Rose was about to give up entirely but just then, something clicked in her head. "The gun!" She realized, her hands searching the pockets of her pants, finding the gun that she used to kill Santiago.
With her trembling hands, she aims it at Tristan and shoots him, which Tristan easily dodges. "N-No! Damn it!" She screams, shooting several times, aimed towards Tristan. However, he easily deflected all of the bullets with his axe, his cold and emotionless eyes staring at her soul.
He slowly approaches her. "...A woman," he says, looking at her as if she were a mere insect that needed to be crushed. "Perfect."
Before Rose could shoot him again, the gun is suddenly split in half without Tristan moving an inch. "N-No! Don't...stay away!"
"I wonder how female meat tastes like," Tristan said, his axe held high in the air, preparing to land the final blow. "Is it more soft? Less salty?"
Before Rose could run away, the axe moves downwards, aiming to split her head in half. Though, he suddenly stopped due to the snapping of someone's fingers. "I thought I was going to investigate you a bit," Zombie said, his eyes slightly serious. "But it seems that isn't an option anymore."
Tristan looked at Zombie, his face unreadable. He simply started to walk towards Zombie, though, before he could attack him, Zombie's hand reached him first, causing Tristan to fall onto the ground with a hard thud. However, in the very next moment, that body started to fade. "An illusion? Well, that was expected," Zombie said, his gaze suddenly landing on Rose. "You. Get that kid and yourself out of here. Let the adult handle this."
Rose looked hesitant for a split second, but immediately stood up and went towards Kael. "I'm sorry for what I am about to do," Rose said, taking out the knifes from his hands and starting to carry him. Though, the pain caused him to scream and slightly hit Rose. "AHHH! Who the hell?! Are you still not satisfied after all of this? Just kill me already!" Kael screamed, unaware that it was Rose who was carrying him.
While Rose was carrying Kael to safety, Zombie and Tristan were having an intense moment. "An expired meat," Tristan said, recognizing him immediately. "Ah, the painting's all ruined," he said, slowly approaching him. "I'll fix up your face," Tristan said, his axe about to land on Zombie's face. Though, Zombie managed to just barely dodge it.
Furthermore, Tristan's attack caused a massive opening, which Zombie used to his advantage by placing his hand on his body, causing the real Tristan to be knocked out. "...Finally," Zombie said, who didn't look particularly happy but had a satisfied face. "Now I can die peacefully."
As Zombie was walking away, Tristan suddenly felt Raven's voice. It was almost as if Raven was right next to him, whispering in his ear. "We were best friends for several years. I gave you everything," Raven's voice said. "However, despite all of that, you can't even do a simple job for me? I even helped you in the time of grief and this is how you pay me?"
"I am here if you need me."
Raven's voice echoed throughout Tristan's body, a strange sense of determination filled him. His pills had run out a while ago, however, it seems that the pills started to give him a new source of power after all of these years.
His brain was being manipulated by a Raven that didn't exist. A Raven that his mind generated. "...Master," Tristan said in a low, dry voice, suddenly getting up, causing Zombie's eyes to widen slightly.
"How on earth...?" Zombie said, extremely shocked.
"What goes around, comes around. Since I helped you, I expect you to help me."
"Kill. Kill. Kill," Tristan said slowly, his mind truly gone insane and his speed tripled. He suddenly appeared behind Zombie, driving his axe into his shoulder. Though, Zombie stared into his eyes and instantly understood what he had went through. "He must have gone through something traumatizing. I feel bad for him...which is why I'll end his misery," Zombie thought, touching Tristan again in hopes of knocking him out.
However, it had no effect on Tristan. "I...feel no warmth from his body! His skin is paler than ever and...his eyes have already lost it's color! Is something controlling his brain to make it move like this?!" Zombie thought, one of his arms getting cut off by Tristan's axe. "Damn it, he's too fast!"
Just when Zombie thought that everything was over, Alex appeared out of nowhere, blocking Tristan's attack. "So you were the one who killed him," Alex said. "I have to thank you for bringing me out of his realm, it was quite suffocating in there."
"You're welcome. However, he isn't truly dead...for some reason," Zombie explained. "Good luck to you because I'm leaving. I will be a burden if I stay any longer."
Alex didn't complain. He simply give a slight nod and shifted his attention to Tristan, who was bombarding him with attacks that had the weight of an African elephant behind them. "How can someone have this much strength despite dying?!"