Chapter 2 Eshantel’s Inquisitor

“Hurry up! Eshantel is shaken after their crushing defeat, so grab only the bare minimum in terms of weaponry and put on your best war face!”

Jamka’s voice boomed through the training grounds, directing the confused troops in the warm spring sunshine. The soldiers were wearing their combat apparel, but there was no sign of the tension that would usually to fill the air before a battle. It was as if they were going out on an afternoon stroll in order to comfort the defeated Eshantel troops.

“I’ll go talk to them first, so you just stay here and watch.”

Jamka said as his right sleeve fluttered in the spring breeze.

“No, they reported sightings of the Inquisitor himself. This is now a diplomatic matter, so I should go first.”

Al smiled mischievously and mounted his horse. Of course, he’d left his scythe behind to prevent any unnecessary rumors. Jamka couldn’t do much but let out a heavy sigh and drop his shoulders.

“Haah, I knew this would happen... Okay, but I’m going with you, and we’re taking some troops--”

“I’ll be going, so there’s no need for that.”

“Oh my. I’ll join you as well.”

In the meantime, Sharon and Cecilia lined up next to Al, both with determined looks.

“I’ll be going too, of course.”

“Ahhh!”

Startled by the quiet whisper from behind, Jamka reflexively drew his sword.

“Oh, you dare to pull your sword on a guest of the state? This is now a diplomatic issue. Al, I’ll have you do everything I say unless you want an all-out war.”

“Wait, wouldn’t that damage your reputation too? Gah, whatever. I’ll do what you want as long as it’s not something too wild.”

What kind of Diva would try to blackmail me instead of simply asking!?

Al let out a defeated, tired sigh, while Feena nodded and ran up to Al’s horse.

“Nhh!”

She turned toward Al and stretched her arms out.

“Would you like to get on my horse?”

Two silent, small, happy nods.

“Well, I don’t think anything will happen. We’re only going to welcome Eshantel’s soldiers, after all.”

Though he would be meeting the broken, mourning soldiers with two Divas at his side and a third on his very own horse. One could argue that Althos’ king had gotten a bit ahead of himself
and only wanted to boast about the beautiful girls in his domain.

“Don’t worry, I know Kanon very well. He would never think you’re arrogant.”

She knows him very well, huh...?

Without noticing Al’s inner turmoil, Feena stretched her arms out again.

“What’s her relationship with Kanon...?”

He whispered, but they didn’t have the time to discuss it. It would have been rude to make Eshantel’s army wait any longer.

“Oh my, how dare you ignore me and latch onto Al.”

But Cecilia seemed to have more pressing matters at hand.

“How scary...”

“Gahh!”

Feena turned toward her and whispered. Al thought this matter would drag on for a bit, but...

“Rgh... I’ll let it slide this once...”

“What!? She gave up already!?”

Al and Sharon said in unison at the unforeseen development.

“Come on, Al. Hurry up!”

Cecilia acted like nothing had happened while Feena was waiting to be picked up.

“A-Ah... Too late...”

Sharon was shaking due to missing her chance to object. The way her mouth was flapping made her look like a...

“You look like a goldfish. Congratulations, you’ve evolved from a gorilla to a fish!”

Feena casually finished Al’s thoughts.

“I have not! And why is a fish more advanced than a gorilla!?”

“A goldfish can’t talk or make a ruckus. I’d call that an improvement.”

“I’ll have to sit down and have a serious talk with you one day.”

Even though Sharon apparently wanted to talk, she grabbed her sword and eyed Feena from her horse.

“Wait, wait, wait. If we spend any more time here, the Eshantel delegate will give up and go home!”

Al rushed between the two girls.

“Tch. Fine.”

Sharon shot Al a sharp glare as if she had something more to say, but she just turned away and pouted.

Geez, why do I have to deal with all this right before facing Eshantel’s army and its leader?

Al looked at Feena, who’d been staring at him like a well-behaved puppy waiting to be picked up. Equipped with his trusty Special Anti-Heavenly Surge Gauntlets, more commonly referred to as ordinary white gloves, he reached out to Feena.

