So she used my final tackle as an opening to land her heaviest blow? Rein hadnât expected her to hit that hard, but if he could still move, it might just work to his advantage. His plan wasnât finished yet.
He tried to rise, but only collapsed further. Gritting his teeth, he settled for peeking up instead, barely tilting his neck. Syderis had shifted her attention completely toward Morin now. Rein could hear the clash of blades drawing nearer, his sister was closing the distance. His flashy charge had worked; it had bought Morin the opportunity to advance. But he wasnât done.
He drew in a slow breath. Inhale. Exhale. He flexed his fingers, tested the movement in his limbs. His back throbbedâSyderisâ elbow had done real damageâbut the rest of his body still responded. The pain would make it hell to get up quickly, but if he pushed through, he could manage.
He peeked again. Syderis hadnât noticed him. Her eyes were still locked on Morin.
Now.
Rein poured half of his reserved Pneuma into his arms and shoved against the ground, lifting himself with all the speed his battered body could muster. Agony shot through his spine, but he bit down the scream.
Then, like unsheathing a hidden blade, he drew the golden scale from Morinâs astral pouch. It expanded instantly, flaring from fingernail-sized to its full, original form, casting Syderis in its looming shadow.
It was even heavier than he remembered. The last time he lifted it, he was still whole. Now, every inch of movement sent pain tearing through his muscles. But with veins bulging, jaw clenched, and breath ragged, he forced it upward, gaining just enough momentum.
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Syderis
Syderis noticed it a heartbeat too late, the shadow of a massive object first darkening her face, then engulfing her entire body. Her eyes widened in disbelief, her limbs jerked erratically, trying to respond to an attack her mind hadnât yet processed. But it was already upon her. The golden mass hurtled toward her too quickly, too massively to dodge.
Her vision dimmed as the object crashed into her unguarded form. She barely managed to raise her left shoulder in a feeble attempt to shield herself, but the only result was the sickening snap of bone. The impact launched her across the ground, her body tumbling and twisting violently, consciousness slipping as the world spun around her.
When she finally stopped, breath ragged and shallow, she tried to assess the damage, but a sudden pressure halted her movements. Arms hooked under her armpits, locking her in place with a strength she couldnât shake.
âYou let your guard down. Without your speed, you canât slip away from me anymore,â a familiar voice said coldly.
âYou⦠What did you do?â Syderis asked, her voice slurred, swimming in pain and confusion.
âJust another dirty trick,â Rein said, his voice low, almost apologetic. âSorry I had to do this. It was the only chance I had to win. Didnât think it would actually work, though.â
âI let my guard down, huh,â Syderis muttered with a bitter smile. âGuess Iâm not much better than that Half-Giant fool after all.â
âNo... I just played dirty,â Rein replied. âEither of you couldâve beaten me clean if I didnât. Turns out being weak has its perks.â
Syderis gave a faint chuckle in response, but her attention was already drifting. Reinâs arms locked her in place, preventing any escape. But it wasnât him she feared.
A small figure approached from ahead.
The little girl cracked her knuckles and rolled her shoulders as she walked, each step casual, unhurried, like someone getting ready to dole out a savage beating. And Syderis had no doubt who her target was.
Her blades lay scattered around her, no longer floating, no longer responding. They rested silently on the ground, their handles still filled halfway inside with her blood, enough to serve as temporary Ousia. But she barely had any Pneuma left to reconnect with them. Worse, the brutal impact from earlier had drained what strength she had left.
Her head throbbedâworse than usualâso badly she could hardly focus. The pain clouded her thoughts, twisting with the dark whispers in her mind, forming a storm of poison. All of it born from that damned curse. And she had no choice in the matter. It was in her blood.
The demonic influence and the curse passed down from the betrayal of an ancestorâsomething she had no part inâhad taken root in her from birth. So why was she the one to suffer? That cursed bloodline amplified every dark thought, turning passing frustration into violent fury, uncertainty into despair. And then there were the burning headaches, another gift from the cursed blood running through her veins.
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She never should have left the Royal Prison. If only she'd known that breaking that one forbidden law would land her in another, far worse prison. At least there, sheâd had fresh air.
The little Pneuma she still had left, she wrapped around herself, not as a weapon, but as a shield. It wouldn't stop what was coming, but maybe it could soften the pain, just a little.
âJust hit her hard enough to knock her out, alright Morin? We canât afford to injure any more of them seriouslyânot after the mess weâve already caused. Anything more would just be overkill,â Rein said from behind, his voice carrying a strange note of pity.
But what Syderis felt from the one holding her wasnât just pity.
There was something stronger, something more visceral radiating off of him, so palpable she could smell it.
Blood.
The sharp scent of iron hit her nose, overpowering even the blood that trickled from her own nose and mouth. It shouldnât have, her own blood was closer. But his⦠his stench was different. Familiar, yet wrong.
It still carried the raw metallic tang of blood, yes, but mixed with something faintly sweet. Like molten iron stirred with crushed berries. A scent that didn't belong to any ordinary Human.
