"Haaa...haa..."

I hurried through the hallway and reached the garden, my mind filled with fear about something going wrong.

Is that Professor Adriannel? I noticed Professor standing next to Zeph.

’Is he the cause?’ I pondered the similarity to the day of awakening, but this time, it felt different.

’Wait, that man isn’t the professor’ Somehow, I sensed he wasn’t what he looked like.

Could this be the reason?

Perhaps someone intends to harm Zeph by impersonating the professor.

I sprinted towards them, but the man left before I could reach Zeph.

’Thank goodness he’s safe’

Though Alexios might have arrived, this time it seemed more dangerous than he could handle.

"What happened, Thal—?"

His words interrupted me, and suddenly my intuition alerted me to a nearby presence with ill intentions towards us.

"No, it’s nothing... I love you"

I couldn’t reveal the danger he was in, things might escalate too quickly.

"Want to sit?"

We both sat down, and I wondered where Alexios had gone as it has already some time since he left to reach here.

"Now, tell me why you came and why the tears?"

His question made me check my eyes; they were damp. Perhaps it was relief seeing him safe.

"It’s nothing, maybe just a flying insect"

’Idiot’, I couldn’t think of a better excuse making me to burrow my face in some hole, especially when Zeph expression is clearly saying — Are you for real.

"Forget it, tell me why you’re here" Seeing him rubbing his forehead, I felt embarrassed for making such a lame excuse, Not wanting to meet his gaze I averted my eyes.

"I just missed you"

I waited after making an half excuse, as for real, I missed him.

Not meeting his eyes looking downward at the ground, waited for his words but he remained silent for a while before finally speaking.

"Of course, you must have missed me"

Confused by his tone that seemed more like pretentive, without any trust or perhaps full of hollow words.

I felt nothing genuine from him before my INTUITION suddenly kicked in, all of a sudden a clear feeling hit my mind, making me surprised and bewildered at the same time — It was an artifact, specially a mind based one

’Why he is using that kind of artifact?’

My intuition’s suddenly working on him and out of nowhere, sensing an artifact, was just too sudden for my mind to register.

But why now?

We’ve been together for a year; I never sensed anything before,’Has he been using it all this time to hide his true intentions?’

Why would he use it?

Is it to conceal lies behind his words?

Why he need to do that, he could have just told the truth.

Don’t tell me, Is that confession was also a lie.

"Do you love me, Zeph?"

I couldn’t help asking, though I’ve realized he told many lies.

Yet, there’s a small hope that he loves me.

"Why all of a sudden, Thalia?"

No, I needed an answer. My intuition was active and working on him right now.

I just wanted to know, if those all feelings I have, are worthless or have some values.

"Please, Zeph, tell me"

I anxiously awaited his response, hoping my fears wouldn’t materialize.

"I really love you, Thalia."

Drop

His words sounded false, not a hint of truth.

He doesn’t love me, not even a bit. My intuition always kept me aware of lies, but today it felt as if I was living into a lie.

’What can you expect, idiot?’ Why did I even believe he could love me? I always tried to stick to him even caused so much trouble to the point anyone would have become irritated and saw him as a tool for my success,’I am really pathetic’

Wiping my tears away, I turned towards him. ’What’s with him?’ His face showed slight confusion, maybe due to my tears; I wasn’t sure.

"Zeph, I’m here to break off our engagement."

...

...

"Forget it, tell me why you’re here,"

Zeph asked once again, pondering her sudden appearance and subtly noticing her shifting gaze.

"I just missed you,"

Her words not aligning with her facial expression, leaving Zeph feeling that something was amiss.

’Seraphina, is someone here?’, He questioned, doubting that her sudden arrival here must be due to, Thalia’s intuition detecting something dangerous, possibly related to him.

Linking everything from Banzihum hiding his presence from him and the unexpected acceptance of Alexios in the academy, which wasn’t part of his known script, all signaled one thing — the plot was progressing faster, with him at its center.

’Seraphina,’ he called his artifact again but received no reply,’Is she sleeping?’

Seraphina possessed pure mana, causing Zeph’s regular mana to take an extended duration to provide her with sufficient energy.

There was a restriction on any Sanctum’s artifact, limiting their full potential to the user’s capabilities.

The Sanctum ensured an infinite fuel supply as long as the artifact remained inside it but the moment they choose an user, they looses that fuel supply.

This restriction was one reason artifacts didn’t leave the place, as they wouldn’t cater to the needs of a mere human leaving behind such paradise unless their user was capable enough to make them reach more ranks in sanctum.

Currently, Seraphina faced a similar situation due to rapid use of her divine energy, from minor wound healing to detecting Banzihum’s presence, likely draining some of her energy.

