43. No Help for the Weak

"Gavin! I'm cold! Let's do this another day..."

"We've been to much colder places and got out! Don't tell me a winter day in Alenrius is enough to do you in, Velmira!"

"That was when we had to save the world! The stakes were different back then!"

Gavin did his best to avoid the trees in the dense forest while dragging Velmira on his makeshift sleigh.

"We don't even know the stakes now! Besides, weren't you the one who called me? You should be trying to convince me to keep looking for him instead!"

"Oh? I must have misheard you. Last time I checked, you owed me way more than this little trip. If I'm not mistaken, you wouldn't have walked out of that fight with the demon lord if it wasn't for me..."

"Ok, fine! Just stop complaining for a bit! We're almost at the castle."

As the two heroes bickered, the white walls of Alenrius Castle slowly came into view. They were of a white so pure that it was hard to tell if they were covered by snow at all.

"And what makes you think he's here? Are you tracking him or something?" Gavin asked.

"I wish I could," said Velmira. "But that elven girl always erased every mark I left on him as soon as she found it..."

The dejected sorceress looked at the ground, grabbing the hem of her crimson skirt in an attempt to show her frustration.

"But it would be pretty easy to notice if you just looked around..." she added.

"I would look around more if I wasn't busy carrying you!" Gavin protested, but when he turned his head towards Velmira, he noticed the lady pointing towards the entrance of the castle with a smug expression.

Gavin looked the way his friend pointed, and what he saw was the lifeless body of a vampire.

"That can't be from our fight, right?"

"Of course not! It's been half a year since then!" the witch answered. "He must be here."

The two entered the castle that once belonged to the proud elven race. Inside the castle, everything seemed unchanged, except for the bodies of fallen vampires and...

"Drakes?" Gavin said, surprised. "Didn't he refuse to kill anything but—"

Before Gavin could finish speaking his mind, Velmira put her palm over his mouth, signaling him to keep quiet, and pointed at the end of the corridor they were walking.

There, a pale silhouette stood, hiding half of her body behind the curbing wall.

"A GHOST?!" Gavin screamed as if waking up from a nightmare.

Hearing the loud noise, the feminine silhouette ran away.

"I told you to keep silent! What is wrong with you?" Velmira scolded the hero.

"Don't blame me! Isn't it normal to get scared when you see a ghost?"

"Aren't you ashamed to be called a hero? Whatever, we're following it!"

Whenever the two took a turn, the ghost would be at the other end of the corridor, waiting for them as if trying to guide the heroes.

"Velmira..."

"What?"

"Should we tell her we know our way around here?"

"Gavin, I've always thought you were a bright one..."

"She's taking us to the throne room! It was the first place I wanted to check regardless!"

"Just shut up and follow it! It's more exciting that way~," said Velmira, unable to hide the fact she was having fun.

It didn't take long for them to reach the throne room. There, even more bodies lay around, hinting at the massacre that had just taken place.

"This place is messed up!" Gavin said. "Did he really do all this?"

"That's why I told you I want to check on him..." Velmira added, confirming the death of everyone around.

"Still, I don't see him anywhere—whoa!"

As Gavin walked around the room, the ghost from before suddenly manifested in front of him, stopping the hero from taking another step.

Gavin watched confused as the ghost sat down on the floor next to a body covered by a dark robe, put her hand on it, and caressed the one lying there.

"It can't be..." said Gavin, pulling on the robe and uncovering whoever was hiding under it.

"Yumino!" Velmira screamed, rushing towards them.

There, at the bottom of the stairs leading to the throne, stood a trembling elf, his eyes closed as his head rested on the first step.

The ghost merged her lower body with the stair, so as to have her lap right under the elf's head, and lifted her gaze, looking at the hero.

Although the ghost had no face to speak of, the two quickly guessed the expression she was trying to make. She was worried—worried about the one who refused to move.

"He's cold... and he's bleeding..."Velmira quickly gave her diagnostic. After that, she applied ointment on the wounds of the husk of who was once a proud elf called Yumino.

During the whole procedure, Yumino didn't bother to move a single muscle. He stood there and let the sorceress move him around as she tried to find his wounds. It didn't matter how many times they tried to speak to him; he wouldn't answer.

Once finished, Velmira looked at the hero.

"Gavin, it's your choice."

With a stoic look, Gavin turned around and spoke.

"You've done enough for him. We're going!"

"Gavin, are you sure about this? It may be the last time we see him..."

"So? It's not like he's willing to speak to us. How can I know what he wants if he's ignoring us? I've already come all the way here, why should I go out of my way even more? He's the one who hurt our friends and our host."

Velmira let out a scoff, took one more glance at the elf who was lying there shriveled, and stood up.

"As pragmatic as ever, I see..." she said, but Gavin ignored her remark.

"It's getting late. Let's stay here for the night," said the hero. "I'll take the same room as last time. Do you wanna stay here and look after him?"

Velmira looked at Yumino again.

"No..." she answered. "You're right, there's nothing more we can do with him like this..."

And so, the two walked away in search of a room to spend the night, leaving behind the elf and the ghost. The ghost just stood there, following them with her gaze as they walked away.

*****

He walked the darkest corner of his mind all alone.

He took small steps, for he felt that if he went too fast he would shatter.

He looked down at his feet, for he felt that if he looked up, everything would come crashing.

He held on to his arms, for he felt that if he let go, he would lose himself.

"But even so..." he said.

If what he did could be called "holding on," then he held on because he had nothing else to do. He tried to protect himself, for there was nothing else he could protect.

He had grown lenient. He thought he would win. He dared to enjoy life. He dared to love, and he dared to let himself be loved. Or so he thought he did, yet everything came down behind his back. No, everything came down right under his nose, yet his gaze was at the sky, not noticing what was brewing down below.

Now, with nobody around, Yumino walked alone.

"Can you leave that sob story for another time?" A voice resounded, a voice Yumino had heard before.

"I left her in your care, and look what you've done... You better make up for it!" the voice continued.

Confused, Yumino turned his head to see another elf. With a smile both smug and dumb, that elf wore two daggers at his sides.

Once they made eye contact, the elven spirit spoke again.

"From hero to hero: don't let what we've built be wasted!" the spirit said, winking at the elf who had all but faded.