And somehow, that scent began to crawl toward her head, seeping in through her nose, spreading to her temples, slowly wrapping around her skull like a veil.
Then, something shifted.
The dark fog that had haunted her thoughts since her earliest memory began to lift. The headacheâever-burning, ever-presentâstarted to fade. For the first time in her life, it was as if she could think. As if her mind, always smothered by something rotten and heavy, was finally breathing fresh air.
For the first time in her life⦠she felt clear.
The voices that always whispered in her mindâamplified by demonic influenceâhad begun to quiet.
Those same voices that urged her to cut down everything in her path whenever she controlled her blades. That demanded she unleash a storm of steel on the world, slicing it to ribbons, including the man restraining her from behind, and the little girl now slowly approaching her.
Thatâs why she only used those blades when absolutely necessary.
They fed on her worst thoughts, twisted her every doubt into malice.
And now⦠they were fading.
It was like something had smothered them, wrapped their howls in cotton and thrown them into a well. Muffled. Far away.
Whatâs going on?
The world suddenly felt so... vivid. Even this bleak place shimmered with beauty. The little girl no longer seemed like a threat, but a child. Just a child, small and innocent, with eyes that now looked soft instead of suspicious. The arms pinning her down no longer felt like restraints, but a protective embrace.
And that smell, this strangerâs blood.
What was it doing to her?
She didnât know. But she wanted more of it.
The feeling made her dizzy with relief, joy almost. So much so that for a brief moment, she forgot just how deep in danger she was.
âI surrender,â she said, voice trembling. âPlease⦠wait. I surrender.â
âSorry, but Iâve let my guard down enough times already,â Rein said coldly from behind. âIâm not falling for it again.â
âNo. Please. Iâm telling the truth,â Syderis said, her voice raw with desperation.
âMorin,â Rein continued, his voice firm, âdo it. Before I start believing her.â
âWait!â she cried out in panic. But it was useless.
Even if she thought she might convince Rein, his sisterâs expression said otherwise. Morinâs eyes were resolute, unyielding and cold. She wasnât going to hesitate.
There was no choice.
Syderis had to fight back, just for a moment. Enough to push the girl away, to buy time, to show them that her surrender was real.
Despite the pain raging in her body, because of the smell of Reinâs blood, everything still felt strangely clear. Clearer than it had ever been. The connection between her and her blades felt tangible, as though thin, invisible threads tethered them to her soul. She could feel them, feel their coldness, their hunger, their sharpness. The Pneuma inside her was low, and the blood reservoirs within the hilts only half-full, but it didnât matter.
She could lift them now like they were weightless.
With a single thought, her blades surged upward, the lightest they had ever felt. Not even the wind pushed back against them.
Then she launched them, all at once, toward Morin.
She wasnât aiming to harm, not truly. She just wanted to slow her down, push her back. That would be enough. Sheâd drop the blades the moment Morin stopped moving, surrendering again to prove her sincerity.
But something unexpected happened.
Instead of bouncing off Morinâs seemingly impenetrable body like before, the blades sliced through. Thin, shallow cuts opened along her arms and cheeks where her skin was exposed. Blood began to trickle down slowly.
Syderis didnât feel triumph. No thrill of victory.
Only dread.
She had finally pierced through Morinâs defenses⦠and now, all she felt was regret.
âWait! I didn't mean to do that! I only wanted to stop her for a moment!â Syderis pleaded. Her blades fell with a loud clatter, as if echoing the panic in her voice.
But Reinâs arms only tightened around her. She couldnât tell if it was from anger or fear, but either way, it wasnât good. Who wouldnât react like that when their little sister was suddenly bleeding right in front of them? Rein didnât even respond.
âBrother, let go of her. Iâve already shed blood, let me use that,â Morin said, her voice calm but cold.
There was a long silence before Rein responded.
âAlright. But... donât use too much blood this time. Her bodyâs small. Even a small radius of that would be enough to completely stop her from moving anymore to chase us,â Rein warned.
Syderis looked between them, alarm growing. âWhat are you planning to do?â
âBut itâll hit you too. You have to move away,â Morin said.
âNo. Sheâs fast. We canât risk letting our guard down again,â Rein replied. âBesides, even if you hit me⦠we have that, remember? Just trust me. Iâve been through worse.â
They werenât even looking at her anymore. As if she wasnât even there.
âOkay,â Morin answered, her tone final.
Syderis watched as Morin calmly swept the blood from her own wounds into her palms. The action was eerie in its precision, unnerving in its silence. Something was coming. Something bad.
âWhat are youââ she began, but then a faint golden light sparked to life between Morinâs hands, growing brighter and brighter until it condensed into a searing point.
What is that?
âWait!â she screamed.
But it was too late.
The golden light flashed, streaking toward her like a bolt. It hit her stomach squarely, and the pain came instantly. A hot, sharp sensation followed by the unmistakable warmth of blood spilling out of her.