End of Volume 1

As the cold light of the portal faded, I found myself standing on the familiar, eerie ground of the Corrupted Realm. The sky above was a constant swirl of darkness covered by the stones above me that flickered of a strange, unearthly energy. It was the same place Lilith and I had stumbled into the last time we crossed into the Ancient God's Realm. But now, the silence was deafening.

I was alone.

The sharp realization hit me like a punch to the gut. The warmth of Lilith's presence, her laughter, her fierce defiance—it was all gone. Now, I was back to reality.

A reality where I was just another wanderer in a world that didn't care whether I lived or died. The weight of solitude pressed down on my shoulders. I had come to depend on her, even if I hadn't admitted it to myself before.

Now, she was... gone. Occupied, as Moros had put it.