The X-Slayer High Fortress stood carved into the side of Mount Rivel, far above the clouds. A tower of cold steel, red light, and secrets no prayer could reach.
Inside its highest level, the Elite Room hummed with divine energy, casting blue rays across the metal floors. The insignia of Team 7 glowed on the wall.
And at the center…
Sarah knelt in silence.
Her hands were folded. Her face was calm. But her eyes—half-closed and distant—were locked on a holographic map floating before her.
The map showed the ruins.
The pale serpent.
And him.
Abraham.
She watched it all.
"Direct hit confirmed," said a masked officer beside her. "The subject has passed Trial 2. No external assistance detected."
Sarah didn't speak.
Because she *had* helped.
No one saw it.
But when the Pale Serpent's final attack struck, a whisper of light—disguised as ambient energy—had deflected the blow just slightly.
Just enough for Abraham to survive.
She had watched him stand again. Fight again. Bleed again.
And still walk forward.
He still remembered her.
"Commander Sarah," said the officer. "Shall we move to Phase 3?"
Sarah slowly stood.
She was no longer dressed in simple village clothes. She wore the long black-and-gold coat of an X-Slayer captain. Her sword was smaller, thinner—more elegant than brutal. But in her presence, the entire room seemed to tense.
She had become a myth inside the Organization.
Codename: **Halo Seven**.
Rank: **Top-Tier Vessel**.
Power: **Unmeasurable**.
And yet, no one knew her real heart.
She looked at the map of Abraham's location and whispered under her breath:
"I told you I'd come back."
Then she turned to the officer.
"Send him to Trial 3."
"Understood. Shall we increase difficulty?"
"No."
She narrowed her eyes.
"Send a trial team. But keep them blind. He needs to believe he's alone."
The officer hesitated. "Are you sure he's ready?"
Sarah stared at the map for a long time.
Then said only one word.
"He will be."
---
Far below, Abraham stood in the misty woods beyond the ruins. He could still feel the pain of the last battle, but now a strange warmth kept rising in his chest. Every time he thought he should've died… something always stopped it.
A flash of wind.
A shadow blocking the hit.
A sudden collapse of the enemy.
It didn't make sense.
But he felt it.
Like someone was watching him.
Helping him.
He looked to the sky.
"Sarah… are you…?"
He shook the thought away and stepped deeper into the forest.
He had a long road ahead.
He had no idea she was walking it… just ten steps ahead of him.
---
End of Chapter 4