“I’ll listen to you for now, but promise me you won’t make a racket! He might be your friend, he’s still an esteemed guest who came to us for help!”

He pulled her up. Of course, Feena was their guest as well, but that’s a different matter. It seemed like she hadn’t caught hypocrisy, as she happily sat behind Al and wrapped her arms around his waist.

“All right, let’s go!”

Al was praying that their meeting would go without any issues or misunderstandings.

But his prayers weren’t heard. Not because Sharon picked a fight, Feena launched a spell, or Cecilia used Bind with her usual, abusive wording, it was simply because Eshantel wasn’t in need of help or looking to form an alliance. After learning what Eshantel truly wanted, they went back to the castle and gathered three hundred troops, along with Jamka, to once again meet Eshantel’s army at the northwestern border.

“Halt!”

After sighting the opposing army, Jamka gave his order.

“All right, we’ll be leaving. I’m counting on you, Jamka.”

Al casually said goodbye and waved to his friend. Jamka furrowed his brow and opened his mouth,

“Take care!”

but decided to leave it at that. With three Divas, each able to take on a thousand soldiers, they should be relatively safe.

“Yeah, don’t worry. You three make sure to do as I say too.”

Of course, he didn’t forget to warn the three girls not to start any unnecessary brawls.

“Oh my. Don’t worry, I won’t move a finger as long as you remain unharmed.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m staying back unless they attack first.”

“It’s a wife’s duty to listen to her puppet’s orders.”

I have a bad feeling about this… But I don’t think any of them would agree to watch from the sidelines.

That alone proved that they weren’t really obeying him, but Al decided to let it slide. In the meantime, they had galloped closer to Eshantel’s army.

“So that’s Eshantel’s army. They’re few in number, but they’re still said to be the strongest army on the continent.”

Al whispered from on top of his horse. Eshantel was Althos’ neighbor to the northwest. It was surrounded by tall mountains from north and east, the sea from the west, and a deep forest covered in thick fog from the south. It was an unreachable part of the continent. Because of their extreme seclusion, they had developed their own, unique culture. They called their soldiers “warriors”. Instead of traditional broadswords, they were equipped with slender, curved, single-edged katanas, and their armor wasn’t the usual boorish steel variety, either. They decorated their equipment with various cloths and thick, colorful strings. Seeing the army from afar, their decorated armor was both overbearing and gorgeous.

“Wow, how pretty.”

It seemed like both the Diva of the Sword herself and Al shared the same opinion as they stared at the army in front of them.

“They’re wearing such extravagant armor to make sure their lord, their Inquisitor, sees their prowess on the battlefield. Their armor also serves as their burial clothes. Kanon once said that a warrior’s last moment should be filled with splendor as they offer their lives to the Inquisitor.”

Feena whispered from behind Al. She seemed to be in a good mood, probably thanks to her friend’s wellbeing.

“Say, what kind of person is that Inquisitor?”

Al asked the girl behind him. He was incredibly curious. After all, the Inquisitor was Feena’s friend.

“He’s a gentle and energetic man, the same age as me. We met in a brawl two years ago, which served to decide his spouse.”

A brawl? Doesn’t she mean a ball? What in the world was she doing before coming here?

Al was thoroughly confused.

“So, did you win?”

Logically speaking, she’d only be here now if she’d lost, but Al couldn’t help asking.

“I lost, but that arena was made for close-quarters combat. It was not a fair fight for a spellcaster such as I.”

It seemed like that day still haunted her, though it was unclear if her anger stemmed from her loss or  from not becoming Kanon’s spouse.

“But Kanon is Eshantel’s strongest warrior. He was trained by his father, and I might have lost regardless.”

Feena sounded happy about recalling her memories of her good friend, but Al was getting more and more uneasy.

“And Kanon... maybe...”

“Huh, really? What’s that blade on his back? It seems really fragile; is that what all their warriors use?”

