Tave clenched his jaw, grinding his teeth as he tightened his grip with his left hand. He just needed one touch. Just one contact with his left hand to apply the Soulfire.

  The more vital the spot, the more devastating the effect. And his target was clear: Theo’s right hand. The sword hand.

  The fme was small, unrefined. A reflection of Tave’s still-developing affinity. But it was enough. More than enough to turn the tide.

  “You’ll never y a hand on me, Tave.” Theo’s voice snapped sharp. And then he moved.

  Fast. Blindingly fast.

  In an instant, he was in front of Tave.

  Damn it!

  Tave barely had time to swing his bde. Block!

  The force of Theo’s strike sent a jolt through his arms, his exhausted core screaming with every movement.

  “Arghhh…!” He held on, barely. Pushing his body through the pain.

  Their bdes locked. Metal grinding against metal. Sparks flew. And in that fleeting moment. Tave struck.

  His left hand shot forward.

  Theo’s eyes widened. Caught mid-motion.

  He moved to retreat. Too te!

  Tave lunged forward, ignoring the burn in his body, the fire in his lungs.

  Theo reacted, trying to intercept. His sword sshing toward Tave’s arm. But Tave roared, shoving through it!

  Csh! A brutal strike of steel on steel.

  And then. Contact.

  Soulfire surged from Tave’s left hand, coiling and bursting onto Theo’s right hand.

  Theo leapt back instantly, but it was already too te.

  He clutched his wrist, breath sharp, jaw clenched as the bck fme wrapped tightly around his palm, spreading fast, hungry and unrelenting.

  In a quick motion, Theo transferred his sword to his left hand, but his right. Still burning. Refused to be calmed.

  The Soulfire clung to him like a curse, flickering violently every time he moved.

  Tave stood, chest heaving, body trembling. He was done holding back.

  But his body… his body was on the edge. Gravity pulled at him like chains, dragging him down, but he refused to colpse.

  He had done it. He had applied the Soulfire. And now, he had to finish it.

  "Fool."

  The voice echoed again.

  Kaelira.

  The spirit bound to his Relic.

  "You sacrificed your core for this. You are one misstep from colpse."

  Tave didn’t answer. He just gave a faint, bitter smile, eyes fixed on Theo.

  Theo now stood tense, clearly straining to contain the fire that curled up his right hand. He was trying desperately to prevent it from crawling further up his arm.

  And that was enough.

  Even that small fme was enough. If Theo dared to push with that arm. It would spread. It would consume.

  Tave smiled again, faint but defiant.

  This fight wasn’t over yet. And he wasn’t done fighting. Not until the very end.

  Tave took a short breath, then forced his exhausted body forward. Charging in despite the pain screaming through every muscle.

  One step. Two. And he was already striking.

  Theo met him, raising his sword with his left hand. His movement was still fast, but no longer banced.

  Csh! Tave came down from above. Theo blocked, barely.

  "Is that all you’ve got now?" Theo taunted. "Come on, Tave. You nd one trick and suddenly think you're strong enough to win?"

  Tave pushed harder, fmes licking around his bde. “I only need one trick,” he growled, “if it’s the one that makes you bleed.”

  He struck again, and again. Theo backed off, sword fshing defensively.

  “You’re weak,” Theo hissed, “you’re always going to be weak.”

  "And yet you're the one holding back now!" Tave snapped back.

  He swung wide. Theo blocked with his sword. Tave twisted his body mid-motion and delivered a sharp kick to Theo’s right side.

  Theo caught the kick with his burning right hand.

  “Tch—!”

  But even just that brief contact made him wince as the Soulfire surged, creeping further up his wrist.

  Tave pressed the advantage.

  He sshed. One, two, three times. Theo struggled, each blow heavier, sharper.

  Now he was the one defending, the one gritting his teeth with each csh.

  Tave’s strikes nded. Not deep, but clean. And it was clear. Theo was being overpowered.

  “Tave… I’m sorry!”

  Tave’s body froze for a moment. His bde still raised mid-stance. That voice.

  Lily.

  He instinctively took a step back, keeping his distance. Both he and Theo were breathing heavily, clearly worn down from the relentless exchange. Neither lunged forward, both stalling, catching their breath.

  But that voice had changed everything.

  “Lily?” Tave’s eyes scanned the chamber.

  Where was she?

  He was sure. He heard her. And not for the first time. He had heard Lily’s voice earlier, just before Theo appeared. And now… again.

  But she was nowhere in sight.

  He’d even called out to Fang repeatedly during the fight, but the wolf hadn’t responded. Hadn’t shown up at all. That wasn’t like him. Fang would never abandon Tave, not mid-battle.

  Still, Tave had the upper hand now. The battle had begun to shift in his favor.

  Theo was slower, wounded, weakened by the Soulfire. Tave could feel it. He could win this.

  But that voice. Lily’s voice. It wouldn’t stop echoing in his mind.

  What was going on?

  Tave surged forward again, his sword fshing as he unleashed another ssh.

  Theo blocked, barely. His movements now noticeably slower, his stance weakened. The Soulfire was clearly taking its toll.

  They were both exhausted. Each csh forced them apart. Each step forward came with bored breaths.

  Every strike felt like it demanded more than their bodies had left.

  “I’m not looking for excuses!” Tave growled, voice raw, filled with fire.

  “Shut up!” Theo snapped back. “This isn’t over!”

  “No!” Tave rushed in again.

  Csh!

  Their bdes met once more, the ring of metal echoing through the chamber.

  A flurry of sshes followed. Fast, desperate.

  Theo defended, his left hand doing all the work. He was strained, but his form. Still powerful, still sharp.

  But with every swing Tave made, something deeper ached inside him.

  Not just his arms.

  Not just his body.

  But, his heart.

  What was this?

  He kept attacking, kept pressing. He couldn’t stop now.

  “I don’t bme you for hating me!” Tave shouted through gritted teeth. “But I won’t let you walk free across Yunatea!”

  “You think you can kill me that easily, Tave?!” Theo barked back.

  They cshed again. Then again.

  Both of them now fighting on fumes, relying on pure instinct and the st fragments of strength they had left.

  Two swords. Two broken bodies. Neither willing to fall.

  And then… after countless exchanges, blow after blow, a final csh shook the cavern.

  One sword flew free. It spun through the air, metal gleaming in the flickering firelight. Until it struck the ground with a heavy thud, burying itself bde-first into the stone at a distance.

  Theo was on his knees. And Tave. Panting, broken, standing.

  His sword trembled in his grip, his hands barely able to hold it steady. His breaths came sharp and ragged, his entire body on the verge of colpse. If he swung now…

  It would be his final strike.

  His arm shook violently as he pointed the bde at the man before him.

  Theo lifted his head. His face bloodied. Breathing hard.

  Still proud. Still defiant. But beaten.

  “Kill me,” he said.

  Tave’s fingers tightened around the hilt. But they trembled.

  He didn’t move.

  “KILL ME!”

  Theo’s voice cracked, louder this time. Demanding. Almost pleading.

  Tave stood frozen, bde ready. But unable to strike. Something inside him… Something deep… held him back.

  He could’ve ended it. Right there. But he didn’t.

  Why?

  His grip faltered. His breath wavered.

  And then.. his vision blurred.

  Suddenly… His body chilled!

  The sword slipped from his hand.

  Cng.

  Metal kissed stone.

  And when he looked again. It wasn’t Theo kneeling before him.

  The man with blonde hair was gone.

  Kneeling in front of him now. Eyes red, tears streaming down their cheeks… was Lily.

  “Tave… I’m sorry…” Her voice broke.

  It was Lily.

  It was Lily!