The Destroyer of Blood is surprised by Slady's ocular prototype, gripping his spear more firmly than before.
"For such an ordinary human, you impress me."
She lunges at Slady at high speed to attack him.
Opening her left eye, it's as if her vision is enhanced to much higher levels, like a microscope. One of her claws deflects the blood spear, counter-attacking to pierce it.
The Destroyer of Blood dodges the claw and launches the weapon at speed towards Slady. He dodges the spear and fires his double pistol, hitting his foot, burning and shocking the area.
She lets out a groan of pain and creates a sphere of blood, throwing it into the air, causing several spikes to fall towards Slady. The five claws manage to defend him automatically, as if they had a life of their own.
Without wasting time, the Blood Destroyer takes advantage of the man's distraction to attack him from behind. But thanks to the peripheral vision of the mechanical eye, he dodges and counterattacks with a punch to her face.
She leans back, trying to kick him in the face. But at the last second, one of the claws grabs her leg and throws her away. She manages to land gracefully, beginning to form a blood armor fused with her clothes.
Taking advantage of the moment, Slady had already advanced and punched the Blood Destroyer in the stomach, shattering the armor that was forming.
"Ah!"
She coughs and steps back, disoriented for a second. Slady advances towards her, striking her face with the mechanical arm, two claws wrap around the Blood Destroyer's legs and throw her against a burning rock. Using the prototype eye to see through the smoke, Slady begins firing at the Destroyer.
"Ahhhh!!"
She emerged from the smoke, her body encased in armor, her skin and flesh necrotic and fried. The Blood Destroyer was now furious.
"I'll make you pay for this!"
She stomped on the ground forcefully, creating numerous blood spikes that shot towards Slady, who used his claws to leap into the air, but the spikes pursued him. The Blood Destroyer used this to run towards him, leaping and attacking him with her spear. He managed to defend the attack with his bionic arm; the claws tried to move, but the Destroyer's force pushed Slady down, causing him to fall to the ground with a great impact.
As the smoke cleared, the Destroyer saw that three claws were encircling her arms to stop her attack, and two were behind Slady, preventing him from taking damage.
She pulls out the spear and tries to push harder against Slady's head, but her bionic hand holds her hand.
"Raintalya, try to come back..."
Suddenly, her head begins to ache, as if hearing Slady's voice awakened something within her.
"No...!"
She recoils, placing both hands on her head, groaning in pain.
"She won't come back, Huma—"
Her sentence was cut short when she felt her chest being pierced; it was Slady, who had taken advantage of that moment to deliver the final blow. He pulls out her heart, which had been corrupted by Renkai Energy.
Feeling a pang in her chest, Slady crushes that heart. The Destroyer's eyes widen, she releases the spear, her armor crumbles, turning into a liquid of blood, and her eyes return to normal, indicating that the Blood Destroyer is gone...
"Slady...?"
Raintalya falls into her friend's arms, her tears noticeable, but she seemed... at peace.
"Slady... don't cry... my tears are of happiness, not sadness. You gave me a death..."
Then she falls from Slady's arms, lifeless. The silence is agonizing, broken only by a clap of hands.
"Impressive!!"
A mocking female voice is heard in the dimension, then she appears in front, along with another man.
They are the children of Krythos, known as: the Destroyer of Lust and the Destroyer of Wrath.
The Destroyer of Lust's body is covered in shadows, which only cover her breasts and private parts. Her brother seemed to be the very personification of Hatred.
The woman walked to Slady, laughing softly.
"Haha, it must be so sad not being able to save your friend, isn't it...?"
"She's so weak, just like her husband, and those brothers we killed."
She hid a laugh with her hand.
Slady stared coldly at the Destroyer of Lust, her mechanical fist clenching tightly, crushing the prototype and tearing its wires. Now she understood what had happened. Krythos's children killed Jonhye and Natasha, also transforming Raintalya into the Destroyer of Blood; they caused it all.
"You..."
Suddenly, the woman threw herself on top of Slady with desire and malice.
"I think I should reward you... or punish you for killing your little friend."
Slady prepared to defend herself, but the Destroyer of Lust felt a firm touch on her shoulder; it was her brother.
"Behave."
He said in a cold tone.
"I only wanted to put our dear human through... unpleasant experiences."
She stood up obediently, positioning herself behind her brother. As Slady was about to stand, she felt a kick to her face, falling to the ground, her face rubbed by the Destroyer of Wrath's foot.
"You're very lucky I'm in a good mood today; you'd be dead."
He and his sister stepped back, giving one last look at Slady, who lay on the ground, in shock from everything that had happened.
A few days later, the city began to be rebuilt. News reports stated that Raizer had been one of the city's saviors, with the heroic sacrifice of Raintalya, Jonhye, and Natasha, but absolutely nothing had been mentioned about Slady.
Raizer lay in a hospital bed, sitting silently, seemingly remembering the moments he had with his beloved, moments that would never return.
He watched the TV, which was broadcasting a news program, letting out a tired sigh.
Suddenly, the door to the room opened, and a nurse entered, offering a kind expression.
"Mr. Raizer, you have visitors."
She made a respectful gesture with her head and left the room. Then, footsteps were heard, Slady, appearing in the doorway.
He entered the room. Raizer felt a little better knowing that at least one friend had survived. Before he could say anything, Slady spoke first.
"I'll be very direct."
