Chapter 48: The Last Time

For a moment, Alet felt his world spinning.

Watching the two companion dragons slowly begin to move again as they emerged from their icy seal, he stood frozen. He made no move to counterattack, nor did he have any intention of running away.

“Hehe…”

He let out a weak, dry laugh, the muscles beneath his armor trembling uncontrollably.

In the end, he had failed to accomplish anything.

“Forget about things going back to the way they were…”

“It’s just ridiculous…”

“I was the one being sentimental all along.”

“To her, I don’t even compare to a bit of mana that she can recover at any time.”

“Hehe…”

“Hehe… HAHAHAHAHAHAHA — “

He muttered softly to himself for a while before suddenly snapping his head back, laughing with wild, unrestrained abandon.

It was a laugh born of despair, yet laced with a sense of relief and release.

“Cough, cough… *Urgh*…”

However, his laughter was short-lived as he began to cough violently.

With every spasm, Alet felt as if his internal organs were being wrenched apart, sending waves of excruciating pain through his body.

After a bout of dry heaving triggered by the coughing, he felt something warm spray from his nose and mouth.

Wiping it away with his armguard, he could just barely make out what it was through his blurred vision —

Blood.

Thick, dark red blood was slowly seeping through the gaps in his visor.

It dripped onto the scorched earth, evaporating instantly in the high temperature and leaving behind ugly, shriveled red stains.

Alet knew his life was coming to an end.

He was covered in heavy injuries, his mana was almost completely depleted, his companions had abandoned him, and he was left to face two vigorous companion dragons alone.

Now, even just standing was a struggle for Alet.

He had no mana, let alone the time to use healing magic to stabilize his condition.

He didn’t have the strength to run.

As for fighting back, that was completely impossible.

On the edge of his blurry vision, several teams crossed the Sea of Gold, rushing toward the Fire Dragon’s Lair.

Regardless of their size, they moved as complete units.

No one was abandoned; no one was left behind.

Alet felt like an anomaly.

His team had left him.

He had been abandoned by Melro.

He had been forsaken by the entire world.

‘What am I still struggling for?’

The final sliver of conviction that had sustained Alet’s actions shattered.

His body felt like a mechanical shell that had lost its power source, completely unable to move.

‘She… can’t change back to the way she was.’

‘I’m going to die anyway.’

‘Is there any point in trying anymore?’

At that moment, despair felt like a massive black hole, ruthlessly extinguishing Alet’s fire-like will to survive.

‘Let it be.’

‘Come on, give me a quick death…’

He slowly turned his dull eyes toward the nearby companion dragons and lowered his head.

Even if he ran away, what would be the point?

It would only extend his meaningless life by a few dozen minutes, only for him to die in a more pathetic state later.

Just as Alet was about to close his eyes and await his end, his blurry vision caught sight of something.

It was his breastplate.

Beneath the countless deep and shallow scars on the metal, something seemed to be faintly visible.

There were slight indentations that shimmered under the firelight.

Unlike the jagged, irregular scars, these marks were perfectly straight and even beautiful. It looked like an intentional design.

‘This is…’

Even though Alet wanted to give up, a residual spark of curiosity drove him to shift his gaze and look closer.

As his weak eyes finally managed to focus, he saw what it was —

A pattern.

A pattern engraved in the shape of a White Rose.

The engraving was exquisite, clearly crafted with great care.

Alet remembered.

This was something the Miss had engraved on a whim while she was forging this mana armor for him.

Suddenly, memories of the past began to replay in his mind.

“Hey, Alet. Your armor is finished.”

“You’re quite obedient, aren’t you? Following my advice to become a Heavy Knight… not bad.”

“Look here, I specifically engraved a White Rose for you. It’s my family’s crest.”

“Since you’ve accepted the armor I forged, you have to serve me loyally for the rest of your life.”

…

“Miss…”

“…Melro.”

Staring at the White Rose pattern, Alet weakly raised his pain-riddled right hand.

Then, just before he could touch it, he slowly lowered his hand again. It was as if he were afraid of the thorns depicted beneath the rose.

Finally, he reopened his eyes and looked forward.

By now, the two companion dragons had fully regained their mobility and were roaring as they lunged toward him!

‘One last time.’

‘I will show my loyalty to you one last time.’

‘I’ll put an end to everything from the past.’

‘And let my name as a Knight reach its conclusion.’

After finishing his silent vow, Alet slowly crouched down.

His torn muscles suddenly exerted force, spraying out bursts of thick, tainted blood.

With a sharp, metallic screech, Alet forced himself to drag the Great Sword up from the ground.

In the next instant, the two companion dragons pounced onto his armor. They treated the thick iron plates like tin cans, easily tearing through them with sharp claws and teeth.

Very quickly, the flesh beneath was exposed.

Just as they were about to feast on his flesh and kill him once and for all —

A hard, crystalline shell with a faint yellow tint appeared over Alet’s entire body.

At the cost of burning further into his life force, he squeezed every last drop of mana from his body to cast **Quartzification**.

Then, Alet turned his gaze to his surroundings.

He was currently at the entrance of a cavern.

He was surrounded by rock walls, with a single, slender stone pillar supporting this narrow hall.

With a single glance, he identified his target.

“You disgusting reptiles…”

“DIE!”

After spitting out his final words, Alet suddenly swung the Great Sword in his hands, smashing it violently against the stone pillar.

With the heavy impact of the blade, the entire pillar snapped and shattered on the spot.

A massive roar echoed through the hall, sounding like a burst of primal rage.

Barely 2 seconds later, the cavern collapsed.

Countless massive boulders rained down from the ceiling like a torrential storm, sealing off both the entrance and the exit.

Realizing their lives were in danger, the two companion dragons instantly abandoned their prey and tried to bolt for the entrance.

But it was futile. In an instant, they were buried under rock and soil, vanishing without a trace.

As for Alet, having finished his task, he lay exhausted on the ground. Within his broken body, he waited for death to claim him.

‘A Knight dying in a Dungeon…’

‘I suppose it’s a fitting end.’

Thinking this, he slowly closed his eyes, waiting for the rocks and soil to crush him and turn him into a mess of mangled flesh.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

The roar of the collapse continued, but Alet felt nothing.

He could still hear the sound of his own heart beating.

Even the wounds on his body had stopped hurting.

‘Strange…’

‘Am I already dead?’

His brow furrowed slightly as he slowly opened his eyes.

However, the sight before him completely exceeded his expectations.

A graceful figure stood in front of him.

Mana shimmered in her hands as she used a massive defensive barrier to block every rock falling from above.

It was Vivian.

The Witch, Vivian.

While Alet was still dazed, she was the first to speak.

“Hey, Knight.”

“That Melro… she’s really awful, isn’t she?”

“Tell you what, I’m feeling merciful today. If you call me Miss…”

“I’ll take you home. How about it?”