In the ruins of the Kingdom of Malakarsh, where silence reigned except for the sound of the wind playing with the ash, Erold suddenly woke from his troubled slumber. He shouted with a voice full of panic and longing: "Karl!"
Gilgamesh looked at him coldly while sitting beside the unconscious Luce. He spoke in a calm tone that brought Erold back to reality: "There is no one named Karl here." He gestured toward Luce and added: "But our sleeping friend... he's starting to get better. His breathing is becoming more regular."
Erold caught his breath and looked at Gilgamesh with gratitude, a slight smile forming on his face. Gilgamesh wondered and asked: "What is it? Why are you smiling?"
Erold replied quietly: "I was just remembering... do you remember how our first meeting was?"
Gilgamesh scratched the back of his head with feigned embarrassment. "Ah... she told me I wasn't good at making a first impression."
Erold laughed softly, then said in a more serious and warm tone: "You were talking about your wife... right?"
Gilgamesh smiled a sad but love-filled smile, whispering: "Yes... Elia."
Erold asked with sincere curiosity: "Did you really love her as much as the legends say about you?"
Gilgamesh gave a lopsided smile, a mix of irony and nostalgia. He muttered under his breath: "Legends, huh..." He closed his eyes for a moment, diving into a sea of memories—her face, her voice, and the pain that hadn't left him since her departure. He opened them slowly, the sarcasm replaced by a clear, honest gaze: "Much more than they said... and more than words can describe."
Gilgamesh paused, then fixed Erold with a piercing look. "And what about you, my friend? I’ve heard some 'talk' about you as well."
Erold grew flustered. "What talk?"
Gilgamesh replied with cunning: "About Astra... the Lady Of Stars ."
Erold scratched his head nervously, trying to avoid Gilgamesh's eyes. "No... that won't work, Gilgamesh. It’s not what you think."
Gilgamesh stood up suddenly, saying sharply: "There is no such thing as 'it won't work' You are playing words."
Erold tried to stand and escape the heavy conversation, but Gilgamesh grabbed his shoulder firmly, anchoring him in place. He spoke with absolute seriousness: "Believe in your love for her if you truly love her. Do not run away from your heart."
Erold looked at Gilgamesh, and in that moment, Gilgamesh saw something all too familiar in Erold’s eyes... a dead look. The look of someone who has said goodbye to life before even leaving it. Gilgamesh was shocked and whispered in daze: "I know those looks well... it's... Speak, Erold. What are you hiding?"
Erold smiled a tender but broken smile. "Gilgamesh... I don't think you would understand."
Gilgamesh sat directly in front of him. "I am ready to understand you. Speak."
Erold sighed deeply, as if casting a heavy burden from his shoulders. "My life... it will end soon. I cannot form a relationship with anyone, because I am leaving."
Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes. "What are you thinking, Erold?"
Erold replied with painful honesty: "To separate the worlds and end this conflict... I must sacrifice myself. That is the price. So, don't you think forming a relationship and loving someone would be a grave injustice to the one I loved? To make them attached to me and then leave?"
Gilgamesh smiled sadly, with an admiration tinged with sorrow: "How kind-hearted you are, Erold... you want to sacrifice yourself for this miserable world?"
Erold smiled and said simply: "I have no other goal."
Gilgamesh approached him, his voice calm and deep: "And what about Jasmin? Have you forgotten her? And Astra? Have you thought of their pain?"
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Erold hesitated and went silent. Gilgamesh continued with a tone carrying years of experience in pain: "I, Argus, and Luce... we are your friends, Erold. You might see me as just a madman searching for death, but... when it comes to those I care about, I fear losing them more than anything. I’ve tasted the bitterness of loss with Elia... and I don't want to bear any new pain, nor do I want those who love you to taste what I have. Sacrifice isn't always the noblest solution... sometimes, staying and struggling is the hardest part."
Erold whispered in a low voice, carrying the tone of a final goodbye: "Buddy... there is no other solution. I’ve made my decision, and there is no turning back."
Gilgamesh placed his heavy hand on Erold’s shoulder and smiled a broken smile. "This world still insists on snatching everyone from around me... leaving me alone to witness their departure."
Erold looked at Gilgamesh’s face, seeing the honesty and pain in his eyes. Then he turned slowly to see Luce lying on the ground, unconscious—and yet, a single tear fell from his closed eye, as if his soul were weeping for the helplessness of his body. Erold smiled tenderly and said: "I didn't know you all cared about me this much, friends."
