"Do you know?" Zareth whispered, his lips brushing against her ear. The blade in his grip sank deeper into her flesh. "Why you're happier than me? Why?" His eyes flickered—unstable, filled with something shattered beyond repair.
Yona clenched her fists, squeezing her eyes shut. I should have been more careful. "I'm not interested in your rubbish," she spat, her voice sharp despite the pain.
Zareth's hands trembled. "Because you have a friend… a friend who didn't abandon you." His voice cracked, unsteady. "I already told you, didn't I? She jumped from that building—without hesitation, without fear—just to save you." A hollow chuckle left his lips, brittle and broken.
Yona's face darkened. Pain pulsed through her body, but beneath it, something stirred—an aching, clawing energy, restless and hungry.
"We suffered the same punishments, didn't we? The same hell? The same worthless treatment?" His voice rose, raw with resentment. "Then why? Why were you the one to meet her? Why did you get to be her friend?!" His screams rang in her ears, echoing like a curse. "Why wasn't it me? If we lived the same nightmare, why did fate choose you?"
Yona's vision blurred. I can't keep this up much longer…
"It all happened because of you." His voice dropped, thick with desperation. "I want her. I want Kaia. And I will make her mine. Once I become the most powerful, not even Mother or Solomon will have the right to stop me!" He laughed—wild, unhinged—like something inside him had snapped, never to be pieced back together again.
Then, to Yona's shock, he leaned against her back, his body trembling. She flinched, expecting another attack, but instead… Zareth wept.
His fingers curled into her tattered clothes, clinging onto her as if she were the last thing keeping him from falling apart.
She didn't move. She didn't speak.
Did any of us deserve this? The thought clung to her, suffocating.
"I-I…" His voice wavered, his grip on her loosening.
Then why does it still hurt? A single breath hitched in her throat, her mind spiralling. Why does it feel like no matter how much we clawed, fought, and bled… neither of us ever had a chance?
He buried his face against her torn shirt. His tears seeped through the fabric.
"…hic… Sorry…"
A single tear slipped from her eye—just as her world faded to black.
Her body hit the ground, blood pooling beneath her, the sword still lodged deep. The last flicker of light in her eyes disappeared.
***
[Mysterious Guy: Don't tell me you're actually thinking of throwing hands with that thing?]
"The strength of these tentacles is unreal…" Kaia muttered, peeking through the door. The massive, glowing red core pulsed ominously, sending another set of tendrils slithering through the castle halls. "If it was ordered to kill me, I'd be split in half by now."
She narrowed her eyes. I expected a giant octopus or a squid… but this? Just floating tentacles sprouting from that core?
[Mysterious Guy: Those tentacles have the full layout of the castle mapped out.]
"I know."
[Mysterious Guy: Oh? And how do you know that already?]
His tone held newfound interest.
"I… don't know," Kaia admitted, rubbing her temple. "But the moment I touched one, I caught a glimpse of the entire castle. Like… a flash in my mind."
[Mysterious Guy: An Optic Link, huh? Not surprising. That's low-grade magic for beginners.]
"Magic..." Kaia murmured, biting her nail. "Somehow, I can use it—even without mana. But only unconsciously." Her mind raced. How do I turn this into an advantage?
If her power only activated under extreme pressure… Should she try to trick herself into thinking she was really about to die?
[Mysterious Guy: Yeah, no. You're not smart enough to fool your own brain, and even if you were, that's not how this works.]
Kaia's eye twitched. This guy…
She let out a breath. "It's no good. I need a real plan. A rash move could get me killed—especially since those things are everywhere."
Her grip tightened on the sword. Without another thought, she raised the blade to her own throat.
[Mysterious Guy: HEY! HEY! HOLD UP! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!]
Kaia exhaled sharply and lowered the sword before she could go through with it. "…Not like this. This isn't the answer."
[Mysterious Guy: My heart literally stopped just now.]
Kaia glanced at the blade. "I don't even know how to use a sword. I can cut them, sure, but one wrong move, and it'll be ripped from my hands."
[Mysterious Guy: Before attacking your enemy, get to know who your enemy is. What your enemy is.]
Kaia's eyes narrowed. "What is my enemy?" she murmured, the words echoing in her mind.
