Theo glanced between the three of them before taking a few steps back.
’’Once you tear the ticket, don’t resist it,’’ he said. ’’Just let it happen.’’
Jim looked down at the golden ticket in his hand before raising an eyebrow.
’’That’s it?’’ he asked.
’’Yup.’’
Relieved, Jim finally smiled.
’’Alright, I’m ready,’’ he said, glancing up at Lyra and Iris. ’’What about you two?’’
’’I’m ready too,’’ Iris nodded.
Lyra followed up right away, also nodding once.
All three of them raised the ticket slightly.
Then, after one final glance, three golden tickets were torn in half at the same time.
Theo immediately stood up.
’’Good luck, everyone,’’ he said, retreating several steps.
Before any of them could react, a bright white light erupted from the tickets.
The light shot toward their bodies in an instant, wrapping tightly around them before slowly seeping into their bodies.
After a few seconds, the white light completely disappeared.
For a brief moment, everything went dead silent in the room.
’’Huh?’’ Jim blinked.
He glanced down at himself before rolling his shoulders.
’’That wasn’t so ba—’’
His voice abruptly stopped. At almost the same moment, his smile vanished from his face.
A strange burning sensation spread through his chest, slowly gathering around his heart.
’’Theo?’’ he muttered, glancing up worriedly. ’’I think something’s wrong!’’
His hand instinctively grabbed his shirt.
Not far away, Iris’s brows suddenly knitted together while Lyra’s breathing grew noticeably heavier.
’’Don’t worry,’’ Theo quickly said. ’’I’m sure it’ll all turn out fine.’’
But the others could barely even hear his words.
The burning sensation had only intensified, having fully gathered around their hearts.
Theo glanced at them in pity, knowing the next step very well.
’It’s engraving time,’ he thought. ’This’ll be hell for them.’
Just then, Jim’s eyes locked onto him.
His face had gone completely pale while his breathing was heavy.
’’You lied,’’ he whispered, the world blurring in front of him.
Theo scratched his cheek awkwardly.
’’Maybe a little,’’ he said lightly.
Jim’s pupils shrank for a moment.
’’You son of a bitch...’’
Before he could continue, immense pain erupted inside his chest.
’’AAAAAAAGGHHHHH!’’
Jim’s scream echoed throughout the entire suite as he collapsed onto his knees, both hands clutching his chest.
Iris bit down hard enough for blood to appear at the corner of her lips, desperately trying to suppress her own cries.
Beside her, Lyra had already passed out. Her body, already worn down from days of worry, simply couldn’t withstand the pain.
’’The engraving has started,’’ Theo muttered, his heart pounding a little faster. ’’Let’s hope all goes well.’’
It didn’t take long.
After only a few seconds, Iris and Jim’s screams faded.
Their eyes had rolled to the back of their heads as their bodies collapsed onto the couch.
Theo looked at the unconscious Jim before rubbing the back of his neck.
’’Sorry,’’ he muttered. ’’But if I’d told you how excruciating this pain is, you’d probably not have done it.’’
He remained standing there for a few more seconds.
Then he quickly began checking each of their pulses, just in case.
After a minute, he finally let out a relieved sigh.
’’Stable,’’ he mumbled to himself. ’’It’ll be done in a minute or two.’’
Even though they were stable, Theo wanted to stay around until they woke up.
Without another thought, he sat down on the couch and started cultivating.
...
Hours ticked by in absolute silence.
The circle had long since been successfully carved onto their hearts, much to Theo’s delight.
Even so, none of them showed any signs of waking up.
Theo remained seated on the couch, quietly circulating his mana while occasionally glancing at them.
Just then, a faint groan rang through the room.
Theo’s eyes snapped open right away.
His gaze immediately landed on Iris, who slowly raised her hand to her forehead.
’’Ugh...’’ she winced, rubbing her temples softly.
Supporting herself against the couch, she gradually pushed herself into a sitting position.
Theo was beside her almost instantly.
’’How are you?’’ he asked.
Iris remained silent for a moment.
Her hazy eyes slowly cleared up as she glanced at Theo.
’’I’m... fine,’’ she muttered, rubbing her head. ’’And... it seems to have worked...’’
Theo let out a quiet sigh of relief.
’’Can you feel the circle on your heart?’’ he asked.
Iris slowly nodded as her hand drifted to her chest.
’’It feels... strange,’’ she muttered quietly. ’’But it doesn’t hurt anymore.’’
A large smile appeared on Theo’s face.
’’That’s good,’’ he said, nodding once. ’’It felt like that for me too.’’
Iris looked up at him, her head tilting faintly.
’’You went through this... a long time ago, right?’’ she asked.
Theo nodded lightly.
’’Quite some time ago, yes,’’ he said.
Iris fell silent.
Theo was always like this.
By the time they found out what he’d been doing, he’d long since gone through it alone.
Regardless of how painful or dangerous it was... he always ended up doing it without saying a word.
She couldn’t help but smile bitterly.
’’You really are unbelievable sometimes,’’ she whispered quietly. ’’Why don’t you ever take things easy... or at least have me there with you...?’’
Before Theo could answer, a loud groan rang out behind him.
Theo and Iris snapped toward the noise at the same time.
Jim slowly pushed himself upright, one hand clutching his chest while the other rubbed the back of his head.
His face twisted in pain.
’’That...’’ he groaned. ’’That fucking hurt!’’
His gaze slowly landed on Theo.
For a brief moment, the room fell silent.
Even though the world spun in front of his eyes, he could easily tell where Theo was.
’’Motherfucker!’’ he cursed, staggering to his feet.
’’Jim—’’
’’No!’’ Jim snapped, pointing an accusing finger several feet to Theo’s left. ’’You are dead!’’
He took one step forward and instantly slammed his shin against the table.
Before Jim even knew it, his face had been planted on the floor.
’’Fuck...’’ he cursed quietly. ’’This is all your fault!’’