The continuous sounds of banging and explosions resonated all around the mana shield. Some of the enemies strike their swords using aura while others use their magic.
I can feel my mana being drained from me every time they hit the shield. The bigger the shield, the more mana it requires to maintain its shape, even more for it to not get destroyed.
August looked around the premise in confusion before looking at the Mage, who continued his incantations to dispel the curse from the empress. "Marcus, did you create this mana shield beforehand?!"
The Mage let out a small chuckle. "I don't have the luxury to spare any Mana at the moment, your highness. But if there's anyone who can create this big of a mana shield..."
August immediately realized the intent behind his words before desperately looking at me. "Lys, did you create this shield?!"
I tried to avoid his gaze by looking at the moon above me. I slowly closed my eyes, taking a deep breath before calmly looking back at August.
His face soon turned even more distressed as I slowly nodded at his question. He hurriedly walked towards me, placing his hands on my shoulder.
As I looked right into his eyes, I could see the mixture of worry and distress consuming him. "Cancel the magic immediately! Not only did you create a mana shield large enough to cover the entire area, but the fact that it hasn't broken yet means that you are still supplying it with mana."
He gripped his hands tighter on my shoulders, his eyes now showing a hint of exasperation. "If you keep this up, your mana would soon–"
"It's fine." I slowly put my hand on top of one of his before gently squeezing his hand. "I have more mana than what I can do with. If needed, I can keep this barrier up for the whole duration of the–"
"Lys!"
When I heard him yell, I froze. I looked to see his angry expression vividly displayed in front of me as he gripped my shoulders tighter.
I slightly winced from the pain, he widened his eyes, removing his hand from my shoulder and looking away while scratching his head. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" He grits his teeth before facing me again. "This isn't the perfect time to get emotional... but please understand just how fatal it can be if you continue to use your mana like this!"
Before I could respond, I felt another hand on my shoulder.
I looked behind me to see Nilo standing there with his usually stoic expression. "His highness is right. I know you're trying to protect us, but from our eyes… It makes us look like a nuisance." He then placed his hand on my shoulder. "We can protect ourselves, young master."
August nodded alongside Nilo's words. "Sir Nilo is right." He hurriedly reached out for my hands. "We can protect ourselves, so please… remove the barrier."
Even with the continuous banging of the barrier, I couldn't help but have my mind muddle out by so many thoughts. I just can't help… but think about what would happen if I were to remove the barrier. The dangers that linger around, and the possibility of them getting hurt.
In the off chance of risking my own wellbeing, I can guarantee the safety of the people here with me.
But… is that truly the correct approach?
I just don't want them getting hurt, but they also don't wish for me to continue protecting them.
With so many thoughts jumbling my head, I frustratedly closed my eyes, slightly ruffling my hair before looking back at August with a final conclusion. "... I'll follow along with what you said. I supplied the shield with enough mana to last around sixty seconds. Before then, we should plan our next course of action."
August let out a relieved sigh, gently letting go of my hand before thinking. "True..." He looked around at the people who were still trying to destroy the barrier. "There are fifty people in total. Judging by the quality of their magic and aura, they average around three to four rings."
August contemplates for a second before looking back at Nilo. "There may be a powerful person behind them, probably waiting to tire us out as they try to outnumber us. Sir Nilo, do you think you can–"
But before he could finish his sentence, a loud bang echoed through the area before the sound of glass shattering occurred. Fragments of the mana shield flowed down everywhere as I continued to look at them with utter confusion.
"It got destroyed…?"
There should've been thirty seconds left before it got destroyed by the enemy's attack.
I suddenly sensed a huge burst of mana being emitted by a singular person. I quickly shifted my gaze towards the direction where it came from.
It was probably this person who was the one to destroy the shield earlier than I anticipated...
With some of the robed people behind the powerful person, I took a closer look to observe his appearance.
A tall and slim man. His beard carefully groomed as the amount of gray hair signifies that he is around his late fifties, being covered by his black trilby hat. Wearing a golden monocle over his purple eyes. On his right hand, he carries an iron sword that was covered by his dark purple mana.
Nilo quickly stood in front of us. He grabbed both of his short swords from his back and positioned them in front of him defensively.
The old man stabbed his iron sword in the ground, slowly stroking his beard while he carefully observed us from a distance. "... How vexing. I didn't expect the curse to be found out this quickly..." He then looked at August. "It has been a while, your highness."
August let out a scoff before fixing his posture, trying to maintain a calm appearance. "So you finally decided to show your true self, Chancellor."
