The Last Step-Chapter 68: Heartbreak Part 1: I Wish I Lied

4/12/2017 – 10:38 AM

Two Hours Before the War...

Location: Main Guild Hall, 5th Floor.

Levi's Perspective:

Seems like everyone was called out by Zain... to strategize and prepare for it. That's good. The fifth floor looks pretty empty now. I doubt anyone's coming back anytime soon—they'll probably grab breakfast, stare at their reflections, and tell themselves they're ready for war.

War, huh?

It's funny. That word gets thrown around like it's just a game of dice. But the stakes? Oh, the stakes are blood, life, and future. Some of them are smiling right now, not realizing this might be the last morning they ever taste air.

I clenched my right hand into a fist and slammed it down on the table. The chair I was on rattled like it was as nervous as I felt.

My head hung low. Not because I was scared. No, fear's for people with something to lose.

...Okay. Maybe I do have something to lose. Just maybe.

I'm leading the frontlines this time. That means every scream, every torn limb, every member who doesn't come back... is on me. My skills decide their survival. That's what being a leader means, right?

Leaders are supposed to be stronger than everyone...

And yeah... people joke about my ego. Some call me arrogant, self-claimed. Sword Saint Levi, always laughing, always praising himself like it's a festival.

But here's the truth, plain and raw:

I am the strongest Sword Saint.

Not because I was born with it. I wasn't gifted by some magical fairy. I built this. Day in. Day out. Blood in my mouth and calluses on my soul. You don't get veins like mine unless you've broken the same bones three times and kept swinging anyway.

My fist tightened. I could feel the veins bulging along my forearm, my pulse a steady rhythm of conviction.

I was the right one to lead them to victory.

But... damn it.

I don't know how to tell her.... The bad news.

As my thoughts spiraled, the door creaked open. My head snapped up, like my instincts knew something wasn't right.

Nobody was supposed to be back yet.

And it wasn't Zain. Wasn't any of the Celestial Apex guys either.

It was... her.

Celia.

She stepped in quietly, almost like she was dying. Her eyes had dark bags under them—faint, but noticeable. The kind of tired that sleep doesn't fix.

I had heard about what happened yesterday. How the townspeople cornered her. How they spat words and accusations when I wasn't there.

And then she disappeared. Didn't come back.

I searched the whole damn town last night, asking around, threatening a few guys who looked like they knew too much—but she was gone.

Now she was here.

I sat up straight. "You've returned, Celia."

She turned her head to me and smiled.

Smiled.

"Oh Levi, it's nice to see you!" She said it like everything was fine.

"Where were you last night, Celia?"

"Me? I was just a little lost. You shouldn't worry about me, Levi. You have bigger things to take care of."

She said it gently. Sweetly....?

I narrowed my eyes. That voice. It didn't sound wrong, but it didn't sound right either.

"I see... Do you know about today?" I asked, trying to keep my voice even.

She nodded. "Yes, I do. Today's the Swarm, right...? I'll come too, don't worry."

Her tone dipped low. Dark. Almost like she was talking from a hole inside her chest.

But that smile? Still sweet.

Like honey poured over poison.

Something wasn't right.

Something really wasn't right.

My fingers twitched at my side. A Sword Saint's instinct doesn't just apply to combat—it applies to people, too.

And Celia... she was hurt behind that smile.

"But Celia, you don't look that fine... You should mayb—"

"I'm fine, Levi."

She cut me off.

Her tone dropped cold...

"I have to do this." She said looking into my eyes.

Still smiling.

That damn smile.

"I have to get him back..." Her voice didn't crack. Not even once.

She looked straight at me, right in the eyes. And those red eyes? They were intense. Not in the way they usually shimmered when she was happy, or teasing me...

No—this was something else.

And still, she smiled.

"...I see."

"I can fight, Levi. I have to. You understand, right?" Her voice cracked a little—barely. Still sweet. Still smiling.

But that smile... I didn't know what it meant anymore. Was she forcing it? Was she convincing me, or herself?

I hated that I have to tell her now...

"...About that, Celia," I said, slower than usual. Hesitation? From me? Yeah, that's rare. But this... this wasn't something you just drop like a joke.

"I have to tell you something I just found out."

"What is it, Levi? Tell me. I won't mind," she said, too cheerful. She tilted her head slightly, that same soft expression.

"It's about the people the grotesques abducted." I rubbed the back of my neck, then lowered my hand.

Her eyes didn't flicker. Just watched me, waiting.

"Lord Avelric... he got some reports. He shared them with us."

I looked down at the ground for a moment, then back at her.

"Humans the grotesques took... they found some of them."

I paused.

"They were all dead. A few bodies. Not even close to the number we lost. But... enough to figure it out."

Celia's shoulders dropped slightly. Just slightly.

"They found them not far from the hive. The ones that were dumped... they weren't just killed."

I looked away.

"They were crushed. Tortured until they passed away. Some were barely even identifiable anymore."

She was quiet.

I raised both my hands up to my chest, like surrendering to a truth I knew was coming.

"Avelric also had mages scan the hive from above. Just to make sure... to see if anyone was still alive underground."

She blinked. Once. Still no reaction.

"They got no human signals back, Celia. Not a single human life... No one made it out or is alive down there."

"...What," she said softly, eyes on the floor, "does that have to do with anything?"

That was the part I dreaded.

"I-I... asked if any of the bodies matched a specific description," I muttered. "A man with Black hair and... Blue eyes."

"They said they... they did."

Her head didn't move. She was just frozen.

"They found one," I said, voice barely holding.

"The bones in his arms were shattered—snapped piece by piece, bent backwards in ways that shouldn't even be possible. His legs... one was twisted under him, mangled like something had stomped on it repeatedly until it was just meat and splinters. His face..."

