Consciousness was plummeting.
Lin was powerless to escape this void. Unspeakable things were tearing at his mind.
Death chased this weary Seele from behind, the glinting scythe already drawing a streak of blood across his neck.
Lin had come close to death many times. Each close call, each brush with danger, was separated from hell by only a hair's breadth. Because of this, he understood the feeling of being at the brink of death better than most.
But those experiences were no more than the last half-second of a fall before hitting the ground. This time, it was like the first second of a drop from a rooftop, seeing the distant ground in the turbulent wind.
Feeling life drain away little by little, one foot already in the Underworld, then watching helplessly as his other foot involuntarily lifted, marching toward death.
Lin's mind was clear, so his spiritual torment at this moment was also unimaginable.
In such a situation, anyone would simply pray for death to come quickly.
Is this enough?
Lin thought to himself.
As a human, had he done well enough? He completed his mission against the Herrscher, and he saved his friends' lives.
Since he gained self-awareness, Lin had believed that human civilization existed in the form of inheritance. Parents passed on life and culture to their children, and then the children passed these on to the next generation.
Thus, generation after generation of progress, generation after generation of inheritance, became what it is now.
Falling leaves drift and return to the moist soil, providing nutrients for new life. This is the form of human existence and the ultimate goal of a human life.
Lin had passed on life to Mei and Kevin, and the other squads of the Moth of the Flame, and now he had reached the end of his life. He seemed to have fulfilled his lifelong mission.
Living solely for himself—Lin couldn't do it.
Let the unknown truth vanish in that night.
So, it's enough, right?
He lowered his eyelids, sealing off his consciousness.
"Live."
Suddenly, a light pierced the darkness.
"Your friends surely want you to live, and I want you to live, too."
"If you absolutely must live for the sake of others, then live for me."
A familiar voice entered his ear.
Lin opened his eyes. The light was dazzling, like the distant morning sun.
He stretched out his hand, murmuring, trying to touch that light.
"Ely...sia?"
The light was like a pure white feather. In the dappled sunlight, he glimpsed the girl's innocent smile.
A hand grasped Lin's Seele.
...
"Hoo—"
"Got you!"
The instant Lin exited phase transition, a fair hand gripped his arm, catching him mid-air.
The pink-haired girl's playful smile appeared before the stunned Lin in the pouring rain.
"Elysia..." He weakly spoke the girl's name—a name that usually gave him a massive headache.
Why was Elysia here?
Before Lin could ask the question, Elysia pressed down on his head, hugging him tightly to shield him from the impact, and landed on the ground, rolling several times to dissipate the force.
"Cough, cough..." But Lin's body couldn't handle the jarring. He spat out two more mouthfuls of greenish-red blood, perhaps protesting Lin's rough treatment of his own body.
"Oh dear, are you okay? I didn't realize someone as lively as you could be this weak." Elysia, who was still rubbing her backside, instantly jumped up when she heard Lin's coughing, helping up Lin, who looked like he was about to draw his last breath.
"I'm not... cough, cough..." Lin was about to utter his trademark line but was stopped by the tickle in his throat.
"Boys who try too hard to be tough aren't very likable, you know~" Elysia gently rubbed Lin's back to help him breathe, her perpetually smiling, pretty face close to Lin's. "It's okay to lean on someone else's shoulder sometimes, too~"
Lin didn't respond to that. With his eyes glazed over, still letting Elysia bear his full weight, he asked, "Why are you here?"
"Hmm... Lin, did you really think you were the only one fighting the Herrscher? Even if the Moth of the Flame wanted to exploit their employees, they wouldn't make one overworked grunt do all the work, right?"
"...The Moth of the Flame doesn't have the five social insurances and one housing fund. With the current work requirements, it's definitely a black-hearted company."
"Oh, right... Huh? Lin, are you making a joke?"
"No."
Lin's expression was calm; it truly didn't look like a joke. He was full of a cool demeanor, but unfortunately, his face was bloody and unrecognizable, making his appearance and expression completely obscure.
Elysia shook her head in disappointment: "My squad was the first to encounter the Third Herrscher, so we tracked her along her direction of travel. I happened to catch you just as I arrived. Wasn't that timely?"
"..." Lin was silent, staring at the smiling Flower Maiden.
What was that voice in the void, after all...
It was then that Lin realized there was another important matter. He abruptly lifted his head from his broken body: "Where is the Third Herrscher?"
Elysia anxiously supported the shaky Lin; his body couldn't afford any more sudden movements.
"Oh, don't get agitated. The Third Herrscher is over there." Elysia was somewhat helpless seeing him like this. Moments when this person showed emotional fluctuation were rare, and seeing it now only made one feel sadness.
He looked in the direction Elysia pointed, his gaze fixed on the purple-black-haired girl kneeling on the ground, head bowed and motionless.
There was no longer any flashing, lethal electric light on her body. She simply sat in the sewage, like a broken doll, letting the heavy rain wash over her.
Elysia's squad members surrounded her with their guns raised, muzzles pointed at her head, waiting for their captain's command.
Lin released the hand draped over Elysia's neck, breathing heavily, his eyes icy: "Not dead?"
"Herrschers aren't that easy to kill. Although the timing of the shelling was right during the Third Herrscher's weak period, she still blocked the attack and didn't die," Elysia's eyes flashed with complex emotions when she looked at the Third Herrscher. "But in this state, she's probably as good as dead."
The Third Herrscher's core was still within that body. She was now in a quiescent period, slowly recovering in this state. It might not be long before she reverted to the destructive avatar that stood at the apex.
Capture her alive? Impossible. With the Moth of the Flame's current technology, capturing a Herrscher alive was utterly infeasible. Once she recovered fully... no, even half of her strength, it would cause devastating damage to the area restraining her.
"Click."
A sound of a gun being cocked rang out in the desolate rain.
Elysia turned her head and saw Lin pull out his pistol, limping toward the Third Herrscher on the ground.
At that moment, the Third Herrscher seemed to sense him, lifting her head slightly. Her vacant eyes met the gaze of the approaching Lin.
Everyone else instantly grew tense, raising their guns to shoot her, but Lin and Elysia simultaneously raised their hands to signal them to hold fire.
It was a lengthy process. Lin walked up to her, leaving a long trail of blood behind him that quickly disappeared in the rain.
"Cough, cough..." Lin covered his mouth, preventing his blood from splattering on her face, and then...
He raised the gun, aiming at her forehead.
"..."
The Third Herrscher said nothing. Her blank pupils reflected the gun muzzle. Then, her hands slowly rose, forming a gesture as if she wanted to embrace him.
The corners of her mouth curved up. She tilted her head, smiling.
"Bang!"
"Yes! The Third Herrscher is dead! Humanity won!"
"Humanity won!"
"Humanity won!"
As the gunshot rang out, cheers echoed far and wide in the sunlight that broke through the dark clouds, reverberating continuously through this empty city, across this ruin.
Elysia walked forward, again holding Lin's arm, smiling softly: "Lin, you're going to be a hero when you get back."
But Lin pushed her away, just as he had every other time.
"I am not a hero. I merely killed another enemy."
Amidst everyone's cheers and celebrations, Lin lowered his head, looking at the desolate land where a city once stood.
Laughter and joy once existed here, but now, nothing remained.
"Humanity won...?"
Lin stared at the girl's smiling face in the pool of blood.