Completely blind to Al’s struggles, Sharon interrupted Feena with a tone that radiated pure curiosity. Maybe she just wanted to say something, but it was a rare occurrence regardless.

“That’s called a katana. The blade is hammered countless times to make it slender and flexible, then it’s polished and sharpened. Kanon once showed me that he could split a huge rock in half with a single slash. He called it Iai, which I later read is the art of drawing one’s sword, cutting down the opponent, and sheathing it.”

Feena answered Sharon to the best of her ability.

They can get along when they want to, huh?

Looking at the two girls chatting, he unintentionally squinted. But a moment later...

Hyuuuuuuuuuu!

Was that some sort of bird!?

“That’s... Eshantel’s battle cry!”

Just as Feena started her explanation, an arrow whistled by their ears and struck the ground. A single horseman began galloping in front of the completely dumbfounded Al. The clanking of his armor overpowered the sound of his horse’s hooves on the hard ground. Curiously, this horseman alone was wearing completely plain steel armor.

“You must be Althos’ emissary.”

Said the armored figure with a voice befitting a teenager.

“I know this voice... Kanon?”

Feena whispered from behind. It seemed that it was none other than Eshantel’s Inquisitor, Kanon.

“That’s right. I’m Althos’ King, Alnoa. I have heard of the destruction that befell your country. We would offer to aid you in your recovery if you came for our help.”

Al said in a friendly tone. He was hoping that the arrow was shot by a single warrior by mistake, on edge after a lost war. But instead of thanking him, the armor-clad figure only leaked bloodlust. His horse galloped even closer to Al while letting out loud neighs.

“Demon King Alnoa!”

Kanon whispered something, but it didn’t reach Al’s ears over the sound of the horse. Even though it was perfect spring weather, Al could feel chills running down on his spine and a cold sweat running down his cheeks.

I’ve felt this once before…

Unfortunately, he didn’t have the time to shuffle through his memory. He once again raised his voice to try to talk it out with Kanon.

“We don’t want to fight. First--”

“Shut up! I don’t want to hear a word from the Demon King!”

Kanon’s voice boomed through the field as he slowly approached the young king.

Isn’t he supposed to be a kind person?

He could feel the bloodlust spewing from the depths of Kanon’s helmet.

“Freiya’s Diva and Feena... You weren’t satisfied with turning Freiya’s and Subdera’s Divas into your playthings, so now you turned towards Eshantel... But know this: I won’t give in so easily, Demon King!”

Kanon drew his sword and thrust it toward Al. Al already knew what was going on. A simple, innocent misunderstanding. He considered telling Kanon that he was the one who usually ended up as their plaything, but that’d probably just make matters worse.

“Kanon, you seem to be misunderstanding something! Let’s leave our weapons and armor behind and have a talk!”

Al shouted, but...

“You won’t fool me, Demon King! I know you can impregnate women just by looking into their eyes!”

What sort of rumors am I getting caught up in!?

Just as he was beginning to sink into despair...

“I’ll have our little baby in here...”

“Why are you latching onto these rumors!? Hey, get your hands off your stomach!”

He turned around and scoffed at Feena.

“Oh my, you’re right. This rumor is just... Urgh. I feel like throwing up.”

“Cecilia... Are you getting sick? Is it morning already!?”

“Cecilia! I know you’re joking, but stop!”

“You’re disgusting! You savage!”

“Calm down, Sharon! Don’t believe all this! Wait, put that sword down!”

With a single sentence, the group had fallen into chaos--no, into complete mayhem. It was information manipulation on a whole new level.

“A-Anyway, let’s just talk, okay?”

“No! I didn’t come to talk! I came here to defeat you!”

It seemed like the farce was over, as Kanon stared right into Al’s eyes, his bloodlust raging within him. Yes, right into his eyes.

“Ehh!? Wait, I’ll--”

He began galloping in... Al’s general direction. Feena let a quiet sigh slip upon seeing Kanon’s unpredictable actions.

“Kanon is unbelievably pure and naive, so I think he looked away because he doesn’t want to get pregnant.”

