The cave was cold and dark. The sound of our footsteps practically screamed against the walls. Selena tried to talk to Scarlett, but she just kept walking into the darkness, a relentless fire burning in her eyes.
"Ugh… I give up," Selena sighed deeply, then fixed her gaze on me. "Come on, say something. Stop her somehow."
I looked at Selena, then at Scarlett. I saw that unstoppable flame within her. I let out a sigh of my own and answered:
"There's nothing we can do. We'd better just prepare for the fight."
I looked back; behind us lay nothing but pitch-black void.
"We're deep enough. The enemy could show up at any moment."
Selena folded her hands behind her head, speaking in a voice filled with resignation:
"No turning back then. And I'm so hungry," she added, rubbing her growling stomach. "Let's just finish this as fast as possible and go grab a bite together." Suddenly, her voice was full of motivation.
Selena's enthusiasm moved nothing in me. My gaze drifted back to Scarlett, who seemed to have completely shut out the world around her, looking only forward.
"Narihu."
A voice spoke up behind me. I turned around.
"Yes?" I asked Senna.
"Will you be able to… fight on our side?" she asked softly.
"I have no other choice," I shrugged.
"BUT…!" Senna's voice suddenly grew louder, her face flushing red. "Forgive me… I didn't mean to shout… I just want to know if you feel any guilt about having to kill the people you were fighting alongside just a short time ago."
Her words gave me pause. I looked away.
"I think… I don't care. Those who were important to me are already gone because I couldn't protect them. So really, it doesn't matter which side I'm on." A faint, pained laugh escaped me.
Scarlett stopped for a moment and looked at me. I could tell she wanted to say something, but in the end, she just kept moving. After that, we continued in an uncomfortable silence.
We must have reached the middle levels of the cave when we felt the enemy's mana. We drew closer to each other, trying to suppress our own energy.
The air was thick with foreign power.
"Do you feel it too?" Scarlett asked.
We nodded.
"There's a Wielder here… and not an average one."
"There's more than one," I cut in. "I feel another mana… but it's deeper down."
Scarlett looked surprised, but I saw her mind already racing, calculating how to defeat them.
"Can you tell how many soldiers are in the cave?"
I nodded. I closed my eyes and focused. First on the tiny noises, the pebbles, the ripples in the air… then, as if my eyes were wide open, the space around me mapped itself out.
I heard conversations. Footsteps.
They weren't far—about a hundred meters.
I opened my eyes.
"They're nearby. They're using a large, hall-like space as a hideout. There are about fifty of them."
"Alright! Let's move!" Scarlett said, glancing over the others.
We nodded and headed toward the chamber. A massive gate towered before us, guarded by two sentries.
"Leave them to me!" Selena whispered, and in the next heartbeat, she vanished
In the blink of an eye, she was above us, climbing as effortlessly as if she'd been doing it her whole life. Unnoticed, she positioned herself over the guards, then lunged at one, sinking her teeth into his neck. The other guard was so shocked he couldn't even move.
Selena released the first body and slowly stalked toward the second guard. She raised her hand, her nails lengthening into blades, and with a single motion, she slit his throat.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It all happened so fast.
"Selena is a vampire," Scarlett said. "She can transform in an instant."
"Whoa…" was all I could manage; it had caught me completely off guard. "Doesn't she have trouble keeping her power in check?"
Scarlett's expression darkened. Old memories flashed through her mind.
"She does… she needs a lot of blood. Otherwise, her power runs wild."
The conversation was cut short by Selena's voice:
"Hellooo! Aren't you coming?" she was jumping and waving at us.
We joined her and stood before the massive gate for a moment.
"Are you ready?" Scarlett asked. We all nodded. "Narihu… please, don't feel guilty. If you absolutely have to blame someone, blame me."
I didn't know what to say. I looked away, but Scarlett wouldn't let it go.
"Did you hear me?!" She leaned right into my face.
