After the violent waves of self-generated shock pulses released by Duyen, blood streamed relentlessly from her brilliant indigo eyes. No one could tell what kind of unbearable pain she was enduring—but suddenly, she went silent.
No more shockwaves came from her.
Duyen froze, bracing herself forward with her arms. Saliva spilled from her mouth. Amuro watched her anxiously, even as Mina lay motionless in his arms.
Something was changing within Duyen.
What was happening to her?
Then—abruptly—she lifted her head. Her eyes were half-lidded. The bleeding had stopped.
But something grotesque occurred. Beneath the skin at the center of her forehead, something began to writhe—as if a parasite were moving underneath. And then… it opened.
A third eye split open from her forehead.
That eye snapped open in panic. Inside it was an amber iris—Duyen's iris—but it darted wildly around, as though terrified, confused… or trapped.
Amuro shouted in alarm.
"MISS DUYEN?!"
What was that?
That eye?
What was happening to her?!
Duyen clutched her head in agony, as though something inside her were struggling violently. No one knew when—no one knew how—this had begun.
Then she opened all three of her eyes.
Her two main eyes burned with radiant indigo light. The eye on her forehead glowed amber.
She stood up straight in silence, slowly spreading her arms to either side.
Amuro was utterly bewildered. What was she about to do?
Duyen's lips moved, murmuring something unintelligible. The massive winged monster lying before them suddenly began to tremble violently. The entire space around them shook in response.
"What is this?! Duyen is losing control!" Amuro shouted.
He knew something was terribly wrong. He knew he had to stop her—but he had no idea how.
From her body radiated overwhelming shockwaves, pushing both Amuro and Mina farther and farther away.
The colossal creature let out a shriek of agony. Its cry sounded like countless voices fused together, screaming through lips that grew grotesquely across its head. Its lidless eyes—sprouting from head to wings—shuddered violently in terror at whatever was coming… and began to weep.
"STOP IT! DUYEN! YOU CAN'T LOSE YOURSELF!"
No matter how desperately Amuro screamed, his words could not reach her. She was like a soulless being, endlessly chanting in a language no one could comprehend. Yet every word carried an immense, ominous power.
It didn't just affect the monster—but the entire surrounding world.
The creature underwent a horrifying transformation. Limbs sprouted wildly, uncontrollably. Two… three more pairs of wings tore their way out.
Earlier, Shana's so-called blessing had empowered it beyond reason. But now, this forced growth only brought unbearable suffering—like a torturous punishment beyond imagination.
What kind of power was this?
How could she possibly do something like this?
Amuro failed to notice—While the monster writhed in agony, Mina—still in his arms—was changing. The massive hole in her chest was regenerating at an astonishing speed.
"Huh?"
Amuro froze in shock. Even her severed left arm was instantly growing back. The blood that had spilled from Mina's mouth reversed itself, flowing back inside—as though time itself were being pushed backward.
Mina suddenly gasped awake, coughing violently.
"My Lady?!"
Amuro panicked, shaking her gently. Mina's eyes fluttered open, unfocused. The violent shockwaves forced her back to awareness. But the first thing she cared about wasn't her own death. It was Duyen.
She jerked her head up.
"Duyen? Duyen?! Where is my Duyen?!"
Mina frantically searched for her. Amuro looked away, guilt tightening his chest.
"She…"
Only then did Mina realize. Duyen was floating in midair, arms stretched wide. She had three eyes. Her lips murmured ceaselessly, and no one could approach her.
But Mina didn't care.
She ignored the fact that she had just returned from death and forced herself upright, rushing toward Duyen—
Only to be blasted backward by another shockwave.
"My lady! Are you hurt?!" Amuro caught her immediately.
Mina slapped his hand away in fury.
"What is this?! What is happening to my Duyen?!"
"I don't know! I've never seen anything like this before! But I think she's in… an Ascended phase?"
"Ascended WHAT?!" Mina glared at him.
Suddenly—another shockwave hurled them both back. Using their strength, they barely managed to anchor themselves to the ground.
Amuro's body transformed—muscles swelling unnaturally, wolf-like, his eyes glowing crimson as he growled low.
"…But something is wrong. She's losing control. And that's bad."
Mina didn't understand what was happening—but she refused to stand by while her lover was in danger. She clenched her teeth and forced herself forward, even as Amuro tried desperately to stop her. Ahead of them, the monster began to swell grotesquely, growing larger by the second.
