World's Last Hope-Chapter 40: Back?

In the middle of the cathedral, Eric was lying unable to move. Over him was Olivia, who had placed her right hand on his head and her left hand on his chest.

She was using everything she had to keep him alive.

Eric’s tendons, bones, and nerves slowly began to heal, only to be burned again, as his body was still too hot.

Of course, as Olivia had placed her bare hands on him, her skin also began to melt slowly, but she ignored the pain as best as she could and concentrated every fiber of her being.

"Don’t you dare die! If you do, how will I look Aria in the eyes again?!" she cried as she felt the last of her energy slowly leaving her, trying to keep him stable.

Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she whispered quietly,

"Please, I don’t want you to die..."

The black matter that seemed to pulse from time to time sensed the uninvited guests, and it slowly spread toward them.

With the intention to consume them. With each shallow breath Olivia took, it was getting closer.

But she couldn’t sense it as she was too focused on keeping Eric somehow stable.

The corruption got closer and closer...

And it suddenly distanced itself from them.

Was it because Aria was currently fighting it, so it was trying to spare its strength?

Or, looking at Eric’s soul that was both blessed and simultaneously cursed, did it see something? Something that terrified it beyond belief?

What could possibly terrify the most frightening thing in the world—the corruption itself?

"Hey," Olivia spoke, as her salty tears had turned bloody due to the mental exhaustion.

"Once this is all over, how about we three go eat something at a restaurant? You’re from a different world, right? Yet, the second day being here, you had been forced into battle countless times, eating monster flesh, so you haven’t had the chance to eat real food."

Eric sadly couldn’t sense her, nor respond to her, as all he could do was lay helpless on the ground.

Met with the silence, all Olivia could do was grit her teeth and focus on the treatment, repeating endlessly in her head

’Don’t pass out, don’t pass out, don’t pass out.’

*****

"Where am I?" Aria asked herself as she found herself in a void, devoid of any light.

"Is this the corruption?" Aria was having a hard time believing that, for all she knew, the corruption was supposed to bring her excruciating pain.

Give her exactly what her heart desired with the intention of corrupting her,

But she was just in a void of nothingness? It didn’t make sense.

"Wake up," a gentle voice suddenly made Aria’s mind freeze as she recognized the owner of it.

"Come on, wake up, sleepyhead," she felt a warm hand placed on her forehead.

’No impossible, impossible!’ Aria repeated in her head. She didn’t want to open her eyes, but after struggling with all her might, she was left with no choice.

She opened them.

The light made her eyesight blurry, so it took a moment to adjust her sight.

The first thing she realized was that she was lying in a large bed...

No, it wasn’t that the bed was large, it was just that her body was small, almost like it had shrunk.

"See? You don’t want to get up, it’s because you keep not listening to me and not getting in bed on time."

Aria slowly shifted her gaze to the woman who was speaking. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Blonde hair, crimson eyes, gentle smile, there was no mistaking it.

Slowly, tears began to fall down Aria’s cheeks as she spoke,

"Mother?" Her voice was weak and vulnerable, similar to that of a child.

"Oh dear, did you have a nightmare or something?" The woman smiled as she placed her hand on Aria’s head.

"You’re already a big girl, so mother can’t keep spoiling you, you know?"

She said gently as she played with Aria’s hair for a moment, then she stood up and approached the open door, glancing at her child with a smile before speaking.

"Dad has made pancakes, so you better hurry up! Or Mommy may eat them all before you know it."

With that, she exited the room, leaving Aria to stare in awe.

"Is that...?" she muttered under her breath as she slowly stood up.

Glancing around her room, all her toys, all her drawings, all of it was the same.

Just like before the incident happened.

This was undoubtedly her room.

Her gaze stopped at a mirror attached to the wall. As she slowly approached it, she saw a small girl about ten years old, with golden hair and blue eyes.

"This is me?" she muttered in bewilderment.

Suddenly, a voice cried with amusement from below the stairs,

"Oh! Such delicious pancakes! I sure hope I can leave some for Aria!"

"Dad?" Aria whispered. She hadn’t heard his voice in what felt like an unbelievably long time.

Not caring that she was still in her pajamas, she exited her room.

Finding herself in the familiar hallway, she slowly walked forward.

Her feet made a small echo with each step she took.

Suddenly, stopping in front of the stairs, she took a step forward.

One by one, she descended them until she finally reached the last step and observed the living room.

Her father was currently standing with his arms crossed, deeply focused on the chess pieces.

Meanwhile, her grandfather Gryndor was looking at them with a smile, holding a half-folded newspaper in his hand.

Her mother was quietly enjoying pancakes while drinking coffee from her favorite yellow cup.

The first one to notice the little girl was Gryndor, who stood up with a smile, slowly walking to her and placing his hand, filled with scars, on her head.

"Good morning, dear."

Then he noticed that the little girl was silently crying.

"Oh?" he spoke, getting on her level. "Did you have a nightmare or something? It’s alright, it’s alright."

Seeing Gryndor spoil her daughter, Aria’s mother spoke.

"Gryndor, she’s not a little girl anymore, you know? Don’t spoil her so much."

"Eh? But look at my granddaughter and how cute she is! How can I not spoil her?"

This Gryndor was unlike how he usually was, now he had a smile on his face.

A smile Aria couldn’t remember the last time she had seen.

All she could do was whisper softly,

"I-I am back?"