Akira's pupils shrank.
His hands trembled, his breath shallow, his vision spinning. But as Sylara's body collapsed into his arms, his instincts overrode the pain.
He got up from the ground.He caught her. Held her.
His fingers tightened around her trembling frame."Why?" His mind screamed.
His hands, already covered in his own blood, were now covered in hers.
She coughed weakly, her lips stained red, violet eyes half-lidded but still locked onto him.The demonic human stood there, tilting his head, watching. "Wow... your speed just now… even my eyes couldn't keep up."
His voice held genuine fascination—and something else. A flicker of amusement."That was truly frightening… I take back my insults." His grin widened. "Maybe you didn't get that Guildmaster position through connections after all."
His gaze to Sylara, who lay motionless in Akira's arms."Who is he to you?" He chuckled. "To make you throw your life away like that?"
Akira sat there, silent.
His head was lowered, his dark hair shadowing his face. His wound still bled freely.Sylara's breathing was shallow, but her weak fingers clutched at his sleeve. She was still alive.
But barely. "Such a pity." The demonic human sighed, lifting his blade again."Your sacrifice was in vain. I still get to kill this brat."
The dark-red EVOA blade rose.Akira didn't move.
He didn't react.
The only thing that existed in his world at that moment—was Sylara's fading warmth.
Then—Footsteps. Rushing. Fast.
Voices—multiple.
"Faster! Faster!"
A familiar voice—Grido.
Another—Anna.
And more.
They were coming. They were near.
The demonic human clicked his tongue. "Tch… Wasted too much time."He twirled the EVOA blade once, considering. "I used a fair bit of energy fighting you two… I need to save some for that."
Then—his crimson eyes flickered toward the dungeon portal in the underground parking lot.He turned.Started walking.
Akira gritted his teeth.His body screamed at him to move. To get up. To end this.But just as he tensed, a weak hand caught his wrist.
Sylara's.
Akira's breath stilled.
He turned to her, and with nothing but a single look, he understood.His fingers clenched into a fist.The demonic human stopped just before stepping into the portal. He glanced back over his shoulder.
"Dare to enter if you wish." His grin stretched wider, eyes gleaming with malice. "But you couldn't handle me alone with an A-rank Star by your side…"His voice dropped into a whisper, laced with dark amusement. "Let alone me… and the boss monster inside."
He laughed.
Then—he stepped through.
The dungeon portal flashed.
And he was gone.
The underground parking was silent.Except for the shallow, uneven breaths of the dying woman in Akira's arms.The portal pulsed behind him, a dark wound in space, but the battle had already ended.
"He escaped. I should chase him. But—"
Akira world had narrowed to the woman in his arms—Sylara.Her silver hair was matted with blood. Her body, usually strong and commanding, now felt so light—too light.
Her breathing was uneven. Shallow.The underground parking lot was in ruins. Scorched walls. Bloodstains. Shattered concrete. And amidst the destruction—Akira sat there, cradling her.
Then—hurried footsteps. Grido ,Anna , and the others they froze.
Terror.
That's what their eyes reflected as they took in the battlefield—the devastation.And then—their Guildmaster.Barely clinging to life in Akira's arms.
"What happened here?!"
Grido's voice cracked.Anna covered her mouth. Tears already spilling down her cheeks. The others looked away, some unable to bear it.
Grido turned sharply, pointing at a healer among the group. "𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐫! With every cost now!"
"Do it now!"
The healer rushed forward.They knelt, hands glowing a soft green, pulsing with magic.Sylara's body shimmered under the healing light.Akira held his breath.The magic flickered.
Then—failed.
The healer's eyes widened. He pressed his hands harder, pouring in everything he had.
Nothing.
A second attempt.
Nothing.
A third—Nothing.
The healer's face twisted in confusion. Sweat dripped down his forehead."I—" He swallowed hard. "I'm too weak. I—I can't heal this kind of injury." He hesitated, eyes flicking toward Grido. "There's dark energy in the wound… I can't remove it."
"Try Again!"
Grido's shout rang out, almost desperate. His fists trembled.
"Try! Try! Try Again!"
His voice broke no one moved.
