When Bloom opened her eyes she was staring at a white ceiling.

“?!”

After having a dream about the past she was naturally frightened and thought that she had returned to the dissection room.

However she quickly calmed down when she looked at the room closely.

“Where—Ugh?!”

Pain suddenly assaulted every part of her body which forced her to lay back down.

“Take it easy. You’re heavily injured.”

Bloom looked to her side and saw Kaido sitting on a chair not too far away from the bed she was sitting on.

“What are you doing here?”

She asked with a hint of caution in her voice.

“Could you please not look at me like that?”

Kaido said in monotone.

He pointed to a corner of the room.

Bloom looked there and was surprised to see Miko sleeping there.

“I’m here to guard the two of you while you rest up.”

“Guard?”

It was then that the events of her battle with Sami came back at her.

She clenched her fist in anger, ignoring the intense pain she was feeling.

“That sneaky bastard! He actually used a suppressant on me when he couldn’t win!”

She shouted angrily.

“Well, there isn’t a rule that ban suppressants. So what he did was still allowed.”

“Whose side are you on?!”

“None, actually.”

Bloom sighed after hearing Kaido’s answer.

“I was wrong to seek a human answer from you.”

“You know that kinda hurt my feelings.”

“Well, sorry for that.”

Bloom said with a slight smile.

She then looked at Miko.

“By the way, why is he sleeping over there?”

“That’s because he’s too tired from healing you.”

“Healing me?”

She looked at her body that was wrapped with bondages.

“I don’t look like I was healed.”

Kaido shook his head.

“Compared to how you was before this is an amazing recovery for just a hour after being injured.”

He paused and took out a phone. He operated it and showed Bloom a holographic screen.

“This is a video of how you looked after you were hit point blank with a blast from a trident.”

“?!”

Bloom was shocked paled when she saw her appearance that was extremely hard to look at.

It would be extremely hard to heal such injuries even with the city’s current technology, and even if they healed her there would still be some traces of injury on her body that could even result in disabilities.

For her to recover from such a state to the one she’s in right now in a hour was simply unbelievable.

“How did he do it?”

She asked.

“It wasn’t easy. He used this power called Qigong to heal you, but according to him he wasn’t experienced in healing others. Because of that it was several times more taxing than it would be for others with the same power. He really went overboard though, even when he looked like he was about to collapse he still did everything he could to return yo to the way you were. Even when his swords advised him to stop unless he’ll lose his life, he didn’t listen. If we didn’t force him off you, he meant have exchanged his life to heal you back to full health.”

Kaido explained.

Even Bloom could see that he was seemly impressed with Miko’s will to have her recover.

“……..”

She silently stared at Miko with mixed feelings brewing in her heart.

It was then she remembered the words he said to her earlier.

“But I might not choose to close that space between us again. After all, I have no intention of chasing someone who doesn't want me.”

Even though he said that he’ll distance himself from her, he was the first to rush to her rescue and even risk his life to heal her.

If that didn’t move her heart then she would've been a heartless person.

The look she gave Miko suddenly soften.

“……?”

It was then that the image of the boy who left a strong impression on her from her dream long ago, overlapped with that of Miko’s.

She quickly shook her head to dispel such thoughts.

‘They’re completely different. What am I thinking?’

She thought.

It was then Miko’s eyes suddenly opened.

“?!”

Miko eyes landed on her which caused her flinched.

It wasn’t that his eyes were terrifying, in fact they were gentle. She couldn’t take his gaze. It felt like he was looking right through her, which made her heart falter.

She turn her gaze away from his.

Miko smiled when he saw that sign of bashfulness.

He stood up and stretched his body.

“Looks like your awake. How’s your body?”

He asked.

“I-I’m fine.”

“Really? You look like you’re still in pain.”

He walked towards her.

“I’m fine, thanks to you.”

Miko stood in front of her, while she still didn’t look in his direction.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m--?!”

Before she could respond her face was suddenly held and her head was forcibly turned.

