The mist around them reacted instantly. It thickened, coiling tighter, sharper, as if reacting to the snake's fear. The forest seemed to hold its breath. The trees stood rigid.
The snake did not move.
The serpent's body convulsed with a violence that shook the very earth beneath it. Its massive form twisted in agony, its glowing eyes flickering between terror and despair. It was as if something had reached into the very core of its being, clawing at the threads of its soul, unraveling them one by one.
It felt its essence being pulled toward her, drawn into the depths of her eyes—into the void.
And as its soul was ripped from its body, it understood—this was not an end. It was a void, a nothingness, a silence that swallowed everything. And in that silence, it was gone.
Isono watched, frozen in place, her heart pounding in her chest. She didn't understand what was happening. Was this some kind of illusion? A trick of her mind?
But what had just happened?
Her mind reeled.
And then, she lost consciousness.
The mist coiled around her, wrapping her in its cold embrace, and the forest fell silent once more.