Morning crept slowly over the village, covering the small houses with a pale light. In the dark attic, Tiberku leaned against the wall, his eyes red and heavy. He had not closed an eye all night. He had listened to every creak of the wood, every whisper of the wind, ready to raise his bow at the slightest sign of danger.
Renji lay on the floor, his breathing barely perceptible. His skin was cold, and his wounds had reddened, a sign that fever was consuming him. Tiberku had held his forehead, moistened his lips with a little water from his flask, but nothing he did seemed to have any effect.
He looked at him and felt a heavy pressure in his chest. He realized that Renji could not last much longer. In his condition, even if he had a clear path to Eris, he would not reach alive. And the path was far from safe.
Tiberku clenched his fists. He wanted to scream, but he bit his tongue and stayed still. If Renji died now, everything he had done last night would mean nothing.
He looked at him again, then rested his forehead on his hands. Thoughts sprouted in his mind one after another: he had to find a way, a healer, a refuge, anything. But the village seemed empty, and the people would not risk helping two fugitives pursued by soldiers.
"If we stay here, I lose him," he told himself. "If I try to take him to Eris, we'll never make it."
He lifted his gaze to the low ceiling, and his teeth clenched. He could not let death win.
Renji moved slightly, a faint moan escaping his lips. His eyes opened halfway, cloudy, lost.
— "Tiberku… is there any point?" he whispered, barely audible.
Tiberku's heart tightened. He grabbed his cold hand and squeezed it with all his strength.
— "There is. And as long as I breathe, I won't let you go."
But inside, Tiberku knew the truth: Renji's time was running out. He had to quickly decide which path to take.
Tiberku slung his bag over his shoulder and looked at Renji, lying motionless on the attic floor. He touched his forehead, then whispered:
— "I'll go find food and something to keep your wounds in check. Hang on."
Renji didn't respond, only turned his head slowly toward the wall. His breathing was heavy, broken. Tiberku gritted his teeth and descended the creaking stairs.
The village was quiet. A few people were taking animals out of pens, but most houses were closed. Tiberku slipped through the narrow streets, hood pulled over his head, careful with every step. If anyone recognized him, it would all be over.
He pressed his back against a wall and waited for an old woman with a basket to pass. As she entered her house, he slipped to the open door of another dwelling. On the table inside, he saw a piece of bread and a bowl of water. He reached out, grabbed the bread quickly, and retreated silently.
But the food was not enough. He needed herbs or a remedy for the fever. He remembered seeing a small hut at the edge of the village, with a pot smoking over a fire. He approached slowly through the weed-filled garden. Inside, on a low table, were several bottles containing green and white liquids.
— "Perfect," he murmured.
He reached out to take them, but the floor creaked and a dog began to bark. His heart stopped for a moment, then Tiberku grabbed three bottles and slipped outside, running along a narrow path until the barking faded.
Back in the attic, he slammed his back against the wall and breathed heavily. He placed the bread next to Renji and opened the cap of one of the bottles.
— "I found something. I don't know if it will help, but you have to try."
Renji turned his gaze toward him, his eyes cloudy. His lips trembled.
— "Why are you still struggling? If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be hunted by everyone… Kaizen is on our trail because of me. Everything is because of me."
Tiberku shook his head.
— "No, Renji. I chose to be here. I chose to get you out."
Renji closed his eyes, and tears ran down his cheeks.
— "You chose to die with me. Airi, Miyu… they're all gone, and now I'm going too. I have nothing left to live for. You still do, but you throw your life away for me."
He bit his lip, blood mixing with tears. He clenched his fists, but his body was too weak to move.
— "I can't even lift a sword," he whispered. "How could I ever fight Kaede? Everything I dreamed… everything I wanted… is dead."
His voice broke, and his breathing became a quiet sob. Tiberku looked at him and felt a knot in his chest, but no tear escaped him.
— "As long as you live, Renji, it's not over. I will get you to Eris even if I give my last breath on the way."
Renji shook his head weakly, but there was no light left in his eyes.
— "We'll never make it."
He turned his face to the wall, letting silence and sobbing fill the attic.
Tiberku broke the piece of bread and held it in front of Renji.
— "You have to eat, or you have no chance."
Renji did not react, remaining turned to the wall. Tiberku clenched his jaw and slowly pulled him by the shoulder, forcing him to look.
