There was no time for pride. I grabbed Hitomi's hand and started running. "Hey! If you want to stick around, that's on you. We're heading to the tavern! Catch you later!" I shouted with sarcastic flair, leaving behind a trail of doubt—and laughter.
Hitomi was cracking up, while Brek looked ready to strangle me. Laima and Noctua sprinted beside us, their expressions puzzled—but there was no time for questions.
Brek yelled with a voice cracking from tension: "Just moments ago, you were half-dead, and now you're acting like a sprinter? You rascal! What did you do?!"
I looked back at him over my shoulder, smiling in relief. "I'll tell you later. Run now!"
I was laughing with pure joy, filled with wild energy—until we heard battle drums ahead. The defense forces of our continent, Astraea, were marching in. We stopped and stared as they advanced.
Airborne forces swept in, supported by aerial commanders, infantry wielding swords, guns, and magic, legendary cavalry on horseback, and tanks with treads. Cannons began firing, either with magical blasts or barrages of projectiles. The demon armies were falling faster than rain. The war drums thundered without mercy.
One commander stepped forward, his voice slicing through the battlefield noise: "This is an assault from the continent of Zephyros! Our leaders detected their movement long before they arrived. Leave here quickly! The battle will be brutal!"
All I could think was: They saw what I did to the demon... I'm done for. Tch… I knew I'd pay for that. Those words echoed like a harsh reminder of consequence.
And then… "AAARRRRRRRR!" A scream shattered everything. So piercing, it froze the air itself. We stopped. All of us turned in unison to look behind.
Our eyes widened as dust from the battlefield rose like a cloud.
There, a massive knight was rising slowly from the ground. His white light was nearly blinding, as if forged from pure energy. His movements were slow, yet brimming with power. His presence was like a crushing pressure in the air.
It must be the power of our commander, I thought, struggling to grasp what I was seeing. They say the purer your soul, the greater your strength. Yet in that moment, I barely cared. My gaze shifted to my chest—where I felt the seal. Its warmth surged through me like it held a living force—but there was nothing there.
A soldier shouted at us: "Hey, you—get out of here! Only Platinum-ranked and above should remain. The rest fall back. QUICKLY!"
We simply nodded and ran toward the city.
As we fled toward safety, I let my legs lead me forward. But… something felt wrong. I sensed it before I saw it. A shiver crawled up my spine.
I stopped abruptly and looked down. My shadow… wasn't obeying. It was like it had a will of its own. Its smile… wasn't mine. It was dark, almost triumphant, as though it rejoiced in something I couldn't yet understand. My heart pounded. My breath stopped short. And then, my shadow… smiled. Not my smile—someone else's.
I could almost see it dancing through the battlefield, delighting in destruction and chaos, thirsting for conflict. What's happening to me? I wondered, trying to suppress the eerie sensation.
I let my mind drift back to the events that led us here.
But maybe…
It's time to start from the beginning.
How did we end up here…