Ch'en Hui-chieh had always known Roya had impressive stamina.
What she hadn't expected was that he could run several kilometers without stopping.
Still, it wasn't hard to follow the traces he left behind, and since he hadn't taken a vehicle, she was sure she would catch him.
She was going to drag him back herself.
Make him admit every crime he had committed.
Make him face judgment with her own hands.
Yet when she finally caught up to Roya, what she found was not an undercover meeting between Ursus agents.
It was a slaughter.
"Cough—"
Blood spilled from the corner of Roya's mouth. Before he could even register the pain in his waist, he had already leapt backward to avoid another strike from the second Emperor's Blade.
He was no match for one.
Two had already pronounced his death sentence.
Still, that was fine.
He wasn't all that afraid of dying. He knew his condition had been worsening day by day. If this had happened half a year ago, maybe he could have gambled on escaping.
What was worst of all was that he could sense Ch'en Hui-chieh's thoughts nearby.
That almost made him curse aloud.
What the hell was this young lady thinking, running to a place like this at a time like this?
"Roya!"
There was no secret meeting of Ursus spies, nothing like Ch'en had imagined.
There was only Roya, standing there soaked in blood and covered in wounds, facing two enemies that stirred a fear so instinctive she could barely suppress it.
"What are you doing here? Get the hell out!"
The last word carried power.
For a split second, the two Emperor's Blades froze.
At the same time, Ch'en's heart filled with a sudden, overwhelming impulse to turn and run. Her body had almost started to obey on its own.
Roya seized that opening.
He sheathed his sword, then drew it in a single fluid motion.
"Chi Xiao—Draw!"
A crimson wave of sword-light exploded outward, swallowing both Emperor's Blades at once.
Their blades shattered.
Both of them were driven backward.
But that was all.
Wounds of that level were nowhere near enough to hinder Emperor's Blades.
And once they realized Ch'en Hui-chieh herself was their target, the two of them ignored Roya entirely and charged straight toward her.
After all, Andrei's final mission had been to find a way to assassinate Ch'en Hui-chieh.
If they could complete that objective as a side benefit, all the better.
"Damn it."
Ignoring the splitting pain in his head, Roya saw through their intent at once.
He no longer had the strength to rush forward, so instead he slammed the hilt of his sword into his own head. When he spoke again, his voice had changed—low, commanding, weighted with absolute authority.
Come here.
The words rang directly inside the hearts of the two Emperor's Blades.
Without hesitation, they turned and charged toward Roya instead.
If their wills had not been so monstrously strong, he would have preferred to command them to kill themselves on the spot.
But this was already the limit of what he could do.
Clenching his teeth against the sensation of his brain being torn apart, Roya forced out one final command toward Ch'en Hui-chieh.
Leave. As fast as you can.
Her body stopped listening to her own will.
At a speed she had never imagined herself capable of, Ch'en turned and ran toward Lungmen. Even when she tried to look back, she couldn't.
Go back.
Go back now.
Otherwise Roya was going to die.
She still hadn't dragged that bastard back to Lungmen yet.
But no matter how furiously her mind screamed, her body obeyed only Roya's order.
Roya had no time to spare her a glance.
He barely managed to block the next exchange from the two Emperor's Blades before one of them kicked him flying. He hit the ground and spat out another mouthful of blood.
An Emperor's Blade raised a hand.
Black energy condensed into solid form and shot toward him.
Roya instinctively brought up his weapon, but the sword in his hand shattered into two pieces as soon as it blocked the first blast.
The second pierced straight through his chest.
The two Emperor's Blades had originally intended to kill Roya first and then hurry after Ch'en Hui-chieh.
But before they could move, they sensed others approaching.
Without the slightest hesitation, they chose to withdraw.
Because the ones coming were Lin Yuhsia and the Black Cloaks.
Emperor's Blades were powerful, but even two of them were no match for five Black Cloaks. The pair vanished instantly into the night.
"That really hurts..."
Roya lay on the ground.
