The Demon's bright green eyes trembled, the cold heartless voice of the Demon Lord Revival System just finished echoing into his ears.
But the miniature green screen in front of him still didn't vanish, Elijah's lips parted but no words came out, he turned his gaze to Sarah Elfin.
Her back was turned to him, while she was setting up the IED, she was never hostile toward him. In fact, she only showed him kindness, she was the first person to do so in this world.
Elijah clenched the rose dagger in his hands and took a steady step towards Sarah.
"Hidden rewards, what could it be exactly? If it's from the demon lord revival system, then maybe it would grant me enough strength to protect myself in this world."
Sarah felt the shadow of Elijah looming behind, but still didn't react, after all. How could her comrade in this mission possibly think to harm her?
Elijah was a mystery, but she still liked him a lot, she even gave him her rose dagger, a gift from an important person, a person she desperately wished she could see again.
Elijah's face twisted in pain, he felt his chest tighten, he had made difficult choices before, but only to people who deserved it, the Demon has never been the moral type, but maybe, if it was for her, he could make a sacrifice.
"No, I can't do it, she's never done me any wrong, my past life didn't grant me a chance to feel pity or remorse, but it doesn't mean I can't give myself a second chance to do so in this world."
Just as Elijah was about to make up his mind, another notification came from the enigmatic Demon Lord Revival System.
[NOTICE]
Complete Hidden Mission Objective To Nullify One Penalty.
Elijah's eyes widened, and not in the adorable way. His hands trembled, his sweaty palm once more clutching the rose dagger.
This time, madness personified manifested on the Demon's face, he had a chance to make the pain go away, maybe the only chance he will ever get.
...
Sarah finished setting up the IED and rose to her feet, she dusted her trousers and turned with a cheerful smile.
But before she could open her mouth, a familiar rose dagger made a beautiful arc in the air, contrary to what a bystander might think.
Sarah didn't feel any pain, it was cold, then warm once more, but the warmth seemed to pour down from her throat for whatever reason.
Sarah raised a steady hand and smeared the blood on her throat, her beautiful blue eyes spread wide in astonishment.
She locked her eyes with that of the Demon's, in his eyes she saw three things, pain... and at the very end, resolve... and a little to the edge, fear.
As Sarah Elfin's body began to fall, she thought, a fading whisper into her own mind, a question she wished she could scream at Elijah.
"Why?...why are you still afraid?"
Elijah's heart sank, his chest rising and falling unnaturally, he gazed down at the body of Sarah Elfin.
His trembling irises began to dim, It was the colour in the world was fading, and left was blood red.
Before Elijah could come to terms with what he has done, the familiar emotionless voice of the Demon lord revival system whispered into his ears, a suppressed glee in its tone.
[NOTICE]
In the shadows where life's flame flickers and fades, a song of sorrow is sung. It is not a melody of hope, calling to what was lost. But a sacred spark that remains bound to its eternal path, leaving behind only the shape of a memory.
[Skill Effect] The Hollow Requiem grants not resurrection, but an imitation, a bittersweet glimpse for those who cannot let go. It offers the illusion of reunion, even as the void within this creation threatens to consume all who gaze too deeply into its hollow eyes.
Unique Skill... Hollow Requiem.
Elijah swallowed hard, but that wasn't all, the Demon lord revival system's frigid inhuman voice continued.
[NOTICE]
In a realm of ice and snow, where winter's breath kissed the land, two lovers bared their hearts. Like the frost embracing the snow, their spirits intertwined, kindred souls bound by the eternal dance of seasons.
Yet, no matter how fervent their yearning, the gales of turbulence howled, tearing through their sanctuary. Ice cracked, snow melted, and their ephemeral bond shattered. But even as their forms dissolved, their love lingered, a haunting echo, yearning for the promised return of winter's embrace.
[Skill Effect] A skill that manifests the pain of undying longing. Its user radiates an aura of overwhelming despair, suffocating the will of all who draw near. As frost bites and shadows loom, the spirit of unyielding resolve carves its mark, leaving foes paralyzed in its chilling embrace.
Innate skill... Baleful Presence.
[NOTICE]
All conditions for the activation of unique skill, Hollow Requiem has been archived.
Do You Wish To Activate Skill?
Elijah gazed at the floating screen in front him, and without thinking too deeply about it, he said. Yes, activate skill.
[NOTICE]
Utilizing Unique Skill, Hollow Requiem... Target, Sarah Elfin.
Elijah frowned lightly. "Why is it targeting a corpse?"
But before the Demon Lord Revival System answered, another shadow loomed into the Astral core-powered artillery machine.
Elijah turned his head to meet Verayth's ocean blue eyes, she wasn't looking back at him, but at the corpse, laying peacefully on the ground.
She was momentarily confused, she raised her head, her cold eyes fixed firmly on the rose dagger clasped in Elijah's hand.
Verayth's lips spread across her face, she was smiling but Elijah didn't feel the usual warmth in her expressions.
Elijah only felt dread, his body screamed at him, the same way a prey's body will react while being stared at by a predator.
To make matters worse, Sarah Elfin's still body suddenly blazed with green flames, the flames brightened up the environment, chasing away the shadows that intertwined.