From Human to Skeleton: Revived with Infinite System Crystals

Before he could respond, the faint crackle of static broke the silence. Ty tensed, his eyes darting to the far side of the room as a monitor flickered to life. The screen was grainy, distorted, but the image it displayed was unmistakable.

The King.

Ty's stomach dropped. The King stood in a massive open space, illuminated by torches lining the stone walls. Above him, chains stretched taut from the ceiling, holding a battered figure suspended in the air. Rui.

Ty's breath caught in his throat. Rui hung there, 40 feet off the ground, his arms shackled with black sea stone cuffs, his head slumped forward. Blood stained his clothes, dripping steadily onto the stone floor beneath him.

"What the hell…" Ty whispered.

The King stepped forward into the frame, his expression calm, but his eyes glinted with cold satisfaction. His voice carried through the monitor, unnervingly smooth.

"To those who defy the kingdom," the King began, "this is what awaits you."

Ty clenched his fists as he watched the King gesture to Rui, his body swaying slightly with every shift of the chains.

"The Herian Kingdom has stood the test of time," the King continued, his voice echoing in the chamber. "We have faced betrayal from the Bi-Zao Kingdom, the Tiran Clans, and the traitors of the Sunlit Vale. We crushed them all. And now, we face this… rebellion."

He turned, facing the monitor fully.

"You know who you are," the King said, his eyes narrowing. "And you know what you have done. You took from me. You defied me. But what you fail to understand is that no one escapes the Herian Kingdom's justice."

Ty's heart pounded in his chest as the King's gaze seemed to pierce through the screen, as though he could see him directly.

"As for the demon boy…" The King's lips curled into a cruel smile. "You are an anomaly. Even though you attacked me, I do not believe you are fully with the rebels. Vishu the Demon… I can feel its presence within you. Perhaps it does not control you entirely, but it is there."

Ty's hands began to shake.

"We will find you, demon boy," the King said, his voice dropping to a dangerous calm. "And when we do, you will be brought forth, and you will answer for your crimes. But for now…"
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The King gestured to Rui. "This rebellion is on hold. Three days from now, the Arena of Life will continue, and the world will watch as the final challengers face their fate. Until then, I will prepare."

The screen flickered, the signal distorting and cutting off, leaving the room silent once again.

Ty let out a shaky breath, his mind racing. JJ stood nearby, her expression hard to read, but her hands were shaking at her sides.

"You killed Lt. Daemon," he said, his voice low, but the accusation hung in the air like a blade ready to drop. "That was you. Your people. Osalf…" He spat the name with barely concealed venom, his fists clenched tight at his sides.

Osalf, standing by the door, glanced over at Ty but didn't deny it. His expression remained as steady as stone.

JJ's head whipped toward him, her brows knitting together. "Is that true?" she asked, her voice quieter but laced with an edge Ty hadn't heard before.

Osalf met her gaze without flinching. "It was necessary."

The room went silent. The word necessary lingered, its weight suffocating.

"Necessary?" JJ repeated, her voice sharp now. She took a step toward him, her hands curling into fists. "Daemon was a good man. He didn't deserve that."

Osalf didn't move, but his calm started to fracture. "He was loyal to the kingdom—to them. He stood in the way of everything we're trying to accomplish. I did what needed to be done."

JJ's glare could have burned through steel. "Don't justify it to me. I don't want to hear it."

"You knew what this would take," Osalf said quietly. "You agreed to it."

"I didn't agree to that." JJ's voice wavered just slightly, her anger raw and unfiltered. "What we're doing… I'm making a sacrifice. I know that. Destroying this world to rebuild it—that's a choice I made. But Daemon? I will deal with you for that when this madness is over."

Her words hung heavy in the air, cutting like knives. Even Osalf's stoic expression flickered, his lips pressing into a thin line. For once, he didn't have a retort.

Ty watched the exchange in stunned silence. He didn't know why it surprised him—JJ had always been the one person who seemed to hold onto something real, even here, even now. But seeing her like this, angry and conflicted, stirred something unfamiliar in his chest.

"All of you are insane," Ty muttered, breaking the silence. He pushed away from the wall, pacing the cracked tiles like a caged animal. "You talk about sacrifices, about burning the world to the ground, like it's some kind of noble act. Meanwhile, I'm stuck here, wasting time with a bunch of lunatics while I'm supposed to be figuring out how to get back to Earth."

JJ's attention snapped back to him. "Ty…"

"No," he cut her off, his voice sharper than he meant it to be. "Don't. I don't want to hear your excuses, or Osalf's. All of this… it has nothing to do with me. I don't care about your kingdoms, your prophecies, or your damned wars. I just want to go home."

JJ stared at him, her lips pressing together. She didn't speak for a long moment, letting him vent, letting him pace. When she finally did, her voice was calm again, though it carried a sadness that made Ty pause.

"You still think you can go back, don't you?" she said softly.

Ty froze mid-step, turning to glare at her. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Going home isn't that simple," JJ said. "Not anymore. Not after everything that's happened."

"Don't act like you know what I want," Ty snapped, his voice rising. "You don't know anything about me."

JJ stood up then, crossing the room until she was just a few feet from him. Her gaze softened as she studied his face—the exhaustion, the frustration, the anger bubbling under the surface. "I know you better than you think," she said quietly.

Ty scoffed, shaking his head. "Yeah? Then tell me this: where's Blue?"

JJ blinked, her expression shifting just slightly. Ty caught it.

"Blue," he repeated, his voice harder now. "Where the hell is she? I haven't seen her since all this started."

JJ sighed and, to Ty's confusion, reached into the sleeve of her long black coat. When her hand reemerged, a small, familiar form dangled from her fingers—Blue, the fairy, her wings shimmering faintly even as her tiny body hung limp and unmoving.

Ty's eyes widened, and he surged forward. "What did you—"

"She's fine," JJ interrupted quickly, holding Blue up so Ty could see her breathing. The fairy stirred slightly, letting out a faint hum before curling deeper into sleep. "She's exhausted, but she's fine. I've been keeping her safe."

Ty grabbed Blue gently, cradling her in his hands. The anger in his chest simmered down just a little as he watched her tiny chest rise and fall. "How long have you been working with these people?" he demanded, his voice quieter but no less sharp.

JJ hesitated, her arms crossing again as she looked away. "Not long. They reached out to me recently… asking for help."

"And you agreed?" Ty said bitterly, looking up from Blue. "Why? What took you so long to decide?"

JJ's jaw tightened, and she met his gaze again. "Because I don't trust them either."

Ty blinked. He hadn't expected that.

"I'm here because I'm trying to fix this," JJ continued. "But that doesn't mean I trust Rui, or Osalf, or the others. I don't like what they've done. I don't like what they're doing. But sometimes…" Her voice trailed off, and she glanced toward the doorway where Osalf had left. "Sometimes you have to make choices you don't like. For the greater good."

"The greater good," Ty echoed, bitterness creeping into his voice again. "That's your excuse?"

"It's not an excuse," JJ replied firmly. "It's the truth. You've seen what the King can do. You've seen what he is. This world is rotting, Ty. People are suffering every day under his rule, and it's only getting worse. Rui's plan… it might be the only way to change that."

Ty stared at her, his grip tightening around Blue. He wanted to argue, to tell her she was wrong, that none of this was his problem. But the image of Rui standing before the King flashed in his mind again. The sacrifice. The trust.