The boy with the dark black hair stood in front of the sink, leaning on its edge with both hands, while his dark eyes were reflected in the mirror with a heavy silence.
A moment of silence was interrupted by a faint smile that appeared on his lips—it wasn't comforting… rather, it carried something hidden, something ominous.
Then he said in a low but charged voice:
"Are you saying… the heir of Astorayt has returned?"
At that moment, the silence was broken by a hoarse voice coming from the bathroom door.
A man was standing there, his features almost hidden in the shadows, but his tone was clear, carrying something of tension and discipline:
"Yes, sir… the heir of Astorayt has returned."
With a sudden flicker, the whites of the boy's eyes turned into deep black, and fine dark veins erupted around them, as if something dark had awakened within him.
He smiled again, but it wasn't the smile of a human… rather, a smile of evil—faint and steady—hinting at something deeper than anger.
As for the man standing at the door, with his stern eyes and silver hair, he did not move. He showed no sign of shock or even surprise, as if what he was seeing wasn't strange to him… but familiar, or expected.
Elsewhere, amid a light mist embracing the trees, a girl with hair as black as the night moved with grace and strength.
Her scythe spun through the air with each of her movements, surrounded by a deadly aura that radiated a silent dread.
With a precise strike, she tore through the neck of one of the wolves, and another quickly followed without hesitation.
Not far from her, a boy with pure white hair reaching his shoulders sat with his back resting against the trunk of a tree.
He was strangely calm, his eyes watching the battle without fear or urgency, as if the world around him didn't concern him much… or as if he had seen things a thousand times worse than wolves.
The boy slowly raised his hand to the wound on his abdomen, pressed it lightly, then said in a quiet voice laced with pain, yet not abandoning his sarcastic tone:
"Nibara… aren't you about to let a few wolves escape?"
Nibara was in the heart of the battle, leaning over one of the wolves, her eyes gleaming with cruelty.
And without turning toward him, she thrust two fingers into the beast's eyes with utter coldness, before replying in a sharp tone:
"Shut up… didn't you see what they did to us? Or rather, to you."
Nibara pulled her fingers out of the wolf's eyes, holding in her hand a glimmering eyeball—half stained with blood, the other half glowing with a strange crystalline shine.
Kyle looked at the scene with narrowed eyes and a disgusted expression, then said as he turned his gaze away:
"What are you doing with those eyeballs?"
She answered without lifting her eyes from what was in her hand, in a matter-of-fact tone void of any disgust:
"When you kill the wolves, their crystal-like eyes turn into actual crystal. Quite expensive when sold… that's why they're called Crystal-Eyed Wolves."
Without looking at her, Kyle extended his hand to the bracelet wrapped around his wrist and pressed lightly on one of its sides.
The bracelet opened to reveal a small vial containing a bright blue healing elixir.
He took it calmly, then said in a low voice, as if the conversation were merely a mental distraction from his pain:
"Lovely… and how much are you planning to sell it for once we get out of here?"
He didn't wait for her answer. Instead, he opened the vial and poured the elixir directly onto the wound in his abdomen.
He exhaled through gritted teeth as a burning sensation surged through him, then muttered:
"Tsk… painful."
Nibara answered him as she bent down to pick up more of the crystals, wiping them quickly on her garment before storing them in her pockets:
"I don't know... let's get out first, then I'll think about it."
Her tone was practical, void of any jest, as if she no longer had the luxury of dreaming.
In her eyes was a cold gleam—not like the crystal she was storing, but like someone who was used to fighting more than calculating.
Kyle didn't comment. He just closed the empty vial and returned it to the bracelet, while the pain still lingered silently on his features.
Kyle stood up with difficulty, leaning against a tree to gather his strength.
He spoke in a low but firm voice:
"Let's enter the temple… then eat something."
He began to walk slowly, with Nibara silently following behind him, her steps quiet but alert.
After a moment, she broke the silence with her question:
"Are you okay?"
Kyle gave a dark, sarcastic smile, his gaze betraying pain that couldn't be hidden, and replied:
"And you think this state of mine is called okay? Give me a break… for hell's sake."
Nibara exhaled sharply, suppressed anger rising in her breath. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared at his back with a look that held more frustration than words.
"Why are you talking to me like that? I didn't even say anything…"
But he didn't stop, nor did he bother to look at her.
He kept walking as if fatigue wasn't enough, and conversation was an extra burden he didn't need.
He said in a cold, curt voice:
"Just move… and stop acting like that."
She stopped suddenly and stared at him, her steps angry and heavier than they actually were, then said in a charged tone:
"Hah? What do you mean I'm acting?"
He stopped too, but without turning around. He kept staring at the path ahead, and his voice came calm in an infuriating way:
"I mean you're acting like a child."
His words were enough to ignite the fury in her eyes, but his expression remained devoid of regret… or even interest.
She said in a shaky voice hiding behind it a feeling she didn't want to admit:
"What's wrong with you? Why have you been talking this way since our fight with the crystal wolves?"
Kyle stopped and slowly turned toward her.
His gaze was dark, deep, as if something heavier than exhaustion was gnawing at him from within.
"None of your business."
Then he turned again and began walking without waiting for a reply.
Before he could go farther, he stopped suddenly, casting a sideways glance at her, his tone sharp, final:
"It's better if we part ways… each of us goes their own path."
And the moment he finished his sentence, he leapt between the trees with agility, disappearing into the shadows without waiting for a question or objection.
Nibara stood in place, frozen for a moment, astonishment gleaming in her eyes.
But she quickly clenched her teeth tightly, anger cutting through her voice:
"As if I care if you go alone… weak bastard."
And in an instant, she too vanished into the shadows, leaving behind only the air whispering the words left unsaid.
On the other side, I was leaping between the trees with agility, moving from branch to branch, avoiding any confrontation.
My condition didn't allow for another fight now… my body hadn't fully healed, and every step felt like it was tearing apart what remained of my strength.
But that wasn't what truly worried me.
What really worried me… was Nibara.
Would she be okay on her own?
She's strong, no doubt about that. Stronger than she lets on.
But despite her strength, I don't want to drag her into what's coming…
The mission the system entrusted me with—the one that arrived while we were still fighting the crystal wolves…
That mission I can't ask her to be involved in, and I don't want her to be.
My train of thought was cut short by a sharp sound behind me… a low roar, but close—like the air itself had choked.
I turned quickly, one hand gripping one of my daggers.
At the last moment, I deflected the strike… the claws of a flying beast had nearly torn into me.
I stepped back, staring at it.
It was from the class of flying monsters—the kind that only appears in packs…
But this one was alone.
Strange.
And at the moment my mind tried to comprehend the matter, I remembered.
I remembered what makes the "Squibnates" monsters abandon their pack and fly alone.
I swallowed my saliva, and a heavy feeling began to crawl in my chest.
"It's him… no doubt. Nethereor."
When this creature appears, every flying beast beats the ground with its wings and flees.
As if it's instinct.
Fear.
Nethereor… a tyrant beast, no monster among the cursed Arax creatures mistakes it.
For that very reason, I don't want Nibara to be near.
She doesn't know who he is… and she must not know.
I don't want her to see what I will see, nor to be touched by what I will fight.
I raised my gaze, my eyes fixed on what awaits me amidst the
dark trees,
My heart beats silently… and an inner voice clings to the only truth I believe in:
"This… is my war. And I will fight it alone, until the end."