Chapter 81: Chapter 81: System's Muscles

"I've got you," Elio said.

With a fluid movement from the swift, helium propelled them upward, the wind roaring around them. Zara clung to him, her mind struggling to process what was happening.

They landed softly on the parapet, Elio still holding her in his arms. For a moment, the world seemed to stop. Only they existed, their gazes intertwined, their hearts beating in unison.

"Elio," Zara whispered, her voice breaking. "You're alive."

He smiled, a smile that contained all the relief and joy in the world. "I couldn't just die, could I?"

Tears began to fall freely down Zara's cheeks. Without thinking, she relaxed forward, resting her face in Elio's chest.

He hugged her tightly, his own eyes moistening. "It's okay," he murmured, gently stroking her hair. "I'm here. I'm home."

Around them, their friends watched in amazement and joy, unable to believe what they were seeing. The impossible had happened... Elio had returned, defying death itself, and in that moment, hope blossomed anew in their hearts.

♢♢♢♢

A bit more than an hour before...

Fathoran turned to his sons, his penetrating gaze evaluating them. "I see doubt in your eyes, Mordred," he said, his voice laden with disappointment.

He approached Mordred, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Do you think I enjoy this? Do you think I haven't spent countless nights wrestling with the necessity of it?" He shook his head, a flash of something, regret? Sadness? passing over his face. "But it must be done.

For the greater good."

Fathoran's eyes bored into him, cold and implacable. "This is survival, my son. The survival of our family, our city. Of humanity itself."

"Father," Estin began, his voice trembling slightly, "you know we're loyal. But the potion..."

"The potion?" Fathoran arched an eyebrow. "Is that what concerns you? Your own mortality in the face of our city's fate?"

He approached his sons, his presence overwhelming. "I've given you the potion twice, extending your lives beyond what any other citizen could dream of. And yet you ask for more?"

"Elio!" exclaimed Brok, his voice booming. "You're alive! You're really alive!"

"And flying!" added Kriz, disbelief and admiration in his tone. "How in the world did you do that?"

Elio laughed, the sound full of joy and relief. "It's a long story, friends. A very long story..."

Zara, still in Elio's arms, blinked as if coming out of a trance. Suddenly, the reality of what she had just done hit her. An intense blush spread across her cheeks, and she stepped away from Elio, stumbling slightly.

"I... I don't know what came over me," she stammered, avoiding everyone's gaze, especially Elio's. "It was as if..."

Kriz, rubbing his jaw where Zara had hit him, couldn't resist the temptation. "Oh, I think you do know. Love made you crazy, huh? Though next time you want to declare yourself, a poem would be less painful. For me, at least."

Zara shot him a murderous look, but her face reddened even more.

Elio, for his part, wasn't much better. Scratching his nape nervously, he tried to change the subject. "Well, uh... Did anyone else notice how quiet the monster sea is now?"

Brok let out a guffaw. "Seriously, Elio? You fall into the monster sea, survive somehow miraculously, and you want to talk about the scenery?"

"Hey," Elio shrugged, a shy smile on his face, "after what I've been through, I appreciate the simple things."

He sat on the edge of the wall, his fingers caressing the stone reverently. "You have no idea how good it feels to be up here again."

"Speaking of appreciating things," Brok approached, his eyes scanning Elio up and down, "looks like the System has treated you well. Have you been lifting Locus or what? Also tell us about those new clothes."

Elio looked at his own body. It was true, his once slender figure now showed more defined muscles. His new Summoner Robe... "Leveling up has its consequences I guess..."

Ren, always the most observant, noticed something different about Elio. "You've changed," he said simply.

Elio looked at him, a mix of emotions crossing his face. "It's... a long story."

"Well," said Brok, sitting on the ground, "it's not like we had other plans for tonight. Start talking, small muscle man."

Elio laughed, the nickname breaking some of the tension, and the others imitated him, forming a circle.

"Well," he began, "it all started when I beat the fourth level and came out into a mountain of cores..."