Chapter 169: Thank you

SWOOSH!

The blinding white light vanished in an instant, replaced by the freezing night air of the city.

The loud noises of late-night traffic, distant sirens hit my ears all at once. We materialized inside a narrow, trash-filled alleyway three blocks away from the lower district market.

Behind us, the giant gate let out a deep, echoing hiss before shrinking down into tiny blue sparks. Within three seconds, the portal dissolved completely, leaving behind nothing but a flat, stained brick wall.

The C-Rank gate was officially closed.

Viora leaned heavily against the cold brick wall beside me. She reached up with a blood-soaked hand and pulled off her brown paper bag mask, tossing it straight into a rusted trash can.

Her face was paper-white. Cold sweat covered her forehead, and dark purple circles hung low under her eyes from extreme blood loss. Her hand was still pressed tightly against the deep gash across her stomach.

"The Hunters Association will have patrol cars sweeping this sector within twenty minutes," Viora said, her voice raspy and dry. "They must have detected the spatial mana collapsing. If they catch us here with a dead mercenary, they will lock us in an interrogation room for days."

"We aren’t going to the Association," I said, my arms aching as I adjusted my grip on Adrian’s cold body. His head rested limply against my shoulder.

We didn’t take the main streets. We stuck to the dark, winding back alleys, stepping over puddles of oily water and broken glass. The lower district was quiet at night. Flickering yellow streetlamps cast long, crooked shadows across the cracked asphalt.

Every single step I took sent a sharp, stabbing pain straight through my sliced thigh. Blood was still leaking through the makeshift bandage on my leg, soaking my pants. But I didn’t slow down. I couldn’t.

After twenty minutes of walking, we stopped in front of a tall, rundown brick building. The yellow paint on the outer walls was peeling off in large strips, and half the windows on the upper floors were boarded up with dark cardboard.

This was where Adrian had lived. This was where he had tried so desperately to return to.

A small, hand-painted wooden sign hung from the brass doorknob by a piece of blue yarn. Written on it in shaky, bright red crayon were three simple words: Welcome Home, Daddy!

My chest felt so tight I could barely breathe.

I looked down at Adrian’s face. He looked peaceful, as if he were just sleeping after a long, exhausting day of hard work. But his skin was ice-cold, and his pulse was completely gone.

I raised my trembling right hand and knocked gently on the thin wooden door.

KNOCK-KNOCK.

For a long moment, there was total silence inside the apartment.

Then, I heard the light, fast sound of tiny footsteps running across a bare wooden floor, followed by the slower, heavy steps of an adult.

The heavy iron lock turned with a soft CLICK, and the wooden door slowly creaked open.

Standing in the warm light of the hallway was Black’s wife in a faded woolen shawl. Beside her stood a tiny six-year-old girl wearing a bright yellow dress that was a little too big for her.

The little girl had two small pigtails, a pair of bright, curious brown eyes, and a faint smear of flour on her left cheek.

"Adrian?" the woman called out softly, her eyes warming up. "You’re back early—"

Her voice cut off instantly as her eyes landed on Viora’s blood-stained coat, then moved down to the motionless man resting limp in my arms.

The little girl didn’t notice the blood right away. She gasped happily, her face lighting up with absolute joy!

"Daddy!" the little girl squeaked, jumping up and down on her small bare feet. "Daddy! Look! Mommy and I baked the sweet apple pie! You said if I was a good girl, you’d take me to the park tomorrow!"

She rushed forward, wrapping her tiny arms around Adrian’s cold, hanging leg. "Daddy, wake up! Stop playing hide and seek! Smell the pie!"

Adrian didn’t open his eyes. He didn’t lift his heavy arms to scoop her up into the air like he always did.

His wife froze in place. The color drained completely from her face. Her hand went to her mouth, her eyes wide with a terrifying, silent horror.

"No..." She whispered, her voice cracking into a broken gasp. "No, no, no... Adrian...?"

I didn’t know what to say. The words felt completely stuck in my throat. I slowly stepped forward into the warm, sweet-smelling apartment and gently lowered my body down onto my knees.

