Chapter 40: The Second Day—The Peak of Torture and the Last Breath
The Heavy Morning of the Second Day
The sun did not rise over the Cemetery of Shadows; instead, a gray and suffocating light appeared. It was the second day, the day Liva's mother and Morgana promised to turn into a real hell. Morgana, looking hungry for pain, licked her lips as she stared at the three prisoners. Rina was still holding Diari's hand, and her father continued his silent prayers, looking toward the sky. Liva approached with a bucket of boiling, cursed water and threw it near them, laughing as the steam burned their dry skin. "Wake up, little birds! May God destroy you, you useless things! What is your purpose anyway? Hahaha! The feast is being prepared, and you are the main course!"
The Final Strike of the Purple Chain
Morgana used her staff to extend and intensify the magic of the chain. The chain began to shrink and tighten around the necks and bodies of Rina and Diari. Diari's eyes started to roll back; he was on the edge of death. Rina looked at Diari, screaming from the bottom of her soul: "Diari, don't you dare leave me! If you die, I will follow you immediately. I can't live without you, Diari! Please, wake up and fight! Oh God, take his pain and give it to my body, just let him recover. Diari, wake up, without you I am alone, I am addicted to you! We must die together, not you alone!" Diari regained consciousness for a moment, looking at Rina, while Liva laughed at Rina's words. Rina felt her own life being pulled out of her chest; every time she breathed, it felt like she was inhaling glass. Morgana screamed, "The mark! Show us the mark or I will watch his soul leave his body right now!" Rina, with her last bit of strength, looked at Morgana and spat blood on the ground, refusing to surrender. In her heart, she said: "We won't give up, we have God."
The Father's Sacrifice and the Voice from Below
Liva's mother was losing her patience and walked toward the father, placing her hand on his heart. "If your daughter won't talk, maybe your fatherly heart will taste better while it's still beating." The father looked at Rina, a single tear falling from his eye, and whispered: "Don't... don't give them what they want. Don't give it to them. The light is coming." At that exact moment, the white light beneath the soil that Rina saw earlier suddenly vibrated. The earth began to shake very slightly, a movement that the demons didn't notice because they were too busy laughing at their own cruelty.
The Edge of the Abyss
As the second day reached noon, Diari's hand finally slipped from Rina's grip and fell. Diari became motionless. Rina's heart shattered into pieces; she looked at the sky and cried out from her soul: "Oh God, help us!" Then she looked at the soil and heard the voice again, louder this time: "The second day is for the blood of the innocent... the third day is for the fire of the ancestors. Wake up, daughter of light!" Rina closed her eyes, and for the first time, her mark didn't just vibrate—it felt like it was burning with a cold, white fire. Rina whispered to the unconscious Diari: "Just wait... tomorrow, they will pay for every drop of our pain. God will send us a miracle."
Written by: Dlin_myth