Lahat ng Kabanata ng Vermillion Haze (Red Riding Hood Series): Kabanata 141 - Kabanata 144

Our team dashed toward the palace, never daring to look back at the corpses strewn along our path. This day would be the most painful in Hezel’s history, and we had to end it before it slipped beyond our grasp. Zen couldn’t hold out much longer.I trust Zen... I truly do. But I can’t lose him.Zen, the alpha of a noble pack, a leader admired by many, the one Phantomcrescent depends on—he must not fall. If a sacrifice had to be made, let it be me. Once this ends, Hezel won’t need me. Peace with the Weres will be restored. No more war. No more painful memories. And I... can finally ascend to where my family is."Ruby, watch out!"A projectile swept in. I was yanked aside by Vale just in time. Rusted iron sheets, torn from rooftops, hurtled past like blades."Thank you," I said. He gave a worried nod. "Let’s go."We charged ahead. A hurricane, crimson as blood, struck. The palace shook violently. Glass shattered, cement crumbled. Ruins consumed everything. Smoke choked the air.Coughing,

I fell—deep and fast—into the abyss. Darker than the night, it swallowed everything. No edges. No floor. Just an endless void, like my eyes were shut forever—but they weren’t. There was no strain, no blink. Just darkness.I curled my fingers together and whispered a prayer. I had made the hardest decision of my life, and now there was no turning back.I’d danced with death before—always one breath, one heartbeat away. But this... this was different. I chose this. I chose sacrifice."I know you're there," I said. My voice echoed as if I were in some vast, sealed chamber. "Are you afraid to fight me?""Most certainly not, Vermillion," a voice hissed from the dark. Malevolent. Mocking. "I didn't think you would go this far for him.""I guessed right then," I said with a sneer. "You're not Zydriann. Not even Ydrian."A blinding light shattered the dark, and I found myself standing on a plain of glass and roses. Their petals dripped with something thick—red. Blood."To achieve beauty, one