Giovanna took in a sharp breath and winced as soon as Alonso screamed at the impact of Anastasia's war hammer. In just the second that she caught up to him, her hammer shifted from its ordinary size to a tool of destruction. And in that same second, she slammed it against his knee as he ran.

And now, he gripped his shattered kneecap and wailed on the ground. And Anastasia only spat out a sigh.

"Alonso" or whatever his name is... was the most dangerous. That's what Anastasia judged, at least. And the only reason they were able to catch up with him was that he was already in pain. The mental anguish that came and stayed within him when Gabriel sliced off his hand was enough to slow him down.

"You should've let me had the first hit," Gabriel said, letting out a sigh as he stared at the crying Alonso.

"You have a sword," Anastasia told him. "Knowing you, you would've killed him by accident."

He scoffed at that, sheathing his silver blade and crouching down to Alonso. "So..." Gabriel said. "Where and how many are you?"

Alonso couldn't respond. He simply continued to cry out into the night.

Again, Gabriel spat out a sigh. "Are you with the Golden Dawn?"

Still, no response.

"Numbers and positions. Now."

Finally, Alonso stared at Gabriel. "Go to hell. All of you," he muttered amidst his panting and crying. "My brothers will never surrender. Even if you capture me, they'll find me. You... and your friends will be slaughtered. And we... We will be free. We'll get the God Crystal. And we'll-"

Gabriel stood up in silence. "Well, this guy's useless," he said, raising his leg. And as he locked eyes with Alonso, he pressed his foot against his shattered knee. His icy azure eyes were glistening as he glared at Alonso.

Alonso was already screaming.

"Numbers and positions. Now."

Anastasia turned away. Sure, she was the one who dealt the real damage, but she still didn't want to watch a man cry like that. Still, this was one of the few ways to extract actual information from someone. She spat out a sigh as she accepted that.

"Did you really have to shatter his kneecap?" Giovanna asked, finally walking up to Anastasia after staring in silence for a handful of seconds.

"It's always best to immobilize enemies that are faster than you," she told her. "This was just the best way to do it, I guess."

Gabriel finally turned to them and lifted his foot from Alonso's leg. "...Giovanna, what are you doing here?"

"Liam told me to follow you guys. He said he would handle the other one."

He stared at her. "I told you to stay with Alexander."

"Alexander said that I should go after you. These guys were dangerous and all, so-"

"Alexander was practically dying," Anastasia told her. "And we don't know how many there are of these guys. If there's just one more of these people, he could be killed."

"...Oh, God."

- - - - -

Those words continued to echo in Alexander's mind.

"I'm sorry."

"Thank you."

Alexander sighed and stared at his fist. It was still steaming with the heat of pure magic energy. And the blood that dripped down began to dry. "Damn, that hurt," he muttered.

He stumbled forward, slowly taking a step. 'I need to move. I need to get out of here.' But it wasn't long before he fell to one of his knees.

The damage Lilith had dealt onto him was intense, but for Alexander, it was bearable. What brought him to his knees was the deep pain in his gut. No, not his gut. It was right at the center of his chest.

His heart ached.

It was aching from those sights he was forced to see under Alonso's spell. And it ached as soon as he drove his fist through Lilith. He had killed her.

He really killed her.

'No... She was already dead. Her heart hadn't been beating for years.'

'Does it matter if she was already dead? It doesn't change a thing.'

'She wanted to die, anyway. She was asking you to do it.'

'So what? You were the one to sever her life.'

'She thanked you.'

'You killed her.'

'You killed her.'

"I killed her."

The words spilled from his lips without him even realizing.

Alexander finally fell to his other knee. And with it, his hands crashed into the bloodied mud. "Oh, God, I killed her."

And just like earlier, his breaths grew labored, his vision grew shaky, and his gut twisted. But before his stomach clenched and retched, a voice burst through the night.

"Alexander!" that voice shouted out.

He raised his head and turned to its source.

"Alexander!" Giovanna cried, dashing through the forest at speeds he had never seen her go. She burst into the clearing and to his side. Quickly grabbing him by his shoulders, her verdant eyes met his. "Are you okay?!" she asked him.

Alexander met her with stale eyes.