Without being able to react Bloom suddenly found her forehead pressed against Miko’s.

“W-What are you doing?”

Bloom asked while blushing.

“Nothing. I was just checking your temperature. I don’t want you to have a fever after all.”

Miko said with a smile.

He looked Bloom straight in the eyes without blinking.

He continued to press his forehead against hers for a while before silently moving back.

“Yup. It doesn’t seem like you have a fever.”

The moment he said that a scene flashed before Bloom’s eyes.

It was a scene with her in her dream with boy called Logan.

It was after they came back from a job together. She suffered a blow to the head from a man with an iron pipe. The blow had rendered her unconscious.

When she came to she was in a dimly lit room and in bed.

Her head hurt and was wrapped with bandages. Sitting on the other side of the room was the boy with dead green eyes.

“Are you okay?”

He asked with an indifferent tone.

She nodded.

“I see.”

He got up and approached her bed and looked down at her for a while before lifting her head. He then pressed his forehead against hers.

“W-What are you doing?”

“Checking your temperature. Hmm…It doesn’t seem like you have a fever.”

After saying that he moved away from her and turned his back and walked out of the room.

However, before he leaved he stopped at the door and spoke.

“You shouldn’t push yourself. Despite how we act humans are fragile beings after all.”

After saying that he walked out the door leaving her behind.

When the scene end Miko stood in front of her smiling.

“Well, I think we should get going and allow you to rest.”

Miko then turned his back to her and spoke to Kaido.

“Let’s go.

Kaido silently nodded and got up. He left the room first and Miko was behind him.

However just before he left he stopped at the door.

“You shouldn’t push yourself. Despite how we act, humans are fragile beings after all.”

After saying so he left the room.

“……..”

Bloom sat there in the bed frozen for a long time.

Miko’s words and how he said them replayed in her head over and over again.

She then compared it to the scene she saw in her dream.

It was almost identical. The biggest difference was that Miko smiled while Logan didn’t. Even so the image of Miko and Logan couldn’t stop overlapping with each other.

“What’s going on?”

“That’s what I want to know.”

Suddenly a light flashed and someone appeared beside bloom’s bed.

“?!”

Bloom was shocked to see this person who looked like an even more feminine Miko, Tiamat.

“You!”

“Oh? It reached the point where even your memories of me are returning?”

Tiamat said with some interest.

She smiled mischievously.

“We meet again Bloom Newgate. No, Kathrine McCloud.”

“Ugh?!”

Suddenly Bloom’s head started feeling an intense pain.

Memories started flowing in her head.

Earth.

London City Airport, London.

An extremely beautiful woman with fair skin and brown hair and hazel eyes sat in the cockpit of a piston plane.

This was Logan Cross’ lover Katrine McCloud.

“It’s ok. You’re the one who asked for this. You can’t back off now.”

She mumbled to herself as she breath in and out to calm her nerves.

After calming herself she started up the plane and took off.

While in the sky her hand gripping the control wheel started trembling. Her palms also got sweaty.

“…..I should call him.”

She used the headset she was wearing to make a call.

The moment it got through all the nervousness and anxiety she was feeling disappeared.

She took a breath and spoke.

“I’m above the airport now.”

(I see.)

Hearing the voice of the boy she loved made her extremely happy, but she couldn’t help but to feel a great sense of lost after hearing the sad tone in his voice.

“Hey, what’s with that sad tone? Could it be that you’re already missing me?”

“……”

She got no reply but that by itself was what she wanted. If Logan was to say that he’ll miss her she would’ve broken down and caused the mission to fail.

Because of that she had to keep the conversation short.

She saw the targeted plane in view.

“Well, it’s been fun Logan. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me over the years.”

As she spoke those words countless emotions started brewing inside of her.

She wanted to live. She wanted to live with her beloved, but she knew that wasn’t possible since Logan couldn’t forget his grudge.

Since that’s the case, she might as well use her life to help liberate him from his curse. He might feel hurt for a while but she had faith that he could overcome that pain and evolve into a different being.

