PATH OF THE STAR HUNTER

How did this happen? Why? Who? Those questions keep repeating in my head over and over again. I knew the answer, but that only fueled my anger, hatred, My darkness.

I have never been a good man. I wasn’t even before the awakening; It was something I came to accept. Leaving aside the death of my parents, this time of chaos and violence was a better fit for me; deep down, I always knew that I had to stop running from the ghosts of the past and accept my own evil.

I wasn’t a good man... But I still had my own pride, my code, lines I wasn’t about to cross unless indispensable. Beyond that, I had lines I wouldn’t let anyone cross, something I’d protect with my life, my own reverse scale.

Claire, Sasha, Kyuru; those three girls were my reverse scales, something that should never be touched or defiled. I am proud that I have always fulfilled my role as their protector, or I always did... But today, I have failed.

Her tiny body was stained with blood, skin pale and emaciated. A considerable cut covered from the right edge of her waist to her left shoulder, even leaving a rip in one of her butterfly wings, thus damaging that beautiful symmetrical work of art.

My friend, my partner, my confidant... My fairy, someone dared to lay hands on her; they damaged her, tarnished her beauty, took away her smile, and I will take EVERYTHING from them.

I could feel my mana going out of control, affecting the environment, spiraling into aggression like my psyche did; I didn’t care. I just wanted whoever did this to pay the price in blood.

“Silly Desmond, I already told you I’ll be fine. It may look bad, but I’m a fairy; a little magic, and I’ll be as good as new... Just calm down, okay?”

.....

Caressing my cheek tenderly, her hands felt cold. She had lost much of her body heat due to blood loss; Despite this, I could already feel the clarity returning to me.

I looked into her eyes again, those precious amethysts shone with affection, but she couldn’t control the microexpressions of the pain caused by her wounds. I was still furious, but I wouldn’t let her good intentions go to waste.

“Silly girl, just return to your original form, so I can carry you. I must treat your injuries first; I won’t leave your side until you get better.”

Kyuru smiled, but there was some hidden sadness in her smile; I didn’t need to ask; I could already understand ??what had happened and what Cecilia and I would find when we passed through that door.

As I applied a spray potion on Kyuru’s cut, who had already reverted to her tiny form, I couldn’t help but remember how we got here.

There wasn’t much else to discover on the middle floors, not after passing the place where the fight occurred. As Cecilia and I moved forward somewhat quickly, that dark feeling within us seemed to grow with every step we took.

It was silence, not a single soul could be heard inside the tower, and as our stay in that sea of ??stillness continued, more bad thoughts came to our minds.

We went through my room, but there was nothing there; Kyuru was not there. My consolation is that she seemed to have left on her own account; that comforts me. The feeling was short-lived; my heart almost jumped to my throat. There she was; Cecilia and I saw her as soon as we got to the floor where the main bedroom was.

In her childish form, Kyuru was staggering toward us; she was severely injured. A giant sword wound that damaged one of her wings was probably why she was in her most extensive form; without her wings, she would take forever to move from one place to another in her most miniature form.

That brings us to this moment; Cecilia and I look toward the main room. Meanwhile, Kyuru was silent; I think we all knew what we would find in that room.

For the first time since we left the middle floors, we again found traces of a struggle that began halfway down the hall and extended into the room, where the door lay in ruins.

I wanted to stop Cecilia, she didn’t need to see what had happened there, but Kyuru extended her tiny hand, tugging on my sleeve several times, telling me I should let Cecilia move forward.

Since I couldn’t stop her, I would at least walk her into this room. I caught my breath, clenched my teeth against the pain of my wounds that I didn’t even bother to treat, and went with Cecilia.

The room was messy, with broken furniture everywhere, clothes stored in closets scattered around the room, and even the curtains on the windows were not saved. Although there was no trace of a battle between powerhouses, it was evident that someone put up a lot of struggle during the assault.

And there she was, on the bed, bloodied, with an empty look, barely muttering something in a low voice, with her torn clothes, her body full of defensive wounds, bruises, and abrasions. Although she was now torn between life and death, there was no doubt that Nana put up a good fight... It was a pity that she never had a chance.

Nana’s mind was too cloudy to even notice our arrival. She just stayed there, lying on the bed, muttering something; how could my senses miss what she was saying?

My hand instinctively reached out for Cecilia, only to catch the empty air in front of me. With a flash of light, Cecilia moved faster than my senses were capable of processing, reaching Nana’s side in a breath.

