The stone chamber was suffocating, as hot as hell. Sunlight filtered through cracks in the ceiling, illuminating the Blue Crown lying on the altar at the very center. Too close, too beautiful, too dangerous.

You, JJ, Kiara, and Rafe knew it was a trap. But you were too far in to back out now.

When JJ moved to shield Kiara, trying to protect her, everything happened too quickly. Groff — with wild eyes, a twisted face, dripping with sweat and anger — leaped out from behind a pillar with a knife in hand.

JJ tried to stop him. You reacted faster.

You shoved JJ aside and took the blow yourself.

The knife sank deep — under the ribs, brutally, without warning. Groff looked straight into your eyes, as if he wanted you to remember his face.

You collapsed with a gasp, the air leaving your lungs immediately. JJ screamed. "YN!!" Kiara tried to rush to your side, but Rafe was faster.

He charged in, driven by a surge of rage and panic. The moment he saw the blood, the knife, your lifeless form on the ground — that was it. The world narrowed. Groff didn’t stand a chance.

Rafe slammed into him, knocking him down with the force of a freight train. His fists began to rain down on Groff with a kind of fury that wasn’t about skill—it was about pure emotion. It wasn’t a fight; it was Rafe’s soul unleashed. Blood, fists, the sound of punches connecting—all of it felt like it was happening in slow motion as Rafe pummeled Groff with everything he had.

JJ crawled to you, too wounded to be of much help, tears streaming down his face as he whispered, “YN, come on... please...”

But Rafe barely noticed. His focus was entirely on you now. He staggered to your side when Groff finally went limp, his chest heaving with the effort of his fury. He collapsed next to you, his voice cracking as he grabbed your hand.

"No... no, no, no you can’t, you hear me? Don’t you dare leave me!" His voice was sharp with panic, almost pleading—an emotion Rafe never showed. “YN, look at me. Fucking look at me!”

His hands were shaking, covered in blood, as he pressed them to your wound, desperately trying to stop the bleeding. But it was too late. He could feel you slipping away, your body growing cold in his hands.

"Please, YN... don't you dare. You are everything. You’re my world, my reason. You can’t... you can’t be gone... You promised, remember? You promised you’d never leave me, that we’d make it out of this together..." His voice cracked, the desperation raw and choking.