"Why did you follow us!?"
Felix glanced sideways, only to see W clinging tightly to her seat behind him. He sighed — equal parts exasperated and resigned. Of course she had followed them.
"What, I'm not allowed to tag along and watch while you run off on some top-secret mission?" W bared her teeth in a grin, making both Hoederer and Ines exchange helpless looks that screamed "why are we dealing with this right now?"
"ACE, seriously," W continued, scowling. "What kind of mission is this? Why are we going back to Babel?"
ACE's expression was grim. Ever since the moment he saw those black-clad figures slipping aboard the Rhodes Island five minutes ago, his heart had sunk. He knew the ship's defenses — inside were mostly the old, the injured, and the unarmed. Against trained assassins… they had no chance. None at all.
"If I told you," Felix said with a sigh, "it wouldn't be a secret."
They were speeding down the road in a stolen military truck, the engine roaring like thunder. The Doctor's voice had vanished from their earpieces — which, under normal circumstances, meant the battle was already over. Babel had won. They had successfully seized the Kazdel Mobile City. The Doctor must have removed his comms headset, ending the operation.
But Felix's gut — and the faint whisper of Kjeragandr's blessing — told him something was very, very wrong.
[Subquest conditions met. Congratulations — new instance unlocked: Zero-Type Sarkaz Castle Siege!]
Normally, that message would have thrilled him. Now, it only filled him with unease.
"We're here… Wait — why is the transport lift open?"
Kicking the truck door open, Felix jumped out. "Doesn't Rhodes Island have some kind of alarm or automated defense? Isn't this supposed to be a warship?"
ACE winced at the barrage of questions, clutching his forehead as sweat ran down his face while he ran beside him. "There used to be! The last time we were breached, the alarm was so loud you could hear it for miles outside the ship! And once the defense mode activated, the whole ship went into lockdown, trapping the intruders inside!"
"So that means…" Felix murmured, his tone low and dangerous. "…someone inside Babel shut down the defense system."
"N–no way… Who would even have that kind of authority!?"
The group broke into a sprint, their boots pounding against the metal corridors.
W might have had a sharp tongue, but she wasn't stupid. The implication hit her immediately. Her expression twisted with alarm as she pushed past Felix.
"Then stop talking and run, dammit!"
"Wait—W, come back!"
As they turned a corner, W froze.
A black-clad assassin was driving his blade into the chest of a Babel mercenary. Her rage flared white-hot.
"Go to hell, you bastard!" she screamed, pulling out her gun and firing wildly.
The assassin lifted the corpse of his victim, using it as a shield to absorb the volley of cheap bullets. When W stopped to reload, he sprang — leaping off the wall like a shadow come alive, closing the distance in a heartbeat.
W grit her teeth, ready to unleash her Originium Arts even if it meant mutual destruction—
BANG!
SHRRK!
The first sound was the impact — Felix's double-edged sword intercepting the assassin's strike. The second was the killing blow — his upward slash cleaving the man in two, flames erupting from the blade and consuming the body in an instant.
W fell to her knees behind him, staring wide-eyed at the radiant wings and golden aura that blazed around Felix's back.
"Were you running ahead just to die!?"
Felix spun on her, shouting furiously. His glare snapped her out of her daze — she opened her mouth, but no words came out.
He turned sharply toward Hoederer, Ines, and Mudrock. "You three — take the left passage! That's where the injured mercenaries are!"
Before he could finish, ACE cut in: "My squad and I will push straight ahead — that's the barracks. There should still be a few hundred mercs stationed there!"
"If you can save them," Felix said, nodding, "rally them for a counterattack."
"And you?" ACE asked.
Felix tilted his head toward the upper decks. "I'm heading to the executive lounge. That's where Her Highness is… and she's the assassins' only target."
ACE's jaw tightened. He slammed a fist against Felix's shoulder — a wordless pact — before shouting for his squad and charging down the corridor.
Hoederer took a deep breath, gave Felix a respectful bow, then drew his blades and left with Ines and Mudrock.
Only Jesselton and W remained by Felix's side.
