When Koharu finally withdrew her hand from Shinju's heart and emerged from her trance, she was breathless, her chest heaving. Swen immediately rushed to her side, her eyes filled with intense curiosity.
"What did you just do?" Swen asked, her voice trembling slightly. "Shinju's stormy mind calmed in an instant. Because of you, we were finally able to stabilize the two opposing energies within him."
Koharu smiled as the pure white light in her eyes slowly faded. "I touched his soul, Swen... and I saw it. Shinju is a truly good person. He values us more than we could ever imagine. His inner world... for someone who has lived in the 'Void' for centuries, it is incredibly vast and beautiful. I never could have imagined a world so peaceful."
Swen shook her head in amazement, her fingers adjusting her alchemical tools. "So, humans truly do have souls, and you can intervene with them directly... I had no idea such a technique even existed. You touch souls, and Shinju holds two completely contradictory energies in a single body. You two... you continue to surprise me more with each passing day."
A heavy silence settled over the cave. Together, they began the long wait for Shinju to regain consciousness. Minutes felt like hours. Unable to bear the tension any longer, Koharu turned to Swen. "It's been so long, Swen. Why hasn't he woken up yet?"
Swen spread her hands helplessly. "I don't know. Technically, everything is in order, but—"
"Everything that happened must have exhausted him beyond measure," Aurelia interrupted, her voice echoing with ancient authority. "Do not be impatient, Princess. Let him sleep. Judging by the expression on his face, he looks quite peaceful right now. He has earned a bit of rest today."
After a time, Shinju's eyes slowly fluttered open, as if he were waking from a slumber that had lasted for as long as time itself. As his consciousness returned, the horrific battle in the cave, Kaelith's death, and Koharu's injury felt like nothing more than a distant, blurred dream. But as he opened his eyes fully, he realized that his right side was plunged into pitch-black darkness.
As his hand instinctively reached for his right eye, Swen's sharp voice made him flinch.
"Hey, hero! If you don't want to die, do not remove that sphere!"
Shinju froze. Swen continued, her tone stern yet relieved. "The silver sphere in your right socket is the only thing keeping your Yin energy concentrated on the right side of your body. If you remove it, the balance will shatter, and you'll blow up in a second."
Shinju swallowed hard, feeling the cold, metallic texture of the sphere against his fingertips. "So... it was all real," he rasped, his voice sounding like dry parchment.
As he tried to sit up, he looked around and froze in place. Even though they were in a dark cave, the world he saw through his left eye was entirely different. Lights were brighter, colors more vivid. It bore no resemblance to his previous vision. When he looked at his companions, it was as if he were watching through a thermal camera; he could see the flow of Yang energy within their bodies in shimmering, warm tones. Looking at Aurelia was almost impossible—the ancient dragon radiated an energy as blinding and intense as the sun itself.
"Ahh... my head is spinning. What is this?" Shinju groaned, pressing his palm to his forehead.
Koharu immediately knelt beside him. "How are you, Shinju? Is something wrong?"
"My left eye... it sees differently. I can see the energy flow in your bodies. I can even see tiny worms moving in that dark corner... they're emitting light. It's too much stimulation for my brain. Everything is glowing."
Aurelia smiled with a knowing wisdom. "You will get used to it in time. We dragons see the life essence within living beings—the very core of Yang—directly."
Shinju knitted his brows. "What are you talking about? What do I have to do with dragons?"
Swen pulled a small mirror from her bag and held it up to him. "Stay calm and look."
When Shinju saw his reflection, his breath caught in his throat. In his right socket sat a smooth, polished silver sphere. But it was his left eye that truly shocked him. The sclera had turned a brilliant, molten gold, and his pupil had transformed into a vertical, predatory slit.
"What happened to my eye? What is this!"
"Your body is very strange, Shinju," Swen said, pulling the mirror away. "You didn't just accept Aurelia's dragon blood; you absorbed it completely and gained a Dragon's Eye. I don't think there is another example of this in the world. Your body... it's as if you are a perfect vessel that can accept all energies and melt them within yourself. You never cease to amaze me."