[Third Person's PoV]
Vanessa, with a mischievous grin, treated Asta like a marionette, wiggling her fingers as she made him do an awkward crab walk.
"This isn't funny!" Asta shouted, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment, still gripping his two swords tightly.
The others chuckled, the tension easing as they let out sighs of relief. It seemed the battle was finally over.
But before Asta could say anything else, Vanessa suddenly yanked him back with her magic, her expression shifting to alarm.
"What the—?!" Asta yelped as his body flew backward.
As he was pulled away, the reason became clear. Vetto, who had been presumed defeated, began to stir. His form erupted in a blazing aura of chaotic mana that engulfed him, the energy sphere around him growing rapidly in size.
"He's trying to self-detonate!" Vanessa yelled, her voice filled with urgency.
Luck, standing nearby, gave a nervous grin despite the sweat beading on his brow. With his heightened magic detection, he was one the first to grasp the full scale of what was happening. "Hehe… with that much magic power, he's not just taking out this temple. He'll obliterate the entire city!"
Stephen's hands moved rapidly as he began preparing a spell, but Yami placed a firm hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"Leave him to me," Yami said calmly. "You've all done enough."
Stephen looked at Yami in confusion, but the captain simply walked forward, his presence radiating confidence. The massive sphere of mana loomed ahead, dwarfing him, but Yami remained unfazed.
With a puff of smoke escaping his lips, he gripped his katana tightly in one hand, his other holding his cigarette. His grimoire floated beside him, glowing with an ominous dark purple light.
"You've all done a damn good job surpassing your limits," Yami said, his voice steady yet filled with pride. "Now, as your captain, I can't let my own squad outshine me, can I?"
Dark wisps of energy began to emanate from his blade, coating it entirely in an inky black aura. Yami raised the katana high above his head, both hands gripping the hilt firmly.
"I'll show you all here and now what it really means to surpass your limits!" he bellowed.
With a mighty shout, Yami unleashed his attack.
[Dark Magic: Dimensional/Slash]
He swung the sword down in a graceful yet devastating arc.
Stephen's eyes went wide as he realized Yami's intent. "No, wait—!" he shouted, but it was too late.
The swing was elegant yet overwhelming, and for a moment, there was only silence. Then, a thin, vertical line appeared, cleaving through Vetto's body. The cut extended further, slicing cleanly through the unstable sphere of mana and the temple beyond. It was as if the very fabric of space had been split apart.
The massive temple now bore a colossal vertical slash, a fissure that stretched all the way to the outside, bisecting the structure.
Vetto's body erupted in a fountain of blood as it was severed into two perfect halves. The chaotic magic surrounding him dissipated instantly, the threat neutralized in one decisive strike.
Yami let out a low whistle as he admired the aftermath of his attack. "Wow. I should decide to surpass my limits more often."
"THAT ISN'T SOMETHING YOU JUST CASUALLY DECIDE!" the group shouted in unison, exasperation etched across their faces.
Puffing his chest out proudly, Yami smirked. "Might not be for you lot, but for a prodigy like me, it's easy. Saw Gramps"—he gestured toward Stephen—"punch a dimension apart and thought, 'If he can punch it, why can't I just cut it?' And just like that, limit surpassed."
"You idiot!" Stephen snapped, his irritation plain. "When you said you'd stop him, I thought you meant neutralizing his attack—not killing him!"
Yami tilted his head, genuinely confused. "But I did stop the attack… by killing him."
Stephen took a deep breath, his hands making a calming motion even as his eye twitched. "How exactly am I supposed to question him when he's dead?"
Yami shrugged nonchalantly. "Ask someone else, duh." Without a care, he started walking away confidently, his katana resting on his shoulder.
Stephen's fingers twitched, making a strangling motion toward Yami's retreating figure. Before he could act on it, Magna spoke up.
"Hey, you know time magic, right? Just do what you did back on our first mission."
Stephen sighed heavily. "As much as I hate to admit it, the captain's got a point."
"He does?" the group chorused in confusion.
Stephen nodded reluctantly. "If Yami had just neutralized the attack, I would've stepped in and interrogated him. But now that he's dead, I really don't feel like wasting my time—or my magic—bringing him back. I'll just find someone else who knows what I need to know."
His voice was calm, but the truth lay in Stephen's defining trait: his pettiness. He would rather remain oblivious to ancient secrets than bring Vetto back, all because of a single snide comment Vetto had made when they first crossed paths.
He knew it was immature. He knew it was petty. And he didn't care one bit.
Asta, still paralyzed from Vanessa's magic, turned his pleading gaze toward Stephen. "Uh, Stephen? Could you maybe heal me now? That'd be great."
Stephen, not one to pass up a chance to petty, smirked and placed a hand on Asta's back. A green magic circle appeared, glowing softly as Stephen chanted:
"Temporalis Sanatio Accelera Recuperation."
[Time Magic: Hasten Recovery]
In seconds, Asta's body straightened as he flexed his muscles. "I CAN MOVE AGAIN! THANKS, STEPHEN!"
Stephen hummed in acknowledgment, brushing off the gratitude. But before Asta could say more, his stomach let out a deafening growl.
Asta clutched his abdomen, his face flushing red with embarrassment. "Uh… looks like all that fighting really took it out of me."
At that moment, the High Priest appeared, his booming laughter echoing through the room. He carried his injured son atop one of his bizarre magic constructs.
"HAHAHA! Don't worry about that!" the High Priest declared jovially. "I promised you all a feast and a party, and I always keep my promises. It's the least I can do for the heroes who saved my little city!"
Just then Charmy appeared floating towards them on a cotton cloud with Guach and woman with short light blue hair covering her face in embarrassment.
"WORRY NOT! FOR I CHARMY HAVE COME TO SMITE THE EVIL DOER!" Charmy declared boisterously pointing forwards like a commanding General.
Everyone just stared at her in disbelief as she continued to shout.
"HERE IS HE! BRING HIM TO MY FEET! I'LL SHALL LAY WASTE TO HIM!!"
Stephen had an amused look and shook his head before Nero came flying in, Stephen was surprised to see her as he didn't even notice her leave.
She appeared in front of him and in her mouth, was the Mana Stone which they came looking for.
Once in his hands Nero flew towards his shoulders and Stephen rubbed her bird cheek with his finger, "Thanks"
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