Arknights: The Life Inside-Chapter 81

This was something Yoren had to make Ifrit understand.

The course of history had already shifted, and the future held infinite possibilities—including the worst ones.

In this vast and uncharted sea, Yoren had no idea what he was truly up against. The most dangerous things in the world were often those unknown. This time, reason told him he could not stubbornly throw himself into protecting others as he had before. He had promised Hemer to protect Ifrit, but the black-and-white twins had only lasted until the thirteenth day. To put it bluntly, he was not certain. If he died, the situation would spiral into something far worse. Of course, he wouldn't know—he'd already be dead.

By then, it would be too late. If everyone was to survive, he had to rely on the strongest force available to him, and even then, the outcome was uncertain. He might die. Ifrit might die too.

Ifrit's understanding of the world was still immature. She needed to grasp the significance of what they were about to do and prepare for the possibility of death. Maybe that was an admission of his own inadequacy, but if Ifrit was going to die, he wanted her to do so with full understanding of why she had chosen to fight.

Hemer had taken great risks to protect her. Yoren had saved her more than once, risking his life. Now, he wanted Ifrit to understand what it meant to risk her own life for someone else.

At that moment, Puda came rushing out of the cabin, carrying a small box. Breathless, he cracked it open.

"Brother Yoren, here—four S-class Origin Stones and eleven A-class ones."

"Give me an S-class," Yoren said without hesitation.

"Got it."

Taking the Origin Stone, Yoren turned to Ifrit.

"Ifrit, I need your power. What we're facing is an inhuman force from the deep sea. For everyone here, the most important thing is their own life, but this time—I hope you'll risk yours to protect those you want to protect. Will you fight beside me?"

Ifrit stared at him blankly. In her brief life, where she had only begun to grasp the meaning of existence, something clicked.

A memory surfaced.

Rhine Lab, Experimental Base No. 4.

When Ifrit first woke up, her mind was blank—just like a newborn. She knew nothing beyond the language system embedded in her brain.

Day after day, she was subjected to countless experiments, her body wracked with pain until she passed out, her mind clouded by drugs, her flesh cut open like a doll's fabric.

And yet, after every experiment, when the white-coated figures left one by one, one person always remained.

She would carefully clean Ifrit's wounds, dress her in fresh clothes, and hold her gently. Ifrit would later learn her name—Hemer.

Over time, Ifrit found herself looking forward to these moments. Hemer taught her things about the world, told her stories, and gave her sweets. Whenever she saw Hemer, her heart filled with an unfamiliar warmth. She didn't understand what it was—only that it felt natural to believe that Hemer would always protect her.

She never questioned what she should do in return.

Until she overheard whispers in the halls.

"That's Subject No. 19. I don't know what the higher-ups are thinking, letting it move freely."

"The SP experiment is special—maybe they're trying to develop its mind."

"Tch. Just another inhuman monster. The first eighteen didn't make it, this one won't either."

Ifrit lowered her head. She understood the words, but not the emotions they stirred. Her heart felt tight, like something was twisting inside her.

"What did you just say?!"

Hemer's voice rang out, sharp with anger.

"Ifrit isn't some mindless test subject! She has thoughts! She's her own person!"

The two researchers sneered.

"Well, well, the prodigy speaks. You actually named it? Playing house, are we?"

"Tch, no idea how you got into the SP project, but I heard you even worked on its core experiments. Is this thing yours or something?"

Then—

A sharp crack echoed in the corridor. Hemer, always so composed, had slapped one of them.

Ifrit was stunned. In that moment, she understood something. Maybe... protecting her wasn't just Hemer's duty.

Two days later, they found the burnt remains of two researchers in the depths of the facility. Identified as key members of the SP project.

Ifrit had confessed immediately. From then on, her movements were restricted.

Standing outside her isolation chamber, Saria asked her:

"Why did you do it, Ifrit?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"They... said bad things to Hemer. I didn't want them to do it again."

Saria regarded her carefully before speaking again.

"You wanted to protect Hemer?"

"I... I don't know."

Saria unlocked the cell and stepped inside. She knelt down, gripping Ifrit's shoulders firmly.

"Hemer protected you, so you wanted to protect her. That's not wrong. But true protection means understanding the price of your actions. If you grasp the consequences and still choose to stand your ground—that is real protection. Just like Hemer. If, in the future, you meet someone who understands the cost and still chooses to protect you, then you should protect them too."

Ifrit's vision blurred with memories. A great flame roared in her mind. A burning forest. A boiling lake. A crimson sky. A blazing earth. And at the center of it all—herself.

The flame giant, Ifrit. Destined to be alone, to melt all that it touched, to never be protected nor protect. And when it vanished, the world felt no sorrow, only relief.

She returned to the present. Yoren still stood before her, holding out the Origin Stone.

"Yoren," she said at last, her voice steady, serious for the first time. "When you ran into that fire to save me, did you know you might die?"

Yoren hesitated for only a moment. "I knew. But I still did it. That was my choice. No one else's. Not even yours."

A strange sensation washed over Ifrit—like a movie playing in her head, a thousand scenes flashing before her eyes.

Heat radiated from her body. The air itself trembled. The elements quivered in fear.

An ancient, illusory beast flickered in Yoren's gaze—a presence as primal as the abyss itself.

Balrog.

The heat forced the onlookers back. Ifrit's body burned like a furnace unsealed. Just the aftershocks of her power distorted the air.

Yoren's instincts screamed at him. This was no mere Origin Stone ability—this was fire on the level of the black power inside him.

