Seeing Her crying, Yoren understood everything.
The Fire Demon Project had begun without his knowledge. It was an experint Her had been confident in, but a fatal accident had occurred.
The project had spiraled out of control.
At the mont of the catastrophe, Saria had managed to pull Her from the underground laboratory, and other staff mbers had escaped as well.
But Ifrit was still inside, and the raging inferno that consud everything was caused by the Fire Demon Stone that had fused with her.
"Ifrit! Ah!"
Her's sobs were heart-wrenching. Yoren didn't know whether Ifrit was still alive, but seeing Her's devastation, his heart sank.
Just as he was about to ask Saria for more information, another cry, shrill and filled with grief, broke the air.
"Wow, wow, wow, all my Mibos are dead! Ahh!!! Give my Mibos back to !"
lantha sat on the ground, tears streaming down her face, her voice cracking with despair.
"I can't even recycle them this ti, woooo! Mibo, ah!"
Her wailing was sorrowful, but Yoren had no ti for her.
He stepped toward the others.
Her was too grief-stricken to speak. Yoren turned to Saria, his voice sharp and demanding.
"Saria, what happened?"
Saria lowered her head. "The Fire Demon Project failed."
"What?"
"I don't know exactly why. When I arrived, the high-temperature containnt chamber was on the verge of rupture. I only had ti to get Her out."
"Then Ifrit..."
Her dropped to her knees, whispering the sa words over and over.
"It's all my fault, it's all my fault, it's all my fault..."
Saria clenched her fists before finally snapping, her voice breaking through the grief.
"Don't cry! This is your fault to begin with! What good is crying now?"
Yoren turned toward the inferno raging in the distance, thinking quickly.
Now wasn't the ti for bla. No one wanted this outco. Her, the leader of the experint, likely felt the weight of failure more than anyone.
He needed to confirm sothing.
Yoren crouched beside the trembling Her and asked, "Ifrit—Is she still alive?"
"Wooo... woo..."
Her was too broken to answer.
Just then, a Filin woman in a white coat approached cautiously. She stopped before Yoren and Saria, her voice hesitant.
"I... I'm Dr. Her's assistant and a participant in the SP experint. I—"
Before she could finish, Yoren grabbed her shoulders, his voice urgent.
"Answer ! Is Ifrit still alive?"
"No. 019... she should still be alive."
At her words, Yoren and Saria exchanged glances, hope flickering between them.
"Explain clearly."
The assistant nodded, steadying herself. "The fusion of No. 019 and the Fire Demon Stone is complete. We anticipated an increase in power, so we prepared a containnt unit theoretically capable of isolating all flas. However, we underestimated the strength of No. 019 after fusion. She couldn't control it."
"And?"
"No. 019's energy source is the Originium prepared beforehand. Because of her high fla affinity, she shouldn't be hard in the fire. However, if she doesn't suppress this power before the Originium depletes, her body will beco fuel."
Yoren slapped his thigh. "If you'd told earlier, I would've thought there was no hope!"
"No," the assistant said solemnly. "There really is no hope."
"Ha?"
She looked toward the sea of fire. "This isn't ordinary fire. It carries a special decomposition ability. Ifrit's consciousness is lost. The only way to stop her power is external intervention—to sever her nervous system, halt blood flow, and force her into hibernation."
Yoren's eyes narrowed. That sounded like—
The drug Vina injected.
The assistant continued, "We have the drug, but no one can reach No. 019. She's at the core of the fire, and no one can get within a hundred ters. Our protective asures an nothing. The chance of rescue is zero. We have to accept this."
Yoren clenched his fists. He wanted to argue, but she was right. No one could survive that inferno.
Base No. 4 wasn't burning with normal flas—it was engulfed in the wrath of the fire giant, Iftli.
Even Saria couldn't stand against it.
He looked at his bracelet.
[Next cycle countdown: 19 days.]
