At the same time Edmund pulled his trigger, Selv’s body gave a response. The next second, the bullet was slashed into two.

Wordlessly, clumsily, he stood up like a doll with a string attached. His eyes met with Edmund’s who was biting his lips in frustration.

“What a failure. I gave him enough time.”

“Not now. Your order?”

“Match my timing. Aim. Fire!”

Arrows rained down on the hole. Without waiting for the result, they prepared for the next shot while Edmund covered for their gap with his gun. They had planned to shot continuously by making a rotation, but they had lost too many people to do that.

Selv blinked once and made his move. It was impossible for him to dodge the arrows without taking damage. So, he grabbed the corpse of his late friend. Without batting an eye, he used him as a shield as if it was the most natural thing to do.

Dozens of arrows pierce his body while none reached Selv.

“Tch!”

Edmund shot but was unable to do make more than a scratch. Done with the volley, Selv threw the body high above.

He ran up the wall using momentum. Once he was at his limit, the body he had thrown was in a nice position. So, he jumped to it, using it as a stepping platform, he went back to the wall and ran for another few steps. He was close to the surface.

“Fire!”

A point-blank shot.

Selv made a leap, sacrificing his defense. Arrows stuck to his shoulder, body, arm, leg. In exchange, he reached his target. His sword pierced through one of the people. He twisted it to lock it in place and swung him down the hole. With that momentum, he changed place with him and let go of the sword.

Blood came out from every movement he makes. His step made red footmark. He lost his sword, but got out from the hole.

That spelled defeat for Edmund and his people.

“Damn it. It’s not over yet. Dropped him again!”

It was a desperate plea. Nevertheless, people obeyed him. They could not afford to fail here; not in the last phase.

They were also trained for close combat. Common guards with weapons would still have a hard time against them. Pushing someone to a hole again should not be a problem. But, their opponent was bad.

Selv moved first. Unlike when he first came, he chose an aggressive approach. He no longer waits for his opponent’s move.

Splashing marks around, he blinded his opponent and palmed his chin. A shock went through his head, leaving him unconscious.

Then, he pushed the body to another person. Both fell into the hole.

A crossbow happened to fell right into him, so he took the liberty to throw it at his enemy. It was blocked. So, he took the gap between his stance to crushed his eyes. From the scream, it was a woman. Yet, there was no hesitation or guilt in his action. He took the falling crossbow and smashed it to her head. She stopped moving.

A loud noise and another hole appeared on his body. But, it was not vital.

“Damn it!”

Edmund continued his shot but Selv used people as his shield again, killing the poor person. He ran out of bullets.

In the end, Selv was able to kill everyone except Edmund and May by the time he finished reloading. The time taken was less than five minutes because they were gathered in one place.

Edmund and May, who had seen the hopeless situation half-way through, took some distance away from him. In their hands were long-range weapons.

“It seems we underestimated his curse,” May said in a calm tone. But, the sweat on her forehead and high heartbeat spoke truly of her state.

“What do you mean?”

Edmund silently moved in front of her while pointing the gun at Selv.

“We knew he was cursed so he would cling to life, which made him unable to take his own life. But, to think it even works when he’s unconscious.,” May said, unleashing an arrow. “That person sure did something troublesome.”

“That explains his terrible actions. There’s no way Father would do such an inhuman thing without batting an eye.”

Yes. Selv was cursed. It was something unthinkable for an age where magic had gone, replaced with technology. But, in the past where it was his time, curses were something common.

A curse that makes someone will sleep for eternity. A curse that makes someone has to drink blood daily. A curse which makes someone kill their loved one. Many curses existed with their prices from a severe headache to death depend on how powerful they were.

As for Selv, it was the curse of living. He has to keep living with his flawed immortality for eternity or until someone ended his life. The price was clear and obvious; his freedom.

He could not choose where and when to die. Because of the curse, he was forced to endure the harsh, merciless, and coldness effect of time. The type of suffering humans was most unsuitable against.

One could only imagine and not understand his pain. After all, humans were not made to live long enough to taste the pain of immortality. The one who could emphasize the most was the strange demon priest, Pierre.

Once stood as someone who fights demons because they could not understand each other, he now found them as his emphasizer. What is this if not irony?

As for the way to break a curse. Weak curses could be broken with will-power. While on the other hand, powerful curses need to be removed by the caster, using the magic potion of highest quality, or magic user stronger than the caster.

Unfortunately, the one on Selv was a powerful one. Now that the world had declined in magic, the way to cure him using such methods was unlikely.

“So, what are we gonna do?” May said, reloading her crossbow while Edmund cover fire.

“It’s an attrition fight. He won’t stay long with those wounds. We will keep this distance and wait for him to run out of energy,” Edmund replied while keeping Selv busy dodging bullets.

“Don’t you think its about time for a tactical retreat?”

