Multiple cracks appeared on the Ice Blizzard barrier under the shockwave, from the explosion of the Star meteorite. But zara wasn't making any move to repair it.

It is because, she had just watched one of her friends get swallowed up by the explosion, and there was no way he could survive that.

Zara just stood there: Dazed. Her beautiful eyes widened to their limits but there was no way she could see anything inside the explosion.

Nigo who was lying on the floor crawled forward despite his grievous injuries. A trail of his own blood ass left on the floor as he dragged his body on the ground.

His vision; obstructed by his own blood but he didn't mind it. He kept moving until he had reached the border of the barrier.

The explosion finally stopped but dust filled his view. He couldn't see anything beyond the dust.

"!!!" Nigo's and zara's eyes trembled because they could sense his energy. Though it was weak, they could still sense it, which means he was still alive. He is alive!

Dust filled the air around Ejiro. He looked around himself, but he couldn't see anything due to the dust obstructing his view. He tried to stand up but...................

All he received was pain from where his legs used to be. He tried using his two arms to support himself up but noticed one of his arm was gone.

It was then it dawned on him that; he had lost half of his body and an arm.

And his remaining parts were growing weaker and weaker by the passing second.

Ejiro looked around, and saw a wisp of light blue light glowing at the hem of what remained of his shirt. He narrowed his weakened vision and it was then, he noticed it was the Flame from the Star meteorite. It was caught on his shirt burning.

He circulated the last ounce of user energy he had left, and used the arm he had left to seal the flames in user energy.

He held it in his hand and then looked at it. He smiled because, he had found a parting gift for his best friend. Or rather, his brother.

The dust cleared up. Nigo and zara noticed the figure of a mutilated human, three metres away from the barrier

Bang!

The barrier collapsed because it couldn't withstand the cracks it had endured, due to the explosion earlier.

The moment nigo saw the figure, he used every shred of willpower he had to stand up. With his injuries, he staggered to meet the figure.

When Nigo got there and saw the body of his friend missing an arm and his lower half.

"Zara!!" He shouted with a hoarse voice "Come, let's rush him to the infirmary!"

Zara walked forward. But when she saw the figure before her, her head went blank for an instant because she could barely recognise him. And his aura was weakening at a rapid pace. She crouched beside him, and tried using her ice user energy to seal the injuries and blood, which was flowing out of his body.

Pah!

Ejiro used his arm to weakly hit her hand away " D.........Don't waste your......... energy........on me" he said with a weak voice.

Nigo carried Ejiro's head on his chest like a baby and said "w.....why did you do this? why? why?" Nigo couldn't continue as tears choked the words he was about to speak.

Ejiro looked at him and smiled his last smile of this life, and said " Because.......... you are my brother"

He opened his hand, and a ball of user energy appeared in sight. A small blue glowing light radiating from it. Zara and nigo looked at it but didn't try to take it

"Take.....it"

Ejiro said, still with the smile on his face as he spoke his final words

"Farewell......... Dear friends"

His heart stopped beating. His aura disappeared and his eyes closed. But his smile remained.

He died with a satisfied smile on his face.

"!!!!" Nigo noticed his disappearing aura and turned to zara screaming

"Quick! save him! "

Zara just stayed there, her eyes open but her soul had departed. As she stared at the corpse of her friend, tears poured out from her eyes.

BOOM!!

Just as ejiro died the other azure meteorite, which separated itself from the star meteorite, landed some kilometres away.

Zara was jolted back to reality by the sound. It was then, she noticed nigo urging her to do something.

"....." she looked at him but she couldn't say anything. She only shook her head in grief and pain.

"Ah!.........."

Nigo shouted at the top of his voice. He hugged Ejiro's mutilated body like his life depended on it.

Hot tears flowed from his eyes as he continued shouting at the top of his voice. To him, he had not lost a friend but a brother.

At this moment, the four experts all arrived one after the other. They were shocked by the sight before them. They had seen so many deaths in their life, but this one was different.

They did not only fail in their mission to protect nigo, he had sustained serious injuries and even worse; his friend had died.

"We are deeply sorry for the loss" victor said through gritted teath as he walked forward to meet nigo.

"Don't come closer!" Nigo commanded with red eyes.

He continued hugging ejiro with all his might as tears flowed "sob....... sob".............

{"Don't worry,One day I'll create a way to help you awaken your Liaison core!"}

The memories began to replay in nigo's head

{"I'll never stand someone bullying my friends"}

{"All we have to do, is get those Star spirit flames to awaken your core"}...........

"You..sob....finally managed to get the flames, But at what cost?" (Author: Everything...) asked himself with a sorrowful voice. His body still oozing out blood.

