The first thing that came into her gaze was the flickering light above the ceiling.
Enjoy exclusive content from FreeNovelFire
The world seemed a bit foggy, the ceiling appearing to move from one side to another, but as a few seconds passed, everything finally settled, and Morgaine fully opened her eyes.
Slowly, the return of her body’s senses came to her.
Her white hand rose to her face, opening and closing.
Her eyes stared at it soullessly before she suddenly shut them tight.
A rush of memories flew into her brain—a feeling like soaring down from an impossibly high mountain. Then, just as quickly, it all settled, leaving Morgaine in slight disarray.
"I... I survived," she mused under her breath.
But then, confusion set in.
In the last moments of her memory, she had seen the headless body of the Dracoblin King. Yet, that realization brought forth another pressing question.
’Who saved me?’
She hadn’t brought anyone along with her on the raid.
She never did, as she preferred to work alone.
So then... who?
Her thoughts came to a screeching halt when her nose perked up, catching a familiar scent lingering in the air.
Slowly, she turned her head to the side, and standing there was a figure that made her heart nearly stop beating.
His eyes were closed, his back rested against the wall, his face tilted downward, causing the familiar snowy white hair to drop forward, covering the upper part of his face.
His height seemed to have increased a bit, but apart from that, nothing about him appeared different—nothing different from the familiar aura she had sensed before losing consciousness in the gates, and certainly no different from the images in her memories.
"Ry... Ryuk?" Morgaine whispered, her voice barely escaping her lips.
Then, the eyes slowly opened. His head rose slightly, a flicker of surprise clouding his face before he smiled.
"You’re awake... Morgaine."
His voice echoed through the walls of the hospital room.
Morgaine sat there, her eyes refusing to believe what she was seeing, even as he walked closer and closer, finally sitting beside her.
"It’s been a long time..." Ryuk said.
Morgaine stretched out her hand toward his face, but the soft, tentative touch Ryuk expected never came.
Instead—
BOOOOOM!
A heavy explosion-like impact resounded as a figure flew off the bed, rotated a couple of times in the air before finally slamming his back against the wall.
"Arrgh!"
A groan of pain left Ryuk’s lips as he rubbed his burning cheek.
"Hey! What was that for?!" he shouted, turning his gaze toward her.
But then he quieted down.
Morgaine sat there, fingers clenched tightly onto the mattress beneath her.
Her teeth ground together as she lowered her face to the ground, but the overflowing tears that rained down onto the sheets seemed to almost erase the stinging pain of the blow she had just dealt him.
Ryuk opened his mouth a couple of times trying to say somethingz to console her, or to stop the tears, but no matter how he tried, no words came out.
In the end, he could only silently lower his head, the only sounds in the room being her sniffles and the soft patter of tears falling onto the bed.
"I... I thought you died."
"I thought you would never return..."
Morgaine forced the words out through shaky lips.
She felt the anger within her slowly rising, yet, strangely, that same anger only seemed to fuel the endless flow of tears.
She didn’t know—was she angry at him for not returning after so long? For breaking his promise that he would come back soon?
Or was she happy? Happy that he had finally returned, fulfilling the promise he once made?
She wasn’t sure. She didn’t really know.
Only that her heart ached badly, yet, at the same time, it felt as though it had finally begun to heal.
Time passed, but neither of them kept track of it.
Eventually, the tears dried up, and the sniffles stopped.
Now, she felt her courage return.
Now, she could finally lift her head and look at him—something that only she seemed to muster, as he remained sitting on the ground, his head lowered.
"I’m sorry, Morgaine," Ryuk whispered.
He had truly told her he would be back soon, very soon.
But two years had passed.
Time difference or not, he had promised her a quick return. And he had failed her.
He had caused her pain.
And he knew it—not just from the tears in her eyes, not just from the sound of her cries, but from what he had heard from Arthur.
She had undertaken insane-level missions, constantly pushing herself to the very edge of life and death—all alone.
She had fought the Instructors, seeking any clue about his whereabouts, and had been told he would remain in a coma forever.
That pain, that helplessness, must have driven her to those actions.
And he was fully responsible for it.
He was never there during her most difficult times, even though he had promised the Half-Fallen One that he would try his best to look after her. In truth, he had almost lost her.
It was all his fault. There was no doubt about that.
And now, he felt terrible.
For making her go through so much.
All because of him.
"I’m truly sorry," he whispered again, this time even quieter.
His fingers clenched tightly into his palms, fresh red blood slowly seeping through the lines of his fingers.
But then, the squeezing stopped.
A warm touch pressed against his skin.
Slowly, Ryuk raised his head.
His blue eyes had turned glassy, his eyelashes damp with unshed tears. Yet, just before they could fall, a gentle finger brushed beneath them, wiping them away.
"Apology accepted," Morgaine said with a beaming smile and it was like a dam had burst as the tears spilled out more and more, seemingly uneding.
His hands grasped hers, feeling the warmth of a sensation he had almost forgotten.
"I... I almost lost you."