Aria opens her eyes and finds herself in a familiar cabin. "Good, you're awake," a man's familiar voice greets her. As she rubs her eyes to clear her vision, she sees the man she thought she would never see again. Tears well up in her eyes as she cries at him, "Arlan!" She hugs him tightly, not wanting to let go. "Easy there, what's wrong?" Arlan, the Hero, the man she thought was dead, is alive and well. Aria feels relieved and hopes that the events of the past few months were all just a bad dream. She cries like a child who has just found her parents after getting lost. Arlan hugs her tightly, assuring her that whatever bad dream she had was not real. "I-I thought I would never see you again!" Aria sniffles as she cries in his arms. "There, there," Arlan, confused about the situation, rubs Aria's head to calm her down. Aria finally relents and releases her grasp on the hero. She looks at him, taking in his unwavering posture, his golden hair gently moving in the wind, revealing his azure eyes that shine like the sky. "How are you alive?" Aria asks a question she didn't think before asking but is genuinely curious. Arlan is even more confused. "What do you mean?" Arlan asks profoundly. But before Aria can say something, she hears the clashing of weapons just outside. Her attention is fixed on the noise outside. Arlan, seeing Aria's gaze directed towards the noise, says, "Oh, Draco and Thalia are at it again. You get used to it by now." Aria is now confused about what's happening. "Ah, the vigor of youth!" Aria turns her head and, to her surprise, sees Zephyr, the dwarf Archmage, floating in a sitting position with a book in hand, staring at the fight outside. "Draco is your age, you know!" a woman's voice is heard from the kitchen. Aria's gaze turns to the woman, and she is once again baffled to see Luna, the elf Paladin, dressed in casual clothes, bringing some snacks and tea to the table. Aria's mind is filled with confusion. What exactly is going on? But at that moment, she couldn't remember why something was wrong or why the hero should have died. She twirls her wavy ginger colored hair as she tries to think. "There you go again. I told you to stop doing that. It's not very ladylike!" Luna scolds her in a gentle tone. "I-I'm sorry!" Aria blushes, embarrassed to be called out in front of the hero. "And stop apologizing," Luna adds. Aria pauses, and her attention is drawn outside. "I want to see who wins!" Aria playfully insists as she gets up and runs towards the door. "There's the cheeky apothecary I know," The Hero notes with a cheerful smile as Aria rushes to go out. Unnoticed by Aria, a mirror reflection shows her snow-white hair as she closes the door behind her.
Outside, Aria's gaze is fixed on the fight between Thalia, the drow assassin, and Draco, the beastman barbarian. "Who do you think will win?" Aria turns around to see Arlan behind her. "I bet it's Thalia," Aria confidently places her bet on the drow assassin. The hero doesn't make a bet, but he is happy to see his comrades getting along.
"Your speed is nothing if you can't take me down!" Draco, with light scratches and slashes around his body, boldly proclaims as he keeps missing Thalia, who moves at superhuman speeds, with his gigantic axe. His very loud voice echoes in the area. "That's ironic, since with all that strength you have, you couldn’t even hit a fly with that massive axe," Thalia taunts Draco, all the while grinning in elation. "Are you saying you're a fly?" Draco casually retorts at Thalia, making her exasperated. Thalia stops dodging as she goes in for an attack straight to Draco's eye, but he blocks the attack with his huge axe. A loud clang is heard as their weapons collide.
As Aria hears the loud clang, a memory she doesn't recognize surfaces in her mind in an instant. She sees a tall soldier facing a large beastman in single combat, barehanded. She questions when this happened as she watches the fight between Thalia and Draco continue, but she shrugs it off, thinking maybe it was just part of the bad dream she had. Draco slashes in a horizontal motion, but Thalia just jumps upward in a spin, evading the attack gracefully. Draco's attack cleaves the trees from the forest with just the sheer unseen force of the attack. Thalia disappears from sight and reappears behind him, she then thrusts her dagger aiming at Draco's tiger ears and skewers it. Thalia, who was very smug at the moment, is caught off guard as Draco grabs her by the leg and throws her towards the forest, branches breaking as she crashes. But Thalia recovers quickly as she is able to appear in front of Draco again with only minor scratches. Both of them appear to be elated as they smile from ear to ear while panting heavily.