“But he’s a dude!”

For starters, what kind of Demon King could impregnate people with their gaze? Kanon didn’t even stop to think about that; he stayed his course at full speed. Once Kanon got close enough… he quickly strafed his horse right into Al!

wham!

Al tried moving out of the way, but he was too late. Kanon’s horse slammed into his own.

“What? Whoaaa!?”

The force of the impact threw both of them off their horses, and they landed right on top of each other.

“Grahhh!”

Pinned under the armored Inquisitor, Al croaked in pain.

“Al, don’t cheat on me!”

“Is that what this looks like to you!? We’re both guys, you know!”

Feena hurriedly got off her horse while voicing her concerns. She was certainly quite the bride candidate, but Al had to focus on the current situation instead of Feena’s delusions. Feeling an armor-clad man’s breath on his cheeks wouldn’t even amount to the S in “seductive” unless Al went dangerously close to crossing a border he wasn’t ready to cross.

“Prince--no, Inquisitor Kanon... Could we calm down and settle this with a talk?”

Al somehow squeezed some words out despite his body  literally being squeezed to death by the armored man on top of him. Kanon’s orchid eyes met Al’s gaze. Then,

“A-Augh! You’re a man!”

“Huh!? But so are--”

bam!

Kanon headbutted him mid-sentence. Al could practically feel his brain shake inside his skull
as his head plummeted into the ground.

“Hm? I’ve seen this attack before...”

He thought before the pain got the better of him.

“Oh man, that was close. I nearly got pregnant!”

Kanon hopped off the ground as if his armor were made of paper and jumped away from the crouching Al, who was hugging his head in immense pain.

“Ow, ow, ow... I bet you feel oh so high and mighty because I screwed up!”

Al shouted some less than diplomatic insults as he got himself up.

“That’s right! Now it’s time to get back the people you kidnapped!”

Not only would Kanon not listen to Al, but he also boasted some grave misunderstandings.
He probably had his eyes shut as he shouted at Al, facing the complete opposite direction.

But why is this happening in the first place? We’ve rarely ever encountered Eshantel, but they’re hostile toward us and seem to believe that I attacked their country as the Demon King...

He could only think of one possible explanation.

The Empire!

“Kanon, wait. Listen to Al.”

He snapped back to reality when he heard a familiar voice. Feena was now standing between Al and Kanon.

“Feena? Is that really you?”

When Kanon caught a glimpse of Feena, his bloodlust disappeared for an instant, but...

“Yes, it’s me, so please calm down and listen to Al.”

As Feena stepped closer with her arms spread, covering Al, Kanon’s bloodlust returned in full force.

“Kanon...?”

Feena called out to him in a shaky voice.

“No, Feena. You fell victim to the Demon King’s brainwashing. I can’t listen to you now.”

Kanon grabbed the hilt of his sword.

“Feena!”

He ran toward Feena, but it didn’t seem like he would make it. Kanon launched himself forward, closing the distance between him and the girl in an instant.

“Don’t worry, he will use the back of his sword.”

“Kanon...?”

She must’ve had the utmost faith in him. She just stood there, completely defenseless without her wand.

“Sorry...”

The blade sparkled for a second before...

clang!

The sound of metal striking metal and the delayed whirlwind-like impact filled the battlefield.

“What the-- Whoa!”

A curtain of dust enveloped them, interrupting Al. He couldn’t fathom what had just transpired. As the dust slowly settled, their figures finally became visible.

“Hey... I thought you were Feena’s friend. That attack could’ve easily killed her.”

Sharon stood in the middle of the dust, protecting Feena with her broadsword, along with Kanon, shooting a sharp gaze at them, his sword swaying but still holding strong against Sharon’s power.

“Someone told me that your brainwashed subordinates are protected by an evil power, so I don’t need to hold back. Moreover, I couldn’t even scratch Feena with a puny attack like this.”

“You’re right. She’s as cunning as a fox, so she may have escaped unscathed. That gloomy face and conveniently wordless act only hide a silent killer...”