"Are you okay?" she repeated. "What the hell happened here?!" Giovanna asked, looking around at the torn and cracked ground.

She stared at Alexander and swallowed her dry saliva. Alexander was in a worse condition than he was since she left. He was bruised and battered, but his eyes were still twisting in delirium. But again, Alexander didn't respond. He simply pressed his drooping head against Giovanna's shoulder.

"A Titan," he finally spoke. His voice was hoarse as he muttered. "Titan of Death."

It was then that she saw it. Just a few meters away, the collapsed titan laid on the cracked ground.

"Alexander, did you- Wait, you actually won against a Titan?" she asked, pressing her hand against his chest. She flowed her energy from her body into his. And with that flow, his wounds healed instantly.

The minor ones, at least. Deeper cuts and bruises always took longer. But Alexander didn't care for that. He mustered up another response. "Yeah," he mumbled. "I won."

That was all he could say. Or rather, all he could tell her.

It wasn't exactly as if he could tell her everything the Titan had said and everything he had done. He simply raised his head and spat out a sigh. "Thank you," Alexander told her.

"But I'm fine now," he said, forcing himself to stand and step away from her hand.

"You're not."

"I just... I need time to think," he said, his eyes still fixated on the ground. Still, something told him he wouldn't have to the time.

Giovanna stood up. "Alexander. You're still hurt, and if-"

Alexander raised his hand and silenced her. "Wait," he told her, staring into the darkness of the night. It was then that quiet boots clacked as they descended onto the forest floor. And with that, Alexander's eyes widened.

"Oh my gods," a voice mumbled. "What... What happened to you, Lilith?"

Eve's eyes quickly welled up with tears as she saw Lilith's lifeless body. Her skin was as cold as always, her eyes were stale as usual. But the sight of the hole in her chest was enough to make Eve fall to her knees.

Alexander wrapped his hand around the hilt of the sword on Giovanna's belt. He raised his head and met her eyes. "No matter what..." he told her. "...stay behind me."

"Alexander, you're-"

He coiled his fingers on the hilt, pulling out the sword. "I'm fine." Alexander stood up, before turning to the figure.

It was another woman dressed in the same pale white cloak. This was who Lillith had mentioned. Her sister, the Titan of Life. And it wasn't long before their eyes met.

Eve's eyes were already stained with tears as she stood up, still beside her sister's body.

"It was you, wasn't it?" she asked. "I can still see the remnants of your energy on her body."

Alexander didn't know what to say. It wasn't as if he enjoyed what he had done. Still, the Titan glared at him with her teary eyes. "I... I'm sorry."

That was all he could say, anyway. But the fact that he held a sword didn't really scream 'I'm sorry' either.

More tears streamed down the Titan's cheeks. "Did... Did Lillith... Did my sister leave any final words?"

Alexander swallowed his saliva. "No... Not really." He didn't exactly want to say how Lilith thanked him. And now, Eve still glared. Her teeth were grit and her jaw was clenched, fighting herself and doing everything she could to not collapse in tears. She drowned out that sadness with unrelenting rage.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Eve looked nothing like her sister. If Eve hadn't spoken those words, there wouldn't have been any way of knowing who she really was. Unlike Lilith's short and straight black hair, Eve's hair was brown and curly. And even though she wore glasses, her eyes glistened in the moonlight, glowing with the color of emeralds, just like Giovanna's.

But just from the circumstance alone, Alexander knew this battle would be nothing like his fight against Lilith.

This time... He was fighting an opponent who had the intent to kill. And this time... He had someone to protect.

Alexander twirled the blade in his hands as he stepped to the side, blocking Giovanna with his very body.

Eve extended her hand. But unlike Lilith's palm that glowed with magic energy, liquid rose from her very clothing and coagulated onto her hand. From a handful of vials that were strapped to her belt, she manipulated the fluid within them and formed an orb onto her hand.

What that crimson orb was made of... was clearer than it should've been. Eve was manipulating blood.

'God, that's disgusting,' Alexander thought to himself.

With a single breath, the orb of blood in Eve's palm floated above her head. And with a single breath, Alexander dashed at her.

Eve clapped her hands together. And that was all it took for the orb of blood to stretch out into a singular stream. Practically a whip of blood, she swung it around as Alexander ran up to her, sword in his hand.

