"I'm sorry, Lily," Grey whispered as he hid the vial in his bottomless pocket.
He truly had too many reasons for this decision.
His connection with Lily had never been built on deep friendship, love, or blood ties. At most, they could consider each other a brief escape in a harsh environment.
Moreover, she knew his secrets and was a potential threat.
Grey understood perfectly well that demons were extremely fickle. Their moods shifted as quickly as the wind. Today, he is your closest ally, tomorrow, the one who drives a knife into your back.
On the other hand, the Drop of the Source of Life was far too rare, far too valuable to sacrifice for the sake of a mere acquaintance.
Even if he did save Lily, there was no guarantee she would live to see tomorrow.
They were still slaves, and their fates depended on the passing whim of Mr. Harmon or even Quintilian.
But no matter how much Grey tried to justify himself, the real reason had always been the same. He desperately wanted to stop being a cripple. He had grown up with that desire. It had taken root in his bones, becoming the foundation of all his ambitions. If he wanted to find his mother and sister, he had to harden his heart and move forward, no matter what.
The small bottle of precious liquid had already disappeared beneath his clothes when he let out a sharp breath and turned back toward the girl's motionless body.
"I did everything right, so why does my chest hurt so much? Is this what regret feels like? What a bitter and... unpleasant feeling..." flashed through his mind.
In an instant, teetering on the edge of madness, Grey pulled the Drop of the Source of Life out of his pocket again and tore the cork free with his teeth. With a swift motion, he pressed the vial to Lily's pale lips and began to pour the precious liquid in.
He moved quickly, as if afraid he might change his mind.
The moment the cherished drop touched her tongue, Grey felt as though a heavy weight had lifted from his shoulders.
He had made his choice, and this time he was certain he would not regret it. With a sudden wave of calm, he leaned back against the cold bars of the cage and, holding his breath, fixed his gaze on the small succubus's unmoving face.
One second... Two seconds...
Time seemed to freeze.
The change came on the third second. Lily's body slowly rose above the floor. Her pale skin began to emit a soft glow, clearly visible in the pitch darkness of their cell.
Then the magical contour that restrained the flow of mana lit up along with her skin. The effect spread like a chain reaction. The old man's cell followed theirs, and then the entire camp was illuminated.
"This is bad," Grey barely had time to think before the air began to hum softly.
In grim stupor, he watched the barely noticeable trembling of the magical lines. They vibrated like overtightened strings, ready to snap at any moment. Mana surged into the patterns faster than the design allowed, far too fast, far too dense.
The air filled with the sharp scent of ether.
The symbols warped and began to melt before his eyes. Thin cracks spread across them, accompanied by a rising hum. Chains snapped one after another, bursting like tiny explosions of steam.
This phenomenon did not remain confined to their cell. It spread across the entire slave camp, turning it into chaos of light and sound.
And in that moment, Lily opened her eyes.
Her gaze shone with the familiar violet glow, yet Grey instinctively felt that she had changed. Her face had grown more refined, and her figure seemed more feminine and graceful. The changes were subtle, but Grey was certain, Lily had become far more powerful.
But there was no time to think.
Though the noise was not overwhelmingly loud, it would undoubtedly stir the entire camp.
The old man and Sheryl were already beginning to move, waking from their sleep. It would not be long before the rest of the camp followed.
"Lily, what happened to you? Did you break through?" Grey quickly whispered into her ear while the young succubus looked around in confusion. "Don't celebrate too soon! You've stirred up the whole camp. Pretend you're asleep, quickly!"
Without waiting for an answer, Grey darted toward the window opening, peering into the night.
To his clear disappointment, he saw only the motionless rows of barracks. No one had taken advantage of the sudden chance to escape. There was no chaos, no uprising, only an oppressive silence, broken by the occasional cries of waking slaves.
"Should we run right now?" Grey whispered, gritting his teeth from the tension.
His thoughts darted like cornered beasts. Every second of delay could cost them their freedom, or even their lives.
He was already about to rush toward the pit when that same familiar voice echoed in his mind:
"Wait, you shouldn't act impulsively!"
"Get lost! We'll be discovered any minute, and you're telling me not to act impulsively?!" little Grey snapped furiously.
But his alter ego had no intention of stopping. "Calm down, kid, you're too worked up. Did you forget who you are in the overseers' eyes?"
"Obviously a cheap slave whose life is worth a single silver coin. You think they'll spare me for trying to escape? Yeah, right. They'll nail me to a cross and make an example out of me," little Grey shot back.
"No, idiot! You're just a child! And a cripple on top of that. Who in their right mind would suspect a child of causing all this chaos? Take a deep breath and think for a moment. Inspections will start across the entire camp very soon. If you're not found in your place, everyone will immediately understand what happened here. You'll only expose yourself."
Grey froze in place as he realized the possible consequences. He had been too agitated, too impatient. But who could blame him? The situation was unfolding far too quickly.
Soon, he noticed a shift in the atmosphere.
One by one, the overseers were roused by the alarm and began methodically patrolling the grounds, checking every corner and every cell. Grey could only hope and pray that the guards would behave exactly as his older counterpart had described.
Although the chain reaction had started from his cell, Grey was not too worried that the overseers would discover the source of the malfunction.
