“NOOOOOOO!”
‘You can’t die, you can’t die, you can’t die, you can’t die, you can’t die, you can’t die, you can’t die.’
Sylvie’s mind was locked in a harrowing chant of desperation. Over and over, the mantra repeated, ‘You can’t die, you can’t die.’ Each word is a fervent plea, each iteration an attempt to fend off the looming abyss.
With closed eyes, Sylvie bit her lip so fiercely that blood welled up and dripped onto the ground, but the pain was inconsequential. It was the pain within her heart, the unbearable squeeze of despair, that consumed her entirely.
The girl who had finally found her resolve was about to fail once again.
‘You can’t die, you can’t die.’
Like a broken doll, she repeatedly willed inside her head to open her eyes. Her hand slowly moved to the cheek of the lying boy, and as she touched his skin, she felt the coldness.
‘You can’t die, you can’t die.’
And then, without Sylvie’s conscious awareness, a radiant aura began to emanate from her being.
Her strong emotions…Her trait was responding to that—the [First Lord’s Authority].
In response to her desperate plea, a miracle unfolded. The lost light, like a flame reigniting from the embers, returned to Astron’s body. The line between life and death blurred, and Sylvie lost herself in the process.
She didn’t have any awareness about what she was doing as she simply used her mana like a madman.
Her hands moved, guided by an otherworldly force.
The internal bleeding slowly abated, and damaged tissues began to mend under her ministrations. It was meticulous work, precise and skillful, beyond what one would expect from a novice healer.
But Sylvie’s healing wasn’t limited to just the injuries she could see.
With her mana, yellow tendrils extended from her hands, reaching for Astron’s severed arm. The reconnection was a complex endeavor involving blood vessels, nerves, muscles, and bones.
Her actions appeared as if a master healer was at work, performing a surgical miracle. She painstakingly ensured that every element aligned perfectly, leaving no room for error. When the arm was seamlessly reconnected, only one step remained.
The loss of blood Astron had suffered had rendered his internal organs nonfunctional, a critical condition that often led to death. Yet, Sylvie was beyond such limitations. A miracle, one of the rarest occurrences, was unfolding before her very eyes.
Her luminous mana enveloped Astron, suffusing his entire being. It was as though she were weaving together the threads of life, stitching the very essence of his existence back together.
As Sylvie’s mana encompassed Astron’s form and body, she channeled her power with unwavering focus.
The miracle unfolded before her, almost as if she were breathing life back into his frail body. It was a race against time, a desperate attempt to regenerate his lost blood and ensure his survival.
Gradually, she sensed the light returning to Astron’s body, a sign that the life force within him was rekindling.
The coldness that had once dominated his skin gave way to a gentle warmth, spreading from her hands to every corner of his body. The sensation was like a rekindled ember igniting a fire.
‘Ah…..’
And because she felt the warmth in her hand, she slowly started coming to her senses. The trance she had slowly shattered as she felt the world once again.
‘He is finally okay.’
She thought, a small smile tugging on her lips.
The moment Sylvie confirmed Astron’s breathing had stabilized, she knew she had succeeded.
“Thank goodness…..”
However, the monumental effort had drained her beyond measure. Her vision blurred, and her consciousness wavered.
“Astron….”
With the last remnants of her strength, she whispered Astron’s name, her voice a fragile breath in the dim dungeon.
THUD!
Then, like a falling petal, she descended upon him, her chest rising and falling with the shallow rhythm of her breath.
Her journey to save a life had taken its toll, and Sylvie succumbed to the weight of her exhaustion, her body a fragile vessel of hope that had achieved the miraculous.
It was the day the future Saintess had been finally awakened…. ((N1))
******
After she gave her encouragement to Sylvie, the instructor left her to calm herself. She was proficient in dealing with students, so she knew being with Sylvie wouldn’t help her much.
‘I hope she can make it.’
She thought. The girl clearly had a trauma in her past, something that was holding her back.
‘I wish I had chosen someone more competent.’
She urgently picked someone in a hurry, thus she didn’t have any chance to choose. And now, because of her negligence, the student Astron was in danger.
‘I guess there is no need to regret it.’
However, contrary to her thoughts and assumptions, suddenly, she could feel the psions inside the barrier moving.
“She really did it.”
