Skorr POV:

Three weeks. That’s how long it had been since I heard the news of that kid locking himself away due to the losses he suffered. And now, I could see why.

The kid standing before me was a mere shadow of his former self. He looked sick, sleep deprived and extremely frail. I clicked my tongue as I got up from my chair; it didn’t feel right to look down on him.

“...You look well, Skorr...”

“And you don’t. Why are you here, kid?”

I sat across from him and examined his body further. His arm was supported by a sling, and blotches of blood clung to his dirty clothes. What bothered me the most was that his arm hadn’t healed yet.

'Didn’t he recover from shattered ribs in merely a few days? What is going on here?'

“...The battle in District 3 will come to an end soon... District 1 hasn’t made a move here yet... Right?...”

I tapped my knee lightly while I leaned forward. The kid was still planning to go ahead with fighting District 1? It was common knowledge among those at the top now that he had barely beaten the rank 15th Royal Guard: Storm.

'His monster-like strength and recovery... Has he lost it?’

I looked him up and down before my gaze rested on his eyes. There was something deep inside of them that I couldn’t grasp; it was something more than resolution or determination. At the very least, there was one part of him that resembled his old self.

“They haven’t. Once matters with District 3 are sorted out, they’ll need a few months to recuperate from their stupid decision to war with big dogs like Enigma.”

“...Good news...”

He turned around and hobbled towards the exit. My eyebrows furrowed—it was a hard sight to watch even for me. I heard the doors close behind him, and I was left alone.

‘Should I contact Jasmine? Weren’t the two of them in a relationship?’

I pondered over how I could assist in the kid’s revival as I leaned back in the chair. Ultimately, I decided to leave it be. I had trusted in him this far, so I might as well see it through to the end.

“This isn’t your limit... Right, kid?”

***

Triste POV:

I made my way down to the ward where Denise was staying. Holder still couldn’t use his ability, so I was reminded of how slow my recovery time was, even for someone who had reached the Uso stage.

I let out a frustrated sigh and contemplated whether I should change my fighting style—it was too aggressive.

‘Ha... When I reach Shin, I’m sure I’ll be able to fix a lot of my weaknesses.’

My hand rested on the door handle as I opened it. The first thing I saw was Brunaulf slumped on a chair holding Denise's hand. His eyes were devoid of any light; he was like a zombie.

“Tch. Why are you still here?”

He looked down at the ground and gently placed Denise's hand back on the bed. I had hated his guts way before we got a new District Leader. His reputation was the absolute worse, and he was, without a doubt, the scum of the earth, so the fact that Denise fell for this guy, of all people, pissed me off greatly. However, seeing him like this... It was painful to watch.

“...Sorry.”

Brunaulf mumbled an apology while staggering to his feet. He hadn’t been eating properly, which was evident by how his skin cleaved to his bones, revealing his thin frame through the clothes he wore. From morning till night, he would just stay by her side, and occasionally he would whisper apologies to her as he stroked her hand gently.

I watched him walk past me slowly as I clenched my teeth. It bugged me even more than usual, because I knew there was something else that he needed to do.

“How long are you going to keep this up for?”

I grabbed his thin arm to stop him from walking off. I could feel my fingers pushing through the little muscle he had left, and I quickly loosened my grip.

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“...Sorry.”

He looked down and tried to walk off again. I stood in front of the door, poking my finger into his bony chest.

“Do you think this is what Denise wants? For you to waste away by her side like this?”

His eyebrows quaked, but he didn’t say anything. I couldn’t let this go on any further. For his sake and for her sake, I needed to stop this now. I clenched my fists and glared at him.

“...Do you think I don’t know that you’ve been sitting on a lead to your sister for the past three weeks? What the hell are you doing, Brunaulf?!”

My heart raced as I pushed him back lightly. His body crumpled to the floor in an instant while my heart ached faintly at his weakened state.

He looked up at me with wide eyes and opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. He turned his head, breaking eye contact with me and bit his lip.

“Brunaulf! Answer me!!”

I sat on top of him and gripped his shirt with both hands. I lifted him up, forcing the two of us to make eye contact. That’s when I saw something I had tried to ignore for a long time. His eyes; they were so...

Broken.

“...I can’t.”

My hands trembled as he spoke. I wanted to hit him, to make him feel the same pain that he made so many others go through, but I couldn’t deny it anymore—Brunaulf wasn’t the same person he used to be.

“...I don’t want to lose anything anymore...”

He placed his hand against mine, but I smacked it away.

