The first thing Miles felt was cold earth beneath his face, and the second was the unbearable throb behind his eyes.
Pain was proof he was still alive. That, and the sound of her voice.
"-les? Miles, can you hear ?"
He stirred slowly, his vision blurry, his breath shallow. Sothing wet trickled down from his brow. Blood, or sweat. Maybe both.
But it was the voice that pulled him fully back into himself.
"Co on, End-boy. I know you’re too stubborn to die from just one... Hell of a beating."
"Mara...?" His cracked lips curled.
"There you are." She said through the bracelet on his wrist, her voice tinny but unmistakably amused. "Nice nap?"
Miles groaned as he pushed himself up with trembling arms. His coat was shredded, and the rest of his clothes were tattered and torn from the inside out. Everything ached, and even his soul felt like it had been bruised.
The [Dark Forest] lood silent around him, the sounds of battle long faded. Only the low ambient growl of the forest’s unnatural tension remained, its Stories whispering in a different tone this ti. His mory flickered.
Shinji.
The humiliation ca rushing back. His fury burned under the surface, but not recklessly, no.
Shinji had beco too much of an obstacle for Miles to charge in blindly.
"You said sothing about a quick--up?" She asked, still wheezing.
"I did." Miles croaked hoarsely.
"It’s ready." Mara chid, the pride in her voice almost palpable. "The second item was easier, though. That scythe of yours is one hell of a find, huh? You have to tell everything about it one day. But anyway, since both were already bound to your inventory, you should be able to summon them now."
His hand twitched.
A whisper of intent passed through him. He closed his eyes and called out to their artifacts.
The black sparks ca first, rising like smoke before flashing into fire, then condensing into shape.
The [Harbinger’s Scythe] fell into his outstretched hand with a familiar weight. The weapon’s edge glimred with its familiar obsidian gleam, its form as elegant as it was deadly. It pulsed once in his grip, resonating with him, and imdiately, Miles knew that it was different.
Improved.
Then ca the second flash, crimson this ti.
It burst into existence beside him with a loud crack, a weapon that looked like it belonged to a different era. A mix of futuristic and Victorian in equal asures, sleek, deadly, masterfully made.
An automatic pistol.
Miles looked at it with quiet reverence. The steel glead with red glyphs, the handle bore Mara’s mark etched alongside a stylized infinity symbol. He picked it up, and it purred in his grip like it had been waiting for him.
A grin broke across his battered face.
"You spoil ."
"Well, I don’t do it often." Mara replied. "So, don’t break it the first chance you get."
He chuckled, then winced. Pain still clung to his ribs like iron bands. He reached into whatever he had for an inventory once more and summoned the [Ether Teapot].
It erged from the void gently, materializing from a storm of colorful sparks, its surface shimring with rainbow sheen. Along with it, the crystal teacup clinked into existence beside him.
He poured with shaking hands, the fragrant steam curling into the night air.
The tea was golden today.
He sipped slowly.
Warmth spilled down his throat, spreading like sunrise through his body. Usually, the healing was imdiate, his bones knitting, wounds closing, strength returning in a rush. But now... It was different.
The effects ca slowly.
Too slowly.
His brows furrowed.
"The damage was far deeper this ti..." He muttered.
"Yeah." Mara’s voice turned soft. "He didn’t just hit you. He unraveled you. At least partially. Whatever he’s done... It’s beyond any kind of damage I’ve ever seen."
"I noticed." Miles replied, gently flexing his fingers. The scythe responded. The pistol glead.
"But you’re still breathing." She added. "Which ans you’re still a problem for him."
He dismissed the [Ether Teapot], and slowly rose to his feet, the pain duller now, pushed to the edges of his awareness.
His coat flared slightly as he straightened, then settled around his knees. The scythe rested against his back. The pistol holstered at his hip.
He took a deep breath and focused his senses.
The [Dark Forest] felt different now, watching, waiting.
And then, the voice ca again.
Not Mara’s.
No static, no connection. Just... Words, whispered from sowhere deeper in the trees.
"Miles... Co... Waiting..."
It didn’t feel like a lure, and it wasn’t a threat, either.
It wasn’t even words. It was pressure given shape, a compulsion written into the mana of the air.
"Did you hear that?" Miles asked the bracelet.
"Hear what?" Mara replied, instantly sharper.
He paused, the whisper fading away. But the mory of it lingered.
"Nothing. Must be the concussion talking." He cracked his neck, and his eyes glead with red-obsidian rings again. "Ti to burn the rot out."
A low rumble passed through the trees like an answer.
Leaves shifted, the darkness deepened. Sothing vast stirred in the branches overhead.
Miles didn’t flinch. He just pulled the scythe from his back with one smooth motion, spun it once, and let the weapon’s head rest against his shoulder.
He took the pistol into his off-hand, checked the charge, and glyphs pulsed with latent power alongside it.
"Let’s see how deep this forest really goes." He stepped forward.
The forest was alive, every branch overhead curled like bone fingers, and the fog curled thick and sluggish along the path, the trees leaning closer the deeper he went.
Shadows clung to everything, even the roots.
Miles moved slowly, each step deliberate. He wasn’t at full strength, but he didn’t need to be, yet. He was here to remind Shinji that unfinished business cuts both ways.
The voice didn’t return, but the tension only grew.
And in the distance, through the trees, Miles saw the edge of sothing else. Stone.
No, not stone. Ruins.
A structure, half-swallowed by the forest.
"A dungeon?" He murmured.
"Looks like it." Mara’s voice ca again.
He moved forward, and as soon as he approached the border between forest and ruin, sothing felt different.
Lighter, maybe.
And then, the voice ca again.
"Co... Inside..."
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