Silence enveloped the vicinity as we all stood, shell-shocked by the undeniable truth that confronted us.
"Kuzon is… dead?" A voice echoed in the vast, golden room.
I wasn't certain whether it belonged to or not. The voice gave off a hollow sound, almost as though it was straining to speak. I couldn't understand, but I knew very well the tight and deep emotion locked in the sound.
"U-uh…?" I felt my vision blur, and my heart tightened in shock.
Kuzon was the one person whose death I never expected. We weren't particularly close, but… I hadn't expected his demise—at least not like this.
"Hicc… hicc… no way. I don't believe it. I don't… it can't be…" Ana's shaky voice was accompanied by her sobs.
Her small fra trembled, and the paleness of her face showed a look of despair mixed with a bit of disbelief. Tears cascaded down her cheeks, and her scrunched-up face depicted the agony and frustrating sorrow that was perating her very being.
I had no idea what happened between Ana and Kuzon in the ti they were away, but…
… Her sorrow seed to co from a genuinely deep place—much deeper than I, or anyone else in the room, could fathom.
"Apologies, young Midas…" Beruel whispered.
Even the Fairy King displayed so degree of sorrow, a face I had never seen him make before. My thoughts tried to consider what could have given him a change of heart, but now was probably not the ti.
"Noooo!!! He can't be dead! H-he can't be! K-Kuzon is… he's invincible!"
At this point, Ana was crying in Edwards's broad arms, and Lemi was also comforting her. I tried speaking, but the lump in my throat prevented from uttering any word. Rather than speak words that eluded even , I tried observing the golden statue myself.
Perhaps we were drawing our conclusions too early. I understood that Neron was brilliant and incredibly skilled, but there were still many tests to run. So many possibilities.
"Maybe…" I whispered while drawing closer to the statue.
"Don't bother. I've tried everything. He can't revert, even with Ti Manipulation." Neron stopped with a sigh.
It seed he had read my mind perfectly. I was grasping at straws, I knew fully well, but… this was a friend—a comrade. Was it foolish of to imagine ways that could work?
"Wait! You can still try, Jared! We have so many Arcanas, right? There has to be one that can break Kuzon free. Right? Right?" Ana's eyes were wide open, and it was just like looking into a mirror.
One close look at her desperate face reminded of how foolish I was being.
"None of the Arcanas in our possession can do anything about this."
Kuzon's body, or rather, the statue of Kido had completely changed properties to gold. There was practically no way to change it back. According to Neron's words, and what I was sensing, it seed like the body had always been gold—completely inorganic.
Besides, there was no Soul present.
"I'm sorry, Ana. Kuzon is…" I whispered, a lump forming in my throat.
Why couldn't I say the rest of my sentence? Hadn't I lost people in the past? I knew it didn't get easier, but why was I acting like such a child? Everyone around was getting emotional and breaking down. As the adult—the oldest—I was supposed to lead by example.
I was supposed to—
"DO SOTHING!" Ana interrupted my thoughts, yelling furiously at this point.
Her widened eyes leaked out more tears, and I could see her face morph from an expression of sorrow to that of rage.
"DO SOTHING, JARED!"
My heart ached as I stared into her blue eyes, and I wanted to tell her I could figure it out or find a solution, but there was practically no alternative. No way out.
"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT, SO DO SOTHING!"
"Calm down, Ana… you don't really an that." Edward tried to hold her closer to him, but she pushed him off in a swift move.
"I-if… if you hadn't wasted so much ti… then Kuzon would probably still be a-alive. T-this is all your fault!"
Ana drew closer to , though she was quickly stopped by Edward and Lemi. I could say or do nothing but remain transfixed in my position. I couldn't argue with her because she was probably right. If I hadn't spent my ti overthinking or doubting the accuracy of Ana's words, then perhaps—
"There's no need to cast the bla on anyone. There's nothing Jared, or anyone here for that matter, could have done to help." Neron's calm tone suddenly intervened.
I found my gaze resting on his completely stoic face as he walked between Ana and .
"B-but, if not for the delay, then—"
"Then we would still be too late. I used Ti Imrsion to check the past. If we had left exactly when you explained Kuzon's plight, we would still be late." He explained, still maintaining his cool.
I found myself wondering how Neron could be so calm and logical in tis like this. I thought I had just been giving myself excuses, which was why my mind couldn't bear to raise even a single defence for myself.
"Besides, Jared is the leader here. He had to consider many factors, and he couldn't jeopardize the safety of the team or the mission. Besides, Ana…" Neron sighed, now moving closer to the young girl.
He placed his hand on her shoulder and nodded slightly. I couldn't see the face he was making since his back was facing . However, a very gentle aura shrouded him.
"... You're not the only one who has lost a friend. Cut him so slack."
I couldn't understand why I felt indescribably relieved to hear Neron's words. It felt like sothing had finally broken loose from my heart. As a result, yet another thing burst free from within .
'A-ah…?' I felt them—hot liquids—leaking from my eyes and streaming down my cheeks to touch my sheen.
My jaws trembled, and I could feel my sweaty hand constantly shaking. The tears blurred my vision, so I couldn't see anyone else around , but… I could tell.
I wasn't alone in the tears.
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