The castle shook.
Harvie and Edna ran through the long hallway, the echo of falling stones behind them. After what Harvie saw in the lab—the broken copies of himself—he couldn't stay calm. He didn't speak. He just kept walking fast, hands tight, head down.
"Harvie," Edna said softly, running beside him. "You're shaking."
"I killed myself," he said. His voice was low. "Or... a version of me. It tried to bite me. It was like an animal."
He stopped walking. His hands were red with blood—his own, and the other him. The cold air of Solistra couldn't make the shaking stop.
Edna walked in front of him. She looked into his eyes. "It wasn't you."
Harvie looked away. "It was. One of many. All broken. I'm not real, Edna. I saw it in that place. The throne was fake. The crown was a lie. I was made, not born."
Before she could reply, the wall behind them exploded.
A shadow jumped from the smoke—fast, fast, faster than anything human. Edna pulled Harvie down just in time. A sharp blade sliced the air above their heads.
The figure landed. Black cloak. White mask. No sound.
"A System Assassin," Harvie said, standing up slowly. "They found me."
More shadows appeared behind the first one. Five total.
Edna stepped in front of him, fire starting to glow around her hands. "Stay back."
"No. We fight together," Harvie said.
The assassins rushed in.
They moved like ghosts. But Edna burned like the sun.
Her flames spread wide. Her swords flashed. She blocked. She struck. She protected Harvie like a wall of fire.
Harvie used [Fate Split].
His clone jumped forward, confusing the enemies. For ten seconds, they fought like two Harvies. They stabbed. They dodged. They bought time.
But there were too many.
One assassin got through.
A blade went toward Harvie's neck—
"Harvie!"
Edna jumped in the way.
The blade hit her shoulder.
Blood splashed.
Harvie caught her as she fell. "Edna!"
"I'm fine," she gritted her teeth. "Don't stop."
Harvie turned cold. He moved faster. Sharper. He copied the skill [Flame Cutter] from one assassin and used it to burn two down. Edna stood again. Together, they killed the rest.
Silence returned.
They stood in the ashes. Blood dripped on the floor. Both were hurt. Tired. Breathing hard.
But alive.
"Why are they sending assassins now?" Edna asked, wiping her blade.
"Because I saw something I shouldn't," Harvie said. "They know I'm close to the next Seal."
Edna sat down. Her hand held her shoulder. "You almost died again."
Harvie looked at her. His voice shook. "And if I die here, I won't come back. Not in this place."
She looked at him.
Then she did something unexpected.
She pulled out her dagger. Cut her palm.
"Edna—?!"
She smiled a little. "I want to make a vow. Like old legends. A flame vow."
She touched her bleeding hand to his.
"Wait, don't—"
"Listen," she said.
Her voice was quiet. Serious.
> "If you fall, I'll burn the world to bring you back."
Power moved.
Flames circled around their hands. Red light danced. A small circle formed on both their palms—a mark, glowing like fire.
Harvie could feel it. A deep link. Strong. Heavy.
"What... did you do?" he whispered.
"A flame pact," Edna said. "If you die, I will go berserk. My fire will burn everything to find you. Even gods."
"That's—That's too dangerous. You'll lose control."
"I already lose control when I lose you," she said.
Her eyes looked so tired, but they also glowed.
"You've saved me too many times, Harvie. Let me save you too."
Harvie didn't know what to say.
He felt it—how her flame mixed with his soul. The bond was deep. Real. Maybe more real than anything else in this twisted kingdom.
He wanted to stop her. He really did.
But part of him… was grateful.
He closed his hand over hers.
"…Thank you, Edna."
For now, they were alive.
But the fire was waiting.