But not everything survived the judgment.
A tower collapsed. The west wing of the academy burned.
Dozens of students were caught in the holy storm.
Elyse worked herself bloody healing them.
Korrin's wand snapped trying to block a delayed curse.
And Naia?
Naia lit up the sky with fire that should not exist—burning a divine sigil to ash.
But it was Thessaly who stood between the gods and Liss.
When the next divine emissary arrived—a golden knight carved from sunlight—Thessaly didn't speak.
She drew her sword.
And she cut its head off.
"Touch her," she whispered, "and I'll cut your god's throat next."
The corpse burst into glass.
And Liss—watching—felt something shift.
"You'd really fight them for me?" she asked.
Thessaly looked her in the eye.
"No. I'd kill them for you."