"What's wrong? Just a moment ago you were talking big about taking on the entire Sanctuary — how did you get scared so quickly?" C.C. said to Rulu in a mocking tone.

  "Don't be ridiculous, this has nothing to do with being scared." Rulu gritted his teeth and forced himself to stay calm. "If what you're saying is true, C.C., once the Emperor's pn is complete, the Sanctuary won't be bound by time or space — it would essentially vanish from this world entirely, ceasing to exist within it. How am I supposed to fight an enemy that doesn't exist?"

  "That's a fair point." C.C. smiled. "But you don't need to worry too much. The Emperor's pn isn't finished yet — and it can't be finished."

  "Why? What makes you so certain?"

  "Because I'm still here. As long as I'm here, his pn can never be completed."

  "What do you mean?" Rulu pondered this, then suddenly recalled something. "Right — the Emperor of the Sanctuary has been hunting you all along, trying to bring you back. You're that important to him... could it be that you're part of the pn too? As long as he can't capture you, he can't complete it?"

  "Hmph, now you understand. Now you see just how important I am." C.C. lifted her chin and puffed out her chest with great pride.

  "I see." Rulu felt slightly relieved. "Even so, I still don't have a chance of winning against him. The Emperor's knowledge and power are completely beyond anything I imagined. We're not even on the same level."

  "That's not necessarily true. You're not entirely without a chance."

  "What? Does C.C. have a way?"

  C.C. said, "The Emperor's power and knowledge don't come from within himself — they come from an outside source. The Emperor of the Sanctuary obtained them from a certain pce by a very chance encounter. If you were to go to that pce, you might be able to obtain the same power and knowledge, giving you the strength to stand against him."

  Rulu jolted. He grabbed C.C. by the shoulders and said excitedly, "Are you serious? Where did he obtain this power and knowledge? Can you tell me?"

  "Well... let's save that for ter. That pce isn't easy to reach — even if I told you now, it wouldn't do any good."

  "Fine. Either way, C.C., you're here with me now. As long as the Emperor hasn't captured you, he can't complete his pn for another day. I still have time." A smile spread across Rulu's face as he began to quietly y out his next move.

  "Come to think of it — weren't you unwilling to tell me any of this before, C.C.? What made you change your mind?"

  "You forced my hand." C.C. shot Rulu an irritated look. "Rulu, you — always bming me for everything, picking fights with people at the drop of a hat. If this keeps up, I'll either be exasperated to death or frightened to death by you. I simply can't take it."

  Rulu gave a dismissive "hmph" and said with lofty confidence, "That goes without saying. Since C.C. has chosen to stay by my side, you must stand united with me. Either we live together or we die together — there's no room for neutrality."

  "What an arrogant little brat. I wonder who you inherited that personality from," C.C. muttered under her breath.

  "Alright, we should head back. It's so te — it's not good to leave Nana home alone."

  "Oh, you still remember Nana? Do you have any idea how worried she's been about you since this morning? She kept asking me where you'd gone. When you didn't come back all day, she was even thinking about going out to look for you. Who knows if she's even still at home now."

  Hearing this, Rulu's expression shifted at once. He immediately quickened his pace toward the secret hideout in the woods. The moment he approached, he spotted a young woman with long flowing hair standing at the doorway, looking around anxiously. It was none other than Nana.

  "Nana, why aren't you staying inside? What are you doing out here?" Rulu strode quickly toward her.

  Seeing Rulu appear, Nana was first startled, then her face lit up with joy — until she noticed his tattered clothing and the rge bloodstain soaking through the fabric at his waist. Her expression of joy immediately turned to arm.

  "Rulu, where did you go? What... what happened to you?!" Nana said in a panic, reaching out to touch the wound at his waist.

  "Don't — don't touch there—" Rulu couldn't help but double over. The sharp pain from Nana's touch sent cold sweat streaming down his forehead.

  Nana quickly pulled her hand back and stared at Rulu in stunned silence. After a moment, Rulu straightened up. "Nana, it's not safe here. We should get inside quickly."

  He turned and walked toward the door, but Nana stood rooted to the spot. When Rulu gnced back at her face, he saw her eyes glistening with tears, her expression filled with grief.

  "What's wrong, Nana? What is it?!" Rulu, sensing he had done something wrong, looked flustered.

  Nana gred at him with resentment and raised her voice. "Rulu, what have you been out doing? You ran off first thing in the morning, came back this te, and look at the state of you."

  "I... I tripped and fell, that's how it happened. And I'm fine, really — look at me, I'm perfectly alright, aren't I?" Rulu took Nana's hand and spoke in a gentle, soothing voice.

  Nana shook his hand off. "Stop lying to me," she said bitterly. "You know nothing but lies. You must have gone to fight the Sanctuary's forces again. And the assassination attempt on Prince Suwen the other day — that was you, wasn't it?!"

  Caught out, Rulu froze, at a loss for words.

  Nana suddenly burst into tears. Through her sobs she said, "Before you do these things, do you ever think about how I feel? If you died, what would become of me? Do you have any idea how terrified I am? Rather than live every day in this constant fear, I'd rather be caught and killed by the Sanctuary. To you, I'm nothing but dead weight anyway. I'm only holding you back."

  With that, Nana turned and ran toward the edge of the woods. Rulu was injured and couldn't move too vigorously, so he called out hurriedly, "C.C.! Stop her, quick!"

  C.C. immediately gave chase and grabbed Nana by the hand. Nana seemed genuinely furious — she screamed "Let go of me!" and struggled fiercely, trying to break free. C.C. held on with all her strength, doing her best to restrain her.

  "C.C., you're ganging up on me for Rulu too?! You're both awful!" In her rage, Nana swung her fists at C.C. in attack. Caught off guard, C.C. took a punch squarely to her right eye, which immediately began to swell.

  "Do something to stop her, Rulu! You caused this mess — you have to take responsibility!" C.C. cried out in a panic while desperately fending off Nana's blows. The scene had descended into total chaos.