Felix glanced at him. "Jesselton, can your Originium arts break through a wall for us?"
He pulled up the electronic map and tapped the spot where Theresa was located. His drone was still circling near her, quietly observing her every move and recording every word she spoke.
Of course, he had heard it—her breaking voice, and the sound of her heartbreak.
"Sir," Jesselton replied, straightening up. "The ship's interior is made of incredibly hard metal. Maybe the old Jesselton Williams couldn't do it. But the Jesselton Williams who trains with you every day? My daily life is a series of miracles."
He brushed a hand along his liquid armor, a confident grin curling on his lips. "So tell me, Sir—can the walls of Rhodes Island withstand my three punches?"
"Wait—"
Before W could even finish speaking, a thunderous boom shook the corridor. She spat out a mouthful of dust and coughed, eyes narrowing as she looked up to find a brand-new "Jesselton Tunnel" carved clean through the bulkhead. Thanks to his size, both she and Felix could easily pass through.
Jesselton flexed his arm, feeling the surge of energy coursing through his body. Ever since his friendly training sessions with Carnelian, his control over Originium arts had reached a new level. That strike just now had focused all his power into a single, flat surface—his frontal plane—allowing him to punch a perfect, terran-shaped opening through the wall.
"Jesselton, initiate Ultimate Impact!"
"Yes, Sir!"
With his chest puffed out, Jesselton charged forward. Boom! Boom! Boom! The pounding impacts echoed endlessly through the steel corridors. Felix and W followed close behind—Felix protected by his mask, W eating dust with every step but caring little. All she wanted was to keep her princess safe.
Boom!
Jesselton grunted, rubbing his arm as he stepped into a large, luxurious lounge. Several black-clad assassins were already sprawled across the floor. At the far end stood "Madam" and the little rabbit, both frozen in surprise.
Jesselton sneered. "So this is Rhodes Island? Hah. Doesn't look so tough."
He raised his fists. "Now then—can you handle three punches from Jesselton Williams?"
"Kill him!"
The assassins lunged all at once, but Jesselton only laughed as he met them head-on. Two dull thuds later, their blades snapped like twigs. He grabbed one assassin by the head and slammed him hard into the ground.
His arrival turned the chaotic scene utterly upside down.
"Madam, are you all right?" he called, grinning wide. At that moment, Jesselton felt like a hero descended from legend—handsome, powerful, invincible.
The hero had arrived!
"?"
"?"
"???"
Even the assassins seemed baffled. Felix raised an eyebrow, while W shot him a furious glare. She suddenly grabbed him by the collar, eyes burning red and wet with emotion.
"You—you—you! You've already got Ulšulah, and now you want Her Highness too?! Do you want me to blow you up, choke you out, or shoot you dead?!"
"?"
Felix sighed, holding W's head back with one hand, letting her furious little punches swing harmlessly in the air. Scanning the room, he spotted Theresa standing in front of Amiya—who was trapped inside a mysterious glowing orb. The girl inside looked lost, glancing around in confusion, unable to see what was happening outside.
More assassins poured in through the entrance. Their murderous intent, once aimed at Theresa, now focused entirely on Felix.
Theresa, wounded but unyielding, shielded Amiya with her body. Blood ran freely down her side, yet she still smiled—a sorrowful, tender smile.
"W…"
"You don't have to say it—I know!"
W spat out some dust and hurled a handful of stones and Originium fragments. Each one exploded midair as her arts activated. The room filled with deafening blasts—assassins screamed as they were flung back or blown apart. Those who survived were left battered and bleeding.
Her hand trembled slightly as she reached for another charge—but Felix caught her wrist.
"W-what are you doing?!" she snapped, glaring.
"Any more of that will hurt your body. Leave the rest to us."
Felix looked at Jesselton, who immediately puffed out his chest and charged forward once again.
Felix drew his twin-bladed sword, its edges igniting with bright blue flame.
"...Kill them."
The assassins surged forward as one. Most were around level eighty—each one with strength comparable to an elite operator. But what truly made them terrifying was not their power—it was their resolve. They were deathsworn. Once they donned those black shrouds, they had forsaken their lives. Their only mission was to take the head of their target—Her Highness.
