It took them a few minutes to reach the nearest mana geyser and a few seconds for the tower to appear.
Solus took no risks and Warped straight to the Desert where Salaark worked her Rebirth Magic on Lith while cursing like a sailor.
She had many things to say and would have reprimanded them all harshly, but from so up close she could feel Lith’s grief via the Blood Imprint they shared. Salaark needed sheer willpower just to not burst into tears from the empathic bond.
Once she was done with him, the Guardian also took care of Friya and Solus. The legendary array had empowered them but had also pushed their cores and bodies to the limit.
They all needed rest and food to recover.
Alas, there was no time.
“How bad is it?” Lith asked while his bond with the tower allowed him to absorb the energy from the mana geyser and recover his strength.
“You went this close to shortening your life span even further, you idiot.” Salaark flicked at his forehead with a finger. It was the harshest scolding he could endure. “Luckily, all the extra power and mass from the Garuda took the brunt of the damage.
“This time you were lucky but if you keep going beyond your limits, you are going to pay the price.”
“Lucky is the last word I’d use to describe myself right now.” Lith said with a sigh, a tear streaming down his face now that the adrenaline was gone.
With no fury or strength to support him, only despair remained.
The moment Solus was certain that he was alright, she hugged him. She hid her face in Lith’s chest, glad that he was fine and that the time they had left hadn’t dwindled again.
It started as a hiccup. Then, she started to shed tears as well. A few seconds later, Solus fell apart, the feeling of joy turning into guilt that further amplified the pain from the loss of their friend.
Phloria was gone and there was nothing keeping the realization at bay anymore.
Friya, Tista, and Quylla were already crying, but they had Hushed themselves to not disturb Salaark’s work. Fyrwal and Tessa were more discreet, emitting no sound but shedding plenty of tears.
They weren’t new to loss and failure but the death of their goddaughter still broke their hearts.
“Thanks, Grandma.” Lith hugged Salaark who returned the embrace.
She wanted to wrap him with her wings and warm his heart with her flames but she knew it was a losing battle. Nothing could make him feel better. Only time would heal his wounds yet there was no telling if he had any.
The Kingdom was bound to fall and with it Lith would lose even more pieces of his heart.
“Now, I have to go.” Lith stood up from the bed, his legs unsteady and his breath ragged.
“You need to rest.” Salaark said yet making no attempt to stop him.
“I can rest later.” He panted. “Phloria’s parents deserve to know what happened. I’m the only one who can answer their questions and give them Phloria’s corpse.”
Just saying her name sent pangs throughout his chest and made Lith shed another tear. Her body stored in the pocket dimension seemed to weigh tons and its presence to make the tower’s storage burn.
“Do you want me to come with you?” The Guardian asked.
“I would appreciate it if you waited for me at home. My whole family is going to need your help.” Lith gave her a deep bow and a final quick hug before Warping the tower back to the Kingdom.
“Where to?” He asked Friya.
“The Ernas Mansion.” She replied in a choked voice. “Mom and Dad are waiting for us there with the rest of the family.”
When they arrived, the massive gates of the Ernas household were open. Its white crystal wall had been painted black in mourning. The guards stood on attention, their faces as impeccable as their posture, yet their eyes cried in silence.
Jirni and Orion were waiting at the door, their faces pale and their eyes red from the crying. Behind them, there were Tulion, Gunyin, Jirni’s cousin Dyta, and even Jiza Gernoff.
Lith walked in front of the funeral procession, holding Phloria’s shrouded corpse in a princess carry. Fyrwal and Tessa walked one step back by his side while Friya and Quylla were right behind him.
“I’m sorry.” Lith’s voice trembled as he spoke. “She’s-“
“I know the what.” Jirni was holding Phloria’s clothes which had now lost their imprint. “The only thing I want to know is how.”
“There’s much you have to know.” Lith’s throat felt constricted, he needed to swallow hard to make words. “Also, Phloria entrusted me with a message for all of you. Please, come close, because I don’t know if I’ll have the strength to repeat it more than once.”
Lith established a mind link, sharing with the Ernas everything he could. He showed them his plans and preparations. How everyone had pitched in to come up with the tools for a foolproof rescue operation.
He shared with them the whole fight with Phloria, what she had said to him while enslaved, and the words she had entrusted to him in her brief time as a Demon. Lastly, he showed them his fight with Thrud’s Divine Beasts and his crazed attempt to avenge Phloria.
Once he was done, Lith needed a deep breath just to not fall apart and burst into tears. He had been forced to tear his wounds open again and to him, Phloria had just died a second time in front of his eyes.
“Thank you.” Jirni said, effortlessly taking the corpse from his arms into her own.
The rest of the Ernas broke into tears one after the other, each mumbling Phloria’s final words to them. Tulion hyperventilated, needing to lean against the doorframe to not fall.
Gunyin stood motionless like his mother, but his throat was so tight that he could barely breathe and his eyes cried a river. Orion bit his lips and clenched his hands until they bled, yet he stood beside Jirni as stoic as she was.
“Thank you for being such a good friend to my Little Flower even after her last breath.” Jirni’s voice was warm and kind, as if Phloria was just asleep and Jirni was lulling her. “Thank you for trying everything you could to keep her here as a Demon.
“Thank you for your honest offer to give your all and find a way to give her a new body. Don’t take her refusal personally. You know how stubborn my daughter is. For what it’s worth, you have my gratitude.
“You promised me to do your best and I know you did. Thank you for bringing my Little Flower’s body back. It’s not the ending I hoped for, but at least she will be buried with her ancestors and in time, I’ll join her.”
Jirni gave Lith a slight nod, turning sideways.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to remain alone with Phloria. There are so many things that I wanted to tell her yet I never did. Now, the time has finally come.”
