Raiden raced through the Gambit Absolute Domain at a relentless pace. Uneasiness mounted within him with every drifting moment.
Together with Noelle, they rushed along the snake-like pavement, through groves of lightning-white aether trees and gnarled green branches toward the cascading mountain's edge.
His hands clutched his knees, panting as breath fled from him. His thoughts splintered, each inhalation feeling like it might rip him in two. Yet the crisis confronting them remained clear: the final ten pages of Aaron were gone.
This represented everything Raiden had strived for, the sole reason for their presence on Gambit Island. He needed those pages desperately—they had become the source of his very survival. This wasn't something he could simply let go.
Each second felt like torture he fought to bear. How could someone steal the pages from right under their very noses?
It defied logic, considering they had maintained their vigil all night. The presence of an intruder should have been impossible to miss.
"Those bastards…" Noelle muttered, clenching her fist with her face twitching in annoyance. "This was their plan all along."
"And her…" she grew more enraged from her thoughts alone. "… that bitch. I will kill her myself."
Rage coursed through Raiden, but he wasn't entirely shocked. He had suspected Aeris's betrayal, knowing his comrade had turned against them.
Now it appeared that Chrono, who had been their ally mere moments ago, was working toward this moment. Yet he couldn't express his anger freely—he felt like nothing more than a fool.
He rose to his full height, eyes drifting toward the blue ocean that stretched below the mountain, perspiration forming on his face despite the cool morning wind.
As he stood there, his fingers traced the black skeletal mask at his neck, and Speed came to mind. Though Speed was gone now, his warnings had been accurate; Aeris was a traitor.
A moment of silence stretched between them, and Raiden found himself deep in contemplation, staring at the dark thorn tattoo etched on his wrist. It stood as evidence of his alliance with Chrono, but could it offer him anything now?
But at that moment, Noelle's deep violet eyes went wide, sparkling with realization as if something vital had just come back to her.
"Dainty…" her tone cracked with confusion, stealing Raiden's attention. "Why did she allow this?"
Her words awakened something within Raiden, leading him to the same conclusion. Dainty, the Laughing Princess, possessed dominion over their current realm.
The entire island was hers to command, and she obviously guarded the ten pages, considering she'd sent Iron, her guardian, to hunt them down.
Therefore, it was undeniable that the Princess was aware of Chrono and the others' theft of the pages. None of it made sense.
Raiden's rapid thoughts spun beyond his control. Had there been truth in her words when she said the pages weren't intended for her or them? Was this deception her intention all along?
"That rotting bitch…" he grimaced as he muttered, his clenched fist trembling.
However, at that instant, Dainty's succulent voice echoed from behind, catching Raiden and Noelle off guard.
"Now, that's not very polite of you, Bookkeeper." She said casually, maintaining her usual cheerful presence.
"I may be two centuries old…" she glanced at her majestic figure, her hand brushing against her aluminum armor. "…but see, I'm not rotting."
Her words irritated Noelle even further as she attempted to attack, but Raiden stopped her instantly by grabbing her from behind.
Though Noelle writhed violently in Raiden's hold, he remained strangely calm. Actually, after listening to the Man God's casual tone, his confusion seemed to ebb away mysteriously. Yet he couldn't understand the reason.
"Calm down, Rulekeeper…" Dainty said as she approached them, her calm expression shifting.
"Have a little faith in me, would you?"
She joined them at the edge of the mountain. She gestured toward Raiden, to his thorn mark, to be precise.
"If you've allied with them, then this ends one way or another… at Solace or in the Tragical Isle." Her eyes stared directly at the ocean below.
As Noelle's fury ebbed and Raiden released her, realization dawned on him. The end of their alliance had been established in Tragical Isle, an absolute domain under the rule of the elusive Luci—a realm where only war and death held dominion.
The path forward was clear: he needed to go to Tragical and invoke Chrono's presence. Was this understanding what had brought him that strange calm earlier?
"I'd suggest you don't go after the pages. It won't end well."
As soon as Dainty spoke, Raiden's heart sank like a stone, uneasiness consuming every part of him as though her words were a violation of his soul itself.
"Go to Solace with Chrono. End this in peace." She added, each word crushing Raiden even more.
"What the heck… all that fighting, all that blood, and for what? Three of our comrades died for this!" Noelle's words cut the distance with sheer rage.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?"
Dainty gently turned in her direction, her presence calm and collected. "I'm saying…"
"You're the only guardians of the Book of the Devourer left. And I doubt your fallen comrades would want you dead too."
She paused briefly, her eyes finding Raiden. He stood with his head lowered, his whole body seething with disgust. His world, his return home—that was his honor and his pride. Who gave a fuck about those cursed books of the devourer?
"I can't help it… you can't chase the pages anymore. Please. It's suicide." Dainty added.
At that moment, Noelle's golden aura flared more violently than Raiden's blue aura. Her eyes swept the rocky ground frantically, as though she was struggling against the compulsion to voice something horrible.
"You know nothing about our friends… nothing." she blurted, clenching her fists, her face twisting as a heavy silence followed.
But then, for some reason, her aura grew gentle, and she let out a sigh.
"I made a promise… and I intend to keep it." She turned to Raiden, who fought the urge to attack Dainty because he knew he wouldn't win. Newest update provided by novel·fire·net
"That's Raid's call. I go where he goes."
Through the heavy stupor that had settled over him,
an impenetrable wall that even his attempts at calm couldn't break, Noelle's voice somehow found its way to Raiden.
He turned sharply toward her. There were promises he had to keep: his brother's revenge, claiming Deathsight's eyes, and the string of smaller vows that bound him. He needed those pages to see it all through.
"We leave for the Tragical. Now." He said coldly, leaving no room for suggestions.
Dainty resumed her tranquil demeanor, offering a casual shrug accompanied by a subtle smirk.