Alexander stepped to the side and lowered himself, dodging the swaying and flowing weapon of blood.

'The boy's fast!' Eve told herself. 'But it's not enough.'

Half a second.

From Eve's attack and Alexander's charge, it was all just half a second. All the thinking and reacting was half a second. And now... Alexander was behind Eve.

If your opponent has more range than you, limit that range. If your opponent isn't a physical combatant, engage in physical combat.

These fundamentals were in battle that Alexander never learned. But frankly, he never had to learn. From experience and instinct, he became who he is. And with his clenched fist, he would turn the tides of this half a second battle.

"Bloodburst."

That command left Eve's lips. And Alexander's eyes widened. What he never noticed was a second orb of floating blood.

The congealed blood exploded.

Shards of glass-like blood burst in all directions, scrambling and impacting into Alexander's back. Heavy energy-dense steam rose from the points of impact and into the air.

And as Eve turned, all she saw was a hunched over Alexander and droplets of blood floating around like strewn confetti.

Bloodburst. When the user of the magic condenses the blood with energy itself, it hardens. But when the hardening is released... It bursts like shrapnel.

And with Alexander's pained breaths, Eve pulled out a dagger from her cloak and slammed it into Alexander's foot.

Bleeding from multiple different places, Alexander jumped up and swung his other foot into the side of Eve's chest. And with that momentum, he raised himself and thrust out his fist into her face.

His control of magic energy wasn't quick enough to strengthen his attacks. But it was all he needed for now.

Eve's fist slammed into his chin, knocking him down and back. That was enough to buy her a second. And within that second, she clapped her hands once again.

Still, he got up within an instant, and dashed again. 'Those blood orbs! I have to stop her from making them!' he urged himself.

Their eyes met. Alexander stared at her, just a few feet away. If Alexander were to thrust out his fist, he could hit her before she could form the orb of blood.

All he had to do was take a couple more steps. No. Less. Just one more to be in range. Just one more to take control.

But it was at that moment that a thin, ovular chunk of wood pierced Alexander's gut.

'Another type of magic?!' he asked himself.

'I was careless!'

'Where'd I get hit?!'

'Was it a vital organ?!'

'I'm gonna die.'

Alexander dropped to one of his knees, gasping. 'Come on, body. Don't fail me now. Just a bit more,' he thought, flowing magic energy and fortifying his body.

The 'bullet' of wood sent burning pain through every nerve in his body. But Alexander grit his teeth and took in a sharp breath. The surprise of that attack only lasted a second. After all, confusion was but a hinderance.

Blood was already beginning to drip from his mouth as Alexander stood up.

Eve spoke. "The seed I drove into you... It feeds off of magic energy. The more magic energy you use, the deeper its roots will spread throughout your body."

Alexander pressed his elbow to the side of the wound, wincing as he wiped the blood from his mouth with his other hand. "Thanks for the advice," he muttered. "But it looks like this'll kill me, anyway."

Eve finally smiled. "Correct."

"But so what?" Alexander asked.

With one arm pressed against his bleeding gut, he brought his other hand into the wound. "That... won't stop me!" he shouted out.

He commanded himself to stand as he drove his fingers into his chest, right into the already bleeding gash where the seed entered. Alexander was stabbing himself with his fingers, repeating the same motion into the same spot until he could grab the seed itself.

"....What?! Why?!" the Titan muttered, her face now beaded with sweat as all she could do is stare.

Alexander stood motionless. He focused on his magic energy. If he could manipulate the flow of the energy inside his body, blood vessels, and organs, he could prevent blood loss. He could at least preserve his body's state to prevent deterioration. He could survive this.

But of course, this method was only theoretical.

It was through this pain that Alexander realized. He slammed his fist into his thigh as he swallowed his saliva. 'I now understand my role,' he thought, staring at the ground.

Clear your mind.

'For everyone's sake... I have to hold my ground. As long as the others can get through to the crystal before the Golden Dawn... it'll have been worth it.'

And in just a matter of seconds, Alexander was once again panting and gasping for air. Still, he grit his teeth and yanked the seeds from his organs. Alexander nearly fell as blood spewed out of the open wound.

To answer Eve's questions, he began to mutter. "Because..."

