"The sun was already high in the sky when the withdrawal began.

The soldiers who had been guarding the no-man's land looked back at the city that had been their home, their birthplace, their cradle. Their eyes reddened as they gazed at the desolate city.

'We couldn’t protect it.'

It must have been a miserable feeling.

Paola watched the soldiers and knights as they prepared to leave. The only burden the retreating forces carried were the wounded left in the city and the medics attending to them. All equipment and supplies were abandoned.

Before the retreat fully began, the Frontier Lord stood before the soldiers, her face stern as she prepared to explain the strategy. A heavy shadow hung over her expression. Although her face had always carried a gloominess, this battle had cost her too many soldiers. Even as she tried to appear calm and composed in front of her troops, the darkness in her eyes was impossible to completely hide.

Her voice was hoarse.

'We will proceed with the retreat as swiftly as possible. It will take at least several days of non-stop riding to reach the second front in Mura, so everyone must be prepared…'

She paused.

'Once the retreat is complete, we will reactivate the barrier. After trapping the monsters within the city, we will activate the explosive magic… It should blow away all the monsters that enter the city.'

When someone asked if that magic would be able to destroy the Behemoth, the Frontier Lord shook her head.

'Don’t expect that. Don’t think for a moment that we can rely on luck to bring down that thing.'

'Even with the magic circle constructed by the kingdom's top magicians after the incident 15 years ago?'

The Frontier Lord responded in a low, cold voice.

'Do you really think the Behemoth, which killed dozens of the kingdom’s finest knights, will fall to a magic circle created by a few dozen of the kingdom’s top magicians?'

But then she added,

'We won’t be able to kill it… but we can deal significant damage. No matter how powerful the Behemoth is, it won’t be strong enough to completely ignore that magic…'

Her expression hardened.

'And that will probably be our last chance.'

Last chance.

Those were not words the Frontier Lord uttered lightly.

'With that explosion, we should be able to buy enough time to reach the second front. Once we reach Mura, we will face the Behemoth with the reinforcements stationed there.'

She spoke with a bitter voice.

'We have failed in our mission.'

Those words were heavy.

'...So, let’s aim to survive as long as possible and join the forces at the second front.'

The Frontier Lord looked up at the sky.

'I don’t want to lose any more of you.'

Retreat.

At the Frontier Lord's command, the withdrawal began.

The barrier slowly receded from the city’s entrance. As soon as there was enough space for a single person to pass through, the wounded were the first to leave, followed by the ranks of soldiers who had devoted their lives to guarding the no-man’s land, now abandoning it.

'The Crow Knights are also ready to depart.'

Theodora’s voice rang out. Leading the way, the noticeably diminished Crow Knights followed behind her.

Maxime glanced at Theodora's face. She no longer had those hollow, empty eyes she had when she had apologized to him. Instead, her expression seemed filled with certainty. Maxime knew that Theodora was deliberately avoiding looking in his direction.

'Commander, your voice is different today,' Paola muttered. Roberto glanced sideways at her.

'Different?'

'Why, before, she had those dead fish eyes, but today her face seems a bit better, don’t you think? Isn’t that right, Maxime?'

Maxime couldn’t respond.

'Maxime?'

Paola turned her head toward Maxime.

'...Are you alright?'

Maxime placed his hand over his chest, breathing heavily.

Thump.

Maxime felt his heart pounding wildly in his chest, as if a horse nearing its end were galloping madly up a hill. His heartbeat throbbed through his veins. He didn’t know how much he had forgotten or which memories were slipping away.

'Maxime,'

'Senior?'

Paola and Christine’s voices reached him. Maxime raised a trembling hand, signaling that he was fine, but even that hand was shaking uncontrollably. He inhaled deeply, slowly calming himself until he could steady his voice.

'I’m fine.'

'Are you sure? You look like a corpse that’s been forced to wake up,' Paola said.

Maxime shook his head.

'It seems like your injury is flaring up again.'

'Injury?'

Paola looked at Maxime with confusion. Roberto, on the other hand, observed him with a subtle expression, while Christine’s gaze was full of concern.

'I was injured while holding off the monsters during the retreat.'

Maxime said this with an exaggerated motion, twisting his neck from side to side. Paola stared at him, clearly unconvinced.

'I’ve been by your side the whole time. How could I not know you were injured, Maxime?'

Maxime stubbornly shook his head again. Paola sighed, her expression one of exasperation.

'...I’m fine.'

'You...'

Paola sighed again and urged her horse forward, passing him. Roberto remained silent, simply looking at Maxime.

'...What?'

'Nothing.'

When Maxime spoke gruffly, Roberto chuckled and rode off after Paola. He's always the same, Maxime thought to himself.

Once the two were out of earshot, Christine loosened her reins and moved her horse closer to Maxime. Her emerald eyes, the only green that could be found in the no-man's land, stood out.

