Laverna lunged with a cry of fury, her jamadhars striking like twin comets, trailing arcs of ethereal light as they carved through the blood-hazed air. The corrupted ground quaked beneath her steps, fissures spiderwebbing outward as she aimed for Captain Rorick's grotesque form.
"How dare you!" she roared, anguish and fury twisting her voice. "You killed him!"
Rorick parried with his blade arm, the clash of metal on corrupted steel unleashing a shockwave that shattered nearby windows into glittering shards. The force obliterated a crumbling stone archway, debris raining down as mist swirled chaotically around them.
Rorick sneered, advancing with heavy steps that cracked the earth. "Your precious master is nothing, and I'll break you just as easily."
He licked his lips, looking at Laverna with lecherous eyes. "Maybe when this is over, you'll make a fine little pet—broken, obedient."
Laverna screamed, striking again—twisting midair, slicing down with both blades—but her jamadhars met resistance like iron against the mountain. Rorick grunted, then swung his mutated arm in a brutal arc.
The impact hurled Laverna backward, her body crashing through a wooden beam and demolishing a merchant stall into splinters. A cracked chapel bell toppled, its haunting chime echoing as dust and smoke billowed, the ground trembling beneath her fall beside Shin's motionless body.
Crimson lightning streaked the sky, the heavens churning with a storm of corrupted energy. The air grew heavy, as if the world itself mourned the tragedy unfolding below.
Inside Shin's psyche, time unraveled.
A vast, moonlit field of silver grass swayed beneath a starlit sky. Floating above the sea of silver was a lone, radiant figure—an ethereal woman clad in flowing robes that shimmered like moonlight. Her hair cascaded like a river of black silk, and her eyes held galaxies within them.
Izanami-no-Mikoto.
Not a skeletal reaper, but a divine mother.
She cradled Shin gently in her arms, her touch soft and soothing. A soft lullaby echoed across the field, a tune he had long forgotten—one from his childhood. His lips parted, breath shaky.
"That song..." he whispered. "I remember it... from when I was a child."
The woman stroked his hair, her fingers gentle like a summer breeze, serene and comforting.
"Mother? Is that you?"
He felt like a child again, small and fragile. The warmth of her arms, the scent of her robes, and the gentle lullaby took him back to forgotten memories.
He didn't resist. It was too peaceful, too comforting. Her hand stroked his hair just like how his mother used to when he was scared.
He felt himself relaxing completely, letting go of the pain, the pressure, the war. She didn't answer directly, only smiled with serene grace, her presence wrapping around him like a warm blanket.
"So reckless," she whispered, brushing strands of crimson hair from his face. "You burn so brightly, little flame. But your fire isn't meant to die here."
"Shin!" Laverna screamed, crawling toward him. Her fingers trembled as she tried to seal his wound with healing magic. Golden light pulsed from her palms, but the magic fizzled on contact.
Cursed energy.
"You can't save him," Rorick sneered. "You're next."
But Laverna ignored him, her eyes brimming with tears. She cupped Shin's bloodied face. "Please... please don't die. You idiot, you always push yourself too far."
She sniffled, her voice rising with trembling frustration. "You're always doing this... keeping everything in, pretending to be strong for both of us. But I'm here, Shin! I'm right here with you!"
She shook her head, her fingers tightening slightly against his cheeks. "I see it now—how you've been carrying the weight alone, giving me a chance at a better life, even when it costs you everything. At first, I wanted to escape, to run away from all this... from you. But now—now I love every second I'm with you."
Her voice cracked, but her gaze burned with fierce emotion. "So stop trying to protect me by pushing me away. I want to know the man who became my master—the one who risked everything to save me."
Her voice broke. "Shin... come back... please...". She leaned down, her lips quivering.
"I love you," she whispered and kissed him.
Shin, caught between life and death, felt tears prick his eyes.
"Who... are you?"
"Izanami," she said, her voice like the lull of night wind. "Goddess of death, yes. But also of rebirth. You are not yet done. One cries for you. Do you hear her?"
Her words faded into a familiar voice—Laverna's—calling his name as if from beneath an ocean.
"Shin... come back... please..."
He reached out. She took his hand and held it gently like a mother's warmth.
Izanami smiled, pressing her forehead gently to his. "Go. But remember this feeling. Love can be your salvation... and your curse. We will meet again, Shin. And when we do, it will be different."
She slowly released him, her touch lingering like a memory. Her voice softened to a whisper, the tone of a mother sending her child into the world. "Goodbye... my child. Live."
Back in Valdorne, a golden pillar of light erupted into the heavens, illuminating the chaos with divine brilliance. The cursed storm recoiled, winds scattering as if in reverence.
A warm light burst between them. Her Slave Crest shimmered against her skin, and in that instant, something ancient stirred.
Laverna shielded her eyes.
Shin's body surged with life. Wounds began to close rapidly, mana and ki flooding back into him. Laverna gasped, her body weakening, her strength draining.
"W-What... what is this...?" she murmured.
Shin rose from the light, his wounds completely gone, his presence renewed. Energy crackled around him, the fox spirit within roaring in unison.
She collapsed beside him but smiled through the tears. "You're... alive."
He looked at Laverna, blood still staining her cheeks. He knelt beside her, wiping away her tears and the blood from her cheeks with trembling fingers. "Thank you," he whispered, giving her a gentle smile. "I'll be back."
The orb beside him pulsed with energy and floated upward. It transformed in mid-air, metal swirling like liquid until it formed Yoshimatsu once more—but this time, the blade felt new. Otherworldly. It glowed with a subtle inner light, as if reforged by divine fire, and it felt impossibly light in Shin's grasp.
He stood slowly, his tattered gi fluttering behind him in the wind, the fabric torn and scorched from battle. With one swift motion, he tore off the remains of his robe, letting it fall to the broken earth. His bare chest rose and fell with quiet fury, muscles tensing like coiled steel.
He turned to Rorick, and though his expression remained composed, the spark of determination and rage ignited behind his calm eyes.
"You made her cry."
Golden energy flared around his body, his aura blazing like a second sun. His crimson and golden eyes blazed with power, burning with divine fury and righteous vengeance.
"For that... you'll pay."