Chapter Four: The Final Battle!
Chapter Four: The Final Battle!
“I’ll end this in a heartbeat!” Breaking their intense staredown, Sharon put a leg forward and jumped at Al. “Aaaaaaah!”
She closed the distance between them in an instant and mercilessly swung her sword at him.
“So fast! Hey, Sharon, are you trying to kill me!?”
Sparks scattered through the air as Al hurriedly blocked Sharon’s swing with his scythe.
“You asked me to go all-out, didn’t you!? So I’ll go all-out!”
He’d simply wanted to go with a turn of phrase often used in similar situations; he didn’t actually think Sharon would take him up on it. But without any consideration for his feelings, her blade once again approached him, drawing a beautiful arc in the air.
“Wah! Eep!” Al held onto his scythe as though his life depended on it and screamed like a little girl.
Clink! Pzzzzzt…
After successfully blocking the attack, Al’s scythe flew out of his hand and slid along the ground with an unpleasant, mocking sound, as if it were laughing at its own wielder. Sharon looked at him boorishly, almost disappointed.
“Al, how many times have I told you to get a good grip on your weapon!?”
He remembered that advice very clearly. Acting like a bad student who’d let down their master, he averted his gaze.
“Gotcha!” He reached for the daggers at his sides, enhanced with Sure Hit, and threw three of them at Sharon. He figured his surprise attack would give him enough time to pick up his scythe.
“Kyah!”
Hearing Sharon’s pained scream, Al swung his head around to see her crouching down while covering her face with her hands.
“Ah! Are you okay!?”
Forgetting about the duel, Al threw all his plans out the window and rushed to Sharon. She immediately looked up, revealing her beautiful, spotless face, but Al didn’t have the luxury of relief.
“Al… What are you doing, falling for the simplest trick in the book!? We’re fighting, if you hadn’t noticed!”
He fell for her trick hook, line, and sinker. It was in his nature to help those in need, so he completely dropped his defense as he approached Sharon. His only option was to brace for her brutal counterattack.
“But, since you rushed to help me so quickly, I’ll forgive you just this once!” She flicked his forehead, which was more painful than expected, and bashfully looked away.
“O-Oh, okay.” Al could only babble when he saw how embarrassed she’d gotten.
“Oh my, he’s having an awful lot of fun during this historic battle.”
“A meaningless farce.”
“Right? Even their training sessions felt more serious than this.”
Al had a couple of things to say to those backseat fighters, but he chose to focus on the duel.
“A-Anyway! Prepare yourself; we’re starting over!” Sharon heard the comments as well, but unlike Al, she couldn’t let them slide. She shrugged off her previous bashfulness and faced him with a fire in her eyes. “Don’t fumble around anymore! Fight like you mean it!”
The battle restarted with a powerful strike from Sharon.
Claaang!
This time, Al managed to block her blow.
“Good! See, you can do it if you try! Now then…”
He successfully blocked her follow-up attacks as well. Sharon was clearly holding back, but the force that traveled down his scythe with each attack reverberated through his bones, nearly making him drop his weapon.
“Good, let’s get this ball rolling!”
Sharon powered herself up even more. Ignoring the pain in his arms, Al clutched his scythe.
“What are you playing around for, Sharon!? Win this stupid duel already!”
“Kyah!”
Ranbolg’s angry shout was followed by a feminine scream.
“Airi!”
“Sharon! Dispose of King Alnoa at once! If you don’t…”
Ranbolg held a knife to Airi’s chest. His actions seemed to be on the lubricous side, only enhanced by the girl’s racy expression.
“Ya damn perv! Git that knoife—”
“Silence!”
Al’s instinct about the depravity of Ranbolg’s threat seemed to be on the mark, but what was even more surprising to him was the scream that had come from the athletic, powerful-looking girl’s mouth.
She looked forward wordlessly, giving Al the impression that the girl being held hostage had a similar past to Sharon’s. He glanced at her for confirmation, but got nothing of the sort.
“Sorry, Al. I’m going all out,” she whispered before launching a lightning-fast attack.
“Agh! Grahhh!”
She wasn’t kidding. Her sword collided with his scythe, yet it sent him flying all the way into the group of onlooking soldiers.
“Are you okay!?”
If Kanon hadn’t caught him mid-air, he definitely would have mowed down a platoon’s worth of soldiers with his own body.
“I’m not, but…” As Kanon helped him get back on his feet, he clenched his scythe and glared at Sharon. “All right, it’s time to get real! I’ll beat that cockiness out of you!”
Talking big, he carried his scythe in one hand and launched himself toward Sharon while lobbing a dagger her way. Then, he flipped his head to the side.
“These toys will never—Ahh!”
Pow!
Immediately after deflecting the dagger, a blinding light flashed in front of her.
“This is the prototype of our newly developed ‘Firecracker Mark II’! It doesn’t do any damage, but it’ll blind you for a while!”
He pulled out a couple of regular Firecrackers and littered them around Sharon to mask
his steps with the explosions.
“Take this!” Holding his scythe backward, he swung at Sharon from behind.
Clink!
Huh? Wait, I was expecting her to hunch down in tears.
“What are you shouting before a sneak attack for!? Are you stupid?”
The disappointment in her voice was as clear as day. She’d successfully used Al’s voice to pinpoint his location, and blocked his scythe with her sword after it slightly tore the back of her clothes.
