Yusuf broke down again as Erythros uttered the words "You killed a Titan." His sobs shook his body, grief and confusion consuming him.
Erythros knelt beside him, her voice calm but firm. "You don't understand the good you've done."
"What good?" Yusuf snapped, his voice raw with anger. "I'm just a child who killed his own uncle! What part of that is good?"
Bastin sighed, his exhaustion evident.
"No, seriously!" Erythros insisted, holding his gaze. "He wasn't your uncle. Saliz died twenty years ago."
Yusuf froze. His breath hitched. "He died… twenty years ago?" His voice was barely a whisper. Then, louder, "Do you think I'm a fool?"
Bastin frowned, feeling just as bewildered.
Erythros held up a hand. "Trust me. He was Ifrit." She paused, letting the words sink in. "A Titan. That's why his eyes were red—did you ever notice?"
Yusuf and Bastin exchanged glances.
"Red eyes," Bastin murmured, remembering.
Erythros continued. "Before you were even born, your uncle—the real Saliz—killed his own mother and twin brother, Urui."
"Urui?" Yusuf repeated, shaking his head. "I never knew him."
"Of course you didn't. He was supposed to inherit the brooch, not Saliz. But you were just a baby when he died. There's no way you'd remember."
Yusuf wiped away his dried tears, listening in stunned silence.
"After killing them both, Saliz became a Titan," Erythros explained. "And a Titan is a megalomaniac. They will always harm others and chase after brooches, that are actually power granting Syroches."
Bastin, still processing, narrowed his eyes. If she knew Saliz was a Titan… then why did she leave us here with him?
Yusuf, however, still clung to his denial. "That's not true! Uncle never harmed us!" His voice trembled with desperation.
Erythros met his gaze, unwavering. "Then why did you have to kill him?"
A bolt of realization struck Yusuf, numbing him. He swallowed hard, unable to argue. The bitter truth settled in—he hadn't just killed his uncle. He had ended a monster.
"Well," Erythros exhaled, standing up. "Let's finish burying him."
And they did.
As the last handfuls of dirt covered the grave, Erythros dusted off her hands and turned back to Yusuf. Her sharp eyes landed once again on the crimson Syroche he held.
"Right, so—where did you get that?"
Yusuf blinked, glancing down at the Syroche.
"Oh? This?" He hesitated. "When… Ifrit was about to strike Bastin, time froze. A golden light fell on me, and a voice spoke. It gave me this brooch… and told me to save Bastin."
Erythros nodded, a hint of understanding in her expression. "Ah. Luméon, then. No need to worry."
She met Yusuf's gaze once more. "But be careful. Do not misuse it."
Yusuf nodded solemnly.
Then Erythros turned to Bastin. "And your brooch? Is it intact?"
Bastin held it up. "Yup. Still here."
"Good," Erythros said, relieved. Then she glanced around, finally taking in the destruction. The battlefield was scarred—deep cracks split the ground, and a massive hole reached down toward the core of the earth itself.
"What a mess," she muttered. "A tectonic shift… So that's why the earth shook."
She squinted at the gaping hole. "Was that a spell of the Sheem Syroche?" she asked Bastin.
"Maybe," Bastin started. "When I said—"
"Stop!" Erythros cut in, raising a hand. "If you say the spell again, it'll activate right here. Be mindful when you're dealing with Syroches."
She crossed her arms, giving them both a scrutinizing look.
"Where did you even learn that magic spells?"
"Oh yes," Yusuf said, pulling a scroll from his pocket. "The voice gave me this too—that's how I was able to use it!"
"Aha! I knew you had a scroll!" Erythros exclaimed. She quickly unrolled it and began counting. "One... two... three... four... five... six... seven... eight... nine... ten... eleven! Eleven spells?!" Her eyes widened in shock. "I only have six," she admitted, sounding almost desperate.
"Well, do you want its translation? You don't know Sanskrit, right?" she asked.
"Sanskrit?" Yusuf echoed, confused.
"Yup, the language!" Erythros confirmed.
"Oh! Yes, please," Yusuf said eagerly.
Erythros nodded. "I'll hand you the scroll later. And, as I suspected, you could be a good warrior! Would you like to be a warrior for humanity?"
"Warrior?" Yusuf repeated, uncertain.
"Yes, a warrior—like me," Erythros explained. "We travel to different countries, helping people, and most importantly… we annihilate Titans."
At the mention of Titans, Yusuf's face darkened as memories of what he had done flooded his mind. He hesitated, then, after a moment of thought, nodded.
"Alright then, pack up. You're going to India," Erythros declared.
"Eh?!" Both Yusuf and Bastin exclaimed in unison.
Erythros turned to Bastin. "And you—your name is Bastin, right? How did you use your Syroche? How did you know the spells? You didn't have a scroll, did you?"
Bastin hesitated. "It was… a strange experience," he admitted. "A voice inside me told me what to say. It sounded like my dad. And… I remember my dad using these spells before."
Erythros raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. Well, you're a case too. Pack up—you're coming with me as well."
Bastin and Yusuf stared at her, completely stunned.
"But before that..." Erythros turned her gaze skyward and shouted, "Luméon! Heal the Earth, please!"
A radiant light, brighter than the sun, descended from above. The ground trembled beneath them. Terrified, Bastin and Yusuf clung to Erythros' legs.
"Just like my spell..." Bastin murmured in awe as the fractured earth beneath them mended itself, closing the gaps left by the tectonic shift.
Yusuf leaned toward Bastin and whispered, "Do you know anything about India?"
Bastin nodded, indicating that he didn't know much about India. This place was new to him, but after thinking for a moment, he said, "A land somewhere in the east."
Both of them were filled with curiosity about what lay ahead. As the land beneath them stabilized, with the last of the gaps sealing shut, Erythros clapped her hands together. "Done! So, let's go."
"Wait!" Yusuf called out suddenly. He turned to Bastin, stepping closer. "Happy Birthday, Bastin." Without warning, he hugged him.
Bastin's face scrunched up in surprise. "Woah! That's right! In all this chaos, I completely forgot my own birthday." He let out a small laugh. "Thank you… and also, thanks for reminding me."
Yusuf chuckled. "Sorry, I couldn't get you a gift."
"What's the need for a gift when I have a brother like you? You saved me from Iftit—that's more than enough. If anything, you now owe me a favor instead," Bastin teased.
Erythros chuckled, pleased to see their bond growing. "Happy Birthday, Bastin," she added warmly.
"Thank you," Bastin replied with a nod.
As they stood there, the village around them appeared perfectly normal—like nothing had ever happened. The buildings stood intact, the air was peaceful, and there was no sign of destruction. Perhaps the villagers didn't even realize what had transpired. Maybe Luméon, as he healed the earth, had also erased their memories to minimize the impact.
But just as they were about to leave, amidst the fallen, burnt trees and thick bushes, they caught sight of something—movement.