Akira sat silent.
Still.
The weight in his arms suddenly shifted.Sylara's weak fingers tugged at the healer's sleeve.Her violet eyes, dim yet unwavering, looked up at him.
"𝙄𝙩'𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝 𝙞𝙩." Her voice was barely a whisper. "Don't waste your time and energy."
The healer flinched. Took a step back, defeated.The others turned away, some with tears in their eyes.Sylara exhaled softly, her eyes shifting—locking onto Akira.
And then—she saw it.
His Face and what she saw—Shook her.
She had only ever seen two emotions on his face before.
Indifference and rage.
Nothing else.
But now—Now, she saw something else.
Sadness.
Not just sadness something deeper something unbearable.
Guilt.
Her lips trembled as she forced out a question, her voice weak, fragile."Why are you… getting sad… for someone like me?" She struggled to breathe. "You barely… even know me."
A faint, broken smile tugged at her lips. "That's so… unlike you."
She coughed. More blood spilled from her lips.
Akira just stared.
His grip on her tightened.
His jaw clenched.
Because he couldn't.
Because what words could possibly exist—For the woman who had just given her life for him?
Sylara's trembling fingers barely held onto Akira's wrist. Her grip was weak—so weak—but she refused to let go.
"Speak to me…" she whispered, her voice barely above a breath.
Akira's fingers twitched. His lips parted—but no words came out.
"Don't make that face."
Sylara tried to chuckle, but it came out ragged, broken.She blinked, her vision blurring."At least… let's finish our conversation… from the restaurant."
Akira's hands, still stained with her blood, tightened around her.His heart pounded. His throat tightened.
Even the healer who had failed to save her had his head down, teeth digging into his lip, his hands shaking.
Sylara let out a breathy laugh, barely a whisper."I don't want to go to the afterlife… in silence." She swallowed hard, forcing the last of her strength into her fading voice. "Hah… I'd hate that…" Her violet eyes fluttered.
Akira's white pupils—once glowing with Soul Infusion—had faded back to darkness.
He inhaled.
Then finally—He spoke.
"Tell me…" his voice was low, hoarse. "What can I do for you?"
Sylara's eyes widened—just slightly she had never seen him like this.
Never heard his voice like this.
"Nothing… I want nothing. I'll just say what I have to. I don't have much time left." She answered
Akira's jaw tightened, his head still bowed. His blood dripped steadily onto the ground, mingling with hers in a dark, pooling testament to their shared sacrifice. The crimson streams intertwined, as if even in this moment, their fates were inseparable.
"Why did you do it?" His voice was low, raw with an emotion he couldn't name—something between despair and fury.
Sylara's breath hitched at his tone, her chest rising and falling in shallow, uneven gasps.
"What am I to you?" His grip on her hand tightened, his knuckles white. "To throw your life away like this for a person you barely had communcation with?"
His voice cracked, the words breaking under the weight of his anguish. "Why are you making me suffer even more?"
"He wanted me. He could have had me. Why did you take my place?"
"Guildmaster Sylara… why?"
Sylara blinked slowly, her violet eyes locking onto his. For the first time, in his anguish, Akira called her something he never had before.
Guildmaster Sylara.
Not just Sylara.
He had finally recognized her.
A soft, broken laugh escaped her lips, fragile and fleeting, like the last flicker of a dying flame.
"To think my death would finally make you call me that…" Her voice was barely more than a whisper now. "I'm… a bit happy about that… haa…"
Akira clenched his jaw, his fingers trembling as they cradled her hand. His breath came in uneven, shallow bursts, each one a struggle against the storm raging inside him.
Sylara's hand reached up, her fingers brushing weakly against his bloodied chest. "I'll tell you something before I go…" she whispered, her voice barely audible.
Her violet eyes, dimming but determined, locked onto his. "Something I couldn't say at the restaurant because of the dungeon outbreak."
Akira's mind spun, the pain in his body and the blood loss fading into a distant hum. All that remained was her voice, her words, cutting through the chaos like a lifeline.
"You told me about the Aeia poison in your mother's body…" His breath stopped. His fingers froze. "I think I know the cure for that."
