Transmigrated as My Support Mage Avatar-Chapter 61: Ch: To Break a Hero, To Bind a Heart

—FLASHBACK—

The sun bathed the shores of Exonory in warm gold.

Waves lapped softly at the sand, glimmering like scattered glass. The breeze was gentle, the sky wide and cloudless—an afternoon so peaceful it felt like a dream.

Sarios walked beside Dila, boots crunching lightly in the sand.

He gave her a sideways glance, grinning.

"I’ve been wondering, Princess... why do you act like some wild tomboy who skipped every etiquette lesson?"

He chuckled heartily. "I mean, you’re supposed to be royalty, right?"

Dila smirked slightly, looking out at the ocean waves.

Her silver-white hair fluttered in the wind.

"...It’s because this is who i am. And it always been," she said softly. " I won’t fit in the castle, I would never will . Now that I’m free, I can finally live the way I want. Laugh how I want. Walk where I want. Be... me in this new world."

Sarios question."Huh!?, new world."

"Ohh, it’s nothing." Dila has smug.

And then She glanced at him and added with a dry laugh, "Even if that means treating this world like some fantasy game, i would be free what ever i want."

Sarios blinked, then burst out laughing. "You treat this world like a fantasy dream?! Dream on, Dila!"

Their laughter mingled with the sea breeze.

Then—suddenly—he stopped and pointed.

"Wait—hold on."

A small turtle was flipped upside down in the sand, its legs flailing helplessly.

Sarios jogged ahead, crouching down with a gentle smile.

He carefully turned it upright, helping it crawl toward the water.

"There you go, little guy," he said. "Back to the sea."

Dila approached, arms crossed, eyes flat. "...You’re really softhearted, huh?"

Sarios blinked. "What?"

She shrugged. "You didn’t hesitate. Just helped it. That’s... rare."

He smiled at her, a quiet confidence in his voice.

"Well... that’s what a good person does. We don’t just help people. We help anyone in need."

His red eyes gleamed with pride.

Dila stared at him, caught off guard.

"...Talking like a true hero," she murmured.

Sarios placed a hand on his chest, puffed up slightly. "That’s because I am—!"

"—Just joking," Dila said, rolling her eyes and laughing.

Sarios pouted. "Oi!"

The two kept walking along the shoreline. The waves whispered secrets behind them, the sky stretching endlessly overhead—like the future that waited beyond the horizon.

—END FLASHBACK—

The moment froze like time held its breath.

Dila stared at the masked man, her heart pounding, her breath shallow.

Her knees pressed against the dirt, her left hand clutched her aching rib, blood long dried but pain still fresh.

She couldn’t move fast... but her mind spun like a storm.

Sarios lay there—his face battered, blood trailing from the corner of his mouth, his body limp beneath the masked man’s grip.

And Fran... sweet Fran...

The little cat girl stood trembling, her dagger that she retrieved has loose in her fingers, ears drooped low, her eyes wide with fear.

She watched helplessly, unable to breathe properly as she clutched her own sleeves.

For all her cheer and strength in small fights... she’d never seen death this close.

Never stood in front of a demon cloaked in a man’s body.

Dila’s thoughts screamed within her.

"I never thought... I’d be this attached to this world..."

"They’re just like Earth... same hearts, same fears, same kindness."

"I... made friends. Even if I didn’t mean to."

She looked at Sarios, still caught in the masked man’s grasp—

—and memories of walking beside him on the shore flooded her again.

The laughter. The teasing.

Helping a turtle back to sea.

It meant something.

Her body trembled as tears welled in her eyes—not from pain this time, but desperation.

She finally shouted, voice cracked, heart torn open—

"Okay—OKAY! I’ll choose! Just... just please don’t choke him anymore... I beg you!"

Her voice echoed, small and breaking.

The masked man tilted his head, almost like a wolf toying with a trapped rabbit.

A smile crept across his face, slow and terrible.

"Oh? Really now?" he said, as if surprised. "Finally, a proper decision."

He looked down at Sarios in his grip, then back at her with amused eyes.

While Fran’s legs has still gave out, her knees beside Dila.

She clung to Dila’s sleeve, shaking uncontrollably.

"I-I... I don’t like this..." she whispered.

Her voice was so soft—like a scared child lost in the dark.

"I joined the guild for gathering herbs... chasing slimes... not this..."

She buried her face into Dila’s side.

Dila lowered her head.

What have I pulled you both into...?

The masked man, watching them, sighed.

"Well, Princess... I’m listening. What’s your answer?"

He tugged at Sarios again for show. The limp hero gave a faint groan.

The tension swelled—unbearable.

A choice had to be made.

And the next words... would decide everything.

The masked man’s eyes gleamed with malice as he sneered.

"What are you waiting for, Princess? Time is ticking... tic... toc... tic... toc..." free𝑤ebnovel.com

His voice was a cruel melody, echoing across the silent veil.

And then—

CRACK.

He twisted Sarios’ neck just slightly.

"Gghhaaaahhh...!"

Even half-conscious, Sarios screamed out, his body jolting in pain.

"STOP!!" Dila screamed, her voice piercing through the air, choking with desperation.

