“What… help?”

“Based on what you just said—you must know how Demonic Orb assimilation works, right?”

“Mm… I know.”

Lotali nodded.

“When the previous… Thunder God… dies… their soul… clings to… the Demonic Orb. When the Orb… touches the next Thunder God… assimilation begins. All magical knowledge… and mastery… of power… becomes part… of the successor. Once fully assimilated… the previous Thunder God’s… existence… is erased.”

“I see… So that’s how it is.”

After Lotali’s halting explanation, Nangong Shiyu turned to Xia Zixin, who glared at him fiercely. He didn’t understand why she was angry. Why she’d hidden something so crucial.

“Xia Zixin, why didn’t you tell me?”

“Why *shouldn’t* I tell you? Isn’t it obvious?”

“How would I know if you never said anything? I’m not omniscient.”

How could he possibly know if she stayed silent?

“You idiot! Can’t you grasp such a simple cause and effect?!” Xia Zixin roared. “Only by assimilating me—your sister—can you inherit enough power to protect yourself. How else do you expect to survive in this world?”

Her words held truth.

Nangong Shiyu’s ordinary life had shattered. Aberrants and Fiends now stalked his days, threatening his life. Even a mundane lunch break wasn’t safe—that Fiend had ambushed him then.

If not for Lotali, that strangely gentle demon, he’d be dead already.

Without assimilating the Thunder God’s Mystic Pearl, absorbing its power, his fate would be pitiful.

He’d probably die pathetically.

“Mm… I know.”

He understood Xia Zixin meant well.

Every sacrifice, every scheme, every desperate act—it all came from protecting him.

Selfless. Noble. Holy, even.

“But Xia Zixin… you only ever think about what’s ‘good’ for me.”

She was like a frog at the bottom of a well, seeing only a sliver of sky.

“I’m grateful you notice when I’m weak. That you lend me your shoulder, your embrace. But there’s one thing you’ve never considered—”

It was selfish. So selfish.

“You’ve never truly cared about my feelings. My thoughts. You’re just directing your own tragic play in your head! You make your actions seem sacred, but they’re only burdening me. Do you realize that?”

“I’m doing this for you, little brother.”

Xia Zixin stared straight at him, unflinching.

“Yes, I know—for my own good. But what does ‘for my own good’ even mean?” Shiyu’s eyes grew sorrowful. “You’ll be erased after assimilation anyway… Our time together barely spans a week. I might not even remember your name. Or the color of your hair.”

They hadn’t even known each other four full days.

He knew he couldn’t be like her. In her memories lived the 231st Thunder God—the girl who called her “sister.”

He’d forget everything. Every trace.

“Then do as I say,” Xia Zixin said, her smile weary. “Assimilate me completely. Forget me. Become the strongest Thunder God in history. Just… live well…”

“Xia Zixin,” Shiyu cut her off. “Our time was short, but—”

“You’ve entered my life.”

She’d stepped into his silent home.

Shattered his ordinary days. Turning him into a girl? That was the worst of it.

This wasn’t his life anymore.

His peaceful past was gone—shattered by her arrival.

So…

She had to take responsibility. He wouldn’t let her slip away.

“I won’t let you disappear on me.”

“Hmph. I’m not your possession. Why should I—”

“You *are* mine, Xia Zixin!” Shiyu shouted. “Half your name came from me! I gave you a reason to exist in this world! ‘Xia Zixin’—two of those three characters are mine. That means I own sixty-six point seven percent of you! Your life is under my control. I decide if you live or die!”

Therefore—

“I forbid you to vanish! If I say live, you *will* live!”

Having trapped her with twisted logic, Shiyu turned back to Lotali.

If only she’d help.

“Lotali, you said you’d ‘drain me dry.’ That means you can extract the Thunder God’s Mystic Pearl from my body, right?”

Lotali’s eyes widened. She tilted her head, then nodded slowly.

“Then… can you extract *part* of the Orb?”

“You… want to…”

“Exactly what you’re thinking,” Shiyu said bitterly. “If possible, separate the unassimilated portion of the Orb from me. The Orb isn’t physical matter—it’s a cluster of magic housing consciousness. If we isolate the part still tied to her… she can keep existing. Keep living.”

“Wait… Shiyu, are you planning to—” Xia Zixin’s shock turned to fury. “What are you thinking?! You can’t—”

Shiyu surged magic through his body, suppressing the Orb—and silencing Xia Zixin.

*Rude? Yes. But she did the same to me.* He justified it silently.

“I… can do it,” Lotali frowned. “But… I’m your… enemy…”

“I know.” Shiyu bowed his head. “You’re the only one who can help me now.”

“Why… save her? Isn’t this… the Thunder God’s… fate?”

A reason to save her?

Only one answer surfaced in Shiyu’s mind.

“Because she’s irreplaceable family to me.”

“F-family?”

“Yes. She’s my sister.”

Even if “sister” was a title she’d claimed for herself.

Shiyu landed, dissolving his wings. He stepped into Lotali’s shadow, waiting.

“Do it. Please.”

“Aren’t you… afraid… I’ll kill you… while I’m at it?”

“How could I be?”

Shiyu closed his eyes. He unraveled the magic binding Thor Greatsword, spread his arms wide—defenseless.

“I know you’re a kind Fiend, Lotali. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have attacked me to protect those strangers.”

“You’re… despicable.”

*Yes.*

He admitted it. He was testing her limits.

“Call me despicable. I don’t care. I only have one request—save my family. Only you can do it. Please.”

Silence stretched. Shiyu wondered if the Silverhaired Maiden had fled. Then—footsteps. She landed before him.

*—Please don’t kill me. Don’t kill me. Don’t kill me…*

“L-listen,” Lotali’s voice trembled. “This… is life-threatening.”

Shiyu’s throat tightened.

*Ah…*

Life-threatening.

But he’d already decided.

Even knowing he might die—he’d take the risk.

He glanced back at Xia Zixin, pinned to the ground by his magic. Then nodded at Lotali.

*—I don’t want to be alone anymore.*

“I understand. Do it quickly.”

“Y-you’re sure?”

At least this way… he wouldn’t die pathetically.

“Yes. Do it now! The dread before a hospital injection hurts worse than the needle itself!”

Shiyu took a deep breath, bracing for pain.

He didn’t know if it would hurt—but logic said it would. Like surgery without anesthesia.

“I’m… starting.”

The agony hit instantly. It wasn’t just magic being drained—it felt like his bones were being ripped out with his blood. Worse than when he’d seared his arm with lightning.

Nausea. Dizziness. Excruciating pain.

And despair.

His legs gave way. He collapsed—but something caught him before he hit the ground. Before his mind could process it, darkness swallowed him.

Then—nothing.