The silence after Shiro vanished was unbearable.
Not quiet.
Unbearable.
The floating island drifted through dead clouds while shattered towers groaned around them, ancient stone collapsing piece by piece into the frozen abyss below. Frost-covered debris rained endlessly from the wounded fortress, vanishing into white oblivion beneath the clouds.
But Amelia couldn't hear any of it.
All she could hear was Shiro's voice.
I'm not yours anymore.
Then Raiku taking him anyway.
Her fist slammed into the ruined stone beside her hard enough to crater it.
"DAMN IT!"
Black flames erupted violently around her body before fading just as quickly. The rage felt hollow now. Useless.
Across from her, Yura stood completely still near the edge of the platform, silver hair drifting quietly in the freezing wind. Her hands trembled faintly at her sides.
Not from fear.
From restraint.
Because if she stopped holding herself together for even a second…
she knew she would break.
Neither of them had spoken for nearly ten minutes.
Not since the portal closed.
Not since Shiro disappeared.
Finally—
Yura spoke first.
"…His aura is gone."
Amelia clenched her jaw.
"I know."
"No," Yura whispered quietly. "I mean completely."
That made Amelia look up.
And she understood instantly.
Shiro's destruction magic had always felt impossible to miss. Even weakened, even restrained, his presence carried weight.
But now?
Nothing.
Like Raiku had swallowed him whole.
The thought made something vicious twist inside Amelia's chest.
"He's alive," she said immediately.
Not hopeful.
Defiant.
"He has to be."
Yura closed her eyes briefly.
"…I know."
The wind howled louder through the broken city.
Then—
a pulse.
Soft.
Warm.
Completely different from the frozen atmosphere surrounding them.
Both women froze instantly.
Amelia's hand snapped toward Duskpiercer while Yura's frost magic spread across the ground automatically.
A figure slowly emerged from the collapsing corridor nearby.
Golden light drifted gently around her body.
Long silver-white hair moved softly behind her like moonlight woven into silk. Her armor was fractured and stained with blood, yet her presence still radiated quiet divinity.
And her eyes—
golden.
Brilliant.
Ancient.
The moment Amelia saw her—
she understood.
Not logically.
Instinctively.
"…Satre," Yura breathed softly.
The woman stopped walking.
Her expression shifted immediately at Shiro's absence.
"…Where is he?"
That question alone shattered whatever restraint Amelia still had.
"He took him."
Amelia's voice cracked violently.
"Raiku took him!"
For the first time—
Satre's composure broke.
Not loudly.
Not dramatically.
But the sheer devastation that crossed her face silenced the entire ruined fortress around them.
Too late.
Again.
The guilt hit her visibly.
Yura stepped forward carefully.
"You felt him too… didn't you?"
Satre nodded slowly.
"The spatial seal weakened when Shiro's aura exploded." Her voice trembled faintly. "I escaped with someone else before the island collapsed completely."
Almost on cue—
warm pink light drifted through the corridor behind her.
Amelia's expression darkened instantly.
The Fertility Goddess.
Babylis emerged gracefully into the ruined chamber, long pink hair flowing behind her while divine life essence bloomed softly around her feet.
Yet the moment her eyes met Amelia's—
the atmosphere became hostile instantly.
Amelia's killing intent surged.
"You."
Babylis sighed softly.
"You can blame me later."
"I'd rather kill you now."
"Amelia," Satre interrupted gently.
That single word stopped her.
Barely.
Satre slowly approached them both now, golden eyes moving between Amelia and Yura carefully.
Shiro had spoken about them before.
Not clearly.
Not fully.
But enough.
And now she finally understood.
The way they looked at him.
The way they were hurting.
They loved him too.
That realization should have hurt more than it did.
Instead—
it only made her chest ache with shared grief.
"…Thank you," Satre whispered suddenly.
Amelia blinked.
"What?"
"You stayed with him," Satre said quietly. "When he needed someone."
The words hit harder than expected.
Yura lowered her gaze immediately.
"We couldn't protect him."
Satre's expression hardened slightly then.
"No," she corrected softly. "You helped him survive long enough to still be himself."
Silence followed.
Because deep down—
they all understood the horrifying truth now.
Raiku hadn't just captured Shiro physically.
He was conditioning him emotionally.
Breaking him down piece by piece.
And the worst part?
It was working.
Babylis finally stepped forward again carefully.
"There isn't much time."
Amelia immediately scowled.
"Why would we trust anything you say?"
"Because unlike Raiku," Babylis replied quietly, "I actually want Shiro alive."
The statement wasn't entirely true.
And somehow that made it more believable.
Satre's golden eyes narrowed slightly toward Babylis.
Lyius's aura still wrapped faintly around her soul even now, subtle destruction energy flickering beneath her divine light like hidden claws.
Protection.
The Destruction Goddess knew Babylis was trying to manipulate her.
Which was exactly why the aura existed.
A silent warning.
One Babylis absolutely understood.
The Fertility Goddess slowly exhaled before continuing.
"Raiku will not stop now that he has Shiro back. He'll isolate him completely this time."
Amelia's fists tightened.
"Then we kill him."
"We can't," Babylis answered immediately.
"Not yet."
That answer filled the chamber with bitter silence.
Because they all knew she was right.
Right now?
Raiku would destroy them.
Easily.
Satre looked toward the frozen horizon silently before finally speaking.
"…There's only one place left."
Yura already knew the answer before she said it.
"The World of Void."
Even Amelia went still.
The World of Void wasn't merely dangerous.
It was where broken gods disappeared.
A realm outside stable existence where time fractured endlessly and reality behaved more like memory than law.
Most people entered it once.
Nobody returned unchanged.
Babylis nodded slowly.
"If Shiro continues evolving under Raiku while you remain this weak…" Her expression darkened slightly. "…you will never get him back."
The truth hurt because it was absolute.
Amelia looked away sharply.
"…Then we get stronger."
Yura nodded beside her.
"No matter what it costs."
Satre slowly stepped toward the edge of the ruined fortress, staring into the endless white clouds below.
Far away—
she could still barely feel him.
Faint.
Hurting.
Alone.
Her hand tightened slowly against her chest.
"Wait for us," she whispered quietly.
Then she turned back toward them.
Golden eyes burning now not with sorrow—
but resolve.
"We're bringing him home."
Behind them, the floating fortress groaned one final time as ancient ice structures finally began collapsing completely into the frozen abyss below.
The age of peace Shiro almost found had ended.
Now—
the retrieval arc truly began.