Smoke swallowed the entire battlefield.
Burning leaves drifted through the air as the explosion's echo slowly faded into silence.
Aishwarya stood several meters away, breathing heavily.
Her left hand trembled from exhaustion while her injured right hand hung uselessly at her side.
She didn't move.
She simply stared into the thick smoke.
"..."
The wind gently swept through the forest.
Little by little, the smoke began to disperse.
A silhouette gradually emerged.
Aishwarya's eyes narrowed.
Kamali...
...was still standing.
Blood trickled down from cuts across her arms, shoulders, and forehead.
Her breathing was ragged.
Her clothes were torn.
Even standing upright seemed to require every ounce of strength she had left.
But something immediately caught Aishwarya's attention.
A faint gray layer surrounded Kamali's body.
Not Prāṇa.
Gas.
Aishwarya smiled.
"So I was right."
Kamali clenched her jaw.
She hated that smile.
"You truly are an experienced warrior."
Kamali remained silent.
"Just before my Fire Ball Barrage reached you..."
Aishwarya continued.
"...you surrounded your body with carbon dioxide."
She slowly walked closer.
"Most of my fireballs disappeared the instant they touched the gas."
She looked at Kamali's wounds.
"But..."
"...that defense couldn't stop all of them."
Kamali gritted her teeth.
"You..."
Aishwarya laughed softly.
"I know exactly what you're wondering."
She folded her arms.
"How did everything end up like this?"
Kamali silently stared at her.
"Then let me explain."
The forest fell silent.
"When I told you..."
"...that I had been storing fire beneath the ground."
"...that the rocks had melted into lava."
"...and that the ground would collapse beneath your feet..."
She smiled mischievously.
"...every single word was a lie."
Kamali's eyes widened.
"...What?"
"You heard me."
Aishwarya shrugged.
"I never created molten lava."
"That much heat would have consumed an enormous amount of Prāṇa."
"It wasn't practical."
Kamali stood frozen.
"So instead..."
"I created a trap."
She pointed toward the cracked ground.
"When you kept stepping toward me..."
"I secretly stored tiny amounts of fire directly beneath the spots where your feet landed."
"The heat created small cracks exactly where you stepped."
Kamali looked down at the fractured earth.
"..."
"Then I lied about the lava."
Aishwarya smiled.
"I knew simple cracks wouldn't convince you."
"So while I was talking..."
"I secretly created more cracks beneath my own feet."
She chuckled.
"It made my story believable."
Realization slowly spread across Kamali's face.
"I was never trying to collapse the battlefield."
"I was only trying to collapse..."
"...your confidence."
Silence.
"And then..."
Aishwarya continued.
"I waited."
"I knew you would eventually deactivate your CO₂ Dome."
"The moment you did..."
"I released the fireballs I had prepared."
She looked directly into Kamali's eyes.
"And you walked straight into my trap."
Kamali stood speechless.
Everything...
Every decision...
Every movement...
Had been manipulated.
After a long silence...
Kamali laughed bitterly.
"I underestimated you."
She lowered her head.
"When this battle began..."
"I thought you were just an inexperienced girl."
She smiled weakly.
"But I was wrong."
She looked back at Aishwarya.
"You're an incredible strategist."
"You observe."
"You analyze."
"And you choose the perfect moment to strike."
Aishwarya blinked in surprise.
She hadn't expected praise.
Especially from Kamali.
A long silence followed.
"Finally…"
Kamali slowly sat down.
"...I've lost."
Her exhausted body could no longer support itself.
She lay on the warm earth and stared at the blue sky above.
"I'm no longer capable of fighting."
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
"I'm sorry..."
She whispered softly.
"...Bheem."
"I underestimated my opponent..."
"...and was defeated."
Aishwarya quietly watched her.
Kamali slowly closed her eyes.
"So..."
She spoke calmly.
"What are you waiting for?"
Aishwarya walked toward her.
Step...
Step...
Step...
Kamali heard the footsteps stop beside her.
She slowly opened her eyes.
Aishwarya had raised her hand.
