"Alise! Everyone!" The elf's voice cut through the evening sky as the members of her familia assembled before her.
Some leaped from wall to wall, while others handled the long distance in a single drop. "Lion!" cried Alise, running straight over to Ryuu.
"We came to get you!" The other girls then gathered around her, each saying their piece.
"Finally found ya, you little runaway," said Lyra, both arms behind her head.
"You girls sure took your time getting ready, huh?" Arin called out to the girls. Their attention turned towards him, noticing his bloodied form, blood seeping through all his clothes, his shoulder still bleeding.
Kaguya smirked, gesturing at his battered state. "Oh my, did you forget you're supposed to dodge the pointy end of the sword?"
Olivas's suppressed voice interrupted the conversation. "Astrea Familia?!" But soon his smile returned. "So what? One measly group of second-class adventurers isn't enough to stop our army!"
The cultists let out a cry of triumph and swarmed the girls, attempting to overwhelm them with numbers.
"Hm," said Alise. "We can't have a decent conversation with all this noise. And there are people to save, too…"
The girl was undaunted by the oncoming army. With one hand on her hip, she puffed out her chest underneath her breastplate and cried,
"Let's do this, everyone!" In her right hand, she pointed her blade, Crimson Order. "Nobody else gets hurt! Your days of tormenting the weak are over!"
On her command, the other girls all brandished their weapons and attacked. Like the snap of a bowstring or an outburst of emotion, they leaped into action with a singular cry.
"Haaaaaaaahh!!"
The battle raged on, but anyone could tell, the fanatics were being pushed back as the battle dragged on.
"Hraaaaagh!" Ryuu roared as her sword struck home, shattering the magic sword in Olivas's
The impact knocked the man off his feet and into a pile of rubble.
____________________________________________________________________________
"Looks like that's my sign to get out of here, Bu-bye Hero-kun." Vallette backed off from out fight, turning around to run, but was blocked by Alise and Kaguya.
"You are not going anywhere." Said Alise, leaping at Vallette with her rapier in hand.
"So annoying! Oye, you lot keep them busy!"
I noticed Olivas was trying to run as well, as a horde of fanatics attacked Asfi and Ryuu.
"Alise, Kaguya, keep this bit*h busy. I am going after that bastard!" I said and started chasing him.
"Wai- Arin!" I ignored Alise and kept chasing, because I knew Vallette was a slippery one and wouldn't get caught, and if we let Olivas escape too, then it would be a stalemate all over again.
We need this to be a victory.
But I won't lie, I want to eliminate him simply out of hate as well. Because if I let him leave now, He will again try to kill Asfi if not now than in the future.
So I won't allow you to escape, Olivas!
(OST: DanMachi - Heroic Desire "Eiyuu Ganbou" (Argonaut) [Familia Myth])
Shortly after, he noticed me chasing him as he entered an alleyway.
The chase lasted for several minutes until we came to a clear, wide area.
"You are really stupid, High human, chasing me alone like that." He spread his arm wide. "Did you forget! I bear the strength of a Level 5! Even with that shiny magic of yours, you are not my match! I am–"
CLANG!
I did not let him finish as I jumped at him, bringing my sword down, which he intercepted.
"Shut the hell up!" I snarled, pressing down with all my strength. The golden-silver light of Astrum Cordis flared brighter.
Our blades ground against each other, sparks flying like tiny stars. He pushed back, forcing me to leap away.
"Level 5, huh?" I spat, circling him like a predator. "You talk too much for someone who just got his ass kicked by a level 4 elf."
His face twisted with rage. "You little—!"
CLANG! CLANG!
We collided again, this time neither giving ground. My sword work was cleaner, more precise, but his raw power was overwhelming. Each clash sent shockwaves through my arms.
He drove me back into a wall, chunks of stone raining down. I rolled away just as his blade carved a crater where my head had been.
"I'll tear you apart!" Olivas roared, his movements becoming more wild, more savage.
I ducked under a horizontal swing and slashed upward, carving a line across his chest.
"GAAAAH!" He howled in pain and fury, backhanding me across the face.
Blood filled my mouth as I staggered back, but I was already moving, blue flames erupting from my free hand.
The fire engulfed his left arm, and his scream was inhuman.
"RAAAAAAGGGH!"
"GRAAAAAAHHH!" I howled back, my voice raw and bestial as I launched myself at him.
We were no longer fighting like skilled adventurers. We were beasts with technique and pure killing intent.
Our blades met in a furious exchange. I caught his sword on my guard and drove my knee into his ribs.
Something broke. He doubled over, gasping, but caught my follow-up strike with his bare hand.
Blood poured from his palm as my blade bit deep, but he didn't let go. Instead, he smiled through the pain and headbutted me.
Stars exploded in my vision. My nose felt broken, blood streaming down my face. But the pain only fed the rage burning in my chest.
"DIIIIIIE!" I roared, my bladework becoming a deadly dance of precise strikes aimed at vital points.
