Ayah was glad Harith was still a member of her party. With a simple command, the system traced the shortest path towards the duo. And not long after, she got a glimpse of Loaye hurrying through the forest. Ayah was surprised that he had covered so much distance in such a short time. He had already crossed half the remaining distance without the use of the system’s shortcuts. Ayah flinged herself forwards, closing the gap that separated her from the sprinting author. She tried to smooth her landing, but the exhaustion won out and she stumbled, rolling into a crouch.

Loaye startled. He jerked back, jostling Harith in the process. “You− you’re alive!” he stuttered, his eyes widening with shock and disbelief.

Thank you for believing in me.

Ayah snorted, and winced as her ribs jostled in her chest. She doubled over, covering her chest, coughing and gasping, vision going blurry. Why was she still feeling pain even after her body had regenerated? Was the speed it had healed with, too fast and too sudden? Was she going through shock?

“You look like you went through a meat grinder.”

Despite the pain pulling at her chest, Ayah found herself laughing. “You have no idea.”

“Did you win? Or…” he asked, disbelief coating his words.

“Of course not.” She struggled to her feet, letting out a chuckle.

Loaye glanced away, in the direction she came from. “Is he still following you?”

Ayah took a couple breaths before answering, “I don’t know. Maybe? Didn’t stay long enough to find out.” She shrugged.

“Then we need to hurry.”

Ayah nodded, and held out her arms to Loaye. Loaye shook his head and shifted the still unconscious general over his shoulders.

“No. it's fine. You look like you’re going to keel over anytime soon. Besides, you might need your hands in case a monster appeared. I’ll carry him.”

Ayah snorted. If a monster appeared now, they were as good as dead.

She glanced at the still unconscious man and let out a chuckle. How was he still not awake? Ah, right. He hadn’t slept since they had first stepped foot into the forest, and even the day before. She wondered how he had still managed to function so far.

“Let’s go then,” she said, already starting to walk in another direction.

“The path to the guardian is that way.” Loaye motioned to the path he was following.

Ayah glanced at the path highlighted by the system. “I know a shortcut.”

Loaye sighed. “Of course you do.”

Unlike the rest of the forest, the clearing was devoid of trees, with huge formations of rocks scattered around. If there was any temple here, the destruction was so massive no sign remained.

Ayah looked around, searching for the lotus and the water source where they would get the blessed valley drop from.

There was none. There was no sign of flowers, and no sign of any body of water.

Ayah took a deep breath to calm her nerves. There was no need to get all agitated about it. They must be here somewhere.

Then, as if summoned by their presence, three stone structures lit up as if plugged into a power source. They stood up to their full height, close to a three story house, with a humanoid shape and an illuminated globe at the center of their chest.

“Golems,” Loaye yelped. “Didn’t think they would still be operational to this day.”

The golems roared and struck the ground with their fists.

“What are they?” Ayah asked.

“They were the guardians of the temple. They served as its first line of defense and protected it from intruders.”

“Well, they sure don’t look kindly on us.” Ayah noted as the once guardians marched towards them, their stony faces twisted into a snarl.

The earth shook with each step they took, and Ayah had a second to wonder what a punch from them would do to her already battered body. They would certainly pulverize her bones and turn her into a paste. Would her regeneration skill be enough to restore the damage?

“They’re still trying to protect the temple even after its fall to ruin.” Loaye seemed in awe of them. He watched them with glinting eyes.

“Got any idea how to deal with them?”

He shot her an incredulous look, as if the mere suggestion of defeating them was ludicrous. “They were the temple guardians for a reason. Their core might be exposed, but I doubt it would be that easy to destroy.” He looked back at their approaching figures. They were slow, something Ayah was grateful for. “Their cores are powered by earth itself. To defeat them, one has to defeat the earth they walk upon.”

Ayah rolled her eyes at his admiring gaze. “You do know they’re the enemy, don’t you?”

He huffed. “One needs to recognize beauty when one sees it.”

“Alright fanboy, get back to a safer place before your idols pulverize your skull.”

He teleported away before she was done speaking, hiding behind a tree trunk. Well, at least he took Harith with him, Ayah mused.

The earth broke under the golem’s fist. Ayah flung herself back and watched with rapt fascination as the broken fragments floated up in the air and attached themselves to the golem’s body, adding to its stone armor. And as if things needed to get worse, the golem lifted its fists and stones rained towards Ayah. She twisted her body away from the oncoming flood of rocks, cursing her bad luck.

