Chapter 343: Full Circle

Words : 1117 Updated : Oct 7th, 2025

Chapter 343: Full Circle Maybe it was one big cosmic joke, or maybe she was just cursed like Gisella often said, but right now, Cece didn’t think it was that bad. There were far worse ways to go. And this wasn’t the worst option. Cece was bleeding out. She knew that. She could feel the wet heat spreading through her torso—sticky, warm, and unrelenting. Her vision blurred at the edges, dimming and hazing in turns. There was a gaping hole in her lower abdomen where the root had speared through, and yet, somehow, she was still here. Still lucid. But even as the pain made her numb, it seemed like she still didn’t regret it. Couldn’t, really. Because how could she regret anything when the first time she met Gisella and Amelia, they practically did the same thing for her. Her first tumble into the dungeon wasn’t as peaceful as the cadets. While the monsters weren’t as strong, she had been at a state where she was left to die before even getting sucked in here. And she could remember it just like yesterday. Or was this the perk of someone knocking on death’s door? The day they’d first met, the monsters eyed her like their prey for the month. She was too small, too weak, and too untrained to fight off anything with a body that was this close to croaking out. But then, two women rushed towards her, shielding the attack with their bodies as it had been too close and too sudden. Gisella stood in front of her, shielding her despite the clear signs of fatigue. Both these women took hits meant for her, Amelia even carried Gisella back after they had fended off the attackers. All this was after Cece learned that they were depending on only half of their limbs after having to clear out an entire section already. But they still helped. They all got sick after that, intense cold sweat and pain that felt like they were going on that forever ride. And yet the memory that lingered the most was the warmth of having such company. The warmth of their hands. The quiet urgency in Amelia’s voice. The stubbornness in Gisella’s glare. They hadn’t known each other well at that point, but after surviving such an ordeal together, you could just say they were sisters born from different mothers. But even now, she still remembered that life-saving grace. So, really, this was just their kindness coming full circle. And it felt like it was all worthwhile. This was something she could accept. Be proud of even. She just wished she had more time. To see more of the world she hadn’t had the chance to know. To share more meals. More laughs. More slow mornings under a crooked ceiling with mismatched blankets. But her thoughts were fading, slipping like sand through cupped hands. It was difficult to keep her eyes open. But she knew she had to, even just for this. After all, she couldn’t leave just like this, right? Gisella was shouting now, her voice cracked and raw—her tears—big, angry, messy drops—plopped audibly against the cockpit glass. Plop. Plop. Plop. Cece managed a grin. Everything sounded hazy to the struggling dwarf, but it was a look she’d never seen her friend sport. "Hey," she wheezed, her voice faint but teasing. "For the first time, I’m beating you in a race. And I even won this fair and square." Gisella choked on a sob. "Fair and square, your face!" she shouted. "How could you do that?!" Cece smiled wider. It was lopsided. Weak. But real. "I swear, Cece—if you’re thinking of dying right now, I’ll revive you just to slap you!" Gisella’s voice trembled as she forced spiritual water down her throat, hands trembling as she wiped blood and tears away in the same breath. Gisella was angry. Desperate. And especially terrified. So she tried everything, even with shaky hands. She even pulled from one of the spare liquid bottles, trying to bait the corruption pooling around Cece’s wound. For a moment, it worked—the goo wriggled, hesitating, part of it retracting. But not enough. Not yet. Duchess Amelia hovered at the edge of the chaos, using focused strikes to ward off the awakened roots that had been disturbed by the spilled spiritual liquid leaking from the borrowed mecha’s shattered cockpit seal. "Seal the worst of the wound!" the Duchess called. "Luca has ways—he can fix this! You just have to keep her alive!" Keep her breathing. Just keep her here. "Hang on. Please," Gisella whispered. "Just hang on." Butler Gary, in the meantime, was all but dragging his half-crippled mecha toward them, using his one good arm to shield them from the flailing root attacks. He tried transmitting again. Nothing but static. Until suddenly, the line sparked to life, and they rushed to inform their Young Lord about their current emergency. He felt like collapsing in both relief and fear because this was their best chance. Luca listened intently as he sucked in a sharp breath. "We’re on our way!" He practically screeched, their mechas set to the highest possible speed they could use in here. The cadets shot forward, thrusters burning through the inner dungeon’s air as if they could break time itself. Kyle’s cockpit pulsed with urgency. On his lap, Ollie was clutching a revive pill like his life depended on it. The moment he heard his brother mention an emergency with Cece, Ollie had started taking out the pill. He never really wanted to ever use this, but his hand shook just as he thanked the stars and his brother for letting him hang onto these. And so the moment the cockpit doors slid open, Ollie, who was still in his starry pajamas, held his breath as he reached out to hand over the delicate pill. It looked like a coordinated operation. Luca came in barreling as he cleaned out the corruption around them before clambering out of D-29 to check on Cece. Xavier, on the other hand, built an ice dome around them to ensure they were contained safely inside as they defended against the struggling roots and falling debris. The tremors had caught up to them, and the prince had to warn the duchess and the butler about the countdown timer. They had less than 3 minutes. And Xavier reminded the butler to keep on attempting to teleport in case they could do it earlier, because if their guess was correct, this place might just reorganize itself like Luca’s dungeon whenever it upgrades. And they would end up right in the middle of it. If so, Cece might not even win this race.

Chapter 343: Full Circle

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