REBORN:This time i'll Protect the greats mage

"Please... heal me, Viv."

My voice was barely audible, swallowed by the wind carrying the smell of blood and scorched earth.

"I still want to go home. Father must be waiting for me."

I reached out weakly toward the woman I trusted most in this world.

Vivienne just stood there. Silent.

No panic. No concern. None of the tenderness I'd always seen in her eyes.

She looked at me like I was nothing more than a stranger about to die in front of her.

---

The world had already been destroyed. Wherever you looked, there was nothing but blackened ruins, gray smoke blotting out the sun, and piles of corpses so mixed together you could no longer tell friend from foe. This ten-year war was finally over.

I leaned on the sword driven into the ground of the ancient altar. Blood poured from the wound in my chest, and every breath felt like a fresh gash in my lungs. But I was smiling.

Lying before me was Lyra Obsidian. The Black Witch who had made the entire world tremble. Her wand lay snapped in two.

We won.

I lifted my head. Vivienne stood before me. Her blonde hair swayed in the wind, her white robe still spotless even though the world around her had been flattened. Seeing her, a sliver of relief crept into my chest. As long as she was still there, it felt like I hadn't truly lost.

With the last of my strength, I reached out my hand again.

"Viv. Heal me. I want to go home and see Father."

Father. The old man who'd guarded the border alone for years so I could attend the academy. Who wrote the same line in every letter: *Your father is proud of you.*

I wanted to show him that the war was finally over.

No answer.

Vivienne just stared at me. My smile slowly faded. Her gaze was empty. Cold.

"Viv...?"

She took a step back.

"Heal you?" Her voice was flat. "What for?"

My heart felt like it stopped beating.

Before I could answer, laughter echoed from behind the ruins.

"Why waste mana on someone who's about to die anyway?"

Alexander Bell. My best friend. Who had fought at my side since our very first day at the academy.

He stepped out, gripping a golden artifact in his hand. The artifact I'd given him — the one that had nearly gotten me killed retrieving it from an ancient temple. I'd given it to him because I considered him a brother.

He stopped beside Vivienne, then wrapped an arm around her waist.

What broke me wasn't the embrace.

It was Vivienne's smile. The smile I'd always thought belonged only to me.

"You still haven't figured it out, have you, Reynand?"

Alex sighed, as if talking to a slow-witted child.

"I was always jealous of you. You were stronger, more talented, everyone respected you. But none of that means anything when you're this easy to fool."

He raised the artifact high.

"Every time I asked for help, you gave it. Every time Vivienne wanted something, you gave it to her. Without a shred of suspicion."

I looked at Vivienne, praying this was all just a nightmare.

"I never loved you," she said, calm as ever. "I only used you."

Those words cut deeper than any sword wound in my chest.

"You were too easy to control. A little attention, a little hope, and you'd do anything I wanted."

I shook my head weakly. Ten years I'd fought, suffered, watched my friends fall one by one. I did it all for the people I loved.

Turns out I was just a tool. A fool who worked himself to death so others could enjoy the spoils.

Vivienne cupped Alex's face, then kissed him — right in front of my eyes.

Time seemed to stop.

And in that instant, I finally understood.

The most terrifying monster I had ever faced wasn't Lyra Obsidian.

It was the betrayal of the people I'd called family.