There, the instructor turned her head and started watching the entire scene unfold with bated breath, witnessing the remarkable healing performed by the young Sylvie.
‘I guess I owe her an apology.’
Her heart swelled both with pride and a little conscience as she saw the girl’s determination and her innate talent for healing. “What is this?”
But as Astron’s condition improved, she noticed something extraordinary happening.
A radiant pillar of light began to rise from Sylvie, extending high into the dark dungeon ceiling. It was a sight she had never seen in all her years of being a Hunter and instructing.
“This?”
Immense amounts of energy were spreading from the shiny light. Her eyes widened as she recognized the significance of the luminous pillar.
It was a clear sign that something extraordinary, something almost divine, had occurred. The instructor had known a lot of healers in her career, and she knew that such phenomena were not to be taken lightly.
The fact that the girl who wasn’t able to move from fear just now was able to create such a phenomenon itself made it clear that she was someone special.
Someone with a different talent.
“Someone that could be one of the [Venerate] in the future.”
And the moment she noticed that fact, suddenly she felt slight envy.
‘I guess some people are born special.’
She couldn’t help but shake her head after having such thoughts.
‘What am I thinking? Am I a child?’
With a sense of self-reprimanding, she approached Sylvie, whose unconscious form lay next to the now-stable Astron.
“She really did save him.”
She knew that the academy and the world at large would be forever changed by this event and the young healer who had saved a life in the most extraordinary way possible.
“I guess she can rest a little.”
With that thought, she grabbed the two youngsters lying on the ground and started leaving the dungeon while looking at the sky.
“I suddenly wish I was young now…..”
********
It was said that when you are about to die, you would see your life flashing before your eyes.
The things you wanted to do, the things you wished to achieve, the things you had regretted—they would all come to your mind.
And as death approached, you would want to live; you would be scared.
In a world filled with countless powerful individuals, death would be everywhere, surrounding everyone.
Unless you are strong or prepared for it, it can take your life at any second.
And I know I am not strong.
Not strong enough to achieve my goals, not strong enough to avoid death.
Therefore, I was prepared for it, prepared for the dangers I would encounter.
Or not.
No, that was wrong; I was wrong.
I wasn’t prepared enough.
I was arrogant.
I was careless.
Looking at the white ceiling, those were the thoughts that passed from my head.
‘I almost lost my life.’
Remembering what happened in the dungeon, I clenched my hands.
‘I was careless.’
The fact that just because nothing had happened in the game, I disregarded the possibility of demon contractors moving into the academy….
The fact that I was arrogant enough to think I could defeat all the students on my own…
Looking back at things, it all stemmed from my own actions.
‘I should have known the things I did would bite me back.’
This world might have been based on a game.
But, from the moment I, as a variable, acted differently, things were bound to change.
“Lady Miller sends her regards.”
The words of that bastard echoed in my head, the demon contractors.
“Miller.”
The name was familiar; it was someone I knew pretty well.
“Dylan.”
The leader of the bullies, the bulky kid who was played at the hands of a girl and became a simp.
“It must be his mother.”
He was just an extra, a random character who acted like a bully. Thus, I thought if I erased him from this world, nothing would happen.
“They sought revenge.”
But I should have expected it.
‘Someone with such a personality is bound to take it from his parents.’
“Revenge.”
The word that defined my sole purpose of living.
“If I die before doing that, for what reason she left this world.”
At that time, I used a special mixture I had saved in the place of my teeth to stall time. I knew there might have been a situation where I couldn’t access my spatial bracelet or grab a potion.
Thus, I pulled one of my teeth out and then put a pill there.
‘If not for that, I would have died.’
Looking at the side, I could see my arm was attached to it once again.
‘They must have brought a proficient healer for that.’
My arm was chopped off, and the demonic energy must have corroded that. Thus, without a high-ranking healer, I wouldn’t have the arm with me.
As I looked at my hand, I remembered the fight.
The way the dagger broke, the way I was helpless when I didn’t have the element of surprise on my side.
‘I know what I am lacking.’
Now that mid-terms had finished, the academy would finally enter the break time.
‘It is about time I get my weapon.’
The dagger broke, and I still couldn’t utilize my trait properly.
‘However, before that, I need to deal with some rats.’
Looking at the small green tendril connecting me, I clenched my teeth.
‘Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.’
———————-A/N——————-