* * *
I awoke to the sound of the world crumbling.
The earth had caved in, trees uprooted, boulders hurtling through the air.
Everything was in utter chaos.
Dust clouded my vision, and through the haze, I caught glimpses of that bloodstained, jewel-encrusted spear streaking toward its target.
The storm of brown dust made it nearly impossible to see what was happening.
I could barely make out flashes of a massive spear clashing against an enormous sword.
I realized then—I must have been unconscious for quite some time.
‘What the hell is this bastard?’
Even sneaking behind him to secretly watch his back was already ridiculous for a normal companion.
But to get caught up in the battle and faint?
If Aimone were here, he’d laugh so hard he’d fall over.
Then later, he’d blame me for making him cry from laughing too much making his makeup smudge.
Except—he could never wear makeup again.
The thought left me nauseous.
Explosions erupted around me, weapons clashing with deafening roars.
My head felt like it was going to split apart.
It took me a few more seconds to remember what I had been trying to do.
‘Shit!’
Not just one demon—its allies had arrived too.
I had been trying to call for reinforcements before I got caught up in this mess.
And yet, even though they hadn’t specifically targeted me, I had still been taken down so easily.
Where was the hero?
Was he… was he okay?
Amazingly, as if the gods had answered my question, the dust cloud obscuring my vision began to dissipate.
Beyond the haze, the silhouette of a massive demon became distinctly visible.
Seeing it, I searched for the hero.
Only one enormous figure remained.
Some kind of miracle must have happened—the hero had slain one of the demons.
There was still one left, so I couldn’t call this a good situation, but the moment I realized what had happened, a quiet thrill spread through my chest.
I was always elated whenever he accomplished something deemed impossible.
Every time my hero displayed the strength befitting a hero, every time he proved that he had truly been chosen by the gods, I felt reassured.
Then, truly—no matter how long it took—he would resolve this.
He would overcome this mess, be revered by all, and finally, find happiness.
And that happiness would last far longer than now…
The dust fully cleared.
I forgot to breathe.
The hero was kneeling.
Collapsed onto his knees.
The broad, unwavering back that had always made me feel safe when I hid behind it was hunched over.
His elegant purple hair, drenched in blood, clung to his body.
Not just his hair—his entire back was soaked in red.
His large frame trembled violently.
He had driven the holy sword into the ground and clung to it just to keep himself upright.
His body, on the verge of collapse, was barely holding on.
His armor was in shreds, exposing his bare skin.
But I couldn’t even tell that his skin was brown—because it was entirely covered in blood.
The stench of blood filled the air.
Overwhelming, suffocating.
It felt like blood was spilling from his hands, like I was drowning in a pool of it.
My stomach churned.
Terror surged, swallowing me whole.
I would have preferred if all that blood had been mine instead.
Rather than his—the only one in this world capable of wielding the holy sword.
What had I even done after following him all this way?
I should have dragged him away when that second demon appeared.
If I couldn’t do that, then I should have at least regained my senses in time to call for help.
But instead, I had been lying there unconscious—while the hero was battered to this state.
What the hell was I doing?
I couldn’t let it end like this.
‘Do something.’
I thought that.
I always did.
That same thought, over and over again.
A potion came to mind.
It wouldn’t heal all his wounds, but at least it could help.
Then he could survive.
He couldn’t just die like this.
That was unacceptable.
I looked around.
Blood still clung stickily to the ground. I blinked.
My bag, the one holding the potions, had rolled far beyond my reach.
But one bottle was sticking out, intact.
For the first time, I felt grateful that battlefield potions weren’t stored in glass bottles.
I pushed myself up.
Or tried to.
But the body I had barely lifted crumpled again, hitting the ground with a thud.
I had no strength.
After hiding like a rat, I had still managed to get injured.
I tried again, but my vision blurred white.
My head spun.
My legs buckled.
The third time I collapsed, I let out a shaky breath, forgetting I was supposed to stay quiet.
It hurt. It hurt like hell.
But at least I wasn’t dead.
That was something.
Still, I couldn’t just lie here.
Walking was out of the question, so I crawled instead.
Every movement sent explosions of pain through my skull.
My body temperature seemed to be dropping.
“Bite them apart!”
The ground shook again. Acrid dust rose in thick plumes. But it wasn’t over yet.
A sound filled the air—the flapping of wings.
Feathers drifted down.
Black-beaked birds, steeped in poison, swarmed toward us.
They pecked and tore, following their master’s command.
Razor-sharp wings sliced through flesh.
Yet, Zerbin couldn’t move.
All he could do was groan.
My heart clenched.
The poison—it would spread through his body.
Did I have an antidote?
I couldn’t remember.
I couldn’t think.
I could only focus on reaching my pouch.
My mind burned with urgency, but my outstretched fingers still couldn’t reach the potion.
I bit my lip and dragged myself forward.
No matter how violently the beasts’ feathers scattered, the hero couldn’t stand.
Just watching it happen made my entire body tremble with fear.
“It’s over.”
A massive boulder spoke.
A voice rang out from its featureless face.
The sound vibrated through my skull, making me want to shove my face into the ground.
My stomach churned.
I didn’t want to look.
But I had no choice.
Because the demon was approaching the hero.
With each step, the earth trembled beneath its weight.
My own body shook in response.
The pain sharpened.
I clenched my teeth.
What do I do?
What if the hero, unable to move, was swallowed whole by that thing?
Would it really all end here?
Would there be no way to undo it?
Because I was nothing more than someone who couldn’t even grab a single potion from my bag?
No.
Every bone in my body felt like it was shattering, but I forced myself up.
I stood.
I took a step.
And the moment I did, I collapsed again, rolling onto the dirt.
But this time, my fingers closed around the potion.
If I threw this to the hero—
He’d catch it, right?
Even without me saying anything?
My trembling hands gripped the bottle as I turned back toward him.
“You’re just human.”
The demon reached out with its grotesque, jagged hands.
Its massive, rugged fingers were just about to touch him.
My vision went white.
“Nothing but prey.”
Ah.
A spark flared through the whiteness, bursting into vivid flames.
Awakening me.
* * *
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