"Ah... ah... ah!"
Inside the ruins, the grievously wounded Noelle clawed at the ground, dragging herself toward Ellin inch by inch.
The grief of knowing her friend was about to die.
The helplessness of having no strength to save her.
The remorse of knowing her own recklessness had put her friend in danger for her sake, leaving her gravely wounded and on the brink of death.
All those negative emotions surged through her at once, bringing her unbearable pain.
She desperately wanted to reach Ellin, but her injuries left her unable even to walk. All she could do was crawl like a worm, struggling for every inch.
She desperately wanted to call Ellin's name and tell her not to fall asleep, but the enormous amount of electricity she had inhaled earlier had left her unable even to speak.
Less than a hundred meters separated her from Ellin.
Yet that distance felt like an impassable chasm, cutting her off from Ellin.
She did not know whether her wounded body could make it to Ellin's side, or whether Ellin would still be alive when she got there.
As she looked at the figure lying in a pool of blood, her skin white as paper and her dress soaked in crimson.
Overwhelming agony pierced Noelle's heart like one searing sword after another.
"Ellin... Ellin..."
She opened her mouth to call Ellin's name, but burning pain surged through her throat, leaving her unable to form words. All that escaped her lips were weak, hoarse cries of anguish...
"Ah... ah... ah..."
Tears covered her face as she reached toward Ellin, wanting to save her from His Royal Highness the Prince.
But she was so powerless, so insignificant. Before she could even crawl to Ellin's side, His Royal Highness the Prince might already have killed her.