Elina‘s POV

The Phantom Knight turned away from us, his spectral form beginning to fade like smoke unraveling in the moonlight. One by one, the other knights dissolved too, silent phantoms slipping back into the night, leaving only the wind and the scent of ash behind. My heart pounded in my chest. It was over. Or at least, this part was.

All the knights had vanished, all except one. He stood at the edge of the clearing, still as a statue, his ethereal armor ...