Couldn’t she get a break for once?

The golem roared at her, opening its fist and hovering it over the ground. The earth cracked and more shards shot upward, hovering around the monster’s arm, a faint bluish light emanating from its core, holding them together. Loaye was right. They were truly awe-striking. If only she wasn’t on the receiving end of their fists.

She dodged another hit, landing a few feet away from the second golem. A stray shard hit her in the leg, and Ayah faltered, her feet nearly collapsing under her. She groaned, surveying the giant bruise that had started coloring her skin. She had locked her regeneration skill and completely removed the passive aspect from it. It wouldn’t do for the system to use her mana to heal a stubbed toe, only for her to run out of the elixir of life when she most needed it. But that also meant she would have to suffer through all the non-threatening injuries. Good thing she was getting used to pain though. Still, she mourned the absence of her armor. The thing was useful. Now that Ayah was unprotected, she could feel the real force behind every hit she was dealt.

In no time, the second golem was upon her. Ayah tried to budge but her legs refused to obey, too exhausted to function on adrenaline alone. If only she had leveled up and restored her stats, she lamented. She braced herself against the oncoming hit, her eyes squeezed tight, but the pain never came. She peeled one eye open to one of the strangest sights in her life.

A gigantic hand was emerging from her shadow, closing against the golem’s fist, stopping its advance.

“Get out of the way!” a voice− Ayah had thought wouldn’t hear anytime soon− yelled.

Harith was standing a distance away from her, leaning heavily on a tree, a furious expression on his face. His hand was extended in front of him, clenching over thin air. Ayah could see the slight tremors that shook his tight fist. His eyes turned more furious as they closed in on her.

“I said,” he gritted through his teeth. “Get out of the way!” He twisted his hand away and the shadow hand moved with him, jerking the golem away from her and sending it crashing against a pile of rocks.

Harith hunched over, panting, his hand sliding further over the trunk. Ayah dashed towards him, an admonishing retort on the tip of her tongue. They were so close to getting the cure now, why was he ruining things and using his mana? But the stern and furious look he shot at her, shut her up, and she slowed as she approached him. She offered him a hand, but he waved it away, his face twisting further.

“How dare you−” he hissed. “How dare you stop me from doing my duty to both my nephew and my kingdom. You’re no different than them.” His voice carried another emotion, buried under his anger.

“I was trying to help you,” Ayah argued.

“I don’t want−” he cut himself off, seething. A terse hiss of air escaping between his clenched teeth. “We’ll talk about this later. I can’t even look at you now,” he hissed, looking at the golem.

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Ayah huffed. She understood why he was angry, she really did, she even expected it. She knew this was going to happen. Even as she hit him over the head, she knew he wasn’t going to forgive her. But the sight of the intense anger in his rigid frame and the glare in his face directed towards her, did nothing but fuel her own anger.

A new feeling took root inside her chest. Another feeling beside the anger that was brimming just under the surface. She couldn’t name it. She didn’t want to acknowledge it, to be honest.

She clutched the hilt of her broken sword, the worn and chipped steel digging into her palm, distracting her. Then she forced a smile on her lips, a small pitiful thing that slipped as soon as it had appeared, and nodded. “Let’s finish this then.”

She turned and watched the golem get back to its feet, somehow angrier than it was before.

“Don’t overuse your mana. We’re getting closer to the cure. It wouldn’t do for you to keel over now,” she said, and without waiting for a response, she launched towards the nearest monster.

As she flipped over a golem, she noticed something attached to its joints. Small golden things with thin threads extending to the monster’s core.

Ayah’s eyes widened. It was the golden lotus.

She had found it!

She twisted around in the air, avoiding the monster’s hulking hand as it tried to swat her down. She needed to find a way to get it without damaging it. Which was harder said than done.

She flung herself away as its head rotated around, and its beady eyes stared at her. That was another creepy thing the monster could do. Its head had a 360 degree reach. No matter where she was, Ayah couldn’t escape its line of sight. And no matter how many times they hacked at its stony body, the rocks would just reassemble themselves anew. The whole rocky field was a giant ressource for its body.

It was an endless battle.

