That stone tablet was currently the only way to traverse that Sonoro and meet with Cartethyia.
To this day, Ray still had not been able to glimpse what manner of horror was sealed within that tower, inverted and suspended high above the heavens.
If the tablet were to fall into the hands of the Fractsidus, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Ray's voice was cold as ice. The blade in his hand lifted slightly, reflecting Phrolova's serene expression.
"So, from the very beginning, your only purpose in getting close to me… was for that stone tablet?"
The corner of Phrolova's lips curved upward. She glanced down at the tablet in her hand, then lifted her gaze back to him.
"It was. And yet, it was not only that."
Hearing this answer, the corner of Ray's mouth twitched faintly.
A brief, deathly silence stretched between them. He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. When he opened them again, the last trace of hesitation in his gaze had been utterly extinguished.
"In that case—"
The longsword in his hand let out a low hum, and the very air around him began to tremble.
"From this moment on, we are enemies."
The instant those words fell, a blinding golden light erupted from the depths of his pupils like the morning sun piercing through an eternal night, dyeing the entire room in hues both brilliant and bitingly cold.
Weng—
In that moment, the wind rose, carrying with it a lethal gale that tore mercilessly toward the proud, blooming spider lily.
Without the slightest hesitation. Without a trace of reluctance.
He did not know what the Fractsidus was truly plotting, nor what they intended to achieve with that tablet.
But one thing was absolutely clear to Ray....
If he did not end them here and now, countless more lives would surely be lost in the days to come.
Perhaps there truly was some entanglement between him and Phrolova in a past he knew nothing of.
And perhaps…
It truly was his past self who had set Phrolova upon the path she now walked.
But the affairs of bygone days had nothing to do with the choices of the present.
Almost the very instant this thought flashed through his mind, Ray had already streaked before the girl like a beam of light. The Blood Oath Covenant in his hand carried an unstoppable, overwhelming force as it slashed straight down toward Phrolova!
Yet in the next split second, a Tacet Discord that had materialized out of nowhere caught his strike head-on.
Phrolova stood quietly behind that crimson Tacet Discord, her composure as unruffled as ever. Only deep within her eyes, as she gazed at him, did a fleeting, indecipherable emotion flicker past.
It was impossible to tell whether it was sorrow.
Or…
A despair that had long since seeped into her very bones and blood.
The girl chose to mask her true heart with a smile.
She tossed the stone tablet toward Scar and, without even looking back, said to him, "There. The Fractsidus has what it wants. I've held up my end. As for here… leave it to me."
Scar caught the tablet, yet his gaze lingered on Ray with keen interest. He flexed his wrist. "How about letting me have a go? I could use a little workout."
"This is a duet that belongs solely to him and me." Phrolova's voice turned abruptly cold. "I will not tolerate anyone's interference."
Hearing this, Scar clicked his tongue. With a helpless shrug, he turned away. "Fine, fine, young lady. Have it your way. But you'll bear the consequences yourself."
With those words, the portal vanished.
Now, only Ray and Phrolova remained.
Ray's expression was frighteningly grim. "Phrolova. What exactly… are you trying to do?"
Phrolova tilted her head gently, holding the spider lily before her chest. The corner of her lips curved faintly.
"As you can see before my plans are complete, I intend to keep you here."
"You don't understand at all what it is you're doing," Ray said, his fists clenching tight.
"I understand perfectly," Phrolova replied, her voice eerily calm. "I work for the Fractsidus, and they… will grant my wish. When it comes down to it, we are merely using each other."
"You're beyond saving." Ray slowly shook his head, the last trace of warmth in his voice dissipating entirely. "Since all of this began because of me, I must end it with my own hands… before it becomes irreversible."
He lifted his eyes and stared directly at Phrolova, nothing but resolve left in his gaze.
"So, I won't hold back anymore."
The girl pointed the spider lily toward him in answer.
"And I… will wait no longer."
In that instant, Ray's form shot forward like an arrow loosed from the bow, the Blood Oath Covenant carving a frigid silver arc through the air.
Yet Phrolova simply stood quietly where she was, her fingertips brushing gently over the petals of the spider lily.
That trace of crimson trembled faintly, and the Tacet Discords beside her suddenly came alive, stirred like awakened wraiths
A Tacet Discord coalesced out of thin air just before the blade could reach her, blocking the slashing sword.
"Look," the girl murmured softly. "This is the lingering echo of days past. Even if shattered a thousand, a million times over, it will be reborn again… for the sake of a promise."
Ray abruptly withdrew half a step. After a brief pause, his gaze pierced through the layers of Tacet Discords and locked onto that ever-smiling girl. He charged forward once more.
He had to break through this crimson cage.
He had to reach her.
And then… kill her!
The spider lily twirled gently in Phrolova's hand. Her wine-red eyes reflected the image of Ray locked in fierce combat with Hecate.
Those pupils, which had always held a veil of hazy mist, now seemed stripped of all their luster, like glass robbed of its brilliance, leaving behind only an inescapable, lingering desolation.
Perhaps, deep in her heart, she had always harbored a faint, unreasonable hope—
That even if he had forgotten all of the past, even if he had chosen a brand-new beginning, this man would still stubbornly walk that path destined for destruction. Like a machine whose core directive had already been written, he would never turn back, even if a bottomless abyss lay right before him.
What difference was there, then, between him and an emotionless machine?
She didn't understand. She couldn't understand.
If they were both flowers fated to wither, was it not far happier to drift forever in a beautiful dream than to face a reality shattered beyond repair?
Because only wrapped in this gentle, peaceful illusion could the dying flame continue to flicker on amidst the chaos.
Even if such a world was nothing but a lie.
Conflicted thoughts clashed and collided within her heart, and her commanding gestures unconsciously slowed by half a beat.
That brief moment of negligence gave Ray the opening he needed.
He broke through Hecate's blockade and arrived before the girl.
Phrolova suddenly looked up. A gentle breeze stirred her ash green hair, spreading an unspeakable loneliness through the air.
Her eyes gazed fixedly at the Blood Oath Covenant thrusting toward her. Her lips quivered faintly, as though some words had been caught in her throat all along, wanting to be spoken yet not knowing where to begin.
Perhaps… this is our final movement.
And so she smiled softly. She spread her arms wide toward the one wielding the sword, allowing the icy blade to pierce straight through her chest.
She had long since grown numb to pain.
Yet for some reason, this time, the agony of being impaled cut deeper than it ever had before.
Enduring the heart-rending pain with all her strength, the girl gently wrapped her arms around the one who had pierced her through, and whispered softly into his ear.
"This is… the final movement of you and I."
If it were you, the you who had never cast aside the past… would you have kept the promise?
If only, in the past, we could have walked just a little further together…
These words, in the end, she still could not bring herself to speak aloud.