The air had grown heavy.
The smell of blood, burned mana, and hot soil spread through the surroundings, but for Lana... everything was fading. The sounds had moved far away, the images were blurry, and the only thing left was the weak beating of her heart, slowing down with every passing moment.
She felt like she couldn’t breathe, not that she didn’t want to, but as if she physically couldn’t. No matter how hard she tried, it was useless.
With each second, the feeling of suffocation intensified. Fear took over her entire being. It felt like she was approaching the edge of her life.
The sword was still embedded in her body.
She could feel the warmth of her blood on her skin, but there was no pain anymore... or maybe it was so intense that it could no longer be distinguished.
Her eyes remained half open. She saw the sky... but not this sky.
Years ago.
Sunlight passed through the branches of trees and fell onto the ground. A gentle breeze was blowing, and the sound of laughter filled the air.
Lana... younger, with shorter hair, stood in the courtyard with a carefree smile.
In front of her stood a woman with calm eyes and a warm gaze.
Her mother.
"Still didn’t practice again, did you?" the woman said with a smile.
"I did! I just... didn’t feel like it!" Lana frowned, raising her wooden sword.
The woman laughed. A laugh that still lived in Lana’s mind. She bent down and placed her hand on Lana’s head.
"Strength matters, but the reason behind it matters more."
"Reason?"
"Yes." The woman looked into the distance.
"One day, you’ll understand why you fight... and that day, nothing will be able to stop you."
Lana said nothing. She just looked at her.
A few days later.
Stronger winds were blowing. The sky was cloudy. She stood at the airport gate, staring at her mother, who was about to leave for a mission abroad.
At the time, she still didn’t know what that mission was or why her mother had to go to another country. It didn’t seem logical to her.
Lana stood by the gate, her hands clenched into fists, her lips pressed tightly together.
"You’ll come back, right?"
"Of course." Her mother bent down and hugged her.
"It’ll only take a few days."
It was supposed to be just an exploratory mission. Nothing could go wrong, right?
Lana nodded, but something inside her... wasn’t at ease. The woman pulled away and stepped back a few paces.
Their eyes met for a few moments. Then she turned and left.
And never returned.
Lana’s eyes trembled for a moment. Her breath came up with difficulty.
"...No..." A thought formed in her mind, weak... but clear.
"Am I going to die... without avenging her?"
Her fingers twitched slightly.
Up until now, she had thought her mother’s death was the work of terrorists, believing it had all been random, with no real purpose behind it.
But now she knew the truth. Now she understood why her father hated the Goblin Guild so much... now she understood why her father suddenly attacked the guild leader.
So all this time, it had been because of her mother... to take revenge for her.
Her eyes opened slightly wider.
No.
Not yet.
She couldn’t die now. It wasn’t time to die. Not until she had killed those bastards with her own hands.
But... the sword had pierced her once and brought her to the edge of death. She was barely breathing, and if left like this, she wouldn’t last long.
However, Jason had no intention of letting her go so easily. He wanted to cut off her head as well.
He pulled the sword out and once again aimed the blade toward her head.
But suddenly...
He stopped.
A hand suddenly grabbed the blade. Blood flowed down from between the fingers, but it didn’t move back even a millimeter.
For a brief moment, the flow of mana... stopped. Jason’s eyes widened as he pushed harder.
But the sword didn’t budge. Slowly, he raised his head and saw Daniel standing there, holding the blade.
Daniel’s eyes were cold, but deep within them... something darker was flowing. It was clear he was angry.
"You’ve gone too far." His voice was calm, but it made the atmosphere heavier.
Jason instinctively took a step back.
"...You?"
Daniel looked away from him for a brief moment, toward Lana. Fortunately, she was still alive, and that was enough.
He looked back at Jason.
"Take Lana away."
At that moment, the shadows moved.
The Fallen Ones, who had been trapped in the array moments earlier, were now free. It wasn’t clear when... or how, but it no longer mattered.
Several of them quickly stepped forward, carefully lifted Lana’s body, and without a single pause... retreated.
Jason watched them, but didn’t move. His eyes remained fixed on Daniel.
"You were late." He tried to keep his voice steady.
"She was already—"
"If she had died..." Daniel cut him off, his eyes darkening slightly.
"You wouldn’t be alive right now." A massive pressure suddenly erupted from his body.
Something in the air changed. Even the awakened ones nearby, even the goblin forces that had just appeared... instinctively stepped back.
Their instincts screamed: danger. Jason felt it.
"You think you’re any different?"
Daniel gave no response and drew his sword.
The Heaven’s Honor.
Its edge glowed faintly in the dim light, and at that moment, the sword aura activated. The pressure suddenly multiplied several times.
The ground beneath Daniel’s feet cracked as he stepped forward, closing the distance. Jason’s eyes flickered for a moment.
Something inside him said this was a mistake, but it was already too late
He felt a strong sense of danger, as if his intuition was telling him to run.
But if he ran, the entire reputation of the Goblin Guild would be questioned. He could never do such a thing.
Daniel slightly raised his sword.
"You’ll pay the price for injuring that girl and me."
And then he launched the first attack.