Suddenly, Gilgamesh’s features froze. He raised his head and looked sharply toward the top of the burnt castle tower. "I will return to finish this conversation," he said curtly.
"Thank you... Gilgamesh," Erold said with a grateful face.
Gilgamesh jumped with immense force, shattering the ground beneath him, reaching the top of the tower in a single bound. He stood there, the wind whipping through his hair, and shouted: "Show yourself!"
From the void, the darkness condensed to manifest the entity "Death," with its cold smile and breath-stifling aura. Death spoke quietly: "I wanted to send Astra to you... but I know that girl has a heart that is far too kind, and she wouldn't tell you what I want to say."
Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes. "So... what do you want?"
Death took a step forward, speaking with a tone of irresistible temptation: "Remember my gift?... It's working now. You can finally die."
Gilgamesh’s eyes widened in shock, his heart momentarily stopping at the weight of the word: "What?!"
Death laughed softly. "No... no... don't get too excited, boy. You won't die now. My gift is that you will age... and die a natural death, like any ordinary human. You won't get your death on a silver platter."
Gilgamesh breathed a sigh of relief, a deep smile of comfort appearing on his face. "Finally..."
But Death cut him off, raising a finger. "However..."
"However what?!" Gilgamesh shouted angrily. "Have you come to toy with me?!"
Death laughed and said calmly: "Calm down, boy... the condition is simple. To continue aging and facing mortality, you must not suffer a single wound. Any scratch, any drop of blood that spills from you in battle... and the essence of immortality will return instantly. You will lose your chance forever."
Gilgamesh was stunned. The condition meant he had to stop being a warrior. To stop fighting... to stop protecting his friends.
Death gestured toward the distant horizon. "You can leave now... the gate is there. You will return to the human world, live your life in peace until you die and meet Elia."
Gilgamesh asked in a shaky voice, his eyes turning downward to where his friend lay: "And what about Erold?"
Death began to fade into the air, his final words falling like a hammer: "Choose... either you meet Elia and rest in peace, or you stay with your friends and fight—and then you will remain immortal, alone, after they have all died. I ask nothing of you... the choice is yours, boy."
Death vanished, leaving Gilgamesh alone before the hardest choice of his long life.
Below, Erold felt a powerful presence appear and then suddenly vanish. He didn't care much; he approached Luce and sat beside him, wiping the dust from his face. "I will truly miss you all, my friend... please, take care of Jasmin."
He went silent for a moment, then spoke to himself, trying to reassure his mind: "I don't know... should I be reassured because she's with Ashura? He's a powerful person and will protect her... but I know his fate is death, or our fate is death. So, the thought reassures me that she won't be alone when we depart."
He looked at the sleeping Luce and asked with a sad smile: "Am I selfish, Luce?" He answered himself: "I think so, pal."
Deep within Erold’s body, Dante was lying back with a smile, his hands cradled behind his head as he floated in the void. He let out a short chuckle, but before he could speak, Arthur cut him off, 'Dante!' Dante looked over at him, and Arthur shook his head as if to say, 'This is not the time,' his face reflecting the profound agony Erold was enduring. Dante sighed, falling silent in understanding; he closed his eyes and went back to swaying gently in the emptiness.
Suddenly, Erold jerked. He felt a massive and familiar pressure approaching. "This feeling... it's Argus! Argus is near here!" Erold smiled with hope. "Luce... it's Argus."
But after a few moments, his expression changed to pure horror. He felt a desolate, heavy, and terrifying sensation overwhelming Argus's energy. Erold stood in shock and cried out: "This... is Ashura’s presence! Is Ashura here?"
His eyes widened as he realized the disaster: "Wait... are Argus and Ashura in the same place?!"
Erold jumped and shouted at the top of his lungs: "Gilgamesh!! Gilgamesh!"
But... no answer came. Silence was the only reply. He searched around, looked at the tower, but there was no trace of him. Gilgamesh had disappeared.
In a distant place, amidst a golden desert that stretched endlessly, Gilgamesh was walking with heavy steps, his back bowed as if he were carrying mountains of worries. His sad eyes looked toward the horizon, drowned in regret for what he had just done... he had chosen to leave. He chose to put an end to this eternal curse that had gnawed at his soul for years. He had finally chosen to die in peace, to close his eyes like an ordinary human and meet his beloved.