Well, at least she won’t get mad at me for exposing her chest. Wait, what are those scars? He spotted a couple of ugly scars on Sharon’s back, but he didn’t have the time to ask where she’d gotten them.
“Oh well, that was just a distraction. My real goal is this!” Saying that, he took out a leather water pouch from his bag and impaled it on her sword.
“Wait, is this—!?”
Al’s mouth curled into a smile at Sharon’s dumbfounded expression.
“Exactly. It’s oil!”
After confirming that her sword had been coated in oil…
“Fire! Heed my call!”
…he produced a tiny flame at the tip of his finger and sent it flying.
Whoosh!
Her sword was engulfed in flames.
“Ahhh! H-Hey! What the hell are you doing!? This is a sacred artifact!”
“Just trying to get any edge I can!”
Sharon dropped her sword, greatly impairing her offensive power. This was Al’s chance to strike.
“Aaaaargh!”
He put all his might into his next attack, but she dodged it with ease. Regardless, he had to forge on. He employed every lesson he’d learned from her with his next flurry of attacks.
Pulling his arms closer to his side and lowering his stance so his swings would be more focused, Al began relentlessly yet precisely swinging at Sharon while also faking some of his strikes to throw her off.
But nothing worked. She danced around his strikes like a graceful ballerina.
“You’re finally putting our training to good use, but that won’t work anymore! I’m much nimbler without my sword!”
Al had expected her to be more agile, but his estimations were way off.
“How can you be so fast when you’re always stuffing yourself with food!?”
Sharon barely managed to dodge an overhead swing from Al.
Fwump!
His scythe got stuck in the ground.
“Because I’m a Diva!” She stepped on the scythe with one leg and kicked Al away with the other. “The tables have turned!”
Seeing that the flames had long dissipated from her sword, she jumped back and picked it up.
“Surrender now if you don’t want to get hurt even more!”
She watched Al tumble across the ground while resting her sword on her shoulder.
“Hah! Do you honestly think I could face Cecilia, Feena, Kanon, and all the citizens who fought tooth and nail to get me here if I surrendered after getting scratched up a little!?”
Al got up and charged at Sharon headfirst.
“Huh. Okay, then I’ll beat that sense of responsibility out of you!”
Sharon blasted off toward Al, closing the distance in a blink of an eye.
“Aaaaahhh!”
One swift strike to the side was enough to send Al flying, but her relentless onslaught didn’t end there. She practically teleported behind the airborne king and hit him back in the direction he’d come from. She repeated this routine a few times before letting him catch his breath.
“Gah! I know you’re holding back, but this still hurts like hell!”
He may have not taken any damage from the sword itself, but being pummelled back and forth took its toll on his body.
“So? Ready to surrender, or do you want seconds?”
She pointed her sword at Al’s neck. He could almost feel the bloodlust seeping from her blade, and yet he managed to stay calm.
“Why don’t you come back to Althos instead?” Al said, blindsiding her.
“What!? You have no idea what you’re talking about; I’m here to fulfill my dream! The time I spent in Althos was for my dream as well, not because I enjoyed your company!”
“I’m the Demon King. Don’t you need my power to fulfill your dream?” Al took Sharon’s powerful, rage-filled gaze head-on.
“It doesn’t have to happen with you! Wouldn’t you also take the shortest route to your dreams!? It’s clearly the right choice, so surrender and—”
“Then why are you looking at me like that!?” he interrupted. “You should be overflowing with joy since you’re at the brink of reaching your dream! If beating me to a pulp will get you a step closer to realizing your goal, then come at me! Don’t hold back!”
Al’s voice carried the last droplets of power he had. Sharon watched in silence as he used his scythe as a cane to help himself up from the ground.
“You’re always so happy to smack people around, but I can see the pain in your eyes every time you swing that sword.”
Completely defenseless, he slowly dragged himself toward Sharon. He grabbed the tip of her sword and pressed it against his own chest.
“If you have to defeat me for your dream, then get to it! If you can’t kill me while holding back, then knock me out! Breaking a limb or two and making me crawl should be easy enough for you!”
She knew. No matter what divine protection Al had, he couldn’t escape a Diva’s attack unscathed. The force of her strike would carry through even impenetrable armor, and the human body wasn’t designed to withhold a barrage of high-powered strikes.
“What, you’re telling me to get serious while you’re not even powered up with Heavenly Surge? I might end up killing you, idiot!”
The truth spilled from Sharon’s mouth, as did a single tear from the corner of her eye. She’d confirmed to him that she’d been holding back the whole time, and that she knew that as long as he lived, no matter what happened to his country, his dream would live with him. That’s why he decided to push on.
“But I have to press forward. I won’t betray my own dream. Being defeated here would mean throwing everyone’s trust, hopes, and dreams away. The dreams of my people, Cecilia, Feena, Kanon… and you.”
“My… dream…” Sharon felt a mix of surprise and happiness learning that she had a place in Al’s dream.
“Exactly! Ever since we shared that moment looking out at the lights from the castle wall, we’ve shared the same dream. So if I lose here, your dream would die along with mine! Isn’t that… Isn’t that why you look like you’re being tormented!?”
It was such a self-absorbed argument that she would have thrown countless complaints at him on any other day. But now, she couldn’t. If she did, her dream might die for good. All she could do was stare completely stunned at Al, who wielded his scythe.
