Ch.88Crescendo (3)

Evan was dead. Realizing this fact, Irene forcibly suppressed her sobbing.

She wanted to run to him right away and embrace him, wanted to confirm his cold, lifeless body.

But knowing she couldn’t, she wiped away her flowing tears and quietly gazed ahead.

Biltaine—the fact that he had killed Evan made her clench her teeth.

However, she couldn’t fight him. Irene thought calmly.

The mana that Evan had given her.

It was for her sake… and for her to escape from here.

Tears leaked out again at that consideration. With this mana, Evan could have revived himself.

He was born with dragon blood, and yet. He had given his mana to her.

Realizing that the opportunity created by his sacrifice had stopped the darkness from strangling her, Irene quietly swallowed her tears.

She couldn’t waste it. At least, there would be plenty of time to grieve after everything was over.

“…It’s all over now.”

No, it’s not over yet. At Biltaine’s murmur, Irene glared at him and thought.

Evan was dead, but his mana still remained within her.

How could she divert his attention? Irene’s eyes grew cold as she thought of the dagger in her possession.

But she had to hide this intent. Tears began to flow again from Irene’s eyes as she bit her lip, thinking of Evan.

“Crying won’t change anything. Evan Fried is dead, Irene Yuris.”

“Shut up.”

“What changes when you cry? Look at the knight sprawled over there. In the end… this is your fault.”

Your fault—though Irene was trying hard to control her expression, those words made her heart ache.

Evan was dead… and she couldn’t deny that it was her fault.

Hadn’t he come up here alone and fought so desperately to get her out of this place?

Not once in her life had she felt so powerless.

But now, Irene could only bow her head, overwhelmed by the helplessness that enveloped her entire body.

‘Evan…’

She had seen his arm break. She had seen his flesh torn away, scattering with blood.

Yet Evan hadn’t given up. Even then, he had continued to fight, swinging his sword.

Wasn’t it Evan who had tried to endure even within the Master’s domain? A bitter taste filled her mouth.

Blood continuously seeped from the torn, tender flesh,

and eventually Irene, with a trail of blood flowing from the corner of her mouth, looked at Biltaine again.

“I have no intention of offering Evan Fried as a sacrifice. If I had wanted to, I wouldn’t have killed him. Rather, I would have cut off his limbs and offered him as a sacrifice while he struggled before you.”

Srrng—

Biltaine briefly looked at the fallen Evan. He had been excellent.

As a knight who had once served the empire loyally,

Biltaine was even slightly impressed by the spirit he had shown. But… Evan Fried was dead.

It was he who was alive, and he who had pierced his heart.

Though he had given up on offering Evan Fried as a sacrifice as a sign of respect,

he had no intention of giving up on offering a sacrifice altogether.

Biltaine drew his beloved sword, Balmung, from his waist and pointed it at Irene’s neck.

Although not as good as Evan Fried, Irene Yuris was also an excellent sacrifice.

The rarity of being from one of the five great families, the special power that the Yuris family itself possessed.

Considering that, it was clear that he could succeed with the plan on time.

“You will be the sacrifice, Irene Yuris.”

Irene did not answer.

She was only measuring the distance between herself and Biltaine, waiting for him to come a little closer.

She was curious about what the “plan” the dark mages kept talking about was,

and why they had deliberately drawn Evan here…

But for now, getting out of here was her priority.

Lord Theorad and the Crown Prince would be below.

Seeing Biltaine approaching, Irene moved her lips when he came a little closer.

“…Biltaine Roman.”

Hatred burning in her heart was directed at him.

She needed to act calmly, but whenever she saw those abominable purple eyes, anger boiled up inside her.

Hot breath escaped her lips. She wanted to strangle his neck right in front of her.

She wanted to stab a knife into his heart, to kill him even if it meant her own death.

But, because Evan wanted her to survive.

Crack, Irene emerged from the darkness and slashed Biltaine’s wrist.

Biltaine couldn’t react to the surprise attack with the dagger she had kept hidden.

How did she escape from the darkness? His eyes widened at a possibility he couldn’t even imagine.

And then, flames rising again from that darkness. Whoosh, white flames erupted from Irene’s body.

