Chapter 205

“Easy, buddy, you’re not going anywhere. You’re staying in here. With me.” A circle of light bound Mephisto, inhibiting his movement. It was a phenomenon that couldn’t be explained simply by the fact that Rogue and I had fused. Some other secret surely remained hidden. However, I couldn’t care less about that right now. “Lydia! I promise I’ll come back for you!” I screamed. Just before the hole swallowed me… My feelings… My greatest wish… “I promise I’ll take you back to our world! So please, please spend the rest of your life with me!” Lydia smirked and answered, “But coming back for me means setting this guy free. You okay with that?” “You think I care?! I’ll just get powerful enough to beat him to oblivion!” For you, I could move planets. Lydia’s eyes went wide, surprised by my uncharacteristically careless words. “Man…you’ve changed, Var. Wait, no, you’ve grown. That’s what I meant.” Her peaceful smile faded into the distance. With every second we drifted farther from each other, my love for her deepened. So I screamed once more, hurling any notions of resignation far into the distance. “I will bring you back! I promise! I promise!!!” Lydia was so small now that I couldn’t see her face. Even though my eyes couldn’t see her. Even though my ears couldn’t hear her voice. I saw her. I saw Lydia’s crimson cheeks. And I heard her. I heard her voice, choked with joy. “……Come back for me as soon as you can, okay?” To that I spoke a solemn vow, knowing my voice would never reach her as I fell into the hole of light. “Someday… Someday I will take your hand!” Even if I had to defy the laws of nature. Even if it happened in a future that should never be. I’d break all the rules…for one more chance. One more chance to smile with her. And to have any hope of seeing that come to pass, I had to return to my friends. Until that day arrived…