He knew better than anyone that they did not possess such skills. However, if a thorough inspection began, their escape route might be discovered, which would be a disaster.
Even so, Grey managed to calm himself and restrain any reckless actions. He returned to his cot with an expressionless face and waited for the inspection.
Soon, the flickering light of a torch illuminated the room.
Then came the muffled sound of footsteps.
Listening closely to their rhythm, Grey felt an unexpected sense of relief. It was Gracchus, their old acquaintance.
Though the scarred overseer was a real bastard, he had one undeniable advantage: he was terribly lazy and not particularly thorough. What Gracchus hated most was doing useless work, and what could be more pointless than constantly watching over a bunch of children?
While planning his escape, Grey could not help but feel relieved every time he remembered that this very slacker was responsible for supervising them.
Even now, Gracchus acted exactly as Grey had expected.
First, he made sure everyone was in place, then he checked the strength of the bars, giving them a slight shake.
That was the end of the inspection. There was no search of the premises, no harsh interrogation he had feared.
Of course, Gracchus would not be Gracchus if he did not leave them with a threat:
"You'd better not try anything, you little shits! Anyone who dares to escape will be executed without trial," he growled, sweeping the cell with a heavy gaze.
At his words, Sheryl curled in on herself.
Her frail body trembled uncontrollably, yet she did not make a sound. Grey cast her a sympathetic glance but did not dare to comfort her. Any unnecessary movement could draw Gracchus's unwanted attention.
When the overseer's footsteps faded into the distance, Grey allowed himself to exhale in relief. The first trial was over, but it was too early to relax.
In the coming days, all the cells would have to be repaired. The work would be carried out while the slaves were busy with their daily duties. Though Grey truly doubted that some highly esteemed master of magical arrays and circuits would bother climbing into a cage, the risk of discovery was more than real.
Fortunately, the half-moon would rise tomorrow, and with it, their planned day of escape. The situation might become more complicated, since some guards would likely miss the monthly drinking binge due to the unexpected malfunction, but no drastic changes were expected.
Still tense, Grey headed toward Sheryl and Lily, who were quietly whispering in the corner.
"How are you, Thorn?" he asked as he sat down beside them. "You haven't been yourself lately. Sheryl and I were really worried."
His gaze carefully studied her new appearance, which only he could see, noting even the slightest changes.
"That's right!" Sheryl nodded timidly. "Lily is a bad friend! She made Sheryl worry so much. Lily looked so pale and weak that... that... Sheryl thought Lily would never wake up again." By the end of her sentence, tears were already welling up in the little rabbit's eyes.
"There, there, Sheryl, isn't everything fine with me now? I'm much stronger," Lily hurried to comfort her friend. She spoke in a barely audible whisper so the old man would not overhear them.
"I think my weakened state had something to do with the breakthrough. For the past month, I kept using my powers nonstop, and it seems my body couldn't handle it, so I fell into a kind of hibernation."
Listening to Lily's explanation, Grey could not suppress a faint smirk. Of course, she had not even considered that he was the one who saved her. From her point of view, the breakthrough was the only explanation.
However, as he carefully observed her, Grey noticed that the changes were not limited to her appearance. What had changed the most was her voice. It had become even more enchanting, carrying a subtle pull that was harder to resist.
"Right now I'm full of strength and energy, but I'm still worried about the consequences of my breakthrough. Grey, what do you think? Should we postpone the escape plan until things settle down?" Lily asked, casting a guilty glance at him.
Grey flinched in surprise.
The little succubus was truly acting strange. Where were her usual barbs or teasing remarks? He could not recall a single time she had spoken to him without them. For a moment, he even felt the urge to check her temperature.
"Could she have figured out that I'm the one responsible for her recovery and breakthrough? Is this her way of showing gratitude?" the thought flashed through Grey's mind, but he quickly shook his head. "No, she has no reason to think that. Most likely, she's just too shaken."
At last, he managed to gather his thoughts and respond:
"Absolutely not, we can't delay any longer! In the next few days, Harmon will bring in a master for repairs, and then everything will become much more difficult. Although your breakthrough really caused a mess, it might turn into an opportunity."
"From what I can tell, most of the overseers will focus on guarding the combat slaves, while only Harmon's personal lackeys remain in the main building. Who in their right mind would think that a bunch of children are responsible for all this chaos? Whether we have access to mana or not, in their eyes, we're completely helpless."
"By the way, don't you want to tell us what that was exactly? What level did you reach? Are you the reincarnation of some deity? Why the hell was your breakthrough so violent?" he bombarded Lily with questions, as if he were truly impressed by her display and wanted to understand the cause.
"Hey, hey, you crazy boy. Don't you think it's rather rude to pry into a young lady's secrets like that? Did you lose your sense of tact while I was gone?" Lily replied with a laugh, clearly unwilling to go into details.
Now that sounded like the Lily he knew, Grey thought.
"Hey, kid, do you happen to have masochistic tendencies? Why did I get the feeling you relaxed when that girl started insulting you like that?" a mocking voice echoed in his mind.
Grey completely ignored both of their remarks and decided to take control of the situation.
"Alright, we can talk later. Right now, we really need to get some sleep. I understand you're all excited, I am too. But we'll need our strength if we want everything to go according to plan tomorrow."
Lily and Sheryl nodded in response and, after exchanging a final glance, each returned to their own cot.