She launched herself towards the golem, angling for its shoulder, or more precisely, for the golden lotus sprouting from its shoulder joint. She twisted her sword for the cut, noting her urgent need to get a new one or repair it before getting acquainted with more monsters. As the blade cut into the hard rock, she felt a stinging pain along her stomach and chest. She held in a breath and powered through her cut, slicing under the flower. She cradled her prize to her chest and the golem’s fist collided with her back, sending her flying before crashing to the ground, her creaking bones screaming from the force of the impact.

It was suddenly quiet. Too quiet. Deafening silence blanketed her, before sound rushed in like a broken dam.

She was on her back now. She opened her eyes− eyes she wasn’t aware she had closed− and the world spun and twisted before her hazy gaze. She blinked, her brows furrowing when Harith’s frantic face hovered above her own, his eyes narrowed in concern. She must have blacked out for a moment. She was half leaning on him, one of his hands encircling her shoulders in half a hug. She tried to speak, but the breath stuttered in her chest, as though submerged in water.

What happened?

Then she remembered.

The lotus! Where was the golden lotus?

She had finally got it. She couldn’t lose it now! Not after everything! She didn’t think she could pull another stunt like that.

She sat up, remembering the weight she was cradling in her hands. Harith’s hand stopped her sudden movement, and pushed her back down, gently. She didn’t resist. She was tired, too tired. She let herself be guided without a fuss.

“The flower,” she choked out, each breath getting caught in her chest. She grimaced at the metallic taste filling her mouth, and turned her head to the side to spit in the dirt.

Was it damaged? Would she have to get another one? But her fears were soon assuaged when Harith held up her precious prize. It looked fine, its roots still attached to the chunk of rock she had sliced off. A beautiful golden lotus that seemed to emulate a soft glow as it shifted slightly in Harith’s hand.

Or was his hand trembling?

She gently, ever so gently, touched it. And breathed a sigh of relief when the system announced its collection.

She did it!

She had finally gotten the golden lotus!

She laughed, and it felt like jagged glass along her throat that scattered painfully into her chest. She coughed, a warm liquid trickling down her lips. She absentmindedly whipped at it with the back of her arm and looked at Harith, taking hold of his shoulder and shaking him to get his attention. Her mind distantly registered the blood on her fingers that was now seeping into his shirt.

“I got it!” she said, the smile splitting her face in half.

He was slow to smile, a somber little thing that felt like it was killing him. He nodded. “You did,” he whispered. Then glanced back down at her torso.

It was then Ayah felt the pressure weighting on her stomach. She glanced down and blinked at the wide gash that ran along her abdomen, too deep and too big for his hand to staunch its bleeding.

“You did,” he repeated, his voice barely above a whisper. “And I wish you didn’t.” His face twisted as a fresh wave of blood seeped from the wound as she shifted. “Don’t move,” he instructed, putting more pressure on the wound.

Ayah smiled. She put her hand over and pulled at it. “It’s okay. I can regenerate.”

He didn’t respond, his furrowed eyes too focused on her wound, and his hand resisting the weak pull of her hands against his. He looked up at Loaye, anger pulling at his lips. “What are you still doing here? I told you to go and get help!”

Loaye shook his head. “I’m sorry. I don’t think anyone would be able to help her.” He sat on the ground, hunched over himself, a sniffle sounding now and then.

“You−” Harith hissed, his lips twisting further.

“She has lost too much blood.” Loaye cut him off, his pale face grimacing as he added, “You saw it, didn’t you? The wounds are too severe for a healer. She would need a miracle to survive. If she had…” he trailed off.

Why was everyone quick to jump to conclusions? They looked seconds away from holding her funeral.

With another glance at her chest, she noticed something else. Harith’s hand was doing its best to stop the bleeding in her stomach, but it wasn’t the only wound she was inflicted with. There was a gaping, bleeding hole, at the right side of her chest.

Ah, that explained her inability to take a full breath without feeling like she was inhaling water.

She glanced at the blinking screen and sighed, agreeing to its incessant demand to activate the regeneration skill. That was a close one. What if she had never regained enough awareness to activate it?

“I’m okay,” she said. No one acknowledged her words. She huffed. Was no one going to listen to her? She pulled at Harith’s hands to no avail. “I said I’ll be fine.”

When he refused to look at her, she grasped his face with her bloodied hands and forcibly turned it to face her. He blinked, a wave of desperation washing over him as their eyes met. He let out a rueful smile, small and brittle, frayed at the edges.

“It’s going to be fine,” he said softly, in contrast to his angry scolding earlier.

