The battlefield was silent after the fight ended.
None of us spoke. Our eyes stayed fixed on the place where Hazel had disappeared completely.
Her brother, the Emperor, stood motionless, his head bowed, his eyes closed. Edgar only let out a long sigh, while North placed a hand on my shoulder. We all understood then, the weight of her choice, the determination she carried to the very end.
The silence was disturbed when a low chuckle spread through the air, sharp enough to make my skin prickle. All of us snapped our heads toward the source.
Saturn.
Or what was left of him. His body lay split in two, sliced clean down the middle, but the sight was worse than death. His flesh was gone, withered to skin and bone. His blood had already lost its form, turning into a dark slurry that seeped into the ruined earth. He looked like a nightmare yet somehow, he still wasn't dead.
"Enjoy my gift."