“Al, m-my… my dream…”
The legs she used to relentlessly pursue him, the arms she used to mercilessly attack him—they were trembling.
“I know. It might take a while, but I promise, I’ll help you get there. So please, come back!”
Al, barely able to stand, swung his scythe at Sharon. The moment it touched her side, he collapsed.
“Al… Okay. All right, I lost. Let’s go home. I want to go home.”
Sharon caught him in her arms before his body hit the ground. Her face visibly lit up, vanquishing the rugged look occupying it before. The events that transpired could be called an extensive lovers’ quarrel or a heroic duel, but one thing was for sure: the fight was over. At least, they thought it was.
“Fire!” Gatou’s voice, along with a hail of arrows and a raging firestorm, shattered the tranquil scene.
“Hahaha! Well done, Gatou! We don’t need a Diva corrupted by the Demon Lord!”
Sharon shot an angry glare at Ranbolg while holding Al in her arms. This was the worst timing for an ambush; escaping the incoming danger was impossible even for a Diva. They would perish on the spot.
“I’m sorry, Al!” she said as she hugged him tighter.
“I told you, it’s ‘thank you’, not ‘sorry’.” He slipped out of Sharon’s arms and stood in front of her, protecting her. “Demon King! Lend me your strength!”
He turned his palm toward the sky, allowing the black magic that spewed forth to eclipse the sun. The incoming arrows and spells were sucked into that black magic and disappeared into nothingness.
“Wha—!? Wait, are you the real Demon King!?” After witnessing Al’s incredible power, Ranbolg’s jaw almost hit the floor.
“Ice Lance!”
Feena used the opportunity to cast an ice lance at Ranbolg, which pierced his hand.
“Owwww! What the hell are you doing!?”
“Simple. I thought Sharon’s friend would come in handy later, so I saved her.”
Disregarding Feena’s cryptic comment, Airi slipped out of Ranbolg’s grasp and rolled away.
“Ranbolg, ya approved o’ this duel! Why can’t ya take tha loss?”
Everyone who witnessed their battle looked at Ranbolg.
“Oh, that’s right. We are the victors!”
“Indeed. My new job as Al’s legal wife is to train him to be a proper husband. Don’t worry, it won’t take long. We’ll go over everything in a single session without any breaks, be it for lunch or the bathroom!”
“That sounds like literal torture.”
The Divas claimed that the battle had ended according to the conditions, but…
“Shut up! I never accepted this duel! I’m done fooling around. All forces, massacre Althos and kill Sharon, the traitor!”
…Ranbolg scrapped the duel and screamed at the top of his lungs. Orders were orders, and as such, the Freiyan soldiers began carrying them out.
“Oh my, he should learn when to give up.”
“Is that really the issue here while we’re surrounded by thousands of soldiers? Things couldn’t have gone worse!” Kanon said to the strangely carefree Cecilia.
“She’s right. This wasn’t a wise decision.”
“Why? Do you want to sacrifice yourself and drop a meteor here, Feena?”
The Freiyan soldiers were struck with fear.
“I could, but I won’t.”
Hearing Feena’s denial, however, they let out sighs of relief.
“Brusch! Let’s do it!”
Boom!
At Cecilia’s command, an explosion shook the ground and a pillar of flame appeared behind her. Buying time by dueling Sharon had been worthwhile after all.
“Oh my, I’m so sorry. I should’ve mentioned that Brusch’s unit would burn your rations and supplies if you were to oppose the duel’s outcome,” said Cecilia with a content smile while using the bright pillar of flame as a backdrop. That sight struck fear in the enemy, as well as Kanon.
“Oh my, I believe you must surrender now.”
Freiya’s defeat was inevitable, but unfortunately, Ranbolg’s tyranny knew no bounds.
“Keep up the pressure! Once we defeat the Divas and march into Althos, we’ll get our hands on their supplies!”
“Don’t you dare threaten my people!”
Even Sharon froze for a second at the sound of Al’s enraged scream. She slowly turned her head toward him, and her eyes widened upon seeing the completely drained and beat-up Al stand up and look at her with fire in his eyes.
“Inexcusable. I can’t let him get away with that. Sharon, sorry to ask this after everything, but…” He flashed her a cheeky smile.
“Hah. Like I could defy the winner of our duel.”
Sharon smiled back at him, tightened her hug, and leaned closer to his face.
“Al, umm… This is a tiny little bit embarrassing, but I’d like you to touch me where Ranbolg did. Wipe his filth off my body.”
She directed his hand to her chest. Al gulped as he felt Sharon’s breasts change shape in his grip, but imagining the horrors she’d endured caused an insatiable rage to well up inside him.
What the hell did that bastard do to you!?
While he foamed at the mouth with anger, Sharon led his other hand down her torso.
“Umm… No one has touched me here before,” she said as he reached her upper thigh. Feeling confusion and hesitation in his movements, she pulled even harder, leading him right between her legs.
“Huh? Whoa, what!?”
In the midst of his seething rage and ever-growing lust, feeling his hand between Sharon’s warm thighs made him forget to breathe despite his heart racing faster than ever. He glanced at Sharon’s face to see that her cheeks matched the color of her hair.
“Ah! Say, could you, maybe, umm… take the lead now?”
This is it! She’s been hiding her ultimate weapon all along!
Learning about Sharon’s shy, bashful side spelled Al’s doom. He’d completely fallen for her, and he understood what she wanted from him. He slowly released her breasts and moved his shaking hand to her lips.
