The rain is still falling.
Lin Yuan lay in the mud, motionless for a long time.
It wasn't that he couldn't get up, but rather that the magical energy surging from all directions was too long-lost. It passed through the rain, soil, and trees, reconnecting with the power within him that had been dormant for two years. Black and silver light spots appeared between his fingers, only to be casually extinguished.
This time, there were no transparent squares to separate the magic.
He really came back.
Lin Yuan propped himself up with the help of " Nameless ". The wound on his shoulder, inflicted by Kayaba, was still bleeding, and the injury from colliding while crossing the rift hadn't disappeared either. There was no health bar here, and it wouldn't automatically regenerate after disengaging from combat, but as his magic resumed circulating, the fatigue that had been building up in his body was rapidly lessening.
He looked down at the sword in his hand.
Rainwater slid down the black spine of the sword without turning into data points. The reinforcement patterns belonging to Aincrad on the sword had all disappeared, and its weight was slightly different from before. Only the tiny marks left by countless collisions remained hidden deep within the metal.
" Nameless " has truly been brought back.
Lin Yuan closed his eyes, his consciousness sinking into the depths of his soul. The World Marker still did not respond; only a distant coordinate lay submerged in the darkness, so faint it seemed it might go out at any moment.
That's where Yui is sleeping.
He remembered that glimmer of light and reopened his eyes. The crack behind him had completely closed, leaving no trace of spatial fluctuation. All that remained before him was a stone wall covered in vines and half a black bell lying in the muddy water.
He disappeared from here two years ago.
Just as Lin Yuan stood up, a magical force suddenly emanated from the other side of the woods.
Fierce, sharp, and carrying the oppressive aura of a demon.
His hand was already gripping the hilt of the sword, and his body turned at the same moment. But the Nameless was only half an inch out of its sheath before he stopped.
This magic was far stronger than he remembered, yet he couldn't possibly be mistaken.
The branches and leaves were lifted up by the airflow.
A white figure descended from above the rain, its demonic wings suddenly retracting before landing. Mud and water splashed everywhere as the figure looked up at the center of the ruins.
Lin Yuan was also looking at her.
Mira has grown taller. Her face, which still had a touch of childishness two years ago, has fully matured. Her wet, white hair clings to the sides of her face, while her short bangs still stubbornly stick up. Even more noticeable is the magic within her; it no longer needs to rely on anger to erupt, but rather quietly resides within her body.
Only those blue eyes remained unchanged.
The two stared at each other for a few moments through the rain.
Mira walked over step by step. Without saying a word, she reached out and grabbed Lin Yuan's wrist, pressing her fingertips against his pulse and squeezing it hard.
Does it hurt?
"Pain."
"It seems it's not fake."
She released his hand, her gaze shifting from the wound on Lin Yuan's shoulder to " Nameless," before finally settling back on his face.
"I'm back," Lin Yuan said.
Mira suddenly raised her fist.
Lin Yuan did not dodge.
The fist grazed his face and slammed into the remaining stone wall behind him. Half of the vine-covered wall collapsed on the spot, and several pieces of rubble rolled into the muddy water, startling all the birds in the forest into flight.
"Looks like you haven't been slacking off these past two years." Lin Yuan glanced at the ruins.
"You certainly know how to choose the right moment to speak."
Mira withdrew her fist, her eyes slightly red, but her tone was even fiercer than her fist, "You only had time to say half a sentence when you disappeared, and this is the first thing you said when you came back?"
The first thing I said was, "I'm back."
"Shut up."
Lin Yuan indeed stopped talking.
Mira glared at him for a moment, then suddenly reached out and hugged him. The movement was quick and strong, making the wound on her shoulder ache again.
Lin Yuan's hand, holding the sword, paused in mid-air before gently landing on her back.
In two years, he witnessed too many hugs. Some celebrated surviving after a boss battle, some desperately reached out before their companions disappeared, and some never saw the person they wanted to see until the world collapsed.
This time, no one will be reduced to fragments.
Mira quickly released his grip, as if nothing had happened, and looked down to examine his wound.
"Sword wound?"
"Um."
Who did it?
"The creator of that world."
Mira looked up.
"It's a bit of a long story," Lin Yuan said. "We'll talk about it when we get back."
"You can still walk?"
Lin Yuan took a step forward, but his foot tripped over a gear buried in the mud.
Mira immediately supported him, a smile spreading across her face, "I can see you can walk."
The carriage she had used to come by was still parked outside the woods. The rain showed no signs of letting up, so the two of them took shelter in the remaining stone corridor for the night.
After eating the dry rations Mira brought, Lin Yuan leaned against a stone pillar and slept until dawn. When he woke up the next day, his wounds had healed and his strength had mostly recovered. Apart from the bloodstains on his clothes that couldn't be washed off, there was no indication that he had just finished a battle that lasted until the world collapsed the night before.
"What year is it now?" he asked.
Mira paused as she was putting out the fire.
" Year X780."
Lin Yuan looked at the ruins of the ancient castle.
Two years.
"Not a day more, not a day less." Mira brushed the dust off her hands, turned, and walked out of the woods. "There's a bunch of people in the guild waiting to settle scores with you."
Lin Yuan slung " Nameless " over his shoulder and followed.
After taking a few steps, Mira turned back, as if finally making up for the sentence she had been holding back since last night.
"You still know how to come back."