“You have a chance to save your sister. Get your ass out of that door and go. Brunaulf, this could be it. You may never hear from her again. So, please... Get it together... Do you know how much it’d hurt Denise to see you like this?”

Warm liquid gushed out of my eyes.

“I hated you, but Denise saw something in you that no one else could. We all looked at your actions—your behaviour, but she saw something in your heart. She saw your pain. Denise only wished for one thing: your happiness. If she could be the reason for it, that would be a dream come true for her.”

I bit my quivering lip as I slowly released my grip on his clothes.

“Do you understand now? You acting like this is the complete opposite of what she would have wanted. Please... Wake up Brunaulf...”

I stroked his cheek lightly before getting off of him. I didn’t expect to get so emotional—this wasn’t like me at all. I guess everyone’s been feeling the stress lately.

Brunaulf hadn’t moved an inch since my outburst. He stared at the ceiling, and I watched him silently. I had gotten everything off my chest, so the rest was up to him.

“Triste... You’re an amazing woman...”

“...Don’t be stupid.”

I wasn’t sure how I felt hearing him compliment me. He got to his feet and gazed at me intensely as I suddenly felt more self-conscious. I wiped the sides of my eyes before matching his gaze again.

“...Watch over Denise for me. I’ll be back soon.”

His lips formed a solemn smile while he turned around.

“Thank you, Triste. If I don’t go now, I may lose her forever.”

I saw his thin hands ball into fists as he walked out of the room. I stared at the door for a while absentmindedly.

“Denise... I did the best I could.”

I sat by her side and gazed at her sleeping face. Her jaw had recovered completely, but she still didn’t wake up. I could never get used to seeing my best friend like this.

I held her hand and closed my eyes. I prayed that she’d wake up soon and that everything would go back to normal.

***

Lissandra POV:

I headed to the rooftop in a hurry. The District Leader had just left his room again, and this time, I was determined to speak with him. I opened the door while calming my beating heart down.

The Leader sat alone on the ledge overlooking District 4. Sparse clouds decorated the sky as they took on a darker hue caused by the sun breaking through the horizon. Rays of light burst forth, intertwining shades of red, orange and blue together while they dispersed themselves across the world above.

His hair shone brightly like the sun as the gentle breeze brushed past it. The Leader's clothes had changed, but the bloody patches were still prevalent across his body. I didn’t understand why he wasn’t fully healed yet.

I closed the distance between us and sat down a few inches away from him. His cheekbones poked out of his sunken skin, and his pale complexion looked noticeably worse than before. He seemed unfazed by my sudden appearance as his eyes didn’t even move to look at me—it hurt.

“Leader... You can’t go on like this.”

I placed my hand on his cheek lightly. His eyes swivelled to the side, and his lips parted.

“...”

He didn’t say anything; he just looked at me. His ocean blue eyes had a strength to them that made me feel slightly at ease, but... I couldn’t overlook the terrible state he was in. My eyebrows quivered as I bit my lip.

“I’m sorry.”

That’s all I could say. I held his cheek in my hand while we stared into each other’s eyes. My heart thumped, and I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. My body leaned forward on its own, narrowing the space between our two lips. My head tilted to the side as our lips were about to touch.

“!”

He abruptly turned his head away, forcing my lips to brush past his cheek instead. A sharp pain jutted through my chest, along with a feeling of nausea. I clenched my teeth before moving away slightly.

‘I guess... I didn’t have a chance after all.’

I don’t know what came over me to act that way, but now I had received an answer. I wiped the tears pooling at the sides of my eyes and got to my feet. It was better that I give him some more time; I shouldn’t burden him with these feelings either.

“!”

He grabbed my arm just as I was about to walk away. I turned my head back slowly while so many thoughts flashed through my mind in that one moment: Maybe he liked my company? Maybe I made him feel better? I... I didn’t know what to expect as his deep, ocean blue eyes met mine.

“...Wait for me.”

His grip loosened, and his hand dropped back to his side. I felt an intense heat radiate out over the bridge of my nose right into my cheeks as my pupils dilated. The Leader had already looked back ahead, choosing not to elaborate on what he meant exactly.

‘Does that mean... He likes me?’

I pondered for a while, trying to calm my beating heart, that only intensified the heat emanating from my cheeks. I was flustered but overjoyed, and then I realized something.

‘... He’s probably talking about the District 1 situation.’

I let out a small sigh as my breathing quickly stabilized. However, I still couldn’t stop the corners of my mouth from rising. It seemed like I’d need to be patient for a little longer.

I gazed at his back one last time and closed the door to the rooftop behind me.