Sharon firmly grabbed her sword.

“Sharon, whose side are you on again?”

But Sharon completely ignored Feena’s remark and stared at Kanon with a forced smile.

“But more than anything, she’s my greatest rival! I won’t ever let a sneak attack take her down!”

“Sharon...”

Feena whispered. Sharon was itching with curiosity about Feena’s expression, but...

“First, I’ll beat him till he cries and make him beg for your forgiveness!”

Sharon swung her sword upward, accompanied by a huge roar. Her opponent launched high into the sky, cutting through the wind. Despite the audible crash, Kanon landed safely on the ground.

“Ahahaha, how impressive! This armor weighs over two hundred kilos, but that’s child’s play for a Diva, after all! As a side note, my weight is top secret!”

He said in a mocking voice as if he was just playing around, but...

“I guess it’s time to start getting serious.”

Contrasting his happy voice, he meticulously sheathed his sword and… vanished into thin air.

“There!”

clang!

Sharon swung down at a seemingly random spot, but Kanon suddenly appeared at the end of her sword. His drawn katana took Sharon’s swing.

“Ahaha, impressive! Now...”

Kanon spun his body around, drifting his katana along Sharon’s sword.

“Hahh!”

Using the centrifugal force to his advantage, he kicked Sharon in the stomach.

“Kyah!”

Sharon suddenly flew backward.

“I forgot to mention this, but don’t think this sword is my only weapon.”

He said teasingly.

“Hah. I thought you were some sword maniac, so I wanted to play along with your game...”

She swayed as she got up off the ground, but her eyes were filled with fire and determination, like a wild wolf hunting its prey.

“But in that case, I won’t hold back either!”

Sharon fixed her grip on her sword and shattered the earth. Not metaphorically, however. She quite literally gouged out the ground in front of her.

“Your weapon is all about cutting, but it has nothing on this much rubble! I hope you like being buried alive!”

Sharon realized his weak point after exchanging only a couple of blows. She had him in checkmate. Or so she’d hoped.

“I’d like to congratulate you, but my sword isn’t just some measly knife!”

He said as he lowered his center of gravity, pulled his sword back as much as possible with his right hand, and thrust his left hand forward.

“Haaaaaaaaaa!”

He stabbed his sword into the giant lump of earth with all his might. Al heard a loud bam, and in the next moment… Kanon scattered the giant lump with his sword,
and returned it to its sender.

“Wait, it’s coming this way!”

As Al tried to flee, he spotted Feena, completely frozen in place.

“Ahhh, what now!?”

In a complete panic, he ran up to Feena.

“Cecilia! Tell Jamka to fall back! We’ll find a way to deal with this!”

“Oh my. Be careful!”

He found some solace in his sister’s unwavering smile despite such mayhem, but...

“We don’t have time, Feena! Fall back!”

“...”

She completely ignored Al’s desperate cries. There was no way to escape the huge lumps of earth flying at them.

“Shit!”

Cursing like no royalty ever should, he blasted off toward the incoming boulders to cover Feena.
But then...

“Burst.”

Sand began dancing around her, forming a circle before violently bursting outward. That sand explosion sent the incoming boulders flying...

“Aghhhh!”

Along with Al, who’d been on his way to do something about the incoming danger.

“Hm? Al, are you okay?”

Feena turned around as if nothing had happened and helped Al out from under the rubble.

Right, even if she’s careless, she’s still a Diva.

He started to regret rushing in to help as he was spitting sand out of his mouth.

“You thought something incredibly rude just now, didn’t you, Al.”

“No, not really. Either way, if we don’t stop those two soon, they’ll transform the entire area into their playground.”

He tried to change the topic.

“You’re right...”

Maybe Al’s serious expression changed her mind, as she once again looked at the dueling pair, and...

“Stars in the infinite sky, heed my call...”

She began chanting a spell.

Wait, Feena’s chanting!? This can’t be good.

“Feena? You can cast spells without any sort of chant, right?”

Al looked at her anxiously.