"Okay, that's enough," Arlan claps his hand as a signal that the fight is over. As Thalia and Draco hear this, in an instant they both lunge at the hero with cheerful smiles, their eyes fixed on him. Arlan sighs as he unsheathes his swords from his waist. In his right hand, he blocks Thalia's dagger with his ordinary sword and with the left, he blocks Draco's axe with the holy sword. The ground beneath him cracks due to the weight of their attacks. Arlan smiles and with his inhuman strength, he pushes them back, both are thrown a few paces but as they are going to swing again at Arlan, they are countered as Arlan with extreme speed disarms them both in an instant. Their weapons fall to the ground. Thalia and Draco are both surprised and amazed at the Hero's strength and speed. "Ha-ha-ha!" Draco's loud laugh echoes in the area, making the birds fly to escape. "What a great display of power, Arlan!" Draco proclaims as he picks up his axe. Thalia smiles in recognition as they both regard the hero to be the stronger and faster one among them.
Aria is amazed by how strong her comrades are, but her gaze slowly drifts to the hero’s swords which he holds in each hand. She then questions in her mind, "Has Arlan always been a dual sword wielder?" An uneasiness she felt while watching the sword then suddenly a scene from a memory she didn't recognize surfaces again. She sees the hero battered and bruised as he fights a huge demon with his other arm missing. A sudden surge of terror washes over her as she looks at the hero.
"Wake up!" A voice Aria can’t place suddenly echoes in her mind. She turns around and suddenly she is back at the Demon Lord's castle. She sees the hero, Arlan, lying on the cold stone floor, blood oozing from him and an arm missing. "His Divine protection is gone, finish him off!" A familiar voice echoes. As Aria turns, she sees her comrades. Thalia's dagger and Draco's axe are wet with blood, the broken holy sword is in Luna's possession, and the Demon Lord's crown is held by Zephyr. Aria trembles in fear as she remembers this scene. "Wake up, Aria!" she hears the voice again calling her. She turns around again to see herself inside the Royal castle, shackled and absorbed by a red pillar of light, screaming in pain. She looks around to see Elias fighting demons and Eredin fighting Zephyr. "Aria," she hears the voice again behind her. But when she turns, she sees Arlan, the hero, in ethereal form. His sadness is reflected in his eyes.
Aria's eyes well up with tears as she remembers the events that led to this moment. "Arlan," Aria's voice quavers as she sobs at the fate that befell her beloved hero. "I don't have much time left. I had hoped to protect you even after my death, but it seems it won't go the way I had hoped." The Hero's words confuse Aria as she has no idea what the hero meant. But as Aria sees herself being pulled by Elias, she sees a glow of light plucked from her body. With this scene and the Hero’s words, she finally understands. The Divine protection of the goddess is being torn from her. "Even after death, I still failed," the Hero expresses regret over the events, and Aria can only feel sadness as it was also her fault that this had happened. If only she had done things differently, if only she had noticed the betrayal before it happened, maybe things wouldn't have turned out like this, Aria thinks.
"But I still have hope," Arlan's eyes are filled with hope as he looks at the events happening. Aria gazes to where his eyes are fixed and sees Eredin, Zephyr, Elias, and Thalia standing their ground against the dark goddess. "See? I told you, there was a reason that I failed to see at the time, but they have always been our friends regardless of what they believed. They fight against the darkness, even Thalia," Arlan declares as he smiles, looking at the events that unfold. Aria becomes uneasy as she watches the events unfold. "I-I need to help them, I need to wake up!" Aria doesn't know what to do. She needs to wake up. "You can't. Not yet," Arlan sadly states. "The Ritual should have killed you, Aria," Aria looks at him as Arlan lays the truth to her. "With the Divine protection gone, your fatal wounds would resurface." Aria seems confused. "What wounds?" Suddenly, she remembers a scene from the Demon Lord's castle. When the ceiling collapsed from above them, she protected the hero with her body but was impaled with one of the debris. A chill goes down her spine as she realizes what had truly happened. She had already died. But the hero, with the last of his Divine protection, passed it all to Aria to save her from death. "N-No! It can't be!" Aria, terror in her eyes and confusion in her mind, holds her head, shaking, that it is not true. So the real reason the hero died is because of her, because he chose to save her. "You have done nothing wrong, Aria. Don't blame yourself for what has already happened." Aria looks at the hero and is somehow calmed down. The hero points his finger at the situation that's happening. "A Greater Evil has surfaced, even greater than the Demon Lord we vanquished." The hero, even in death, is unwavering in his dedication against demons. "The goddess Lunaria has shown me this vision back when I was alive. But she told me it will not be I who will vanquish this great evil." Aria's eyes are fixed on Arlan as he shares a prophecy. "Because the Divine protection was absorbed, a Hero will not be reborn in this era after my demise." Arlan's words make Aria uneasy now knowing that there won't be any heroes and with the events in reality now getting dire. Aria witnesses Thalia's murder, Zephyr's sacrifice, and Eredin's death. She feels great horror and despair, she falls to her knees seeing the people she cared for gone one by one. But the hero doesn't let this scene faze him, "But do not fret! She will certainly be defeated, I have seen it!" Arlan's eyes shine with triumph. "The goddess, even in her absence, has chosen to believe in the people of Solandis, as how I believe in our friends, and how I believe that you, Aria Nightbloom, will lead this world to triumph one day."
