How much time had passed? From the torture she had inflicted on me, I had already lost all sensation in my body. It was a wonder I was even still breathing. Of course, my lingering life wasn't due to any toughness on my part; she was merely tormenting me right on the brink of death so I wouldn't slip away.
Yet despite such a hopeless predicament, all I harbored toward them was pure hatred and rage—not a single shred of fear crossed my mind.
"You really are a tough one, aren't ya-nen?"
At Urokoonu's half-exasperated voice, I shifted only my eyes.
"How... did you... know... where we were...?"
I forced out the question. I would die soon. That was an undeniable fact. If there was any salvation left for me, it was the possibility that, just like before, this was all a dream I was seeing. I would struggle until the bitter end!
"The reason you were found-uu? Too baaad for you-aa! A special barrier of mine is cast all over this northwestern region-nooon! If you step so much as one foot inside, I teleport right over, you see-neen!"
Ah, I see. So the path we were walking held nothing but ruin from the start.
My vision grew increasingly hazy. It seemed this was as far as I went. I only had the breath left to ask one or two more things.
"What happened... to everyone... in the city...?"
"Don't you worry-nen! There were a few meddlers, but they safely secured the prize, and the ritual was carried out without a hitch-yooo!"
She proclaimed in a buoyant voice. The prize meant Char. In a world devoid of Char and the others, I had not the slightest lingering attachment. That was why—
"...Go to hell... you brainless fish... bastard."
I squeezed out my final words. I couldn't move a single millimeter of my body anymore. This was my last resistance.
"You really are an infuriating monkey-neeen!"
At Urokoonu's furious roar, I felt the faint sensation of bones splintering and flesh crushing beneath her wrath. Then, my vision was swallowed by blinding white.
Suddenly, an explosion erupted.
"Who are you-nen?!"
A panicked, desperate cry rang out—utterly unfitting for someone of her overwhelming might.
Once more, a deafening blast and a tremendous shockwave shook the ground. Immediately after, an absolute silence descended.
Amidst my fading consciousness,
"Your Highness..."
I heard the sound of someone softly sobbing beside my ear. With that as my lullaby, I drifted into darkness.