"Ukh...!"

As the rocks fell on me, I felt my body tremble. It hurt but I was able to withstand most of the pain. As opposed to Leon and Kaelion, the rocks didn't hurt as much.

....The only problem was the fact that I wasn't just protecting myself.

Looking down, I saw the scared Leon look up in terror. He couldn't see me, but I could see him.

Rumble, rumble-!

The ground beneath me started to tremble.

At first, I was confused, but soon my eyes widened in horror as I noticed fine miniature crevices forming beneath me.

'Crap!'

I realized what was happening too late.

Cra Crack-!

The ground beneath me shattered.

I wanted to curse again, but there was no time. My footing began to slip as the ground

beneath me crumbled, revealing an endless darkness below that swallowed everything from sight.

"Akh...!"

Hearing Leon's scream, I glanced down to see him reaching out desperately, grasping at the air as he plummeted down.

I maintained my cool.

Staring at Leon, I closed my eyes and dove down.

Swoosh!

My clothes fluttered wildly as the rocks tumbled alongside me. Ignoring them, I surged past Leon. At that moment, I swapped the pink orb for the blue one.

Instantly, my body grew lighter and the speed of my fall lessened.

I turned around mid-air and looked at the falling Leon.

Thud!

A rock collided with his head knocking him unconscious.

I held my breath at the sight but remained level-headed as I reached out to grab him.

"...!"

His momentum added to my fall.

But I expected this much. From Azure to Pink again. My entire body grew stiff as I had a hard time moving my muscles.

It felt as though I was submerged in cement.

"Kh!"

It didn't hurt, but the sensation felt uncomfortable.

And soon...

Bang!

I hit the ground.

"Ukh...!"

The moment I hit the ground, an electric shock surged through my body. My muscles trembled and quaked as they absorbed the brunt of the impact.

"Huff... Huff...!"

For the briefest of moments, I couldn't move my body at all.

To make matters worse, massive chunks of rocks continued to fall down beside me. Bang, bang-!

"Kh...!"

I had no choice but to suppress the weird tingling sensation running down my body and run past the point where the rocks were falling.

Bang!

"Ukkh...!"

Of course, I wasn't able to completely dodge the rocks. Fortunately, while they did look scary, the force of their impact was nowhere near as much as a single punch from Leon, Kaelion, or Caius.

Furthermore, with the aid of the pink orb, my body was relatively unscathed.

The only problem was Leon who I needed to keep safe.

Bang, Bang-

I also had to hurry up.

While I could withstand the force from the rocks, I couldn't afford to be buried alive. I'd be able to get out without a problem, but Leon...?

"Huff...!"

Bang!

Another rock fell behind me, shattering in large chunks which directly hit my back. My clothes tore and my back stung, but...

Thump!

"Нааа... Наа..."

...I was finally able to get out of the danger zone as I slumped down on the ground alongside

the young Leon.

"Haa..."

I closed my eyes and took several deep breaths.

'...That was a lot more difficult than it was supposed to be.'

"How many times does this make it?"

One, two, three...?

The amount of times that I saved the one guy that was supposed to save me. I glared at the young Leon before taking out a pill and popping it in his mouth.

"Tsk."

"Ukh."

As if sensing my glare, Leon started to frown and regain consciousness. I hastily hid myself

once more as Leon's eyes opened.

"Ukh...!"

He immediately held his head as his face winced in pain.

"It hurts..."

Looking at him, I found myself smiling. He really didn't change that much from the past and now. He showed a similar reaction after he took on the heavy brunt of the spells before with

his 'Concept'.

"W-where am I?"

Leon looked around, his face lost.

It was dark, and it was hard to see anything outside a short radius.

"...This."

Leon's breathing grew heavier as he realized his situation. However, despite his age, he didn't

appear all too panicked. Instead, he almost seemed relieved.

"They'll find me soon... At least I can rest now."

As expected, he really was relieved.

In fact, he also seemed a little happy. But after thinking about it, I could understand him.

Especially when I recalled how the previous Julien had treated him.

From killing him to working him to the point of no sleep...

'He really did have it hard.'

My heart softened for a brief moment.

"Uh?"

But I was quick to snap out of it as Leon let out a strange sound. Confused, I tilted my head

when I also noticed it.

"....!"

Out of haste, I covered my mouth as I was about to make a sound.

'What in the...'

In the distance, hidden within the darkness that surrounded the two of us, I managed to spot a

dim light.

It was faint, but it was present.

...It faintly pulsed like the beat of a heart.

"I

Leon's eyes grew slack at the sight of the light and his body started to move on its own.

Tak, tak-

The faint echo of his footsteps echoed throughout as Leon dazedly walked towards the pulse

of light.

I didn't say anything and just followed him in silence.

I too was attracted to the light, but unlike him, I didn't get hypnotized by it.

Tak-

Each step brought Leon closer to the light.

It grew brighter the closer we came and as Leon took another step, a change occurred to the

surroundings.

Fwuooo!

A series of flames lit up as statues appeared on all sides of us.