The mana Evan had given her, drawing it all up, Irene created distance between herself and Biltaine.

If she fell from this height… she would surely die. Irene bit her lip as she glanced at Evan’s corpse.

She didn’t know what was below, but there was no choice but to break through and escape from this place.

Tap, it was a wide cavern. Perhaps because of that, no matter how far she ran, the exit didn’t seem to get any closer.

Nevertheless, Irene ran. Even as shadows crept up from the ground toward her,

she swung her sword blazing with Evan’s flames, cutting through them as she dashed forward.

She was out of breath. Though she had reached the threshold of Expert,

it wasn’t easy to stay focused in this mana domain where even breathing felt suffocating.

Just breathing consumed mental energy, and her own mana rose along with Evan’s flames.

Blue and white mana enveloped Irene’s body. Why was that alone so reassuring?

But… the fact that when these flames died out, she would never see Evan again made Irene’s eyes narrow.

As she ran toward the exit, Irene faced the memories flashing through her mind.

The day she first met Evan, a guard knight who made a strange expression when he saw her.

The knight who tried to be friendly by speaking to her in various ways.

She needed to tell him how that simple “Are you okay?” had changed her.

Irene bit her lip. She remembered the festival.

She recalled how Evan had followed behind her as she walked alone, sulking, yet still smiled.

Her heart ached. The flowing tears kept wetting her cheeks, making it hard to see.

Yet she didn’t stop running.

“…Haa.”

In spring, summer, autumn, and winter. The four years they had spent together were vividly coming to mind.

The frame still sitting in a corner of her desk, with a picture of them smiling together.

She had thought they could be together like that forever.

But, but. Her thoughts couldn’t continue.

With emotions constantly welling up, her breath was blocked, and she could only forcibly exhale.

If this were an illusion, she could reach out and touch him.

She couldn’t bear the thought that his body would be cold to the touch. How could she accept that he was dead?

The sensation of his lips on hers, their intertwined tongues, the warmth of their bodies pressed together—it was all so vivid.

Irene couldn’t accept that Evan Fried had disappeared from this world.

Acting calm was just pretending after all.

Afraid that she would truly break down if she collapsed here.

The thought of living the rest of her life without the knight named Evan

was nothing short of hell.

As her breathing became increasingly labored, Irene clutched her chest.

How long had she been running? Where on earth was the exit?

In truth, she didn’t want to live. If she died now, wouldn’t she be able to meet Evan?

There were so many things she hadn’t told him. She could only blame herself for only now realizing her feelings.

That she liked him, loved him. That she had held him in her heart so much

that she would miss him if she couldn’t see him even for a moment.

Because she liked his hand touching hers, liked his lips against hers.

When he held her, she liked the warmth that came from his body.

But.

The fact that she could no longer tell him these things caused Irene immense pain.

There were no flames, no spears piercing her skin, no swords, not even arrows forever piercing her heart.

Yet this situation felt like hell itself. A dull pain constricted her heart.

If she gave up now, would she be able to see Evan? Like someone who had lost her mind, Irene’s smile twisted as she stared into the void.

The exit was nowhere to be seen. As if trapped in an eternally cycling loop,

no matter how much she ran, the exit didn’t get any closer. The pervasive darkness covering this space,

Irene stopped in her tracks and slowly gripped her dagger.

“…That was quite surprising.”

Biltaine spoke as he glanced at his slashed wrist. To think she would aim for a surprise attack at that moment.

It would have been impossible with the mana in her own body. Biltaine’s gaze turned to the white flames enveloping Irene.

That mana must have cleared away the darkness.

Evan Fried—Biltaine hadn’t even thought that he would protect Irene Yuris until his very last moment.

Srrrk, the wound on his wrist, infused with darkness, gradually began to disappear.

This level of injury couldn’t harm him. One act of desperation,

it could make him flustered and create a momentary respite… but that was all.

Though Biltaine walked slowly, Irene felt an indescribable pressure from his footsteps.

Gripping her trembling shoulders, Irene gritted her teeth. She couldn’t die like this.

This was the life Evan had entrusted to her. It was what he had asked of her with his last strength—to live.