We crashed through the remnants of a market stall, wood splintering around us.
He grabbed a broken plank and swung it at my head. I parried with perfect form, redirecting the force and countering with a thrust that barely missed his throat.
"Is that all?!" Olivas snarled, raising his sword for a killing blow. His technique was flawless despite his rage. "I expected more from someone who—"
Blue flames erupted around his legs, and he screamed as the fire ate at his flesh. I surged upward, my blade aimed at his heart with surgical precision.
He twisted away at the last second, my sword carving deep into his shoulder instead of his chest.
"GRAAAAAAHHH!" His howl was bestial, inhuman. Blood sprayed everywhere as he staggered back.
But I wasn't done.
"RAAAAAHHH!" I howled like a rabid animal, but my strikes remained controlled, each one targeting weak points in his defense.
He parried desperately, his movements still skilled despite the blood loss. Even wounded, his experience and level 5 strength showed in every counter.
I backed off to dodge his horizontal swing, kicking a large stone in his direction to block his vision. He cut the stone in half, his sword mid-swing. I took the chance and thrust my sword at his throat, but he twisted his body back at an inhuman speed.
Lifting his feet in an attempt to kick my face, but I dodged by a hair's breadth; there was a distance between us again.
I moved.
"You... you're insane!" he gasped, barely deflecting a strike that would have severed his carotid artery.
"Says the bastard who burns people for fun!" I snarled back. My blade carved intricate patterns through the air, each swing calculated to maximize damage.
We locked blades again, both of us breathing hard, covered in blood and sweat. His footwork remained solid, his grip perfect despite the wounds.
"GRRRRAAAAAHHH!" I roared, spittle flying from my lips as I pressed against his blade with textbook leverage.
"HRAAAAAAGGGH!" He howled back, matching my strength with proper form, our voices mixing into something inhuman.
But I could feel it—the exhaustion creeping into my limbs like poison. My shoulders burned, my legs felt heavy, and worst of all, I could sense my mind reserves draining at an alarming rate. Astrum Cordis was consuming my mind faster than I could replenish it, the golden-silver light around me flickering intermittently.
We separated, both raising our weapons for what we knew would be the final exchange. The air between us crackled with killing intent, but our forms remained flawless.
Then we charged.
CLANG!
Our blades met in the center, the impact sending shockwaves through the air. I felt my arms go numb from the collision, but I pushed through, spinning around his guard and aiming for his ribs.
He twisted away, my blade scoring a shallow cut across his side instead of the deep wound I'd intended.
"Getting tired already?" Olivas taunted, but I could see the strain in his eyes, too. Blood loss and the curse blade were taking their toll on him.
I didn't waste breath on a reply. Instead, I feinted high and struck low, my sword biting into his thigh.
"Gaaahhh!" He stumbled, swinging wildly to keep me at bay.
But the movement cost me. My mind reserves dipped dangerously low, and for a split second, Astrum Cordis faltered completely. Olivas caught the opening, his fist connecting with my solar plexus.
The breath left my lungs in a rush as I doubled over, gasping. He raised his sword for a killing blow, but I rolled away desperately, blue flames sputtering weakly from my hand.
"You're finished!" he snarled, pursuing me with renewed vigor despite his wounds.
My vision blurred. Each breath felt like fire in my lungs. The mental strain of maintaining my enhancement was becoming unbearable, but I couldn't stop now. Not when I was this close.
I parried his next strike, barely deflecting it away from my neck. The force sent me stumbling backward, my legs shaking from exhaustion.
"RAAAHHH!" I roared, more out of desperation than rage now, launching myself at him one final time.
Our blades crossed in a flurry of desperate strikes. I was operating on pure instinct now, my body moving on muscle memory while my mind teetered on the edge of collapse.
Then I saw it—a tiny opening as he overextended on a thrust meant for my heart.
With the last dregs of my strength, I twisted aside and brought my sword down in a perfect arc, the blade biting deep into his sword arm just above the elbow.
CRACK!
The sound of bone breaking mixed with his agonized scream.
"AAAAAAGGGHHHH!"
His sword clattered to the ground as his arm hung useless at his side. I didn't give him time to recover, driving my knee into his wounded ribs with everything I had left.
He crumpled, falling to his knees and then onto his back, gasping and writhing in pain.
I stood over him, feeling too exhausted to even move, but my duty was not complete, not until I burned him to cinders.
I observed his form as he lay in a pool of his own blood.
I raised my sword, stabbing his heart.
"GUAAAAAH!" he screamed in pain, light fading from his eyes.
"HAAAAAAAAH!" I screamed, mustering every ounce of my mind reserved, conjuring blue flames around my blade; his heart burned, so did his body. I did not stop until his corpse turned to pure black like charcoal.
Finally, I withdraw my sword.
I just want to rest.
I thought, swaying on my feet, my vision blurry, until finally I collapsed on the broken ground, all the strength left my body as my vision got darker and darker, until darkness was all it remained.