"..."
Arona, kneeling on the ground, could no longer speak.
For anyone else, with both life and strength nearly completely exhausted, they likely would not even have been able to gather their gaze and notice Linsey before them.
But Arona carried the protection Clear Sky had given her.
Thus, through messages carried by the breeze, the girl sensed Linsey's approach.
Arona: Lord Linsey, you're back?
Linsey: In the legends you have heard, when the City of Law was first founded, there was such a calamity. You know how it ended, don't you?
Arona: Since I returned here, I am willing to bear such a fate.
Linsey: Fate? What do you think fate is?
Arona: Just as Lord Linsey gave the seeds of Golden Oat to the First King, this is a fated Fate Trajectory.
Linsey: So, in the records of legend—it was you who sacrificed your life to preserve the first spark of the City of Law.
Arona: I feel joyful and fulfilled by this.
Arona: I suppose I embarked upon this path of faith precisely for today...
"There is nothing in this world that is predetermined. No one is born into this world for such ridiculous reasons as sacrifice or self-sacrifice. As for this so-called fate, just watch."
Outside the Friend Channel. In reality.
Linsey's resolute voice rang out, interrupting Arona's inner monologue.
Around the village, the wall of light formed from the girl's Power of Faith began to flicker.
Clearly, now that an ally had arrived, her nearly depleted source essence and spirit would vanish alongside her life.
Arona's body could barely feel anything.
But at that moment, she felt her head tilt upward.
"?"
Only then did the girl realize what had happened.
Someone had seized her chin. Her powerless mouth naturally fell open, and then