Tears streaked down her cheeks now. "Okay—okay! I’ll come to you! Please... just let him go..."

The masked man paused.

He stared down at Sarios—then finally, let go.

Sarios’ body slumped onto the ground like a broken doll, gasping in shallow, uneven breaths.

The masked man slowly stood upright.

He dusted off his hands, one at a time, like someone finishing a meal.

"Well then," he said, smiling. "That concludes everything."

His voice was eerily calm now, almost disappointed.

"Oh, well. It was fun while it lasted..."

He turned to Dila, arms open as if to welcome her into a prison made of shadows.

Fran was still holding Dila’s hand tightly.

Her little fingers trembled, and her wide eyes silently pleaded—don’t go.

Dila’s shoulders shook as she stood up on weak legs, staring at the man who haunted her a past week and tried to claim her future.

A storm of emotion whirled behind her tired blue eyes.

As Dila took one trembling step toward the masked man...

A small hand refused to let go.

"Don’t leave me here..." Fran whispered.

Her voice was soft—too soft to stop a storm—but it cracked like thunder in Dila’s chest.

Dila froze.

Fran’s fingers were still wrapped tightly around hers, trembling yet stubborn, warm yet desperate.

"Please... I’ll be alone again..." Fran sobbed, her head lowered as tears dripped onto the cracked dirt below.

Dila’s breath hitched.

Her lips quivered. "But... but you’ll get hurt," she said in a weak whisper, barely able to breathe. "I don’t even know what will happen once I go there... that place, that kingdom... that father I don’t even know."

She clutched her bandaged side, eyes clouded with fear and pain.

Fran didn’t move. She didn’t speak for a moment. Her head stayed low—but her grip never loosened.

Her face slowly darkened... but she held on.

Still trembling... still crying... but refusing to let go.

"I don’t care..." Fran said, voice hoarse.

"I don’t care where you’re going or what they do... if you leave me here..."

She looked up with swollen, teary eyes.

"...I’ll be alone again."

And Dila’s heart cracked.

She looked at Fran, at her tear-stained cheeks, her childish stubbornness, the fear hidden behind brave words.

Behind her, the masked man waited silently.

Ahead was a kingdom unknown.

But in her hand... was someone who saw her as "Sister."

Dila looked down at Fran.

Her lips softened.

Her tired eyes, once dulled by pain and fear, shimmered—faintly.

"...Shh... don’t cry," she whispered gently.

She reached out and wiped Fran’s tears with both hands—left... then right.

Her fingers were shaky... but her touch was warm.

Fran sniffled, lips trembling. Her body was still shaking.

And then—without another word—Dila wrapped her arms around her.

It was a slow embrace. Weak. Heavy. But real.

She pressed her chin lightly on Fran’s shoulder, holding her tight.

"I know what it feels like... to be alone..." Dila murmured.

"To feel unwanted. To think no one will choose you... no one will stay."

Her voice cracked—but she didn’t stop.

"If you’re really that desperate to come with me..."

She closed her eyes.

"...then I’ll protect you. No matter what. Whatever it costs me."

Fran’s arms wrapped tighter around Dila’s back.

"Sister..." she cried.

Tears fell again, but this time... they weren’t just from fear.

She buried her face into Dila’s neck as if she never wanted to let go again.

Behind them, the masked man watched silently, his smile faded for a second... his expression unreadable.

But in that moment—it didn’t matter.

Because in Dila’s fragile arms...

And in Fran’s tear-soaked hug...

Was a promise stronger than fear.

The masked man tilted his head.

"A touching moment," he said with an empty smirk.

"But just when you start cooking up a little idea to escape..."

He raised his hand, two fingers poised.

"Unfortunately for you—"

Snap.

A sudden pulse echoed through the air, like glass shattering in silence.

Dila gasped.

Her knees wobbled.

The magic that gently flowed within her—gone.

She stumbled slightly, the connection to her staff, to Earthrea, to every bit of energy she could wield... severed.

"Wha...?" she clutched her chest.

It felt like her soul had been unplugged.

Fran blinked in horror. "Sister...?"

The masked man waved his hand lazily, almost mockingly.

"You’ll behave better without your tricks. Now you’re just a regular Princess and a girl for now," he said, voice laced with bitter satisfaction.

And then—another snap.

A humming, ethereal circle glowed behind him.

It twisted, warped, and tore open a swirling portal of deep purple and void-like blue.

Out from the portal...

Clink. Clack.

A black prison carriage rolled forward—its frame cold and spiked like it belonged to an executioner.

Two horses—enchanted, soulless—pulled it with an ominous stomp, the wheels screeching against the stone as they stopped at the portal’s edge.

The masked man stepped aside slightly and gestured toward the carriage, his smile sharp.

"Welcome to your royal escort."

The portal shimmered, revealing the grim outline of the outside of Exonory’s kingdom wall.

Wind howled on the other side.

No guards.

No help.

Only silence, shadows, and a fate unknown.

Fran clung tighter to Dila’s sleeve, her ears flat and her breath shaky.

Dila’s eyes narrowed... she was quiet... but inside, her thoughts screamed.

No magic. No escape. What now...?

And the masked man?

He simply chuckled.

"As they say—royalty always travels in style."

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