Boom!
Heavenly Surge activated the moment their lips touched, but something was different this time.
What is this…? The mana—no, something else is taking over my entire being.
An explosive surge of mana filled his body, and his stamina not only returned, but increased tenfold. In addition, Sharon’s memories were mixed in with the surge of power. Her feelings of grief, abandonment, and regret overtook Al’s soul.
So that’s what happened with your back…
Al suppressed his boiling rage and embraced Sharon as gently as possible. She was caught up in a flurry of emotions completely different from his, though her experience was more or less the same as last time: her body was heating up and her thoughts were hazy. However, her spasming body, caught up in the waves of mana and pleasure, was assaulted by something she’d never experienced before.
“What’s happening!? It’s almost like… I can feel you inside me… Hahhhn! Could it be… No, noooo… Ahhh! Something’s flowing into meeeee! Ahhhhhhhn!”
Did I just lose my purity? After losing control for a moment due to the surge of mana and lust, the link between her and Al was finally severed. Strange, my stomach feels warm. It’s… kind of nice.
She found herself happily stroking her stomach as Heavenly Surge finished. She wanted to enjoy the cozy warmth.
“What is this? It’s like I’m… bearing Al’s chi—”
“Let’s do this, Sharon!”
She was pulled back to reality with a pat on the shoulder from Al. Looking up at him, Sharon realized that he was fuming with rage.
“Why are you so mad?” she asked in a worried tone.
“You did well.” Al pet her head and fluffed her hair. From that simple action, she understood what was happening.
“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right! It’s a bit sudden, but I’m turning my back on Freiya!”
She turned her blushing face around, begrudgingly lifted her sword, and blasted off toward the Freiyan troops. Al, swift as the wind, passed her and jumped into the swarm of heavy infantry standing in their way.
“Aaaaargh!” He swung his scythe with a primal roar and mowed down multiple soldiers with a single strike.
“What are you standing around for!? Attack! That bastard is half dead already! Mages, provide cover!” Ranbolg was frozen in place witnessing Al’s sudden revival, but Gatou had his wits about him.
“Demon King! Lend me your strength!”
Black flames engulfed the incoming spells. The soldiers rushing to Ranbolg’s aid were easily mowed down.
“W-Wow…” Sharon stood back, watching in awe as Al single-handedly destroyed the enemy’s defense. He didn’t rely solely on the Demon King’s power, but used his own techniques as well to swiftly and easily decimate the enemy troops. Someone tapped her shoulder while she was lost in admiration.
“Oh my, he’s rather mad. I wonder what happened,” Cecilia said while keeping the incoming soldiers at bay with her weapon.
“Cecilia…”
Finally, it hit Sharon. She realized what was happening around her.
I… I betrayed Al. Am I really allowed to be saved by him and go back to his side like nothing ever happened?
The moment their eyes met, Sharon averted her gaze and stared at the ground in front of her, while Cecilia smiled.
“Oh my, he jumped through so many hoops to save you. I would feel bad for him if he got an empty husk in return.”
In any other situation, Sharon would’ve pounced at her, but this was different.
“But…” Sharon couldn’t get that damning thought out of her head.
“Listen, Sharon,” Cecilia said, letting out a small sigh. “Al is now enraged. Enraged beyond belief. He’s mad because of what they did to you and is fighting to make it right. You should think about whether it’s right to acknowledge my beloved little brother’s efforts with such a lonesome expression.”
“Cecilia, I…”
She clenched her transformed relic, Dáinsleif, and raised her head. Instead of being distraught, she wore a smile Cecilia herself would be jealous of.
“Now go. Go, and break free from your chains with your own two hands.”
Cecilia looked at her with the warm smile of a kind mother, to which Sharon looked back with teary eyes and a bright smile of her own.
“Thanks. I’m off!” She shot toward the Freiyan soldiers, leaving a cloud of dust behind her.
“The ex-Freiyan Diva, Sharon, moving out! Come, let’s dance!”
Sharon’s powerful smile had finally returned.
“Aaaaaaah!”
Ranbolg heard Sharon’s wild scream in the distance, but he didn’t have time to worry about that. The soldiers defending him were getting knocked out at an alarming rate.
“M-Mages! Archers! Get rid of him!” He gave out a panicked order.
“Demon King, lend me your power!”
Immediately following Al’s shout, black flames burst up behind Ranbolg, who was retreating with Gatou while being guarded by the Lost Children. The soldiers stationed around the headquarters also rushed to help, but they were no match for Al and Sharon’s rampage. Slowly but surely, they were catching up to him.
“Stop that man! Whoever stops him will drown in riches!” he shouted while running away at full speed.
Seeing their general run away killed the soldiers’ motivation, but they were ready to put on a fight for a hefty bounty. Driven by greed, they moved quickly, firing countless arrows and spells toward Sharon and deploying a magic barrier around their position.
“Aaaaahhh!”
She simply flicked the fireballs away and cut down the rain of arrows.
“Arrrrghh!”
Al sliced through the thick magic barrier with one swing, and blasted away the soldiers behind it with the next.
“You think you can stop me with that now!?” Al shouted, drenched in a cold sweat.
