Roth tilted his head slightly, his eyes narrowing—not in disapproval, but consideration.
"A third banner?" the ancient demigod asked, voice a low hum that seemed to echo across the void.
Ethan nodded slowly. "A new banner. One not built on just bloodline or strength, but on understanding. On unity. One that takes from both, but bows to neither. Something… beyond what we were."
He stepped back, letting the words settle.
Roth stared at him for a long time. Then, with a slow motion, he reached out into the air.
From the empty white void, a small spark of color bloomed—a deep violet flame, flickering quietly between the black and white banners. It floated there, untouched, unshaped, unclaimed.
A possibility.
"You speak like a god, yet still carry the doubt of a man," Roth said quietly. "Perhaps that makes you fit to shape such a banner."
Ethan's expression didn't change, but something subtle shifted in his posture—less rigid now, more resolved.
