But neither were as uncomfortable as he’d imagined. At this rate, it would take days to weaken his spirit enough to make a difference. He might evacuate his family before he fell to the level of a Jade.
Yerin swayed in mid-step, and he reached out a hand.
He barely caught her before she collapsed.
In less than the blink of an eye, he had dashed out of the boundary formation, landing in a spray of snow. Yerin gasped as though she had emerged from deep water, her red eyes wide.
Lindon still clutched her in both hands. “What happened?”
“Too much,” she said, still breathing heavily. “It took too much.”
Only a few yards away, Eithan looked down at himself. “Hm…I see. The boundary siphons strength away rather than suppressing it as a veil would. I suspect I have only…let’s say six or seven hours before I’m down to the level of a Jade. That will be a novel experience.”
Lindon thought he saw the problem. Since she merged with her Blood Shadow, Yerin’s body had partially fused with her spirit. Draining her madra would affect her physically even more than the rest of them.
“You can stay on Windfall,” Lindon suggested. It would be better anyway, he realized. She wouldn’t have to relive the trauma of losing her master by revisiting the site of his death, and she would still get to meet his family when he brought them out.
It made sense, but leaving her behind felt wrong. She had started this journey with him, and she should be with him to see it end.
He didn’t expect her to agree. In fact, he expected her to leap out of his grasp and plunge straight into the Valley, heedless of the consequences.
Instead, she stayed where she was and turned to Eithan. “Am I going to fall apart if I head back in there?”
It was Ziel who answered. “Do Remnants form in there?”
“They do,” Lindon confirmed.
“Then you’ll survive. No matter how close to a spirit you are, you’ll still be more solid than a Remnant.” He pointed to Little Blue, who was leaning over Lindon’s shoulder to regard Yerin with concern. “If she doesn’t fall apart, you definitely won’t. But…”
He let the silence stretch out until Lindon wondered whether he was thinking of the right words to say or if he was waiting for someone to ask a question.
“…a stable Herald wouldn’t be affected as much as you are. Don’t know if it’s because you didn’t hit Archlord first, or...”
He slumped in place, as though speaking so much had exhausted him. Eithan swept a hand toward him. “I concur with the champion of the Wastelands. This suppression field has revealed an imbalance in your body and spirit. I could speculate as to why, but it hardly matters now.”
“So I’m not falling apart,” Yerin said.
“You will not. In fact, I suspect you won’t get any worse than you are now. Barring grievous injury, of course.”
Yerin met Lindon’s gaze. “My master dove into this with eyes open.”
Lindon nodded and started to carry her back in. The second she weakened too much, he would leap free of the field again.
She cleared her throat. “Still got two feet.”
Reluctantly, he lowered her down, although he supposed there wasn’t much risk in her walking under her own power. Even an ordinary Overlady wouldn’t be killed by falling flat on her face.
She squared herself and clutched her sword as she crossed the boundary, and her stride faltered almost immediately. Lindon reached for her, but she stopped him, taking a few deeper breaths to steady her spirit.
“Shaky as a two-day calf,” she reported, “but on the sunny side, at least it won’t get worse.”
If Lindon’s spirit felt as though it had sprung a leak, hers lost power like a shattered wine bottle. In less than a minute, she felt as weak to his perception as a Lowgold.
Lindon couldn’t make himself comfortable with that.
“If we end up in a fight…” He trailed off. He didn’t want to remind Yerin of her master’s death, but on the other hand, the Sword Sage must have knowingly weakened himself by walking into this boundary field. He had risked his life and died for it.
And now they were repeating the same mistake.
Yerin raised her voice, addressing everyone. “I’ll break easier than a glass egg in there. I’m aiming to head in anyway, but I know that’s a rotten deal for you. Anybody wants me to stay here, I’ll do it.”
She sounded completely sincere, which once again surprised him a little.