"Nana… what's happening?" Cassius's voice trembles. He has just woken up from the violent jolt of the carriage, his small hands instinctively clutg tightly onto Lana's clothes
Lana immediately s her arms around Cassius, holding him close. She turns her head toward the window, and her heart sinks in arm
Dozens of figures dressed in bck, their faces covered, are surrounding them
"PROTECT THE YOUNG MASTER!"
The shout es from the an, a professionally trained knight. In an instant, from the bushes and shadows of the roadside, the knights of House Eclipse emerge, their ons gleaming as they charge into battle
But no matter how elite they are, the numbers are overwhelmingly against them
The attackers have at least twice as many fighters as the knights guarding Cassius
The an quickly jerks the reins, urging the carriage to accelerate while the knights form a defensive lio carve out an escape route
Ihe carriage, Cassius trembles, ging tightly to Lana. She looks down, her haly stroking his soft bck hair
"It's okay, Cassa. Don't be afraid, I'll protect you" Lana's voice is soothing, but deep down, she ot hide her own ay
She knows the knights are doing everything they to get Cassius to safety. But the enemy forces are too many… If this tinues
"Nana…" Cassius's voice chokes with fear
"Everything will be fine" She repeats, though even she isn't sure
Before she say another word
A shadoears right outside the window
The attacker raises a hand, and a ball of fire begins to form in his palm
Magic
Lana's breath catches ihroat
Without hesitation, she turns, shielding Cassius with her own body
BOOM!
The fireball explodes right beside the carriage
The powerful bst shatters the wheel, sending the entire vehicle veering off course before flipping over
Everything spins
Lana only tighten her hold on Cassius, clutg him as if trying te him into herself
The violent impact hurls them both out of the carriage
Lana feels the cold ground sm into her back, the heat from the explosion still lingering on her skin. Her head rings, her ears filled with an overwhelming buzz
"Cassa!"
Her voice shakes as her hands desperately search for the boy
A small movement
"Nana…" Cassius's voice is weak, his clear tears trailing down his face
Lana's breath catches ihroat
Thank the heavens… he's alive.
But before she even sigh in relief, another sound grips her chest with fear
Footsteps
The attackers are not giving up. The g of ons echoes in the night
Lana tightens her hold on Cassius, her heart pounding
She knows that they ot stay here any longer
Knowing that following the main road will only make them easier to catch, Lana takes a deep breath, cradles Cassius in her arms, and dashes into the nearby forest
Branches whip against her, thorns scratch her arms and legs, but she doesn't feel a thing
She knows only ohing—
She has to run
She ot stop
Lana forces herself to push through the dark forest, her breath ragged, each step growing heavier with pain
In her arms, Cassius lets out a weak whimper, his breathing faint
"Nana…" His small voice trembles with fear
Lana clutches him tighter, her vision blurring with uears. She refuses to stop. She 't
"It's okay, Cassa… Just a little more…" Her voice is hoarse, almost pleading
She knows they only o hold on a little longer. If they eil reinforts arrive - perhaps even the duchess herself - then they will be saved
"Nana…" Cassius hiccups, his warm tears falling onto her hands
"Your waist… you're bleeding…"
Lana stiffens slightly
She looks down - and sees it
A rge shard of wood is lodged deep into her side, so deep that she doesn't uand why she hadn't noticed before. Maybe it's the adrenaline, or maybe her body is already too battered to distinguish one pain from another
"Don't worry, Cassa" Lana takes a shaky breath, f her voice to stay calm "If we make it out of this, I-"
But before she finish, a sharp, searing pais from her chest
She stops iracks
Her throat tightens
And then-
Cough!
Blood spills from her lips
The pain is excruciating, her legs giving way as she colpses onto the ground
"Nana!" Cassius screams as they both crash onto the cold earth
Lana lies there, her breath shallow, her blood soaking into the grass. Her head spins, her entire body throbbing in agony
But the first thing she does is not worry about herself
"Cassa…" She struggles to turn her head, eyes wide with "Are you hurt?"
Cassius scrambles toward her, his face streaked with tears
"Nana, your blood…" His voice shakes, choked with sobs "There's so much blood…"
Lana looks at his small face, his golden eyes filled with overwhelming fear
She wants to tell him it's okay
She wants to reassure him
But the blood won't stop
Her breaths grow shallower
And she ot let Cassius see that
She must not
—
Today is supposed to be a happy day for Cassius
He has been so excited to stroll around town with Nana. He gets to hold her hand as they walk on cobblestoreets, taste delicious food with her, and experiehings he has never known before. Today is supposed to be a beautiful memory
But why…
Why is he now witnessing such a horrifying sight?
Blood
Too much blood
Nana's body lies motionless on the damp ground, her clothes soaked in the crimson flow that will not stop. The beautiful eyes that always look at him with warmth every day are now shut, unresponsive
"Nana… open your eyes, Nana!" Cassius sobs, his small hands trembling as he clutches her body
No response
He shakes her shoulders desperately
"Nana, you promised! You said you'd be okay!"
