Glitched Goddess: My Skills are maxed out

Kana's hands trembled as she clutched Seraphine's limp body, her knuckles white from the force of her grip.

"Seraphine… please… wake up…"

Her voice cracked, raw and broken, as if the words themselves were tearing her throat apart. Seraphine's skin had gone frighteningly pale, and her lips carried no warmth.

Each passing second suffocated Kana more, her chest tightening until she could hardly breathe.

The shallow rise and fall of Seraphine's chest slowed… then stopped.

Kana froze.

Her mind went blank, her heart dropping into an endless void.

"...No...No, no, no, please—don't do this to me!"

She whispered, shaking her head violently as tears blurred her vision.

Dread consumed her, twisting into something unbearable, something suffocating.

She wanted to scream. She wanted to run. But all she could do was cling to Seraphine's body as if sheer desperation could force life back into her.

The system's voice rang in her mind, sharp and clinical, slicing through her panic.

[Warning: Vital signs critical. Target has no detectable breath or pulse.]

Kana choked on her sobs. "Then do something! There has to be something—anything! I don't care what it takes!"

[Moderator-level access detected. Resurrection is possible.]

Her breath caught. Her eyes widened, hope crashing violently against her despair. "Then—then do it! Bring her back!"

[Notice: Resurrection through Moderator Authority comes with irreversible consequences.]

— Memory loss: All past experiences erased.

— Psychological instability: Target may be haunted by residual emotional imprints.]

Proceed?

Kana's chest heaved as the words sank in.

If she chose this, the Seraphine she knew… the woman who laughed softly when Kana was scared, who touched her head gently as if she were fragile… that Seraphine would be gone.

But as Kana stared down at her lifeless face, the answer was obvious.

"I don't care…Even if she forgets me, even if she forgets everything… I just want her alive."

She whispered, her voice trembling but unyielding.

There was no hesitation.

[Confirmation received. Granting Moderator Authority: Level MAX. Full mental access required.]

Kana felt something invade her mind, sharp and suffocating, like icy chains coiling around her consciousness.

Her body tensed instinctively, but she forced herself to stay still, jaw clenched tight.

Then the pain came.

Her entire body convulsed violently as magic surged through her veins, tearing at her from the inside.

It felt like her blood was boiling, her bones cracking under pressure, and her very soul splintering.

"Aaaghh—!"

The scream tore itself from her throat, raw and ragged. Her vision blurred as tears streamed down her cheeks, soaking Seraphine's robes.

[Warning: Host body incompatible with full Moderator output.]

"Damn it…! J-Just… do it!"

Kana hissed, forcing the words past clenched teeth.

[Proceeding… Synchronizing maximum energy flow.]

The magic flared violently, blue and gold arcs of energy sparking around Kana's body. The ground beneath her cracked, spiderwebbing outward under the force of the surge.

Her breathing grew ragged. Her heart hammered painfully. She thought—no, she was certain—that her body was tearing itself apart.

Kana's mind screamed at her to stop, but her heart—her heart refused.

She had to save Seraphine.

Then, somewhere within the agony, a thought whispered:

'Maybe this pain isn't from the magic itself… maybe it's me. Maybe I've been avoiding my own power all along. Because I'm weak. Because I'm afraid.'

Her lips trembled, a bitter, broken laugh threatening to escape.

"No… I'm… not afraid anymore…"

And then the pain numbed.

The system's voice echoed one last time:

[Final sequence initiated. Restoring target's life force.]

Kana's vision was swimming, but through the haze, she saw it.

Seraphine's fingers twitched.

Then her lips parted slightly, her shallow breath breaking the silence.

Her eyelashes fluttered, just barely, and Kana saw those familiar, faintly glassy eyes trying to open.

"Seraphine…!"

Kana reached out with trembling hands, brushing the strands of hair from Seraphine's face. Relief crashed over her like a tidal wave, but before she could speak another word—

Her entire body gave out.

Kana collapsed forward, unconscious, her cheek pressing weakly against Seraphine's chest.

Silence fell.

A long, heavy silence… broken only by the shallow breaths of the woman who had just returned from death.

And from a few paces away, Dorian stood frozen.

His hands shook, his lips parted, and his expression was a mixture of awe and fear. He had watched it all—the impossible miracle, the blinding light, Kana tearing herself apart to bring Seraphine back.

Seraphine's life, snatched from death itself.

And for the first time, Dorian's obsession trembled beneath something colder.

Seraphine… didn't feel human anymore.

She felt dangerous.

Dorian's gaze sharpened as his breathing steadied, shadows settling over his features.

If Seraphine became something beyond his reach… if she became a threat, even unknowingly…

Then perhaps, for her sake…

For their sake…

He would have to eliminate her.

'To protect the world from a monster like her.'

But for now, he said nothing.

The night hung heavy, silent, and full of unspoken danger.

Dorian's grip tightened around the cold metal of his gun, his jaw set and expression unreadable.

Kana lay motionless on the cracked pavement, her breath shallow, her hand still clutching Seraphine's sleeve even in unconsciousness.

His finger hovered over the trigger, heart pounding steadily in his chest. He couldn't afford to hesitate—not now, not after what he had just witnessed.

The raw power she unleashed, the way reality itself bent to her will, the miracle of resurrecting the dead…

Something like that shouldn't exist.

His gaze hardened, shadows veiling the faint tremor in his hand.

'If she wakes up again and loses control… if she does something worse…'

He steadied his breath, forcing the hesitation away.

"I can't take the risk."

He muttered under his breath, voice low and cold.

The weight of the alley pressed in on him, silence stretching tight and unbearable. Then—

Bang!

The deafening gunshot echoed through the narrow street, bouncing off the walls until it faded into eerie stillness.

A body collapsed against the ground with a dull, final thud, and silence filled the alley once more.