Why am I still alive?

Even Huai Shi himself didn't know. He had forgotten who he was, where he was, and even what he was doing. All he did was try very hard to survive, attempting to rise from the ground, propping up his numb body, and stumbling forward, just like the countless times before. But he couldn't find his goal. He didn't even know if everything he was doing had any meaning.

For some reason, in his daze, he seemed to hear a familiar voice.

"...When the time comes, will you still treat us monsters equally, Huai Shi?"

"Will you save the innocent people?"

That distant voice asked softly, with compassion and hope, longing for his answer, "Will you still uphold Justice and reach out to help those who seek your aid?"

Even if this world treats you poorly.

Even if, many times, you are powerless and find that you can do nothing...

Even if everything you do is in vain.

"Huai Shi, will you still become a Hero?"

"That is—of course!"

Huai Shi roared with all his might, stirring his shattered insides, desperately answering that voice. He endured the pain that made him want to cry and awkwardly took a step forward, then another.

"Don't be afraid, Luo Xian, I'm coming over..."

Towards the darkness, he reached out, wanting to touch that distant shadow.

As if abandoned by the entire world, she stood alone in the deepest part of the darkness, her pitch-black eyes reflecting the visage of Hell, silent, without a ripple. So lonely, as if she were about to leave this world.

Huai Shi opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but he couldn't make a sound. There was so much he wanted to tell Luo Xian, but he couldn't.

He wanted to tell her not to go. Don't venture into the Abyss. Please stay in the world of humans. Don't become a monster. Don't lose yourself...

"Please... don't be afraid."

Gazing at her face, so close, Huai Shi's lips struggled to part. Using the last of his strength, he raised his hands and gently embraced her.

Luo Xian was stunned. Feeling the warmth fading away, she lifted her eyes. Blankly looking at Huai Shi's shattered face, she saw a difficult smile curve on his dirt-covered face for the last time.

I've come to rescue you, Your Highness.

In the shadows beneath his feet, the waiting Yin Soul rose. Expending its last bit of Source Substance, it gripped the Sword of Virtue tightly in hand and thrust forward.

It pierced through Huai Shi's back and into Luo Xian's chest. A gentle glow lit up from the Sword Blade.

It flashed once, then dissipated without a trace.

...Is this all?

Luo Xian looked at that shattered face, bewildered and full of confusion. Would this trick work?

It wasn't novel or even particularly unique. At most, it was just a tactic for mutual destruction. But the strength Huai Shi had left wasn't even enough to pierce her heart.

A futile last struggle. Completely meaningless.

In that instant, darkness... erupted!

"You..."

Luo Xian froze on the spot, looking down incredulously at the blood flowing from the wound on her chest. Excruciating pain.

But this unprecedented agony was different from any before… clearer, more tangible, and even more unbearable. Even though the wound was merely a shallow line, from beneath this almost dust-like cut, a mournful wail of the Demon Dragon arose from her shattered Soul.

The Stigma trembled violently, then, along with the darkness, it shattered and collapsed.

Because something had come. It had descended into her shell.

Behind her, the fissure leading to the Abyss shook violently. Countless blurred figures shrieked in rage, recklessly lunging to break through the final barrier. However, as the tremors of darkness grew more ethereal, they quickly dissipated...

She stood frozen in place.

An unbearable pain erupted from her heart, which, for some reason, made her involuntarily fearful. It was as if... in the void of her Soul, something had sprouted, branched out and bloomed, and then swiftly bore fruit. The fruits fell from the branches, returning to the parched soil, bringing forth a fleeting sweetness, along with an unprecedented sense of loss and satisfaction.

It was too contradictory, too bizarre, and too frightening.

She wanted to possess it again, yet rather than possessing, she preferred to give something away. She wanted to reclaim it, yet rather than claiming, she longed to bestow something...

After a drop of water fell, it sparked a great upheaval, swallowing everything that once was.

From the lengthy void, the first sensations were bewilderment and confusion. Then, amidst a gentle expansion, she felt tenderness, compassion, and sympathy...

In the throes of despair, she experienced bliss as illusory as mirages.

And finally, amidst Sorrow and bitterness, she felt a joy and delight that terrified her.

Incredulous, completely incomprehensible.

What in the world…

When she came to her senses, she found herself sitting in the dust in a wretched state, no longer able to bear this cruel torment. Sobbing, she couldn't help but let tears flow as she screamed wretchedly, "What in the world is this?!"

"Silly child."

Huai Shi raised his hand to wipe the dust from her face, gently telling her, "This is love, of course."

In this cruel world, besides love, what else could possibly conquer slaughter and death?

His chest, pierced and torn by the Sword Blade, bore the last trace of a weak glow... so tender, so serene.

This is what you longed for, Luo Xian.

The final Source Substance transformed by the Hand of Confinement, born from the Soul through the pain and despair—pure compassion. Offering without seeking anything in return, devotion without harming anyone, aid without seeking compensation, and redemption without waiting for gratitude...

Luo Xian looked up blankly, her lips quivering. For the first time, she felt the warmth of a palm on her cheek, and the joy and contentment in the young man's smile.

"How despicable, Huai Shi, to ambush me like that." She lifted her head, fighting back tears and gasping with difficulty. "Couldn't you act like a proper Prince just once?"

"Sorry, Your Highness."

Huai Shi smiled regretfully. "Times have changed. These days, a 'shameless and despicable' Prince is a bit more popular."

"That's why, just because of that… you've been unable to find a girlfriend…"

Luo Xian sobbed, but she could no longer restrain the overwhelming Sorrow and joy flooding her heart. Tightly embracing the young man in front of her, she broke down into tears, like a little child.

She had finally found the way back home.

Tears slid down her cheeks, washing away the dust, falling into Huai Shi's palm, like dewdrops into a desert.

In his daze, Huai Shi seemed to glimpse the relentlessly collapsing darkness behind Luo Xian, and in the deepest reaches of that darkness, the gradually fading regal silhouette. In a flash before departing, she cast toward Huai Shi a look that seemed indifferent, unclear whether it was approval or anger. Then she disappeared into the collapsing rift, never to be seen again.

It seems I have... won.

Huai Shi mustered a wry smile, closed his eyes, and fell backward.

In the grip of unbearable weariness and dizziness, he finally embraced death.

This was the outcome of the duel.

The Prince saved the Princess.

Love conquered all.

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