“Give up.”

“…I won’t give up.”

-I am your guard knight.

Why did she recall Evan saying those words to her on a snowy day when she was overwhelmed by an inexplicable anxiety?

She had thought they could be together forever. Even when he said he was going to hunt down Roman,

even when he embraced her as she sobbed… just like always, she had thought everything would be fine.

Irene raised her dagger. Poised to stab if Biltaine approached,

she strained all her senses to detect his movements. Biltaine had defeated even Evan.

Against such an enemy, she might not be able to buy much time, if any at all.

But she had no intention of dying quietly.

If she had held onto him more actively then,

would something have been different? Whoosh, the last of her mana surged.

She didn’t have as much mana as Evan. This would probably be her last chance.

The blue mana covering her sword began to blaze like flames.

Mixed within was a white flame; Irene calmed her mind as she looked at those flames.

She could do it. Just for a moment. Just a brief moment,

she needed to buy time until Lord Theorad and the Crown Prince entered this area.

…Could she really hold out until then? Irene smiled faintly as she faced Biltaine with her dagger.

She felt hollow. She had thought everything was coming to an end, but in reality, she was the one facing the end.

In the silent space, Biltaine slowly began to move. For Evan, it would have been easy to track his movements.

But Irene, having momentarily lost track of Biltaine’s movement, hastily swung her dagger.

Slash—she cut Biltaine’s collar for an instant, but that was all.

Tap, as he struck Irene’s wrist, the dagger flew upward.

As soon as she lost the dagger, Irene immediately ran backward.

If she continued to fight, she would surely be defeated.

Her judgment was quick, and Biltaine quietly looked at Irene as he watched his sword cut through empty air.

Anyway, she couldn’t escape any further. From the moment he deployed his domain, wasn’t this mansion within his territory?

She would never reach the exit in her lifetime.

Recalling this fact, Biltaine began walking toward Irene again with his sword in hand.

Why she wouldn’t give up, Biltaine could easily guess the reason.

She was probably waiting for support from those below.

However, they couldn’t come up here. Gargoyles don’t die except by dragons.

Even if Theorad deployed his domain and resisted, he could only hold out; in a long battle, Biltaine would ultimately be victorious.

Thud, Irene’s footsteps, which had been running for a long time, were blocked by a wall.

Clearly, it was an invisible wall.

Biting her lip, Irene looked at Biltaine approaching her.

She had to avoid the next attack. But after avoiding it, what should she do next?

In the darkly descending shadow, purple eyes flashed.

Sssss, Irene inhaled as she turned her gaze toward the approaching despair.

“If you had stayed still… I wouldn’t have treated you so harshly.”

Guooo—shadows began to gather toward Biltaine.

Like a massive abyss, all light was being sucked into the darkness and disappearing.

In that space where no light could survive,

Irene’s body, bound in Biltaine’s domain, slowly began to be eroded.

“What difference would buying time make? It’s ultimately a predetermined fate, Irene Yuris.”

Irene’s eyes gradually began to blur. The darkness eating away at her body,

she tried to struggle against the fact that she couldn’t move. But nothing… changed.

Crack, as the darkness consumed her body, Irene’s breathing was gradually stopping.

It felt not like death, but like being bound to darkness for eternity.

Sacrifice—recalling that word, Irene quietly looked at Biltaine.

She resented herself. She couldn’t resent herself more for being unable to do anything in this situation,

for being nothing but a burden to Evan.

If only she hadn’t been captured by Biltaine. Crunch, Irene gritted her teeth one last time.

As the encroaching shadows gradually ate away at her body and finally completely consumed her face,

Biltaine put his sword back into his waist. Everything was over.

The plan would also be successfully completed, and on the day the red moon rises… the curtain would rise on a play of the empire’s downfall.

In the pitch-black darkness, a tear flowed from Irene’s eye.

Her body, soaked in despair and helplessness, no longer moved.

In her fading consciousness, Irene thought of Evan one last time.

…There was so much she wanted to say, but would she be able to meet him now?

If they met, she didn’t know what to say to him.

Regret,

Grief,

Despair,

Remorse.

