Selasier (01) 034: "Don't Go..."
"Don't go..."
"It's that cave where the strange fog was coming from. We don't know what's inside. You can't go in your current state."
"I said don't go..."
The two voices echoed through the dark cave. The long, pitch-black passage stretched on endlessly, its end impossible to discern.
"Whatever it is, there's definitely something related to the fog deeper in. I'll just confirm it and come right back, so please let me go."
"You're my bodyguard."
Selasier clutched Kalen's wrist as he tried to set her down at the cave entrance and venture inside alone. Then, she let go again. She knew full well that they couldn't keep getting trapped in this unknown fog, fending off endless waves of mana beasts. Yet the girl, abandoned by the world, had only one person she could rely on: Kalen.
"You're my bodyguard..."
Her voice wavered, lacking conviction—a raw reflection of her inner turmoil.
Kalen's decision to leave Selasier at the entrance and proceed alone was straightforward. Strangely, the mana beasts that had been swarming them had vanished without a trace near the cave. If he could just dispel the fog—or at least understand its nature—there was a chance to turn the situation around.
He brushed aside the strands of hair matted with tears and cold sweat from Selasier's face.
"I'll be right back."
His voice was remarkably calm, and Selasier, her vision obscured until now, finally locked eyes with him.
She replied in a choked whisper.
"...Promise me."
The word felt so out of place for her. A world without trust. Always anticipating betrayal first to avoid getting hurt. And yet, here she was, asking for a promise. As she thought of Kalen, who had somehow become her sole pillar of support, Selasier extended her right hand. It trembled pitifully, with only her thumb and pinky extended.
"Promise you'll come back."
Kalen stared at the offered hand for a moment, then crouched down and hooked his pinky around hers. They pressed their thumbs together.
"If you see any mana beasts, come inside."
"Got it."
Time was of the essence. Kalen disentangled their fingers and headed deeper in.
"Promise..."
Selasier watched his retreating back, then blankly gazed at her own hand. Somehow, she felt a little more at ease.
How far did it go? The seemingly endless passage soon revealed its end: a vast cavern.
Thud, thud. Kalen's footsteps were cautious, but in the silent cavern, they echoed deafeningly loud.
He had one question from the start: the symbol etched at the cave entrance. Kalen had seen it before. It was the mark of the contract Sinat had made with the spirit called the "lord."
Upon closer inspection, there were slight differences. But he couldn't dismiss the connection.
'The lord is sealing something away.'
Blamia had said the spirit lord was holding something in seal. The identity of the monster that attacked him and Sinat was surely tied to it.
His thoughts raced, leading to a plausible conclusion. If someone had dragged that seal here to set a trap for Selasier...
"...An altar?"
Kalen soon reached an object in the cavern's center. It was a broad rectangular structure, resembling an altar.
Most crucially, it was surrounded by smoke. The mysterious fog emanated from this altar, spreading outward in all directions.
"Mana beasts, altar, magic..."
Was the fog spirit magic rather than regular spells? Kalen kept that possibility in mind as he examined the altar closely. Brushing it with his hand left it coated in rusty dust. It had clearly been abandoned for ages.
He stood there, pondering. Should he destroy it? The fog definitely originated here. But smashing it might not stop it—and if it worsened the situation, it would be disastrous.
The deliberation was long; the action swift. The situation was already dire. Selasier wasn't in any shape to fight, and they couldn't hole up in the cave forever. Starve to death or get devoured by mana beasts—those were the options.
Feeling the chill of frost wind gathering at his fingertips, Kalen sighed.
"Succeed and live, fail and die, huh."
His lips quirked up slightly, a hollow chuckle escaping. He just couldn't quit gambling.
As he muttered to himself—BOOM! A massive explosion rocked the cavern.
BOOM!
Selasier flinched. Sitting dazed at the cave entrance, knees drawn up, she recoiled at the sudden blast. Her head snapped toward the dim passage.
An explosion? The passage led where Kalen had gone. For such a vivid sound to carry from that unfathomably dark tunnel...
It hit her unstable state like a thunderbolt.