"I-I can't do it!" Aria feels great despair as she curls up and sobs. She blames herself for how she failed the people she cared about. Arlan sits beside her and rubs her head. "I believe you can," he assures her in a gentle tone. "Why me?" Aria peeks at Arlan, her green eyes filled with tears. "Why not?" Arlan doesn't hesitate, his faith in Aria unwavering. "You are the bravest and kindest girl I know, and I believe you will surpass me one day." Aria locks eyes with the hero, seeing his indomitable spirit. Even when he was alive, despair never consumed him, no matter how dire the situation, even in his final moments. She feels a surge of strength emanating from within her. Arlan smiles at her. "It's almost time," he says, helping Aria stand up. Suddenly, they find themselves high above the sky, looking down at the world below. Aria gazes at the world, regaining her composure. Though a shred of doubt and fear remain, the newfound strength she possesses outweighs those emotions. "Arlan, thank you for everything," Aria says, tears flowing from her cheeks, but they are not tears of sadness. She smiles as she watches the hero slowly fade away. "I'm glad to have met you!" she shouts, her voice filled with gratitude. Arlan responds, "There's the cheeky apothecary I know," and then he disappears. Aria now carries the will of the hero within her. She feels the wounds inflicted on her disappearing. Arlan made his last sacrifice to save her once more. She looked at the Great Elder Tree on the horizon, sighed, and uttered to herself, "I'm ready." Reinforcing herself with confidence, she suddenly felt a force pulling her soul back into her body. Aria Nightbloom, the half-elf apothecary, opened her eyes for the first time.
Aria opens her eyes and finds herself in a familiar cabin. "Good, you're awake," a man's familiar voice greets her. As she rubs her eyes to clear her vision, she sees the man she thought she would never see again. Tears well up in her eyes as she cries at him, "Arlan!" She hugs him tightly, not wanting to let go. "Easy there, what's wrong?" Arlan, the Hero, the man she thought was dead, is alive and well. Aria feels relieved and hopes that the events of the past few months were all just a bad dream. She cries like a child who has just found her parents after getting lost. Arlan hugs her tightly, assuring her that whatever bad dream she had was not real. "I-I thought I would never see you again!" Aria sniffles as she cries in his arms. "There, there," Arlan, confused about the situation, rubs Aria's head to calm her down. Aria finally relents and releases her grasp on the hero. She looks at him, taking in his unwavering posture, his golden hair gently moving in the wind, revealing his azure eyes that shine like the sky. "How are you alive?" Aria asks a question she didn't think before asking but is genuinely curious. Arlan is even more confused. "What do you mean?" Arlan asks profoundly. But before Aria can say something, she hears the clashing of weapons just outside. Her attention is fixed on the noise outside. Arlan, seeing Aria's gaze directed towards the noise, says, "Oh, Draco and Thalia are at it again. You get used to it by now." Aria is now confused about what's happening. "Ah, the vigor of youth!" Aria turns her head and, to her surprise, sees Zephyr, the dwarf Archmage, floating in a sitting position with a book in hand, staring at the fight outside. "Draco is your age, you know!" a woman's voice is heard from the kitchen. Aria's gaze turns to the woman, and she is once again baffled to see Luna, the elf Paladin, dressed in casual clothes, bringing some snacks and tea to the table. Aria's mind is filled with confusion. What exactly is going on? But at that moment, she couldn't remember why something was wrong or why the hero should have died. She twirls her wavy ginger colored hair as she tries to think. "There you go again. I told you to stop doing that. It's not very ladylike!" Luna scolds her in a gentle tone. "I-I'm sorry!" Aria blushes, embarrassed to be called out in front of the hero. "And stop apologizing," Luna adds. Aria pauses, and her attention is drawn outside. "I want to see who wins!" Aria playfully insists as she gets up and runs towards the door. "There's the cheeky apothecary I know," The Hero notes with a cheerful smile as Aria rushes to go out. Unnoticed by Aria, a mirror reflection shows her snow-white hair as she closes the door behind her.