— "Renji, look at me. I didn't stay awake all night to watch you die without fighting. Take this bread."
Renji opened his cracked lips, and though his hands shook, he let Tiberku bring the crumbs to his mouth. He chewed heavily but swallowed. Tiberku also gave him a few drops from the green bottle, carefully pouring them between his lips.
— "I don't know what this is, but if it's from a healer, it might lower your fever."
Renji closed his eyes, letting the liquid slide down his throat. Tiberku felt, for the first time, that he could gain a few extra hours.
— "This is all I ask of you," he said more gently. "One more step, one more breath. I'll carry the rest."
Renji shook his head.
— "You don't understand… I have nowhere left to go. And if we reach Eris, what then? Kaizen will find us. Then this village dies, and these people who have done nothing wrong."
Tiberku clenched his fists, but before he could respond, a sound cut his breath. Heavy footsteps echoed on the street. They were approaching from the center, and through the attic boards shadows could be seen moving.
Renji opened his eyes wide, scared, and tried to rise, but his body wouldn't obey.
— "They're here… they're here," he whispered in a broken voice.
Tiberku put his hand over Renji's mouth, signaling for silence. He took his bow and crawled slowly to the attic window. Outside, Kaizen, Hikaru, and another soldier were passing. Their armor gleamed in the morning light, and on one of their backs, the red emblem of the imperial command was clearly visible.
— "They're searching for them," Tiberku murmured to himself.
One of the soldiers stopped, looked around, and stared directly at the house where they were hiding.
Renji covered his face with his hands and began to tremble.
— "I brought them here… I brought them on us…"
Tiberku tightened his grip on the bow, feeling the tension burn in his chest. If they entered, he would have to shoot, but that would expose the whole village.
Renji's breathing became an uncontrollable sob, almost a moan. Tiberku touched his shoulder and whispered shortly:
— "Be quiet. If they hear us, it's over."
The soldiers continued, but one of them stopped again and looked long at the roof. Tiberku felt his heart pounding like a hammer, and his right hand trembled slightly with the bow.
Renji swallowed his sobs, but the thought echoed in his mind with clarity: "It's my fault. Everything is my fault. I can't even die in peace without taking him with me."
Tiberku slowly lowered his bow and looked at the quiver. Only five arrows left. Too few to create a diversion, too few to clear a path through walls or scare the soldiers.
He approached Renji, gently lifted his head, and whispered almost imperceptibly:
— "I can't use arrows like before. If they come over us, it's over. We must leave now, quietly."
He lifted him carefully and placed him on his back. Renji's weight pressed on his shoulders, but Tiberku let no sound escape. He descended the attic stairs step by step, breathing cut short, eyes fixed on the back door. Every creak of wood sounded like thunder in the morning silence.
He waited a few moments until the soldiers moved away along the street. Then he pushed the door and went out, sticking close to the wall of the house.
He slipped through the narrow alleys, Renji inert on his back, holding his breath every time he heard the metallic footsteps of the soldiers. He felt them close, but they did not turn their gaze toward him.
After a few minutes that felt like hours, he exited the village and stepped onto the path leading to the forest. The cold morning air hit his face, and birds sang softly among the branches. For Tiberku, the forest represented their only chance.
— "Just a little more, Renji," he muttered through gritted teeth. "If we stay in the village, they'll find us. In the forest, we can lose them."
Renji didn't respond. His eyes were half-open, but his gaze was lost. He let himself be carried like a body without will, and that burned Tiberku from within.
He took the first steps into the forest, dry leaves cracking under their weight. Every sound seemed like an alarm. He tightened his bag and focused on a single thought: to carry him as far as possible, even if the path tore him apart inside.
Tiberku moved among the trees with Renji on his back. The forest was damp, and the leaves rustled with every step. He felt his muscles burning, but he did not stop.
After almost an hour of walking, he stopped abruptly. Ahead, among the trees, flames from torches and shouts could be seen. He quickly set Renji at the base of a trunk and crawled forward, hiding behind a thick fir.
In the clearing beyond, an entire group of imperials struggled against a man who no longer resembled a human. His skin was dark and cracked, his bones protruding through flesh like blades. His claws cut the air with every movement, and his roars echoed like deep abyssal echoes.