“You must be kidding. We couldn’t retreat after going this far. There’s no second chance, May,” he said with a higher tone at the end as he shot a weapon away from Selv. It was a close call. “We won’t be able to gain their corporation again. So, it’s now or never!”

Sweats poured like a waterfall despite only a little time had passed. His free hand trembled regardless of his effort to suppress it. Keeping his dominant hand from obscuring his accuracy was the best he could do. Nevertheless, his concentration was high.

Once driven to the corner, people have two choices; run or fight. By nature, humans always seek comfort so most people will choose to run. However, he chose otherwise. He will not run away.

It was his trait.

In a situation where there was no hope for reinforcement, back against the wall, and no chance for another try, he would unleash his full potential.

The trait of heroes. The trait of the protagonist. There were many names for it. But, it could be summed into: The bravery to face the problem head-on and the power to overcome it.

This was one of the reasons Selv favorited him.

“if you want to back down, now is the time. It’s not too late,” he said with concern. It came back as a giggle.

“You got to be kidding. You know I won’t back down alone,” she said, shooting arrows from her reloaded crossbow. “I will always stay by your side.”

“Because father asked you to?”

“Because I chose to do so,” she said with a grin.

That caused his concentration to waver and made a mistake. But, May was there to cover him.

“Suit yourself.”

Edmund looked away. No more words were exchanged. There was no need to.

When one made a mistake, the other would cover. Their timing and breath were in synch. They knew what the other was thinking.

One shot after another. Selv was helpless in front of their combination. He wasn’t able to take a step closer without getting injured.

A repetition.

Their one-sided fight continued for a long few minutes. Selv finally fell to his knee. He had lost a dangerous amount of blood.

Edmund and May began to feel the wind of victory blew their way. Still, they kept their guard up.

It was then, a change occurred.

“Ed…mund.”

A hoarse voice came from Selv. It was a low but powerful voice.

The suddenness caused Edmund and May to stop. Had he come to? They thought. Never would they know that this was their first mistake.

“Is this… how you replay me? You, who… I picked from the… slum,” he said with a strange way of speaking.

Edmund was shaken. His words gouged his heart apart like an alien coming out from their host. He knew. He had known all along. There was a chance for Selv to say those words to him. Still, it hurts, so much the pain from biting his lips was pale in comparison.

“Ed, don’t listen to him. He’s just trying to catch you off guard,” May warned, anxiety in her words.

“I know. I know!” He shouted. Both were to convince himself. Even so, the guilt had slipped in and run amok. There was no way to stop the pain, not anymore.

“Even if it’s only empty words from a curse using father’s body, I still couldn’t ignore his words.”

Edmund held his chest with disarrayed breath.

“Shame… shame on you! Disgraceful child!”

Unable to bear it further, May shot and hit his shoulder.

“It hurts. It hurts, Edmund!”

May knitted her eyebrows. Her eyes sharped, looking down on something even lower than trash. She was disgusted and angry at the curse that made him like that. To her, Selv was someone not like the pitiful, coward thing in front of her.

Yes, it was not Selv but something else. It was a thing. An ‘It’.

So, she had prepared to deal the finishing blow that will comes after the cheap technique. And, it was as she had expected.

While screaming pain, it rushed toward them without minding the wounds and blood. It was a reckless abandon. It decided to bet everything on this.

May shot its leg and slowed it down. Now was a good chance it delivers the killing blow. She was out of arrow, so she handled the rest to Edmund. But, it did not come.

Edmund stood there, mind on the cloud. He missed his chance. By the time he noticed, it was too late.

“Shit!”

He panicked. In his eyes were the shadow of death.

“Ed!”

May unsheathed the dagger she kept under her robe and went between them. She swung her dagger but was caught and used against her. After breaking her hand, it pressed the dagger on her neck.

“May!”

It became a stalemate. Edmund was able to finish it if he ignored May who became hostage while it held May’s life in its hand.

“Don’t mind me. Shoot!” May shouted with a voice of determination. She was hopeless and did not want to be her burden. That was why she ordered him to kill her with it.

Edmund hesitated. His mind processed the situation in high speed. He was forced into a situation where he had to scale between May and goal.

May knew he wouldn’t be able to find the only correct answer immediately. After all, he was a kind man. Kind enough to feel pain from others lost. But, she believed he would do the right thing.

And, he replied to her expectation.

After turmoiled by it, he convinced himself that it was for the best. So, he placed his finger on the trigger.

But, he was too late.

It had cut May’s throat and threw her away.

Without thinking, Edmund’s body moved. He grabbed May’s body and hugged her. It was a bad move, worst even. However, what could he possibly do? His body was too honest for its own good. So, he was struck from behind as the result.

Both of them fell with blood around them. They were on the verge of dying. Given enough time they would die on their own.

It, however, still thought them as threats. Discarding the dulled knife, he picked up Edmund’s gun.

The safety was off and with this distance, even an amateur will hit the target. It put its finger on the trigger. But, a sharp pain assaulted its back.

