"Nyarrghh!"

You fall to the ground, your wings disintegrating and your body trembling with exhaustion. You've given everything you have to fight, using every ounce of your strength and all of your magical powers. Borrowing the Goddess's power has taken a toll on you, and you're spent. You lie on the floor, panting and sweat-soaked, unable to move even an inch without excruciating pain.

But despite all of your efforts, the demonic Nightingale is still there. You tried to help her take back control of her own body, but it seems you've failed. After meeting Nightingale in her inner world, you understand why. It's not because you're not strong enough. It's because Nightingale and her demonic side have merged, and there's no way to separate them. She suggested the only solution is to kill her, but you can't bring yourself to do that.

Now, Nightingale stands before you with a sword made of crimson ice, created using Ice Creation magic imbued with her demonic power. She approaches you, the sword pointed at you. You can feel the coldness of its blade.

You close your eyes, accepting your fate as the sword inches closer to your chest. It'll hurt, but at least you'll die at the hands of a catgirl. Not a bad way to go, for a catgirl lover like you.

But the sword stops just millimeters away from your chest. You open your eyes and see Nightingale's hands shaking and tears streaming down her face.

"Nightingale!" you gasp. "How? How are you doing this nya?"

It's not supposed to be possible! Her left eye is still red, glowing with demonic energy. In fact, the demonic aura she’s showing is even stronger than before! And yet, she's fighting it. She is resisting the order to kill you!

Suddenly, Nightingale collapses, sobbing. "You're… my lake lily... too," she says, her voice trembling. Her hand clutches at her chest while the other holds the sword towards you. You've never seen Nightingale look so pained. It’s like… the struggle within her is tearing her apart.

This realization fills you with hope. Maybe there's still a chance to save Nightingale. Maybe the demonic side of her isn't the real enemy and you've been wrong this whole time! The real enemy here, now you know, is a lack of love. Even though Nightingale said she doesn't know what love feels like, the fact that a small, genuine gesture of care and love from you has made such a big difference shows that love is the key.

But this is not over yet. You know you still have to push forward.

So, with every ounce of strength you have left, you push yourself up off the ground and look Nightingale in the eyes.

"Nightingale, are you alright?, are you hurt nya?" you whisper to her, your voice barely audible.

She cries and nods, repeatedly, tears streaming down her face like rivers. She can't even speak right now, her body trembling with the effort of resisting whatever is controlling her. She is now like a broken machine. You can feel her hands open and close many times, simultaneously casting and canceling an offensive spell. 

You're exhausted, but you can't give up now. Love needs reinforcement, you have to take advantage of this special moment! 

So, "Let’s stop this nya," you say, moving closer to her. The closer you get, the more violently her body shakes and the more pain you see in her eyes. It breaks your heart to see her like this.

But when you touch her, something changes. The world turns silent. She's no longer trembling. The crimson ice sword that was pointed at you seconds ago, she drops it on the ground. The sword shatters into a million pieces, filling the air with red, shiny ice particles. 

Seeing that, your heart is filled with joy. "I really love the lake lilies, nya" you say, brushing away her tears. "And you," you stop to look into her beautiful eyes for a moment, then proceed to ask her. "do you love them too nya?"

"I...I…" she tries to mutter her words, her voice shaking.

But then, Nightingale suddenly rolls over and pushes you down to the floor. Before you can even think, you feel warmth on your hand. You look down and see blood, but it's not your blood. It's coming from Nightingale. You see a strange object sticking out of her back - a dagger with its blade plunged deep into her flesh!

"Nightingale!" you yell.

You can hardly believe it. Did she just protect you from an attack? 

"I'm alright," Nightingale says, pulling the dagger out of her back and tossing it aside. She has regeneration abilities, so this injury is nothing to her. But it still scares and pains you to see Nightingale get hurt like this.

"Who's there, show yourself nya!" you shout, your voice full of anger. Nightingale's face is equally unpleased.

Soon after, a man steps into the temple. He's wearing a black cloak and mask, but you recognize him immediately. "Carmian, you bastard, nya" you growl, saying the man's name. He's the S-ranked blonde knight you met in the prison.

"Oh, so you know?" Carmian replies. "Then there's even more reason to get rid of you." 

He then draws his swords - two dual wield swords with glowing blades. The darkness seemed to swirl around him, as if it were a part of him. A smirk played across his lips as he prepared to strike.

Carmian, the S ranked knight.

And let's enjoy a Felicia pic! 

Bluebery

I used some help to edit the chapter. Do you think it read better than the previous ones?