Outside, Aria's gaze is fixed on the fight between Thalia, the drow assassin, and Draco, the beastman barbarian. "Who do you think will win?" Aria turns around to see Arlan behind her. "I bet it's Thalia," Aria confidently places her bet on the drow assassin. The hero doesn't make a bet, but he is happy to see his comrades getting along.
"Your speed is nothing if you can't take me down!" Draco, with light scratches and slashes around his body, boldly proclaims as he keeps missing Thalia, who moves at superhuman speeds, with his gigantic axe. His very loud voice echoes in the area. "That's ironic, since with all that strength you have, you couldn’t even hit a fly with that massive axe," Thalia taunts Draco, all the while grinning in elation. "Are you saying you're a fly?" Draco casually retorts at Thalia, making her exasperated. Thalia stops dodging as she goes in for an attack straight to Draco's eye, but he blocks the attack with his huge axe. A loud clang is heard as their weapons collide.
As Aria hears the loud clang, a memory she doesn't recognize surfaces in her mind in an instant. She sees a tall soldier facing a large beastman in single combat, barehanded. She questions when this happened as she watches the fight between Thalia and Draco continue, but she shrugs it off, thinking maybe it was just part of the bad dream she had. Draco slashes in a horizontal motion, but Thalia just jumps upward in a spin, evading the attack gracefully. Draco's attack cleaves the trees from the forest with just the sheer unseen force of the attack. Thalia disappears from sight and reappears behind him, she then thrusts her dagger aiming at Draco's tiger ears and skewers it. Thalia, who was very smug at the moment, is caught off guard as Draco grabs her by the leg and throws her towards the forest, branches breaking as she crashes. But Thalia recovers quickly as she is able to appear in front of Draco again with only minor scratches. Both of them appear to be elated as they smile from ear to ear while panting heavily.
"Okay, that's enough," Arlan claps his hand as a signal that the fight is over. As Thalia and Draco hear this, in an instant they both lunge at the hero with cheerful smiles, their eyes fixed on him. Arlan sighs as he unsheathes his swords from his waist. In his right hand, he blocks Thalia's dagger with his ordinary sword and with the left, he blocks Draco's axe with the holy sword. The ground beneath him cracks due to the weight of their attacks. Arlan smiles and with his inhuman strength, he pushes them back, both are thrown a few paces but as they are going to swing again at Arlan, they are countered as Arlan with extreme speed disarms them both in an instant. Their weapons fall to the ground. Thalia and Draco are both surprised and amazed at the Hero's strength and speed. "Ha-ha-ha!" Draco's loud laugh echoes in the area, making the birds fly to escape. "What a great display of power, Arlan!" Draco proclaims as he picks up his axe. Thalia smiles in recognition as they both regard the hero to be the stronger and faster one among them.
Aria is amazed by how strong her comrades are, but her gaze slowly drifts to the hero’s swords which he holds in each hand. She then questions in her mind, "Has Arlan always been a dual sword wielder?" An uneasiness she felt while watching the sword then suddenly a scene from a memory she didn't recognize surfaces again. She sees the hero battered and bruised as he fights a huge demon with his other arm missing. A sudden surge of terror washes over her as she looks at the hero.
"Wake up!" A voice Aria can’t place suddenly echoes in her mind. She turns around and suddenly she is back at the Demon Lord's castle. She sees the hero, Arlan, lying on the cold stone floor, blood oozing from him and an arm missing. "His Divine protection is gone, finish him off!" A familiar voice echoes. As Aria turns, she sees her comrades. Thalia's dagger and Draco's axe are wet with blood, the broken holy sword is in Luna's possession, and the Demon Lord's crown is held by Zephyr. Aria trembles in fear as she remembers this scene. "Wake up, Aria!" she hears the voice again calling her. She turns around again to see herself inside the Royal castle, shackled and absorbed by a red pillar of light, screaming in pain. She looks around to see Elias fighting demons and Eredin fighting Zephyr. "Aria," she hears the voice again behind her. But when she turns, she sees Arlan, the hero, in ethereal form. His sadness is reflected in his eyes.
