He’d done it.
’This didn’t happen exactly as I’d planned...’
Nonetheless, he’d taken quite the harrowing step along his path toward surviving this place.
Perhaps it wasn’t the only path available, but it was the one Ash had decided to tread.
Demitra’s jaw went slack, letting Ash’s arm fall from her mouth.
"You..."
Off in the distance, Cross jolted, then began flying toward them on his stone platform.
Ash forced a pained smile. Barely holding back screams, he said:
"Did you not listen... to a thing I said, Winter?"
"..."
Winter stood frozen, making no effort to prepare herself despite knowing Cross was on his way. Moisture glimmered in the corner of her glowing eyes.
’So... it seems there was some truth to her claim that she loved Vera.’
Not that Ash understood that love.
Or perhaps those were tears because she’d never achieve her goal, but Ash didn’t think such a thing would truly cause the Great Spirit to cry.
Ash cast his gaze down to the corpse at his side. Countless tears stained the pale woman’s cheeks.
If this instance was a recreation, the true Vera was still alive — or at least something that looked like her was.
But that wasn’t exactly the thought forcing its way into Ash’s mind.
She had been human, at least in some sense, and he’d just killed her.
He could act indifferent all he wanted, but taking her life wasn’t something he could justify, even if it had been necessary to achieve his goal. His stomach churned and his mind swam through the past as his eyes settled on the wound that had killed her.
He’d threaded his tail through the rock and out behind her, then passed it through her back before casting [Focus]. By sacrificing his entire tail, he had been able to kill her cleanly without Demitra interfering.
But Ash didn’t have the luxury of dwelling on what he’d done.
Panting, he forced his eyes away and watched Cross draw closer and closer.
Turning to the listless wolf at his side, he said:
"I know you never trusted me, Winter... but you trusted your perception of me. And that’s why... you lost."
It was a slightly premature declaration.
But Demitra’s outcome was already all but decided.
Demitra’s only hope now lay with Ash, the man who had taken every other hope from her. If he died, Winter’s chances of surviving Cross would fall to nearly zero — especially now that Cross had lost everything he’d sworn to protect.
Finally, Cross came within earshot. Ash could clearly make out the tears streaking down his face.
"Ash! How dare you!"
Huffing, Ash screamed back:
"Idolan!"
A blinding flare erupted from the temple.
The world around Ash seemed to freeze.
A moment later, just before Cross reached them, the streak of fire struck him and knocked him from his rock.
Debris and rubble flew in all directions.
When the dust settled, Idolan stood at the far end of the landing, holding Cross beneath his sabaton.
Glancing at his daughter’s corpse, he whispered without a trace of mercy:
"I see that you’ve done it."
Winter growled softly. Though she still towered over Ash and her full power had been restored, she made no move.
"That he has..."
Cross tried to say something, but Idolan shifted his foot and applied more pressure to his neck.
As for why Idolan had answered Ash’s call...
Originally, the summons had only been intended as a distraction — something the King of Evercrest most certainly understood despite being somewhat cryptic in their conversation.
Ash’s plan had been for Idolan to draw Demitra away from him during their duel by unleashing her power, giving her an opportunity to kill Idolan — a prime opportunity Demitra wouldn’t seize.
In that moment, Cross would have had no choice but to stop stalling Vera and rush to his father’s aid, giving Ash the chance to kill her.
As for why he had’wanted’ — ’needed’ — to kill her...
’If not her, then me.’
Sooner or later, Demitra, Cross, or Idolan would have killed him.
With Vera dead, both Cross’s and Demitra’s hopes were crushed.
Ash didn’t pretend to understand what Vera truly meant to either of them, but his avenue of survival had widened considerably once he removed the primary reason they needed him dead.
Demitra couldn’t allow Ash to die now, regardless of what happened. Without her bond to him, she was as good as dead herself.
Cross still had a pragmatic motivation to kill him, but his emotional one had transformed into something far more blinding: hatred.
And Ash... Ash had made a career out of taking advantage of others’ hatred for him.
It could be considered one of his greatest skills.
As for Idolan...
The reason he had answered Ash’s summons, even though the moment envisioned in their original arrangement had already passed...
’He’s come to kill me.’
With Vera dead, it was only logical for Idolan’s next step to be killing Ash, the sole remaining threat standing between Cross and victory.
Once Ash was dead, their victory against Winter would be all but inevitable.
To that end, he had to unleash himself, as it was clear Cross would eventually lose the two-versus-one against Ash and Demitra. So, they needed to kill Ash; then Idolan would let himself be rechained, and Cross would deal with Winter accordingly from there.
Idolan looked down upon the haggard prince.
"Cross, you must calm down."
Writhing, Cross tried to scream at his father, but Idolan knelt and clamped a hand over his mouth.
Tears poured from Cross’s silver eyes like sparks from a dying light.
Sighing lightly, Idolan said:
"I understand your pain. But, right now is not the time to get emotional. It is time to settle this decade-long vendetta. Now, on your feet."
Squeezing Cross’s jaw, Idolan stood and pulled the prince up with him, setting him on his feet.
Quiet tears continued to stream down Cross’s face as a stake slowly formed in his hand.
"Vendetta...?"
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