Controlling his strength when he was powered up with Heavenly Surge was no easy task. The mana in his body was running rampant, just like when he’d performed Heavenly Surge with Feena. It was like riding a wild horse, but this time, the pressure was even stronger. He felt like the Demon King would take over his entire being if he were to give in to his rage. He was desperately trying to control it, but every time Sharon entered his field of vision, he remembered the terrible scars on her back, which sent his emotions into a frenzy.
“It’s all your fault! Why did you have to do that to Sharon!?”
He spun his scythe, knocking out soldiers one after another, but Freiya’s numbers were far superior, and he quickly found himself surrounded.
“Shall I give you a sneak peek at hell!?”
Anyone would have been frightened if they were surrounded by a group of soldiers, but not Al. Not now. His eyes weren’t feral, like those of a beast ready for the fight of its life, but curious, like a child ready to crush some ants.
“H-Hey! Where the hell are the reinforcements!? What are those fools doing!?”
“Kyah!”
After being forced to retreat, Ranbolg finally lost his composure and hit one of the nearby Lost Children. He didn’t even look at the girl tumbling to the ground, and he’d rather have had his tongue cut out than apologize. This was a completely normal thing for him; those girls were nothing more than lowly slaves, after all, unable to even complain. But he felt like something was off. Even after relieving his anger, his mood didn’t improve in the slightest.
“It’s because of that Diva! It’s all Sharon’s fault!”
To divert his thoughts, he kicked the girl again and again, yet his anger didn’t fade. He frantically looked around in search of the reason, and soon enough, he found it. It was right in front of his eyes: the abused slave was glaring back at him.
“Y-You filth! How dare you glare at me like that! Come here, I’ll teach you how to behave like the obedient, worthless slave you are!”
Her face, her stomach, her limbs. Ranbolg’s wrath didn’t leave out any part of her body, but the girl’s scornful gaze didn’t change.
“We’ll… We’ll follo’ Sharon,” Airi, the tormented girl, whispered.
After witnessing Sharon’s transformation, she wanted to change too. She wanted to break free of her chains, smile, get mad, fight, and experience love just like Sharon did. She wanted to experience life itself. So, for the first time, she defied the very god of her world. Simply glaring at Ranbolg filled her heart with an insurmountable dread, but she kept on staring so that eventually, she would change.
The flame that awoke in her soul eventually spread to the other Lost Children, and the number of eyes fixed on him reached the hundreds.
“What? What are you jumping on her back for!?” Ranbolg screamed like a cornered dog and looked down at the collapsed Airi. “You whore! You’re still looking at me like that!?”
Ranbolg drew his sword and pointed it at the chest of who he believed to be the origin of this rebellion.
“Die!”
Thud! Thud! Thud thud!
Just as Ranbolg was about to strike, he watched his soldiers take flight in the background. By the time he regained his focus, he was face to face with the crimson-haired Diva.
“I’m sorry, but you won’t get any reinforcements. You’re about to learn that the friends I made in Althos are much more skilled and relentless than I am!”
Sharon winked while all hell broke loose behind her. In the midst of earthquakes and screams, Ranbolg could see a Freiyan soldier or two launch into the air. Feena, Kanon, and Cecilia were wreaking havoc amongst the enemy troops.
“Hah! So you think you’ve won!? I hope you didn’t forget that I still have this!” He sheathed his sword and pulled out the whip that had tormented Sharon for years, a deranged smile on his face. “Hahaha! Do you remember this!? The burning pain when it touched your skin!? The time you could barely even wriggle along the ground!? Remember!? You’ll never escape this whip! You’ll never overcome the terror deep within your soul! If you want to break down and apologize, this is your chance!”
The sight of the whip and Ranbolg’s words triggered Sharon’s vivid memories of her past. The days spent being whipped for the smallest, most asinine reasons, the sleepless nights spent weeping with pain. As more and more pictures of her past flashed before her eyes, she became completely paralyzed with fear. But right there, on the verge of breaking down, someone patted her on the shoulder.
“Sharon, get this: men are stupid, and if left alone, they’ll become cocky. At least, that’s what I read in one of Feena’s books.”
She turned to face Al, who was looking at her with a gentle smile.
“Hm. I guess you’re right. You’ve been pretty cocky lately, after all.”
As if she had merely been pulling a prank, she looked back at Al with a powerful smile and shrugged his hand off her shoulder.
“Hey, don’t lump me into the same group as that guy!”
Al shook the hand that was just brushed away.
“Don’t worry, I’m not. Now, just stand there and watch like you always do!” Leaving Al with insults as a form of gratitude, she turned back to Ranbolg.
“Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh!” Sharon’s roar shook the earth. All fighting stopped, and Ranbolg himself felt like he had stepped into the cave of a feral beast.
“Wh-What are you…”
That beast slowly approached the confused Ranbolg one step at a time.
“Yeah. I remember what you did to me!”
Sharon wore a grin. A grin that, unbeknownst to the frightened Ranbolg, defied her past. For the first time in her life, she went abroad as an assassin. For the first time in her life, she walked the streets freely and experienced the full extent of the cuisine. For the first time in her life, she met with different Divas and made friends she could banter with. And for the first time in her life, she fell…
The time she spent in Althos was such a thrilling, fun experience that it completely blew her dark past out of the water.
“Why!? Why are you smiling!? This whip should strike fear in your heart!” Ranbolg said in a shaky voice.
“Why? Let’s see… Maybe because I’m not only a Diva, but the bride candidate of the Demon King.”
“Enough of that nonsense!”
