Chapter —Dual Defeat.
The 14th of February ended not with the sweet taste of chocolate, but with the bitter sting of a reality Luke was not prepared to handle.
Back in his room, Luke sat on the edge of his bed, his mouth agape, staring blankly at the wall. Beside him, his Aura Illusion sat in exactly the same posture, mirroring his exhaustion. The air in the room was thick with the residue of spent energy and sheer emotional trauma.
"I never expected this," Luke whispered, his voice trembling. "Marin... she actually kissed me. How am I supposed to look at her tomorrow? How do I face her in the guild?"
He turned his head slowly toward his illusion. "And you? I sent you to handle Zoya so I wouldn't have to deal with two crises. My plan was 99.9% foolproof. Did you reject her gently? Tell me it went better than my day."
The illusion looked at Luke with a hollow, haunted expression. "You think your day was hard? Luke, if you heard my piece of the story, you would feel like you had a vacation. Your plan... that 0.1% you didn't account for? It was an absolute disaster."
"What do you mean?" Luke asked, leaning in. "The plan was simple: if she proposed a Valentine's date, tell her she's a precious friend but you aren't interested in romance. It's a standard rejection. I think now why I can't do it to Marin too now."
The illusion let out a sarcastic, weary laugh. "Rejection? Rejection was never even on the table. When I arrived at the border to meet her, the scene was completely different."
The illusion shared the memory flash with Luke. We see the Auron illusion arriving at the misty mountain pass. He looked around for Zoya, expecting a shy girl with a box of chocolates. Instead, a heavy black cloth was surrounded him so Auron could see her feet only.
"Here I am, Auron!" Zoya's voice rang out, but it lacked its usual timidness.
Auron asked "Zoya? What is this? Why did you call me for a 'world tour' today?And why are you hiding?"
"Don't act like a fool," Zoya said, stepping into the light. "I know you found out today is Valentine's Day. I know you know why I brought you here."
"So it's true," the illusion said, following Luke's plan. "You want me as a Valentine. But Zoya, listen—I don't believe in these holidays, and I'm not interested in—"
"Who said anything about a Valentine?" Zoya interrupted. She yanked away her outer dark cloth which was surrounding her, and the illusion's jaw nearly hit the snow. Beneath her traveling gear, Zoya was wearing a full, white wedding gown.
"I want you to be my everything," she said, her eyes burning with a terrifying, focused light. "Let's marry, Auron. We'll start a family. I'll never ask for your identity. I'll stay by your side forever. Just say yes."
The illusion stumbled back. "Zoya! Come to your senses! Is this a prank? Are you cosplaying?"
"I am doing nothing of the sort!" she shouted, beginning to chase him as he tried to fly away. "I've loved you from the beginning! If you won't choose me, I'll choose for us!"
Illusion flies high but She chased her.
She pursued him across three borders, her speed boosted by high-tech aura-gadgets she had clearly spent months preparing. "You can't run, Auron! Destiny brought us together! Ot was Auramaster Mizu who bring us such close, I never expected you will ever stand that close to me.My parents have already accepted you! Don't worry about caste or age, our country will welcome you!"
"What are you even saying?!" the illusion shouted back, pushed to his physical limits. "Caste? Age? I don't even know your last name!"
The illusion turned back to the real Luke so she can't identify him. "She chased me for six hours, Luke. She considered that her 'world tour.' I nearly dissipated from the stress. She isn't shy like Chika—she's a predator in a veil. I misjudged her completely."
Luke sat in stunned silence. Then, a hysterical laugh escaped his throat—so loud that his mother knocked on the door. "Luke? Is everything okay in there?"
"Nothing, Mom! Just... a funny video!" Luke shouted, covering his mouth.
He looked at his illusion, then at his own hands. "Here I am, on the verge of a 98% death-risk ritual to save the world, and they want me to start a love story? Marin is out of her mind, and Zoya is... I don't even have words for Zoya."
"I can't do this," Luke said, his voice turning cold and decisive. "I have no time for this. If I don't survive the shield, what was the point of all this drama? I need peace. I need to focus on the 7-month countdown, not wedding gowns and kisses."
"So, the plan I'm thinking of?" the illusion asked.
"Yes," Luke said.
"No," the illusion argued. "As your consciousness, I'm telling you: you're running away because you're scared."
"I am a Auramaster, not heart master!" Luke snapped. He stood up and began packing a small bag with essentials. "I'm going away. I need free space. I know Marin will be sad, and Zoya will be... well, Zoya. But I am not ready for this. I never was."
He continued"We can ignore zoya , but what about Marin, how much I can ignore her."
Auru manifested, her light flickering with guilt. "Luke, wait! What are you doing? I only left you alone because I thought you needed space to enjoy your date!"
"Well, I got my space," Luke said grimly. "And now I want more of it. I'm leaving."
Auru asked , "what about devil nodes."
Luke said , "Other Auramasters are Capable that they can fight and take out the five remaining nodes. And anything danger happen , I will ready to help."
He dissipated the illusion and walked out of his room. His mother saw him with the bag and stopped him near the front door. "Luke? Where are you going at this hour? You just got home."
"I'm going to the old house, Mom," Luke said. "The one in the countryside. The previous home."
His mother frowned. "Why there? You know we haven't lived there since you born. No one is there to look after you."
"That's exactly why I'm going," Luke whispered. "I just need peace. I need to think."
His mother sighed, seeing the immovable resolve in his eyes. She reached into a drawer and handed him the old iron key. "I don't know what happened today, but... please be safe. Don't stay away for months like you did last time."
Luke took the key, the cold metal biting into his palm. He looked at his mother one last time. "This time... it might be longer. I think so."
He stepped out into the night, the cold February air hitting his face. Behind him, the lights of the city—and the hearts of two women—remained. Ahead, in the silence of the abandoned countryside, lay the only place where he could prepare for the end of the world without a mask.
And as Luke walked into the shadows, the story of the high school student ended, and the true preparation of the Savior began.
End of Chapter.