"We don’t have much ti, Lucy," Vorn said, kneeling before the broken boy.
They sat together on the scorched obsidian, where the ground was still warm from conflict. Black smoke curled lazily from cracks in the stone, the air heavy with the tallic sting of blood and sulfur.
Lucy looked like he had been chewed up and spat out by a titan. His armor was shattered, bones fractured, face painted with crimson. Every breath rattled in his chest like a dying engine.
A soft green light glowed from his palm as he channeled mana into healing himself. The pain ca instantly—sharp, violent, overwhelming. His body scread louder than his voice ever could, but he forced himself to keep going.
Then he looked at Vorn.
Sothing about the old elf was off.
Through bloodied lashes and pain-blurred vision, Lucy scanned him. The sa icy blue robes, the sa neatly trimd silver goatee—but there. A mark.
A red tribal tattoo, etched from Vorn’s temple down through his eye like a bleeding scar.
"Has that always been there?" Lucy rasped, gesturing weakly at Vorn’s face with his shaking hand.
Vorn blinked in confusion, then laughed softly—a tired, lancholic sound. "My face? Why yes, my face has always been there."
Lucy groaned. "You know that’s not what I ant."
Vorn lifted his hand slowly to the tattoo, fingers trembling as they brushed against the mark. His robe’s sleeve fluttered in the wind like a farewell flag. His expression shifted—his usual calm replaced by sothing far more brittle.
"If it’s back..." he whispered, voice fragile, "then we have less ti than I thought."
Lucy raised a brow, silently urging him to explain.
Vorn sighed, rubbing his goatee, eyes distant. "I’m a slave, Lucy. A slave to my god—Ithriel."
Lucy’s heart sank. "What...?"
"Ithriel doesn’t just guide his children. He controls us, directs our thoughts, and our wills." Vorn’s voice dropped to a murmur, bitter and small. "Not long ago, I broke free and Fought for my mind, but now that this mark has returned, he’s found again. He’ll seize my thoughts soon. Making his puppet."
The words struck Lucy like a hamr. He swallowed hard, the taste of blood sharp on his tongue.
’He controls them. All of them. Every soldier I killed today, they weren’t even choosing to fight.’
The realization hit like a weight to the chest.
Lucy’s sorrow twisted into rage. Rage hotter than Adgrun’s flas. ’Ithriel... I will kill you first. I swear it.’
His eyes t Vorn’s—eyes that once radiated wisdom and strength, now dulled by a quiet, suffocating despair.
"You can fight it again, right?" Lucy asked, desperate. "You did it once, you can do it again!"
Vorn shook his head slowly. "No. He’s watching now. Closely. I pushed too far last ti. The next ti we et..." A tear slipped from his eye, carving a clean line through the age on his cheek. "I’ll be your enemy."
Lucy didn’t know what to say. His throat tightened.
He had only known Vorn for hours, but in that ti, the elf had been everything Darfin wasn’t. He wanted Lucy to succeed, sothing Lucy never thought he’d find.
Seeing him fall apart now was unbearable.
Lucy opened his mouth, heart full of questions, of sorrow—but Vorn held up a hand.
"We don’t have ti," he said, voice firr now. "I’ll give you my ability before it’s too late."
The elf leaned closer, his hand pressing against Lucy’s chest. The touch was cold—ice against fire.
Vorn glanced at Lucy’s healing hand. "You’ll want to pour more mana into that," he said, almost apologetic. "I’m sorry, but this is going to hurt."
And then it began.
Vorn’s hand ignited with searing heat, mana flowing violently into Lucy’s body.
Pain—unimaginable pain—ripped through him like wildfire. He scread, choking as it hit his lungs. It felt like his insides were liquefying, lting into magma.
’Oh gods—he’s killing .’
In a panic, Lucy surged more mana into his healing. The magic rushed to rebuild what Vorn’s power destroyed—his kidney reford, his lungs reinflated, but the cycle of destruction didn’t stop.
Then, a glowing page appeared before his eyes: ’Atomic Radiation – Page 1/10’
He’s pouring atomic radiation into ? He’s insane! This is going to kill !
The agony was relentless. Blood spurted from his mouth. His entire body trembled as if caught in an earthquake. The air slled of burning flesh—his flesh.
Page after page opened, with each a new level of pain.
’Page 6/10’ —his bones felt like they were cracking into dust.
’Page 7/10’ —his heart nearly liquefied. He lost feeling for a mont.
’Page 8/10’ —his vision turned white, then black.
’Page 9/10’ —his nerves stopped firing. He barely knew who he was.
’Page 10/10’ —a final burst of clarity. Understanding blood.
But the pain didn’t stop.
He glared at Vorn and scread hoarsely, "It’s over! Stop—Goddamnit!"
Vorn blinked, then imdiately halted the flow. "You should’ve said sothing, brat," he said with a soft chuckle.
Lucy’s eye twitched. His body trembled. He wanted to yell, but stopped when he noticed Vorn’s hand.
The one that had transferred the power.
It was blackened and lifeless.
"What... what happened to your hand?" Lucy whispered.
Vorn calmly rolled up his sleeve, revealing the full extent of his entire arm, withered and dead, hanging like burned parchnt. "Side effect. Every ti I use that ability, it costs . In the past, my healers repaired the damage. But you have healing magic. Use it, and you’ll be fine."
Lucy stared, a lump forming in his throat. Vorn didn’t flinch. Didn’t complain.
’How much has this man sacrificed? How many tis has he used this ability, knowing it would kill him slowly?’
And yet... he smiled.
"You know what you have to do, right?" Vorn asked gently.
Lucy nodded. Tears welled in his eyes despite himself.
Vorn placed both hands on Lucy’s shoulders. They trembled slightly.
"Good. You’re a kind soul, Lucian Gray. Don’t let what will happen shortly take that away."
Before Lucy could speak, Vorn hoisted him up and hurled him toward the cliff with divine strength.
"Farewell, brat!" he shouted.
Lucy twisted mid-air, wind howling past his ears, and looked back.
He raised his hand.
Vorn gave him a final wave, then turned away.
A mont later, the heavens detonated.
A colossal beam of blue fire and white light tore through the sky in Lucy’s path, roaring like the birth of a star. The world shuddered beneath the blast.
Vorn didn’t flinch.
He chuckled and walked toward his god.
Toward Ithriel.
"Unfortunate timing," Vorn whispered, eyes closed. "But he’s ready. That boy... he’s everything I never beca. And soon, even the gods will curse the day he rose."
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