Felix had no intention of letting them succeed. Since crossing into this world, he had changed countless events, met people who were never meant to be part of his story, and formed bonds he'd never imagined. He'd also uncovered secrets that players could never have known.
Keeping Theresa alive—he still didn't know whether that decision was right or wrong. But he did know one thing: whether as the player who once joked his way through missions, or as the man now fighting for survival in Terra, he would never allow these assassins to take her life.
Murderous intent radiated from him like a storm. The assassins froze for an instant. In Felix's eyes, they saw something cold—so cold it made their spines tremble. It was as if he had slaughtered tens of thousands before. That quiet, effortless killing aura struck them with the weight of a battlefield. How many lives has this man taken?
Felix himself didn't notice their fear. But even if he had, he wouldn't have cared. After all, back in his past life as a gamer, he'd probably killed more than fifty thousand enemies—beasts, mobs, NPCs alike. To a player, this whole damned world had always been one big grind.
Shhhk!
The twin blades pierced through flesh. Felix withdrew his sword smoothly, kicking away the assassin whose chest and abdomen he'd skewered. Another came at him with a thrust—Felix raised his arm to block. The blade struck his forearm, but instead of cutting through, it rang out with a sharp clang, as though striking steel. In the next instant, arcs of blue lightning danced across Felix's body, shocking three assassins creeping up from behind into complete paralysis.
He turned with the motion of his body, sweeping his twin-bladed sword in a wide arc. The three stunned assassins were cleaved cleanly in half—blood splattered across the walls and floor.
None of it was Felix's. With his current weapons and armor, these assassins could not hope to harm him.
The remaining killers exchanged glances, then formed into lines—terran walls barring his way. The others, desperate, charged toward Theresa with suicidal determination.
"Out of my way!"
Blue flames erupted, scorching the lounge ceiling. The fire alarm shrieked to life, and the sprinklers activated—yet the water never reached the ground, vaporized instantly by the heat.
Felix smashed through their formation alone, tearing through the blockade like a storm. Wiping a streak of blood from his cheek, he raised his firearm, aiming at the assassins rushing for Theresa.
"Lumen Six-Shot Burst!"
Six beams of light fired from the barrel, slamming into the attackers. Two assassins, hit squarely, froze mid-step—then dropped lifelessly to the floor. The smell of burnt flesh filled the air; the bullets had pierced clean through.
The Lumen Six had tremendous firepower, though it left any Sankta who wielded it weakened from the strain. In most battles, such weakness would mean death—but Felix's lifesteal buff restored his vitality as fast as he spent it.
"Your Highness! Are you all right?!"
Jesselton slammed the last struggling assassin into the wall hard enough to leave a crater. Felix and W hurried to Theresa's side. She was still smiling—but her entire body was covered in blood. It was impossible to tell whether it belonged to her or her enemies.
Amiya's protective bubble had vanished at some point. The little girl could now see everything clearly—Theresa, standing amid the carnage; Felix, the older brother she adored; the familiar mercenary sister; the man who practiced cool expressions in the mirror; and countless black-clad bodies sprawled across the blood-soaked floor.
She saw the blood staining her white dress. She saw the redness in Theresa's eyes.
"I'm right here, Amiya."
Theresa smiled softly and took the girl's small hand. "All the bad guys from the story have been defeated. We're safe now…"
"But I'm sorry," she whispered. "I don't have the power to change how this story ends."
Felix broke the heavy silence, frowning. "These wounds aren't fatal, Theresa."
She smiled faintly. "It's just… after speaking with you, I realized my path can no longer reach its end. I can no longer bring salvation to the Sarkaz people."
"That's not true!"
W ignored the blood staining Theresa's body and threw her arms around her, sobbing. "We all joined Babel because we believed in your dream! How can you deny yourself now?!"
Theresa chuckled softly. She stroked W's hair, then beckoned Amiya closer. The little girl obediently nestled into her arms.
"So warm…"