Suddenly, the pain began to fade. Dila exhaled slowly, her body relaxing a little. "Wow… it really works. Thank you, doctor," she said, her voice soft but full of relief.

The doctor, sweat dripping down his face, almost collapsed in his relief. He gave a shaky smile, still holding himself upright. "I… I'm glad, Princess," he said, his voice weak from the tension he'd carried.

Dila no longer felt the stabbing pain in her side, though her body remained physically weak. She shifted slightly, noticing Fran's small hand extended beside the bed sheet.

"Sister… are you okay?" Fran asked, her voice gentle, eyes brimming with concern.

Dila smiled warmly, despite her trembling frame. "Yeah… I'm okay now, Fran," she said, her voice genuine.

Fran's face lit up, and a soft giggle escaped her lips as she returned the smile.

Then.

Dila tilted her head slightly, a soft smile lingering on her face as she whispered to her mind, "Nari are you… are you okay too? How are you?"

She waited, her eyes glimmering with hope, but no response came. Only silence filled her mind, and the faint echo of her own voice seemed to answer back. Yet, she didn't frown—her smile stayed, small but determined, as if willing Nari to be alright even without an answer.

Dila's smile faltered, shrinking as worry began to creep in. She pressed her lips together, her eyes widening with each heartbeat.

"Nari… hello? Hello?" she whispered in her mind again, a tremor of fear threading through her voice. Her hands tightened slightly over the bedsheet, her body tensing as the silence stretched on, and the hope she had held began to flicker like a dying flame.

Dila's eyes glistened, teetering on the edge of flooding as the first tears began to slip down her cheeks. She sniffled softly, her small, fragile voice echoing in her mind.

"Nari… where are you? Did you leave me?" she whispered again, her heart tightening with fear and loneliness. Her tears fell freely now, glimmering like tiny crystals on her pale skin as the silence answered her, cold and empty.

Dila's mind trembled as she whispered silently to herself, System, open status window… Her tears flowed freely, hot and unrelenting, while the faint spark of blue at the edges of her eyes flickered once, then vanished entirely.

Fran and the doctor watched her, their faces painted with confusion. Fran's voice wavered as she said, "Sister… are you okay?"

The doctor's hands fidgeted nervously as he asked, "Did the medicine… not work or something?"

Dila didn't answer. She turned her head away, avoiding both Fran and the doctor, her shoulders trembling with the weight of her emotions.

Fran slowly reached her hand toward Dila, hesitant, but as tears welled in Dila's eyes, Fran quietly pulled back, unable to breach the fragile barrier around her sister.

Dila's body shook as she continued to cry, her sobs heavy and uneven. Ohh… Nari… where are you… she whispered fiercely in her mind, gritting her teeth as tears streamed down her face, refusing to look at anyone.

Her voice, weak but firm, broke through her anguish as she said aloud, "Please… doctor… Fran… leave me alone for a moment… just this once."

The room fell silent, the air thick with her pain, as Fran and the doctor exchanged worried glances but quietly stepped back, giving her the space she demanded.

The doctor walked out through the double doors, bowing his head respectfully, his steps careful and quiet.

Fran followed behind him, her shoulders slumped and her face etched with guilt. Her tail drooped low, swaying gently with each hesitant step, reflecting the weight of worry and remorse she felt for Dila.

Dila's tears kept falling as her voice cracked with desperation.

"Nari… Nari, where are you?" she cried, pounding weakly on the bed with both hands. Her body trembled with helplessness. "I thought… I thought you'd only be gone if I died… what… what happened?"

Her sobs echoed through the quiet room as she continued to cry, her voice breaking with every word.

Dila's sobs erupted into a loud, anguished scream.

"Nari! Nooo!" she cried, her body shaking as her tears soaked the bed.

Outside the closed door, Fran leaned against it, listening quietly. Her brows furrowed in puzzlement—she didn't know who this Nari was that Dila was calling out to—but she didn't press for answers. Fran's chest ached with sadness too, and all she could do was remain there, silent, sharing in the pain from afar.