I carefully laid Adrian down on the soft fabric of the small living room sofa. His heavy arms fell limply to his sides.

His wife dropped to her knees beside the sofa, her hands shaking violently as she touched his cold cheeks. "Adrian! Adrian, look at me! Wake up! Please, open your eyes!"

She pressed her face against his chest, listening desperately for a heartbeat that wasn’t there. She burst into heavy, uncontrollable sobs, her shoulders shaking violently as she held his lifeless body close to her.

The little girl, Yuna, stood right beside them, her bright eyes filling with big, hot tears. She looked at her crying mother, then looked up at my face in utter confusion.

"Why is Daddy sleeping on his back...?" Yuna asked, her small voice trembling as a tear ran down her flour-dusted cheek. "Why isn’t he talking to me? Is Daddy hurt...?"

I sat on the cold floor beside the couch, my heart feeling completely crushed. I reached into my inner jacket pocket and pulled out the small piece of clean cloth.

I carefully unwrapped it, revealing the tiny golden marble glowing softly in the palm of my hand.

The condensed tear of the Heart Tree emitted a warm, soothing light that instantly filled the dark, tear-filled living room. The cold draft in the room vanished, replaced by the gentle scent of fresh spring rain and blooming forest flowers.

Yuna slowly stopped crying for a second, looking up at the warm light in my hand, her big eyes wide with wonder.

"What... what is that pretty light...?" she asked softly, wiping her nose with her small yellow sleeve.

"This is a special gift from your father," I said softly, my voice thick with emotion. "He fought so hard to bring this back for you and your mommy, Yuna."

Her mother lifted her head, her face covered in tears as she looked at the glowing golden sphere in my hand. "What... what did he do...?"

"He went into the C-Rank rift to save his family," I explained quietly, looking directly into Mary’s sad eyes. "He was tricked by bad people, but in his final moments, his only thought was coming back home to both of you."

I held out the tiny golden marble toward young Yuna.

"Hold this close to your chest, little one," I said gently.

Yuna looked at her mother, who gave her a slow, tearful nod. The tiny reached out with her small hand and touched the golden marble.

WHOOSH!

The moment her tiny fingers touched the purified life-essence, the golden light flared brightly.

The tiny marble dissolved into a soft stream of liquid golden light, flowing gently into Yuna’s chest and spreading out into her mother’s hands.

A warm, peaceful breeze swept through the small room.

The faint purple marks of mana fatigue on Yuna’s neck completely dissolved. The constant cough she had suffered from vanished instantly. The soft, golden essence wrapped around the entire room, filling the space with an overwhelming feeling of peace, warmth, and quiet protection.

It didn’t bring Adrian back, but it washed away the dark, bitter cold of his death, leaving behind only the pure, unbroken warmth of his love for them.

Yuna took a long, easy breath, her small chest moving smoothly. She looked down at her small hands, then turned and hugged her mother tightly around the waist.

"Mommy..." Yuna whispered softly, leaning her head against Mary’s shoulder. "I feel warm... It feels like Daddy is hugging us..."

Her mother held her tight, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks, but the sheer panic in her eyes slowly gave way to a quiet, deep acceptance. She looked over at Adrian’s peaceful face, reaching out to gently smooth down his messy hair.

"He kept his promise..." She wept softly, pressing a gentle kiss onto Adrian’s cold forehead. "He brought the warmth back home."

I stood up slowly, my legs shaking from exhaustion and pain. I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out a heavy leather pouch filled with silver coins and dungeon reward tokens—everything we had collected from the gate before escaping.

I placed the pouch quietly on the small wooden dining table, right beside a freshly baked apple pie that was still steaming softly in its pan.

"There is enough money here to make sure you and Yuna are taken care of for a long time," I said softly, looking at Mary. "Nobody will disturb you here."

His wife looked up at me through her tears, giving me a slow, deeply grateful nod. "Thank you... thank you for bringing him back home to us. He didn’t have to die alone in the dark."

"He fought like a monster," I said, remembering Elian’s words from the cavern. "But he died like a father."