"What is going on?!"
Its sheer size distorted the spatial structure around it. What they had barely managed to suppress earlier… Duyen was now unconsciously recreating. Amuro and Mina could only stand there, staring in disbelief.
Duyen floated higher and higher. The power she wielded was incomprehensible. This wasn't something Duyen would ever do.
Only one person could stop her. But that person was supposed to be—
Mina struggled free from Amuro again, about to rush forward—
"Wait, My Lady! Look!" Amuro shouted.
Mina's eyes widened. From the pile of mangled flesh—
Shana was standing up.
Wasn't she dead?!
A brilliant aura radiated from Shana's body. Her long, flowing hair shifted from black to blazing orange-red, brighter than ever before. Her golden eyes transformed into radiant sapphire blue. A miracle washed over her form, cleansing every trace of filth, conjuring a luxurious crimson cloak—elegant, seductive, divine.
With a sly, bewitching smile and her familiar honey-sweet voice, Shana laughed softly.
"My, my… who would dare make my precious little darling this sad?"
Her presence struck the space like a thunderbolt—an overwhelming symbol of absolute authority. Nine fox tails unfurled behind her, swaying gracefully, trailing mystical blue flames.
Amuro trembled at the sight of her. He lowered his head slightly, unpleasant memories surfacing.
"…Welcome back, Lady Shana…"
Mina was stunned by Shana's return from death—but then she crossed her arms and scoffed. She had seen enough.
"You're late, you lustful fox."
Hearing Mina's voice after so long, Shana laughed cheerfully.
"Oh, Mina. Still as foul-mouthed as ever."
Shana tilted her head slightly, narrowing her eyes as she examined Mina from head to toe—murmuring, as if seeing something beyond human perception.
"…How ugly. What have you absorbed into yourself, exactly? But anyway—"
She looked up. Duyen was still floating, out of control, wielding newly awakened power. Shana gazed at her with warmth and deep compassion—as if she understood exactly what had driven Duyen to this state.
She called her name softly.
"Duyen… let them go. Everything is alright now."
Her voice was gentle—yet carried immense force. Enough to wake Duyen from her trance. All three of Duyen's eyes flew open.
"Shana…?"
Like awakening from a lucid dream. Duyen finally realized what she was doing—and where she was.
She looked down at the world below with three dazed eyes. She saw Mina—alive. She saw Shana—smiling at her with the eyes of a loving mother.
And there she was—floating, unsure how—above a grotesque monster that continued to swell out of control.
"Th–This… this—Ah!"
Duyen suddenly dropped from above, falling freely. Both Mina and Shana went pale with shock.
"DUYEN!"
They shouted in unison, lunging forward at the same time to catch her.
Caught in the arms of two breathtakingly beautiful women, Duyen felt as if she were waking from a dream. The third eye on her forehead retreated beneath her skin, and her gaze returned to normal. When she lifted her head, all she could see were Shana and Mina staring down at her, worry etched across their faces.
Overwhelmed, she cried out, "Shana… Mina… You're alive! You—you're not dead!"
Before she could finish, she saw the two women glaring at each other. Their arms tightened around her, each tugging possessively as if trying to pull Duyen toward themselves.
Mina growled, shooting Shana a sideways glare. One of her eyes glowed a deep orange-red, now tipping fully toward crimson.
"She's alive because I saved her first. Don't go claiming credit. Let go, you fox-Uh-freak!"
Shana's smile twitched, veins bulging faintly at her temple despite her elegant composure.
"Oh? Calling me grotesque? When was the last time you looked in a mirror? Go take a good look, then come back and talk."
That did it. Mina looked ready to foam at the mouth. "What—are you saying I'm ugly!? You delusional fox!"
"Oh, I didn't say anything at all~" Shana replied sweetly, a sly grin curling her lips.
Mina quickly forced a confident smile back onto her face, though unease had begun to creep in.
"But Duyen said I'm very beautiful. Even more beautiful than before."
Shana's smugness vanished in an instant. Her voice turned cold, faint disappointment slipping through.
"…She compliments everyone. Why don't you ask that dark-skinned guy over there."
Mina whipped around and barked, "Hey!"
"A—Ah, yes!"
Amuro jumped, looking frantically between Mina and Shana.
"I mean… You are looks fine?"
Mina frowned sharply. "Just fine!?"
