Frozen Hell continent

After Dante and Julie's battle against the golem, the wolves, and the masked man, the masked man returns to the person who sent him.

The Masked man: I did as you asked, you O demon.

The Unknown demon: Well done, but there's no need to call me that, you masked man, Valdran...

Valdran: Well done, Salvador...

Salvador: so, Did you discover something?

Valdran: Yes... Something you would like to hear...

Salvador: good, tell me...

{Seven hours after the disaster, October 8, 1335}

The dim light seeped into his closed eyes, and he felt a slight sting forcing him into consciousness. His heavy eyelids twitched slightly before slowly parting, letting a narrow beam of vision seep into his dark world. Everything was blurry, as if fog was enveloping the place, and he hesitated for a moment before opening his eyes fully.

His eyelids felt heavy as if they were tied with lead strings, but he forced himself to lift them slightly, seeing the shadows gradually transform into clear shapes. His lower limbs trembled, and his hands tried to move, but his body was slow to respond.

With each breath he took, his consciousness returned to him in layers, one by one. Faint sounds began to creep into his ears, the first thing he heard was his heartbeat, then the sound of his own ragged breathing, and finally, distant, incomprehensible whispers.

He finally opened his eyes, slowly, as if making his way from the depths of a dream to the surface of reality.

Yuno stood up, raising his upper body and sat for a while, observing his surroundings. The place where he woke up was different from the place where he encountered the strange demon, but it was still a frozen place.

"Where am I?"

Yuno turned left and right in order to recognize his surroundings.

"I feel like I've moved from one place to another, but it's still a snowy place, but I know I moved because I'm not in a forest, but I'm in a wide snowy place."

Yuno sighed and got up to look for a place to stay.

As he searched, Yuno was clearly confused. The snow was falling lightly, but he could barely feel the cold, as his thoughts burned inside him. His eyes were lost, moving between the shadows of the snow hills, as if searching for an answer that did not come. His eyebrows were knitted, not from anger, but from the internal conflict that was gnawing at his chest.

His breathing was irregular, as if he was trying to calm himself down but failing every time he exhaled air. His fingers were cramping and clenching, as if he was hesitating between clenching his fist in preparation for the confrontation or letting them relax in surrender to confusion.

He looked exhausted, not only from his body, but from the weight of the decision that was grinding his mind. Should he search for a way out for himself, to ensure his survival? Or should he venture into the unknown, risking everything to find his companions? His eyes glowed for a moment with determination, then dimmed again, as if they reflected a heart teetering on the edge of two bitter choices.

As he looked left and right, his eyes shifting between the shadows cast by the snow-covered hills, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. A moment of stillness filled the air. He seemed to be trying to believe what he was seeing, but he couldn't stop himself from staring.

Behind the thick snow and the scattered shadows, she appeared. Her face was so familiar, as if she had never disappeared. A faint beam of light passed through the clouds, touching her face, revealing her tired but steady features. Sara, his friend, was unconscious there in front of him, not far away, as if she had never disappeared.

His heart was pounding in his chest, as if she had given him back the life he had almost lost. He felt something like chaos, tension mixed with relief, then questioning, was she really here? Was she about to wake up and relive the moments he had always dreamed of with her? But she lay there, silent, as if the world had stopped spinning around her, or perhaps she too was in a similar state of confusion, dreaming her happy dreams in her sleep, or waking up to discover the catastrophe that had happened and searching for her lost companions.

He ran towards her without thinking, his feet rushing quickly through the snow, as if the ground beneath his feet was melting from the intensity of his fear. His heart was beating violently, and he could no longer see anything around him except their friend Sara who was lying on the ground, her eyes closed, her body lying silently, as if the life had been withdrawn from her.

He reached her in an instant, and knelt beside her, panting from running. He quickly reached out his hands, watching every movement, trying to bring her back to consciousness. His heart was confused, and his mind was floundering between his questions. Sarah was here, but was she okay? Could he do something to save her? He looked at her face that was pale, his hands trembling as he felt her pulse, his eyes not leaving her for a moment.

Then came the harsh question in his mind: "Will Sara survive?" It was at this moment that the questions began to scatter around him like snow scattered in the wind. Should he look for his other companions? Where are they? Could he even find them after what happened? Or should he focus on protecting Sarah now?

His heart was jumping out of his chest as he wrestled with himself. Part of him wanted to leave everything behind, to focus on keeping Sarah safe, but another part of his heart was screaming at him that his other comrades might be in danger too. "Can I leave them? Can I risk Sara's life for them?"

As he looked at Sara, he felt the weight of the decision pressing on his chest. Her eyes were closed, as if she were in another world, but did that mean he had to sacrifice everything for her? Or should he keep fighting, to find his comrades and try to reunite them?

With each passing moment, he found that he couldn't decide which of the two choices was right.