The voice in his head had already begun counting down. The few Words of Command he had used just now had burned through the little life he had left. Since the appointed moment of death had not technically arrived yet, his body was still trying to repair itself—
but all it could do was preserve a final thread of life.
He had meant to hold on until Lin Yuhsia and the Black Cloaks arrived.
Instead, he had overestimated himself and underestimated the enemy.
Even if Ch'en Hui-chieh had never come, he would not have lasted much longer.
If the Emperor's Blades hadn't wanted to capture him alive at first, he probably wouldn't even have survived long enough for Ch'en to arrive.
"Sorry, Andrei. If hell exists in this world too... then when the time comes, I hope you'll go easy on me when you beat the crap out of me."
His hand found the little box holding the necklace.
He guessed Ch'en Hui-chieh must have slipped a tracker into his clothes—she had taken this outfit yesterday, claiming she'd grabbed it by mistake.
"Roya!"
The moment Lin Yuhsia saw Roya collapsed on the ground, it felt as though lightning had struck her.
She rushed forward without thinking, about to stop the bleeding—
and then saw the fist-sized hole in his chest.
"How is it this bad? Wait, I'll get—get—"
"Stop stammering."
Roya's eyes were closed.
"Ursus Emperor's Blades really aren't people you can afford to mess with. And there were two of them. Tomorrow, Lungmen's citizens and those gangs will probably be opening champagne to celebrate, won't they?"
The Black Cloaks spread out in guarded formation. One stepped forward and tried to use his Originium Arts to treat Roya's wounds.
In the end, all he could do was shake his head.
This was beyond what human effort could mend.
"That won't happen. You'll be fine."
Lin Yuhsia's voice had completely lost its usual calm. It was turning ragged, frantic.
"You sound full of energy right now, don't you?"
"Yeah... because I've still got three minutes left before I die."
Roya ignored the countdown in his head.
"Don't cry. It looks awful, and I don't like it. Don't make me comfort you a second time. We've only known each other half a year. We're not even that close."
"Shut up. You still owe me six months' worth of dinner. You are not allowed to die."
"Oh, right. I almost forgot about that."
Except for the slight rasp in his voice, Roya sounded nothing like a dying man.
But the blood steadily pouring from him made it painfully clear how terrible his condition really was.
He forced one hand upward and put the little box into Lin Yuhsia's palm.
"This is for you. It's sterling silver, at least. Count it toward the debt. And... I put your name in my will too. Not that I actually have much money."
Lin Yuhsia froze, lips parted, unable to form any words.
She had not expected that he had really done something like that.
As if he had never valued this life of his at all.
Ignoring the dazed look on her face, Roya seemed satisfied that she hadn't cried yet.
Then he struggled to lift himself slightly and glanced down at the hole in his chest.
"Tch... if anyone ever says I'm narrow-minded again, I'll be offended. This damn thing's bigger than a fist."
Only Roya would still be trying to win a verbal exchange at a moment like this.
The Black Cloaks did their best to diminish their own presence and not disturb the farewell between him and Lin Yuhsia.
After that, no one said anything.
Roya looked up at the sky.
Lin Yuhsia looked at him.
And at the very end, when the voice in his head finally reached 0 hours remaining, Roya left behind his last words.
"The moon's not even as pretty as you... I really don't want to die."
In the next instant, Roya closed his eyes.
His breathing stopped.
All signs of life vanished.
At the same time, Ch'en Hui-chieh—who had already run all the way back to the walls of Lungmen—felt the force controlling her body abruptly disappear. Her legs cramped and gave out beneath her, sending her crashing to the ground. Even the crimson Chi Xiao sword slipped from her hand.
Her mind was still in chaos.
But she did not hesitate.
Picking up Chi Xiao, ignoring the pain in her legs, she turned and ran back toward Roya's direction.
At the same time, she sent a message to Wei Yenwu.
She did not know what had happened.
She did not know why.
But all at once, she felt that Roya absolutely could not be allowed to die like this.
She had to go.
But by then—
it was already too late.