The old man smiled. "You don't seem all surprised by my betrayal, your highness."
"You may have fooled everyone with your facade, even mother, but from the very beginning... I have doubted your identity. I just didn't expect you to be the perpetrator behind all this."
The old man's eyes turned serpent like as he continued to look at August with a smile. "Hmm... guess I can never escape the eyes that wield the Blessing of the Swords..." His eyes soon shifted towards me. "You even decided to bring in reinforcement from the Blakesty Family." He then grabs hold of the hilt of the sword embedded down into the ground. "The Heir no less. The one with the Blessing of the Mana."
He grips the hilt, aggressively drawing the blade off the ground before pointing it at us. "Killing you both will surely eliminate any future problems."
His gaze soon towards the Mage that is still trying to dispel the curse. "The Head Mage is currently preoccupied with his magic. If he suddenly stops it, the chances of the empress dying will increase. So, we don't have to worry about him for now..."
He then pointed his swords towards Nilo. "The only real threat is you... I'll eliminate you myself–"
Shortly after he said those words, Nilo immediately dashed in front of him. The old man's eyes widened, unable to react to his speed.
Nilo put his knee towards the old man's abdomen, striking him up and sending him into the sky. A huge burst of wind soon dispersed around us from the impact. Nilo looked up into the sky, whistling while squinting his eyes to find the old man before letting out a smirk.
"All bark, but no bite."
Everyone, including me, was astounded by what we just witnessed. I knew how strong Nilo is, but seeing it in action is a whole different experience.
The old man, who is now high into the sky, coughed out before looking down at the earth. A glistening light appeared for a split second before a dagger showed up near his face. He narrowly dodges, slightly scratching his face, before it begins revolving around him.
A thin black thread almost invisible to the naked eye started wrapping around his body and arm. The threads wrapped around him quickly tightened up before he was forcefully brought down from the sky. A few seconds of free-falling before he crashed towards the ground, creating a fog of dust and soil from the collision.
Despite falling from a great height, the old man got up into his knee while placing one of his hands near his rib cage, trying to balance himself up with the sword. His hat is now gone, exposing his messy grey hair. Dirt slightly covered his face and clothes, but no major injuries were seen on him than his broken ribs.
He gritted his teeths before pointing at us in a hurry. "What are you all doing?! Kill them!"
All the robed people started moving towards us. August drew his blade and quickly dashed towards them. Some drew their blades while others started casting magic. The old man got up and dashed towards Nilo. Nilo placed both his swords and clashed against the sword attacking him before parrying and slashing his body with strikes after strikes.
When Nilo found a small gap, he quickly looked at us. "Young master, your highness! I will deal with this person over there. So just make sure to deal with the people around here!"
Both of us nodded while also responding at the same time. "Got it!"
Nilo looked at the old men again, who was now looking angrily at Nilo while he positioned his sword in front of him. "You...! How dare you draw your attention elsewhere–"
Shortly after, Nilo dashed towards him instantly once again. The old man still couldn't react to his speed before getting side kicked by Nilo and being thrown far away into a different area. Nilo quickly dashed towards where he was thrown before disappearing.
I looked all around me before quickly glancing at the Mage. "Head Mage Marcus, do you need any protection?"
The Mage let out a small chuckle while still having his eyes closed. "Ho Ho! No need to worry about me, Lord Lysander. Just take care of yourself. Remember, it is alright to take shelter if things become too dire."
I nodded at his words. "Okay. Stay safe then!"
I looked back in front of me before I saw a fireball heading towards me. I immediately summoned a mana shield to block it. As the fire ball dispersed from the impact, I looked at all the magicians who were casting magic.
"... Half of them are magicians..."
I slowly closed my eyes, taking a deep breath while extended my hand in front of me. I began to pin-point the exact locations of the mages. Many of them are hiding behind the swordsmen. Some hiding behind bushes or trees, while others not trying to hide at all. Most of them have three rings...
Mages remained stationary, unlike swordsmen, making them easy targets to eliminate.
I began to remember the exact words that Nila said to me eight years ago.
"Killing is sometimes needed in this world. To eliminate the threats. To eliminate those who commit wrongdoings. But it is also something that can be avoided if necessary."
I am not naive to think of sparing these people who wish to kill us.
Multitudes of insignia unnoticed by the magicians began appearing over their bodies, especially around their hearts.
Killing can be avoided under most circumstances.
But this is not one of them.
