Chapter 166: Are they all... safe now?

Meira looked up at the hundreds of silver points of light tearing across the pitch-black sky. Beneath the clouds of Dark Mist, the long airship escorted by Comet warriors was descending.

A flag bearing the symbol of a shooting star flew in the wind, standing out like the last streak of light in an outpost that had nearly been swallowed by darkness.

Magic circles lit up beneath the ship’s hull as layers of barriers expanded to shield the treatment area. At the same time, the Comet warriors split into formations and charged down toward streets overflowing with monsters.

Silver light from blades and spells crossed in midair, scattering patches of black mist and opening up stretches of sky the female soldiers had thought they would never see again tonight.

From the airship, the female butler’s voice rang out through magical amplification, clear and resolute. “Comet Squad, under Lady Mirielle’s orders, has arrived with reinforcements! The highest priority is to find Lord Erik and bring him to treatment. The other wounded must also be protected. Absolutely no one is to be left behind!”

Within the Contract, the pulse belonging to Erik remained frighteningly weak. It had not disappeared completely, but it was so fragile that every time she tried to sense it, it felt as though an invisible hand was tightening around her heart.

“Continue holding the treatment area!” Meira turned to the brown-haired female captain, her voice urgent. “Comet has opened a corridor. I have to get to Master!”

Meira spread her four elemental wings and flew through a section of wall that had just collapsed. Several female soldiers and Comet warriors immediately followed, clearing a path through the still-churning mist toward the watchtower where Erik had vanished.

…

Inside that watchtower, Erik was still leaning against an unfallen wall.

Elowen lay unconscious beside him, her silver hair stained with blood. Her breathing was weak but steady. Not far away, the rescued black-haired Succubus also lay motionless on a torn tarp amid the rubble.

Erik had checked both their pulses with his left hand. He knew they were still alive, but that was not enough to put him at ease. The roof above the watchtower had split open, and whenever an explosion sounded outside, fine white dust fell onto their hair and shoulders.

A long cracking sound rang out.

Erik lifted his head. A crack had just run across a remaining stone beam, causing an entire section of the ceiling to tilt downward. This place could not hold out much longer.

Outside the entrance, silver light suddenly swept through the Dark Mist. It was followed by shouts, weapons colliding, and the deep, powerful sound of an airship engine.

Someone had come to save them.

Erik wanted to call out, but the moment he opened his mouth, a sharp pain in his chest cut off his breath. Hot blood rose in his throat, forcing him to turn his head and cough. Each time, pain tore through his ribs so fiercely that his vision went dark.

Erik’s right arm was broken and hung at an unnatural angle. The deep slash wound, still covered with Dark Mist, continued to seep blood. His left hand was scraped and bruised, its knuckles swollen purple. His mana was nearly exhausted, while the pain in his ribs made it difficult for him to draw a full breath.

If the stone ceiling collapsed before the people outside found a way in, both women could be buried alive in this room.

“Just a little farther…” Erik whispered, not knowing whom he was speaking to. “I will get you outside…”

He pressed his left hand against the stone floor and tried to stand. The moment his knees straightened, dizziness struck, forcing him to brace his entire left shoulder against the wall.

His useless right arm swayed slightly with the movement, sending a sharp pain shooting straight up to his shoulder.

Leaning against the wall, Erik used his left hand to drag Elowen toward a slanted boulder as high as his waist. It took several pauses to catch his breath before he could lift her upper body onto the stone surface.

He knelt with his back to the boulder and used his left hand to pull Elowen over his shoulder. Her weight settled onto his back, her legs hanging down on either side of his waist while her head rested motionlessly near the left side of his neck.

Erik tore his cloak into a strip of cloth, then used his left hand and teeth to bind Elowen’s arms in front of his chest so she would not slip off.

Every time he tightened a knot, the weight on his back pressed against the injuries on his shoulder and ribs, cold sweat running down his temples.

As for the black-haired Succubus, Erik did not have enough strength to carry her. He pulled the two ends of the tarp beneath her body together, gathering them into a knot of cloth that he could grip with his left hand.

He forced his legs forward, dragging the female soldier across the fabric so she would not scrape against the sharp stone floor.