As the dim morning light crept between the snowy hills, he found himself faced with another decision. He quickly moved his hands, gathered some dry grass and broken branches, and then began to light a fire beside them. The flames lit up the place, making a faint sound like the whispers of the wind, but the only sound in his heart was the noise of his inner struggle.

He looked at Sara, who was still unconscious, her body buried in the snow like a piece of the frozen world. The flames cast shadows on her calm face, but his heart was beating fast. "Are you leaving her here?" he wondered. He knew that night was coming, and that it would be dangerous for both of them in this desolate place. But what if he left her alone, sleeping here, while he went to look for food? What if she woke up and found herself in danger?

He closed his eyes for a moment, thinking of Sara as he imagined her hungry, weak, and awake without him by her side. Would she be able to survive on her own? Would the food he brought her matter if she had been threatened while he was away? But at the same time, how could he leave her hungry? How could he leave her unprotected?

Once again, he turned to Sara, watching her sleep in silence, breathing softly, his eyes filled with worry. "If I stay here, I will protect her… I will be with her, and I will not risk anything happening to her… But in return, she will be hungry for a long time. If I leave her, I may be able to provide food for her, but she will be alone in danger." His mind tried to weigh the options, but the emotional chaos was getting the better of him.

He lit the fire that burned beside them, its tongues dancing in the air, while his heart broke between each choice he faced. One decision was enough to determine what the day would be like, but every moment plunged him into deep confusion.

While he was lost in his thoughts, in an internal struggle that was raging like the fire beside him, something unexpected happened. Suddenly, he felt something strange, as if the air around him had shaken. He quickly turned towards Sara, to be surprised that her eyes started to move, then slowly opened. The warmth from the fire had touched her skin, making her wake up after a long period of silence.

A moment when all the anxious thoughts and doubts that had been filling his mind vanished. His eyes widened in surprise, and feelings accumulated that he could not stop. How could she wake up now? Wasn't she unconscious? Was everything just a terrifying nightmare? Or was she really here, alive, breathing?

He did not waste a moment. Pushing everything from his mind aside, he ran towards her at full speed, his heart pounding as if it would hit his chest. The mind was trying to keep up with the emotional rush, but the body could not stop. He approached her, and wrapped his arms around her in a sudden hug, as if she was the only thing he was holding in this world full of darkness. His hands were fluttering over her body, as if it was his only way to express the comfort and protection he wanted to give her.

Sara, who suddenly woke up, felt shocked by this sudden hug. His eyes were full of doubt and comfort at the same time, but her face showed confusion. What is happening? Why did he hug her like this?

"What?!" She whispered in a weak voice, pointing to his place with a movement of her head, unaware of what had happened.

He took a deep breath as he carefully separated himself from her, feeling the embarrassment that was starting to fill him now. But he had to explain. He was silent for a few moments, trying to arrange the words in his head before telling her everything.

"There was... a disaster. I was... I was looking for you... but after the explosion, everyone was exiled to different places... and I... I was afraid for you. I thought I lost you... I was afraid I wouldn't find you again."

His voice was shaking slightly, as if the words were coming out with difficulty. He tried to smile, but his pain was too great to hide. "There was snow everywhere, and I had to look for you. But I couldn't leave you here, I was afraid to find you… far away from me, helpless." His eyes were smiling quietly but not without sadness, as Sara listened carefully, beginning to understand the enormity of the disaster they had all been through.

Sara was silent for a moment, her face pale and her eyes wide open, as if the words she had just heard hadn't been able to quickly penetrate her mind. Her mind was filled with details that had taken her to a catastrophe she couldn't imagine, but her heart was still in denial. "Negation… explosion… my comrades…" The words were echoing through her mind like faint echoes, almost making her lose the ability to breathe.

She felt a deep shock engulf her, as if she was grasping the reins of reality to prevent herself from falling into the abyss. Events were racing through her mind: that moment when she had lost consciousness, the scattered bodies, and the darkness that had taken everything. It felt as if time had stopped as she was trapped in this harsh silence.

But suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a distant memory, something that had been hiding in the depths of her mind, on the edge of the memory she couldn't reach. Then, as if a light had suddenly lit up in her heart, she remembered: "Yuno…"

She took a deep breath, and a look of understanding appeared on her face. "Yuno… he's the one who saved me!" She said in a low voice, as if repeating the words to herself to believe them. A feeling of gratitude surged through her heart, driven by the memories of the moment he saved her, when he had fought so bravely to keep danger away from her. "He was there. He was always there." She felt a warm movement in her heart, as if all the trauma she had experienced had gradually disappeared.

There was no longer any fear weighing on her heart, but a deep sense of comfort and reassurance. Yuno, who had always stayed by her side, was the reason she was alive. All the pain that had swept through her heart when she lost consciousness disappeared with that memory, replaced by a deep appreciation for his help and courage.

She smiled with gratitude, and closed her eyes for a moment, as if she was thanking Yuno deep inside, as she remembered how he had saved her, and how he had always appeared at crucial moments. "He saved me...he was always there to protect me."