Valerian looked at Evelyn, his eyes filled with shock, his heart on the verge of collapse. She was sitting on the ground, her eyes closed, tears streaming like rivers, but she showed no expression other than pain. She was gently touching the place where her eyes used to be with a trembling hand, as if trying to stop the bleeding that had begun to cover her face.
A moment of silence swept across the arena. The ground was chaotic, flames blazing in every corner, and the battle still at its peak, but everything disappeared for Valerian. He could see only Evelyn, and he could hear only his heartbeat, heavy and fast.
"Evelyn…" he whispered, kneeling beside her, placing his hand on her forehead, but she did not respond.
Suddenly, his fingers felt something strange… his hand was glowing rapidly, and a voice was whispering in his ear. It sounded like the system… the voice he had always heard, but now it was screaming deep within his mind.