A choked groan escaped Erik. His knees buckled. For a moment, he had to press his left shoulder against the wall just to keep Elowen on his back. The black-haired Succubus had moved only a very short distance.

He took another step.

Every step sent pain crashing through his body. His broken right arm hung uselessly, while his left hand gripped the cloth knot until it bled, and Elowen’s weight pressed against his chest. Erik struggled to drag the black-haired Succubus over the broken stones.

A deafening explosion rang out outside. The entire wall shook, and small rocks fell onto Elowen’s shoulder and hair.

He lowered his body, gathered strength in his legs that had nearly gone numb, and continued toward the patch of light at the end of the corridor.

Blood dripped from his mouth onto the stone floor. Behind him, the tarp left a long trail through white dust and dark red smears.

…

Meira had just destroyed a cluster of monsters blocking the path when she suddenly froze.

The Contract in her chest trembled.

It was very faint, but clearer than before, like a heartbeat struggling across the distance to call out to her.

“Master…”

She spun toward the watchtower whose roof had nearly collapsed. Behind her, the Comet squad that had just landed, along with several female soldiers, immediately stopped as well.

One warrior was about to ask what was wrong when the sound of rubble rolling down from the watchtower entrance made everyone turn toward it.

At first, they only saw a figure standing amid the dust.

A man.

He leaned slightly forward, each step so slow that he seemed about to fall. A silver-haired woman lay unconscious on his back, her arms secured in front of his chest with a bloodstained strip of cloak.

The man’s right arm hung at his side, while his left hand gripped a torn strip of cloth that dragged an unconscious black-haired Succubus on a tarp behind him.

The three figures slowly emerged beneath the silver light.

No one spoke.

A Comet female soldier widened her eyes. She had prepared herself to find wounded soldiers lying there waiting for rescue. She had never expected to see a man personally bringing two others out of the rubble.

“That is…” she murmured, unable to believe it. “Lord Erik?”

Beneath his torn clothing, Erik’s injuries were exposed beneath the silver light. His right arm was broken, and the slash wound still seeped blood along with that abnormal black radiance.

Dried blood covered his lips and both sides of his ears, while fresh red stains spread through the fabric at his ribs. His face was deathly pale, his breathing uneven, and every step seemed as if it would make him collapse.

Yet Elowen was still on his back.

And with a left hand that was barely intact, he was still dragging another woman behind him.

“Oh gods…” Her voice caught in her throat. “He is injured that badly… and he still brought them outside?”

The brown-haired female captain was also frozen in place. She understood how difficult it was to carry an injured comrade through rubble. Yet Erik was carrying two lives while he himself was already at the end of his strength.

The ground still shook, Comet forces were still fighting in the sky, and silver beams continued to slash through the Dark Mist. Amid that grand scene, the sight no one could tear their eyes away from was only a blood-soaked man trying to take one more step.

“Master!”

Meira rushed forward.

But when she was only a few steps away from him, she suddenly stopped. She had wanted to throw her arms around Erik as she always did, to confirm that he was truly still alive.

Now, looking at his broken right arm and Elowen unconscious on his back, Meira did not dare touch him too hard anywhere.

Erik raised his head. It took his eyes, clouded by blood loss, a while to recognize the golden hair before him.

“Meira…”

Those two syllables alone made tears spill from Meira’s eyes.

“Master…” Meira choked out. “How did you… how did you end up like this?”

Erik seemed unable to hear the question clearly. He only tried to tilt his head toward Elowen on his back, then lowered his gaze to the black-haired Succubus lying on the tarp.

“They…” He paused, drawing a short and painful breath. “They are alive…”

“I know, I can see that!” Meira quickly nodded, speaking through tears. “You brought them here. Let me help you, all right?”

Erik tried to extend the cloth knot in his left hand toward her. His fingers had stiffened, and it took several breaths before they would loosen.

The moment Meira took hold of the tarp, two Comet female soldiers immediately stepped forward and carefully lifted the unconscious black-haired Succubus onto a shock-absorbing stretcher.

“I can feel a pulse! She is still breathing!” a female Healer said urgently. “Take her to the medical bay now!”

