gathered before her. They came from the last continents yet to fall—the Solkara Dominion, the Drakos Pact, and the Tundral Syndicate—each one a fractured remnant of resistance, clinging to a war already lost.
She had seen empires crumble, defiant leaders break beneath the weight of inevitability, and yet they stood before her still, believing they had a choice, believing this war could be anything but predetermined.
The Eternal Empire was coming.
And Venya was prepared to watch them fall.