Akira's eyes widened, his chest tightening as if the air had been sucked from the room. For the first time since the battle, he felt something other than rage or sorrow.
He felt shock—a raw, piercing disbelief that cut through the numbness.
Sylara's breath hitched, her body trembling harder as she fought to speak. "That S-rank… Lester… the one who came…"
Akira stilled, his entire being focused on her words.
"He told me about someone… known as the Granter." Her voice was fading, each word a struggle.
Akira leaned in, gripping her hand tighter, as if his touch could anchor her to this world.
"The Granter is said to be able to make all things possible…" Blood dripped from her lips, staining her chin. "And knows… everything."
Akira's heartbeat thundered in his ears, a deafening rhythm that drowned out everything else. "Find them…" Her voice was breaking now, barely more than a breath. "And maybe… you'll get your answers."
Her eyes fluttered, the light in them flickering like a candle on the verge of extinguishing.
"Khem… khem…"
Akira didn't blink. He didn't move. He just stared, his mind reeling.
Her words echoed in his mind, a chance—a miracle—he had long buried beneath fury and bloodshed. A way to save his mother.
And yet, the woman who had given him that hope was dying.
Not just dying.
She was dying for him.
His hands trembled—not from exhaustion or pain, but from something deeper, something he couldn't name. It was a feeling that clawed at his chest, a mix of gratitude, guilt, and a sorrow so profound it threatened to consume him.
DING!
[Status Window]
[ALERT: USER'S VITALITY DROPPING AT ALARMING RATE!]
The notification flashed in his vision, but his mind barely registered it. The pain, the fatigue, the cold sweat clinging to his skin—all of it faded into the background, insignificant compared to the woman lying in his arms.
Sylara's breathing grew weaker, but she still fought to raise her head. Her violet eyes, dimming but unyielding, swept across everyone present.
Her lips parted, and with what little strength she had left, she spoke. "Look at all of you."
"… breaking down… over me?" A faint, tired chuckle escaped her lips. "How ridiculous."
"You're all Stars, aren't you?" Her eyes scanned the group, filled with fading fire. "Didn't we swear… to walk this path knowing it would lead to either glory… or death?"
"Don't you dare cry for me."
The guild members stiffened, their grief-stricken faces hardening under her words.
Anna still covered her mouth, silent tears streaming down her face.
Grido bit his lip, his entire body shaking. The others lowered their heads, fists clenched, shoulders trembling.
But Sylara wasn't finished.
"I didn't take this position to cower. I didn't take this position to sit in luxury." Her breath was weak, but her voice held a fierce edge. "I took it because I believed in all of you."
A shudder ran through the gathered hunters, her words striking deep.
"So don't make my death a reason to fall apart. Make it a reason to stand stronger."
Her violet eyes glowed one last time, shifting to Grido.
"Grido… You're next. So don't you dare be weak."
Grido's breath hitched. His fists clenched so tight that blood dripped from his palms. But he didn't look away.
Anna sobbed harder, shaking her head.
Sylara turned her gaze to the others. "All of you… live." Her lips trembled. "Live well. Live strong." She coughed—blood spilling down her chin.
Her eyes, barely holding on, finally turned back to Akira.
"…and you." Akira flinched, his grip on her tightening as if he could will her to stay. "Don't waste what I gave you."
His jaw locked. His eyes burned.
Sylara's lips curled into the faintest of smiles.
Her fingers—gripping his wrist so tightly before—finally went limp. Her violet eyes, once shining, dulled. The light in them faded.
And with one final, shuddering breath—Guildmaster Sylara was gone.
The underground parking lot fell silent. No one spoke. No one moved. The only sound was Anna's quiet, muffled sobbing. Grido stood frozen, his eyes blank and empty. The other hunters bowed their heads, the weight of her final words crashing down on them like a storm.
Akira—for the longest time—did not move.
He stared at the woman who had given him a chance to live.
At the woman who had given him hope.
The woman who had died in his arms.
And then—A single drop of blood slipped from his chin, splattering against her cooling skin.
His head slowly, slowly lowered—his dark eyes hidden beneath his bangs.