Aria's eyes well up with tears as she remembers the events that led to this moment. "Arlan," Aria's voice quavers as she sobs at the fate that befell her beloved hero. "I don't have much time left. I had hoped to protect you even after my death, but it seems it won't go the way I had hoped." The Hero's words confuse Aria as she has no idea what the hero meant. But as Aria sees herself being pulled by Elias, she sees a glow of light plucked from her body. With this scene and the Hero’s words, she finally understands. The Divine protection of the goddess is being torn from her. "Even after death, I still failed," the Hero expresses regret over the events, and Aria can only feel sadness as it was also her fault that this had happened. If only she had done things differently, if only she had noticed the betrayal before it happened, maybe things wouldn't have turned out like this, Aria thinks.
"But I still have hope," Arlan's eyes are filled with hope as he looks at the events happening. Aria gazes to where his eyes are fixed and sees Eredin, Zephyr, Elias, and Thalia standing their ground against the dark goddess. "See? I told you, there was a reason that I failed to see at the time, but they have always been our friends regardless of what they believed. They fight against the darkness, even Thalia," Arlan declares as he smiles, looking at the events that unfold. Aria becomes uneasy as she watches the events unfold. "I-I need to help them, I need to wake up!" Aria doesn't know what to do. She needs to wake up. "You can't. Not yet," Arlan sadly states. "The Ritual should have killed you, Aria," Aria looks at him as Arlan lays the truth to her. "With the Divine protection gone, your fatal wounds would resurface." Aria seems confused. "What wounds?" Suddenly, she remembers a scene from the Demon Lord's castle. When the ceiling collapsed from above them, she protected the hero with her body but was impaled with one of the debris. A chill goes down her spine as she realizes what had truly happened. She had already died. But the hero, with the last of his Divine protection, passed it all to Aria to save her from death. "N-No! It can't be!" Aria, terror in her eyes and confusion in her mind, holds her head, shaking, that it is not true. So the real reason the hero died is because of her, because he chose to save her. "You have done nothing wrong, Aria. Don't blame yourself for what has already happened." Aria looks at the hero and is somehow calmed down. The hero points his finger at the situation that's happening. "A Greater Evil has surfaced, even greater than the Demon Lord we vanquished." The hero, even in death, is unwavering in his dedication against demons. "The goddess Lunaria has shown me this vision back when I was alive. But she told me it will not be I who will vanquish this great evil." Aria's eyes are fixed on Arlan as he shares a prophecy. "Because the Divine protection was absorbed, a Hero will not be reborn in this era after my demise." Arlan's words make Aria uneasy now knowing that there won't be any heroes and with the events in reality now getting dire. Aria witnesses Thalia's murder, Zephyr's sacrifice, and Eredin's death. She feels great horror and despair, she falls to her knees seeing the people she cared for gone one by one. But the hero doesn't let this scene faze him, "But do not fret! She will certainly be defeated, I have seen it!" Arlan's eyes shine with triumph. "The goddess, even in her absence, has chosen to believe in the people of Solandis, as how I believe in our friends, and how I believe that you, Aria Nightbloom, will lead this world to triumph one day."
"I-I can't do it!" Aria feels great despair as she curls up and sobs. She blames herself for how she failed the people she cared about. Arlan sits beside her and rubs her head. "I believe you can," he assures her in a gentle tone. "Why me?" Aria peeks at Arlan, her green eyes filled with tears. "Why not?" Arlan doesn't hesitate, his faith in Aria unwavering. "You are the bravest and kindest girl I know, and I believe you will surpass me one day." Aria locks eyes with the hero, seeing his indomitable spirit. Even when he was alive, despair never consumed him, no matter how dire the situation, even in his final moments. She feels a surge of strength emanating from within her. Arlan smiles at her. "It's almost time," he says, helping Aria stand up. Suddenly, they find themselves high above the sky, looking down at the world below. Aria gazes at the world, regaining her composure. Though a shred of doubt and fear remain, the newfound strength she possesses outweighs those emotions. "Arlan, thank you for everything," Aria says, tears flowing from her cheeks, but they are not tears of sadness. She smiles as she watches the hero slowly fade away. "I'm glad to have met you!" she shouts, her voice filled with gratitude. Arlan responds, "There's the cheeky apothecary I know," and then he disappears. Aria now carries the will of the hero within her. She feels the wounds inflicted on her disappearing. Arlan made his last sacrifice to save her once more. She looked at the Great Elder Tree on the horizon, sighed, and uttered to herself, "I'm ready." Reinforcing herself with confidence, she suddenly felt a force pulling her soul back into her body. Aria Nightbloom, the half-elf apothecary, opened her eyes for the first time.
