The moment the power of Blessing of the Gods was pulled from Shane's body, a pain he had never experienced before started from his spine and spread throughout his entire body in an instant.
This pain was by no means an ordinary physical injury. It came from a far subtler level, a sensation that spread from within outward.
It far exceeded any pain Shane had ever suffered from battle.
But he did not cry out.
Because the first thing Shane thought of was that Rachel was still in front of him.
He opened his eyes, saw Rachel's gaze, and immediately realized something.
A strange crimson began filling his vision. Rachel's eyes shifted toward his waist, and the expression of the expressionless Girl was filled with immense grief and shock.
He tried to reach out. He wanted to touch Rachel's hair and tell her not to worry.
But then boundless darkness completely swallowed that crimson light.
"Damn—"
It was impossible to describe just how endless that darkness and silence were.
At least, when Shane recalled it afterward, he was certain that the instant a person died, they would fall into an absolute loneliness where time held no meaning.
Until a powerful hand, carrying an indescribable beam of light, pierced through that darkness so lonely it could drive one mad.
Shane instinctively grabbed it, as though he had been dragged to the surface after drowning.
He first gulped down breaths of air. The light around him spun wildly, so he could only begin by looking at the hand he was holding.
Before he saw the other person's full body, Shane recognized her identity from the familiar Guardian Bracelet.
"Teacher Prince?"
Diana glanced back at him. The corners of her lips rose instinctively, then quickly faded, and her expression became somewhat strange.
Shane's