"I'll handle the humans. You deal with the Nightmare creatures with Elisa," Elizabeth said, quickly assessing the terrain.
Samael shook his head.
"No. I'll deal with the humans."
Elizabeth looked at him.
"You showed disgust," she replied calmly, without judgment. "When I talked about killing them."
Samael remained silent for a few seconds.
His stomach was still churning.
The idea still repelled him.
"Yes," he finally said.
Then he raised his gaze.
"But that doesn't change anything."
Elizabeth frowned slightly.
"I don't need to like it," Samael continued. "I just need to do it."
He took a deep breath.
"If I avoid it now, I'll avoid it forever."
Silence stretched between them.
Elizabeth nodded.
"I understand."
There was no approval.
No disapproval.
Only acceptance of the choice.
And of the weight that came with it.
"Then Elisa and I will handle the creatures," Elizabeth said. "When you're done with them, come help us."
"Okay," Samael replied.
He leapt onto the platform where Henry and Summer were standing.
The rusty sword materialized in his hand.
"Hey! What did you do to Elizabeth?!" Henry shouted, clearly unstable.
Samael ignored him.
That only made Henry angrier.
"I'm talking to you!" Henry roared.
"I can do this… I can do this…" Samael repeated to himself internally.
"You damn traitor!" Henry snarled, charging forward.
He was fast.
Very fast.
Wielding an odachi, he unleashed a diagonal slash aimed straight at Samael's head.
Samael barely managed to block it and followed up with a frontal kick.
Henry dodged effortlessly.
His speed was impressive—on par with Awakened serpents.
Samael considered using the terrain, but the space was limited, and his opponent was faster.
While he evaluated his options, Henry pressed the attack, exploiting his advantage.
Samael tried to parry again.
He failed.
He was slower, and his sword technique was inferior.
The odachi struck Samael's silver armor.
It didn't pierce it—but it hurt.
The impact sent him flying backward.
"Damn legacy…" Samael cursed, pain exploding through his shoulder.
He clenched his teeth.
"Damn it, even my caster build is a budget version…"
He took a deep breath.
Charged at Henry, who immediately retreated, keeping his distance.
Samael seized the opening and summoned the Ascended Spear.
He hurled it with all his strength.
Henry dodged at the last instant.
"Damn…" Samael muttered.
But at that moment…
An idea surfaced.
Samael advanced and attempted a diagonal slash.
Henry stepped back swiftly, evading with ease.
The attack left Samael slightly off balance.
Henry took advantage and unleashed a horizontal cut.
Samael tried to block, but his guard was imperfect.
The blade grazed his face, carving a shallow cut.
Samael retaliated with a low kick to Henry's thigh.
Useless.
Henry dodged again.
"What a shame to cut such a beautiful face…" Henry sneered arrogantly. "If I didn't know you were a man inside—"
Under normal circumstances, Samael would have despised those words.
"What a pity, right?" Samael laughed mockingly.
"What?" Henry frowned, irritated.
"I'm laughing because even if I were a girl, it'd be the same thing that happens with Liz," Samael replied. "You'd never have a chance."
"Bastard!" Henry snarled, charging furiously.
He attacked with a flurry of rapid slashes.
Samael defended with extreme difficulty. Several strikes scraped his silver armor, forcing him back.
At his limit, Samael threw his sword straight at Henry.
The move earned him a slash to the ribs, stopped by the armor.
Henry dodged, but the attack was too sudden.
A piece of his ear was torn off.
As Henry retreated, Samael re-summoned the Ascended Spear and hurled it with full force.
Henry blocked with the odachi.
The impact traveled through his arms, making them tremble uncontrollably.
While Henry focused on the spear, Samael crouched, grabbed a handful of dirt, and rushed forward—unarmed.
Henry mocked him.
Advanced confidently, suspecting nothing.
When he was close enough, about to strike, the dirt was thrown straight into his eyes.
Henry lost focus for an instant.
That was enough.
Samael landed a sharp punch to his chin.
Henry's head snapped back.
Samael followed with a sweep, knocking him down. He dismissed the spear and kicked Henry in the chest while he was still on the ground.
Then he re-summoned the rusty sword and aimed it at Henry's face.
At the instant he was about to kill him, he saw his mother's face superimposed over Henry's.
His hand trembled.
Samael hesitated.
At that exact moment, Summer appeared and delivered a violent kick to Samael's ribs.
He was thrown aside, rolled across the ground, and quickly got back to his feet.
But it was too late.
Henry was already being healed by Summer.
"Damn it…" Samael cursed, hatred simmering beneath the surface.
"You honorless trash!" Henry shouted, rage overflowing his voice.
Henry charged again, consumed by fury, unleashing a storm of brutal strikes.
Samael retreated while barely defending, being pushed sideways under the relentless pressure.
Step by step, he maneuvered around the terrain, searching for an opening.
Then, at a critical moment, Samael summoned the Ascended Spear at the spot where his left arm should have been.
But there was no arm.
The spear appeared in midair… and began to fall.
In the same motion, Samael kicked it with all his strength.
Henry didn't expect that.
He failed to dodge.
The spear pierced his shoulder, embedding itself deeply.
Henry staggered back, the weapon lodged in his body.
Without hesitation, Samael rushed toward Summer.
Instinctively, she moved to help Henry.
Midway, Samael twisted his body and pressed the rusty sword against Summer's neck with his single arm, forcing her to stop.
He expected Henry to stop.
But he didn't.
Without hesitation, Henry charged and drove the odachi through Summer… and into Samael's abdomen.
Samael was thrown backward, releasing the girl as blood spilled from his stomach.
Fortunately, the cut was shallow.
Even so, it hurt.
A lot.
"She's your partner…" Samael said incredulously, his voice trembling. "She loves you. How can you do this?"
He didn't realize, at that moment, how hypocritical those words were.
Before coming to this place, he admired villains—characters who would do exactly the same.
But now this wasn't fiction.
It was reality.
And he felt the weight of what that truly meant.
"So what?" Henry replied coldly. "In the Dream Realm, everyone can be a tool to survive. And there's nothing wrong with discarding them."
Samael clenched his teeth.
"I think… I'm against that," he replied with conviction.
He took a deep breath, his chest tight.
"I don't want to discard everyone and end up the way I was in that house… or in that coliseum."
His voice dropped.
"I don't want to be alone."
He looked Henry in the eyes.
"I'm afraid of that."
Samael didn't like Henry.
In fact… he hated him.
Even more than he hated Leon.