Dark and murky emotions wrapped around her body like a hazy fog.

When she closed her eyes, all she saw was darkness where nothing could be seen,

so Irene released her strength, ready to let go of everything. Fading consciousness, and increasingly blurry vision.

But what was this light appearing before her?

At that moment, Irene realized that the darkness enveloping her body was changing.

Whoosh, Irene felt the darkness gradually being lifted.

The darkness was melting away like wax in the warm, cozy light.

Flames, whiter than any other light, enveloped her body.

Was there still mana left? The confusion from the sudden change was momentary,

as Irene slowly raised her head at the voice penetrating her ears.

“My lady.”

Eyes as green as if they contained all the forests of the world appeared.

Surrounded by white flames, the face of a knight smiling at her was visible.

Seeing the gently curved corners of his lips, Irene reached out her hand.

A fantasy? An illusion? No, perhaps she was seeing him again after death.

When her outstretched hand finally touched his face.

At last, she could tell that the person before her was not an illusion.

“…Evan?”

Hearing her trembling voice, Evan smiled brightly.

He gently held Irene’s hand and placed it against his chest, letting her feel the beating of his heart.

Resurrection—having gained an enlightenment in the mental world, he had finally fully awakened his dragon blood.

A single rotating mana intensely emitted mana.

The radiance surrounding them, the flash emitted by the light spirit, obscured Biltaine’s vision.

“Didn’t I promise to stay by your side? I’ve come to keep that promise.”

There was so much he wanted to say. Hadn’t he thought of various things even while looking at his sister?

Gently caressing Irene’s tear-stained cheek, Evan gave a bitter smile.

Wasn’t she crying because of him again? He had vowed not to make her cry…

Slightly frowning at the guilt that arose unnecessarily, he carefully opened his mouth again.

“…There was so much I wanted to say. But now that I see you, I don’t know what to say.”

“Evan.”

Feeling as if his words were stuck, Irene blankly caressed Evan’s face.

The soft touch, the familiar warmth was transmitted intact.

When Evan, who was holding her waist and embracing her, slightly blushed,

her lips curved into a smile at the laughter that burst out involuntarily.

He was alive. Because that fact still didn’t feel real, Irene slowly moved her lips.

“…You’re alive?”

“More accurately, I came back to life. The fact that my heart was stabbed doesn’t change.”

The sensation of his heart bursting wasn’t a pleasant one.

He never wanted to feel it again, and he wouldn’t create a situation where he would feel such a thing again.

Whoosh—light burst from Evan’s back. It wouldn’t be bad to stay like this,

but wasn’t Biltaine still there? It would be right to have all reunions after this battle was over.

The time this light would remain wasn’t very long. Just a few seconds at most.

Drawing up his mana, Evan looked at Irene again.

How painful must it have been when she thought he was dead?

He was simply grateful that she had survived until now.

If Irene had been dead when he opened his eyes, wouldn’t he have taken his own life after killing Biltaine?

Evan looked at Irene.

Her moist eyes, as he stroked her cheek.

“…I missed you.”

Evan murmured softly.

While in the mental world, even while facing his sister, the only thought he had was worry for Irene.

Would she be able to endure well with his mana? Would she be able to escape? Without him,

would she be able to not break down? But Irene had endured admirably.

Gently stroking her wet hair, Evan smiled softly,

and seeing that smile, Irene followed with a faint smile of her own.

…He wanted to embrace her and kiss her right away, but he couldn’t do that now.

Evan’s hair fluttered in the radiance that enveloped him. The shadow cast below his face,

Evan was smiling in the rising dawn.

Wasn’t it amazing how just looking at that smile made her heart feel at ease?

Irene quietly felt Evan’s heartbeat.

It was an embarrassing posture, but now such things were no longer embarrassing.

The sound of the pulse in her ear, the gentle breathing sound, was creating a sense of relief.

Blue eyes turned to her knight once again.

Having lost him once, hadn’t she newly realized his presence?

Irene quietly smiled. Because she had no confidence in escaping from the one embracing her waist.

Because she was happy that she could meet him again.

Smooch,

She quietly kissed her knight who was staring blankly at her.