The demon lords began departing, opening portals to their various domains. Some looked at Satou with pity. Others with curiosity. Seraphine blew him a kiss as she left, her expression suggesting she'd be very interested in visiting before the fight.

Soon, only Satou, Loki, and Malakor remained in the great hall.

"That was well played by Chronus," Malakor observed. "Ruthless, but well played. He's managed to put you in a position where you must fight or lose all credibility, and he's chosen a champion specifically designed to counter most conventional combat strategies."

"Can I win?" Satou asked directly.

Malakor was silent for a long moment. "Richard Clay is powerful. His Decay ability makes him nearly untouchable in close combat. Most who've fought him have died within minutes. But..."

"But?" Satou prompted.

"But you've already achieved the impossible once by killing a hero," Malakor said. "Perhaps you can do it again. Or perhaps you'll die trying. Either way, we'll know definitively whether your vision of building a civilization has any merit, or if it's just naive idealism that crumbles when faced with real power."

With that, Malakor opened his own portal and departed, leaving Satou and Loki alone in the obsidian hall.

"One week," Satou said quietly. "One week to figure out how to defeat someone who kills everything he touches."

"Then we better get started," Loki replied. "Because if Chronus has his way, you'll be dead and I'll be damned if I let that happen."

They walked toward the portal that would take them home.

—--------

The portal deposited them back at the settlement just as the sun was beginning to set, painting the sky in shades of orange and purple. The familiar sight of his village, modest structures of earth and wood, goblins and orcs moving about their evening routines, should have been comforting. Instead, it filled Satou with a sense of desperate urgency.

"Go check on your people," Loki said, sensing Satou's turmoil. "Make sure everything is stable here. I'll return in two hours with training materials and information about Richard Clay. We'll need to use every second of the week we have."

"Will two hours make a difference?" Satou asked. "Against someone with an ability like Decay?"

"Every second makes a difference," Loki replied. "And yes, there are strategies we can employ. Richard Clay is powerful, but he's not invincible. If he were, Chronus would have used him to challenge for a higher seat on the council. There are limitations to his power, weaknesses we can exploit. We just need to find them."

Loki opened another portal, this one leading to his own domain. "Two hours, Satou. Settle your affairs, talk to your people, and prepare yourself mentally. The physical training comes after."

He stepped through and was gone, leaving Satou alone at the edge of his settlement.

Satou took a deep breath and started walking toward the village center. As he moved through the streets, goblins and orcs who saw him immediately bowed or waved respectfully. Word had apparently spread that he'd gone to meet with the demon lords, though they probably didn't know the results yet.

He needed to find Lyra first, to update her on what had happened and what was coming. But as he approached the administrative building, he saw Jessica sitting on the steps outside, her head in her hands.

She looked up as he approached, and Satou was struck by how miserable she appeared. Her eyes were red, as if she'd been crying, and her normally cheerful demeanor was completely absent.

"Jessica?" Satou said gently, sitting down beside her. "What's wrong? Did something happen while I was gone?"

"I don't know," Jessica said, her voice small and confused. "That's the problem. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"What do you mean?" said Satou.

Jessica was quiet for a moment, seeming to struggle with how to explain. "When I saw you and Lyra this morning, when I realized you two had spent the night together, I felt something. Here." She placed a hand over her heart. "Something uncomfortable. Like something was squeezing inside my chest. And it hasn't gone away all day."

Satou's stomach sank as he began to understand. "Jessica—"

"I thought maybe I was sick," Jessica continued, not seeming to hear him. "So I used my healing magic on myself, but nothing was physically wrong. Then I thought maybe I was just tired or stressed. But that didn't explain why I felt worse every time I thought about you and Lyra together."

She looked at him, her eyes desperate and confused. "What's wrong with me, big brother? Why does thinking about you being with someone else make me feel like this? You're my big brother. I should be happy for you. But I'm not. And I don't understand why."

Satou felt his heart break a little. He'd been so focused on survival, on building the settlement, on facing the constant threats, that he'd completely missed what was developing right in front of him.

Jessica had feelings for him. Real feelings that went beyond the sibling bond they'd formed and he'd been completely oblivious.

"Jessica," Satou said gently, taking her hand. "I think what you're feeling isn't sickness or stress. I think it's jealousy."

"Jealousy?" Jessica repeated, as if the word was foreign. "But why would I be jealous?"

"Because you have feelings for me that go beyond seeing me as just your big brother," Satou said carefully. "Romantic feelings. And seeing me with Lyra made you realize that."

Jessica stared at him, her expression shifting from confusion to dawning horror. "No. No, that can't be right. You're my big brother. I can't have feelings like that for you. That's wrong, isn't it?"

"We're not actually related," Satou pointed out gently. "We just call each other siblings because we're close. But there's no blood relationship between us. So technically, there's nothing wrong with you having those feelings."

"But you don't feel the same way," Jessica said, and it wasn't a question. "You feel that way about Lyra."

Satou wanted to lie, to soften the blow somehow, but Jessica deserved honesty. "Yes. I do. I care about you deeply, Jessica. You're one of the most important people in my life. But the feelings I have for you are brotherly, protective. What I feel for Lyra is different."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.