"Of course, you must have missed me,"

Zeph didn’t dwell much on this, considering it as the reason for Seraphina’s sudden quietness,’Now, out of all the time’, 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

’!? ’

He anticipated Thalia’s words but was taken aback by her surprised expression and the way she bit her lips, leaving him feeling bewildered.

"Do you love me, Zeph?"

Her sudden question, one he had already answered before, puzzled him, and he couldn’t fathom the reason behind it.

"Why all of a sudden, Thalia?"

Unable to comprehend her abrupt change in behavior, Zeph pressed for an explanation.

"Please, Zeph, tell me."

’Guinier, Change the intention,’ he activated his artifact, speaking with a soft, soothing voice.

"I really love you, Thalia."

DROP

In that serene moment, a single tear slid down Thalia’s cheek, breaking the calm atmosphere, and making its way to Zeph’s ears.

He swiftly turned towards her, his eyes widening.

’Don’t tell me.’

’Guinier!’

Zeph shouted inside his mind, but received no response, leaving him perplexed, as neither Seraphina nor Guinier seemed to respond.

"Zeph, I’m here to break off our engagement."

’!?’

In that moment, turmoil engulfed his mind. His artifacts weren’t responding, and now Thalia’s words hit him hard.

Zeph turned to Thalia, his golden eyes reflecting a shattered woman, tears streaming down her face, wetting the ground beneath her as she clutched her clothes.

"So, you want to break off this engagement, am I correct?"

He looked towards her with intense gaze. Upon her nod, something snapped in his mind.

He didn’t know why, but he couldn’t stand to lose her as if she had become an indispensable part of his life.

Her tears pierced his heart.

It was his fault; he shouldn’t have lied about loving her.

But he needed her by his side for the impending future.

His emotions were in disarray.

Living with Thalia for a year and not falling in love seemed impossible for anyone — She was beautiful, intelligent, had overpowering abilities, and above all, loved him genuinely.

But forcing himself to love her solely based on her talents and emotions, conflicted with his morals.

"Y--ye--s," her broken voice and teary eyes frustrated him.

"Ok, let’s break it."

In anger, not towards Thalia but himself, he stood to leave.

’I don’t need her’

He knew he couldn’t survive without her, yet he convinced himself otherwise, believing he could manage without her.

For others unaware of the impending danger looming over this world, everything appeared calm.

However, he knew the world’s facade masked a looming catastrophe, akin to an iceberg’s tip on a colossal mountain, heralding his potential demise.

«Heroes Counterattack» spans 16 volumes, growing progressively darker.

As one delves into the final volume, the narrative intensifies, delving into character suffering, ultimately leading to the deaths of major characters like Diana Reinguard, Alisia Quintain, and Alora Vendal.

This tragic turn stems from betrayal, orchestrated by Rihane Valhale and her Sisters, thrusting the world into turmoil, and appearance of more unknown beings that was impossible for any single individual to deal with pushed zeph for his approach to get more Ally.

He had arrived in this world a year ago, striving for survival, preparing for the looming disaster and destruction.

He vowed to survive and seek revenge on the God who had thrown him into this novel.

WHOOSH

As he prepared to depart, a barrier of water-like flow enveloped the area, shocking him.

Zendal remained unresponsive, leaving him confronting an unknown enemy, feeling utterly confused.

’Is this his doing?’

Zeph thought of the elf, specifically, "Is this a test, Professor Banzihum?"

He asked calmly, despite the turmoil in his mind caused by the unfolding events. He wasn’t naive enough to trust someone from Chintain Valley.

The pride of Elves and Dragons made it impossible for them to regard him favorably.

"Oh, so you can feel my presence,"

Banzihum materialized in thin air, his eyes fixing on the figure of the boy, a smile forming on his face.

"I simply sensed the pure mana and a woody smell, along with such a massive barrier, requiring the energy only a professor possesses within the academy," Zeph spoke, his words mere distractions as he contemplated a solution to this predicament.

Although physically stronger than Banzihum, Zeph stood facing a professor — Banzihum’s stealth ability was difficult to detect, especially since Zeph wasn’t specialized in pure mana.

"ZEPH!!!!"

A sudden cry ripped through the air. As Zeph pondered a resolution to the situation, a force pushed him to the ground.

SCHLKT

In that frozen moment, a tearing sound echoed, overwhelming his mind with the abrupt turn of events, and as his golden pupils reflected two figures.

Thalia stood frozen, her once lively emerald eyes now drained of all vibrancy. A claw tore through her back, emerging from her chest, causing blood to trickle from her lips. Amidst that inevitable moment, a chilling voice echoed through the air.

" No need to surprise, you will soon accompany her "