Leo stood motionless in front of Nox and Tessa.

The flames that had illuminated the church only moments ago had vanished completely. Now, the only light piercing the vast hall came from the moon filtering faintly through several shattered stained-glass windows.

Around them, chaos reigned.

"Protect the Saint!"

"Find torches!"

"Open the doors!"

The guards rushed in every direction.

Some struggled to relight the chandeliers overhead.

Others cursed as they realized every single one had been destroyed.

The massive crystal fixtures lay scattered across the marble floor, reduced to thousands of glittering shards.

Nox’s black chains had done their job perfectly.

No one would be able to restore the light for several minutes.

And that was exactly what he needed.

Standing before him...

Leo rested his black ash sword across one shoulder.

His expression remained perfectly calm.

"I can still recognize my sister."

His voice was steady.

"Even behind a mask."

Tessa’s eyes widened slightly.

"Leo..."

The Fire Lion Knight smiled faintly.

"And I suppose..."

His gaze slowly shifted toward Nox.

"...the other one must be the famous demon."

Nox didn’t answer immediately.

With a slight flick of his wrist...

Two black knives appeared, spinning effortlessly between his fingers.

Their blades seemed to swallow what little light remained.

"If you came looking for a rematch..."

he said calmly,

"...I’m afraid you’ll have to wait. We have more important matters tonight."

Leo let out a quiet chuckle.

"No."

He glanced briefly toward Dawn.

"I have no idea what the hell you’re trying to do with the Ice Princess..."

He pointed toward the heavy chains that had been restraining her.

"...but I do know one thing."

"You won’t get very far while she’s still chained."

Tessa stepped forward.

"We only want to help her."

"I figured."

Leo took a slow breath.

For a brief moment...

He seemed to wrestle with himself.

His grip tightened around the hilt of his sword.

If I do this...

...I won’t be able to keep pretending I still trust the Church.

The silence lasted only an instant.

Then...

Leo vanished.

His speed was so overwhelming that even Nox needed a fraction of a second to follow the movement.

Dawn’s eyes widened.

The hero appeared directly in front of her.

His enormous ash blade already in motion.

Tessa gasped.

"Leo, no!!"

But Nox smiled.

He really is helping us.

The sword came down.

Not toward Dawn.

Toward the chains.

The black blade sliced cleanly through the enchanted metal.

The massive links exploded apart.

The shackles crashed heavily onto the marble floor.

Dawn remained frozen, staring at her wrists.

She couldn’t believe it.

She was free.

Leo rested the sword back on his shoulder.

"There."

Nox smiled.

"So it was true."

Leo raised an eyebrow.

"What was?"

"That you’d never abandon your sister."

The hero remained silent for several seconds.

Then...

He glanced sideways at Tessa.

"I didn’t understand anything that happened that night. When I saw you standing beside a demon..."

He exhaled slowly.

"...I thought I’d gone insane."

Tessa lowered her head slightly.

"I know."

Leo sighed.

"But..."

"If the Church declared you dead... and you’re still alive..."

"...then someone has been lying to me."

Nox seized the opportunity.

"We reached the exact same conclusion."

Leo looked back at him.

"So what’s your plan now?"

Nox slowly put away his knives.

"Expose the Church."

"Reveal all of their lies."

"And bring down the people who are truly controlling this kingdom."

Leo stood perfectly still.

Those words weighed heavily on his conscience.

At last, he spoke.

"I don’t know whether my older brother would be proud of me for helping a demon..."

"...or for standing against the Church itself."

Tessa looked up.

"I don’t know if he’d be proud of me either."

"I stopped trusting the Church a long time ago."

"And I don’t believe our brother died during a mission anymore."

Silence settled between them once again.

Leo smiled.

A tired smile.

"I guess we have a lot to talk about."

Tessa nodded slowly.

"Come to our mother’s house. The Pyrell Home."

"When all of this is over..."

"I’ll explain everything."

Leo let out a quiet laugh.

"Who would’ve thought..."

"I always believed I’d be the first one to return to our mother’s home."

"But somehow..."

"...my little sister got there before I did."

The two siblings smiled at the same time.

◇◆◇

"What a touching family reunion."

All three turned around.

Dawn was slowly rubbing her wrists.

The red marks left by the chains were still clearly visible.

But the metal itself was gone.

The princess raised an eyebrow.

"Are you two done catching up?"

She discreetly gestured toward the rest of the hall.

"Because I’d like to remind you of something."

"We’re surrounded by guards."

"And my mother is probably looking for me by now."

As if her words had summoned disaster...

A voice echoed through the darkness.

"The princess is gone!!"

"Find Princess Dawn!!"

"Protect Her Majesty!!"

Footsteps multiplied.

Closer.

Closer.

Nox looked at Leo.

"What about you?"

The hero took a deep breath.

"I’ll stay."

"If I disappear now..."

"...it’ll be far too obvious."

He looked back at Tessa.

"Besides..."

"Someone has to help get these people out safely."

Nox nodded.

"You made the right choice."

Leo smiled faintly.

"I’m not sure."

"But at least..."

"...it was my choice."

Dawn clicked her tongue.

"How heartwarming."

"Now can we leave before they kill us?"

Nox chuckled.

"You’ve got quite the personality."

"You develop one after your mother keeps you chained up for years."

Even Tessa had no response to that.

Nox tilted his head.

"Let’s go."

The three of them slowly blended into the crowd still struggling to escape the church.

Nox tapped Misty on the shoulder.

She had been chatting with Catherine, both of them pretending to be frightened noblewomen caught in the chaos.

The demon gave them a subtle signal to follow him toward the exit.

Behind them...

Leo raised his sword once more.

And began directing the guests toward the doors.

Meanwhile...

On the opposite side of the massive hall...

Queen Helen had just discovered her daughter’s broken chains lying across the floor.

The fury burning across her face was impossible to hide.