Alexander winced. He stared at the seed. Just like his fist, it was coated in crimson. And still ovular, it had ground expanding and thickening its roots into Alexander's insides.

He bit his lip. And with his blood-drenched hand, he held it up and shut his fist, crushing the seed to dust. His breaths were ragged, and sweat and blood were dripping from his face. "Because..." he continued. "I have people to protect. Incidentally... I don't have much to lose."

And still, Eve only stood in silence as she stared at the Demon-Born. She finally understood the demonic presence emanating from Alexander's very body.

Even with his human appearance, it wasn't hard for her to mistake him for a being of darkness. That was the sight engraved into her mind for just a second. Pure darkness in the form of a human. And not just that, but orbs of white light, glowing as his eyes.

She clenched her jaw. Among her regret, sadness, fear, anger, and pain, Eve could only face forward. 'I...' she thought. 'I have to kill him.'

"Now..." Alexander muttered, wiping the blood from his face with a crooked smile. "Where were we?"

It was at the same time that Morgana's ears perked up. She quickly sniffed the air and looked up.

She and Hjálmarr were waiting for Alexander and the Virtues.

Fitting the exact image of a classic medieval town, they sat in one of Krattor's many taverns. Even though they were surrounded by dozens of others, each of them being the Hunters they came along with, and the denizens of the realm, the two kept themselves quiet. Waiting.

Golden candlelight illuminated the wooden structure, all from the ceiling, just as string music was played and echoed throughout.

"This is weird," she said, still chewing on some stale bread they had been given for free.

Hjálmarr didn't know how to respond to that. He wasn't exactly good at dealing with children. And someone like Morgana... Well, Hjálmarr was always confused around her. And so, he simply continued to chew in silence.

"So..." he finally said. "What's weird?"

Morgana swallowed the bread. "Something's weird."

"..." Again, Hjálmarr decided it was best not to respond.

"Wait..." Morgana muttered, looking up. She quickly stood up from the wooden seat. "Alexander's in trouble."

Hjálmarr stared at her. "...Wait, what?"

"We have to help him." Morgana didn't leave any time to respond and burst towards the door.

"Morgana, wait!" Hjálmarr shouted. But his words were drowned out by the continuous chatter of the Hunters.

He clenched his jaw and chased after the reckless girl. 'What the hell is even happening?' he asked himself. But as soon as Hjálmarr ran through the swinging doors, a soft gasp left his lips. Hundreds of meters away, all throughout the forest, magic energy flashed and flared into the night. It was faint from the vast distance, but he already understood of its grand scale.

Hjálmarr swallowed his saliva and stared.

He understood that the only reason he could sense it, to begin with, was the fact that he was an elf. Still, Morgana was the first to sense it. And she was already dashing into the forest. He caught himself, standing around in stillness and silence.

'Dammit, Morgana. Please be safe, my liege,' he thought, before bursting into the darkness of the night and into the woodlands.

Even though Hjálmarr was far taller, older, and more capable, Morgana was a bit faster than the elf. Morgana didn't understand if it was because she was Asgardian or a Demon-Born. But frankly, she didn't care as she ran towards the flaring of magic energy.

Already ahead of Hjálmarr, it took just a handful of minutes to reach Alexander. And as she burst into the clearing of the forest, her eyes widened.

Three people stood before her. Alexander, one of Alexander's friends, and an attacker.

Her eyes weren't widened because of some grand or drastic sight. No. Against all of her own understanding, everything seemed to freeze from Morgana's perspective. Everything in her line of sight became clear. Unnecessarily clear.

The first one she noticed was Eve. The attacker dressed in a white cloak, just like the enemies they had encountered on the same day. Eve was a foot off the ground, her hazel hair dancing in the air as she thrust out her fist. Her energy-dense attack was just inches from Alexander's face.

As for Alexander... He was on the ground, standing on a single knee and looking up. His jaw was clenched at the sight of Eve's incoming fist. Still, blood was dripping from the side of Alexander's head and down his nose. His knuckles and fingers were scraped and bleeding, just like his knees past his torn pants.

Morgana was breathing heavily. She had no idea of what she was experiencing, but a single thought echoed in her head.

The sight of Anastasia. The girl who had the same type of magic as her. Like a clap of thunder, the sound of Anastasia clapping her hands together burst into her head.

