With every drop of blood that flowed from her body, Ursula could feel the warmth leaving her as well.

What enveloped her body in its place was a cold numbness.

It’s a sensation she imagined one would feel if they stayed in cold water for an extended period during winter, or if they were locked in an ice chamber.

This creeping numbness, rising from the tips of her fingers and toes, would likely reach her heart and kill her—Ursula pondered this as if it were happening to someone else.

The reason Ursula felt no fear towards the slowly approaching death was that she understood her condition was already beyond help and had resolved herself to it.

She had unleashed a powerful technique that would put her on the brink of death even in perfect health, all while her left shoulder was shattered. To complain or hold regrets now would be unbecoming of a warrior.

Rather, Ursula found it curious that she was still alive.

—Even though Sora had shielded her, dying instantly as the price of using Void Armor wouldn’t have been surprising… Could it be that Thunder Flower did something without her knowing?

However, there was no response to this question from her Anima. Whether it lacked the will or the strength to answer, she didn’t know. But either way, it wouldn’t change Ursula’s fate.

Ursula let out a small breath.

As mentioned before, Ursula had no intention of harboring regrets or complaints. She had no regrets about using Void Armor.

After all, if she hadn’t used it at that moment, her enemy’s sword would have simply cut her down. In that sense, Ursula had made the best choice. If she had to express any regret, it would be for her own inadequacy that even with Void Armor, she couldn’t reach her enemy’s life.

The silver lining, she thought, was that her father’s murderer must have met his end at Sora’s hands. The swordsman who introduced himself as Utsurui was certainly formidable, but Ursula couldn’t imagine him being able to fight Sora evenly while seriously injured. This conviction brought significant relief to Ursula as she faced her imminent death.

She wanted to thank Sora in some way, who had even risked his own life to shield her at the end, but that wish would go unfulfilled.

Feeling regretful about this, Ursula was about to surrender herself to the encroaching presence of death—

“Mmph!?”

In the next moment, something was abruptly shoved into her mouth without any hesitation, making her let out a muffled scream.

The foreign object was scalding hot yet incredibly soft, a sensation she had never felt before. The confusion made Ursula forget her preparedness for death.

It was probably due to that. She reflexively swallowed the unknown liquid that flowed into her mouth. Right after that—

“――Ah!!”

As if she had swallowed flames, a scorching heat burst within Ursula’s body.

The icy numbness that was just gripping her heart is instantly incinerated by the heat that exploded deep within her chest. Her heart beats rapidly as if it’s been given new life, and the hot flow of blood chases away the numbness, coursing through every corner of her body.

Unconsciously, Ursula tensed her limbs. She then confirms that her hands and feet, which were previously frozen and immobile, now move fluidly down to each fingertip.

A warmth floods her chest, and she can feel her body and mind quickly regaining vitality.

The feeling of being guided from the brink of death back to the prime of life was like that of metamorphosis or ascension to immortality, and Ursula trembled in ecstasy.

It was clear that what revived her was the liquid that had been poured into her just before. Unable to wait for the life-saving nectar to be poured again, Ursula eagerly moved her tongue as if requesting more.

And soon enough, the liquid comes flowing, and this time, she swallows it firmly on her own accord. Over and over again.

Ursula fully regained her consciousness only after repeating this process about five times.

◆◆◆

“Utsurui has disappeared? Is that true, Sora?”

After the assault had somewhat subsided, Kagari appeared before me, asking about the whereabouts of the masked swordsman who masterminded the attack—Utsurui.

It seems that Kagari and his Nakayama army also have many questions for that individual. Well, given the scale of this attack, it’s only natural they would want to interrogate the mastermind.

I, too, have a lot of questions for that person. Not only about Ursula’s father but also why he mentioned the name of the Sword Saint while crossing blades with me.

Of course, I’d like to say that we have him in custody, but—

“Yes, it’s true. When I defeated that swordsman, there were still quite a few Dark bees remaining. We had some seriously injured people on our side, so we postponed capturing him, and before we knew it—”

I say this while shrugging my shoulders.

To make an excuse, I was keeping a close eye on Utsurui until he passed out. After he fainted, I was focused on eliminating the Dark bees to protect the fallen Ursula, and then he disappeared.

He had been severely wounded by Ursula and had just taken a hit from my Kei Blast. It’s unlikely he escaped on his own. Maybe he had hidden allies, or perhaps he was attacked by the Dark bees.

It’s likely that Utsurui lured the Dark bees to Mount Taikouzan. If so, the Dark bees would have ample reason to target the unconscious Utsurui. After all, an unconscious Kijin would be easy prey for such creatures.

Hearing my explanation, Kagari clicked his tongue in disappointment but seemed to decide that there was nothing to be done about the missing person and quickly changed the topic.

“I see. Well, things don’t always go as conveniently as we’d like. By the way, I heard a rather strange woman’s scream earlier. What was that about?”

“… She was severely injured, and her consciousness seemed a bit cloudy. There’s nothing to worry about, so please don’t concern yourself with it.”

I say this to cut off Kagari’s curiosity.

Kagari looks at me with a somewhat amused expression but decides not to probe further about the scream, perhaps judging that it wouldn’t be beneficial to do so.