The second cycle of the Black and White Twins had only lasted 11 days. Even if he used black power to charge into the fire, there was no guarantee he'd make it out alive.
At that mont, large transport trucks roared in, stopping before them.
The doors opened, and over a hundred fully ard personnel in isolation suits stepped out.
Yoren's gaze sharpened.
"Who are they?"
Saria's voice was low. "Rhine Life's Special Incident Response Team."
The alarm had only sounded twenty minutes ago, but it seed they'd been prepared from the start.
A middle-aged man in a white suit erged from the crowd. He wore gold-rimd glasses, his sharp gaze sweeping over the burning facility. His presence cast a heavy shadow over the group.
"The Fire Demon Project was too rushed," he mused. "Not only did we lose the subject, but also an entire base."
Yoren whispered to Snowsant beside him. "Who's that?"
"Amiya," she murmured. "One of Rhine Life's founders. Her's direct superior."
Amiya stopped beside Her, hands behind his back. "Her, do you have anything to say?"
Her sobbed, unable to respond.
He scoffed. "Are you mourning an experintal subject? Shouldn't you be grieving the loss of an entire base instead?"
He turned away. "I suspect you never took this project seriously. I'm deeply disappointed."
The weight of authority crushed the air. Even Saria stood rigid.
Except for one person.
Yoren stepped forward, his head down.
Then—
A sharp crack echoed through the silence.
Yoren's slap sent Amiya's expensive glasses flying, shattering as they hit the ground alongside his broken front teeth.
Amiya clutched his face, stunned. "You dare—"
Yoren grabbed his collar, voice ice-cold.
"You sit behind a desk making decisions, and yet you think you have the right to judge Her?"
Amiya's wide eyes filled with fury. "Who the hell are you?"
Yoren's left hand crackled with black energy, his voice dripping with rage.
"I'm the experintal subject you speak so lightly of."
Amiya gasped.
"If you ever insult Her again, I'll throw you into that fire myself."
Saria imdiately pulled Yoren back. "Let go. I understand your anger, but you can't kill him. Please, let go."
For Saria's sake, Yoren released Amiya, letting him fall to the ground.
He turned to the assistant. "Give the injection that halts blood flow."
She hesitated. "We have it, but—"
"Give it to ."
Everyone froze.
Her, her tear-streaked face lifted, stared at Yoren. "What... are you going to do?"
The flas roared, devouring the sky itself.
Yoren's face was unreadable as he gazed into the inferno.
A massive column of fire shot into the sky, illuminating every face.
Yoren stood still, staring into the inferno that threatened to consu everything. There wasn't a trace of fear in his eyes.
"Do what I have to do."
He had changed since his weak self in Mandel City. He had grown.
But the challenge before him now was greater than anything he had ever faced.
Even so, he had made his choice—just as he had when he gave the potion to Vina.
Seeing Her's sorrow, sensing Saria's helpless reluctance, he knew he had to act. No matter the obstacles, he had to go—because Ifrit was inside.
Yes, he hadn't changed. He was still that hopelessly foolish, overconfident fool.
But in this mont, he felt like the coolest person alive. And it had nothing to do with whether he had hair or not.
Her stopped crying.
"Yoren, what are you going to do?"
Yoren stretched his muscles, his stubbornness showing in every movent.
"I'm going to save Ifrit."
"You... No, you can't."
For a mont, when she heard the words "save Ifrit," hope flashed in Her's eyes. But logic quickly crushed that flicker of belief. No one knew better than her how impossible the rescue was, how deadly it would be.
Aina stepped forward and grabbed Yoren's arm.
"Are you insane? If you go in there, you'll die too."
The White-faced Owl sat on the ground, expressionless.
"Analyzing. Analysis complete. Based on my big data assessnt and risk evaluation, your survival probability upon entering the flas is less than 10%. White-faced Owl strongly recomnds abandoning this reckless decision."
lantha, still wiping away tears, mumbled through her sobs.
"My Mibo... wooooo."