And before she knew it, almost without any conscious decision, Morgana did the same. She clapped her hands.

With that echo, Eve disappeared. Well, she teleported, just a handful of feet away.

And amidst the confusion of seeing Morgana, sensing her magic, and Eve's sudden movement, Giovanna's eyes widened.

She slammed her hand into the ground.

A pillar of stone burst from the ground, striking Eve and launching her back into the forest.

"Morgana?!" Alexander shouted out as soon as he saw the Asgardian girl running across the forest.

"Alexander!" Morgana and Giovanna shouted out in unison.

Alexander immediately shot up and turned. "Giovanna!" he said. "Get Morgana out of here!"

Giovanna sprung towards Morgana and grabbed her by the arm. Still, the child snatched her arm back and ran towards Alexander. "You have to get out of here," she told Alexander, panting between her heavy breaths.

Her face was beaded with sweat as she grabbed Alexander by the side of his hoodie once again.

"That's what I'm supposed to say to you." Alexander took in a deep breath. "Morgana, listen."

"No. You have to run. That person... is too dangerous."

Alexander couldn't help but smile at that. Morgana was concerned for his safety. A six-year-old child worried over him. A Demon-Born, at that. It wasn't long before Alexander gently patted her head and let out a light chuckle.

Alexander recalled the similar situation just a month ago. Even in despair, William Nero held hope and granted that hope to the Virtues.

The Paladin was even smiling at that time. That was what confused Alexander. Was he smiling out of amusement? That would've meant he could've handled those Titans on his own with much an issue. And yet here, Alexander was bleeding and struggling against a single enemy.

"You're really worried about me?" he asked Morgana. A grin grew onto his face. "You need to grow up."

Once again, Giovanna grabbed hold of Morgana's arm.

Alexander looked down at Morgana. How she had found them or how she was even able to know about this battle was beyond him. There was no way of knowing how she had gotten here.

It was then that another voice broke through the night.

"My liege!" Hjálmarr cried. He stumbled and rolled on the forest ground until he reached Alexander. "Are you alright?!" he asked, standing up beside Alexander, quickly facing the direction Eve was launched in.

"I'm fine." As much as he wanted Hjálmarr to believe that, it was hard to sell that lie. Alexander winced and pressed his hand against the gaping wound in his chest. Little by little, he was flowing his blood past the wound and not through it. Little by little, he was improving at manipulating his own blood flow.

Still, 'little by little' wasn't nearly enough. At any rate, he would bleed out and die before he could control such a technique.

Hjálmarr stared down at Alexander and his blood-drenched hand. "My liege..."

"Shut up and focus," Alexander urged, gritting his teeth as he felt Eve's malicious intent rise again. Right now, Alexander had to protect Morgana as well. But with Hjálmarr's help... winning this was possible.

All he had to do was fight. If he could survive long enough, the others would come out of this completely fine.

Still, Hjálmarr ignored Alexander's orders. "My liege, let me help," he said. "Please."

He removed Alexander's hand and placed his own hand atop the wound.

"It's an ancient Elvish technique," Hjálmarr began. "It's not healing, but rather, preservation. It'll stop the bleeding and subdue the pain," he explained.

Alexander swallowed his dry saliva as Hjálmarr flowed energy into his wound. That was the strange part. It wasn't magic energy. It was some strange, unknown force that began to push away Alexander's pain.

Hjálmarr stared at Alexander. "But nothing more. Understand, my liege? You must be careful."

Alexander nodded through his stifled breathing. His pain was slipping and vigor itself spread through his body. He wasn't gaining back the energy he had spent, but... This was enough.

Twigs crushed under Eve's foot as she stepped forward. She stepped out of the darkness and into the pale moonlight.

Gritting his teeth in anticipation, Alexander faced forward and clenched his bloodied fist. Just as Hjálmarr removed his hand from Alexander's wound, he stared at Alexander.

But Alexander still faced the Titan. "I'm guessing I don't have to explain the situation, huh?" he asked the elf.

Hjálmarr clenched his jaw and shook his head.

Now brimming with magic energy, Alexander took in a deep breath and readied himself. "Thank you, Hjálmarr. Now... I can still fight!"