I close my eyes. Something I never expect—if it happens, I will do whatever my vision gives me a path to. If it does not… then there is nothing left I can do.
My vision opens, telling me to take Oliver's sword embedded in the ground.
Albert stands in front of me, blocking the way. FLAK—I run without hesitation, rushing to grab the sword.
"Huh?!" Albert mutters.
"You always run from reality, don't you?!" he says.
He freezes in disbelief as he sees Hiro sprinting toward the sword. "Admirable. Finally facing reality?!" he adds with a thin smile.
Hiro settles into a stance—a stance that feels familiar to the man, and to Hiro himself.
"Huh?!" he murmurs.
Hiro charges forward, swings the sword, and—SWASH—slashes toward where Albert stood a moment ago.
Albert dodges swiftly and releases the strap of his blade.
SWISH—he counters at close range, a slash cutting across half of Hiro's chest. Hiro bends backward into a bridge, evading without touching the ground with his hands.
SLASH—Hiro attacks from the bridge, turning defense into offense.
The man reads Hiro's strike and dodges first. Neither of them lands a blow.
"Impressive," he says, shifting into his stance.
Hiro balances the fight—an opponent who would need only a single strike to kill others, but not him.
"Let's see how long you last!" the man says, his stance now flawless.
Then Albert freezes.
He does not expect it—Hiro takes a stance familiar to Albert, yet foreign to Hiro himself.
"Remarkable," he says after seeing Hiro.
"In truth, you can see the future as far as—" SPLASH—Albert is cleaved clean through, his entire body struck down by Hiro's flawless attack.
Hiro executes the very stance and strike that belong to Albert.
"You're going to blow my face off, kid."
I drive the sword into the ground to steady myself as my legs begin to shake.
"Hm?" he murmurs.
I open my eyes. Liquid runs from my nose—and from my eyes. Blood.
My heart burns. My body and my eyes feel as though they are on fire. I push past my limit. There is no strength left… no strength to stand again.
Hiro staggers, drops first to his knees, then collapses onto the ground.
Albert slides his sword back into its sheath and approaches slowly, without a single word.
Halfway to Hiro, Albert lifts his gaze to the sky for a moment. Then he turns toward Oliver and smiles faintly.
Hiro begins to rise. But it is not Hiro who is standing.
It is that one.
Albert realizes. Paragon—
---
Far from the Ruins of Zepharia, deep within a dark castle, three figures sit around a long table.
"Jiza has not returned since entering the field. The Lady is furious because Jiza failed to complete his task," the first says. "Strange. He has never failed a mission before. What happened to him?"
"I never truly understood him," the second replies. "Perhaps this task was heavier than anything he has done before. I think I will need more time before entering the field myself."
Silence. All eyes turn to the third figure.
"Albert?" the first asks quietly.
"I understand what he did—and why he did not return," Albert murmurs.
He rises slowly, leaning on his staff. "I will go to the field to confirm what I suspect," he says. "But if that happens, then everything will be too late."
"Too late?" the second figure asks.
Albert lifts his gaze to the shadow-filled ceiling. "If the Paragon awakens as I am about to execute him, I have no intention of troubling myself by facing him. I will end my mission—and return."
The room freezes.
---
You want to take this crystal? Then step over my corpse.
Albert gives a thin smile.
"You know I cannot defeat you, right?"
He meets my expectations—but do you know this?
"Hm?" Hiro murmurs.
"His potential surpasses yours, bastard."
Albert turns away from Hiro and walks toward Oliver, who lies collapsed on the ground. He lifts Oliver onto his shoulder, then disappears into the forest.
Hiro stands still for a moment, then moves to a tree, leans back against it, and closes his eyes.
Darkness.
Everything is silent—until a distant sound reaches my ears. A familiar voice, tight with panic.
Rose.
I open my eyes. The blur fades into sunlight spilling across my face. I slowly sit up and see Rose and the others busy, gathering supplies, preparing for the ship.
"Where are you going, Rose?!" I say.
She jolts, turns, then freezes. "HIRO!"
She runs to me and throws her arms around me.
"Hiro, Hiro, Hiro… do you know—do you know—" Her words spill out in panic. My shoulder grows wet. She is crying.
I rub her back gently. "Calm down, Rose. Breathe. Tell me what happened."
"Oliver—Uncle… he was taken… by that man, Hiro," she says softly.
I lower my head and rest it against her shoulder. "Calm down. We will find him, Rose."
All the supplies are already loaded onto the ship. I have nothing that requires treatment at the village barrier, so only Bartra and the crew who can still move are working. The rest are wounded.
"Are you sure you are not coming with us, kid?" Bartra asks.
Rose stands beside me. Earlier, I asked her to go with Bartra and the others to receive treatment at the barrier—but losing her uncle would only leave her alone, drowning in her thoughts.
I smile and shake my head slowly. "No need. I will find a way out by land. Leave the pigeons with us—we will send a message if we manage to get out of here, Bartra."
Bartra falls silent, then lets out a long breath. "All right. But please—do not get yourselves into trouble. Losing Oliver is already too much for us."
I nod. "Do not worry. We will be fine."
Bartra boards the ship and releases a pigeon toward us. It lands on Rose's shoulder.
The anchor is raised. The ship begins to move. "Be careful, kid. My lady," Bartra says, lifting a hand in farewell.
I return the wave.
Our journey by land begins.
---
"I am curious," Rose says as we walk.
"Hm?" I murmur, turning to her.
"There is no way they built lighthouses all along the sea, right?!" she continues.
I tilt my head up and close my eyes. "True—but that does not mean there is a gap after the final lighthouse in the middle of the sea," I say, half explaining.
"Then?" she asks.
"Oliver is worried about traps when we pass the route near the final lighthouse. We could get through it that way, but…" I trail off.
"Ugh—but?" she presses.
"What comes after? Sea mines? Coastal guards? I understand his decision after thinking it through carefully, Rose," I say.
"I see. You are not wrong," she replies.
"What is difficult for me now is thinking about what we will face on land without Oliver," I say, looking at her.
"In truth, I know my uncle a little better than that, Hiro," she says, meeting my gaze.
"Hm?" I murmur.
Rose lowers her head, her expression anxious again. "He is a wanted man with an extremely high bounty, Hiro. I am afraid he will be executed."