Chapter 23: Saved at the Last

Adrian approached slowly. With every step he took, the rocks beneath his feet cracked under the immense energy radiating from his body.

Valdrin looked at him and shouted a warning.

"Adrian! Be careful! Don't step into those winds! They'll tear your body to pieces!"

But Adrian didn't stop. He didn't even look back. He continued walking forward as though Valdrin's voice hadn't reached him at all.

He moved closer...

Until the wind touched his body.

And in the next instant, he walked straight through it.

Valdrin's eyes widened in disbelief.

Impossible...

He passed through it without a single scratch?!

...

On the other side, Kiroma sensed an overwhelming presence approaching him.

He slowly raised his head, and the moment his eyes met Adrian's, he realized how serious the situation had become.

He was no longer looking at the confused boy from moments ago...

He was looking at something else.

Something that knew no fear.

"What is this power...?" he whispered involuntarily.

But he had no time to think.

Kiroma tightened his grip around Dan's neck and began slowly draining the air from his lungs.

Dan's body trembled violently, as if his very soul were being torn from him.

Suddenly...

Adrian disappeared.

In the next instant, he appeared directly in front of Kiroma, his fist slamming into his face with tremendous force.

Dan slipped from Kiroma's grasp and collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Adrian stood before Kiroma, his black eyes filled with nothing but murderous intent.

Then his head slowly tilted to the right...

Then to the left...

As if he were trying to remember who his enemy was.

Kiroma took a step back before drawing the sword strapped to his back.

He wasn't particularly skilled with a sword, but he had kept it for a day like this.

He let out an enraged roar and charged forward with everything he had.

In the next instant...

The sword pierced Adrian's waist.

Silence fell over the battlefield.

A smile appeared on Kiroma's face.

He thought the battle was over.

But Adrian didn't move.

He didn't groan.

He didn't even blink.

He simply stared at him with the same cold expression before slowly raising his hand and gripping the blade.

Then he began pulling the sword out of his body.

Slowly.

With every inch of the blade that emerged, blood poured from the wound, splattering heavily onto the ground.

Kiroma's eyes widened, and his smile vanished completely.

Still holding the sword's hilt, Kiroma watched as Adrian gripped the blade with his bare hand and squeezed it with tremendous force...

Until the metal let out a sharp screech.

Then Adrian raised his head.

For the first time, Kiroma felt as though death itself were staring directly at him.

In the next instant, Adrian's fist shot forward.

The air exploded around it as it slammed directly into Kiroma's face.

His body was launched like an arrow, crashing through one tree trunk after another until he disappeared deep into the forest.

...

Adrian slowly turned when he heard Valdrin's voice as he tried to wake Dan.

The moment Adrian's eyes settled on him, silence fell over the area.

Valdrin slowly raised his head, sensing Adrian's gaze fixed upon him.

Adrian stood completely still, his black eyes staring directly at him without blinking.

A chill ran down Valdrin's spine.

This...

This wasn't Adrian anymore.

Valdrin took half a step back, holding Dan against his chest. He didn't dare look away from Adrian.

Adrian remained where he was, unnaturally still.

But that silence...

Was more terrifying than any attack.

The temperature around them suddenly dropped as the black aura rose from Adrian's body like an unquenchable flame.

Valdrin tried to break the silence.

"Adrian..."

"It's over."

"Dan is safe..."

"Come back to your senses."

There was no change in Adrian's expression.

Instead, his fingers slowly curled into fists until the sound of grinding bones sent a chill through the air.

Inside his mind, the words continued to echo endlessly:

"Dan's life doesn't matter to me..."

"Emotion is weakness..."

"Victory matters more than everyone else..."

The voices inside his head began to blend together until they became a single scream...

Philip's scream as he cried out for him.

Adrian's eyelid twitched for a moment.

Then he raised his head.

His gaze locked onto Valdrin as though he no longer recognized the person standing before him.

Valdrin could feel that something inside the boy had broken.

He whispered:

"He's lost consciousness..."

Before he could finish, the air around him trembled.

In the blink of an eye, Adrian was standing before him.

Valdrin saw nothing but a fist rushing toward his face.

He twisted his body at the last moment, causing the punch to pass inches from him, but it tore violently through the ground behind him.

Rocks were sent flying into the air as dirt erupted into a thick cloud that obscured his vision.

Valdrin used the dust as cover and leaped away, still carrying Dan.

But only moments later, Adrian emerged from the smoke, walking toward him with steady steps.

He wasn't running.

He wasn't rushing.

It was as though he already knew his prey had nowhere to escape.

Valdrin tightened his grip and thought:

"If he keeps going like this..."

"I won't be able to bring him back."

"He'll become..."

"More dangerous than Ildar himself."

Suddenly, Adrian charged toward him again.

Before his fist could reach Valdrin, Valdrin threw Dan out of the punch's path to keep him from being injured.

In the next instant, the punch struck Valdrin directly.

His body was sent flying several meters before crashing violently into the ground.

He tried to get back up, but the pain surging through his body made his legs tremble for several moments.

Even so, he forced himself to stand.

Adrian approached him with slow steps, his black eyes never leaving Valdrin.

