Lysera shook her head desperately, struggling harder.

"Kana! No! Don't do this—"

The blade pressed harder against her neck, cutting her words short as a bead of blood trailed down.

"Silence her."

Irielle's father ordered coldly. The guard holding Lysera clamped a hand over her mouth, muffling her protests.

Kana's stomach churned. Rage simmered in her chest, but she swallowed it down, forcing herself to play along for now. '

'I can't fight like this. Not yet. But I'll find a way. I have to.

The elder elf seemed satisfied as he turned toward the door.

"Take them to the ritual hall. The goddess will be pleased. Tonight, she will descend, and our people will finally receive her blessing in full."

The guards shoved Kana forward, forcing her to walk. Her wrists throbbed in the tight ropes, but she didn't stumble.

Irielle's muffled cries echoed in the background as they left her cell, dragging her along as well.

Kana glanced back only once, locking eyes with Irielle before the heavy iron door slammed shut between them.

'I'll save you. No matter what it takes.'

She promised silently.

As they marched through the winding tunnels beneath the village, Kana's mind raced.

Her system was quiet now, almost unnervingly so, but she could feel it waiting—watching—ready to act if she called on it. She gritted her teeth.

'Not yet. I need to wait for the right moment. If I lash out too soon, Lysera and Irielle will pay the price.'

Finally, they emerged into a vast chamber lit with torches. The air was thick with incense, the sweet cloying scent almost suffocating.

In the center of the room, a massive stone altar waited, etched with ancient runes that glowed faintly.

Wolf pelts draped the pillars, and statues of the goddess loomed from every corner, their carved eyes gleaming in the firelight.

The villagers had already begun to gather, their voices rising in chants that echoed through the chamber.

Kana's blood ran cold. She had no doubt now—this was the place they intended to end her, and Irielle too.

But as the guards forced her toward the altar, she straightened her back and lifted her chin. Fear gnawed at her, but she refused to let it show.

'If this is the battlefield… then I'll fight here.'

______

Kana's knees hit the cold stone as the guards shoved her down. The chanting around her grew louder, echoing like a storm inside her skull.

She closed her eyes briefly, steadying her breath.

Lysera was dragged in next, bound and forced to kneel a few feet away. Her face was pale, but her eyes burned with fury.

When they met Kana's gaze, she shook her head again, silently begging her not to give in.

On the far side of the chamber, Irielle was brought in as well. She had been bound more tightly than either of them, her wrists bleeding from the restraints.

The gag muffled her voice, but her glare toward her father spoke volumes.

The elder elf raised his arms, commanding silence. The chanting ceased, leaving only the crackle of torches. His voice carried across the chamber.

"Tonight, our goddess returns. Tonight, we offer her a vessel strong enough to carry her will—a vessel marked by fate itself."

He gestured toward Kana, his expression filled with twisted pride.

"This human will serve her. And my daughter, once a disgrace, will redeem herself as the blood sacrifice that heralds our goddess's arrival."

Kana's stomach turned, but her eyes hardened. She leaned forward, speaking loud enough for all to hear.

"I am not your vessel. And I will not let you harm either of them."

Her words sent a ripple of shock through the gathered villagers. But the elder elf only smirked.

"Then let the goddess herself decide."

The chanting was deafening. Voices rose from every direction, layered in strange harmonies that twisted together like coils of smoke.

The air vibrated with power, thick with mana so heavy it pressed down on Kana's skull until she thought it might split open.

Her breath came ragged, each inhale searing as though she were drowning in invisible flames.

System, she called out desperately.

'What's happening?'

A calm voice echoed back in her mind:

[Your resistance is holding. You are safe.]

Relief flickered across her face, but it lasted only a heartbeat. She turned toward the others—and her stomach plummeted.

Lysera stood stiff as stone, her lips parted slightly, eyes glazed with a dull sheen. Irielle mirrored her, her head tilted unnaturally as if listening to some unheard command.

Both were utterly still, caught in the spell that radiated from the crowd.

"No…"

Kana whispered, forcing herself through the oppressive waves of energy. She stumbled forward, reaching for Lysera's hand, desperate to shake her free.

Then her other hand stretched toward Irielle, as though sheer will might tether them back to her.

But before her fingers touched skin, iron strength clamped around her wrist.

Kana gasped as she was yanked off balance—straight into a chest she knew. The warmth, the firm grip, the unmistakable weight of that embrace.

Her heart lurched violently as she froze against him.

The chanting didn't stop. The mana didn't thin. Yet, in that single, crushing instant, Kana forgot all of it.

Her eyes snapped upward, wide and disbelieving, to meet the face of the one holding her.

"...You-!"

Kana breathed, her voice trembling between recognition and dread.

The grip on her wrist tightened, possessive and unyielding. The familiar scent, the steady heartbeat, the overwhelming force of his presence—it swallowed her whole.

Even as the ritual pulsed louder around them, even as Lysera and Irielle remained trapped in glazed-eyed silence, Kana's world shrank to that single, undeniable fact.

She had been caught.

Not by the chanting.

Not by the mana.

But by the very person she had never wanted to face here.

Kana's pulse raced, a mix of fear and something far more dangerous.

The voices roared louder, demanding her attention, but all she could hear was the whisper of his breath near her ear.

The world blurred, and for the first time, Kana wasn't sure who the true enemy was.

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