I quickly opened my shimmering eyes. Soon, all the insignias activated. The magicians were all simultaneously impaled by a spike of ice all over their bodies and hearts. None of them had any time to react to the surprise attack and were all killed instantly.
Upon confirming the death of them all, I carefully looked down at the ground. I covered my mouth as my eyes widened hysterically. My breathing became unstable while my vision started to get blurry. "... I killed them..."
I never actually thought that I would have to kill anyone in this world... The amount that I just killed right now... am I no different to a murderer?
I look at my hand. They continued to shake intensely...
I slowly shut my eyes, forcing myself to take a deep breath before tightening the clothes near my chest, opening my eyes with forced determination.
This is not the time to feel remorseful. The lives of those I care about are in the line right now. I cannot be swayed!
My gaze slowly lingered to August.
Multitudes of slashed bodies surrounded him. He wiped off the splattered blood from his face. He dangles the sword on his right hand before swinging it once, removing the excess blood from it.
His emotionless eyes continued to look ahead without a single thought on his mind.
I slowly walked towards him. As I got closer, he quickly turned his head towards me with the same emotionless eyes before pointing the sword at me, forcing me to stop on my track.
He… probably thought I was another enemy.
Once he finally saw who I was, his emotionless eyes widened with pure shock before retracting his sword back, looking away with shame "Sorry! I thought you were an enemy."
Hearing his voice… For some reason, it made me feel at ease. As I began to relax, I slowly looked back at him, smiling. "No worries." I looked around the area. There is no other sign of life other than us. "I'm guessing you took care of all the swordsmen by yourself. I took care of the magicians, so we eliminated the current threats."
He tilted his head with slight confusion before looking around the area. "Ah... I was wondering why the magic suddenly stopped appearing..."
He looked back at me, now showing me his usual warm smile before gently placing his unstained hand on my cheek. "... Are you feeling alright...?"
I looked deeply into his eyes. Despite showing a bright smile, his eyes showed a hint of worry for my well being.
The shock from committing murder still hasn't subsided.
I slowly placed my hand on top of the one he has on my face. The shock from earlier made my body temperature drop. But the feeling of his warm hand gently spreading on my face, I can't help but feel even more at ease…
I slowly closed my eyes, gently stroking his hand as I smiled warmly at him. "Your hand feels so warm..."
The moment the midnight-haired boy heard those words, his face immediately turned red.
I slightly pirk up, feeling his hand getting even warmer. "Hmm...? Your hand feels... warmer..."
The midnight-haired boy covered his mouth while looking the other way, trying so hard to hide his face.
His face remained completely red as the white-haired boy continued to enjoy the warmth of his hand. His other hand and eyes quivered nervously but the rest of his body remained steady to not disturb the white-haired boy's peaceful moments.
I quickly opened my eyes, looking slightly guilty at August. "Ah! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stay like this. You must've felt uncomfortable..."
Still looking away, the midnight-haired boy quickly shook his head. "It's fine! If it helped you calm down, then I don't mind staying like this..."
I let out a small laugh. I gently removed August's hand from my cheek before holding it in front of me. "Thank you, August..." I stayed silent for a moment before looking sadly at the ground. "I just feel…" I stopped, hesitating to even say the word. "... I just never thought about the idea of taking someone's life..."
Hearing my sad tone, August slowly turned around before interlocked his hand more intimately with mine. "I see… I know that feeling all too well." He slowly looked up into the moon. "Forcefully being made to take a life because you want to protect those around you, or to protect yourself from danger. Even if you are not ready..."
His gaze soon turned back to me. His solemn eyes continued as he showed a subtle smile. "It must've been hard for you..." He then brought me close to his body before wrapping his arms around me. "Whenever you are feeling down, know that I am here for you. Even if it's for something small, don't hesitate to reach out to me. I will make sure to bring you back into spirit."
Those comforting words... I couldn't help but feel happy... I wrapped my arms around him before closing my eyes again, staying silent for a long moment. After that, I gently broke free from the hug, worrying about the current situation. "That reminds me... We need to check in on Sir Nilo to see if he's alright."
August removed his hand around me, taking a step back before nodding. "True. Judging by the amount of mana the chancellor possesses, he probably has five rings... We should start heading there now."
He then looked in the direction where the trees were smashed and torn down from the kick that Nilo did earlier.
August awkwardly scratched his head as he looked at the completely destroyed scene in front of him. A cold sweat ran down his face the more he looked at it. "... Just how much was he holding off against me...?"
I let out a small laugh. August turned to me before reciprocating the laugh before we started heading down the path.
