It happened in an instant.

  “Serena, watch out!”

  Before she could do anything, that person was already standing in front of her.

  How many times…

  How many times, she wondered. How many times had she looked at that back, always protecting her from everything and everyone.

  When was it? When had she begun to trust—no, to expect—that he would always be there, standing before her, shielding her from danger?

  At some point, she had started to believe that as long as he was there, everything would somehow turn out fine.

  But this time…

  “Foolish human.”

  A voice filled with disdain and mockery.

  A spray of blood covered her face.

  Thump.

  A body fell lifelessly to the ground.

  “Ahhhhhhh!”

  The Saint’s scream of despair echoed through the hall.

  “Hero!”

  “Your Excellency!”

  “Leon!”

  Her companions rushed toward her in panic.

  What happened?

  She touched her own cheek. She could feel fresh blood soaking her hand, slipping through her fingers.

  Her gaze remained fixed on the fallen body before her, her mind refusing to process what had just happened.

  Leon, he…

  He had protected her—and now, now…

  “Saint, quickly! Your Divine Power, use your Divine Power!”

  “I can’t, he—he’s already… ah, ah, ahhhhh!”

  “Do something!”

  “Leon, he can’t—he can’t be—”

  “Oh, how touching. But you’re not expecting me to give you time to mourn this piece of trash, are you?”

  “Aghhhh!”

  “Sage, put up a barrier!”

  “Saint, give me cover with your Divine Power—!”

  “Ahh…!”

  He’s dead. He’s dead…

  She collapsed to her knees. Explosions and screams echoed throughout the hall, but in that moment they felt distant, muffled. The only thing that held her attention was the body lying before her.

  Leon…

  She reached out with a trembling hand and touched his face. Her fingers gently traced his hair, brushed his cheek.

  There was no warmth there. None at all.

  Why?

  Then why… was he smiling?

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Why?

  Why had he protected her? Why had he sacrificed his life for her?

  “Uaaaaaaaaaa!”

  She clutched his body, pressing her face against his chest. She could feel his blood soaking her cheek, but she didn’t care.

  He was the first to see through her—through the cold mask she wore. He saw her fears, her insecurities. He was the only one who truly understood her. And now…

  He’s dead.

  What a joke. She hadn’t even had the chance to tell him how she felt.

  Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

  Always postponing. Always making excuses. After the war ends. After the Demon King is defeated…

  He was dead.

  And he would never hear what she wanted to say.

  “Uaaaaaaaa!”

  Tears streamed endlessly from her eyes. It was the first time she had ever cried like this. Her master always told her that a mage must never lose control of their emotions—what would he say if he saw her in such a pathetic state?

  “What do I do…?”

  Her voice sounded fragile, broken.

  “Nothing. You can do nothing.”

  The answer came, filled with disdain and mockery.

  “You…!”

  She lifted her head and glared at the figure before her with hatred.

  The Demon King. The one who plunged the continent into chaos. Who took the lives of thousands. Who destroyed countless nations. Who killed the man she loved.

  “Hahahahahahaha!”

  The Demon King’s laughter—arrogant, overbearing—filled the entire hall, crawling into her ears like repulsive insects.

  “That hatred, that sorrow—very good, very good!”

  The Demon King hugged himself as he trembled uncontrollably.

  “But what will you do with all of that? Nothing! You are incapable of doing anything!”

  “I’ll kill you!”

  Her voice had never been so loud. All her rage and despair poured into a hoarse, desperate scream.

  “I’ll kill you! I’ll end you! I’ll destroy your soul and send you to the deepest depths of the Abyss!”

  “Just you? You think you can do it alone?” the Demon King asked mockingly.

  “No, not alone, we—”

  Her words faded as she spoke them.

  What…?

  That was when she realized it. At last, she realized.

  My companions…

  Her gaze swept across the hall. The place had been reduced to rubble. Her companions were nothing more than corpses decorating the darkened ruin.

  “How…?”

  How did this happen? she wanted to ask, but the words caught in her throat.

  “Hahaha! By the gods, this is the greatest joke I’ve ever seen.”

  Her speechlessness only amused the Demon King further. Laughing heartily, he looked at her with cruel pity.

  “Your companions are all dead. They died pathetically, like the inferior creatures they are.”

  As if to mock her further, the Demon King stepped on the Saint’s corpse.

  “But at least they did something.”

  His gaze returned to her.

  “Unlike you, who just stood there uselessly while all your companions died.”

  A demonic smile twisted his face. He pointed toward the Sword Empress, whose body had been cut in half, the upper portion pinned grotesquely to the hall’s wall.

  “That one was calling your name nonstop. ‘Serena, come back to your senses. Serena, you have to pull yourself together. Serena, open your eyes.’ Ugh, so irritating… that’s why I killed her first.”

  “I… I disappointed everyone…”

  Leon had sacrificed himself to protect her, and all the others had died fighting the Demon King while she stood there like an idiot.

  “Yes. You are a disappointment. A disgrace.”

  The Demon King’s words were poison—poison she couldn’t reject, couldn’t deny, had no right to refuse.

  “What do I do…?”

  Everyone was dead. All because of her. What could she possibly do now?

  “But this doesn’t have to be the end.”

  “Hm?”

  She looked at the Demon King.

  What is he…

  …trying to say? A gentle smile appeared on his demonic face as he extended his hand toward her.

  “Make a contract with me. If you do, I will bring your beloved hero back.”

  “Bring him back…”

  She repeated the words. Ah, how wonderful it would be if Leon were brought back—if she could speak to him once more, hold his hand, confess the feelings she had kept buried for so long.

  “Yes. You only need to take my hand.”

  “Just… take it…”

  She raised her hand.

  “Yes. Do that, and all your pain, fear, and emptiness will disappear.”

  His voice was like the devil’s whisper. Yes—a filthy, deceitful demon’s whisper.

  She slapped his hand away.

  “Then you refuse my offer?”

  He sneered.

  “Not entirely.”

  She laughed as bloody tears streamed from her eyes, nose, and mouth.

  “What are you—?”

  Trusting his instincts, the Demon King leapt backward.

  “You spoke of bringing him back. That gave me an idea.”

  “You—!”

  The Demon King glared at her with hatred.

  “You can’t be thinking—”

  “That’s right.”

  She touched the hero’s body.

  A branch of magic forbidden even among dark sorcerers.

  Leon.

  If this worked, she would no longer be able to stand by his side—but that was the price she had to pay for her sins.

  Without having to protect me… this time, you will surely—

  She poured all the mana she had into the spell. When it wasn’t enough, she went further—far beyond her limits—unleashing the most powerful spell this world had ever seen.

  A spell that rewound time itself.

  “Stop! Stop this!”

  As her very being began to fade, a blinding light erupted from her body.

  “Foolish human! You think this will change anything?! I have already defeated you filthy insects once—and I will do it again!”

  Leon… thank you.

  Serena, you are the greatest mage in the world. It is my greatest pride to fight alongside you and the others.

  Even if those words weren’t meant only for me…

  They still saved her.

  “Damn you!”

  The Demon King’s resentful scream was the last thing she heard.