But… there was still a flower. One left.
The last ray of light in the darkness.
The last bloom in the midst of pain.
Born out of suffering, it was impossibly beautiful, almost dreamlike.
In this dark world, hope and the future are born where light falls, taking root in the soil of suffering and growing upward.
The two are inseparable.
To cut them apart… perhaps that's impossible.
Can someone truly leave the past behind?
The answer is obvious.
Zane had once given his own answer.
But back then, he hadn't lived up to it—like a doctor unable to heal himself.
Now, though, he followed his true heart, made his choice, and was carrying out the "race" he'd spoken of.
He could not abandon the past, nor could he reconcile with it. Pain would always follow him like a shadow—something he could never release, never forget.
It would always be there, etched deep into his soul.
This battle would last until the end of his life.
But… he would keep winning.
Pain was the soil in which hope had taken root—inseparable from it.
Yet getting that hope to blossom into something dreamlike was far from easy.
And now, Zane had done it.
Or rather… they had done it together.
Raindrops slid from his hair, following damp strands clinging to his skin, mingling with another, clearer moisture before falling together…
Onto the white flower.
The touch was light, more like a gentle caress, as if each drop was protecting it.
Zane smiled faintly, the expression genuine.
"…Time to go."
"We need to go back."
"Home."
"A new home."
This was his flower—his future, his hope.
He reached out, hands cupping gently as though to lift it. But the moment his fingers brushed its petals, the white flower rose on its own, a soft halo of light enveloping it.
It drifted out from under his protection, exposed to the wind and rain—yet the glow seemed to ward most of it away, sheltering the fragile bloom.
The flower didn't stop.
It swayed in the rain, floating toward the distance. After drifting a short way, it hovered—its faint glimmers flickering in and out, sometimes battered by rain, sometimes swallowed by the night.
It was like a lamp, blinking against the darkness.
A small, steady light.
It was waiting for him.
Zane staggered as he rose.
Maybe the ground was too slick, maybe his body too weak—he nearly fell.
But he steadied himself.
Without pausing, he began walking toward the white flower.
As he moved, it drifted farther away. Step after step, Zane followed, the two of them moving through the boundless rain-soaked night toward some unknown horizon.
Thunder cracked overhead. Red lightning split the sky like the claws of some devil, vicious and immense.
It seemed to reach for him, ready to crush him and tear him apart, as if asking: With just a fragile white flower and that worn, weakened body… how far can you walk in the dark rain?
Zane didn't look away from the flower.
His gaze stayed on it—soft, unwavering.
Step by step.
Firm. Certain.
Because he understood one thing—
Hope and the future are fragile. They are distant, faint, and hard to reach.
But if you are willing to take the first step…
To keep stepping, with conviction, with faith, without fear of the wind or rain…
They will be there.
Waiting for you.
Always quietly waiting.
Blooming along the endless road through darkness—
That pure white…
Light.
...
New Eridu, Sixth Street.
"Hey, I've got a question for you."
Outside Master Chop's noodle shop, a blonde girl grinned at the person beside her.
"What?"
Lin blinked, raising a brow.
Monna leaned in too, poking her head out from the thick fur of her coat, her cheeks flushed red from the cold.
"How would you describe really heavy snow… without actually saying 'snow'?"
Ruby clapped her gloved hands together and looked at the two of them with keen interest.
"Aww, it's finally vacation and you're still acting like a teacher? Boring, boring…"
Monna waved both hands quickly, making it clear she wasn't playing along. Lin, however, tilted her head and smirked.
"I've got it."
"Ahem… Listen up—1899. The age of gunslingers and outlaws is coming to an end…"
"Huh? What are you even talking about? 1899? Does New Eridu even have a calendar like that?"
"You don't know? This film's been huge lately—famous director, set way, way back in the old era…"
"I heard it's blowing up in the outer ring."
"Huh… now I'm kinda interested."
At a table in front of the shop, Ellen drained the last sip of broth from her ramen and glanced over at her three friends. Her gaze lingered on Ruby.
…Wonder how he's doing now.
It had been nearly half a month. The Dead End Hollow ruins were still sealed off by the military.
Ellen shook her head slightly and rose. The streets were already cleared of snow, so she didn't have to worry about sinking with every step.
Then, in a fleeting moment, a snowflake landed on the tip of her nose, cold enough to make her lift her head and raise a brow.
Snow again?
What was with this weather…? How ridiculous could it get? Was this year's snowfall quota stolen from the next thousand years?
Snowflakes drifted down, crystal clear, dusting every corner of New Eridu, making the already cold air bite a little deeper.
Still, it didn't slow anyone down.
Life went on as usual.
...
Core of the Dead End Hollow ruins.
"So dark…"
Zane opened his eyes and scanned the surroundings, muttering without thinking.
Dark was an understatement.
You couldn't see your own hand in front of your face.
The Ether crystals' ability to block light was absurd.
"Phew… Well, it's finally over. Wonder how much time's passed outside…"
Now that his mind was clear again, Zane thought back to how he'd been in Dead End Hollow—and finally realized how much divinity had been influencing him, so quietly he hadn't noticed.
But that didn't matter anymore. From here on, divinity wouldn't control him. It was now just a part of him—under his control.
After all… the enemy had never been divinity itself, but the things he'd carried within him all along.
And now, those things were gone. Divinity had never even shown itself—it was lost somewhere, in some forgotten corner.
No one—and nothing—could be his true enemy.
Except himself.
Just as that thought settled—
Outside the Ether crystal…