Smoke covered the entire battlefield.
The heat from the explosion still burned through the air.
For a few seconds—
no one moved.
No one spoke.
Mizuki's eyes trembled.
"…KS?"
Her voice barely came out.
The smoke slowly began to clear.
A figure stood at the center of the destruction.
Barely standing.
KS.
His body was covered in burns.
His clothes were torn apart.
Blood dripped slowly from his arm onto the cracked ground.
Yet even after taking the full attack—
he was still standing.
A weak smile appeared on his face as he looked toward Mizuki.
"…Are you alright?"
Mizuki's eyes widened.
At that moment, she didn't know whether to feel relieved… or angry.
A short distance away, Tejas stood frozen.
His fists tightened unconsciously.
Inside his mind, thoughts kept repeating.
Why did he do that?
Why would someone jump into an attack like that for another person?
KS suddenly lost balance.
His vision blurred.
The strength in his body disappeared instantly.
Before he could collapse—
Mizuki rushed forward and caught him.
"KS!"
His breathing had become unstable.
Burn marks covered almost his entire body.
Mizuki immediately looked toward Tejas.
"He needs treatment right now!"
Tejas clenched his teeth in frustration.
"…I don't have any healing abilities."
For the first time, his voice carried helplessness instead of anger.
Mizuki carefully laid KS on the ground and quickly wrapped bandages around the worst injuries.
But even she knew—
that wouldn't be enough.
Then suddenly—
A calm ancient voice echoed inside her mind.
"Aqualith?"
Mizuki whispered softly.
The giant turtle's voice remained calm and heavy.
"I can heal him."
A small pause followed.
"But for that…"
"…I must appear in the physical world."
Mizuki's expression changed instantly.
Because summoning a beast into the real world wasn't a simple thing.
It consumed enormous energy.
And if something went wrong—
the consequences could be dangerous.
Meanwhile, KS's breathing continued getting weaker.
Mizuki closed her eyes tightly.
"Aqualith…"
"…I'm ready."
The giant turtle's calm voice echoed inside her mind.
"Think carefully."
"If you fail to summon me into the physical world…"
"…your soul will remain trapped between dimensions forever."
Mizuki hesitated for a moment.
Fear appeared in her eyes.
Then she looked at KS's injured body lying on the ground.
His breathing was weak.
Unstable.
Her expression slowly hardened.
"…Fine."
"I'll do it."
Meanwhile...
Inside Dimensional Space -
KS stood alone.
Darkness stretched endlessly around him.
"Dragoon!"
His voice echoed repeatedly.
"Dragoon!"
A few moments later—
the dragon finally appeared.
But something felt wrong.
For the first time—
Dragoon looked… sad.
KS frowned.
"What happened?"
Dragoon stayed silent for a moment before speaking.
"…KS."
"I have bad news for you."
KS's expression became serious.
"What is it?"
Dragoon took a deep breath.
"Your life force has been damaged."
A pause.
"In simple words…"
"…you're going to die."
Silence.
KS froze completely.
"…What?"
Dragoon lowered his head slightly.
"A human body was never meant to contain power on this level."
"Every time you use the power of the five elements…"
"…your lifespan decreases."
KS looked away quietly.
Trying to process the words.
Then suddenly—
he asked:
"…Does that mean the others will die too?"
Dragoon shook his head.
"No."
"They each possess only one elemental power."
"But you…"
"…carry all five."
Silence filled the dimension again.
KS's face showed almost no emotion now.
Only emptiness.
"…Is there a solution?"
he asked quietly.
Dragoon hesitated.
"…There are two."
"First…"
"You abandon the power completely and pass it to someone else."
"Second…"
"…someone sacrifices their own life force for yours."
For a moment—
silence.
Then suddenly—
KS laughed.
Not happily.
Not angrily.
Just painfully.
"So basically…"
"There's no solution."
His laughter slowly faded.
"No one's going to die for me."
"And I'm not abandoning this responsibility either."
He lowered his head slightly.
"My life was suffering anyway."
"…Looks like it just has an ending now."
Even Dragoon couldn't answer that.
After a long silence—
KS finally spoke again.
"…How long do I have?"
Dragoon's voice became quiet.
"…At most…"
"Two years."
KS looked away.
The number hit him harder than he expected.
Two years.
That was all.
Then suddenly—
a small smile appeared on his face.
"Dragoon."
"Can you promise me something?"
The dragon looked at him carefully.
"What is it… Master?"
KS shook his head immediately.
"First…"
"Stop calling me Master."
"I'm not the owner of your life."
Dragoon's eyes widened slightly.
"And second…"
KS's smile weakened.
"…Don't tell anyone I'm dying."
"KS—"
"Yes or no?"
Dragoon hesitated.
Pain and guilt filled his expression.
But eventually—
he lowered his head.
"…Yes."
A small pause followed.
"…Anything for you."