Please tell me she isn’t doing what I think she’s doing.

Al was praying to any and every deity he could think of. Feena stopped her chant and turned around.

“Yes, but I still need a chant for a spell strong enough to stop those two.”

She went back to her chant after finishing her explanation. Upon realizing that the word star was coming up more and more often, Al was mortified.

“Hey, Feena. Are you honestly trying to cast Meteor Fall?”

Al was hoping he wouldn’t be right, but Feena slowly nodded. His guess was right on the mark.

“Stop! Stop with the chanting! If you let that spell loose, this whole area will be turned to ash!”

“It’s okay. That’ll happen anyway if those two keep going at it.”

She wasn’t wrong about that.

“And I’ll only summon a small meteor. One that’ll affect a five-kilometer area.”

“Oh, that’s a relief. The only problem is that I and all of our troops are included in those five kilometers!”

“Ah!”

“Don’t ‘Ah!’ me! What were you thinking!?”

“Then are you going to stand here and watch them go wild?”

Silencing Al’s retort, Feena drew his attention from her own failure to the two that created the ruckus. Al rubbed his temples in frustration and let out a deep sigh.

“Haah... Fine, I’ll go.”

He turned to face the ongoing duel. All he could see in the curtain of sand was two shadows clash for a moment, accompanied by a metallic clang, before they separated an instant later, kicking up even more sand.

What in the world is going on in there?

He cautiously began walking toward them.

It’s okay, I’m protected by the seal. I’ll survive as long as I can defend against Kanon’s attacks... I think...

He took a big gulp before heading into the heart of the battlefield.

“Stop, you two! Let’s put the swords down and have a talk!”

But a moment later...

“Hahhh!” “Ahhhhhhh!”

Al had unknowingly become the next clashing point for the two figures.

“Gahhh! Ughhh!”

Two muffled screams rang out, followed later by a third one from Al. The impenetrable dust wall hid the outcome of the attack from the onlookers. Everyone expected his abdomen to have been pierced by Sharon’s sword from the left and Kanon’s katana from the right. But thanks to the seal, both swords were repelled, and the attackers were blown back by the recoil.

“Huh? Why?”

Kanon couldn’t fathom why his blade hadn’t reached Al.

“The Demon King can repel relics, huh? What an otherworldly power.”

Dumbfounded, Al didn’t hear Kanon’s mumbling; his eyes were glued to the armor-clad figure.

“Are you a Diva?”

Al believed Kanon was a man. He was staring at him, praying for an explanation.

“You don’t even know anything about your neighbors, Demon King? I’m the first man on the continent to use a relic!”

“I’d heard you could match a Diva blow for blow, but I didn’t think you’d be using a relic.”

He wanted to know how--and why--this was possible, but at the same time, he realized something else, something far more crucial.

Wait, does this mean I have to do Heavenly Surge with a man!?

“Al, get out of the way! We’ve just finished warming up!”

Sharon snapped him out of his inappropriate train of thought. But it seemed like she was completely lost, swallowed up by the fight to the point that she’d forgotten the reason they were at each other’s throats in the first place.

“She’s right. You’re an eyesore.”

Agreeing with Sharon, Kanon’s cheerful voice was full of authority...

shudder

Al felt the chills getting to him again. They couldn’t see each other because of all the dust, but chills ran down his spine regardless...

“It’s like... the door to the seal?”

The door’s image suddenly popped into his head. For some reason, Kanon’s voice reminded him of that place.

“Not going to move? Then die!”

Kanon’s cheerful voice boomed through the devastated battlefield. It seemed like they wouldn’t get to sit down and talk anytime soon.

“Let’s put the swords down for now! If you continue, our armies will get tangled up in this too!”

“My... people...”

With that, Kanon’s bloodlust faded slightly. At that moment...

“Now’s my chance!”

Sharon blade swept in from the side, aiming for Kanon while completely disregarding the fact that Al was in its way.

“Ughh!” “Ahh!”

