The mont the barrier collapsed, Liam knew. He had just stabbed a golem through the chest, sending it flying through the air. As it crashed to the ground, its body crumbled, and for the first ti, it didn't heal. It remained broken, lifeless.
This should have been a good sign. But for Liam, it only filled him with dread. His eyes darted toward Safa, where he saw a man holding onto her, shielding her completely with his body.
"No, no, no!" Liam shouted, his voice raw with emotion.
He surged forward, swinging his swords wildly, his strikes more reckless than ever. The battlefield was still crowded with golems, blocking his path. He moved with urgency, narrowly avoiding strikes from jagged, earth-ford weapons that sliced at his skin, leaving deep cuts along his arms and legs.
None of them were fatal, but the accumulation of injuries slowed him down. His body was bleeding freely, and yet he never stopped pushing forward, his mind clouded by a singular thought.
Each ti he heard the dreaded bang of an explosion, his heart clenched, his breath hitched, and he forced himself to keep moving.
'Why… why did Raze have to say that before!' Liam gritted his teeth, anger and regret boiling inside him. 'Telling Simyon not to die—that was a damn death flag if I've ever heard one!'
But as much as he wanted to bla Raze, his rage was directed elsewhere.
'No… the biggest idiots were us!' Liam scread in his head, the thought spilling into his voice as he unleashed a massive Qi-infused strike, sending a cluster of golems flying.
'We were the ones who told Raze to go! None of us said anything to him, none of us told him that it was fine, that we could handle things without him. And now look what happened the mont he left…
'Simyon, why… was there really no other way?!'
His body burned from exhaustion as he finally reached Safa and Simyon. Blood had soaked into the fabric of Simyon's clothes, trailing down his shoulders in thick rivulets. His hands were locked around Safa, frozen in place by a thick layer of ice, a desperate attempt to keep her safe.
Liam's gaze traveled across Simyon's body, covered in deep wounds and bruises. His face was barely recognizable beneath the blood and swelling. But what crushed Liam the most was the notification flashing in his system—the confirmation of what had already been decided.
Simyon was gone.
"ARGHHH!" Liam roared, his frustration spilling out as he continued cutting down the endless golems swarming them.
Maybe—just maybe—if they had only faced one Deleter, they could have handled the situation. But their search for answers had brought them the attention of two. The relentless wave of golems signified that another was monitoring their movents, ensuring they would be overwheld.
Even with all his skill, Liam couldn't carve a path fast enough. He was fighting tooth and nail just to keep the golems from reaching them, unable to do anything more.
Safa, anwhile, was slowly regaining consciousness. Her eyelids fluttered open, her vision blurry. She could still feel a tight grip holding her in place, an unusual warmth pressing against her back.
'What… what is this feeling? And this sll… it's Simyon. He did sothing. He was protecting .'
Her breathing hitched as she realized she couldn't move. His grip was too strong. She tried shifting her head, but she was completely locked in place.
Then her eyes landed on the ground beneath her.
The dirt was dark—soaked in red. The blood was fresh, still dripping.
"Simyon… let go of … it's okay. I can stop the attacks myself. You don't have to get hurt. Just… let go!"
Safa didn't want to use her Qi to force herself free, fearing she might hurt him in the process. But her panic was rising. He wasn't responding.
A deafening explosion rang out again.
This ti, the blast was aid directly at the ice encasing Simyon's hands. The frozen bonds shattered into pieces, tearing fragnts of his limbs apart along with them.
As the last of the ice fell away, his body lurched forward, collapsing lifelessly onto the dirt.
Safa was free. But all she could do was stare in horror at Simyon's unmoving form.
"Simyon… Simyon… SIMYON!"
Her heart pounded violently against her chest. She had just gone through this—hadn't she just saved him? Hadn't she just brought him back?
Then why… why was he lying there again?
Dropping to her knees beside him, she grabbed her Lux Spear and poured every ounce of magic she had into his body. But nothing happened.
No light. No energy. No sign of healing.
"Co on, co on!" she scread. "No, Simyon! No, no, no!"
She desperately channeled more magic, but it was useless. There was no response.
Images of their ti together flashed through her mind. The first ti they t at the orphanage, how he had approached her and talked to her before she could even say a word. Their laughter, their teasing, the countless monts they had shared, side by side.
They had co so far. They had made it through so much. And now… now they were supposed to reach Raze, to see this through together.
But Simyon was gone.
"NOOOOO!" Safa scread, her voice breaking under the weight of her anguish.
Garlon observed the scene from afar, an amused glint in his eye. "Now… it's ti for you to lose your life as well, little lady."
He casually flicked his fingers, sending a deadly spell hurtling toward Safa. She was too distracted, too broken to react in ti.
The attack was just about to strike—until a figure landed between them, blocking the magic entirely.
A powerful force erupted, consuming the spell entirely. The magic dissipated into nothing.
Safa's eyes widened as she looked up.
A familiar face stood in front of her, wielding a gourd, its contents draining away the magic that had been ant to kill her.
"Co on!" Fing shouted, his stance unwavering. "Tell where that bastard is—because I'm going to rip every part of his body apart!"
****
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