A single strike.
Clean.
Gentle.
Precise.
The blade fell, passing through the exact point.
There was no scream.
Only the soft sound of something unraveling.
The light surrounding Akashin's body flickered like a flame about to go out.
The skeleton dissolved into golden particles…
…and then something shone behind him.
A second beam of light emerged—soft, warm, familiar.
And from it, she appeared.
Not bleeding.
Not wounded.
Not weighed down by death.
It was the queen—alive in spiritual form, wearing the same white dress from her final day, now clean and shimmering, like fabric woven from moonlight.
The five held their breath without realizing it.
Akashin lifted his face slowly, afraid it might be a mirage.
— …Dalia? — his voice was low, trembling, broken.
She smiled.
A smile so sincere, so deep, it carried everything she could not say in life.
— I'm here, Akashin.
He took one step.
Then another.
His hands trembled. His entire body wavered between fear and hope.
When he came close enough, he lifted his hand slowly, afraid she might vanish if he touched her.
But she took his hand first.
And when their fingers intertwined, it was as if centuries of pain were ripped from his chest.
He released a breath that passed through all five of them.
The breath of someone who had finally stopped fighting.
She laughed softly, tilting her head.
— You always had that silly fear of touching me…
Akashin closed his eyes for a moment.
— I didn't want… to lose you again.
She leaned closer.
— But I'm here. And nothing stands between us now.
He opened his eyes, and his expression changed—as if he were once again the boy with a wooden sword in the garden.
— You know… — she continued with a gentle smile — I waited a long time for you.
Akashin took a deep breath.
— I… I need to tell you something. Something that… I never managed to say before.
She raised an eyebrow playfully.
— Hmm? Is my brave captain finally going to say what I've known since you tripped over your own boots?
Jay let out a small, unintended laugh.
Akashin stepped closer.
They were only inches apart.
He looked at her as if the entire world depended on it.
For him, it did.
— Dalia…
— I love you.
She cupped his face, caressing his cheek that was now made of light.
A shining tear slipped from her eyes, formed of pure essence.
— I love you too, Akashin. More than the throne, more than the kingdom… more than the life they took from me.
He smiled.
The truest smile he had ever worn.
She pulled him into an embrace, and his body finally relaxed.
They fit together like two halves that had spent decades trying to reunite.
She pulled back just enough to look into his eyes.
Then she drew him in, and they kissed.
Soft.
Lingering.
Filled with everything that had been trapped for years.
When they parted, their foreheads rested together, breathing as one.
Dalia looked over his shoulder, toward the group.
— Thank you — she said. — You gave us what life denied us.
Akashin turned as well, bowing his head in reverence.
— You freed two spirits bound by a promise that could never be fulfilled. I don't have words enough to thank you.
Dalia squeezed his hand.
— It's time to go, my love.
Akashin smiled at her, light, almost youthful.
— Wherever you go… I'll go.
She took his hand, and the two of them began to rise, glowing like stardust.
The light ascended.
The silence that followed was heavy. Deep. Real.
No one spoke for long seconds.
Jay lowered his shield slowly.
— …Man. I don't even know what to say.
Marcus exhaled, unable to hide the impact.
— They lived by each other's promise… and died by that same promise.
Ethan pressed a hand to the cold stone floor.
— It's unfair. A whole life without being able to say it… and only now managing to.
Elenya wiped her tears quietly.
— But… they ended up together. That matters.
Sienna lingered behind, her gaze fixed on the spot where they vanished.
Her hands trembled.
— I… — her voice broke.
The group turned to her.
— This… wasn't just sad — she tried, failing again. — It was too real. Like I felt it with them.
Jay stepped closer.
— Sienna… it's okay to be shaken.
She gave a weak laugh through tears.
— I was always the tough one, right? The one who mocks everyone. — She sniffed. — And here I am… wrecked by a couple who isn't even alive anymore.
Elenya placed a hand on her shoulder.
— Being strong doesn't mean not feeling. It means feeling… and staying on your feet.
Sienna took a deep breath, steadier now.
— Okay. I'll be fine. — She lightly tapped her own face, recomposing herself. — Let's see what they left behind. I think we owe them that.
Marcus nodded.
— Together.
They walked to the chest behind the throne.
Ethan touched the lock.
A click.
The chest opened.
Inside:
A royal scroll: Blueprint of the Sun-Reflecting Mantle.
The key item: Ancient Arcane Forging Tool.
Smaller items and several old coins.
They took everything.
And returned to the city.