“Ten years, O Paladin. That’s how much time your pitiful kingdom will have until I return once more.”

  Such were the Demon King’s words as he was disappearing into the void, leaving only the paladin’s holy blade pointing in the air. But Sombor the paladin cared not, instead he turned his eyes to the fallen Tirana.

  The mage knight lied prone on the ground, unresponsive. Sombor flipped her over, only to be greeted by her lifeless eyes and open gaping mouth. The paladin looked away from that haunting sight, closing his companion’s eyes and mouth with his hand. He took out a stick of Phoenix Salts and, despite being all but certain of the outcome, he waved it in a futile attempt to revive her.

  “Rana! Rana! Wake up!”

  Yet she didn’t. The paladin’s worst nightmare seemed to have come, and he struggled to accept it. He dug through Tirana’s belongings in the hopes of finding a clue, anything to fix her. And his eyes widened as soon as he found a small white vial, and what it contained…

  Raw Phoenix Salts.

  And it all made sense now. Her magic, already powerful, had been unnaturally so as of late. Her newfound endurance, how she was able to take all those hits that would have knocked her out over and over and over again… yet she was still standing, fighting. Regular Phoenix Salts gave just enough boost to revive, nothing more. But in its raw form, it gave unparalleled powers to its users at the cost of stronger side effects, and the risk of sudden death through cardiac arrest.

  Sombor figured something was off, but he didn’t question it. The Demon King was his priority. And he thought little of it until the mage knight collapsed in the fight, seemingly out of nowhere, no enemy attacks, none. She just… fell. A mixture of regret and desperation was now overtaking the paladin. From afar, he saw a group of men in white coats… medicine men and clerics. The paladin shouted at them with the panicked tone that not even the Demon King and his assorted gallery of horrors were able to elicit.

  Yet despite the best efforts of the medicine men, it was no good. They looked at Sombor with pity. One of them shook his head. “She’s gone, sir. I’m sorry.”

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  Sombor shouted in agony, and he began to pound on Tirana’s chest. “No! Live, damn you. Live!” The paladin’s thoughts wandered, It’s all my fault, if only I had been… God of the gods, please…

  And he heard a gasp, low and feminine.

  Sombor stopped. He put a finger on Tirana’s neck, and hope returned. A heartbeat. Putting his face closer to hers, his hope - just a flicker - became a flame. Tirana was breathing steadily. Tears began flowing through the paladin’s eyes as he looked up, his hands spread. “Thank you.”

  The medicine men were stunned. They knew full well that it wasn’t their actions that brought the mage knight back, and they were sure that she was lost.

  Tirana opened her eyes, her expression weak. “B-boss? What’s going on? Are we victorious?”

  Sombor held her tightly. “Yes, Rana. We are victorious. More than you know. Now let us leave this accursed place.”

  Tirana’s face was red; she was not used to being held tightly by her companion. Yet she didn’t question it; she just nodded.

  ***

  All of Balkania celebrated the defeat of the Demon King, and the Adventurers’ Guild Hall was no exception. But Sombor knew he needed a heart-to-heart with Tirana.

  The mage knight looked down, a guilty look on her face. She knew she had failed; she had told Sombor that she overcame her Phoenix salt addiction long ago. Now it was clear that was a complete lie.

  Sombor crossed his arms. “Well, Rana. Go on.”

  “I have no excuse,” Tirana said. “When the Demon King arrived, the monsters became more powerful… more dangerous…”

  “…and more numerous,” Sombor completed.

  Tirana nodded. “Yes. You know as well as I am—no, I stand corrected. You know better than I am. How many times had I been knocked out after the Blood Sun appeared on the sky? How many times did you come to my rescue? Again and again and again.”

  Sombor sighed. “And that’s why you procured the raw Phoenix Salts.”

  “It was the only way I can keep up with you,” Tirana said, tears in her eyes. “But now it’s clear that I’m simply not strong enough for you. And now that peace had returned to Balkania, you’ll leave me behind won’t you? Off to your next errantry.”

  The paladin took a deep breath before he took Tirana in his arms. The mage knight gasped in surprise, but she didn’t resist. “No, I won’t,” he said. “I’m staying, Rana.”

  Tirana’s eyes widened. “Really?”

  Sombor nodded. “In his death throes, the Demon King told me… ten years he will return.”

  “I…I see.”

  “More importantly….” Sombor put his face close to Tirana’s, then he kissed her. “I love you, Rana. Not because of your strength, but because of who you are. Tirana, will you marry me?”

  For Tirana, this was her breaking point; she melted into his arms. “Yes, of course I’ll marry you, Sir Sombor. As if there was ever any doubt.”