Wox remained curled inside the tree. His chest rose and fell with uneven breaths as he clutched the silver bracelet, the last thing his sister had given him.
Then the bracelet began to glow.
At first the light was faint, like a small spark hidden within the silver. But within seconds it grew brighter, spreading across his trembling hands and illuminating the dark space around him.
Before Wox could understand what was happening, he was pulled into a vision.
—‘Well then, girl. Goodbye. Though I’m surprised you’re still breathing. But I doubt you’ll survive the hour…’
Wox’s heart stopped as he saw the vampire standing and his sister lying in the snow, blood spreading beneath her. Then her voice broke through the silence.
‘Wox… from now on… live as you want. But always help the weak… and those who need you. No matter what you do, I’ll always be with you. And please… forgive me. I made a false promise… even knowing I wouldn’t return.
Wox… goodbye now… I don’t have much time left… take care of yourself… and I love you… my little brother.’
Her last thoughts scattered like rain, dissolving into fading memories. Her lips curved. A bitter smile appeared on her face.
The wind whispered through the trees, but she could not hear it anymore.
The vision showed Wox everything. The suffering his sister endured, and the final words she left for him.
As soon as the vision faded, Wox pushed through the branches, scattered the snow, and ran, before his mind could even process what he had seen.
His feet pounded against the snow as he rushed through the forest toward the place he had seen in the vision. His breath came in desperate gasps, and the tears in his eyes blurred the world around him so badly that he could barely see where he was going.
But Wox did not stop. He ran as if something inside him had been torn apart and he could only move forward.
When he finally reached the place, his heart sank. His sister’s body lay motionless on the snow, her clothes stained dark with blood.
“Sis…”
The word escaped his lips as little more than a broken whisper. He rushed toward her and dropped to his knees beside her. Then he carefully lifted her head and rested it gently in his lap.
“Sis… I’m here, sis… please open your eyes… please.”
His hands trembled as he brushed strands of hair away from her face.
“Sis… say something.”
“... Sis?”
A loud cry tore from his chest. His whole body shook as he buried his face against her shoulder. His breathing grew uneven, and his chest felt painfully tight, as though something inside him were burning.
“You promised… you said you would come back. Please… open your eyes.”
He collapsed against her, sobbing so hard he could not breathe, his tears soaking into her cold clothes.
“Sis… please… don’t leave me.”
He kept calling her, but she did not respond. Her body remained still and cold in his arms. His voice trembled as tears fell onto her lifeless face.
“Sis… sis... sis…”
He screamed until his throat burned, until his voice gave out, until the forest swallowed the sound and returned nothing but silence.
***
At that moment, a low growl echoed from somewhere behind Wox.
The sound was deep and threatening.
Wox slowly turned his head.
A large black wolf emerged from the trees. Its thick fur bristled as it stared at him with wild, hungry yellow eyes. Drawn by the strong scent of blood in the air, the beast began to move toward Wox, its claws pressing into the snow with each step.
But Wox did not even flinch. The fear that once lived inside him was buried beneath something far heavier. Whatever terror a wolf could bring, pain, death, none of it compared to the emptiness of holding his sister’s body and hearing nothing back.
The only person who mattered was gone. What was there left to be afraid of? He was not afraid of dying anymore. He had nothing left to lose.
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