"A-Arthur!" Lena frantically called out as she caught him before he could collapse on the dirty ground.
But Arthur was too heavy for her to balance herself quickly, and she fell to the ground while hugging him so that his body wouldn't hit the ground.
Arthur felt like he fell on a soft cushion, but he couldn't gather his thoughts since every inch of his body was hurting as if getting stabbed by a thousand knives from every side.
He didn't have to be a physician to know that these symptoms were signs that his body was dying rapidly from the inside.
He could feel his ethereal core becoming unstable by the second. But amidst all this pain, the warmth and the touch of his lover was the only relief he could find at this moment. He thought maybe he was dreaming about her considering his state.
"Arthur, please…open your eyes!" Lena sat up as she let Arthur's head rest on her lap and was worried to see his eyes closed.
"*cough*..*cough*...A-Arthur…" Lena was coughing as her expression continued to become paler by the minute. Her eyes were looking quite sickly, yet she was more concerned about the barely conscious man on her lap.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})Her voice made its way through Arthur's mind as he regained a bit more of his consciousness. The moment he realized that Lena was really with him and not just a dream, he felt worried as he grabbed her hand, "L-Lena…Don't…stay here…Just leave me and go…"
Arthur knew that this strange black air in the atmosphere was poisonous to everyone, including even experts, let alone someone like Lena.
"No…I am not going away. You are not feeling well…How could I…" Lena bit her lips as warm tears trickled down her cheeks, seeing the state Arthur was in.
"H-How…did you know…where I was…" Arthur thought he had left her in a safe place far enough from any danger. This was the only fact he thought he could take relief from before he could die.
Lena was the last remaining person who loved him, and losing her would definitely devastate him.
And seeing her here only made him blame himself even more for putting her in danger again.
"I used a talisman to follow you. I never…stayed in the place you left me…*cough..cough*...I won't let you face everything alone…Wherever you go…I will be there to take care of you…" Lena said with a soft smile while her lips were losing their color as well.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Arthur closed his eyes as his chin quivered, feeling his heart getting crushed by the realization that she would never leave, no matter what he said. He also didn't have any strength left to bring her to a safe place, and even if she changed her mind now, she would never be able to make it to a safe location on her own. This toxic air would definitely kill her before she crosses a mile.
Lena also finally accepted that there was nothing she could do to save Arthur. So the only thing she could do was be beside him till the end. Because of this, she decided not to waste these moments by letting despair plague her for not being able to help him.
She gently caressed his hair as she asked, "Did you…accomplish what you set out to do?"
Arthur's hand trembled as he held her soft hand and said in a hoarse voice, "I…did…But without you…I wouldn't have been able to do it…"
Lena smiled though she had no idea that Arthur meant what he said. He would have given in to depression if not for Lena being by his side, especially when he needed her the most. She was his pillar of support and was also the reason he was motivated to kill his vicious father, knowing that Ruthren might kill Lena as well one day, just like he killed his mother.
But he remembered the state Ruthren was in and the message he received in his mind just before he came upon Ruthren. For that, he thanked Damien in his mind for letting him deal the killing blow and let his mother's soul rest in peace.
"Lena…I wish I had paid more attention to you before…Then maybe I could have—" Before Arthur could finish, Lena placed her finger on his lips as she shook her head, "I am already fortunate for getting to stay by your side all these years…*cough*..*cough*...I was not worthy, yet you have given me more than I ever dreamed of in my life. If there is a next time…I want to meet you in better circumstances," As Lena said this, she could taste her own blood in her mouth and the feeling of her ethereal core slowly dying. Yet she wasn't feeling any pain and only a soothing sensation from his touch.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})Arthur, who was being harrowed by pain all this time, suddenly felt the pain fading away as a sense of peace began to fill his mind, "We will…And when we do…I promise…I won't fail you next time…" As Arthur said this, a peaceful smile hung on his lips while his eyes slowly lost their light, his gaze still fixed on the person he loved the most.
Lena had a subtle loving smile as her eyes lost their shine before her entire body became lifeless.
Only the sound of the cold wind blowing across echoed in the area as these two figures remained unmoved.
However, an old man was watching these two from afar. Seeing the elegant robes he was wearing, one could recognize that they belonged to a Supreme Elder from the Xeton Empire.
The old man's expression turned into a look of contempt and disappointment as he clicked his tongue, "Tch, what a waste. Now I can't even stay here for too long," Saying this, he disappeared from the spot, and nobody could say where he went to.
Meanwhile, in other parts of the continent, the Xeton Empire was dissolved and replaced by the Zirian Empire, just like how it was in the olden times. Elor was old, yet he was the most capable enough to rebuild this empire and make sure to restore peace and stability to this continent along with the other emperors.
However, the rulers of all these four empires knew they couldn't stay forever on this continent and that one day their descendants would have to make their way across the barrier, just like Damien and his wives.
