Levi's body hit the hard ground like a sack of potatoes. A hot, white agony exploded from his shattered ribs and radiated through his entire body, each breath a new wave of fire.

The world dissolved into a cacophony of pain and the roaring of the waterfall. His consciousness, already frayed from the sprint, began to unravel.

A cold hand, one of the pale, corpse-white ones, gripped his shoulder. Then another, this one pitch-black, clamped down on his other arm.

He was hauled up from the ground, his body a broken puppet, his head lolling back. He found himself face-to-face with the creature's bizarre, stitched-shut face.

A punishment for it's disobedience.

He saw the hands from its back, a writhing, living tapestry of black and white, reaching for him. They didn't seem to want to hurt him.

Levi's vision blurred at the edges, the pain a constant, deafening roar. But he fought against the encroaching darkness, he couldn't loose consciousness, not yet.

Levi gritted his teeth, immediately tapping into the subtle strength hidden deep inside his being.

The Golden Crow's attack on his soul had left a gaping hole, and through it, his raw soul essence leaked out.

He pumped it out, feeling a cold clarity override the pain, forcing him to regain his senses. His strength surged, but he knew this boost, no matter how potent, was nothing compared to the creature's power.

In the creature's vision, everything was a white outline against a black background. Now, a harsh lavender light surged from Levi, a sudden, blinding flash.

"This...". If its mind wasn't playing tricks, this was undoubtedly soul essence.

'Is this being dying?'. The creature's mind short-circuited. If Levi died, so would it, and so would its hope of resurrecting its clan.

This was the effect Levi wanted. He had planted the lie, 'If I die, my pieces die with me' it was now like an executioner blade's against it's neck.

When the creature stole information from him. The words he had planted 'If I die, my pieces die with me' were now a ticking time bomb in its mind.

If the creature really believed that it would die if Levi dies, it would hesitate when it feels the fracture in his soul.

This was the follow-up plan, and it was already in motion before the first one had even begun.

Levi saw the creature in a stupor, and without hesitation, he kicked at it. Newly revived, the creature was far from its full might.

It was pushed back a step, its numerous hands steadying it. Levi used the force of the kick to launch himself backward, a desperate leap toward the water.

The creature reacted quickly, sending one of its hands forward. The hand struck true, but Levi had foreseen this moment. The leech's tail, still wrapped around his form, moved, and the hand grabbed the leech instead of his leg.

The creature watched, helpless, as Levi plunged into the rushing water below. He had outsmarted it once again.

The moment Levi's body hit the water, the waves slammed into him with so much force that his consciousness, already hanging by a thread, snapped. The pain and the world vanished in a jarring, final splash.

******

The current carried a figure through the water until it came to rest on the shallow, muddy edge of a river.

The sounds of the forest filled the air— the chirping of crickets, the rustling of leaves, the calls of unseen birds. It was a world alive with green and the unmistakable sounds of wildlife, and the body was a broken, lifeless thing within it.

His clothes were tattered, clinging to cold skin. Wet lavender-colored hair, seemed to glow in the sunlight, an ethereal halo against the dark green of the forest.

The eyelids fluttered open, revealing a pair of lavender eyes that glowed with a fierce, harsh light. The light was a sign of immense power, a terrible energy held within. But a closer look revealed a chilling truth: the eyes were glassy, like a doll's, empty mirrors of a soul that was no longer present.

Levi's eyes snapped open, and for a moment, he was just floating, stunned. Then, a rush of memories hit him: the hunt, the shattered knee, the brutal fall, the freezing water. He bolted upright, scrambling out of the river onto the bank.

"I'm alive?". He exclaimed, the words a mix of disbelief and overwhelming relief. He checked his body, disbelief warring with his joy. He should be broken, shattered, a mangled wreck. But he wasn't.

Then, the relief vanished, replaced by a cold dread. "What happened to all my injuries?". He mumbled, his voice a hollow whisper. He flexed his knee, bent over to check his ribs. Nothing.

But he felt no pain, they wasn't even a single ache.

For a normal person, this would have been a miracle. But Levi's mind went straight to the worst-case scenario.

The only thing in this world that could heal his physical body in this current predicament was his soul.

He had a broken soul which constantly leaked essence, it wasn't a tool for mending bones. It was a ticking time bomb.

Every act of healing, every surge of strength, meant his soul was leaking faster, withering away with every passing moment.

"System!". He cried out, the word a frantic plea not even bothering to converse internally.

[ I am afraid that your assumption is correct. ] The system's voice was a flat, emotionless tone.

Levi's breath froze in his chest. "How much time is left?"

[ A little over two years and a half. ]

Levi found himself breathing out in relief, he had feared for worst. But then wasn't the time a little too much.

Don't get him wrong, he was happy but the injury he sustained, he imagined it would demand much.

"Isn't it a bit too.... Mild". Levi decided to being it up with the system, although the system was pretty much useless, it could provide some information.

[ Actually it has something to do with the crow. ]

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