Ash drifted in the air like fading snow. Lith stared at the withered corpse before him, his breath trembling. "W-What...what just happened?"
The ground around him had turned gray and lifeless. Even the grass near Lee's feet had dried to ash. The Fiend's body, once massive and writhing, was now hollow—like something had drained its very soul. Lith's thoughts blurred. The last thing he remembered was channeling Nyx's mana...then everything went white. He looked down at his hand. No pain.
"I...healed myself?" He had never done that before. Back then, when he accidentally cut his hand on broken glass, he tried to heal himself. But, no matter how hard he focused, the light would never flow inward. His gift could mend others, but never himself. So he learned to live carefully, quietly, knowing that every wound could be his last. But now—
Now the impossible had happened. A flicker of joy broke through his confusion. He placed a hand over his chest, his lips trembling with disbelief. He could still feel it—the pulse of life inside him. Warm. Whole.
"I did it," he whispered again. "I actually healed myself..." He looked up, smiling faintly. "Lee, look—i did it. I can heal myself now!"
But Lee didn't move. He just sat there, pale and shaking, eyes locked on Lith.
"Lee?" Lith tilted his head. "What's wrong?"
Lee's voice cracked. "That thing...it died the moment you used your healing."
Lith blinked. "Huh? What are you talking about?" He gave an awkward laugh and rubbed his head. "Come on, don't joke like that. There's no way I could—" his gaze drifted toward the Alpha Fiend's corpse. The way it had collapsed...the hollowed skin...it didn't make sense. "A-Anyway," Lith said quickly, forcing a smile. "Were alive. That's what matters, now let's find Nyx—" he reached out a hand to help Lee up.
SLAP!
Lee swatted his hand away. Lith froze. "Lee?"
"D-Don't touch me." Lee stumbled to his feet, backing away, terror clouding his eyes.
"What are you talking about? Lee, it's me!"
"I said don't!" Lee shouted, his voice breaking. "I-I don't want to—"
Before he could finish, Lith instincts screamed—a killing intent flared nearby. Without thinking, he shouted: "Duck!" He lunged forward, grabbing Lee:s head and forcing him down just as black blade sliced through the air above them—whoosh—clang! A flash of steel hissed past, cutting a strand of Lith's hair. For a moment, Lith froze, heart hammering in his chest.
What...was that? He could still feel it—the rush that had moved his body before his mind could even think. His senses were sharper, almost painfully clear. He knew something deadly was como...seconds before it happened. My body moved on its own...? No—i reacted faster than I should have. This wasn't normal reflect. It was instinct—inhuman, precise. And it wasn't the first time this morning. It's like...I can feel them now. Those killing intense...that pressure in the air. Is this... because of the bound again? With Nyx?
Lith's breathing quickened. No way. He was just a Failed Gift—how could he possibly match her speed, even for a second? And yet, the evidence was right there—his hand still on Lee's head, the blade that had just missed them by inches. I feel, I'm starting to move like her?
When Lith looked up, she was there. Nyx.
Her obsidian sword was buried in the soil. Wind swept through her white veil and Kong dark hair as she turned her cold gaze toward them.
"Nyx!" Lith's voice trembled, caught between fear and disbelief. "That strike...were you trying to—?"
"Do not fear, Master," she said coldly. "I would never harm you." She tilted her head slightly toward Lee. "I only meant to erase the pest who knows too much."
Lee's breath hitched. Lith's eyes widened. "Nyx...what are you talking about? He's not—"
But Nyx's gaze never left Lee. "This one knows, Master," she said coldly. "He saw what your gift has become. That cannot be allowed."
Lith blinked, confused. What she's saying doesn't even make sense. My gift? But Lee already knows I'm just a healer. There's nothing else to see...right? A knot formed in his chest. For the first time, Nyx's voice didn't sound like the calm guardian he'd known—it sounded like judgment itself. Her expression didn't change. If anything, it hardened. "Your mercy blinds you, Master. Look at him—he already fears you. That fear will grow, twist, and someday it will destroy you. Humans always turn on what they cannot understand."
Lith's breath caught. What is she saying again? Lee wasn't like the others. He wasn't one those villagers who spat curses behind his back, calling him a failed gift. He was just a kid—like him, a kind one at that—whi tried to help when no one else dared.
