When Alex opened his eyes again, his vision swam in and out of focus. His head felt oddly heavy yet warm, and something soft was beneath it. For a moment, he thought he was dreaming until he caught a familiar scent — subtle lavender mixed with the faint metallic tang of mana.

'Wait… this smell… this softness… no way.'

Just as he was about to shift, the warmth disappeared, and his head smacked against the hard wooden bench with a dull thud.

"Ow—! Damn it!" Alex yelled, clutching the back of his head as he glared up. "What the hell, Evelyn!? You could've at least let me wake up properly before committing attempted murder!"

Evelyn, standing beside the bench with her arms crossed, simply looked down at him. Her expression was calm as always, but there was the faintest trace of amusement in her eyes. "You were drooling," she said matter-of-factly.

Alex froze mid-rant, his brain refusing to process that sentence. "I—what? No, I wasn't!"

"You were."

He felt heat creep up his face. "You're lying!"

Evelyn shrugged slightly. "Believe what you want."

Alex groaned, rubbing his temples before sitting up straight. "Do you have any idea what I went through just now? I took you on that roller coaster five times because—" He pointed dramatically toward the enormous metal structure in the distance, still spinning and glittering with mana lights.

"Because that ride isn't some normal theme park attraction! It's built using hybrid mana-tech engineering. The rails are infused with Aetherium circuits, and the carriages use gravitational distortion arrays to amplify g-force tenfold.

It was literally designed to scare even awakened individuals out of their minds! You know what that means, right? It's so intense that even high-rank combat specialists feel their souls leaving their bodies mid-ride!"

Evelyn blinked slowly, her face blank. "...So you dragged me onto a high-grade mana torture machine for fun?"

Alex's mouth opened, then closed again. "N-No! I mean—yes—but not like that! I thought it'd be... thrilling!"

Her lips curved upward ever so slightly, forming that smug grin that haunted Alex's pride. It was subtle, but it screamed, 'I'm better than you.'

Alex's eye twitched. 'Oh no. Nope. Not again. I'm not losing to this expressionless maniac!'

The system's voice echoed in his head. [You already did, my pathetic host.]

'Shut up, useless! Not now!'

He slumped back against the bench and sighed heavily. "Forget it... these days, nothing's going the way I want it to anyway."

For a brief moment, there was silence. The sound of laughter from nearby rides and the faint music of mana-fueled speakers filled the air. Evelyn simply watched him, her usual composed expression softening just a little.

Before Alex could even finish catching his breath, he turned to her and asked, "So... what was that important thing you wanted to—"

Before he could finish, Evelyn pointed toward the far end of the park. "Let's go on that."

Alex followed her finger and froze. Standing tall against the evening sky was a massive Ferris wheel, its cabins glowing softly with multicolored light.

"You've got to be kidding me..." he muttered, dread filling his voice.

Evelyn didn't reply, her gaze locked on the ride, a faint glimmer of nostalgia flickering in her eyes.

'Great,' Alex thought, dragging a hand down his face. 'From the roller coaster of death to the wheel of emotional torment.'

He sighed in surrender. "Fine. But that's the last one, got it? After that, I'm heading home before I collapse again."

Evelyn simply nodded, and the two walked toward the Ferris wheel. She paid for the tickets—again—and they stepped into one of the cabins. The doors closed with a soft click, and the wheel began its slow ascent.

The city lights sparkled below them like stars scattered across the ground. For a while, neither spoke, the silence strangely peaceful.

Finally, Alex broke it. "So... what was the important thing you wanted to talk about?"

Evelyn turned to face him, her tone calm but her eyes distant. "You remember six months ago, when I told you strange memories from the Age of Gods started appearing in my head—memories I don't remember ever experiencing?"

"Yeah," Alex nodded. "What about it?"

Evelyn took a deep breath before continuing. "Since then, I've been having dreams. In them... there's a girl who looks exactly like me, and a guy who looks like you. They're always together — fighting side by side, walking through cities, sometimes even laughing together. And every time I wake up, it feels... too real."

Alex leaned back slightly, studying her face. "And?"

Her fingers curled slightly against her knees as she spoke softly. "Ever since those dreams started, I've been feeling strange whenever I see you."

Alex blinked, confusion etched on his face. "Strange? Like how?"

Evelyn hesitated, then looked him directly in the eyes. "Like... wanting to kiss you."

Alex's brain froze. His breath hitched, and for a second, time stopped. "W-what...?"

Her face didn't change. She said it again, calmly, almost too casually. "Like wanting to kiss you. Spend more time with you. And sometimes, I hate seeing you with other girls too."

Alex stared at her blankly. 'Did she just confess? No, no, no... I must still be dizzy from the roller coaster. Yeah, that's it. Hallucination caused by G-force trauma!'

He tried to speak but only managed, "Are you... are you confess—"

Before he could finish, Evelyn placed her finger gently against his lips, silencing him. "Stop right there."

Alex froze completely, his heart thundering in his chest.

"I didn't tell you this to get an answer," she said softly. "I just... couldn't keep it in anymore. Keeping these feelings locked away was crushing me. But now that I've said it, I feel lighter — like the burden's finally gone."

She looked away, her voice quieter now. "I don't want to complicate your life, Alex. I just wanted you to know."

The Ferris wheel reached its peak, the cabin bathed in the golden light of sunset. Alex looked at her in silence — for once, truly speechless. She looked... vulnerable, something he'd never seen before.

Taking a deep breath, he finally spoke. "To be honest, I'm kind of shocked. But... if saying it helps you feel better, then I'm glad you told me. I'm not really good at this sort of thing. I'm still trying to figure my own life out and relationships in it after... everything. But, if you ever feel burdened or need someone to talk to, I'll be there — as a friend, at least."

Evelyn turned to him and smiled faintly. "That's fine by me."

Then, with a straight face, she added, "By the way, I paid for all the rides today. Since this wasn't a date, you owe me half."

Alex blinked. "...What?"

"Love means caring, but friendship means sharing," she said calmly.

A vein popped on Alex's forehead. 'Oh come on! I just went through emotional damage and now she's billing me!?'

Before he could retort, a sudden, crushing pain erupted in his chest. His vision blurred, his mana flaring uncontrollably as he fell to his knees, coughing up blood.

"Alex!" Evelyn shouted, catching him by the shoulders. Her expression turned from calm to pure panic. "What's happening!?"

Alex could barely breathe as his body trembled violently. His mana veins burned, surging out of control. Evelyn began chanting rapidly, weaving high-level healing magic, her hands glowing with divine light.

For a brief moment, the pain subsided... only to return, even worse than before.

Alex screamed, gripping his chest as blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.

The system's cold voice echoed inside his head.

[Host... bad news.]

Alex gritted his teeth, gasping. 'What... what is it...?'

[It looks like Azrael is about to be killed.]

Alex's eyes widened in shock. "Azrael...?" he whispered weakly before coughing more blood.

And far away, in a completely different place — a scene of carnage unfolded.

Azrael lay sprawled across shattered black earth, blood dripping from his lips, his body riddled with wounds. In front of him stood Silas Lan Varadis — the familiar spirit of Kyle Celestian — his eyes gleaming with cruel amusement.

Silas pressed his boot against Azrael's head, forcing him into the ground. "I still can't believe it," he said coldly. "Azrael, the failure of the royal family of the demonic realm... your father's greatest mistake. Tell me, how did you become so strong that even the demon realm trembles at your name?"

----

A/N:

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