Ayah shook her head. “It is fine,” she insisted. “Look.” She turned his head towards the knitting skin at her stomach. “It’s already healing.” She could feel her wounds healing, and the skin knitting back together.

He blinked at the healing wounds, awe and wonder loosening his tense features. He looked up at her, then back again. “How?” he whispered.

She shrugged. What will she tell him? Thanks to the system? That would violate the terms of their contract.

He exhaled loudly. “I’m glad,” he whispered, nodding. It was only a moment before he laughed, very vivid, and very strong. It sounded warm, robust and healthy like it came from deep in his gut. “I’m glad,” he repeated, louder this time.

The earth shook around them, and Loaye let out a loud shriek unbecoming of status as a magistrate.

“I would like to remind you that we still have three angry Golems out for our blood.” Loaye yelped as he teleported himself away from a Golem’s fist and reappeared near another rock.

Harith stood up. He threw her a stern look. “We’ll need to have a talk about this, you and I.” He held up his sword, a faint purplish tint running over the steel.

Ayah’s brows furrowed in confusion. “About what?”

“About what?! About what?!” he repeated, an incredulous frown pulling at his lips. “About your complete disregard for your own safety! You might be able to heal yourself, but that doesn’t mean you should just throw yourself at every threat out there.”

Ayah rolled her eyes in exasperation. He was exaggerating.

She stood up on wobbly legs and trudged towards him, her broken sword in hand. He glanced at her, huffing. “I said, don’t move. You’re still healing. Don’t exasperate your wounds further.”

“I can still fight,” Ayah insisted. “And you can’t use your mana.” She shot him a look that he returned with his own.

“I can manage.”

Ayah snorted. The pot calling the kettle black. If he wasn’t going to be more careful with his life, why ask it of her? She would start listening to his demands when he would hers.

“Can you banter another time? How about we deal with these golems now, and then later, the both of you can fight it out all you want,” Loaye called from where he was hiding.

“You’re one to talk! As if you’re doing any fighting, you coward!” Ayah yelled at him.

Loaye gasped, he put his hand over his chest in mock hurt. “I told you. I’m not a warrior. What do you want me to do? Offer myself for slaughter?” He sounded offended.

Ayah’s brows furrowed in thought. True. He was useless in a fight. The best he could do was get out of the way.

She glanced at Harith’s mana bar and frowned. He too shouldn’t be fighting. She took a deep breath and took a quick glance at her skill stats. She had wanted to save up that skill for when they were in a tight bind and there was nothing for them to do. But now was as good a time as any. She didn't know how much Harith had shaved off his remaining time, and honestly, she was afraid to know.

She looked at the golems and called for the system.

“Heaven’s wrath.”

The sky lit up in a blinding golden light, and the ground shook under their feet as the light struck the two monsters, engulfing them fully.

Now, Ayah had no other defense if things went wrong. She had used her last skill. She felt no satisfaction as she watched the rocks making up the golems’ bodies crack and disintegrate, leaving only their glowing cores behind.

She waited for the system’s notification about the monsters’ defeat. But nothing happened. Ayah stared with growing confusion as the cores floated in the air, a gentle humm emanating from them.

They’re not dead?! how?

Suddenly, the landscape changed. The clearing and the rocks disappeared, and Ayah and the others found themselves standing over a silent body of water. Ayah stared at her feet. Ripples spread as she shifted them, and the tip of her boot broke the surface, dipping into the water, indicating no hard ground under its surface. Still, they didn’t sink through.

A gentle ripple of a silken cloth drew her gaze upward, and she found herself staring at the most ethereally beautiful woman she had ever seen. The woman was clad in a white dress flowing over her tall figure, taller than the golems. Her silvery hair fell like a curtain over her shoulders, reaching past her hips with lotus flowers blooming over the silvery strands, making her look more ethereal than a faerie under the moonlight.

She was beautiful. So beautiful and deadly. There was an edge to her beauty. As if it was something that shouldn’t exist in this world. Something that they, mere mortals, weren’t allowed to lay their eyes on.

Ayah felt a sudden pressure as the woman’s eyes turned to her. She sucked in a breath, her throat constricting. What was this threatening presence that was radiating from her? She wasn’t a human, Ayah was sure of that.

“Tell me.” Her amethyst eyes bore into Ayah’s small form, stern and cold, devoid of any warmth. “How is a human in possession of Hayna’s powers?” Her voice, while melodious and soft, held the most threatening tone Ayah had ever heard.