* * *

His steps across the hallway were heavy. The air around him grew stiffer as he neared the room. The depths etched in his blue eyes deepened with the flicker of his eyelids.

Standing in front of the door, Lumen clenched his fists. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he opened the door without knocking, revealing a darkened interior.

Outside, it was broad daylight. The blinding sunlight shone through the drawn curtains, so the darkness of the room was only a reflection of the mood.

Closing the door behind him, Lumen’s first sight was of Cadel on the bed, still lying as still as death. No different from last night. Next to him was Lydon, prostrate, holding Cadel’s hand. No different from last night. He’d probably been by Cadel’s side all day.

On the other side was Garuel, who made eye contact with Lumen and gave a small shake of his head. It meant he was still not seeing much improvement. Lumen opened his mouth to hide his disappointment.

“The magicians will arrive in an hour. Be ready, Sir Garuel. Keep your identity as hidden as possible until Leader wakes up.”

“……Yes. Keep an eye on him while I get ready. Sir Lydon, too. He hasn’t had a drop of water all day, and I’m a little concerned.”

“I know.”

As Garuel closed the door behind him, a silence fell over the room. Lumen sat down where Garuel had sat and stared at Cadel.

It was just as it had been. When Cadel had used too much magic in Baskin Village and collapsed in the aftermath. When Cadel had been unconscious for days as a result of dealing with everything alone.

Lumen vowed never to let that happen again, never to feel that way again. As he matured with Cadel, he was confident that Cadel would never have to carry the burden alone. He was vaguely glad that he wouldn’t have to watch Cadel collapse anymore.

‘What happened to you, Leader?’

By the time he and Garuel arrived at the seal circle, the battle was over. Palaig had been pierced by the dark energy, everyone’s petrification was broken. Cadel, however, was…….

Lumen stroked his cheek roughly as he recalled the scene.

‘If it weren’t for the Scarlet Dragon’s protection, he would have died.’

Shattered scale armor and a bloodied body. Bones poking through his flesh, dislocated. Lydon, holding Cadel in his arms, frantically called out for Garuel.

It was a mess, and Van didn’t show up until Garuel had finished tending to Cadel. After asking Yozen to track Van down, he went to the inn, only to return with the news that he hadn’t found him.

In the end, Van did not show his face until today, when they returned to the Empire. Garuel was worried about the disappearance, but Lumen was not; he could tell that Van had left the Knight Order.

He had done his duty to the end, and then he had left. Lumen wondered why, but he couldn’t afford to find Van now and ask.

His wounds were healed, but Cadel wouldn’t wake up. There was no bigger concern than that.

It was half an hour later when Garuel returned. He wore long robes and a mask, but it didn’t hide his exhaustion. It was the price he had to pay for trying to wake Cadel by drawing on his demonic energy.

“It looks like the magicians are already outside.”

“I’ll call you when the traveling magic is ready. You don’t have to go in advance.”

“Sir Van is…….”

Garuel glanced at Lumen’s profile and trailed off. He was a member of the Knight Order himself, but Lumen had spent far more time with Van than he had, and if he had given up the search, there had to be a reason.

“Sir Yozen said he had other business to attend to. He’ll join us later, so we’ll be the only ones using the magic circle.”

“Of course. If it were the Shadow Envoy, he could find Leader wherever he was.”

There was a short silence. There was much that needed to be said, but neither Lumen nor Garuel would say it.

It was Lydon who broke the stifling silence. He lifted his head steadily from his brief slumber. But he still hadn’t let go of Cadel’s hand.

His half-open eyes fluttered slightly as he realized that Cadel was still asleep. Garuel watched him wordlessly, then his expression hardened as he realized something, and he turned to Lydon.

He snatched Lydon’s hand away from Cadel’s and let out a gasp of horror.

“What the heck did you do?”

“…….”

“Could it be that you have been injecting mana all this time?”

Garuel glanced back and forth between Lydon’s whitened fingertips and Cadel’s upturned palm. Cadel’s hand, the one Lydon was holding, was covered in frost, evidence that Lydon had been infusing it with mana.

It didn’t matter if the other party was depleted of mana, or needed to circulate it. It would be beneficial for their conditioning. However, if the opponent’s mana vessel was in good condition, it was a different story.

Mana that was rejected by an individual did not return to the owner. It was like throwing away your own mana. Lydon knew this, but even though he could feel his energy being thrown away on the ground, he’d been trying to infuse it all day.

“……You’re crazy, do you want to collapse side by side with him?”

“Shut up.”

“If even Sir Lydon collapses, it’s a burden. I may not be able to protect Knight Commander, but I’m not going to waste―”

“I told you to shut up!”

Lydon shrugged off Garuel’s touch and shot him a fierce glare, but the bloodshot eyes and pale face only made him look pitiful. Garuel wiped his forehead as Lydon looked like he might faint with Cadel at any moment.

After a moment of agitated babbling, Lydon muttered in a shaky voice in the silence that followed.

“Why won’t he wake up?”

“…….”

“Why……?”

It was the first time Lumen had ever seen Lydon so agitated. His heart was heavy. Lydon had witnessed Cadel being destroyed before his eyes. Cadel was the one he’d followed around without question, and he didn’t need to be told what the shock was like.

Lumen stared out the window for a moment, then slowly pushed himself to his feet.

“Hug Leader, Lydon. We must return to the Empire.”

“Lumen, Cadel is…….”

“He’ll wake up.”

Lydon’s eyes widened at the earnestness of the statement. He made a painful noise as he choked back the tears that were welling up in his eyes, then took Cadel’s hand and rested his forehead on it.

* * *

Palaig’s hammer struck them, and at the same time, the petrification was released. He felt his body break free with shards of stone falling from the back of his head.

Lydon was the first to react, using his wings to fly out of range of the hammer, and Yozen followed suit. Cadel couldn’t move as quickly as they did, so he planned to block the attack and then retreat to safety. If he pulled back his wide barrier, he’d be able to block at least one blow.

Or so he thought.

[Knight ‘Van Herdos’ has left the Knight Order.]

[Knight ‘Van Herdos’ has been lost.]

His thinking came to a halt when he noticed a system window that suddenly popped up.

“Cadel!”

“It’s dangerous……!”

Cadel heard Lydon and Yozen’s urgent cries for him, but he didn’t react. Even as the shadow of the hammer drew closer, and he felt the dull thud of impact crush his entire body.

He could do nothing.

What happened next, he couldn’t quite remember. Maybe his body was completely destroyed, or maybe he entered the space of nothingness and the countdown began, just like when he had used [Soul Explosion].

After a while, the quest completion window popped up.