"What I'm going to do now, huh…"
Azriel tilted his head.
Lioren nodded.
"If we go to the summit, I will have no choice but to give you up. At the same time, once the price for killing you truly sinks in, everyone will come hunting for you. And with your condition being irreversible… there are only a few paths left for you."
"So you're saying…"
Azriel raised one finger.
"A: I give myself up to the brothers so you can strike a deal at the summit and try to get that wish."
He raised another.
"B: I let someone kill me. Mainly you. That way, you become one of the most powerful humans alive, if not the most powerful. Even I have to acknowledge that you would be able to protect humanity and perhaps give us a chance to survive."
Then Azriel looked down at the ocean.
"Or C…"
His voice softened.
"…I take my own life and let none of you win."
His vision flickered into darkness several times as he stared at the waters below.
Then it cleared.