But Lana does not answer
Her skin grows colder, her breaths weaker, almost uable
A fear unlike anything he has ever known tears through him
He does not want to lose Nana
Cassius's tiny hands clutch her bloodstained clothes tightly, his tears falling and mixing with the stains on her face
"Please… Nana, don't leave me…" His voice fades into a desperate plea
He does not know what to do
He ot even stop his own tears
His small body shakes violently as he hugs Lana tighter, trying to share his warmth with her, even though he knows it is useless
As if responding to Cassius's silent prayers, tiny white specks of light begin to appear around him. At first, they simply float like dust particles refleg the moonlight, drifting zily through the air. But then, one by ohey start to gather behind him
More and more of them
They swirl and twist, merging like scattered pieces of a puzzle searg for their true form. And when the final speck finds its pce-
A pair of radiant white wings bursts ience
In that instant, a brilliant light suddenly pierces through the dark sky. The thick clouds are torn apart, making way for a colossal pilr of light that desds, enveloping Cassius and Lana. It is sht that it be seen for miles
And within that sacred light-
A small figure floats in the air
Cassius, who was just kneeling and g beside Lana, is now lifted into the sky. His eyes remain closed, but his expression is eerily serehe light surrounds his body-ge powerful-casting a luminous glow over his form
Then his o-bck hair begins to turn pure white
But the ge does not stop there
Above Cassius's head, a golden halo appears-a radiant ring that exudes divine energy, just like the symbol of celestial beings who do not belong to this world
His eyeshes flutter
And slowly, ever so slowly, he opens his eyes
A pair of silver irises shine brilliantly, refleg the radiance of the heavens
There is no longer any darkness in them
The moment Cassius's eyes open, a massive surge of energy erupts from him, sweeping away the night, expanding outward in all dires
—
Ihe royal pace of tury
In the grand, majestic hall where hundreds of ented crystals shimmer, a figure suddenly stands up - King Aurelius
His golden eyes fsh with shock, his hand gripping the armrest of his throne
"Anodsent?"
This feeling - he ot be mistaken.
And he is not the only one
Dozens of high-ranking mages across the kingdom simultaneously sehe immense power shift
Among them is Celeste et Eclipse - who is much closer to the source than anyone else
—
In the middle of the silent forest, eyeshes quiver
A strange warmth floods through the body, washing away the agonizing pain that oned every fiber of being
Lana slowly opens her eyes
"Cassa!"
Her sciousness snaps bastantly. She jolts up, frantically sing the surroundings for that familiar figure
Not far from her, a small boy with bck hair lies motionless on the ground, his delicate face still streaked with dried tears
Lana hurriedly crawls to his side, her hands trembling as she lifts his face
"Cassa, are you okay?!"
There is no immediate response. She holds him close, listening to his weak but steady breaths
Relief floods through her. He is alive
Then, she realizes something else, she does not feel pain anymore
Lana freezes
Her hand moves to her waist, where a deep wound should still be bleeding - but instead, there is nothing
No wound. No pain
She checks her arms, her legs - every wound, rge and small, is pletely gone
Except for the bloodstained clothes, her body is entirely unscathed
Lana stares at Cassius in shock. The boy in her arms is still unscious, but on his body, there is not even a single scratch
Deep down, she has always believed that Cassius has the power to heal. But she never imagined his abilities would be this extraordinary
In just a blink of an eye, every injury on her body has vanished without a trace
She gazes down at him, feeling the warmth of his small body. A rare, tender smile graces her lips, filled with love and gratitude
"Thank you, Cassa"
He remains unscious, but his breathing is steady now. Laly presses a kiss to his forehead, then tightens her embrace, holding him even closer
Now, they o return
She stands up, holding Cassius in her arms, carefully stepping through the thick trees. Her steps are still a bit unsteady from the nightmare she just experienced, but no matter what, she has to get Cassius back to safety
She takes only a few steps-
When a figure suddenly appears in front of her
Lana jumps back, instinctively retreating slightly, gripping Cassius tighter. But when she sees the person before her, her heart feels the weight lift
"Madam!"
A wave of relief washes over her with every breath
Duchess Celeste Eclipse
She stands before her, draped in a bck cloak embroidered with silver patterns, her violet eyes refleg the dim light in the forest. But what reassures Lana the most is the gentle smile on her face
Without hesitation, she immediately runs toward Celeste
"I'm so gd! You've finally arrived! Cassius and I were-"
Her voice suddenly catches
A chill runs down her spine
Something's wrong
Lana instinctively looks down, and in that moment
She sees it
A sharp red spike pierg straight through her chest
She blinks, her heart seemingly stopping
Blood
This blood is not hers
It's flowing from Celeste's hand
It's hers
Lana looks up, her eyes wide, while Celeste maintains her gentle smile
But now, it carries no warmth at all
Lana wants to speak, wants to ask her what's going on
But before she open her mouth
Aream of blood bursts from Celeste's hand, reag out and sealing her lips
It shuts her down
It suffocates her
Not giving her a ce to speak
"Thank you for everything you've done over the past five years"
Celeste steps closer, reag out to take Cassius from Lana's arms
She wants to hold onto him, but her body no longer has the strength
The cold sensation spreads from the wound in her chest, as though her blood is being drained
Celeste looks at her, her gaze pletely unmoving
"Now, you rest"
The moment those words are spoken
Another sharp stream of blood drives straight into Lana's head
The light in her eyes flickers
She doesn't uand
Why?
Why her?
She clearly… always loved Cassius
She clearly… has always been loyal
She wants to scream. Wants to ask why
But she 't
The pain slowly fades away, repced by a dizzying, terrifying wave
Her miies
Her sciousness gradually sinks into the endless depths
Her eyelids grow heavier
Bit by bit
The darkness swallows her
And then
She falls
