"This normally takes five minutes. We need to hold on a little longer."

Seraph yelled.

Rascal Land was covered in freezing white smoke, with rumblings that shook the earth, trembling the castle walls, and even reaching Inferno Moist. Agonizing screams echoed from the distance, dreadful and haunting, as though the smoke itself inflicted torture.

The moat surrounding the castle was already freezing despite the protection of Liam's feathers, dozens of them, each stretching about six feet tall, arranged in countless numbers to shield the castle from the freezing smoke.

Liam had nearly lost all his feathers, draining him more severely than anything they'd witnessed. He hunched at the castle entrance, breathing heavily. Even something as simple as rolling his eyes seemed to require too much effort. He was on the verge of collapse.

Tough and Light took the front, trying to intercept the Absolute Sinner before it could shatter the feathers. Sunday guarded the rear, behind the barrier.

Seraph ignited her hands with flames that burned away her own flesh. Despite healing herself constantly, her regenerative ability couldn't quite keep pace with the flames. But she held it, guiding the heat into the wind, trying to warm the deadly cold.

Halo, meanwhile, stood atop one of the castle's towers. His eyes scanned the smoke-covered land thoroughly, prepared to alert everyone the moment the Absolute Sinner approached or made any aggressive move.

They had no idea what freezing would do to the castle. Maybe nothing… maybe it would melt at dawn. But they couldn't gamble on that. The gods were watching, and failure would offend them.

The smoke barely reached five feet high, low enough that Halo should have been able to see the Absolute Sinner clearly. Yet despite keeping watch for three minutes, he still couldn't determine where the creature was.

He heard Sinners screaming to their deaths, as though cursing their own cruel fate, and the hollow yet powerful voice of the Absolute Sinner, which somehow suggested the creature was relieved, as if grateful for this destiny.

Each second made him feel as though the Absolute Sinner was getting closer, and yet there wasn't any sight of it.

Before five minutes could pass, the smoke thickened considerably. He watched the feathers freeze abruptly, but the freezing halted instantly once the five-minute period ended.

He gulped, watching as everything cleared. The once-ghostly land now appeared almost luminous, every inch of it frozen. Despite standing about fifteen feet above the ground, he still felt the penetrating cold.

He watched Light and Tough exit the frozen area. Light had to abandon its boots, which were frozen to the ground, and with its clothes frozen stiff as well, it moved awkwardly, almost comically.

Without hesitation, Halo started down the tower. Seraph's burns would be severely affected by such cold, and with Liam lying exhausted on the ground, he risked freezing to death.

He rushed to Liam and lifted him into his arms. Sunday, meanwhile, hurried to Seraph without needing to be told.

Before he could get Liam to his room, the familiar bronze screen appeared before his eyes.

***

[ Congratulations! You've successfully guarded the Galactic Castle. The gods appreciate your efforts, honored Knight. ]

***

The screen disappeared and popped back into existence.

***

[ Wish: Option: 1 / 1 ]

I wish for the wrath of my Only Sin.

| Yes | No |

Warning: 30 minutes to accept the wish.

***

Halo's skin crawled, and his legs buckled.

He was already having it worse from his god, Death, so how dire did Death want his life to get?

Despite his frustration, he maintained his calm. Wishes had two absolute rules: they couldn't be shared, and they couldn't be refused. Breaking either would transform him into a Sinner.

He wasn't sure how the system would handle Liam's unconscious state, but he hoped it would wait until he woke. Regardless, incurring the God of Death's wrath wasn't something to risk.

After laying Liam in bed to rest, he stood contemplating. He had no choice but to choose 'yes,' yet still he watched the time ticking away on the bronze screen. Walking straight into danger didn't appeal to him. He simply wanted to savor this brief warmth for the remaining thirty minutes.

He'd usually curse the gods at a moment like this, but he found himself wondering what Death's anger would actually mean. Death already owned his life, what worse punishment could there be? And anyway, his earlier wish remained unfulfilled.

After a brief moment, he sighed.

He just needed to prepare for the worst.

'Yes.'

The instant the words echoed in his mind, the screen disappeared.

He returned to his initial position at the tower, staring down at the icy grounds to clear his mind.

Absolute Sinners supposedly became one with their Flaws. As he surveyed the area again, understanding struck him. He couldn't see the Sinner because it had become the cold itself, the freezing mist enveloping everything. The creature shared his own Flaw: Coldness.

He sighed.

A part of him wanted to know which Sinners would claim the land afterward. Building immunity to this level of cold would demand thousands of attempts and generations of evolution before enough capable guardians emerged.

He wouldn't be around to see them anyway. Once the sun rose, he needed to leave, they all did. Their Purpose was complete, and though Fade had said their meeting wasn't a coincidence and they'd likely cross paths again, Halo had no intention of returning to this castle or the triad lands. Probably.

While the weight of his Wish began to fade as he dwelt in thoughts, he began to realize there were bigger things he needed to attend to.

Dark Saint had to die. The Child of Misfortune was counting on him, and this was one promise he needed to keep.

Perhaps once she was dead, he could extract whatever she knew about Death and use it to prepare for the god's inevitable wrath.

And he still needed to discover the hero's identity. His companions might not expect him to leave so soon, but he was eager to move on.

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