Then his voice came out cold and emotionless:

"You abandoned Dan."

"You made him the sacrifice."

"And now..."

"He's dead."

Valdrin's eyes widened.

Then he whispered:

"So..."

"That's what made you angry."

He raised his head and said firmly:

"But the truth is..."

"Dan is still alive."

"Just as you..."

"Still remember your friends."

Adrian turned toward Dan.

He saw his body lying motionless on the ground.

His expression hardened again, and his fist tightened.

"You..."

"You're lying."

In the next instant, he lunged at Valdrin.

His attacks rained down like a storm.

Valdrin managed to block some of them, but the rest struck him directly, leaving his body covered in bruises.

Eventually, he dropped to one knee.

He was breathing heavily as he raised his head toward Adrian and shouted:

"That's why..."

"We learn never to become attached to anyone!"

"Our duty..."

"Always comes before our feelings."

"This..."

"This is the path we've lived by."

Silence fell for a moment.

Then he continued, his voice slightly softer:

"When I was a child..."

"My father abandoned me."

"He let his own son die..."

"Because he chose to protect what was more important."

"Since that day..."

"I've lost many friends."

"And even so..."

"I never backed down."

"And I never will..."

"Even if the price is my life."

Adrian stood before him, staring at him with his black eyes without saying a word.

There was no expression on his face, as though Valdrin's words couldn't reach him.

But then, a faint voice came from behind him.

"A... Adrian..."

Adrian slightly turned his head toward the source of the voice.

The moment he saw his friend speaking, his body suddenly trembled.

The black aura around him stopped swirling.

Then the voice came again.

"I'm okay..."

Adrian's eyes widened, and the darkness slowly began to fade from them.

Then, all at once, his strength collapsed.

He fell to his knees before finally collapsing onto the ground.

He remained there for several seconds, staring up at the sky.

Then he slowly got back to his feet.

He looked at Valdrin for a long moment and said in a quiet voice, a hint of sadness mixed with the calmness in his tone:

"It seems..."

"That I'm not the only one..."

"Who carries wounds that never healed."

He said nothing more.

But his gaze was no longer the same.

Although he now understood a part of Valdrin's past, what had happened to Dan had left a wound in his heart that had yet to heal.

He turned toward Dan and knelt beside him, gently running his hand through his hair.

"Are you okay?"

Dan gave him a tired smile.

"I'm fine..."

"But..."

"What about you?"

Adrian suddenly remembered the sword and quickly placed his hand over his waist.

But...

There was no trace of the wound.

He froze for a moment, unable to believe what he was feeling.

Valdrin gave him a faint smile.

"Don't be surprised."

"This is one of the abilities of a Protector's power."

"As long as the power is still flowing through your body..."

"Your wounds heal almost instantly."

Adrian lowered his head slightly.

Then his eyes fell upon Kiroma's body, lying among the trees in the distance.

He asked in a low voice:

"Is he..."

"Dead?"

Valdrin calmly answered:

"Yes."

Then he added:

"But..."

"Even if you hadn't landed that blow..."

"He would've died anyway."

Adrian asked, "What do you mean?"

Valdrin sighed calmly before answering:

"In his final moments... Kiroma unleashed an enormous amount of energy from his body, enough to push his power to its absolute limit."

"That energy didn't just strengthen his defenses. It enhanced his speed, his strength... and even his ability."

"But... every power comes with a price."

"After a short period of time, that energy begins to paralyze his entire body, because a human body simply cannot withstand it for long."

Valdrin then looked directly at Adrian and continued:

"If you hadn't intervened... you wouldn't have been able to defeat him."

"But..."

"You already possess the most dangerous power in this world."

"That's why... you were the only one capable of keeping up with him."

Silence fell for a few moments before Valdrin continued:

"Even so... don't think the matter ended that simply."

"The moment you broke through the barrier and entered the winds he created... fear found its way into Kiroma's heart."

"From that moment on... his defeat had already begun."

"If he had remained calm and refused to let fear control him... the battle would have lasted much longer."

Adrian walked toward Kiroma's body and stood before him for a few moments, silently staring down at him.

Then he turned around, preparing to leave.

Suddenly...

Kiroma's trembling hand reached out and grabbed Adrian's ankle.

Adrian stopped and bent down toward him.

Kiroma's breathing was ragged, and the light in his eyes was slowly fading.

Then, with great difficulty, he managed to speak:

"Why..."

"Do you ask us..."

"To take that power..."

"Then kill us?"

Adrian furrowed his brows in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

Kiroma tried to say something else...

But his breath suddenly stopped.

His hand went limp and fell to the ground.

He was dead.

Adrian continued staring at him for several moments.

Kiroma's final words were too confusing for him to understand, yet he couldn't find any explanation for them.

He sighed, then walked toward Dan.

He placed Dan's arm over his shoulder and helped him to his feet.

"Come on."

"You need to rest."

Dan gave him a faint smile, but quickly hid it.

Deep down, he was beginning to feel that he was no longer fighting alongside Adrian...

He had become a burden to him.

Every battle...

Always ended with Adrian saving him.