Nigo continued to cry from afternoon till evening, when the sun had started departing from the sky.

No one tried to stop him, he had cried and wailed with all his might that he barely had the strength to cry anymore. He just held Ejiro's blood stained, and mutilated body and continued staring at a place.

Whoosh!!

A woman suddenly descended before everyone. The moment the four experts saw her, they all got n their knees, inspite of their injuries and said "Welcome master chi"

Granny chi gave them a glance before saying "rise!"

Her voice was cool and it eased the tension in their hearts.

Victor came forward and said "we apologise for our incompetence. Please, punish us in what ever way you please"

Granny chi looked at him and said "Treat your injuries first. From the looks of it; you lot have all been through hell. It's such a shame that, for some reason, I couldn't sense what was going on in the school"

"!!!" The four experts were shocked by what they had just heard. It is because with granny chi's level of evolution (Increase in User strength), she could easily sense the mishaps all around the continent, but she just said she didn't. Now they knew why no one had come to help them, despite their ordeal.

"Today is truly strange indeed" granny chi said as she looked towards nigo.

She noticed zara's chaotic aura beside him, but couldn't sense any aura from the person nigo held in his arms.

"Oh no" she said and rushed to meet the kids.

The four experts followed behind her "we tried to help him heal his wounds but he turned us down" victor said with a worried look

"It's okay" granny chi responded.

She stood before the kids but they didn't turn to look at her. They were too engrossed in their sorrow and grief, that they couldn't notice anything.

At a glance, zara's glittering white eyes had turned blood red. She wasn't crying anymore, but one could still see the trail of dried tears, from her eyes to her chin.

Granny chi heaved a heavy sigh and turned to look at nigo. Her elderly eyes shrank because, he was covered in his own congealed blood, hugging a mutilated corpse.

At a closer look, she noticed the corpse was that of a familiar person. Her heart trembled violently because she had met ejiro, many times over the years when he came visiting, and she even accompanied nigo to pay him visits multiple times as well. He was so close that he had stayed over, at their house with nigo for several days. And when he finally left, nigo wouldn't stop talking about him.

She knew that their closeness was so deep, that one could deign to call them brothers.

She breathed in to calm her turbulent heart. She blamed herself for not being able to come here on time, but in reality, it wasn't truly her fault.

During the disaster, she knew nigo was in school. But since she couldn't sense any danger around him, she went to other parts of the continent, to assist in reducing the calamity.

"Nigo" she called in a calm voice.

Nigo turned to look at her with eyes red as blood, and said "I'm a monster, right"

"....."granny chi was shocked because, she didn't know what he meant

"If only I had not asked them to remain with me.....sob....perhaps" Nigo said and began to cry again.

"It's not your fault" granny chi said. She didn't how to comfort him.

"It's my fault. Because of me, my friend, no, my brother is dead" Nigo said with a sorrowful tone.

"Nigo listen to me, we need to return his body to his father. I'm sure he must have heard the news of Ejiro's death. And by now he's already worried and grieving" she paused before continuing "After that, we can talk about whose fault it is"

Nigo looked at her and then turned to zara. He shook her while saying "it's time to return his body to his father"

Fresh tears flowed from zara's eyes. She had been quiet all this while, and she only opened her mouth to talk right now, but no words came out.

She stretched her hand towards the Star purifying flame and withdrew it from Ejiro's hand before putting it away, in a box.

The moment it appeared, granny chi's eyes trembled slightly.

She gave the box to nigo and finally spoke for the first time since Ejiro's death " He wanted you to have this, so I can't take it"

"No! That is what took him away from me! I want nothing to do with it!"

"Let's honour his last wish" zara said in a weak voice. She didn't have the strength to argue.

Nigo thought for a while before nodding his head and finally took the box from her. He turned to granny chi.

Granny chi saw the depressing looks on their faces. Her heart clenched as she thought to herself: Why must this kids experience this at such a young age?

Nigo and zara carried what remained of their friend as they got up to their feet.

Nigo staggered and almost fell with Ejiro's body, it is because, he had lost so much blood and strength. Granny chi was quick enough to catch him with user energy.

Nigo's legs continued to tremble as he tried to walk once more but he almost fell again. His wounds were very fatal and he was a cripple, so one could imagine the pain he was going through.

But he didn't care!

"Allow me to carry him for you, we are heading there together" granny chi said and lifted Ejiro's body from the two kids. She sealed his cold body with user energy.

She carried zara and nigo and they all flew away, blasting off into the horizon.

They were heading to meet Ejiro's father.