"Where did that come from?" she asked, a small, curious smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.
I shook my head, my breath coming in ragged bursts. "Don't worry about it."
Every muscle in my body burned as I forced myself upright. My legs felt like they were made of stone, but I kept moving.
Astrid stepped closer, frowning.
"Don't you think you should rest?"
"There's no time for rest."
I told her. Everything.
From the moment she'd been knocked unconscious… to Kuro's arrival. How he shredded phantom-ranked yokai like they were paper. How his body had twisted into something monstrous — cursed — and how he'd almost killed me before disappearing into the darkness.
Her expression hardened with each word.
"I have to find him," I said, my voice low but sharp enough to cut steel. "And stop him before he's lost completely."
Astrid studied me. Concern. But beneath it… something like respect.
"How do you plan on saving him when you can barely stand?" she asked quietly.
I froze. The truth punched the air from my lungs.
"…I don't know," I admitted. My voice was low at first… then it hardened into steel. "But I just can't leave someone behind."
She tilted her head. Waiting for more.
"You and him aren't even close," she said. "You just met. Why risk your life for him?"
My mind flickered back —
Kuro in the crowd, shouting my name during every match. His smirk when he told me I'd surprise everyone. His unshakable loyalty.
And then… my family.
My mother's warm smile. My father's steady hand on my shoulder. Ara's bright laugh.
"It doesn't matter if we're friends or strangers," I said. "Helping someone… is the right thing to do. That's how I was raised, to be a helping hand, a hero"
I took a deep, shaky breath.
"A hero isn't just someone strong. It's not about fame or glory. A hero steps in when no one else will. They reach out a hand even when it's shaking. They take the hit so someone else doesn't have to." I glanced at her, my lips curling into the faintest smile. "And for some reason… I feel like Kuro would do the same for us."
Astrid's eyes softened. Her lips twitched into the faintest blush-tinted smile.
"I see now… so that's the type of person you are, Tarek," she murmured.
She drew her twin swords, their steel catching the dim light.
"Then let's go find him."
She stepped to my side, letting me lean my arm across her shoulder. One painful step at a time, we moved forward into the unknown.
Meanwhile…
BOOM!
Jay slammed into the wall hard enough to crack the stone, his breath ragged, blood staining his teeth.
"Damn it…" He spat red onto the floor, clutching his ribs. "Every hit's shaking my whole body… and because of that cursed soul contract, I can't even hold back for my own safety."
Across from him, Kuro stood — or rather, the thing Kuro had become. Gold, inhuman eyes. Wings shadowing the floor. Claws glinting in the low light.
Jay narrowed his gaze. "So the demon I was hunting… just strolls up to me." His voice was half a growl. "But like this… I'm not sure I can kill you."
"DON'T DIE ON ME, YOU USELESS TEAMMATE!" he roared suddenly, the sound echoing off the walls.
Kuro lunged.
Jay's hands flashed with frost as an ice wall burst up between them —
CRASH!
Kuro shredded it like brittle glass, his fist slamming into Jay's chest. Jay's back hit the stone again, his lungs screaming for air. Even holding back, Kuro's strength was bone-shattering.
Jay coughed blood, stumbling to stay upright as Kuro closed in, each step slow and predatory.
When the demon's clawed hand reached for his throat—
WHOOSH!
A silver-edged dagger spun through the air.
SHNK!
It sliced clean through Kuro's left wing.
The sound that tore from his throat was not human — a guttural, bestial roar that rattled the very walls. He staggered forward, one knee slamming into the floor, black blood dripping from the severed joint.
Jay's vision blurred, but his instincts sharpened. He scanned the shadows.
He couldn't see who threw it.
But as he sensed the mana from the dagger.
one thing became clear
"You made it in time" jay said
Then jay smirked and said "I'ma leave this to you"
Then everything went black for jay.