I hesitated.

I didn't want to say it—but I did.

"One of his eyes was... gone. Torn out. Just... gone. The socket was empty, blood dried all around it like it had been clawed out in rage. And his skull—Celia, they think he was slammed into the ground, over and over again, until the bone gave way. There were pieces of his teeth scattered near him... like he bit down while screaming. His jaw was crooked. Dislocated...."

"Like it tried to speak... your name before it broke."

Her lips trembled—but she didn't cry. She just stared.

"They said he was probably choked before that. His throat had deep marks. Like claws. Like someone didn't just want him dead—they wanted him silent."

....

"I had to go there and see it for myself... and I did. I saw the body for myself..."

"It was Kaiser."

It's over.

"They couldn't even recognize the face. But..."

I reached into my pocket. My fingers brushed against cold metal.

"I found this."

I pulled it out and opened my hand.

A small, star-shaped trinket. Silver edges almost looking newly bought and well conditioned. The kind of thing only a few people in this damn world would carry.

It had the words: "Forever Yours."

Her hands trembled.

Her eyes locked on it.

Her smile was gone now.

Completely.

She didn't say a word.

She just... stared.... Like the world she was living had collapsed.

I had heard from Zain and Emma—how Celia had been training day and night. Alone. Quietly. Every second she wasn't with us, she was probably out there trying to get strong enough to save him.

While I was in Sylvaris handling the other side of the mess, she was here... pushing herself to the edge.

For him.

And now?

She found out... He is gone forever.

And for the first time in a while...

I didn't feel like the strongest Sword Saint anymore... I couldn't even save my friend in time.

I felt like the guy who just crushed the only thing keeping someone alive.

Then her voice came again... Smiling.

Why was she smiling?!

"I see, Levi. I understand what you're saying..." She stepped closer, her words light, like this was all just a casual chat.

"I'll still join the war. I'll fight against the grotesques."

Everything around me went quiet. Like dead silent.

The kind of silence where your own thoughts get loud—too loud.

Wait. What?

"B-But Celia... Kaiser is gon—"

She cut me off.

"It's okay, Levi." Still smiling. Still walking toward me.

"I'll fight for myself. I'll save the people here. You don't have to worry about me."

That smile wasn't her usual one.

It was darker. Not fake, not real.

She stopped in front of me.

"...Can I have the trinket? Please?"

Her eyes looked so... normal.

Too normal.

That wasn't right.

I was just—I didn't know what to say. My mouth stayed shut. My hands moved on their own.

I handed her the little star trinket.

She held it in her palms, gentle. Closed her hands around it...

Then just turned around and started walking away.

Heading for one of the rooms, maybe to rest?

I had no clue.

But I couldn't stop myself from saying something.

"You're... taking it well," I muttered. "I thought you cared more about Kaiser."

Celia must've figured it out... Kaiser was killed by those monsters. Tortured until he lost his breath, yet hold onto that trinket in his last moments.

She stopped.

"Kaiser is my friend..." A pause.

"That's... it's nothing, Levi."

Nothing?

No. That wasn't nothing.

That was everything.

She kept walking. Step by step. Then—

"Oh, Levi..." she said, turning her head a little. "Zain and Xander were looking for you. You should go outside. They're waiting."

Then she turned again, and entered one of the rooms.

Click.

Door closed.

I stood there for a moment.

What the hell just happened?

She didn't cry. She didn't scream. She didn't curse at the world...?

She just... accepted it.

Celia...

She's not the same.

She changed. Grew stronger, maybe. Hardened.

She took the news of his death—the one she was training like crazy to save—and didn't even flinch.

Didn't shed a tear.

Not one.

I didn't know if I should be impressed...

...or worried.

I looked down at my own hands—scarred, dry, rough from all the training, all the fights, all the near-death experience we had gone through just to stay alive.

My palms weren't just worn out—they were tired in a way that went deeper than skin.

I guess that's what getting stronger does to people.

You lose pieces of yourself as you grow... The attachments that once held you down? You either break free from them, or let them break you.

And Celia... She didn't break.

I exhaled through my nose and turned toward the doorway. I should probably head out as well—Zain and Xander would be waiting, no doubt already bickering like an old married couple.

And me?

Well, I was supposed to be the leader today. The one who carries the weight of hundreds—maybe more. Their lives, their hopes, their trust... all on my shoulders. And I won't fail.

Not today.

.....

Hopefully Celia keeps that same strength I saw in her just now. That eerie, unshakable calm...

Was she... silently suffering?

Should.... Should have I lied that he was alive? Would that had been better?

I started walking, slow at first—each step echoing softly in the empty hallway. As I passed the open window, I stopped.

A gust of wind slipped in, brushing against my face with a strange gentleness, like the world hadn't quite realized we were all marching into hell.

I glanced outside, toward the sky.

Clear blue.

"...Kaiser." I whispered.

"If you're watching us from up there... just know—she'll be alright.

Yes, she's hurting. Yes, she has changed. But she's moving forward, even if it kills her a little inside.

And me?

Tch. I'll admit it, she's taking it better than I am."

I let out a dry chuckle and leaned my shoulder against the frame.

"You might be gone... but I haven't forgotten. Not a chance in hell. You were annoying. Sarcastic too often. Stubborn.

But you were my friend."

I stood there for another second, eyes locked with the sky as if it might answer back.

"...Take care, old friend," I murmured.

"I've got a world to save... again. This time, you'll be watching over us, right?"

I gave the wind a small smile.

Then I turned, leaving behind the silence, the grief, the memories—and walked out of the hall. ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm

It was time.

Time to face the grotesques.

Time to start the war.

The Swarm War.

And this time, I wouldn't let a single one of them walk out alive.