That terrifying pressure had already returned; I didn’t need to look up to know that those four-pointed stars were already shining deep in Cecilia’s pupils. However, it did not stop there; that terrifying pressure was accompanied by more than one phenomenon resulting from the manifestation of mana... Of mana and something else.

Like the archangel, a composed voice once again came from Cecilia’s lips. This time, the harmony seemed to be lost; it was a discordant overlap that perfectly conveyed Cecilia’s pain.

“Everything will be fine. Nana, listen to me; everything will be fine. I’m already here.”

Cecilia began to let out intense starlight, her golden hair now taking on an almost ethereal white hue, the mana within her now covering the entire room.

The light element was outside my area of ??expertise. Still, my affinity with mana, in general, was enough to feel the subtle changes around me, the intentions and concepts behind this field of starlight.

I bit my lips in anger and helplessness, giving Cecilia and Nana a look of pity; It just wasn’t enough; Cecilia was desperately trying to use this strange energy field to heal Nana.

Cecilia was somehow exploiting the properties of light and turning it into healing energy, but her intention was not strong enough. She lacked understanding of such concepts; I could feel it; it was the first time Cecilia used this ability... she lacked enough dexterity to save the person in front of her.

It wasn’t even a funny joke, but I was just as powerless; Nana was beyond saving at this point, I could feel her life force about to fade, and no potion in my possession could do anything for her. Maybe a combination of Sasha’s most powerful potions could do something, combining internal and external healing, but that wasn’t feasible. In her state, Nana wouldn’t stand the process; it was simply too much mana operating in her body simultaneously.

The situation could be different if Nana had a strong body accustomed to mana, but she was just a servant; her body barely coexisted with the air’s mana. As for harboring mana within it? There was no such thing.

“Cecilia, is that you?”

Though unable to save Nana’s life, Cecilia’s healing field had given the poor girl back enough strength to at least regain some consciousness.

“Yes, it’s me. I’m here, Nana; everything will be fine. I’m going to heal you. I will take care of you; everything will be fine.”

For a moment, Cecilia’s voice returned to normal; although a little breathy and tearful, she answered eagerly, always holding Nana’s hand lovingly.

On the other hand, Nana didn’t seem to have fully heard what Cecilia said or preferred to ignore it, knowing how bad she really was. Nana found it more important to repeat the exact words she had been muttering when we arrived, which I had heard before.

“I Don’t let him touch me; I’m still pure... Don’t let him touch me; he didn’t stain my body... I’m still pure.”

I could see the pain on Cecilia’s face. What had happened was evident to both of us; Whoever entered here did not come to kill her, and although Nana had fought very hard, her attacker almost got away with it.

I looked at Nana with a pinch of pity mixed with respect; God only knew where the girl got her strength to resist. I could tell how hard she fought just from her torn clothes and the vast collection of cuts and scrapes around her thighs.

But the last piece of her dignity was still there, a tiny and fragile silk barrier that had somehow remained undestroyed until now, thus protecting Nana’s modesty and chastity to the end.

Cecilia’s heart broke, tears falling nonstop from her beautiful eyes, but she continued to force a smile as she poured tons of mana into her starfield.

“I know. You are still pure; you did it, Nana. You are fearless; you are the bravest and most beautiful.”

The light in Nana’s eyes began to dim. Not all the power poured into the field of light could keep the girl from the clutches of death any longer, but there was still some reluctance in her; she still had something she wanted to do before she died.

Taking Cecilia’s hand with the bit of strength she could muster, Nana made her come closer to her. She seemed to want to whisper her last words in Cecilia’s ear, her last wish.

“Cecilia.”

Barely separated by a couple of centimeters from each other, Nana coughed a bit of blood when she called the name of the person who meant everything to her. Using the last of the strength left inside her fragile body, Nana took Cecilia’s face between her hands, and she said those words she had always kept to herself before planting a kiss on Cecilia’s lips.

“I always loved you.”

It was tragic and somehow beautiful, an eternity of emotions and love, in just one breath... the last breath of life within her. Nana’s hands fell languidly to her sides, her body lying back on the bed; she died with a satisfied smile on her lips; she didn’t seem to have a single regret.

Cecilia, for her part, stood there, frozen, an expression of endless agony, tears flowing like waterfalls, the stars in her eyes darkening, her hair now pale and ominous white.

Cecilia now had her lips painted with the last kiss of the only person who ever loved her, dyed with the color of passion, desire, and death; a crimson kiss was the last thing Nana left for her.