The soldiers attacked in waves, but one by one they were thrown back, torn apart, or crushed. The demon moved chaotically, but his strength exceeded any normal human.
Tiberku held his breath. He had never seen a human in a state of transformation.
Suddenly, everything paused for a moment. A cold wind passed through the clearing, lifting the leaves. From the shadow of the trees, a tall figure appeared, walking with confident steps.
It was Kaizen.
The imperials instinctively retreated, making way. The demon roared and lunged at him, but the next movement was so fast that Tiberku barely perceived it. A flash, a line drawn in the air, and the creature's head detached, rolling onto the grass.
The body collapsed inert, and the darkened blood soaked the ground.
Kaizen shook his blade calmly, as if it were a mere insect he had killed.
Tiberku felt his mouth go dry.
— "That was… a single step," he whispered to himself. "I didn't see anything…"
He turned his gaze to Renji, who remained half-open-eyed, between life and unconsciousness.
In Tiberku's mind now resounded a cold truth: if this guy found them, they had no chance.
Tiberku moved among the trees, Renji barely held on his back. His shoulders burned, his breath was cut, and every step seemed to drain him more. Renji was inert, his head falling to one side, and his body barely obeyed.
Suddenly, among the foliage, he saw something strange: a small point of light moving gently. He stopped and tensed his muscles. On a low branch sat a tiny elf, barely bigger than a pigeon, with large, luminous eyes.
The little elf tilted his head and looked directly at Tiberku.
— "Who are you and why are you carrying this lifeless man?" he whispered in a thin, clear voice.
Tiberku shook his head, surprised and confused. He didn't understand what this creature was doing or why it was asking him.
Renji remained almost speechless, with a lost gaze, while the elf examined him carefully with bright eyes, without coming too close.
Tiberku felt fatigue overwhelm him. He straightened his shoulders to better support Renji's weight and stumbled over a root, lightly hitting his head against a tree trunk. He held his temple and sighed:
— "I think I'm starting to see things that don't exist…" he muttered under his breath.
The elf lightly tugged on his ear with delicate claws, making Tiberku flinch.
— "Don't say nonsense. You're not crazy, you're not hallucinating. I am here, I am real."
Tiberku remained wide-eyed, watching the tiny creature now swaying gently on the branch. He didn't know exactly what it was, only remembered Eris' stories about elves, but the elf's presence was so unexpected that it left him speechless.
The elf remained silent, watching Renji and then Tiberku, wrapped in a silence that said more than words.
After a few moments, he rose slightly into the air and flew to rest on Renji's shoulder. As he unfolded his wings to perch, a fine, sparkling dust drifted from them, floating around Renji and Tiberku.
— "Wake up… don't give up," whispered the elf in a thin, calm voice.
Renji remained motionless, but the elf continued speaking:
— "Even if you are exhausted, even if the pain weighs on you, don't let it consume you. I feel a dark aura in you… but I know you are a good man. You don't have to lose everything now."
Tiberku watched with wide eyes, uneasy, as the particles shimmered and floated around them. His heart raced.
— "Hey! What are you doing?!" he shouted, instinctively raising his hands to protect himself.
The dust floated slowly, touching their skin and clothes. Adrenaline made Tiberku tremble, and every glowing particle seemed to vibrate in the air.
— "Wait… something's not right…" he murmured, waving his hands desperately.
After a few seconds, a warm, soothing sensation ran through his body. The fatigue that had weighed him down began to ease, his breathing became lighter, and his muscles obeyed better.
— "Wha… what is this?" he whispered, feeling the tension and pain gradually fade.
The elf smiled faintly, flapping his wings once more, and the dust spread evenly around them like a fine, calming mist:
— "It's like a medicine. It doesn't harm. You'll be able to continue, but don't let the darkness within you win."
Tiberku looked for a moment at Renji, who seemed to breathe more deeply, even though he was still almost unconscious. The little creature had, through a simple but effective gesture, given them hope amid exhaustion and despair.
— "Alright…" muttered Tiberku under his breath, trying to regain control. "We must keep moving."
The elf sat again on Renji's shoulder, watching both of them with large, bright eyes, as if guarding every breath and every step.
Renji slowly began moving his fingers and breathing more deeply. His eyes were still cloudy, but a thread of lucidity returned gradually. He let out a short, hoarse whistle.
— "Tiberku… do you see… what I see?"