"Ka... Kalen..."
Forcing her limp legs to move, Selasier struggled to her feet. At the same moment, chaos erupted outside the cave.
The familiar roars of mana beasts, droning endlessly on their way here.
Her mana and stamina had long been depleted. In this life-or-death pinch, Kalen was her only hope.
Trembling legs propelled her forward by sheer will. Mana beasts approached from outside. Kalen was caught in an explosion at the passage's end. No hope in sight. Her head spun, nausea rising—yet the only thought surfacing was the promise with Kalen.
Thus, she staggered into the dark passage. The mana beasts followed shortly after.
"Kalen...?"
The passage opened into a vast cavern. Amid the darkness, her ruby eyes, glinting red, searched for the boy—and finally settled on a corner of the cavern.
"Kalen!"
Selasier was stunned. Strength flooded her useless legs just from seeing him. Simply spotting him brought relief. But analyzing why was impossible amid the urgency.
"Mana beasts outside...!"
As she tried to warn him they were coming...
Kalen's dark gray eyes met hers.
"Mana beasts..."
"Get out!!"
Clutching the area near his heart, Kalen shouted at her.
"Wh...?"
"Run, Selasier!"
This reaction was nothing like she'd expected. Mana beasts were coming from outside—why run out there? Dazed senses snapped alert at the blood spewing from Kalen's mouth.
Only then did she notice. The dark cavern. The strange rectangular object in the center. And two lights embedded in the ceiling.
No, not lights. Eyes. So enormous she hadn't even considered it a mana beast.
The colossal mana beast's eyes.
Indescribable terror surged. Her legs buckled again, returning to their limp state. She knew she should flee as Kalen said, but her feet wouldn't move. Was it the weakness? Or fear of running without him?
As she agonized, the monster's form sharpened in the darkness, approaching her.
Seeing something hand-like, grotesquely twisted, reach for her, Selasier squeezed her eyes shut.
Had her big brother and Makbel unleashed this monster to eliminate her? At least that was a mercy. This searing sorrow would vanish with death.
The walls around her heart, so painstakingly built, crumbled helplessly at the end.
She shouldn't have been born in the North. Not as a grand duke's daughter. She wished for a humble family, even if poor. She just wanted to be loved.
Would her knights, ever ready to turn on her despite their oaths, grieve even a little? Makbel and Torun would rejoice at removing a rival. Her father... she couldn't even imagine.
At least it was over. Eyes closed, Selasier resigned herself.
But after eternities in mere seconds, no pain came. Had she died too swiftly to feel it? Wiping endless tears, she pried open heavy lids.
"I told you... to run..."
Filling her vision: a boy blocking the monster's hand, staring back at her.
"..."
"Miss. If you can hear me, nod."
The boy's body was a wreck. His right arm and side, blocking the monster's hand, were rotting away. No part of him was unscathed. Worst were the blackened area near his heart and the hairline cracks like shattered glass.
Protecting her in that state. Selasier could only nod.
"Can you use at least one spell?"
Nod.
"2nd hierarchy combat attribute magic—possible?"
...Nod.
The Kalen in her vision sighed deeply, locking eyes with her clearly.
"Use it on me."
...
Selasier froze. If she'd heard right, cast 2nd hierarchy magic on that body. It sounded like suicide.
"I'm at my limit. This is our only way."
Kalen spoke with labored breaths. A way. Meaning this could resolve it. Hitting his corpse-like body with 2nd hierarchy combat magic was the solution.
That's what he claimed.
"Nod."
Urged sharply, she shook her head. Tears wouldn't stop.
But Kalen seized her arm, pressing it to his body.
"I don't plan on dying, so hurry."
Bloody taste filled her bitten lip. How could she refuse? In a world stained by betrayal, he was the only one speaking truth.
He could've fled, abandoning her, if he'd had strength to reach here from the corner. Instead, he chose to protect her.
Sizzle—
Her nod and the last flicker of mana at her fingertips happened simultaneously. Another explosion rocked the cavern, draping it in a dark gray world mirroring Kalen's eyes.