'...Senior.'

Maxime removed his hand from his scar. It hurt. He tried not to grimace as he looked at Christine.

'You used mana, didn’t you?'

Maxime couldn’t bring himself to lie. He turned his head away from her and nodded.

'I did... It was a situation where I had no choice. Are you angry?'

'No. Why would I be angry?'

Christine shook her head.

'Don’t give up.'

Maxime smiled faintly at her words.

'What exactly am I not supposed to give up on?'

'I just don’t want you to give up on yourself, senior.'

Maxime understood what Christine meant, but he neither confirmed nor denied her words. He didn’t think she was expecting an answer, anyway.

'I’ll stay by your side.'

Christine didn’t try to push Maxime to change his vague attitude. She simply said it aloud, as if reaffirming her own resolve to protect him.

'...That’s an embarrassing thing to say.'

Maxime shrugged, trying to brush off her words as a joke, but Christine remained firm.

'...Senior.'

Maxime didn’t think highly of her resolve. He didn’t want anyone to sacrifice themselves because of him, didn’t want anyone to get hurt or be hindered by him.

'Christine, don’t push yourself because of me.'

'Then you just have to make sure I don’t have to push myself, senior.'

In the end, they were like parallel lines. Their resolve and their feelings for each other would never find a point of intersection or compromise.

Christine's gaze pierced him sharply.

'Why are you going this far?'

Christine tilted her head at his question.

'Well...'

'Don’t say it’s because you like me.'

Maxime raised his left hand slightly. Though it was currently hidden by his armor, an engagement ring should have been on his ring finger. Christine’s face turned bright red as she finally snapped at him, flustered. Her flushed face and her golden hair flying about in frustration made her look quite cute, he thought.

'No! Senior, you always say things like that!'

Maxime lowered his head and chuckled softly. Christine, still blushing furiously, clenched the reins in her hands, her fists trembling.

'You’ve always enjoyed teasing people out of nowhere, haven’t you, senior?'

...The past.

Maxime couldn’t remember much. The foundation and outer walls of the building that was his memory remained, but the inside felt like it was gradually being emptied, like someone moving out.

'...Senior?'

Christine called out when Maxime suddenly stopped laughing. When he turned toward her, his golden eyes looked dead. His lips, slightly curled up at the corners, formed a smile too bitter to be considered genuine.

There were too many reasons for her to guess. Christine had many questions she wanted to ask him, but even if she did, she knew he wouldn’t answer.

'It’s nothing.'

So when Maxime shook his head and said it was nothing, Christine could only remain by his side.

The barrier that had surrounded the city was completely lifted.

The monsters that had been clawing and biting furiously at the impenetrable barrier now stormed into the city, ready to tear it to shreds. The single command their leader had imprinted into their minds was to find and kill humans.

They scoured the city. The scent and traces of humans were everywhere. The monsters’ eyes glowed red.

Buildings were destroyed. Even though no humans appeared before them, the monsters, stripped of their intelligence, believed the scent and traces were sufficient proof and tore the city apart. They dug through the earth and collapsed the infirmary, where the scent of humans was the strongest. In the process, some of the monsters were crushed beneath the falling debris.

The Behemoth arrived at the city later.

Its massive, mountain-like body shook the ground as it approached.

It seemed that the humans had long since abandoned the city.

The Behemoth walked, crushing the smaller monsters beneath its feet like insects as it looked down at the mindless creatures destroying the city. It seemed satisfied that the humans had fled in fear.

But the Behemoth was determined not to leave a single trace of humanity behind, and it began to destroy the city with its colossal body. Each small movement caused another building to collapse. Soon, the city was barely recognizable, reduced to rubble.

The grievous wound it had suffered in the battle 15 years ago had been a humiliation. That was why, this time, the Behemoth was determined to utterly ravage the humans.

The city was now overrun with tens of thousands of monsters. When the Behemoth was finally done venting its fury, it prepared to advance further. But as it took a step forward, a massive barrier suddenly enveloped the city.

A violet, magical barrier covered the city at a speed completely different from when it had been dismantled earlier.

The monsters attempting to flee were crushed into bloody pulps against the barrier.

When the Behemoth realized the strange occurrence, it stopped its steps at the exact center of the city. At that moment, the entire city was consumed by a brilliant light.

The light formed the shape of a hexagram, aligning like a constellation. Realizing the nature of the light, the Behemoth let out a thunderous roar. The barrier around the city trembled under the force of its bellow.

The light shone brighter than the sun, forming a massive creature that greedily sucked in mana, growing larger to retaliate against the Behemoth’s declaration of war.

The flow of mana accelerated to its limit, producing a sharp metallic sound. And when the light from the magic circle finally condensed and was absorbed into the center...

The world exploded."