Chapter 104: The Same Method

"In a count of one..."

Raphael’s eyes remained fixed on Celestine, his mind already calculating how to pull her away from Lumi without triggering another violent outburst.

Even from a distance, he could see how pale Celestine’s face was, and the blood staining her lips made his heart clench painfully.

He had to get her out of there.

Raphael gathered as much wind energy around himself as he could, building up a defensive barrier to withstand the suffocating pressure radiating from Lumi.

"In a count of two..."

Beside him, Evan remained focused on Lumi, his expression growing increasingly grim. The girl he loved was standing right in front of him, yet she looked as though she couldn’t recognize him at all.

He had already tried calling her name. He had tried approaching her, only to be thrown away as though he were nothing.

But he wasn’t giving up.

If his voice couldn’t reach her, then perhaps their Fated connection could.

"In a count of three..."

"GO!"

At the same moment Raphael swooshed toward Celestine, Evan flashed straight toward Lumi.

The oppressive force immediately surged against him, threatening to throw him backward again, but he gritted his teeth and pushed through the resistance, determined to reach her before her power could react.

"Lumi!"

He reached her and gently cupped her cheeks between his hands, forcing himself to ignore the pain radiating from his injured chest.

Her vacant eyes stared back at him.

"It’s me," he whispered, his voice trembling despite his efforts to remain calm. "Please, Lumi. Come back to me."

She didn’t respond.

Evan swallowed hard before leaning closer, his heart pounding as he made one final desperate attempt to reach the girl hidden beneath that terrifying power.

Then, he pressed his lips against hers.

’Please make it work!’

The moment Evan’s lips touched hers, the oppressive energy surrounding Lumi surged violently.

The floor beneath them cracked, sending fragments of stone flying in every direction, while the remaining lamps shattered one after another.

The invisible pressure slammed into Evan’s body, but he refused to pull away, keeping one hand against her cheek as he desperately reached for the faint connection that had bound them together since the day they first met.

’Lumi, please.’

His chest throbbed with every heartbeat, the wound beneath his clothes reopening under the strain.

Warm blood seeped through the bandages, but he barely noticed it, pouring every ounce of concentration he had left into the connection between them.

’You told me to wake up, didn’t you?’

His fingers trembled against her cheek.

’So why won’t you wake up for me?’

For one agonizing moment, nothing changed.

Lumi’s eyes remained vacant, her power continuing to crush everything around them.

The force pressed against Evan’s injured body until he could feel his knees threatening to buckle, yet he held on, refusing to let the girl in front of him disappear behind an ability she couldn’t control.

Then, somewhere deep within the darkness of her mind, a familiar voice reached her.

’Lumi.’

Her fingers twitched.

Evan felt it immediately, a tiny response through their Fated connection, so faint that he might have mistaken it for his imagination if he hadn’t been holding her so tightly.

He deepened the connection, allowing his own energy to flow toward her, not to suppress her power but to let her feel his presence.

’It’s me, Lumi. I’m here.’

A flicker passed through her vacant eyes.

The overwhelming pressure wavered.

Across the room, Raphael seized the opportunity.

He swooshed toward Celestine, surrounding her with a protective barrier of wind before reaching through the fractured remnants of the formation.

The transparent barrier had already been broken by Lumi’s earlier outburst, but the energy lingering within the carved symbols still resisted his approach, sending sharp currents of Guiding energy against his arms.

"Celestine!" he called, catching her beneath the shoulders.

Her head lolled against him, her face frighteningly pale.

"Come on, sweetheart. I’ve got you."

There was no teasing in his voice, no playful remark to disguise the fear tightening around his heart. He carefully lifted her, shielding her injured body with his own as he retreated from the circle.

Celestine’s eyelids fluttered. "Raphael...?"

"I’m here." His grip tightened, though he was careful not to hurt her. "Don’t try to move. Just stay with me."

Her gaze drifted past his shoulder toward Lumi, and panic flickered across her exhausted face.

"Lumi..."

"Your sister is in good hands," he promised, even as his eyes returned to Evan.

Because Evan was beginning to fall apart.

The instant Lumi’s power weakened, the resistance holding him upright vanished, leaving his already injured body struggling to withstand the accumulated damage. His breathing turned ragged, and a sharp pain tore through his chest as blood spread across the front of his shirt.

Still, he didn’t let go of Lumi.

"Lumi," he whispered against her lips, his voice barely audible now. "Come back."

Her eyes finally focused.

For a moment, she stared at him without understanding, her gaze travelling over his pale face and trembling hands before settling on the blood soaking through his clothes.

Then recognition returned.

"Evan...?"

The oppressive energy around them faltered.

Her lips parted, and the terrifying power that had nearly crushed everyone in the basement began to retreat, drawing back toward her as though an invisible hand were gathering a raging storm into a single point.

Evan exhaled shakily, his forehead resting against hers.

"That’s right," he murmured. "It’s me."

Lumi stared at him, her eyes searching his face as though she needed to memorize every detail to convince herself that he was truly standing in front of her. Her lips trembled, and fresh tears welled in her eyes."Is it really you?"

The question came out in a fragile whisper, carrying all the disbelief and longing she had kept buried inside her for nearly two weeks.

"Yes, it’s me..." Evan gently pulled her closer, brushing his thumb against her tear-streaked cheek before leaning down to kiss her.

Lumi froze for a heartbeat, her eyes widening as his lips met hers, and then she clutched his clothes with trembling fingers, as though she had finally found something she had been desperately searching for all this time.

The kiss was nothing like the desperate one he had given her moments ago to bring her back to her senses.

This time, there was no urgency to reach her, no fear of losing her to the terrifying power she couldn’t control.

There was only the overwhelming relief of finally having her in his arms again, and the ache of two weeks spent apart, with so many words left unsaid.

Lumi slowly closed her eyes, leaning into him as her tears slipped down her cheeks.

She had waited so long to see him awake, to hear his voice, to know that he was still here with her, and now that she finally could, she couldn’t bring herself to let go.

Evan held her as close as his injured body allowed, kissing her with all the tenderness and longing he had kept buried beneath his usual composure.

For those few precious moments, the blood staining his clothes, the shattered basement around them, and the danger that had brought them there all seemed to fade away.

He was here.

And she could finally kiss him back.