Al was instantly blown away, and Kanon, who’d had his guard down, met the same fate.

whaaaaam

“Sharon, you--! Why the hell did you attack him while I was in between you two!?”

Al cried out in pain, but...

“What’s the big deal? It’s not like I can kill you.”

Sharon just shrugged it off.

I swear, I’ll make her regret this.

But to do that, Al first had to get up from the ground. He put his hands on the ground to help himself up, but... one of them landed on something much softer than the ground.

Haah, am I seriously doing something so cliché with a guy!?

While cursing at the one-trick pony deity laughing at his misfortune, he got up. The armor-clad Kanon was still lying on the ground, but Al could see a little bit of his white skin peeking out from under the armor. It was one of his snow-white shoulders, its complexion unlike anything Al had ever seen on a man. Al was holding it in his hand.

“Thank goodness. I expected to become part of a much crueler game.”

Just as he was about to let out a sigh of relief...

“Kyahhh!”

Huh? Who was that?

An unusually arousing voice spread throughout the battlefield. Al immediately snapped out of his relieved state of mind, as that scream came from none other than the person behind steel helmet under him.

“Gah... Kill him for showing you such disgrace! You hear me? Put that pervert down!”

“Disgrace? We’re both men! What am I supposed to do!?”

Just as Kanon looked away...

“Support the Inquisitor! Fire your bows!”

Countless arrows launched from Eshantel’s army, accompanied by the warriors’ battle cry.

“Geez, what the hell is going on!?”

Al reflexively began rolling on the ground, trying to gain as much distance from Kanon as possible. His efforts were for naught, however, as he spotted two horsemen charging toward them. The two horsemen were holding a firm net between them.

“Gah. They want to catch me alive?”

Al stood up and drew the sword at his waist in order to protect himself from the approaching danger.

“...Huh?”

“Tch. We’ve lost... We’ll stand down for today.”

Kanon tossed out that remark as the horsemen left with him in tow, his armor clanking as he bounced on the ground from inside the net.

“What in the world...?”

As Al watched the unbelievable scene unfold, a red-haired figure approached him from behind.

“Hey, what other slimy tactics you have up your sleeve to drive the enemy away, huh!?”

It was Sharon, and she wasn’t happy at all. She wanted to lash out after what happened on the ground, and with good reason, but Al felt like he was being falsely accused here.

“N-Nothing happened! I didn’t do anything inappropriate! And he’s a guy, too; I just touched his shoulder!”

He was trying his best to explain himself, but...

“That’s not the reaction you have when someone touches your shoulder! He seemed... y’know... turned on... Wait, are you playing for both teams!?”

“No! I’ll never ever activate Heavenly Surge with a guy! Look, I’ve even been wearing my gloves!”

Al stared back at Sharon, his mind set on clearing up their misunderstanding.

“Hmm, so you have... Well, let’s leave it at that for now.”

It was unclear if Al had managed to persuade her or if she’d just gotten bored, but whatever the case, Sharon moved on, preparing to leaving. He spotted the blue-haired Diva from the corner of his eye. She’d been silent ever since Kanon and his army had left. Al didn’t have time to think about it during the battle, but she was just attacked by her friend.

“Well, I know that feeling...”

As he recalled the image of his one-armed friend, Al slowly walked up to Feena.

“Say, Feena. When I was feeling betrayed, you told me something, remember? You said that Jamka must’ve had his reasons. I think the same can be said for Kanon.”

He gently put his hands on Feena’s shoulders.

“Al...”

She put her hands on Al’s without turning around.

“Cecilia is the one who said that.”

“Huh...?”

Talk about a screw-up.

“Ah, no, umm... Well...”

Al completely lost his composure. He wished the ground would swallow him up.

“But... thanks.”

Al felt his earlobes heat up at Feena’s tiny whisper, so he turned around, left wondering how effective his encouragement really was.

“Yeah... Thank you too.”

He somehow managed to squeeze those words out.

“All right, Eshantel’s retreated, so we should pack up and head home too!”

After gently slipping his hands off Feena’s shoulders, Al started walking back to his people.