"WAKE UP, EVERYONE!" Leon shouts, shattering the half-silent atmosphere.
Leon charges. Predator charges.
"ALL OF YOU, GET THEM!" the Figure commands. Soldiers emerge from the surrounding darkness and storm toward the three tents.
"Damn!" Leon exclaims. Before him, Predator reaches for his sword.
C-TAST—Leon thrusts into Predator's ribs. It does not penetrate.
"What—?" Leon mutters, feeling the impact recoil through his own hand instead.
Predator's motion does not stop. He grasps his sword and swings.
"Damn, the distance—" Leon says; he cannot fully evade in time.
DUAAR—A bullet strikes Predator's sword. The shot comes from Santiago's arquebus behind Leon—just before several soldiers leap at Santiago and overpower him.
Predator's swing halts midway, allowing Leon to evade completely as the blade moves again.
"Damn, damn, damn, DAMN!" Leon shouts, surrounded on all sides. The battle erupts. He fights by force, while Rose—his sister—and the others are taken one by one as time passes.
"BEAST!" Leon roars, preparing a stance before charging.
"Yes, this is how it should be. Now, the show begins!" the Figure declares.
C-TAST—C-TUST—SKLASH—
Abdomen, stomach, ribs, heart, neck—pierced, penetrated in rapid succession by Leon against Predator.
Predator's sword falls from his grasp. Leon moves to strike again, aiming for a vital point that will end the fight.
"Hey, hey. I do not wish for it to end that way," the Figure says, as Leon advances and Predator begins to fall.
"ALL OF YOU, RELEASE A RAIN OF ARROWS!"
"No, no, no, NO!" Leon screams into the stillness before the end.
"LEEEOOON!" Rose's faint voice echoes.
Leon freezes. He cannot evade. Arrows fill the sky, descending toward him.
Rose is restrained and dragged into a carriage. Leon gazes at her deeply, offering a sincere smile at the end.
"NOOOOO!"
---
SKLASH—SLASH—SWASH—HASH—Arrows fly; several pierce Leon's body, while the rest strike the ground and Predator.
Some arrows penetrate almost entirely through him—one even through his neck.
Predator is unable to rise, with more arrows embedded in his body than in Leon's. Leon collapses to the ground, powerless, as the Figure approaches him.
Step by step, drawing nearer, surrounded by several soldiers, the Figure takes a sword from one of them and stops before Leon.
"This is the end of your life, Leon," he says flatly. "Whether it ends in meaning or in vain depends on the answer you give to the question I am about to ask."
Leon slowly lifts his head to look at him.
"You beast!"
"Hmm! In vain, then?!" the Figure mutters.
He swings the sword—SLASH—cutting him down.
---
HWOOOM—the ship's horn tears through the distant air.
"That's it." I immediately begin to run. The harbor sounds close now; its direction is clear.
The pouch of treasure I have carried since the beginning of my journey will be reduced by half for this.
The rest will be for the veil. I do not yet know how I will earn coins afterward.
From behind the trees, as I emerge from the forest, the harbor comes into clear view—the ship is preparing to depart.
HWOOOM—HWOOOM.
I calculate that I am not too late. As time passes, I draw closer to the ship. At last, I arrive.
C-TAANNGGG—the sound of the anchor being raised echoes. I begin to board.
I have already set aside half of my treasure for this. I pay the fare and step inside.
I do not know how long the journey will take. What concerns me now is whether I will endure until I arrive there.
The pain does not fade as quickly as it usually does.
---
Morning becomes noon, noon becomes evening, and evening turns into night. I cannot remain calm enough to sleep. I buy food and drink from the vendors aboard the ship, yet that is not the problem. I am simply not accustomed to traveling alone like this. Still, it is nothing significant. In time, I will grow used to it.
Soon the sun will rise. Usually, several newspapers arrive on the ship by carrier pigeons. I missed them the previous morning, but this time I will make sure not to.
Directly before me, a faint orange light begins to ascend. The sun is about to rise. The newspapers usually arrive when the sun has fully emerged. I turn and walk to the proper place—down from the upper deck—and lean against the ship's wall, waiting for the newspapers to fall from the sky.
TAKK—TAKKK—TAAKKK—TTAAKK—Several newspapers drop from above.
I look up. A few pigeons pass overhead before turning back toward the direction from which they came.
I step forward slowly and take one lying before me. Then I return to the deck, reading as the sun continues to rise.
I unfold the newspaper. There are many recent reports. Usually, the central pages contain the matters that will soon be widely discussed.
"Huh?!" I mutter.
Several days after the arrest of a fugitive group suspected of being connected to the crystal, a decision was issued from the Western Center.
From the palace of Nimurelle, the royal seal was affixed to an official proclamation. In the name of the Six Lands Accord agreed upon centuries earlier, a grand assembly was declared to convene once again. Its purpose was clear: to follow up on reports concerning the use of the Absolute Magic Crystal, long forbidden to be possessed by any individual.
The order was not delivered in secrecy. Messenger birds were released from the palace towers carrying scrolls marked with the emblem of the Western Center. At the same time, mounted envoys were dispatched by land to the other five nations. They traveled long routes across the borders of Notchollow in the North, Gaelvorn in the East, Ilgnisar in the South, Zepharia in the West, and Solcendria in the Central East.
The content of the message was uniform and left no room for interpretation.
The rulers were requested to attend in person or to send official representatives vested with full authority. The assembly would be held in the grand hall of Nimurelle, where the original accord concerning the crystal had first been affirmed. The primary agenda was the examination of the individual suspected of using the crystal and a review of intercontinental security.
The proclamation further emphasized that absence without legitimate cause would be regarded as a violation of the collective agreement. The situation was declared to be at a high level of alert.
Across the lands, palace bells were rung as the message arrived. Advisors were summoned. Troops were placed on standby. The name of the crystal was spoken once more in the same tone recorded in history: a threat to the balance of the world.
Meanwhile, in the underground chambers of Nimurelle, the prisoners were kept under strict guard, awaiting the appointed day.
The Assembly of the Six Lands would be opened once again.
That is the content I gather from the newspaper I have just read.
"HUHHH?!"