"....!"

The statues were weathered, depicting several veiled women with outstretched hands.

Flames hovered above their palms, casting light over the surroundings.

In the distance, a long flight of stairs appeared, giving way to a tall and dark altar.

I blinked my eyes before pausing.

There... I could see the source of the light pulse. And the moment I caught a glimpse of it, my

breath stopped.

'Isn't that...?'

I squinted my eyes to make sure I was seeing correctly. I tried to deny the sight that stood before me, but seeing no change in what I was seeing, I could only accept the reality of the

situation as a familiar-looking black chalice appeared at the top of the altar.

There was no denying it.

....It was the same chalice as in the first vision.

Tak, tak-

Leon's steps continued as he moved toward the altar.

I looked around.

There was nothing that was stopping him from going. The statues just stood still while the

flames in their palms dimly illuminated the surroundings.

I grew curious.

'Just what exactly does this chalice do...? And what is this place?'

"Hmm."

Snapping out of my thoughts, I moved ahead of Leon and climbed the flight of stairs.

I wanted to get a closer look at the chalice.

'This is...?'

I wasn't sure what to expect as I approached the chalice, but after climbing the long staircase

and reaching it, my gaze didn't immediately fall on the chalice but towards the body of the

altar where I could see several inscriptions and carvings.

In particular, one carving stood out from the rest.

.....It was that of an eye.

'I've seen this before."

I pressed my lips while moving closer to the altar.

Tak, tak-

Leon's footsteps drew closer while I observed the carving. Unknowingly, I started to lose

focus of my surroundings while the eye was the only thing that I could see.

11

I extended my hand, gently tracing my fingertips over the intricate engravings. I felt

hypnotized by the carvings.

In particular the eye.

It was as if it was calling for me.

Yes, me.

"Oh, dear Oracleus! The Seer...!"

A distant voice echoed in the background, faint yet resonating loudly in my mind.

'Uh...?'

"Heed my offering and bestow us your protection!"

As I blinked, the scene around me shifted. Light flooded my vision, and the sky stretched

overhead, with the gleaming yellow sun casting its warm rays upon the altar.

'Where in the...'

Standing next to the altar was a man garbed in white, the same eye from before etched at the

center of his robes.

He stood with the black chalice in his hand.

"Oh, Seer...! bestow upon us your protection!"

"Bestow upon us your protection!" "Bestow upon us your protection!"

"Bestow upon us your protection!"

Loud cries echoed from beneath. When I turned my head, a sea of people appeared prostrating

before the altar.

They all wore white clothes similar to the man at the center.

'Some sort of cult...?'

No, I looked around.

It felt different from a cult. This felt like a full-blown religion.

Just where in the world...

Lowering his head to glance at the chalice, the man at the center of it all suddenly raised it

into the air.

"I, the third Cardinal of Salvion pay homage and seek your approval. Your approval to

consume your sacred blood for the sake of my people."

'Blood?'

"Your sacred blood will be offered for the salvation of my people-our people-the people of Eryndor! With it, I will carry upon your name and pass it down to our descendants!"

The Cardinal brought the chalice higher in the air as his voice raised.

"For Eryndor!"

He shouted.

"For Eryndor!"

"For Eryndor!"

The others mimicked.

The cries were deafening.

I watched the scene unfold in confusion, unable to understand what was happening. But soon,

the Cardinal's actions brought my attention back.

Lowering the Chalice, he brought it to his lips and took a sip of the contents within.

"Ahh...!"

He immediately let out

scream.

Following his scream, his eyes turned ghastly white.

"Ahhhh!"

His scream tore through the air as his entire body began to tremble. The hair on his body

started to wither, and his face grew pale, as though the blood was draining the life from him.

"Aahhh...!"

His screams continued to resound in the space.

They felt agonizing, giving rise to an intense sense of discomfort.

"

But soon, before I knew it, his head had turned to face my direction. I stood frozen on the

spot, staring back at the Cardinal who looked straight at me.

"S-seer..."

My heart pressed at my throat as he addressed me.

"Oh, S-seer..."

His tone was filled with reverence, and every hair on my body rose.

"...I-s that you seer?"

The Cardinal extended his hands toward me as if he intended to make contact. But just before

he could, he came to a stop.

"Ah..."

His face grew ashen as his eyes flickered.

"T-this."

He looked mortified, lifting his gaze to take a look at me once more. His lips slowly parted,

and words came out of his mouth.

"I—"

"Uh...!?"

I snapped out of it and brought my hand away from the altar.

"Huff... Huff..."

Feeling my heart, which was beating out of my chest, I took deep and heavy breaths as

stumbled away from the altar.

Thump!

"Huff... Huff..."

I tried to make sense of what I had seen, but before I could, I realized that I had already stood

up and was facing the chalice directly.

There, I saw a red liquid.

"Huff... Huff..."

With heavy breaths, my gaze remained fixed on the liquid.

This...

The reality of the situation hit me.

The liquid within the Chalice...

It was my blood.

Oracleus's blood.