Ifrit reached out. Her fingers closed around the stone.

"I understand now," she whispered. "I might die fighting those things in the deep sea. But before that happens—I will protect the people I want to protect on this ship."

She clenched the stone in her hand.

"That is my choice."

The red light gradually lit up within Ifrit's body. At the same time, all the passengers on the deck felt an invisible sense of oppression bearing down on them, carried by the rising heat wave.

"Before I die, I will protect the people I want to protect on this ship. This is my choice, Ifrit."

As she spoke, a smirk curled the corners of her lips. Her pupils burned with a flame-like glow, and she let out a wicked grin.

"But now, I don't think I'll die so easily."

Her voice dripped with scorn and unwavering confidence in her own power.

Since the "Fire Demon Incident" at Rhine Life Base No. 4, Ifrit had integrated the Ancient Stone into her body, much like Yoren. However, unlike him, she had never been able to control this power.

Even Hemer and the upper echelons of Rhine Life had been too afraid to continue mutation experiments at the base. They theorized that Ifrit's lack of control was due to genetic instability, attempting to manipulate her DNA to compensate.

But now, watching the power manifesting in Ifrit's body, Yoren understood the truth. As an heir of the Ancient Stone, no one grasped its significance better than him.

This wasn't like the chaotic eruption that had leveled Base No. 4 in a cataclysmic explosion. This time, the energy was no longer wild and uncontrollable—it was deliberate, restrained by sheer will.

That was the difference.

Ifrit's previous inability to wield the Balrog's power wasn't due to genetics. It was a matter of understanding.

Yoren understood the rage of the ancient demon, just as he understood the resolve of the goddess who had once wielded the sword. That was why the power of the black and white twins had fused not just into his body, but into his very soul.

But Ifrit, naïve and reckless, had lacked such understanding. She acted impulsively, without thought or consequence. She had no guiding principle, no firm resolve—only whim and instinct. Someone like that could never control the power of the Balrog.

It was as if she had been trying to join an elite order without the qualifications.

Before, she had been completely unprepared, an illiterate attempting to decipher an ancient scripture. But after everything she had experienced—the trials, the revelations—she had grown. Not enough to fully master it, but enough to grasp its meaning. Enough to take her first real step forward.

Holding the Origin Stone Yoren had given her, Ifrit slowly stood. The heat radiating from her body forced everyone back, instinctively clearing a path.

She narrowed her eyes at the distant sea.

"No matter what it is, I'll make it regret messing with me, Ifrit-sama."

Feeling the energy condensing within her, Yoren couldn't help but smile. Unlike the black and white twins, the Balrog's power had no defined cycle. Even though this was the first time Ifrit had truly summoned it with her own will, its sheer intensity already dwarfed what he had achieved on the 13th day.

Standing beside her, even the dark force in Yoren's own body flared with warning. The power Ifrit held was like a caged nuclear reaction, simmering just beneath the surface.

A deep, guttural roar echoed across the sea.

This time, Yoren pinpointed its location immediately.

He spun around. A hundred meters to the left, a massive wave rose, and within it, something immense and black surged through the depths.

"Back off! Everyone get inside the cabin! Now!"

Despite the deck's guardrails, Yoren wasn't about to risk anyone falling overboard. He wasn't a hero. His priorities were clear—Turtle, ACE, and at a stretch, the Platt brothers.

If a stranger ended up in danger, he wouldn't throw his life away to save them. Better to prevent the situation altogether.

At this point, even fools could see that survival hinged entirely on Yoren and the girl beside him, burning like a living furnace.

"We'll listen to you!"

"We'll do whatever you say!"

"Just take that damn thing down!"

Yoren roared at them.

"Shut the hell up and get inside! If anyone sets foot on this deck and messes with our fight, I'll throw them into the sea myself!"

The crowd fell silent.

Like scolded schoolchildren, they rushed into the cabin without another word.

Another monstrous roar shook the air. This time, a colossal shape surfaced again, closer.

With the passengers safely below deck, only four remained. The creature hadn't attacked yet. It was circling, waiting. Maybe sensing the power in Ifrit and Yoren, maybe calling for others.

They were exposed while it lurked unseen beneath the water—a serious disadvantage.

Yoren clenched his fists, formulating a desperate plan.

"Damn it. If it won't come to us, we'll go to it. Ifrit!"

"What?"

"Let's take it down."

He quickly outlined his crude battle strategy.

"Got it?"

Ifrit picked her ears. "Yeah, yeah. We'll just wing it."

She had a point. No plan would survive an encounter with sheer, overwhelming force. He didn't know if their combined power would be enough—but it was all they had. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

Yoren glanced at the water. The plank ACE had thrown earlier had already drifted away.

"ACE!"

"Yeah?"

"Is there a speedboat on this thing?"

"Yeah, one in the back. Ready to go whenever."

"You know how to drive it?"

"Of course."

"Good. Get it prepped."

Yoren turned to Snowsant. "You feeling better?"

"Yeah."

He patted her head. "Stay here and be ready to activate Absolute Domain."

"Understood."

ACE lowered the speedboat into the water.

Ifrit rolled up her sleeves.

Yoren gripped the Origin Stone tighter.

Snowsant pursed her lips, clutching the straps of her backpack.

Black flames ignited in Yoren's left eye. He stared at the dark waters ahead, his body tensing as he adjusted his energy to its peak.

"Alright then. I don't know what the hell you are, but our four-wheel drive team is about to run you the hell over."