Crack!
Ranbolg desperately struck down with his whip, aiming right at Sharon’s face in hopes that it would once again strike fear in her soul.
“Huh. This hurt a lot when I was a little kid. I was deathly afraid of your whip.”
But his last pillar of hope was destroyed by a ferocious yet beautiful smile.
“Wh-Why aren’t you doing anything!? Gatou, you too! Protect me!”
No one answered the cowering tyrant’s woeful cries. Everyone present was petrified by Sharon’s display of raw power.
“Y-You filthy slave!”
He slashed at her with his sword as well as his words.
“Ranbolg. I’m going to break my chains and become free!” she said and brought her sword roaring down toward him.
Clanggg!
Ranbolg’s sword flew high into the air as Dáinsleif’s handle planted itself into his guts.
“Gahhh!”
He collapsed on the ground with a painful groan, and Sharon looked down at him with a powerful smile.
“In Althos, we never kill anyone, no matter how terrible of a person they are. I’ll spare your life today.”
“Hah! Absolutely not! I’m not going to be beaten by some slave…”
Sharon ignored Ranbolg’s mad ramblings and turned toward Al.
“Al. I can no longer return to Freiya, so, umm… Please take good care of me.”
“We’re happy to have you for as long as you want to stay. No matter how much time fulfilling your dream takes, Althos will always be your home,” Al said with a smile. Now, it was truly over, once and for all.
At least, that’s what everyone hoped for.
“Bwahahaha! I’ll die! If I lose this battle, they’ll kill me!”
They all looked at Ranbolg and realized that he was holding a pale green crystal.
“Ah! That crystal!” Sharon had completely forgotten about it.
“Ahahaha! Die, you fools!” The crystal slowly entered his body. “Gyahahahaha! I’m… I’m…!”
Ranbolg bloated right in front of their eyes. The armor, no longer able to contain his body, was violently shot away.
“Guhahaha! Gwarghhhh!”
There weren’t any other prominent changes to his appearance, but just like during the incident with Kanon, his body was enveloped in an ominous cloud of mana.
“Haah, you should learn when to give up,” Sharon said as she prepared for the imminent danger.
“Thank goodness. I’d have come off as a bully if I punched that crybaby prince in the face,” Al said jokingly, but the tension was palpable in his voice. “Let’s do this!”
“A-Al?”
He ignored Sharon and charged at the monstrosity with his trusty Mistilteinn.
“Bwaaaaarghh!” Ranbolg was unable to produce human speech. He picked up a sword lying around him and swung at Al.
Kashan!
Mistilteinn easily cut through his magic-imbued sword.
“Grohh?” Ranbolg flinched in surprise, but Al pressed on.
“Take this! And this! Experience the torment you inflicted upon others, you bastard!”
“Graghh! Gwahhh!”
Al pounded him with the base of his scythe from every direction.
“What’s happening? How is he winning so one-sidedly?”
Ranbolg, under the influence of the crystal, was not a weakling in any sense of the term. He had a powerful presence on the battlefield that would have made anyone cower in fear, yet he was being beaten on like a sandbag. Completely lost as to what to do, he gave up on defending himself and half-heartedly swung his heavy arms at Al.
“Hey, don’t give up just yet! This is nothing compared to what Sharon had to endure! We’re just getting started!”
Blinded by rage, Al kept up his skillful, relentless assault. He jammed the handle of his scythe right into Ranbolg’s stomach, causing the monster to keel over in pain, then brought the handle up to its chin in one fell swoop, toppling the gigantic beast. Despite the anger boiling inside him, he executed these moves masterfully, careful not to make Ranbolg faint from the pain.
“Stop, Al! That’s enough! You’ll become just like him!” Sharon’s voice snapped him back to reality.
“I was… enjoying myself?”
He looked down to see Ranbolg lying on the ground, back in his human form. His face was completely swollen, and his body, especially his back, was riddled with welts.
“You went too far, Al!” Sharon approached him with a bitter smile.
Al realized the truth in her words, as he himself was shocked by what he had done. Struggling to find the right words, he looked at Sharon and…
“A-Anyway, we won!”
…lifted Mistilteinn high into the air.
◆◆◆
The post-battle dealings went smoothly, since they made the losing Freiyan army clean up the battlefield. They were holding a meeting in a tent with the representatives of both sides: from Althos, Al and Sharon participated, while Freiya was represented by Gatou and Airi. Ranbolg couldn’t make it to the meeting due to the injuries he’d suffered on the battlefield.
“This might sound strange coming from me, but are you certain you don’t want to take any prisoners? I don’t believe the prince has given up on Althos yet; he’ll probably invade again once he recovers from his injuries.” As an ex-mercenary and battle-hardened veteran, Gatou didn’t hold any resentment toward the winning party and went into the post-battle dealings immediately. He even expressed his worries for Althos, which made Al appreciate dealing with such a level-headed representative instead of Ranbolg.
“Don’t worry. Our Diva will make sure they don’t hold any grudges against Althos. She will persuade them not to invade us again.”
Gatou’s worries were not baseless, but Al has expected as much. A certain Diva was giving a speech to the enemy soldiers a bit further away from their tent, wearing an enchanting smile.
“Oh, I see.” Gatou kept his calm throughout the meeting, but his face twitched slightly when the topic shifted to Cecilia. It seemed like she had deeply traumatized the veteran mercenary.