The mage who continued to cast his magic on the sick empress couldn't help but overhear everything they just said. An awkward silence filled the space.
"... I am glad that the Empress didn't hear any of what they said..."
Shortly after he said those words, one of the empress's fingers twitched.
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A large cough echoed through the isolated and destroyed space. Many trees were damaged and even lumbered while the ground around them were cracked and dented.
A huge dent in the center of the lot stood the old men, keeled over on his knees.
His face and body filled with many cuts and bruises, with blood oozing out from his abdomen from a fatal wound all while his sword lay in front of him, broken into tiny fragments.
Nilo stood in front of the old men with his short sword on the old men's neck. Not a single scratch was found on his clothes…
The old man forcefully lifted his head to meet Nilo's eye. "Just... how did I... get bested... like this...?"
Nilo tilted his head with confusion. "Is that really a question?" He retracted his sword and placed it on his shoulder, tapping it as he contemplated seriously. He looked around before looking back at the old men.
"Your sword's trajectory was easily predictable to guess. Judging from your slender frame and your rusty swordsmanship, you haven't honed your skills in a while. Furthermore..."
He leaned forward a little. Meeting the old man's eyes directly. "You were just too weak."
He straightened his posture. "I've dealt with a lot of people like you. Too overconfident, too simple, and way too absent minded." He then closed his eyes before cracking his neck. "It was just a bad match up. That's all."
The old man gritted his teeth. He angrily looks at Nilo. "Bad match up!? Don't give me that crap! If I just have more power… I will definitely kill you with my own hands!"
A huge burst of mana started surrounding him. Nilo suddenly got pushed back from the sudden mana outburst. The amount of dust and soil flowing in the air made it hard for Nilo to see as he squinted his eyes. The old man reached out for his pocket before grabbing a crystal black pill.
Nilo's eyes widened at the sight of it. He immediately threw countless daggers at the old men to stop him from taking the pill. But even after hitting his body, he continued to hold the pill in his hand before putting it in his mouth and swallowing it.
The mana quietly subsided, and the old men stood there motionless. He raised his head, exposing his black eyes while black cracks began appearing throughout his face and body. He soon stood up but remained still.
Nilo drew both his short blade and dashed towards the man. After he got close to him he aimed to slice his neck.
This time, however, the man was able to react to Nilo's speed. He blocked the attack with his bare hand before covering it with black flame. The flame slowly started consuming Nilo's blades.
Nilo widened his eyes before letting go of both blades. As they reached the ground, they continued to burn until it completely melted into liquid.
A black aura began to cover the old men. He slowly laughs out loud, covering his eyes before looking at Nilo. "What are you going to without your weapons–"
Once again, Nilo appeared in front of him before doing a roundhouse kick near his neck. The old man quickly blocked the kick with his arm but was still flung into a nearby tree.
Nilo quickly puts down his leg. "I still have my legs. They're pretty strong. Stronger than my blades if I say so myself."
"Tch." The old man stood up from the place he was thrown. He cracked his neck, looking at Nilo before dashing towards him with his flame-covered hand stretched out.
Nilo swiftly dodges the hand, places his knee at the old man's abdomen before kicking him up in the air once again.
The old man coughed again as he flowed up into the air. Nilo crouches, the land starts cracking around him before he jumps up to where the old men were at. He quickly prepares a drop kick. The old men looked at him once more before being struck right back at the ground.
As he violently crashed down on the ground, he coughed out a substantial amount of blood. But just before the old man could stand back up, Nilo landed on his back with significant impact, making him cough up more blood as his back arched unnaturally beyond its limit. Nilo then places his feet on the old man's head, crushing it down into the ground.
"Like I said, my legs are much stronger than my blades."
In the near distance of the destroyed path, two young children with midnight blue and white hair running towards them.
Upon hearing the breath of the children, Nilo quickly looks at them with panic. "Young master, your highness! Quickly leave! It's still not safe–"
The old man looked at the children, his eyes widened while he showed a sinister smile. He stretched out his hand, an arrow made of aura covered in black flames quickly formed while it hovered in his hand. "My real task was to eliminate those children, not you. I'll make sure to take at least one of them out!"
"Tsk!" Nilo quickly kicked the old men into a nearby tree, but the arrow headed to where the white-haired boy was.
The white-haired boy widened his eyes as the arrow quickly began approaching. He summoned forth a mana shield, but upon contact, the flames melted a hole in the shield.
"What?!"
The arrow was about to pierce me. I don't have any time to dodge now.
What can I do?! Should I use another type of magic to block it?!