Elowen’s silver hair had been stained with blood against Erik’s shoulder. Her eyes were tightly shut, blood still marked the corner of her lips, and her entire body hung limp beneath the strip of cloth securing her.

Meira forced herself to remain calm, signaling two Comet members to support her from either side before personally undoing the knot at Erik’s chest.

When Elowen’s weight was lifted from his back, Erik suddenly swayed.

A warrior reached out to support him. The moment she touched Erik, she froze because her palm had been soaked in blood. She looked down, saw red spreading across his dark armor, then hurriedly turned toward Meira.

“Lady Meira! He has lost a great deal of blood!”

“Bring the stretcher here!” Meira ordered, her voice trembling but forced to remain clear. “Do not touch his right arm. Keep his shoulder and ribs stable. Call more Healers!”

The soldiers immediately scattered to carry out her orders. Magic stretchers were unlocked, their shock-absorbing rings lighting up, while the two unconscious women were transferred to safety under Comet’s protection.

Erik stood among them, his left hand hanging down after he had handed over the last person. He no longer had the strength to keep his body upright. His legs trembled, but he still forced his eyes open to watch the two stretchers.

Meira had already knelt beside him, both hands covered in the gentle radiance of the Wind of Life. The moment her mana touched the slash wound on his right arm, the lingering strands of Dark Mist clinging to it immediately twitched, obstructing the healing process.

She quickly shifted to stabilizing his blood flow and breathing, avoiding any strong influence on the injury that had not yet been cleansed.

A broken arm, a slash wound still carrying corrosive mana, severe injuries to his ribs, mana channels nearly drained, and abnormally shallow breathing. This was the condition of someone who should have lain motionless while waiting for rescue, yet he had still walked all the way here.

And he had even dragged another woman out of the collapsing watchtower.

Meira lowered her head. A tear fell onto Erik’s blood-covered hand.

“I should have arrived sooner…” she said, her voice breaking. “Master, why did you not wait for me? Why did you have to endure this much by yourself?”

Erik looked at the golden hair before him. He wanted to answer, but his mind had grown hazy. The sounds around him drifted closer and farther away, blending with the airship engines and the wind blowing through the ruined walls.

“I…” Erik spoke softly, his voice nearly swallowed by the wind. “Could not… leave them behind…”

A young female soldier standing nearby turned away to wipe her tears. The brown-haired female captain lowered her head. The Comet warriors, trained to remain calm before any injury, also fell silent before urgently preparing the stretcher.

Meira supported Erik’s left side, carefully ensuring that his broken arm did not suffer another impact. She looked at him and tried to keep her voice calm. “Master, look at me. Elowen already has a Healer caring for her. So does that female soldier. They have both been placed on stretchers. Now it is your turn, do you hear me?”

Through the mist clouding his vision, Erik watched the two stretchers being carried toward the corridor filled with silver light. Elowen’s white hair and the black hair of the female soldier he had just dragged along remained within his sight.

In the distance, the surviving female soldiers were being escorted across the defensive line by Comet. High above, the protective dome had not yet faded, and spells continued driving back the final monsters.

“Are they all… safe now?” he asked, his voice so soft that Meira had to lean close to hear it.

“Yes, they are safe now.” Meira nodded repeatedly, tears falling. “I am here. Everyone is here. You do not need to keep trying anymore, Erik.”

A very faint smile appeared on his pale face.

“Everyone…” Erik whispered, his breathing broken. “Being safe… is good…”

The left hand that had held the tarp’s cloth strip tightly throughout the final stretch slowly relaxed. His legs lost all strength, and his body tilted into Meira’s supporting arms.

“Erik!”

She called his name. Footsteps immediately rushed closer, with the female captain’s voice and the Healers’ voices overlapping. Someone called for a stretcher, someone ordered them to keep his right arm stable, and someone kept telling him to open his eyes.

To Erik, those sounds gradually became faint and distant, as though they came from the end of a tunnel. He wanted to answer, but his lips no longer had the strength to move.

The last thing he felt was a hand tightly gripping his left hand, along with a choked voice still trying to break through the darkness closing around him.

“Erik… Erik!”

Then his consciousness sank completely.