Chapter 127: Most of All, Afraid.

“You… you can use the Sunlight Rays…?” Rico’s voice came out uneven, like he didn’t even believe what he was saying. He stared at Lior’s hand, then back at his face. “Is that why they wanted you?”

Lior just stared back at him.

“Is this why you wanted him?! He’s a prince’s bastard?!”

He didn’t understand.

Sunlight… rays?

A prince’s bastard?

’What is that…?’

He slowly looked down at his palm again, his fingers trembling as he turned it over. The glow was gone now. There was nothing there.

Just his hand. Just skin.

’Where is the light? How did I do that?’

“We have to go.”

Lior’s head snapped up.

The big shadow man had already turned away. His voice was calm, like nothing strange had just happened. Like Lior wasn’t even worth looking at anymore.

The others followed.

Even the one Lior had hurt.

They moved back into the trees without a word, their dark figures slipping into the shadows like they belonged there. No one tried to grab him again. No one looked back.

And then—

They were gone.

Just like that.

The space around them felt empty all of a sudden.

Lior blinked, his chest still rising and falling as he looked around. The shadows were gone. The masks were gone. It was just him and Rico now.

’This… this good… right?’

His feet moved back on their own. One step. Then another.

No one was holding him.

No one was stopping him.

“Maman…”

His voice came out small at first.

Then louder.

“Maman! Maman!”

Hope rushed into his chest so fast it almost hurt.

He turned toward the forest, toward the direction he thought he came from, ready to run. He just had to follow the path. The blood.

Maman would find him. He just had to go—

“NO!”

The word tore out of him as something grabbed him again.

Arms wrapped around his waist, lifting him off the ground before he could take another step.

Lior struggled immediately, his body twisting, his hands pushing at whatever was holding him.

“Let me go! Let me go!”

It was Rico.

“Oh, no you don’t, you little brat!” Rico snapped, his voice rough and loud, nothing like before. His breathing was heavier now, uneven, like he was forcing air in and out of his chest.

Lior shook his head, panic rushing back just as fast as it had disappeared.

“No! I want my maman! Let me go!”

He kicked, harder this time. His small heel hit Rico’s leg, but it didn’t do anything.

Rico’s grip only tightened.

“You’re not going anywhere,” Rico said, his voice shaking, anger mixing with something else Lior couldn’t understand. “Do you have any idea what you just did?”

Lior didn’t answer.

He didn’t know.

He didn’t care.

“I don’t want to stay with you!” Lior cried, his voice breaking again as tears kept falling. “You’re mean! You hurt people! I want my maman!”

Rico’s arms tightened again, almost like he was afraid to let go.

“Shut up,” he muttered, but it didn’t sound strong. It sounded tired. “Just… shut up for a second.”

Lior kept struggling anyway.

’Maman… where are you…?’

His chest hurt again.

Everything felt wrong again.

The shadows were gone.

But he still wasn’t safe.

It felt like he was in even bigger danger now.

Rico’s grip shifted quick, so quick that Lior didn’t notice it at first.

He was still kicking, still crying, still trying to twist out of his hold. But then Rico’s arm moved higher, his hand sliding up from his waist to his neck.

And then it tightened.

Lior’s breath caught.

“W-Wait…”

The pressure increased.

His feet dangled as Rico lifted him higher, his fingers digging into the sides of his neck, not enough to snap it, but enough to squeeze. Enough to make it hard to breathe.

Lior’s eyes widened, panic crashing into him all over again.

Air wouldn’t come in properly.

Something felt wrong with Lior.

This was the first time

His hands shot up immediately, grabbing at Rico’s wrist, trying to pull it away, but his fingers were too small.

And too weak.

“N-No…!”

His voice came out and broken.

“I… can’t…”

His chest burned.

“Please…”

His throat hurt.

He tried to breathe in, but it didn’t work. Not fully. Not enough.

Tears spilled even faster, his face scrunching as fear took over everything else.

’Maman… I can’t breathe…’

His legs kicked weakly now, not strong like before.

Everything was getting fuzzy.

The trees blurred together.

Rico’s face looked wrong, like it was too far and too close at the same time.

“Just stay still!” Rico snapped, his voice rough, shaking. “You don’t understand what you are! You don’t understand what I can get for you!”

Lior didn’t understand.

He didn’t want to understand.

He just wanted air.

’Maman… please…’

His grip on Rico’s wrist loosened.

His arms felt heavy.

Like they didn’t belong to him anymore.

His vision dimmed at the edges.

The world felt smaller.

Quieter.

He thought—

’Am I going to die…?’

Then—

A sound tore through the air.

SHRIEK.

Lior didn’t see it clearly.

Just a flash.

A movement too fast for his eyes to follow.

Something pierced through Rico’s body.

Rico’s grip disappeared instantly.

Lior dropped.

He hit the ground hard, the impact knocking what little air he had left out of him.

“Ah—!”

He curled slightly, coughing, choking as he dragged in air in broken breaths.

It hurt.

Everything hurt.

His throat burned. His chest ached. His head spun.

Warm liquid splattered across him.

Sticky.

Wet.

It soaked into his clothes, his hands, his face.

Lior coughed again, wiping at his mouth with shaking fingers.

’What… is this…?’

He didn’t need to ask.

He knew.

Blood.

It was the blood that his Maman had. The red blood.

He looked up slowly.

Rico was still standing for a second.

A sword had gone through him.

Straight through.

Then his body gave out.

He collapsed.

Lior flinched at the sound.

Everything went quiet again.

His ears rang softly as he tried to understand what just happened.

Then—

He saw him.

Standing there.

Sword still in hand.

Blood dripping.

Eyes locked on the body.

Lior’s lips parted, his voice small, shaking.

And most of all, afraid.

“Maman…?”

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