Evans' eyes slowly opened.
His entire body felt weak, while his mind was barely able to process what was happening.
He tried to stand, but his exhausted body struggled to cooperate.
As he looked around, his eyes widened.
Pitch-black darkness surrounded him.
There was no ground, no sky, and no visible source of light.
Just endless darkness.
Wait... I've been here before.
Evans slowly began walking forward, unsure of where he was going.
Then—
He stopped.
A tall, slender figure stood several feet ahead of him, completely concealed by the darkness.
Only its sinister smile was visible.
Evans instinctively took a step backward before clutching his chest and forcing himself to remain calm.
"W-what exactly are you?"
The figure remained silent.
Evans narrowed his eyes.
"I know you're not here to kill me. If that was your intention, you would've done it already."
He took a shaky breath.
"So what's your deal?"
The entity suddenly giggled.
Its laughter echoed throughout the darkness, causing the entire realm to tremble.
Then its sinister smile widened.
"I'm just watching the brave hero who let them take his family..."
The entity slowly leaned closer.
"...and now..."
Its voice became darker.
"They took your friends."
Evans' eyes widened.
His heart seemed to freeze.
Images of the battlefield immediately flashed through his mind.
Alex.
Isaac.
Mike.
The countless Sacred Warriors who had fallen.
Evans' expression changed.
"No..."
Suddenly—
His eyes snapped open.
GASP!
Evans immediately drew in a massive breath.
His chest rose and fell rapidly as he struggled to breathe.
He lay motionless for several seconds, his vision blurry.
Where am I?
A faint beeping sound echoed beside him.
Beep... Beep... Beep...
Evans slowly turned his head.
He was lying on a hospital bed.
A woman wearing a white nurse's uniform quickly approached him. She placed a stethoscope against his chest while gently checking his condition.
"Sir, please relax. You suffered severe damage to your heart."
Her voice was calm and reassuring.
The door suddenly opened.
Oscar walked into the room.
The nurse briefly spoke with him, explaining Evans' condition before leaving the room.
Oscar approached the bed.
His usual relaxed expression remained, but there was a noticeable hint of concern in his eyes.
"Kid, how are you holding up?"
Evans stared blankly at the ceiling.
His body felt completely drained.
His expression was almost emotionless.
"I really don't know."
His voice was quiet and weak.
Slowly, he placed a hand over his chest.
A sharp pain immediately shot through him.
"How did I survive?"
Oscar remained silent for a moment.
Then he calmly pointed toward the chair beside Evans' bed.
"Well, it's all thanks to her."
Evans slowly turned his head.
His eyes widened.
A young woman was sitting beside his bed, fast asleep.
She looked completely exhausted.
Evans recognized her immediately.
"Reina..."
His voice was barely above a whisper.
"I can't believe I didn't notice she was there."
Oscar nodded.
"You're lucky to know someone as strong as her."
He glanced toward Reina.
"She used a very unique ability to stabilize your condition and prevent you from losing any more blood. After that, we were able to bring you here and get you proper treatment."
Oscar's expression became more serious.
"But using that ability took a serious toll on her."
He looked back at Evans.
"She's exhausted because of it."
Oscar paused.
"Honestly, it's a miracle you survived."
Evans stared silently at Reina.
His expression remained empty, but his thoughts were anything but calm.
I'm sorry.
His fingers slowly tightened around the blanket.
You wasted so much of your energy on me...
His gaze lowered.
But what difference did I even make?
The battlefield flashed through his mind again.
His friends.
The fallen Sacred Warriors.
The helpless screams.
Evans slowly closed his eyes.
I couldn't save anyone.
And for the first time since receiving the Forbidden Demon System...
Evans wondered whether becoming the strongest was just an illusion.
Evans stared at Oscar.
"So... how many survivors were there?"
His voice was low and empty.
Oscar slowly sighed, his expression becoming solemn.
"Between the two squads that were sent to that location, only five survived."
Evans' eyes remained fixed on him.
"Who were they?"
His voice was still quiet, but this time there was a faint trace of hope behind it.
"I'm not certain about the names of two of them. But the others were you, Ruby, and Mike."
Oscar paused.
"Unfortunately, Mike is still in the hospital. He suffered a severe injury to his chest, but luckily, the attack didn't reach his heart."
Evans remained silent.
Oscar looked at him.
"And Evans..."
His voice became quieter.
"Alex and Isaac have both been confirmed dead. Everyone else who wasn't among the five survivors was also confirmed dead."
Evans' eyes slowly widened.
He already knew.
He had seen it happen.
He had watched Alex fall.
He had watched Isaac die.
And despite everything...
He couldn't save them.
I know.
I saw them die.
And I couldn't do a damn thing.
Tears slowly rolled down Evans' cheeks.
Yet his expression remained completely blank.
Oscar watched him for a moment.
"Kid, don't let this break you."
His voice was calm but serious.
"Death is something every Sacred Warrior has to be prepared to face."
After saying that, Oscar turned around and quietly left the room.
The door closed.
Silence filled the room.
Evans remained on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
A few moments later, the door opened again.
Ruby stepped inside.
Unlike Evans, she didn't have a single visible injury. Someone looking at her wouldn't even realize she had been part of the battle that had claimed so many lives.
Evans slowly turned his head toward her.
