Humans have limits.
Though this phrase has become a well-known meme, there's no denying its truth.
No matter how strong Rin's resolve was, she couldn't change this fact.
Even though she had trained in Martial Arts from a young age, and had consumed the Golden Apple and Water of Life, she couldn't compete in terms of stamina with a Dead Apostle Ancestor.
Let alone the fact that she was carrying Shinji on her back while also wielding the Jewel Sword, fending off the endless waves of beasts attacking them.
Indeed, the Jewel Sword could draw on nearly infinite magical energy, but the magical artifact wasn't without its drawbacks.
The limitless magical energy belonged to the Jewel Sword, not to Rin herself, and controlling it consumed both her physical and mental strength.
Under the triple burden of carrying weight, staying on alert, and combat, Rin—still constrained by human limitations—was nearing her limit. Having fought against her before, Shinji knew this all too well, which is why he kept trying to persuade her.
"Rin, if this keeps up, you won't be able to hold on."
"Shut up! Instead of wasting your breath saying discouraging things, why don't you think of a way for us to escape?"
"I haven't thought of one yet. If my phone hadn't been broken by you, at least we could've called for help."
"You broke my phone too, so quit talking! Keep thinking."
"How about heading toward the city?"
"I'm already doing that. Think of something else!"
Rin quickly checked her direction and sprinted with all her might.
...
"Rin, put me down. They're after me. If you leave alone, you'll make it out safely."
"You're such a pain! I told you I wouldn't let you die, and I mean it!"
"I told you, I won't die. Why don't you believe me?"
"How am I supposed to believe you when you're like this? Your heart is shattered! Who do you think you are, a Magician?"
Rin gritted her teeth, her hands trembling slightly as she held onto Shinji.
...
"Rin, I—"
"Urusai! Urusai! Urusai! Didn't I tell you not to say anything negative?"
"I was just trying to say, there's a pit in front of you—watch your step."
"Ah!"
Rin froze for a moment, quickly changing direction to avoid the pit. "That was close! It's all your fault."
"Huh? Hey, I was warning you!"
"It's because you distracted me by talking! I would've noticed otherwise."
"..."
Shinji had no response. She had a point.
The situation fell silent for a moment, with only Rin's increasingly labored breathing filling the air.
...
"Rin—"
"What now?"
Her scattered breathing was starting to affect her speech.
"It looks like there's a cave ahead."
"Let's go inside and rest for a bit. The frequency of the beast attacks has decreased. We should have some time."
"...Okay."
It took a long moment before Shinji softly uttered a single word.
...
The cave they found was a natural rock formation, not very large, and its interior was visible at a glance.
Even so, Rin carefully inspected the area and placed gems at various points before finally setting Shinji down and collapsing onto the ground herself.
"So tired... I've never thought running could be this hard."
"...Yeah."
"Half of it is your fault. You're too heavy. You need to lose weight once we get back."
"...Ah."
"Also, I saved you this time. You owe me big. I'll make sure you pay back everything, with interest, in the future."
"..."
"Hey, Shinji Matou, did you hear me?"
"..."
"Hey."
Instinctively, Rin reached out to touch him, but Shinji didn't respond. He remained motionless.
"Hey, Shinji Matou! Shinji Matou! Say something! Wake up!"
Holding her breath, Rin's eyes widened in alarm as a sense of foreboding washed over her.
"He couldn't have—"
She quickly turned his body over, examining him carefully.
"Thank goodness... He's still breathing. But—his heart, how could it be?"
In their rush, Rin hadn't realized the extent of Shinji's injuries until now.
"What do I do? What should I do?"
"The heart is the most vital organ for anyone. Even for magi, it's incredibly difficult to survive with a damaged heart. He's probably lasted this long because of that strange regenerative ability or the protection from his magic circuits. If he can get treatment in time, he might still have a chance."
"But I'm not very good at healing magecraft—ugh, whatever, I'll try anyway."
She shattered a cat's eye gem, symbolizing vitality, letting its life force flow down. But the moment it touched the wound, it was repelled.
Rin's face paled immediately.
"It's not working? How could it not work? Is this a curse? Right, Cú Chulainn's spear has a legend of causing wounds that won't heal. Damn it!"
"No, I said I wouldn't let you die, and I'm not giving up now. Come on, brain, think of something!"
"Magic, self-recovery, magic circuits, organs, obsession..."
"Obsession! That's it—obsession. The essence of modern magecraft is fixation, and magic circuits are passed down because of it. If I can trigger his obsession, maybe he can hold on."
Having thought of this, Rin grabbed Shinji by the shoulders and shouted into his ear.
"Can you hear me, Shinji Matou? You can't die! Do you hear me? You have to live!"
"..."
"Think about your family—your father, your mother, Uncle Kariya, and Sakura. What will they do if you die? You're their pride, Sakura's favorite brother—the one I'm even jealous of. You can't die, not for Sakura's sake!"
"..."
"Think about the promise you made to me. You said no matter how many times I wanted to challenge you, you'd accept. I still want to keep challenging you! You're not allowed to die!"
"..."
"And what about all those women back at your house? Don't think I haven't noticed your ambiguous relationships with them, you womanizing bastard. But you know what? I hate irresponsible men more than I hate womanizers. If you die now, you'll be leaving them all behind. Did you hear me? You can't die!"
...
"Didn't you want my mom to marry Uncle Kariya? If you live, I'll help plan the wedding right away."
"And haven't you always insisted that you're the older brother? If you survive, I—I'll call you Big Brother. I promise."
It wasn't that Rin wanted to go down this weird path, but she had already said everything she could think of. Despite all that, Shinji still hadn't responded. Left with no option, she racked her brain, recalling every interaction with him, even the jokes and remarks that had once annoyed her or driven her crazy.
"You—you—didn't you say you liked my legs? You even claimed you could play with them for a whole year. If—if you survive, I—I'll let you do whatever you want with my legs... No, forget that—I'll let you do anything you want with them."
"So—so hurry up and wake up, you bastard!"
Amid her desperate, hysterical shouting, Shinji's eyelids twitched, and he slowly opened his eyes.