“More importantly, as you know, we torched your rations. I’m sure that’d make your march back home difficult, and I’d rather if you didn’t pillage the villages on your way back, so I’d like to offer you some of our rations. Not for free, of course.”
Al wanted to repay his kindness.
“Don’t worry. We hid some rations along the way, just in case.”
Befitting of a veteran like him, Gatou had a perfect plan in place.
“Hey, Al. Ask him about that.” Sharon, who was acting as Al’s bodyguard, tugged his sleeve to get his attention and looked at him pleadingly. Al nodded and turned back to Gatou.
“One last thing, Gatou. I have a favor to ask.”
“The victor writes the rules. Give us your orders!” he answered with a wry smile under the tense pressure.
“All right then, I guess this is an order. When you give your report, could you please tell them that all the Lost Children died in battle?”
Sharon had told Al earlier that the leader of the Lost Children, Airi, harbored a strong resentment for Ranbolg.
“Hmm… I don’t mind, but is that really necessary? They could simply seek asylum in Althos.”
“No! If that bastard learns they ran away or changed sides, he’ll go mad! He’ll dig up any of Airi’s living relatives he can find, and brutally, mercilessly murder them!” Sharon answered.
“Okay. I’ll put that in my official report, but I can’t take responsibility for the others.”
Al had expected that as well.
“Don’t worry. Cecilia’s, umm… suggestions are really effective.”
“Don’t you mean ‘brainwashing’? Well, not like it really matters. If we dig too deep, she might…” A chill ran down Gatou’s spine as he remembered something. It made Al wonder what had happened between them.
“Either way, I’m counting on you. In return, I won’t reveal your position as a spy for the Empire.”
“Wha—!? Ah, crap… How’d you find out?”
Al had thought he would get a bigger rise out of Gatou, but seeing the man almost shrug it off, he decided not to go in-depth with his answer.
“Call it my sixth sense.”
Al was acting cool, but in reality, Brusch had managed to dig up information on Gatou. They figured it’d be better if the Empire kept themselves occupied with Freiya instead of waging war on them, so they decided to keep it a secret.
“Oi, so now that we’re officially dead, ’re we all gonna be livin’ in Althos? This mean I can finally live wit Sharon!?” Airi, who was silently standing behind Gatou, excitedly leaned in to join the conversation.
“Yeah. Also, you’re not slaves anymore. You’re citizens of Althos now.”
Tears welled up in her eyes.
“Bless yer heart! Bless yer heart, Al!” Airi rushed toward him.
Wait… are we really doing this now?
He braced for impact, but she casually ran past him.
“Sharonnnnnn!”
“Kyah!”
She jumped at Sharon and tightly wrapped her arms around the dumbfounded girl.
“Sharon! We’ll be together forever! I ain’t lettin’ ya go! I ain’t!”
“H-Hey, Airi. Stop, that hurts.”
Airi slid one of her hands up Sharon’s stomach, all the way to her chest.
“Hey, where do you think you’re touching me!?”
“Why not, why not! Ain’t this what friends do?”
Sharon seemed to have a soft spot for Airi, and instead of lashing out, she only looked at her with a troubled expression. That changed when Airi tried to flip her top.
“Stoooop!”
Wham!
She karate-chopped the top of Airi’s head.
“Aww, sorry…”
With teary eyes, she got off of Sharon and apologized to her, but Sharon gave her no pardon.
“Groping is banned, understood!?”
“Whyyy? Ain’t that what defines me!?”
Sharon shot a pitiful but stern look at Airi before bashfully averting her gaze.
“You can see me whenever you want now, so just calm down.”
Blood rushed to her face.
“Sharon… A’right! I’ll only grope ya five times a week! We c’n meet whenever, after all!”
“Isn’t that a bit too much!?”
Sharon sulked and looked away from her, but it was clear to any onlookers that she was happy.
◆◆◆
After confirming that the Freiyan army had begun their retreat, Al and his troops also made their way home. The march back was slow, as everyone was exhausted. By the time they reached the castle, the sun was sinking below the horizon.
Al was getting dizzy from the toll on his body, but he forged on. He had to so he could finally take a nice, relaxing bath. The rest of his army was also driven by similar desires, but as they reached the castle, they realized that something was off.
“Wait, has that always been your flag?”
Sharon shed some light on the issue.
“Oh my, that is Distania’s flag? What an ill-mannered prank!”
“Oh yeah. Luna must be playing a prank.”
Al quickly reached this conclusion, but that was not the end of the strange happenings. The castle gates that were usually open were now closed tight. A girl stood in front of them. It was Luna’s sister, Saaya.
“Guards! I know Luna is cute and friendly, but this is taking the joke too far! You too, Saaya! Use your head! Don’t always listen to your big sister!”
He got no response from Saaya or the castle guards.
“Ahaha! This is not a joke.”
Instead, a girl wearing a jet black dress appeared atop the castle walls to answer Al’s demands. It was Luna. Something else caught Al’s attention: she had an almost completely naked Lilicia on a leash, obediently following her on all fours.
Huh. I was under the impression that Lilicia was more on the sadistic side of the spectrum, but I guess I was wrong. That thought passed through his mind for a split second, but there were more pressing matters at hand than to ponder it further.
“Luna, we’re all dead tired here! Cut the jokes and let us in!”
Pew!
He was answered with an arrow whizzing by his ear.