He will sure experience true happiness one day.

‘So use me as a stepping stone to your new life.’

She thought as she made the plane begin its descent.

She had a lot of things she wanted to convey now that it reached this point, but since time was short she decided to summarized it into one sentence.

“Good bye, Logan; I loved you.”

With those words as her last, without hearing a response, Katrine McCloud died.

However, that wasn’t the end to her story.

After she died Katrine’s soul was summoned to a dark place.

What stood in front of her was an azure and gold dragon.

“Human, welcome.”

Said the dragon.

“Where am I?”

“If I was to say hell then how would you react?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised. I deserve to go to hell. As long as I grant Logan the chance at happiness, then I would happily burn in hell.”

“……..”

The dragon remained silent for a while before laughing a little bit.

“You really love him don’t you?”

“With all my heart.”

Katrine said with a nod.

The dragon smiled.

“I see.”

Suddenly the dragon turned into light and changed forms.

What appeared was a beautiful woman with azure hair, Tiamat.

“I’m grateful that he had someone like you in his life. Your existence was one of the few things that made him happy.”

She approached Katrine and placed her hand on her cheek.

“To thank you let me grant you a new life in the world he came from. Whether you two meet again is up to fate.”

Before Katrine could react her soul turned into a strand of light and shot out of the darkness and into a new world.

Bloom looked dazed after memories from long ago flowed into her head.

“….I remember now.”

She said after a long time.

“You’re Tiamat, right? You’re the one who reincarnated me.”

Tiamat nodded.

“I’m honestly surprised though. Who would’ve thought that the two of you would reunite in such a broad world. The fate that binds you two makes me jealous.”

Tiamat sounded a bit irritated.

“Then Miko really is Logan?!”

“That’s right.”

She suddenly aggressively approached Bloom.

“Listen here. Under no circumstances are you to tell Miko you’re Katrine. I’ll allow you to be with him, but as Bloom Newgate not Katrine McCloud.”

“Why?!”

“Because he’s finally moved on with his life and is truly happy. If he finds out that you're who you are his guilt towards you will cause his trauma to act up which would be very bad for the current him.”

“Trauma?”

“That’s right. Miko is stable now but he like Jin Makoto is on the board line of insanity and rationality. There’s no knowing what would happen if he knew you were alive. Would he be overjoyed? Or would his mind collapse? Anything is possible with him actually, and I don’t want to risk it. Do you understand? I already had to lie once to calm him down when he first saw you, I prefer if that lie doesn’t come to light for both of our sakes.”

“….Is that a threat?”

Bloom asked with a glare.

Even if her opponent was a goddess she wasn't one to back down no matter what.

“A threat? No, dear. That was an order.”

Tia stretched her hand out towards Bloom’s face.

“My powers might have been sealed by the contract placed on all the higher beings, but erasing someone like you is still as easy as breathing.”

“You wouldnt kill me. If Miko finds out he would hate you.”

Bloom spoke calmly.

“I don’t mind. If it prevents him from suffering a relapse because of your presence then so be it.”

Miko took a while before he could look at Bloom without feeling Deus Malum reacting, but if he was to find out that Bloom was Katherine then memories of the past would’ve caused him to lose control.

Tia refuse to see Miko suffer because of one of her whimsical action of reincarnating Katherine.

To her, this was taking responsibility for her actions.

Bloom saw that Tia was seriously willing to erase her and was moved by her will to protect Miko.

“Fine. I won’t approach Miko as Katherine. I never intended ti do so in the first place.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Bloom nodded.

“Katherine is dead. I’m Bloom Newgate and I want to be with Miko as Bloom Newgate. I want a fresh start for the two of us so that our endpoint will be different.”

She smiled.

“Do you have a problem with that?”

Tiamat brought down her arm.

“No. That’s for the best.”

She then turned her back to bloom.

“But remember this. No one loves him more than me.”

She then disappeared in a beam of light.

After hearing Tia’s words Bloom couldn’t help but to display a challenging smile.

“Let’s see about that.”