Kuro felt it again.
That pulse.
Not his heartbeat.
Something else.
Something deeper.
Something older.
Once.
Twice.
Then silence.
Kuro slowly pressed a hand against his chest.
"…Did anyone else feel that?"
Lucien tilted his head.
"Feel what?"
Kuro hesitated.
"The fragment."
Mika's attention snapped to him instantly.
"What about it?"
Kuro frowned.
"It just… moved."
The Guildmaster's expression hardened.
"Moved?"
"Like a heartbeat."
Lucien blinked.
"Okay I'm going to say something very important right now."
Everyone looked at him.
"I hate that."
[For once, Lucien, we agree.]
Lucien crossed his arms.
"Thank you."
The Guildmaster stepped closer to Kuro.
"Does it hurt?"
Kuro shook his head.
"No."
He paused.
"…It feels like something is calling it."
The room went very still.
Mika's hand tightened slightly on Kuro's shoulder.
"Calling it from where?"
Kuro didn't need to answer.
Everyone already knew.
Above them.
Beyond the barrier.
Lucien slowly looked up toward the ceiling like he could see straight through the building.
"You mean the giant cosmic nightmare hovering outside the city?"
"…Yes."
Lucien sighed.
"Fantastic. Love that for us."
Outside—
The sky darkened.
Not like a storm.
Not like clouds gathering.
Something larger.
Something moving behind the barrier.
The golden shield around the city flickered.
Just once.
The Guildmaster noticed immediately.
"…That's not good."
Lucien pointed dramatically upward.
"SEE?! I told you! Sky monster problems!"
Mika ignored him.
"Guildmaster," he said quietly, "how long can the barrier hold?"
The Guildmaster didn't answer right away.
Which was already a bad sign.
"…If it fully awakens," he said carefully, "not long."
Lucien stared.
"Define 'not long.'"
"…Hours."
Lucien grabbed his head.
"HOURS?!"
[Technically that is quite generous.]
"WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON?!"
[The winning one.]
Mika exhaled slowly.
Thinking.
Planning.
The way he always did.
"Then we can't just sit here."
The Guildmaster nodded.
"I agree."
Kuro looked between them.
"…What are you planning?"
Mika met his eyes.
"We figure out what that thing wants."
Lucien raised his hand.
"Pretty sure it wants Kuro."
"Yes," Mika said flatly.
"I meant besides that."
Lucien nodded.
"Oh. Right."
[Try thinking harder.]
Lucien pointed upward again.
"What if we just… don't give him back?"
Silence.
Then Mika smirked slightly.
"That's actually the plan."
Kuro felt something warm spread through his chest.
Not the fragment.
Something else.
Something human.
Something real.
Trust.
But the warmth didn't last long.
Because the pulse returned.
Harder this time.
Kuro gasped.
His knees buckled.
Mika caught him instantly.
"Kuro!"
Lucien panicked.
"WHAT HAPPENED?!"
Kuro clutched his chest.
"It's—"
The fragment burned.
Not with pain.
With power.
A voice echoed in his mind.
Ancient.
Endless.
You hear me now.
Kuro's eyes widened.
"…Who—"
You were never meant to be separate.
The room blurred.
The voice continued.
Come back.
Kuro shook his head violently.
"No—"
Mika gripped him tighter.
"Kuro, stay with me!"
Kuro tried to focus.
Tried to breathe.
But the voice grew louder.
You belong to me.
Something outside the barrier moved.
Really moved.
The sky cracked with dark light.
Lucien stared out the window.
"…Oh."
Mika followed his gaze.
"…That's bad."
Very far above them—
The massive shape beyond the clouds slowly opened something that might have been an eye.
And it was looking directly at the Guild.
Directly at Kuro.
The voice whispered one final time.
I found you.
Kuro collapsed.