Upon the countless thoughts running through my mind, I was suddenly pushed to the side by August. I widened my eyes as I saw that the arrow that was about to strike me was now about to pierce his body.
I stretched out my hand towards him. "August!"
The arrow soon pierced his shoulder before dispersing into tiny fragments.
August violently collapsed to the ground, gritting his teeth while tightly covering the injured area to prevent further blood-loss.
I quickly ran to his side, dismayed about what just happened.
"Young master! Please get his highness to safety! It is not safe here!"
But even as Nilo yelled out to me, I couldn't recall what he said.
My breathing got unstable. My ears are ringing loudly, too loud to even understand anything he just said. My heart continued to pound uncontrollably. As I continued to look at the injured August, I just couldn't help but blame my incompetence.
A trickle of tears ran down my face as I looked at him with utter guilt. "... W-Why...? Why did you save me?!"
August slowly opened his eyes. Despite being in pain, he had a bright smile on his face. "... I just didn't want you getting hurt... that's all..."
I widened my eyes as he uttered those words. My breathing began to get even more unstable. I feel my lungs feeling like it's about to explode. My vision slowly blurring everything out before I quickly placed my hand near my heart, trying my best to calm down.
"Oi! Relax! You're hyperventilating, you cannot afford to pass out right now! If you do, that is an automatic death sentence!"
I heard Azar's voice echo through my head once again. But I couldn't comprehend what he just said.
I continued to cry. I continued to blame myself. "... Everything is my fault..."
My existence itself just causes so many misfortunes. Because of me, my parents had to suffer. Because of me, my siblings couldn't receive true love. Because of me, so many people had to deal with my incompetence.
Because of me, August got hurt.
My entire body froze at that sudden thought.
Hurt...
As that single word continued to ring through my mind, everything turned silent. The area around me soon turned white. It felt like an eternity, but I slowly calmed down before gently rubbing my eyes.
As I looked around, I was no longer in the destroyed forest.
I was in Korea...
Sitting on a park bench while the fickle nature of the green leaves falling from the trees fills the scene in front of me. I could hear the countless laughter of young children flowing through the wind as the smell of countless food that I thought I would never get to smell again appeared.
I looked at my hand.
They're not Lysander's hand...
It's my original body hand.
"Brother. What's wrong...?"
I froze. I slowly turned towards the direction of that voice. The same silky medium-length brown hair and eyes...
Chun-Jan...!
Sitting next to him...
A girl with wavy fringe brown hair. Long enough to reach her lower back. The same brown eyes and facial structure as Chun-Jan. She continued to look at me with a worried face...
It was Minji...
✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦ . ⁺ . ✦
The midnight-haired boy continued to tightly squeeze the injury on his shoulder, trying to prevent further blood loss. But despite the attempt, the injury continued to ooze out blood at a dangerous rate. The midnight-haired boy couldn't help but feel relieved, though, that such pain is not being done to the person he cares about.
"... Heal..."
A white light soon enveloped the boy's injury. Slowly, the injury began to close before completely healing. The midnight-haired boy slowly opened his eyes before sitting up. He gently moved his shoulder for any uncomfortable feeling that may have resided.
"It's all healed..."
"Don't move too much. Your wound is healed, but that doesn't mean that your condition has improved. You lost a lot of blood, so it's better if you just stay still."
"That voice... It sounds like Lys..."
The midnight-haired boy quickly glances at the white-haired boy, who was sitting on his knees with a smile on his face. The white-haired boy slowly places both hands on his lap before closing his eyes.
The midnight-haired boy smiled warmly, just like he usually does. "Thank you, Lys..."
But before he could finish thanking him, his eyes widened, staring at the being in front of him. The white-haired boy looked the same as before, even wearing the same clothes, but something felt off about him.
Above all else, the aura behind the young boy felt completely different...
The same warm and pure white aura filled with kindness and innocence completely disappeared from him.
It was something revolting.
An aura that shows just how many victims the being in front of him finished off with their own hands. Displaying a sadistic nature as the aura surrounding the white-haired boy was filled with red and black spikes.
The white-haired boy tilted his head, wearing a fake smile on his face. "What's wrong, August?"
August's eye soon sharpened at the sight of the being in front of him. He gritted his teeth, squeezing his hand together. "... What did you do to Lys...?"
The white-haired boy continued his fake smile before slowly closing his eyes.
"Hmm..." He nonchalantly opened his eyes, putting his index finger over his mouth as he then smiled sadistically at the young boy.
"I'm afraid I can't tell you~"