Amuro waved his hands in panic.
"No, no! I mean—you're very beautiful! Extremely beautiful! B-But, LOOK—Duyen!"
All attention snapped back to Duyen, who was now visibly trapped between the two of them. She looked miserable, yet still murmured weakly,
"Everyone's beautiful… I'm the ugly one… Please don't fight…"
At last, they relented and gently lowered her down.
Before her feet even touched the ground, Duyen threw her arms around both of them. Shana and Mina froze, staring at each other in stunned silence. But the sincerity of Duyen's embrace reached them, stirring something soft and long-buried inside.
Slowly, they hugged her back.
"It's okay…"
"Everything's over now…"
Amuro stood nearby, watching with a quiet smile. This was a sight he never thought he'd see. They had always opposed each other—clashing over love, over morality. Yet now, the world itself seemed to settle into harmony.
Still… the problem hadn't truly ended.
Shana appeared to have returned to normal. Or at least, she looked like she had. But Duyen and Mina had undergone drastic physical transformations—changes that carried terrifying potential if they failed to reconcile that power with who they truly were.
As she released them, emotions choking her voice, Duyen looked at the monster now lying still… then down at her own hands.
Did I do this?
"I don't understand what's happening anymore," she said softly. "It feels like something inside me has changed. When I thought you were about to die… I lost control. I don't even know what I did…"
Shana and Mina exchanged a knowing glance. Shana rested a hand on Duyen's shoulder, her gaze gentle and understanding.
"Yes. You've changed. All of us have," she said.
"But this time, I believe that change has meaning. Duyen, you've always had immense inner strength. You've never surrendered to the twists of fate. You've lived through countless lives to stand here, yet your heart remains true. You'll master this power. I believe that."
"Shana…"
Again, just like the Queen… just like Amuro. Someone was telling her—believing—that she could do this.
Duyen couldn't remember how she'd survived all those lives. But when that power erupted earlier, every emotion she'd buried surged to the surface—rage, hatred, sorrow, suffocation. All the things she'd spent her life suppressing.
Now she understood them. And instead of fear, she felt compassion.
She smiled at Shana. Light returned to her eyes.
"Thank you, Shana. And you too, Mina. We're all here now. I'm truly grateful—to have you with me. Right now."
Even if death itself stood before them. For the first time, she felt… genuinely happy.
Shana turned to Mina with a weary smile. Clearly, Mina now looked very different in her eyes—far more concerning than Duyen.
"…And you," Shana began.
Mina, still moved by Duyen's words, instantly soured at Shana's tone.
"What? What about me? Say it. I'm not afraid to fight you again."
"Ah—aha." Shana burst into laughter, then leaned closer, her voice soft and alluring.
"No, I just meant… I'm glad you're here too. The way you fought to protect Duyen—honestly? That was pretty cool."
"Huh!?"
Mina blushed, then immediately brushed it off, smirking arrogantly.
"Obviously. I always protect Duyen. Don't state the obvious."
Shana scoffed. "Compliment you once and you get full of yourself. Hey, but listen…"
She leaned in and whispered near Mina's ear.
"You look… well, how do I put it? Pretty terrifying right now. Just being honest—don't get mad, okay?"
Mina stiffened. Murder flashed across her face as she muttered,
"I really should've chopped your head off…"
Duyen panicked as Mina began forming a blade from her arm.
"Mina! Calm down! Please calm down!"
Shana laughed, thoroughly pleased with herself, then turned her gaze to the ruined world around them—the devastated city, the colossal corpse before them.
Hard to believe that this vast metropolis, this monstrous existence, were merely the miserable remnants of a once-great, advanced race that had thrived tens of millions of years ago.
No matter what, this grotesque evolution—and their suffering—had to end.
Perhaps that, too, was fate.
Shana showed no contempt. Instead, she smiled and extended her hand.
Warm, gentle blue flames blossomed from her palm—luminous, ethereal—spreading from her feet and flowing outward into every corner of space.
The others watched in awe as the fire erased everything it touched.
Flesh-walls studded with giant, wandering eyes. Grotesque creatures endlessly performing meaningless labor. Wretched demons staring at the blue fire in terror.
Yet there was no pain.
Only release.
Slimy surfaces vanished. Rivers of blood dried up. Colossal eyes closed peacefully—at last granted the rest they had waited for so long.
Perhaps even destruction itself…could be a gift.