Chapter 43: A Trio

And just like Darian said, it didn’t even take ten minutes for Evan to burn through all the snake Anomalies.

The electricity surrounding him kept growing, with no intention of dying down.

Lumi stood completely still.

The dungeon had gone quiet again. The countless hissing sounds had disappeared, leaving only the crackling of electricity echoing through the ruined chamber.

She glanced toward the communicator in her hand.

Nothing.

No sound of approaching Sentinels.

’Where are the backups?’

Her fingers tightened around the communicator.

They should have arrived by now.

Slowly, Lumi lifted her head.

Evan was standing in the middle of the destroyed dungeon, surrounded by burned remains of the Anomalies. His clothes were covered in dust, and faint electricity continued crawling over his body, growing stronger instead of fading.

Then he turned. His gaze landed directly on her.

Lumi froze.

Evan stared at her blankly.

There was no amusement in his eyes now. No recognition. Not even the faint trace of the teasing expression he had worn earlier.

Just that cold, terrifying hazel-yellow gaze.

Lumi swallowed. "Evan...?"

He didn’t answer. He simply stared at her.

Lumi’s heart began beating faster.

’He’s completely out.’

She instinctively took a small step backward. She knew she shouldn’t. Perhaps she should grab that moment and perform the skin-to-skin ritual before things become worse.

But at that moment, she felt it.

The fear.

This time, Evan was completely different.

There was no hesitation in his movements, no faint trace of awareness beneath the Rampage. Even the way he looked at her felt unfamiliar, as though he was staring at a stranger who had wandered into his territory.

Evan’s eyes followed her movement.

Lumi stopped immediately.

The backup still hadn’t arrived. And right now, there was no one else between them.

She just blinked and Evan suddenly disappeared.

Lumi’s eyes widened.

Before she could react, a powerful force struck her shoulder and sent her crashing sideways into the dungeon wall.

"Ah!"

Pain shot through her body as her back hit the stone. She barely managed to catch herself before falling to the ground.

Her torch rolled several meters away.

Lumi looked up.

Evan was already standing where she had been a moment ago. His expression remained completely blank.

No hint of anger, recognition, nothing at all.

Lumi’s breathing became unsteady as she slowly pushed herself away from the wall. Her shoulder hurt, but that wasn’t what frightened her most.

It was the realization that if she couldn’t even get close to him, her healing ability might not be enough to save her.

After all, healing herself didn’t mean she couldn’t be injured again.

And right now, she was facing Evan, the strongest Sentinel in the entire Empire.

Lumi gazed at him sharply, trying to think of a way to get close without giving him another chance to knock her away.

’Maybe I should let him choke me?’ Her eyes flickered toward his hands.

A quick attack wouldn’t work. If he simply struck her again, she might not even get the chance to touch him properly.

’His touch needs to stay on me for a while...’ Lumi swallowed. ’So maybe... if he grabs my neck again, I can use that moment to Guide him.’

The thought made her throat tighten.

She remembered the last time his hand had closed around her neck, how difficult it had been to breathe, and how close she had come to passing out.

But she also remembered what happened afterward.

Their connection had strengthened through prolonged physical contact.

’It worked before.’ Lumi slowly curled her fingers into her palms, ’Then maybe I have to let him do it again.’

But she couldn’t even think of the next strategy when Evan suddenly moved again.

His figure flashed toward her.

Lumi barely had time to raise her arms before his attack struck her hard in the chest.

The force sent her flying backward.

She crashed heavily against the dungeon floor, and a sharp pain immediately spread through her chest. Her body curled instinctively as she struggled to breathe.

"Kh—!"

A metallic taste filled her mouth.

Lumi coughed once. Then blood spilled from her lips. She stared at the red stain on the ground, her mind going completely blank for a moment.

’That... hurt...’

Her hand trembled as she wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth. She had been thrown against the wall before, but this was different. So much different.

Lumi slowly lifted her gaze.

Evan was already walking toward her. His expression remained completely blank, his hazel-yellow eyes cold and unreadable.

’I need to get close to him.’ Her breathing became heavier. ’But how?’

Evan flashed toward her again.

This time, Lumi managed to raise both arms in front of herself just in time.

The impact was devastating.

Pain exploded through her arms as the force of his attack sent her stumbling backward. It felt as though every bone in her arms had been struck at once, the pain so intense that her fingers immediately went numb.

"Ah—!"

She could only gasp. Her arms trembled uncontrollably as she struggled to keep herself upright.

For a moment, she couldn’t even think. The pain was overwhelming.

Yet Evan was already moving toward her again.

Lumi was ready to surrender to whatever happened next. She didn’t know whether her decision to follow Evan out of the Pei residence had been the right one, but she was certain of one thing.

For the first time in a long while, she had been happy.

These past few days, she had been able to decide where she went, what she did, and what she wanted to do with her own life. Even if everything around her was still confusing, at least those decisions had been hers.

Lumi slowly closed her eyes.

Evan’s palm came down toward her head, ready to slam her face into the floor.

But the impact never came.

CRASH!

A deafening sound suddenly erupted from the other side of the dungeon.

Lumi’s eyes flew open.

"Ah... what a mess..." a familiar voice drawled, followed by an irritated click of the tongue. "Tch, tch, tch..."

Lumi slowly lifted her head.

Her eyes widened.

Standing in front of her were Raphael and Leon.

And several steps behind them stood Celestine, her expression cold as she stared into the ruined dungeon.