Confused, it turned its head.

A young girl was reflected in its eyes. A young, immature, naïve child. Yet, the strong look on her eyes and the knife embedded in its body said otherwise.

Fear was there. Why wouldn’t it? She was facing a thing that massacred a group of trained people in a short amount of time. Not having fear would make her abnormal.

But, even so. She chose to fight her fear and did that. Nely felt she would regret if she did not act.

It did not recognize her as an enemy. That was why it had forgotten about her. Not anymore.

It shook her off with a swing of its arm, making her tasted the ground. The gun immediately pointed her way. The target had changed. She was judged more as a threat than the dying two.

Nely was helpless as she stood on the line of fire. Yet, she did not dear it.

Then, at the same time, the trigger was pulled, two shadows jumped in. One went between the line of fire while the other one changed the direction of the gun above.

“Se.lv!”

A boy with a lump of metal resumed the fight.

“…”

A man who wore a military uniform just stood as the fight unfold.

Nely opened her eyes in disbelief. She hadn’t expected her father and Scond would come just at that moment. It was too convenient as if planned.

“You have done something stupid…”

On the ground, away from the fight, May said with a weak voice. It was feeble as a candle fire on the verge of disappearing.

“I’m sorry. My body moved on its own,” Edmund replied with a gentle tone. His state was bad but not as much as her. he was still able to reply to her without difficulty.

“May, sorry. I wasted everyone’s effort in the end.”

“You sure did…” May said with a weak smile. Despite her words, she did not blame him for it. Rather, she felt the opposite.

“But, thank you… For receiving me.”

“Don’t mind it. You should thank my body for it.”

“Thank you.”

It was a meaningless trivial conversation. But, it managed to bloom a smile on their face. Their weak bodies were feeling the warmth of each other’s blood and words.

Soon, the sound of fighting grew distant and no longer entered their ears. Still, they exchanged words. Each word spread warmth to their bodies that grew colder every second. As they did, their hearts became closer, more than they thought it could.

Edmund and May realized both of them did not have much time left. It might be five minute or even one-minute left until their eternal farewell. That was why they decided to feel each other as much as possible as time forbids.

How much time had passed? Finally, coldness came.

May was the first to depart. She lost her ability to speak any further at some point and just looked at Edmund while he talked of trivial things in their memories. Then, she silently closed her eyes and took her last breath with a smile. There was no regret on her face.

Until the very end, she did not convey her feeling to him. But, that was fine. There was no longer reason to do that. The linked hands were the proof.

Edmund’s time was also coming near. His eyelids were telling him to sleep so he won’t make her wait for long.

But, he could not do that, not yet. It was because he still had one appointment left.

“Hey there, Gilbert…”

The man had watched them for a while without saying anything. Nely on his side was crying river as she watched them met their end.

The fight had long finished. Scond had defeated it. The end was faster and plainer than anyone had thought. It ran out of bullet and reached its limit. So, Scond was able to finish it rather quickly.

Then, as if waiting for this chance, several people rushed into the scene and carried the dying Selv away. As they speak, he was being treated somewhere.

“Sorry to involve you and your daughter in this. And, thank you…” he said. His voice was much weaker than a few minutes ago.

Gilbert watched as he continued.

“It’s as you said, I failed. I’m sorry to waste your assistance and have to leave the rest to you.”

“It’s the usual. Just like the old times,” Gilbert said and knelt, not minding dirtying his clothe form the blood, so he won’t miss any word.

“Haha, I guess you’re right,” Edmund replied with a laugh. “Hey, is your daughter there? I can’t no longer see anything.”

“Yes. She’s beside me.”

Gilbert signaled her to come closer. She did and took a step into the red pool.

“Nely, was it? Forgive me for forcing you to take the role of a bait. I hope you aren’t unpleased by that,” he said with a gentle tone.

Nely could not reply him, so she furiously shook her head to deny his words, splashing her tears around while at it. Unfortunately, the man had lost his ability to see. So, Gilbert conveyed her will instead.

“I see. That’s good to hear.”

Once he said that his conscious swayed. He momentarily lost his vision, hearing, and sense of touch altogether. It seemed sandman and reaper had joined hands to take him. But, he still hadn’t said the most important thing.

With will alone, he chained his conscious to the earth for an additional time.

“Gilbert, please tell father… I’m sorry for being weak.”

A drop of tear flowed down his cheeks. It was the only regret he had.

Done, he stopped resisting and his conscious was taken by the reaper while eyes were half-opened.

“I accepted your message,” Gilbert said, closing his eyes fully. “Although our ways are different, the goal is the same. Have a good rest, my friend. I promise you that I free you of your regret.”

He closed his eyes and lowered his head, paying him the last respect.

In an abandoned warehouse, watched over by his best friend and his daughter, drowning in his important person’s blood, the curtain was lowered for Edmund’s story.