Eros fell silent. Barbara hadn’t said it outright, but her meaning was crystal clear. Even if he used the Divine Art to save Irina now, the resulting backlash would leave him unconscious—and a comatose boy being carried by a half-dead woman wouldn't stand a chance against the closing Church hunters.

  He looked down at Irina, whose form was becoming dangerously transparent. His time for choice was measured in heartbeats.

  Let her die before my eyes, or risk both of our lives?

  Irina seemed to sense his internal struggle. A faint, tired smile touched her lips. "Don't be sad, Eros. We should be happy. I found the fragment... the Kingdom of the Ancestor..." Her voice was a mere whisper. "I’ve recorded the location in the necklace. Just take it back. Everything will be worth it. You can do this... right?"

  Eros didn't answer. He stared at the shadow that was all that remained of his sister. His heart screamed to save her, but his reason—the cold, calculated part of him—reminded him that his capture or death would bring total annihilation to the already crumbling Noth family.

  A hollow, suffocating sorrow rose within him. He was about to witness the death of a kin member while he possessed the power to save her, forced to watch her dissolve into nothingness.

  "Perhaps... there is one more way," Barbara spoke up after a long silence.

  "What is it?!" Eros’s head snapped up.

  "She chose to sacrifice everything to the Shadows. As the Divine Artifact that carries the Authority of Shadow, I can temporarily distort the ritual. I can substitute the concept of 'The Great Shadows' with 'You.' I can turn this into a sacrifice made to you... however..." Barbara hesitated.

  She didn't finish the thought: Only Mythical Beings and Gods can accept sacrifices, and only a True God can carry the concept of the Shadow Realm. She glanced at Eros, a strange, unreadable emotion flickering in her eyes.

  Eros didn't notice the look. Hearing there was hope felt like a thousand-pound weight being lifted from his chest. "However what? We're running out of time!"

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  Barbara composed herself, her gaze lowering. "However, you don't have a Divine Kingdom. Even if you accept the sacrifice, you have nowhere to store her soul. She would still eventually fade away. But since she’s currently a phantom... we can merge her into your own shadow. She can survive as your 'Reflection'."

  "The catch is, once she becomes your shadow, she can never leave your side. Not until you... cough... ascend to the Divine Throne and can separate her again."

  Eros didn't hesitate for more than a second. Survival was the only priority. He looked directly at Irina. "I have a way to save you. But it will make you my shadow. You won't be able to leave my side." He paused, his gaze turning solemn as he spoke each word with weight. "So, Irina Lenka Night... are you willing to become my shadow?"

  Irina blinked. She hadn't expected a last-minute rescue. Looking at Eros's deadly serious expression, her smile turned radiant. "I am willing!"

  Whether it worked or not, knowing that he refused to give up on her until the very end made her feel a warmth she hadn't expected.

  As she spoke the words, an invisible contract snapped into place.

  The next moment, Eros’s left eye turned into a pit of absolute darkness as Barbara took command of his body. Obsidian patterns erupted from his skin, forming an intricate, ancient array that covered the entire tree branch.

  Irina’s dissipating form suddenly collapsed into a streak of black light, which slowly, agonizingly, seeped into the shadow cast by Eros.

  After what felt like an eternity, the light was fully absorbed. The darkness in Eros’s left eye receded. Simultaneously, Barbara’s exhausted voice echoed in his mind. "This consumed too much energy... I'm going into a deep sleep for a while."

  Then, silence. No matter how Eros called out, there was no response. He sighed, feeling a bit lost without his guide, but his senses soon spiked.

  Two Church squads had entered his range.

  Eros let out a long, cold breath. "So they found their way here. Fine. Then die."

  After his first kill earlier that night, the psychological barrier had crumbled. This world was cruel—if he didn't kill them, they would kill him. There was no middle ground. Thinking of how close Irina had come to vanishing, his mercy evaporated.

  He moved through the trees like a ghost. Before the two squads could even register a threat, the Eternal Sleep Moon descended, turning them into ash before they could scream.

  The journey back to the Academy was a grueling one. Without Barbara’s active detection, Eros was forced to rely on his own—admittedly large, but not infinite—perception. He bumped into several more squads and was forced to fight his way through.

  Had he not been armed with two powerful buffs and several Divine Artifacts, he might not have made it through the tightening net. By the time he slipped back into his room at the Academy, the first light of dawn was graying the horizon.

  He glanced at Undine, who was still fast asleep in her bed, and decided not to wake her. He stumbled into his own room, too exhausted to even wash up, and collapsed into a dreamless sleep.