Chapter 98: He Was Not Alone Anymore.
Just as Despair Threatened to Consume him—
He Felt it.
Something he had longed for all his life—something he had yearned for but never received.
Warmth.
Cloudia and Little Tiger pressed against him from outside, their bodies trembling, yet firm—steadfast in their resolve to Anchor Him to this World.
Their warmth seeped into his frozen, pain-ridden body, breaking through the numbing abyss of agony.
A flicker of comfort. A fragile yet undeniable presence.
A reminder—
He was not alone.
Reon's lips trembled.
"Huh…? This warmth… It's… different…"
A warmth he had never felt before.
Not in his past life.
Not Even Once.
Though faint traces of a warmth once known in childhood lingered somewhere deep within him, those memories had been Unnaturally Erased—vanishing like whispers lost to the void.
But this warmth… this undeniable presence wrapping around him now—
It told him one thing.
He Was Not Alone Anymore.
Suddenly—
A delicate, ethereal touch wrapped around him from behind.
Gentle arms—Soft yet Strong—Embraced him, holding him together when he was moments away from shattering.
And then—
A voice.
Gentle.
Familiar.
And Impossibly Warm.
A voice he had longed to hear for as long as his heart could recall.
A voice that carried the weight of countless forgotten memories and unspoken desires.
A voice that reached into the deepest parts of his soul.
"Reon… don't give up! You can do this."
His breath hitched.
His entire body Froze.
Not from Fear.
But from something far Deeper.
That voice…
His vision blurred, his thoughts a storm of Disbelief and Longing.
But he forced his lips to move.
"T-T-This voice…?"
A soft, almost Teasing Chuckle.
"Yes, it's me, Reon."
His heart Lurched.
"Z-Zara…?"
Tears welled in his unseeing eyes, spilling down his bloodied cheeks.
"I am waiting for you. Don't you dare die on me!"
His body shuddered—this time, not from Pain, but from Raw, Overwhelming Emotion.
And then—he Saw Them.
.
.
His consciousness flickered, like a dying ember refusing to be extinguished.
Through half-lidded eyes, he glimpsed figures standing in the light.
Two stood at the front—though their faces were blurred, he knew. He just knew.
A man and a woman.
Their voices were soft, yet they reached the depths of his soul.
"Son, don't leave us. We are still waiting for you."
They smiled at him, their forms glowing with Ethereal Light.
Behind them, more figures emerged—Shadowed, Faceless, yet each radiating a presence he could somehow Feel.
They spoke, one after another—each voice a lifeline pulling him back.
"Master, we are waiting for you."
"Xue Taiyang, you bastard. If you die, I will have no rival!"
"My lord, if you die here… this Primordial Divine Knight shall take her own life."
His breath caught. Who were they?
He had never heard their voices before.
And yet—his Heart Clenched in Recognition.
They were important to him.
They were a part of him.
He Couldn't—he Wouldn't—let them down.
.
.
His vision blurred once more, shifting to Cloudia—who seemed different, almost unfamiliar— and Little Tiger, who now looked exactly like the cat he once had.
They were Running.
Chasing something—Something Ethereal.
Yes, They Were Chasing After His Soul.
Their eyes, usually fierce, were filled with Raw Desperation.
Their voices, once animalistic, now carried the Weight of Emotions only Humans should have.
"Master, please—don't leave us!"
He had never seen them so Frantic.
They had never spoken like this before.
And yet, their cries Shook him to his Core.
Then—
WHOOOSH!
The sky Ignited.
A burst of Searing Flames erupted above, like the Sun itself had Descended into this Realm.
A Bird.
No—a Divine, Graceful Bird.
It circled overhead, its very presence exuding both Rage and Sorrow.
Its voice thundered through the void—Furious, but laced with Emotion.
"Master, you bastard! I haven't even been born into this world yet! If you dare to die, I will kill you myself!"
A half-smile flickered across Reon's lips.
Even the Unborn were waiting for him.
His entire being trembled.
But this time—
Not from Pain.
Not from Despair.
But from Something Else.
Something he couldn't quite Name—something vast, raw, and overwhelming.
A feeling so overwhelming it set his very soul ablaze.
He didn't know who most of these people were.
He had never seen their faces.
He had never heard their voices.
But in this moment—
He knew.
He knew, with the certainty of his reborn heart, that they Mattered.
That they were part of something greater.
Something he had yet to experience.
Something he couldn't let slip away.
His heart, which had once stopped—
Thundered back to Life.
His soul, which had been Drowning in the Abyss—
Surged Upward.
His eyes, heavy with exhaustion and pain, Forced Themselves Open.
Completely.
Fully.
And in that moment—He Chose.
"Yes… I am such a fool."
His own voice sounded foreign—weak, yet laced with Resolve.
"How could I forget…?"
How could I forget the promises I made?
The memories I built in this world?
The companions waiting for me outside?
If he died here—
Who would protect Little Tiger?
Who would stand beside Cloudia?
Who would walk the path he had just begun?
He would.
He would live—not just survive, but truly Live.
A Life so Grand, so Boundless, that even the Heavens Would Envy Him.
A Life of Freedom, Joy, Happiness, Power, and Endless Possibilities.
Reon gritted his teeth.
Through sheer force of will—
Through the desperate, unrelenting pull of the people waiting for him—
He Refused to Fall.
He clawed his way out of the Abyss.
And this time—
He Would Never Look Back Again.