I had become stronger, just as I had wished,but it seemed I was still a pawn. No matter how hard I toiled under the sun, freedom remained a lie.
I realized then that I wasn't training for comfort, or for validation. I wasn't fighting because I was heroic—I was fighting because I had to survive. And in that struggle, I had forgotten why survival mattered at all.
No matter how far I reached, chains had a limit. No matter how fiercely I protected, how desperately I attained, I remained a pawn. An ant. Why bother?
The smell of dead mummies and zombies finally reached my senses, but I didn't flinch. Adaptation—that's what humans were best at, right?
A rustling came from behind. I drew my katana instinctively, ready to strike—but Blaze's hand landed on my shoulder, steadying me before I could decapitate Rebecca.
My hand shook. "Rebecca… a-are you okay? Why… why do you look like a mummy?"
She shook off the soreness of the ride down, her gaze flickering between us. She wiped her eyes.
"We're real," Blaze said gently.
Her vision blurred as she stared at him, taking in the warmth of his smile.
"I'm… I'm sorry I—"
"Save your tears for sis Tana," He interrupted.
She nodded, tears hanging like dew on her lashes, and ran toward Blaze, arms outstretched for a hug.
I smiled—a small, genuine smile, like a kid who had just been given candy for the first time.
But she froze mid-step, her arms folding back toward herself. Her gaze remained fixed ahead, stunned. The hug never came.
How could I have been so naïve? How could I let my guard down? How could I forget that I was a caged bird?
The thought spiraled through my mind as my head, not by my will, turned toward Blaze.
Pinned by a spear through his throat.
How could I ever believe in a perfect fantasy? A dream that would never end? Of course… everything that begins must end.
The world—the System—wouldn't allow me to mourn. I barely dodged a sword as it grazed my face. Steel met steel as I clashed with a being clad in golden armor, a red feather atop its helmet matching the fiery eyes that pierced the darkness.
Rebecca stood frozen, hugging herself in silent remembrance of what could have been. Her eyes were pale, unmoving, as if time itself had stopped around her. Blood streaked her rigid face.
Anger surged within me as I faced the golden-armored figure. My eyes went cold; all that existed in my mind was getting its head.
"I have watched you kill my people, how dare you enter my palace to wreck havoc!" The man screamed. He sounded like one of those knight in fantasies.
"I'll kill of you bastereds who think the world revols around them!", my anger poured out.
"How dare you disrespect the knight of the sun goddess Fiona queen of the phoenix you insolent human!".
"I don't care who you are. Your head will fall by this blade you hear me !".
We moved faster and faster, living lines of our strikes intertwining like strings of rebirth. Each blow from it hammered against my katana, each strike heavier than the last. It radiated a golden aura before lunging again. I braced, but the impact still slammed me into the wall.
Before I could catch my breath, its hand crushed against my head. My face slid across the floor like a snow shovel before it lifted me into the air.
I opened my eyes; vision blurred. It dashed toward me. I flipped mid-air, barely dodging, strands of my hair whipping like living threads around me.
Rebecca still stood rigid, trapped in her own world. I braced my landing, stabbing my katana into the ground to slow the fall. Before I could raise my head, a raw force sank into my stomach. I coughed up blood as it lifted me with a single punch. In that instant, I knew—I was fighting a losing battle.
After a barrage of punches, one slammed into my chest, sending me crashing beneath a massive statue that stared ahead, indifferent to my fate.
I saw it approach slowly, methodically, and then—my own katana gripped in its hand, as if it intended to behead me with my own weapon.
"Enough!" Blaze's scream split the arena as fire erupted, swallowing the battlefield in crimson flame.
"How dare you hurt my family!" His eyes blazed gold, slit like a bird of prey. His hair shimmered, strands of gold streaked with red. From his back unfurled golden wings, feathers glowing as fire licked across his skin, closing his wounds in an instant.
The armored man halted mid-swing. My katana clattered from his grasp as the flames consumed him. Yet he did not falter. Step after step, he advanced, fire charring his armor to blackened coal. Finally, he stopped before Blaze.
With a slow, deliberate motion, he dropped to one knee.
"It is an honor… to meet you, son of Phoenix."
The flames died down, leaving the scorched air humming with silence.the armor crumbled living nothing inside.
I barely comprehended what was happening—but it didn't matter. Blaze was here. They were safe.
"I'm sorry, Kael," Blaze bowed slightly, guilt shading his voice. "For letting my guard down."
He turned then to Rebecca, still trapped in her frozen state, eyes glassy and pale. His own eyes welled with tears.
Blood—mine, his, everyone's—slid into the cracks of the pyramid floor. Even Blaze's fire sank into the stone, feeding something beneath. A closed tomb began to stir.
Blaze clutched Rebecca's rigid shoulders, shaking her. "Rebecca, wake up. I'm here. We're close to finding Bill and the others. Then… then we'll be a family again. I'll make sure you never go hungry, I swear it!" His tears carved fresh lines across the blood on her face.
"Rebecca…" A voice rippled through the chamber.
We both turned. I stared, confused. But Blaze's face twisted in horror—he knew this man.
And like glass shattering, Rebecca broke free at the sound. Her lips parted. "Bill…" she whispered.
Her eyes glowed with life again. She smiled, radiant despite the blood. "The princess had to look for her prince." With a light laugh, she ran to him.
Something was wrong. I tried to rise, but my legs faltered. My throat burned, my words scraped out raw. "No… get away from him. I can feel it—darkness his worse than any of those monsters. Rebecca, get away!". My voice came out as a rough whisper.
My warning fell into silence. Blaze only smiled, watching her run.
I staggered, leaning on my katana, each breath tearing through me. I would not—could not—be powerless again.
Rebecca leapt into his arms. They embraced. The moment froze, timeless, like the universe itself had bowed to them.
Nothing happened.
I laughed, ragged and wild, half relief, half madness. "I'm losing my mind," I thought.
Then—something wet splashed my cheek. Must be rain , but why was it so warm ? And we're indoors.
I looked again.
Rebecca was impaled.
A scorpion-like tail jutted from Bill's body, piercing through her chest.
Her eyes went wide, her smile frozen in betrayal.
I laughed again. A broken laugh of defeat and dispare.
Note: The next chapters (21 to 26) are a flashback. Events here take place before the recent events with Rebecca. You can read them now or skip ahead to continue the present story."