but the door creaked open before he could.

He stepped inside slowly. The air was heavy.

> "I'm sorry for the delay," he said softly. "But I'm here now.

Child… where are you?"

A faint voice echoed from the far end of the massive estate—

from a living room nearly 70 meters deep.

He followed it.

> "I came unarmed.

I'm only here to talk…

Mitra."

He stepped in and froze.

At the other end of the room, beneath the pale moonlight,

stood a girl with blazing golden flames coursing through her veins.

They wrapped her body like a curse—

and across her face, a demonic mask glowed.

She stood, eyes fixed on the moon.

Her voice, when it came, was cracked and heavy.

> "Minutes… hours… days… years.

Do you know how long I waited for you, Father?"

She turned slightly, pain in her voice.

> "And for what?

So you could run again?

Our lives were already agony. What's a little more?"

Her tone hardened.

> "Liar."

Nujah narrowed his eyes.

> "Watch your mouth, child.

You may not take me seriously,

but you'll show respect to what others carry in silence."

Mitra didn't let him finish.

> "You died ten years ago."

She drew her blade—

and in a flash, lunged straight for the core in his chest.

But Nujah was faster.

With his right hand, he caught her blade mid-air—

his left grabbing her throat.

> With a single motion, he threw her across the room.

Before she could rise, he charged—fist after fist aimed at her mask.

"WAKE UP!"

One blow.

Two.

Five.

Ten.

Twenty.

Thirty.

Forty...

Nearly a hundred—each one heavier than the last.

Still… nothing.

Then, with a growl, Mitra activated gravity magic.

In a sudden burst, Nujah was launched back—

slamming into the ground, unable to resist the crushing force.

Panting, trembling, he forced words out:

> "Please… stop this before you do something irreversible.

This darkness… it's using you. Controlling you—"

Before he could finish, a blow cracked his skull.

He tried to cry out—but the sound died in his throat.

Another strike followed, this one aimed for his core.

Just then—

the others arrived.

Dozens of Shinrei rushed in, screaming in panic.

They clung to Mitra's arms, legs, pleading.

Maria dashed toward Nujah, trying to heal him—pulling him away.

> "We can't leave her like this," Nujah groaned.

"She's not just a threat to us—

She's a danger to Mother… to Shinrei itself."

But Maria was shaking.

> "Zero always takes the biggest blow…

And neither of us is zero today.

We have to go. Now!"

Nujah's voice turned cold.

> "We can't let her go."

He grabbed Maria's wrist.

> "Take a shard of my soul. From the core."

She paled.

> "What the hell are you saying?!"

> "Take a sliver. Just a piece—pull it out.

Use it with your illusion spell.

If you don't, we'll all die here. You. Me. Our brothers."

Maria's hands trembled.

But she obeyed.

Reaching into his core, she yanked out a tiny fragment of his soul.

Nujah staggered—

but stood tall again.

> "You're no ordinary trickster, Maria.

You're our mother's.

When I say now—

you'll get everyone out of here with that spell."

Maria nodded shakily, touching her temple.

A temporary enslavement glyph flared across her skin.

She wouldn't be able to refuse.

---

At the same time, in the heart of the room—

Herinhard, Vercurius, Ren, Mabaki, and Muzan surrounded Mitra.

Their voices clashed in chaos and desperation:

> "Mitra, this isn't you—!"

"The mask is consuming you!"

"He's not your enemy!"

"You've waited too long to throw it away now!"

"Please… come back."

---

And then—

"NOW, MARIA!"

Nujah's voice shattered the room.

The spell exploded like a burst of wind—

Nujah was still struggling to stand.

The core had cracked; his blood dripped to the ground.

Mitra's eyes no longer belonged to anyone he once knew.

With each blow, Nujah grew more certain — he couldn't win this fight.

But worse still: if he kept going, not just Mitra, but Mother and the entire Shiora realm would be destroyed.

He withdrew his power, dropped to his knees… and stabbed his sword into the earth.

> "Alright… You win, Mitra."

He steadied his breath, raised his hands, and spoke one final time:

---

> "If this battle is what brings you peace… strike."

"If I'm the root of all this pain, then erase me from this world."

"But before you do, know this: I never abandoned you."

"You were my most beautiful mistake — and still my most precious truth."

"You can destroy me, but you can't erase how I loved you."

"I didn't betray you. I simply… couldn't catch up."

"So now… whatever you do with that anger in your hands — it's your choice."

---

Mitra trembled.

The mask gripped her face like a vice.

She looked like she wanted to speak — but no sound came out.

> "You're lying!" Mitra screamed.

"I was left alone — you vanished, and then everyone else turned their backs!"

"You weren't the only one who died that day!"

"Everything inside me burned too, father!"

"In that endless darkness, this mask was all I had left…"

"Because you were the only one in this universe who ever truly saw me."

Nujah noticed Mitra's fingers trembling ever so slightly.

That tiny, involuntary twitch… it meant her old self was still in there.

> "I'm coming, my daughter," Nujah whispered inside.

"Everything will be better."

He lunged forward in an instant.

He focused all his remaining strength into one single point —

the center of the eye on Mitra's mask.

The strike landed — the eye cracked. The mask tried to regenerate, but…

Mitra roared in instinct.

Her body moved faster than thought — faster than memory.

Her blade surged with dark light —

> And it struck.

The sword pierced directly into Nujah's core — the very essence of his immortal being.

The impact wasn't just physical. It was soul-deep.

Reality bent for a heartbeat.

Nujah staggered… but didn't fall.

He smiled through the pain — bleeding, breaking.

Then, gripping the mask with both hands, he shouted:

> "LOOK AT ME, MITRA!"

She tried to turn her face away.

> "LOOK AT ME! FORGET EVERYTHING ELSE — JUST SEE ME!"

"I'M HERE!"

"I'M HERE! YOU'RE NO ONE'S SLAVE!"

"YOU GET TO CHOOSE YOUR OWN LIFE!"

"I l… lo…"

Before he could finish his last sentence…

Nujah's body shattered into golden light, scattering like dust.

As if a memory, a prayer, a final hope… drifted into the sky.

---

Mitra stood frozen.

His light still danced in the air — around her fingers, in her breath.

Then, her knees gave out.

With shaking hands, she reached for the mask… and ripped it from her face.

The pain was unbearable — like her skin tearing from her soul — but she didn't stop.

With her teeth, she tore the last piece away.

And when it was gone…

She bowed her head…

…and cried with a voice that echoed across the entire universe.