“Hey! Cut the crap!” Sharon was getting visibly upset.
“I’m not joking. This is my castle now,” Luna said, brushing her off.
“L-Luna! This isn’t funny!”
“How many times do I have to tell you? I was a bit worried that you’d gotten smarter when it came to women, considering the flock of Divas around you, but you’re still the same dumb—or rather, simple and naïve boy you always were.”
A cold sweat broke out on Al’s face.
“Oh my, shouldn’t you be under the effects of my Bind?” Cecilia asked, but Al already realized the loophole in the Bind conditions.
Luna hadn’t actually violated the terms of Cecilia’s spell. All she had promised was to run if she felt she was in danger. Even if she considered Althos’ forces enemies, as long as she didn’t feel threatened, Cecilia’s spell wouldn’t activate.
“What’re you trying to pull!? This is our castle!”
Sharon had seen enough. She drew her sword and pointed it at Saaya.
“H-Hey, there’s no need for—”
“Hehehe. You can do as you please with that puppet.” Luna cut Al off and flashed a chilling smile. Everyone’s attention centered on the small Saaya standing in front of the gates.
“Ahahaha! I’m nothing more than Lady Saaya’s humble body double! A lowly puppet! Please, do as you wish!” the usually silent girl said with a big smile.
“We have our entire army and multiple Divas. You can’t beat us all alone!” Feena said from beside the raging Sharon.
Luna signaled to someone, and the gate slowly opened before them.
“Haah… I swear, Luna, you went too far this—!”
Just after Al let out a sigh of relief, thinking her terrible joke was finally over, a group of people appeared beyond the gate. They were dressed in clothes one would see when passing through the streets of Althos, and wielded wooden rolling pins, frying pans, and other household items. Despite their terrible complexions, Al recognized many of them as Althos’ citizens. They were ready to fight with their makeshift weapons, wearing their plain clothes against a fully outfitted army and multiple Divas. Suffice to say, no sane person would have agreed to such conditions, which left Al wondering how this had happened.
Are they hypnotized? he thought, but looking at the group standing at the gates sent shivers down his spine. It wasn’t some simple hypnosis.
“Ohohoho! Now, my lovely little puppets! Destroy the Demon King’s army!”
Upon receiving her commands, the group started moving.
“I don’t know what sort of spell she used, but be careful not to hurt—”
“Arghhh!”
The words stuck in his throat, as one of his citizens was standing right beside him. The man had some semblance of life in his eyes, but his face was pained as if he were fighting against his very existence.
“Wha—!? So fast!”
Suddenly, the horse Al was riding stared him dead in the eyes. His attacker snapped the horse’s neck, which collapsed after a brief delay, blood gushing from its orifices. The king collapsed with his horse, leaving him without any means of escape.
“Al!” Sharon jumped from her horse to catch Al.
“Grand Spell… No, I won’t make it!”
Feena tried to create a wall between Al, Sharon, and the citizens, but she was too late. While she was busy chanting, numerous citizens rushed toward her.
“Watch out, Feena!”
Kanon protected Feena with her katana, but she couldn’t make it to the already surrounded Al and Sharon. They were both exhausted due to the use of Heavenly Surge, which considerably impacted their reaction time.
“I’m sorry, Al. This is the end for you,” Luna said without the slightest hint of remorse in her voice.
Cling!
Al heard the ring of the all too familiar bells behind him.
“Oh my, step back! How dare you hurt my lovely little brother!?” Cecilia was standing right behind him with her khakkhara in hand. “Thinking that you can stand on the same ground as me while using such a lowly curse is quite bold of you!”
She swung her khakkhara.
“Gahhh… Ghahhh!”
The pain and hatred disappeared from the citizens’ faces with a snap, and they all collapsed like marionettes.
“Thank you, Cecilia.”
“Oh my. Al, Sharon, please escape.”
As she was making way for Al’s and Sharon’s escape…
“I expected you to cause the biggest headache.”
…a small shadow appeared behind her.
“Oh my, I sense the Valkyrie’s power. Are you, in fact, a Diva?”
Cecilia’s smile didn’t change despite Saaya’s relics—her two daggers—being pressed against her neck.
“Lady Luna will let King Alnoa live if you come quietly. Or, you may choose to continue fighting the endless horde of Althos citizens,” Saaya whispered to her.
She looked around, only to see that the citizens had once again conglomerated around Sharon and Al, wearing the same pain- and hatred-ridden expressions as before.
“Oh my…” Cecilia’s unbreakable smile slowly faded from her face. She closed her eyes for a few moments before letting go of her khakkhara.
“C-Cecilia!”
No. I can’t let her die, Al thought and put his hand on Sharon’s shoulders. This isn’t the end. We can get out of this with Heavenly Surge.
It wasn’t fair to Sharon, but he had no other choice.
“Al! Don’t even think about it!” Cecilia stopped him before he could activate Heavenly Surge. “I can’t explain why right now, but you must not use that power anymore!”
It seemed like Cecilia had learned something.
“Al. I will now become a damsel in distress. Your job is to retreat, rest up, and come back to save me. I will be waiting for you.”
Cecilia… Why?
Pulled away by Sharon, Al could see Cecilia fighting back tears as she was surrounded by their brainwashed citizens.
“Cecilia! I’ll come back for you at all costs! So please…”
Cecilia flashed one last smile as the Althos forces made their retreat.