Dila's voice trembled, breaking through the quiet of the empty room.

"Please… Nari, be with me… where are you? Did you truly leave me like this… my best friend?" she cried, clutching at the empty air.

Her shoulders shook violently as she continued, voice cracking with guilt and desperation. "I'm sorry… I forced you to use your power… our power… to its absolute limits. It's my fault… I didn't mean to… I just wanted to win… our freedom…"

Tears streamed down her face, wetting the sheets as her body trembled from the weight of her sorrow. The room seemed to close in around her, silent except for the sound of her heart-wrenching sobs.

Her face pressed against the pillow, Dila's tears soaked into the sheets as her voice broke apart into fragments. Her breath hitched, trembling between sobs as though every word carried the weight of her chest caving in.

"Ohh Nari.... I'm really sorry.... I must be a terrible master to you...." she whispered, her voice faint, almost trembling out of existence.

She closed her eyes, her body trembling, her fingers clutching weakly at the blanket as if trying to hold onto something slipping away.

"Now you face the consequences.... and I keep hearing you.... that last time.... you said you don't want to die...." her voice cracked, the words spilling into the empty air, soft and fragile.

Her tears didn't stop. Her shoulders shook as she clung to the pain that crushed her chest. "It's all my fault.... all mine...."

The silence that followed was unbearable, a silence that pressed down harder than any blade. The absence of Nari's frail, cheerful voice was like a hole carved open inside her heart.... and Dila felt herself sinking into it, piece by piece.

And suddenly, Dila heard a gentle knocking sound on the door.

Her swollen eyes flickered open, her breath ragged.

"Go away…" she muttered weakly, her voice breaking.

The knocking didn't stop. It came again, steady and soft.

"I said go away… please… I'm not in the mood of entertaining you right now…" Dila's words cracked, her throat dry from crying. She clutched the bedsheets tighter, burying her face against them.

Her chest heaved as she forced out, "And I hope it's not you, Fran… knocking the door…"

The sound of the knocking echoed again, quiet yet persistent, as if whoever stood behind it was waiting patiently….

And then the door creaked softly as it opened.

Dila didn't move at first, her voice sharp and tired. "I said I don't to entain...." She swung her head toward the door, annoyance flaring in her eyes.

But the words stopped on her lips when she saw him.

It was Albedo, peeking quietly through the crack, his tall frame almost too imposing for such a gentle entrance.

Dila instantly turned her face away, pouting as her gaze fixed stubbornly on the ceiling. Her voice came out bitter, laced with exhaustion. "What do you want.... ohh great mighty king of this castle?"

The air was heavy. Her words were meant to sting, yet beneath them trembled her sadness.

But instead, Albedo's voice came soft and careful. "Are you okay…? How are your internal wounds…? Have your magic circuits healed?"

Dila's lips curled into a again pout as she kept her eyes fixed on the ceiling. "Hey, why do you keep asking those stupid questions? By the way… I'm not your daughter. Your daughter is dead. Maybe she's somewhere floating around." Her voice was sharp, stubborn, every word thrown like a blade meant to cut.

Albedo closed his eyes, his voice carrying no anger, only weariness. "Alright… I get it. Since you've been away from me for so many years, your personality has changed significantly. You don't have the manners or etiquette you once had." His words ended in a sigh, quiet and heavy, as if carrying a weight of defeat.

Albedo slowly opened his eyes again, his gaze heavy on her. "Is it perhaps because of the Berserker that kidnapped you…? Did it shape your personality, twist it, make you forget the manners you once had… just like the Berserker itself?"

Dila's head snapped toward him, her cold blue eyes locking onto his. Her lips pressed tightly before she spoke, her voice cutting through the air. "There is no such thing as a Berserker… or a kidnapping." The sharpness in her tone was matched by the fierce glare she shot at him, her denial slicing deeper than any blade.