No one supported Yoren's decision. Rhine Life was a scientific institution driven by logic. Abandoning the rescue wasn't a lack of love for Ifrit, but rather an understanding that heroism wouldn't change reality.
The flas showed no signs of weakening—instead, they grew fiercer.
Yoren didn't know how much longer Ifrit's body could hold out.
He took a deep breath and gently freed himself from Aina's grip.
"I understand the risks, but I'm going anyway. Miss Deputy, please prepare the inhibitor."
Saria had been silent, her head lowered in thought.
Then, as if making up her mind, she stepped forward and gripped Yoren's shoulders.
Her voice was low but firm.
"Yoren, I can't let you do this. I'm the head of Rhine Life's Defense Departnt. It's my responsibility to rescue experintal subjects. If soone must take this risk, then let it be ."
"Saria, I won't die."
"But—"
A small, determined voice cut through the tense air.
Snowsant lifted her head, gripping Yoren's scarf tightly. She clenched her fists and shouted toward the sky.
"Yoren will not die!"
Her voice rang loud and clear, filled with trust, reluctance, and pure emotion.
Snowsant pursed her lips. She knew Yoren would go in no matter what—just like he had in Mandel City, when he had chosen to protect Ifrit.
She might act silly sotis, but she understood Yoren's nature.
Even though she was scared for him, she wouldn't stop him. Because no matter how many tis he had faced death, no matter how impossible the odds, Yoren had always returned in the end.
With tears in her eyes, Snowsant raised her small fist and shouted once more.
"Yoren will not die! Big windmill, go ahead!"
Everyone turned to Yoren.
He simply smirked and struck a completely unnecessary pose.
As the pillar of fire raged behind him, he spoke in a deep voice.
"I bloom in the midst of slaughter and am reborn in the flas. My na is Fire Feather Yoren."
Silence followed.
Saria gave him a look as if he were so kind of alien.
"Why don't I just go instead..."
"No."
Yoren took the syringe from the assistant.
"Greatness is not for the faint of heart. This is my mission—no one else's."
"You..."
"Saria, if it were you trapped in the fire, I would save you too."
He gave her a aningful glance before turning toward the sea of flas, syringe in hand.
This was his choice. He had already said the coolest thing he could think of.
It was ti to go.
Let ti freeze at his most glorious mont.
And yet, reality was cruel. Not every hero's departure was as cinematic as it seed.
He had taken barely ten steps before stopping in his tracks and imdiately turning back around.
Holding the syringe in one hand, he wore the expression of an old lady who had just been shortchanged twenty cents by a vegetable vendor.
"Wait, sothing's not right. If I just run in like this, I'll burn up instantly. And the syringe won't last long either."
Saria let out a soft sigh.
"You finally figured it out."
Yoren began pacing in circles, distressed.
"What do I do? Should I hide the syringe in my crotch? It won't last long there either."
"I have a plan."
"Huh?"
Saria pulled out a gun-shaped syringe from behind her waist.
"Use this. This is my special weapon. The barrel is fire-resistant. Even though these flas aren't normal, it will hold for at least five minutes."
"Oh, oh!"
Yoren eagerly stepped forward.
Saria quickly loaded the drug into the gun and gave him a brief rundown on how to use it.
When everything was ready, she t his eyes, serious.
"Are you sure about this? You can still turn back."
"I won't regret it."
Saria hesitated.
"I should do it—"
"No. I'll bear this burden alone."
Yoren knew this wasn't a war. One person or two made no difference. No matter how strong Saria was, she couldn't withstand the flas indefinitely. Ti would burn her down just as surely as anyone else.
Gripping the injector, Yoren's expression betrayed no fear.
Of course, even if he were terrified, he wouldn't show it.
This was his responsibility.
Yoren would not die. If fate could kill him, he would never have walked out of Mandel City alive.
He had defied destiny before. He would do it again.
The hero always appears at the climax.
The world was watching.
Now, it was his ti to act.
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