"Yes…" I muttered, feeling myself flush.
"The moment we step through this door, no one knows what will happen. Watch out for yourselves, and for each other. If things go wrong, everyone run—don't try to be a hero."
"Understood."
I gripped my sword.
"Our goal is to kill everyone we see. But if we can capture someone, they might be useful later. We need information."
Scarlett looked us over and saw that we were ready.
"Alright… let's go."
She turned and pushed the gate open.
As the gate swung wide, hot, heavy air hit us. Inside the massive hall, dozens of torches flickered. The room was as large as a small town square—armed soldiers, tents, and crates everywhere.
For a moment, the air froze. Then, a soldier turned toward us.
"Enemy!"
In the next second, hell broke loose.
Scarlett charged forward, her sword carving a glowing arc through the air, and two soldiers collapsed before her. Selena had already vanished, and in the next moment, she was already draining a soldier's blood. Senna drew a magical seal in the air with a single motion, and the ground groaned and buckled beneath the enemy's feet.
I stood there at the entrance. Those people… I was fighting for them just a few weeks ago… I knew I shouldn't think about it, but my legs wouldn't move.
A soldier rushed me, hatred in his eyes. My body moved before my brain could process it. My sword pierced his chest.
As he slumped before me, he caught my eye for a moment and, using the last of his strength, gasped:
"Why are you on their side, Narihu? Why did you betray us?"
His words pierced my heart. I stood there, motionless, while the battle raged in full force around us.
Senna protected me from the enemy. She formed a mana shield around me, even though she didn't have a moment's peace herself.
I stood still, completely paralyzed. I watched the soldier lying before me as the last drops of blood slowly seeped out of him. My body wouldn't obey; my eyes were trembling.
My mind went dark, the air seemed to vanish around me, and I gasped for breath. I fell to my knees from the pain, clutching my hand over my heart, which was pounding wildly in my chest.
"I didn't betray you… please… don't hate me… you too…"
I was screaming inside, but only a faint whisper left my lips.
"I'm selfish, I know… I'm not a cold-blooded killer… I can't do this…"
The darkness grew stronger, then slowly all sound ceased around me, except for the sound of tears as they hit the ground.
"Narihu!" A soft voice called out to me from the agonizing silence.
"NARIHU!!" A powerful voice suddenly brought the light back to my eyes, and I saw Senna standing before me, looking completely exhausted.
I looked around and saw dozens of Presporian soldiers lying dead.
"Are you okay, Narihu?" Senna asked, panting.
I kept my eyes fixed on the ground. Senna stepped toward me, and a moment later, I saw her hands held out.
"Take it, I'll help you up." I took her hand, and she pulled me to my feet.
"You don't have to fight. There isn't much left; please, just get out of here." She looked at her hand, then back at me with tired eyes. "I don't have much mana left."
"I'm sorry for being a burden, and thank you for protecting me… again."
I turned to walk out of that bloodbath, but before I could reach the exit, a terrifying voice rang out from nowhere.
"I see you're having fun. Let me join in."
A half-naked figure stepped out of the darkness, a fearsome smile on his face. Everyone flinched for a moment; his bloodlust was that powerful.
"What the hell is this?" Selena immediately snapped into a defensive stance.
"A Wielder… He was the one I felt. I didn't expect him to have such a powerful aura," Scarlett replied, her face tightening.
As the half-naked man approached, he stopped near Scarlett and the others. You could see the relief on the remaining soldiers' faces.
The man looked around the hall, then the smile vanished from his face.
"Don't you think it would be unfair for me to fight you all alone?" he asked, then shrugged. "How about I split you up?" As soon as he finished, he snapped his fingers.
The ground shook beneath me and Senna. We could barely stay on our feet, then the floor vanished beneath us, and we began to plummet into the depths.
As we fell, I quickly cut myself and created a blood tendril, using it to pull Senna toward me and embracing her to protect her from the fall.