Then, without hesitation, she slammed the door open before the tentacles could notice. She charged straight toward the core. The tentacles, sensing the threat, recoiled rapidly, withdrawing from the portals.
(As I thought. The core was unguarded. It didn't anticipate I could get past the book barriers. Before it calls its tentacles back—I just need to destroy it!)
'Know your enemy.'
As the words repeated in her mind, Kaia flinched. A portal materialized directly in front of her.
(Of course—the portals. It was seconds away from sucking me inside.)
Her brow furrowed as she stopped abruptly, eyes locking onto the pulsating core.
At that moment, the tentacles fully withdrew, and the portals—along with the one blocking her path—vanished.
"You're becoming a nuisance now," Vorr'kael snarled. The core's glow intensified, and the air turned suffocatingly heavy with a sinister presence.
Then, a sound.
A scream.
Ear-piercing, bone-chilling—Kaia stumbled as agony shot through her skull. Her ears nearly bled from the sheer force of the shriek.
The tentacles lunged.
Kaia barely reacted in time, slicing through the first one—pure luck. But before she could steady herself, another coiled around her ankle, yanking her upside down into the air.
(Damn—! It got me!)
Her sword flew from her grasp as another tentacle struck. Helpless, Kaia dangled midair, fresh tears trailing above her head due to the pull of gravity.
(Why…? Why am I always so helpless? Why do I screw up every time?)
[Mysterious Guy: Use your environment. Anything can be a weapon—play smart.]
(I'M IN MID-AIR! What am I supposed to do? Use air as a shield?!)
Then—another flash.
The castle.
Solomon—his rage like a storm—marching toward something. And then—nothing.
Kaia's heart lurched. A sickening, icy realization crawled up her spine.
(Where is Yona?)
[Mysterious Guy: Hey! This isn't the time to lose your mind! Collect yourself, youngster!]
(Where is she? Where is she? Where—?)
Panic. It gnawed at her insides, clouded her thoughts. Her chest ached as her pulse pounded in her ears. She couldn't think. Couldn't focus.
(Did I mess up again?)
"Kaia, Focus."
A voice. Low. Familiar.
Her body froze. Her pupils constricted. (That voice—I've heard it before!)[1]
The tentacle shot forward—aiming for her chest.
Without thinking, Kaia tore a feather from the locket, gripping it tightly as she crossed her arms in a defensive stance.
A golden shield flared to life, shimmering with energy. A shockwave burst outward, disrupting the tentacle's attack.
Kaia acted instantly. With precise aim, she threw the feather like a blade—straight toward the core.
The attack itself was useless. A mere feather—no real power behind it.
But the core flinched.
Startled.
The grip around Kaia's leg loosened.
It had perceived the feather as a threat. And with her precision in throwing it like a weapon—it looked dangerous.
That was all she needed.
Kaia quickly regained her footing. (It worked!)
She recalled how the feathers had once revealed the secrets of Mishi's Inn—proof that they held something magical, even if it wasn't conventional magic. This time, she had taken a gamble, trusting in the feather's ability to protect her.
She clutched it tighter, silently willing it to respond—not with a spell, but a prayer like last time and it did work.
Kaia smirked. (The environment idea actually helped.)
Vorr'kael roared in frustration, its tentacles lashing out.
Kaia moved instinctively. With sharp, fluid motions, she leaped between the writhing appendages—dodging one, then another, using them as stepping stones to propel herself forward.
Grabbing a tentacle, she dug her fingers into its eye-like node, forcing it to recoil as she swung past it. Another came from above—she twisted midair, slipping beneath it before vaulting off another, using its surface like a springboard.
Faster than a normal human… Vorr'kael noted, its core pulsing with frustration. But it refused to lose focus.
Kaia continued her relentless pace, the distance to the core shrinking.
(Just a little more…!)
Her hand stretched toward the pulsating core—
Then—
The tentacles surged.
A perfect circle of them closed in behind her, sealing every possible escape route. In a synchronized motion, they constricted.
Kaia's body slammed against the core.
No space. No light. No air.
She gasped, but there was nothing left to breathe. The crushing force tightened around her, her vision blurring as darkness pressed in from all sides.
[1] Refer to Chapter 36 Shattered Memories, where that guy 'wakes up' Kaia from her dream.