The Author's POV

It all happened so quickly, but when she felt 'his' gaze fall on her for just a split second, time seemed to come to an abrupt halt, and so did her world.

His expression was the same as usual—a little aged. Perhaps a little different, but it wasn't so different from how it had always been.

Yet, for some reason, in that moment, it felt as though that simple gaze told her a thousand words.

He nodded at her and said something.

She couldn't quite make out what those words were.

That was because she knew exactly what he was going to do, and in that moment, her mind blanked.

Her usually brilliant mind blanked, and she dully stood on the ground, staring up toward the sky, which was soon enveloped by a brilliant white light that came directly from her father's body. It enveloped the sky in its entirety.

BOOOM—!

That was the last thing she saw before a terrifying explosion covered the sky, and she was hurled a great distance away from the scene.

BANG—!

She collided with a tree, and if it weren't for the protective shield that materialized around her just as she was about to make contact with the tree, she likely would have sustained significant injuries.

"Ugh."

With a groan, she forced herself to look up, and that was when she realized that the mist that had blanketed the sky previously had completely disappeared.

Her mind, which seemed stained with something moments prior, seemed to clear up.

But none of that concerned her at the moment. What she was concerned about was something else, and she hastily looked around in the sky for any signs of 'him'.

But no matter how hard she looked, she couldn't find him. In fact, she couldn't see anything, and her legs started to go numb.

That was until a hand pressed against her shoulder and a familiar voice reached her ear.

"…He's gone."

"W..what?"

When she turned her head, she caught sight of a hazy, almost transparent figure.

"Who are you?"

She thought he sounded familiar, but the way he looked… was that really who she thought he was?

"It's me."

His voice was hoarse, almost feeble, but when he turned his head and their eyes met, Melissa understood that it was really him.

here? How did you get here? Were you

"No."

head and stared into the distance.

"Are you really fine?"

"…"

to. Was she fine? She didn't feel very much. And

She just felt… empty.

didn't know

and found everything hard

"I… I don't know."

out her glasses, her vision started to blur, and she

all honesty, she could've had her eyesight fixed a

a potion or surgery, she could've. She was rich and was smart enough to produce

just didn't

her blurred vision would stop her from

at the moment apart from Ren, but

see what was

***

'She's surprisingly calm.'

at Melissa beside me. At least, that was what I

wasn't too

was writhing, and the pain that was permeating every part of me

made things easier

above me, I knew that things

since I was in no state to properly fight at

that I had to do before coming here, and that took almost

Swoosh—!

was until my attention was eventually drawn to a dark spot in the sky. It was writhing in the air, and the

a second and arrived before

like I've arrived on

made contact with it, I felt a soothing energy

body, which was briefly disappearing and then reappearing, started to take shape again, and the excruciating pain that

of times already, and my comprehension of the laws started to

I was able to comprehend, the more I found myself able to use Kevin's

the Pillar without destroying it from the outside. It still took a little toll on me, but

"You… who are you?"

heard a certain voice, and when I looked down,

power that radiated from his body was also nothing

you really be talking to

palm of my hand against the demon's shoulder, and immediately he froze in place. Golden runes whirled all around the area where the Prince and I were

body, and I found myself struggling to keep my composure. In spite of this, I cast my gaze off into the horizon and nodded my

my vision. A powerful force soon enveloped the area that

were like that, but when my sight returned, I found myself standing in the

anything I'd ever