For once, he didn't tense up when he saw her.
He didn't glare.
He didn't even look angry.
He simply asked one question.
"Why?"
Ruby stopped beside the bed.
Her usual cheerful and adorable personality was nowhere to be seen.
Her expression was stern and unreadable.
"I guess you figured it out that quickly."
Her voice carried no warmth.
"You want to know why I ran?"
Evans continued staring at her.
"It's because you value your own life above everyone else's, isn't it?"
His voice was calm and emotionless.
There was no hatred behind his words.
Ruby's crimson eyes remained fixed on him.
"Yes."
She paused.
"You're right."
Her expression remained calm.
"So... do you hate me?"
Evans looked back toward the ceiling.
"I don't know."
He paused.
"But I'm sure I won't forgive you."
Ruby remained silent.
"Still..." Evans continued, "I understand why you did it."
His eyes remained fixed on the ceiling.
"You knew you couldn't defeat that creature, so you chose to save yourself."
His voice remained strangely calm.
"You left your comrades behind to die."
He closed his eyes.
"That's selfish."
A brief silence followed.
"But I'm not in a position to judge you."
Ruby's expression softened slightly.
"I expected you to hate me."
She looked toward the door.
"But I suppose I can live with knowing you won't forgive me."
She turned around.
"Until next time, Evans."
Ruby quietly walked out of the room.
The door closed behind her.
Evans remained rested once more.
His eyes slowly opened.
Alex... Isaac...
His hands tightened against the blanket.
I couldn't save them.
And somewhere deep inside him, something began to change.
Slowly, Evans felt someone take his hand.
He turned his head.
Reina was sitting beside him, her eyes slightly tired but still gentle. She gave him a small smile before leaning forward and wrapping her arms around him in a soft embrace.
"I'm so glad you survived."
She slowly pulled away but continued holding his hand.
"Please don't go getting your heart stabbed again, okay?"
Evans' expression softened slightly.
"I'll try my best not to end up nearly dead again, so don't worry too much about me."
Reina gently raised his hand to her forehead and closed her eyes.
"I really thought you were going to die..."
Her voice trembled slightly as she bit her lip.
"It was horrible."
Evans gently placed his other hand over hers.
"I promise I'll make sure you never have to see me like that again."
Reina nodded quietly.
For a moment, the room became peaceful.
Then—
Click.
Both of them looked toward the door.
It slowly opened.
Zach stepped into the room.
His usual bored, nonchalant expression remained unchanged as he calmly walked toward Evans' bed.
"So, kid, how are—"
Before Zach could finish, Evans suddenly clenched his jaw and forced himself upright despite the pain.
He grabbed the front of Zach's black shirt.
"How dare you show your face here!"
Reina immediately looked at Evans in surprise.
Evans' voice trembled with anger and pain.
"You abandoned us!"
His grip tightened.
"You had the power to end that entire battle, yet you weren't there!"
Tears began rolling down his cheeks.
"Where were you while people were dying?"
His voice cracked.
"People who dedicated themselves to protecting this Branch!"
Reina tried to calm him down.
"Evans, please..."
But he refused to let go.
"Why?"
His voice became quieter.
"Why didn't you come?"
His eyes burned with frustration.
"Why the hell did you abandon us?"
Zach stared at him without the slightest change in expression.
"You're right."
Evans froze.
"I didn't come because I didn't feel like it."
Zach's voice remained completely nonchalant.
"That's the truth."
Evans' jaw tightened.
"Is that truly it?"
Zach finally looked directly into Evans' eyes.
"If I were to fight every single Beast that appeared, what do you think would happen?"
Evans remained silent.
"Every Sacred Warrior would become dependent on me."
Zach's voice remained calm.
"If everyone knew that I would always arrive at the last moment to save them, they would eventually stop giving everything they had."
He paused.
"They would fight knowing that, if things became too dangerous, Zach Hollow would eventually appear and rescue them."
Evans slowly loosened his grip.
"But I can't be everywhere."
Zach's expression remained emotionless.
"Eventually, a Rift would appear somewhere while I'm already fighting another battle."
He looked directly at Evans.
"Then tell me... what happens to the Sacred Warriors sent to handle that Rift?"
Evans' expression slowly changed.
"They die."
Zach nodded.
"Exactly."
His voice remained cold.
"They would die because they never learned how to fight for their own survival."
Zach stepped slightly closer.
"And when they die, innocent civilians die with them."
Evans' grip finally loosened completely.
Zach continued.
"All because everyone became dependent on one man to arrive at the last second and save them."
Evans slowly lowered his hand.
His head dropped.
For the first time, he understood what Zach had been trying to say.
It didn't make the deaths hurt any less.
But he understood.
Zach calmly adjusted his shirt where Evans had grabbed it.
"Evans, I'll never understand you."
He turned toward the door.
"I don't see the world the way you do."
He paused.
"And you will probably never understand me..."
Zach glanced back at him.
"...because I barely see the world at all."
Silence filled the room.
Zach walked toward the door.
Then he stopped.
"And one more thing."
His bored expression remained unchanged.
"Touch me like that again..."
His eyes briefly became sharper.
"...and I'll kill you on the spot."
Zach calmly walked out.
The door closed behind him.
Evans remained silent, staring at the floor.
Reina gently held his hand again.
Neither of them spoke.