Kazuki took a step back, the stench of rot hit him like a punch to gut. An uncomfortable pressure gripped his throat, as he stared at the sea of mangled corpses. Zombies lay scattered across the area like broken puppets— some missing jaws, others twitching torn legs, maggots writhing in hollow sockets—each impaled by a spear of ice.
"What the hell happened here...?"
He scanned the battlefield, his jaw tightened; lips forming a hard line, eyes flicking frantically from corpse to corpse—searching for the woman with black hair...
There—leaning against the splintered wall of wooden hut —she sat, drenched in black blood, soaked from head to toe in sweat, her chest rose and fell in shallow-ragged breaths, as if each inhale was a battle of its own. Strands of dark hair clung to her face, her arms limp at her sides.
A cold rush swept through his chest.
"Lillian!" He sprinted toward her, boots splashing through the muck and gore, skidding to stop beside her. Her fingers twitched, curling—then relaxed as her violet eyes landed on him. Her throat clicked as she tried to speak."...y-you..." She swallowed. "You look like six-handed freak used you as a stress toy..."
Kazuki blinked, maybe she is fine after all... He let out soft breath, the coldness in his chest easing.
"Speak for yourself. You look one bite away from joining their side."
She managed a faint smile. "Anyway, let's get moving—" Kazuk said but the moment he grasped her waist, he hissed—his hand jerked back. It felt like grabbing a chunk of dry ice.
"Shit—!" He looked down. Thin, crackling sheet of frost was glazed over the area where her arm has been resting. Faint trail of stream was rising from her skin, almost like her body was burning. He reached out again, pressing the back of his hand to her forehead.
Icy.
Touching her was like grabbing the metal handle of a freezer in the dead of winter—instantly numbing, painfully sharp.
"Dammit…" he said, pulse thundering in his ears. "You're freezing up like a corpse."
He shot to his feet, nearly stumbling over a severed arm, his eyes raced. "Fire. We need fire." He looked around—nothing but splinters, corpses, and pools of black ichor. First, he turned around, yanking off his cloak and draping it over her shoulders, the fabric was tattered and torn in few places; from all the thrashing and running around—but it was still better than nothing.
A broken laugh escaped Lillian's lips, turning into a weak, pained groan halfway through. She shifted slightly, adjusting against the wood. She said, her voice faint but sharp.
"Why are you pacing around like a panicked chicken?" Her eyes half-lidded. "I just overused the spell. Just a few minutes and I'll be fine."
His body went rigid, his mind struggling to process the words. "Lillian, you're freezing, your hand just froze the ground. That's not just overuse, that's—" Kazuki said, his voice wavering.
She interrupted him with a slight wave of her hand. Her voice softer, almost drowsy. "You worry too much, Kazuki," she continued. "It's just atmospheric mana, affected by the mana leakage from overusing the spell. I told you, it's nothing... Now then..." She yawned, her eyes fluttering close, her head tilting back against the wood.
Her shoulders relaxed, her body went limp as if the last thread of tension had been snaped.
"No. No, no—don't you dare fall asleep on me." his voice cracking. "You said a few minutes. Not now. Not like this."...but as cold breath left her nose and after he obvserved her for few minutes, Kazuki noticed that her skin no longer looked pale, and the mist rising from her began to fade. A subtle glow of warmth began to pulse slow and steadily.
He took a beat, then air tore free from his lungs, sharp and shaky.
"…You little shit," he said, dragging a hand through his hair. "You really were just overloaded."
He flopped down beside her, legs folding awkwardly under him. His heartbeat slowed, no longer drumming in his ears leaving him feeling drained and—honestly—a little dumb. All that panic. All that drama. He'd nearly given himself a heart attack, and here she was, just taking a power nap like nothing happened.
He sat there for a second, watching the twitching forms of undead—half torn corpses spasming with left over impulses, as if still trying to claw toward life. Or maybe it was death? Some of them jerked weakly, other rolled their heads side to side. Like some invisible thread still tugged at their broken forms, trying to stitch them into motion. But it wasn't enough. Whatever force propelled them couldn't break through.
Suddenly, air felt heavier, the stench of dead and decay, spiraled. An uncomfortable feeling settled in his ribcage. His mind raced—Something's not right…
A grinding hum. Like a migraine pulsing in his spine. Like a chain deep beneath the earth… shifting. Straining. Ready to snap.
The air wrapped. The wind stopped. Like holding their breath for something irreversible to happen.
Ding.
The system window blinked into existence, with darker blue hue. The text flickered erratically, as if struggling to stay coherent.
[ URGENT MISSION: SYSTEM WARNING ]
Mission: [Seal of the Abyss – Stabilize the Construct]
Rank: C (Stable Threshold Breached)
Time Remaining: 00:05:00
CRITICAL WARNING: Abyssal Seal Integrity Failing
The corrupted seal has acknowledged your presence as a temporary stabilizer. Structural threads are unraveling. Mana distortion increasing.
Immediate action required.
Proceed to the Temple of Ruttwa.
Locate the Abyssal Seal Construct.
Initiate containment or reinforcement.
Failure Consequences:
— Seal Collapse Imminent
— Uncontrolled Abyssal Leakage
— Outbreak Probability: 69% and Rising
— Guardian Awakening Event: Unknown
[Recommended Action: Begin immediate traversal. Do not hesitate.]
Kazuki stared at the flickering system window.
"...dammit, I forgot about the seal."