Chapter 50: Weight of Responsibilities
Coco remained silent for a long moment before he finally asked, "Where did we go wrong?"
Edward’s voice became heavy with regret. "You left," he exhaled. "I still regret letting you walk out that door."
Coco averted his gaze. "If I had stayed..." he murmured.
Edward nodded. "Everything would have been different."
Coco leaned back against the broken wall, his body growing heavier as he felt pain catching up to him. He retracted his armor into his meta-bot, exposing his wounded form.
"I had intended to retire after the tournament," Coco finally confessed as he gazed at the damaged ceiling. "Run away with her... and start anew like a n-normal..."
Edward stayed quiet. He understood what he was discussing; nothing was the same after the tournament, and the survivors were different from their previous lives.
When they returned to Earth, they had already endured unimaginable losses. The tournament had claimed lives, shattered hopes, and taken so much more, and the aftermath had only been crueler—Edward had lost someone dear, while Coco had lost everything. Although Edward still had his son to keep him on his toes, Coco had no one. The woman he loved more than anything was gone forever.
Like Edward, Coco bore scars from the tournament—wounds that ran deeper than skin. But unlike Edward, he had no one to confide in, no anchor to prevent him from drifting away from kindness.
Edward had Alex to hold onto him, reminding him of the future. Coco was left alone in the void, isolated and forgotten.
And in that solitude, he wandered too far to find his way back.