"Nyx," Lith Said quietly, disbelief weighing in his voice. "He's not like them. H-he's just scared. That's all."
The wind howled between them, scattering ash and dust. Lee dropped to his knees, shaking violently. "P-Please... I won't tell anyone! I swear! I didn't see anything!"
Nyx's fingers curled around the hilt of her blade. The steel still jutted from the ground, half-burned, humming faintly with her mana. She drew it out in a single motion, ash spiraling upward with the sound of metal leave earth. "Step back, Master," she said evenly. "Predators do not reason with prey."
"Nyx—wait!" Lith's voice cracked, fear and anger lacing together. "He's not—!"
But she moved, swift and silent, lowering her stance like a panther ready to strike. "If you stay, you'll only see what mercy cost. Run."
Lith moved before he thought, stepping in front of Lee, arms spread wide. "Enough, Nyx! You're not killing anyone!"
For a moment, nothing moved. Only the wind and the faint hum of her blade filled the silence. Lith's pulse thundered in his ears, the air between them sharp enough to cut. "Then I shall stay my blade," she said quietly. "You still don't understand what you've done."
Lith blinked, his breathing catching. "W-what I've done? Can you just tell me, Nyx?"
But she didn't answer. Slowly, Nyx straightened. Her eyes flickered, faintly dimming. The tension bled from her shoulders—but not the danger beneath. She turned to Lith, her voice calm, measured. "I'll explain once we leave this place," she said at last voice quieter almost thoughtful. "For now... I'll return this pest to his village. The problem is finished. It was never yours to begin with."
"W-wait, what do you mean by explain?" Lith stammered, confused. "Just tell me now—"
Nyx ignored him, drawing in a quiet breath as her sword dissolved into black mist—shhhk—vanishing between her fingers. She took a single step toward Lee. The boy yelped, scrambling to his feet and hiding behind Lith's torn coat. His hands clung to the blood-stained fabric, trembling. "P-Please," Lee muttered, voice shaking. "L-Lith can take me back...not you."
Lith glanced over his shoulder. For a moment, relief flickered across his face—Lee wasn't afraid of him, at least not like before. So, he let out a small breath of relief, a tired smile crossing his face. "Well... you're not looking at me like I'm some monster anymore," he said, trying to sound casual.
Lee hesitated, eyes flicking toward Nyx. "B-But she's scarier than you."
"Eh?" Lith blinked, exasperation flashing over his face. "That's not helping, you know."
Nyx, arms folded, tilted head slightly again. "At least the boy has good instincts," she murmured.
Lith blinked. "...Huh?" He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, trying to laugh it off. "A-Anyway, I'll just escort him myself, Nyx—" before he could finish—whoosh! A blur of motion, faster than thought. Nyx was already behind Lee. Neither of them saw her move.
"Ah—!" Lee froze, too terrified to even scream.
"I'll do it," Nyx said simply, one hand gripping the back of the boy's collar like a cat seizing its kitten. "It will be quicker. You shouldn't return there, Master...not yet. I might lose my restraint—and kill them all." Her voice was calm, but something wild lingered beneath every word. "They remind me of beasts. Weak in packs, loud when concerned. The moment they see fangs—they bite the one trying to save them.
"Nyx, stop—!" Lith stepped forward, reaching out.
To late.
Thwump!—the ground cracked beneath her feet as she leapt, propelling them upward. Branches lashed past, air roaring around them.
"W-Waaa! Put me down! Please!" Lee screamed, flailing helplessly. "I'm scared of heights!"
Nyx didn't even glance of him. "You fear the fall, yet you fear the truth more. Tell me, boy—what do you think happens if someone learns what you saw?"
Lee whimpered, clutching her wrist tighter. "I-I told you, I won't tell anyone! I promise!"
They landed atop a massive branch with a muted thud. Nyx balanced effortlessly, veil fluttering, eyes glinting through the pale mist. "You believe that now," she said softly. "But fear changes people. It ginawa at loyalty, even kindness turns to betrayal."
Lee's voice broke. "I just wanted to help him..."