Despite the emotionless tone, it was serious. He sat in the chair beside him and recounted everything that happened in the Second Renkai Awakening, except for the part after Raintalya's death.
Raizer was shocked by Slady's words. It wasn't just the fact that Slady had defeated the Blood Destroyer, but the fact that he had killed his wife. But when Slady explained why and Raintalya's last words, Raizer felt less bad, though still thoughtful.
"I don't know if I should hate him or thank him for bringing a peaceful end to Raintalya."
"I'm not asking for forgiveness, I'm only asking you to understand the factors."
"I understand, Slady, I understand..."
He wiped his face with the back of his hand. Not knowing what to do, Slady simply observed the situation in silence.
"Slady."
"Hm?"
"Can you tell me if Elisa is alright?"
"She wasn't hurt."
Raizer felt immensely relieved, continuing to speak.
"Can I trust you to protect my daughter after all this disaster?"
"If I fail again, I'll give you permission to end my life."
Raizer was shocked by his friend's words, who rose from his chair and left the hospital.
In a field, there was a humble mansion, nothing too extravagant, but it made it clear that the owner had plenty of money. Nearby was a river and a vineyard. Standing in front of the door, Slady gave a couple of light knocks.
Then the door opened, revealing a young maid, who seemed still a little shaken by what had happened in the last few days, but seemed to feel better seeing Slady.
"Mr. Slady?"
She hugged him, wanting to find comfort in his arms. Slady simply allowed the gesture.
"Are you alright? Did you take good care of Elisa?"
"Yes, I'm just tired, that girl has so much energy."
She moved away from Slady, holding his left hand, as if wanting to keep him close. "I'm so sorry for what happened to Raintalya, is Mr. Raizer alright?"
The maid asked, sad but hopeful.
Slady didn't object to holding the girl's hand, simply continuing to speak.
"Yes, he'll be back in a few days. His mind is very shaken..."
"Just go take a bath and return to your parents' house."
Slady placed her hand on the young woman's hair, who accepted the change of subject.
"Okay..."
She turned and walked away to get her clothes and take a bath. Slady walked through the mansion, going to Elisa's room, who was sleeping in her crib, wearing baby clothes and a diaper.
"..."
Slady simply sat in a chair and watched the girl in silence. After a few minutes, the maid came out of the bathroom, dressed in more casual clothes, and went to the room.
"Slady?"
"Yes?"
"I'm curious..."
She goes to Slady and sits on a bench in front of him, asking in a low tone.
"Where were you that day?"
Slady was surprised, but showed no reaction, understanding that she was referring to the Second Renkai Awakening.
He had to lie.
"I was away from Libretãnhya, I couldn't do anything."
The maid looked at him seriously, unable to decipher the truth or the lie. Then her tone became more accusatory and upset.
"So... the deaths, everything that happened was your fault?"
"Yes."
Slady took responsibility, feeling guilty for what had happened. The maid's face took on a very upset expression.
"And I thought you might be able to care about someone, Slady."
She stood up and, without saying goodbye, left the mansion. Slady could swear he heard a sound of crying coming from the young woman's lips...
Another day passed, and Raizer managed to leave the Libretãnhya hospital. Upon arriving at the mansion, he took a deep breath and opened the door, encountering a scene...
Slady was sleeping on the living room sofa with some books on the table, probably a failed attempt to comfort himself. In his lap was Elisa, who was playing with toys and watching television, very happy to be in Slady's lap.
The girl looked at Raizer, her eyes shining. She stretched out her small arms to be picked up. Raizer did what the girl wanted, holding her.
She looked around, as if searching for something missing.
"Mommy...?"
Raizer took a deep breath, trying to control his feelings.
"She went on a trip, my princess, let's go to sleep, okay?"
In a few minutes, Raizer managed to get Elisa back to sleep, placing her in her crib and sitting down next to Slady again. He gave his knee a squeeze to wake him up.
"We need to talk, Slady..."
His friend woke up, feeling a little dizzy.
"What happened to you and where is Lari?"
"I'm fine. The maid... she got angry with me."
"Did you tell her everything?" "I told you it was all my fault."
Raizer let out a frustrated sigh, placing his hands on his friend's shoulders.
"I know you feel guilty about everything. But could you have done something? You couldn't! You... just tried what you could..."
He placed his hand on Slady's eyepatch, noticing a purple mark.
"What happened to your eye, Slady?"
"I told Jonhye and Natasha's parents about the incident... Their father..."
Feeling terrible about it all, Raizer hugged him comfortingly.
"Why do you let people hurt you, Slady? Why do you put all the responsibility on your shoulders? Why do you do all this to yourself?!"
"I... deserve this."
The words made Raizer take a deep breath, trying to emotionally prepare himself for what he was about to say.
"I didn't want to put you through this anymore, but..."
"I might not live much longer. Part of my heart has been corrupted by Renkai Energy; any great effort could end up killing me. If I could make just one request..."
Raizer held Slady's face in his hands, asking in a serious tone.
"Could you adopt my daughter? That's the only thing I ask of you."
Slady tried to process the truth, but didn't give his own thoughts time to process before answering.
"Yes."
***
Raizer slapped Slady on the head, snapping him out of his thoughts. He remembered Elisa sleeping in his lap; his only thought regarding this was:
'How she's grown...'
"Is something bothering you, Slady?"
Old Raizer asked with a smile on his face.
"No, no... just some thoughts..."
Slady felt exhausted in every way...