"...I understand."
Kamali smiled peacefully.
"So..."
"This is where my filthy life ends."
She closed her eyes once again.
She waited...
For the final blow.
Instead—
Clink.
A metallic sound echoed beside her.
Kamali frowned.
She slowly opened her eyes.
Lying beside her...
...were her broken metallic claws.
Aishwarya had placed them next to her.
Not attacked her.
Kamali looked up.
She was confused.
Aishwarya had already turned around.
She was walking away.
"...Hey."
Kamali called out.
"Where are you going?"
Without looking back, Aishwarya answered,
"I'm going to help my friends."
Kamali's expression froze.
"But..."
"You haven't finished me."
Aishwarya stopped walking.
"I don't need to."
Kamali couldn't understand.
"What?"
"I said..."
Aishwarya said.
"I don't have to kill you."
"But..."
Kamali slowly sat up.
"I'm your enemy."
"I tried to kill you."
"I tried to kill your friends."
"Why would you spare me?"
For several seconds...
Aishwarya remained silent.
Then she smiled gently.
"You fought for your friends."
Kamali looked at her in confusion.
"You tried to kill us..."
"...because you wanted to protect the people precious to you."
She slowly turned around.
"That doesn't make you evil."
Kamali's eyes widened.
"Not you."
"Not Booma."
"Not Daabur."
"Not even Bheem."
"You've all simply drowned yourselves in despair."
"You lost sight of the path you once walked."
Aishwarya continued.
"Kaali told us everything."
"He never stopped believing in all of you."
She smiled warmly.
"And neither have we."
"We're not your enemies."
"We came here..."
"...to help you."
Kamali's mind went blank.
She couldn't understand.
After everything she had done...
Why were they still offering a hand instead of a sword?
She slowly looked back toward the endless blue sky.
A strange warmth filled her heart.
Then...
A thought surfaced.
"...Aishwarya."
"Hm?"
Aishwarya looked back.
Kamali smiled faintly.
"I've fought countless enemies."
She stared quietly at the sky.
"But..."
"I've never witnessed anything like what I saw today."
Aishwarya tilted her head.
"What do you mean?"
Kamali's eyes slowly drifted toward her.
"When you covered your fists and feet with flames..."
"...every movement you made flowed together."
She smiled softly.
"It wasn't like watching someone fight."
"It was..."
"...like watching someone dance."
A gentle breeze passed through the forest.
"The way your flames moved..."
"The way your body turned..."
"The rhythm of every strike..."
She closed her eyes.
"It was beautiful."
She laughed quietly.
"I've honestly never seen anything more beautiful."
She looked directly at Aishwarya.
"So..."
"I want to tell you something."
"You're truly..."
"...beautiful."
Silence.
Aishwarya simply stared at her.
Then...
She smiled.
"You know..."
"I was thinking exactly the same thing."
Kamali blinked.
"What?"
Aishwarya laughed softly.
"You called me beautiful."
"But..."
"I think you're even more beautiful."
Kamali froze.
"Your silky golden hair..."
"It shines even in the middle of a battlefield."
"Your golden eyes sparkle whenever you fight."
"And your face..."
She smiled sincerely.
"...is honestly prettier than mine."
Kamali's breathing stopped.
She had expected many things.
Hatred.
Mockery.
Disgust.
But never...
A genuine compliment.
Everything became quiet.
Then—
Aishwarya heard it.
A soft sob.
She looked up in surprise.
Tears slowly rolled down Kamali's cheeks.
One after another.
"...Kamali?"
She hurried closer.
"What happened?"
"Why are you crying?"
Kamali covered her face with trembling hands.
Her shoulders shook uncontrollably.
More tears streamed down her cheeks.
Then she slowly looked at Aishwarya.
Her golden eyes were overflowing with years of hidden pain.
"Tell me..."
Her voice cracked.
"...Aishwarya..."
She clenched her fists so tightly that they began to tremble.
"...Is it..."
She lowered her head.
"...really okay..."
"...to be beautiful?"
TO BE CONTINUED…