Nyx tilted her head, eyes narrowing beneath the veil. "Help?" Her tone was cold, flat—like a blade dragged across glass. "You call this help? You only endangered him." She tightened her grip on his collar, lifting him slightly as the branch creaked beneath their weight. Far below, the forest yawned like an endless pit.
"Men like you," she continued, voice low, almost a whisper, "should've stayed silent like the rest of your cowardly village. At least they knew when to fear what they didn't understand."
Lee's breath came in shallow gasps. His knuckles whitened as he clung to her arm, eyes darting toward the dizzying drop below. "P-Please... I didn't mean to—I just wanted to help! That's all!"
Nyx's expression didn't change. If anything, it hardened—steel beneath porcelain. "Then listen carefully," she murmured."Silence is help enough. The less you speak of what you've seen—the longer your kind will live."
"...O-Okay...Okay," Lee stammered, nodding rapidly. "I won't tell anyone..."
Nyx's eyes softened—barely. A sigh escaped her lips. She loosened her hold and set him down. "Good. Then perhaps you'll live long enough to keep your word."
Before Lee could even breathe in relief—whoosh!—Nyx's hand gripped his collar again. The wind exploded beneath them as she leapt from the branch.
"W-Wait—WAAAAHH!" Lee's scream tore through the forest as they plunged downward, the air roaring past like a hurricane. His stomach lurched with every free fall before thud!—Nyx landed gracefully atop another branch, knees bending like a cat. Without pause, she leapt again, and again—an unbroken rhythm of motion, each bound defying gravity itself. The forest blurred beneath them. Leaves scattered, trees groaned. To Lee, it felt like falling from the heavens again and again, only to be yanked back before death could catch him.
"S-Stop!" He cried, eyes wide, face pale.
But, Nyx didn't answer. Her focus never wavered as the distant glow of the ruined village came into view—a handful of broken houses, half-swallowed by ash and smoke.
And then—CRAAAAKK!
The earth cracked as she landed in the village square, a shockwave of dust rippling outward. Villagers turned at once, gasping as the haze cleared.
"What in the—?"
"D-Did something just fall from the sky!?"
"Wait, isn't that—?"
Nyx straightened slowly, still holding Lee by the collar. His arms hung limp—completely unconscious. She exhaled through her nose. "Pathetic." When she released him, thump—he dropped into the arms of two villagers who barely caught him.
"L-Lee!?" A trembling voice called. A woman with ash-streaked cheeks ran forward, tears spilling as she knelt beside him. "W-What happened to him?"
Nyx turned her cold gaze toward her. "He fainted," she said simply.
The crowd murmured uneasily.
"Well...at least he came back alive."
"Lucky boy—should've stayed gone, the troublemaker."
"Always sticking his nose where it doesn't belong..."
THUD!
The ground trembled slightly as Nyx stomped once—just enough to silence them. Her expression didn't change, but her presence pressed down like a weight of iron. Her eyes glowed faintly beneath her veil. "Enough. My master ended your curse—your plague—your suffering. You live becuof him. If gratitude still exists in your hearts, speak his name with respect."
The villagers lowered their gaze, uneasy, shifting. One of them dared to mutter, "B-But...how do we thank him, if he's not here?"
Nyx's expression did not change. Her tone cut through the silence. "When travelers ask who saved this village—tell them it was the priest who bore no name but mercy. The one you called Lith Solis. Spread that truth. Let the world remember what your tongues once cursed."
The wind stirred violently, swirling dust between them. Several villagers nodded quickly—some out of guilt, others out of fear. Yet a few hesitated, their eyes clouded with the same suspicion that once doomed them all.
Nyx felt it—the stench of doubt. Her voice dropped to a whisper that froze their hearts. "Try to stain his name again.." her voice fell to a whisper, colder than the grave. "...and I will return for each of you."
Silence. Not even the wind dared breathe. Then—fwoosh—black petals scattered into the air as Nyx vanished into the night. The villagers stood frozen. Maria clutched her brother tighter, whispering, "Lith... Solis..." A name once whispered with fear—now spoken with trembling gratitude.
And from that day, word began to spread. Of the nameless priest who save the doomed village from the Fiend-Tongues. A healer cursed by fate, yet merciful beyond reason.
A boy named Lith Solis.