Chapter 20: Elias vs. Leo

Chapter 20: Elias vs. Leo

WHAT awaited Leo after he parted with Aki and floated back down to the underground lake was a severely wounded man with red hair about to be thrust through the chest by Elias. Leo’s eyes flew wide open at what he hadn’t expected to find upon his return.

What the summon monster happened here?! What went down while Aki and I were gone? And who in the world is he?

Stop thinkin’ and get movin’, or he’ll die!

Making a split decision, Leo spread his legs wide and thrust out his palms toward Elias. He uttered the short spell under his breath, gathering numerous magic bullets to his fingertips. Once several dozen bullets formed he swung down his arms, firing them at Elias’s feet like a rapid fire ballista.

With his short incantation, the bullets wouldn’t pack enough power to act as much more than a smokescreen, but it should do the trick to momentarily deflect Elias’s attack.

The magic bullets spraying him in rapid succession alerted Elias to Leo’s presence. Stone-faced, his eyes traveled to his friend, and he gracefully sidestepped every magic bullet as they kicked up a dust storm, carving holes in the ground where he stood a second earlier.

Leo didn’t wait to confirm how far his attack pushed back Elias before racing across the field to the man lying face up in the flowers.

Dang, he’s badly hurt.

The man with flaming red hair must’ve gone at it hard with Elias, because clean slices distinct to the Holy Sword marred his entire body, and blood gushed ceaselessly from the long gashes.

Elias did this… Knowing that deeply saddened Leo. Elias wasn’t the kind of man to make sport of his opponent. He usually put an end to the battle as soon as possible. But the wounds he’d inflicted on this man appeared like he was intentionally trying to make him suffer.

Leo didn’t believe for a second that Elias wanted to become a heartless killing machine. Suppose his body was acting with a separate mind of its own, indiscriminately attacking others? If the real Elias was stuck watching without a say, he had to be agonizing over not being able to stop himself.

…I have to bring him back in control fast for his sake, too! Resolve growing stronger by the second, Leo swung his gaze to where Elias had retreated from the hailstorm of magi-bullets. He kept his distance and watched Leo like a guard dog protecting a set perimeter.

He showed no signs of launching another attack against Leo to wipe him off the face of the field.

Perhaps he only attacked when someone approached him or Aki.

Trusting Elias was sticking to that unspoken rule, Leo wrenched his gaze away from him and shook the man he had scooped into his arms. “Oi, you okay? Can you hear me?”

Heat still radiated from the man’s arms. He probably wasn’t dead yet.

As if in answer to Leo’s voice, the redhead groaned and forced open his eyes. Their vivid color caused Leo to sharply inhale. His eyes were a mysterious combination of forest green and aqua. An inhuman shade. The amount of magic pouring off him in waves was beyond human too.

I take it this is the Shadow Tribesman that Aki said set this whole farce up to hand over the Book of Creation?

The redheaded Shadow Tribesman blinked, his mind still not fully working until he saw Leo’s face. Astonishment caused his blurry eyes to bulge and his swollen lips to fall open.

“Master Leo?! Why…why did you come back?!” he yelled.

“…Huh?”

Why does this guy know my name?

Leo blinked several times and took another look at the man’s sharp facial features, bruised from his fight with Elias.

I don’t know any Shadow Tribesmen. And I don’t recall doin’ anything to draw their attention.

Baffled, he wanted to question the Shadow Tribesman, but remembered they weren’t in the best situation for idle chatter. Leo shook his head and directed the conversation where it mattered most.

“Hey, are you the Shadow Tribesman who attacked Elias and Aki… Jent Sutcliff, is it?”

The man nodded and lowered his eyes from Leo’s face with diffidence. “I’m sorry, Master Leo… I tried to stop Heroboy, but my strength was nothing before him…”

“I see,” Leo said perfunctorily.

This Shadow Tribesman took on Elias alone?

According to Aki, Sutcliff was the one who’d pushed Elias to the brink. So why was the perpetrator of this chaos trying to stop Elias from wreaking havoc?

I haven’t a jot about his intentions. But I can’t waste time questionin’ the guy.

Leo gave his head another shake and assessed the man barely keeping his swollen eyes open. “…Goddess damn it. I’ve got a mountain of questions for you, but savin’ my friends comes before dealing with you. I can’t have you dyin’ on me though.”

Keeping one eye trained on Elias, Leo shoved his right hand into his robe and pulled out a potion vial. A potion bought at a normal item shop wasn’t potent enough to fully heal his wounds, but it should help him recover to the point of walking on his own two legs.

Leo pulled out the stopper and pressed the vial into Sutcliff’s hand. “Can you do me a favor and rescue my friends, Mina and Louis, from under that pile of rocks over there once you heal up with this?”

Teleportation magic should be a cinch for a Shadow Tribesman. It wouldn’t take much effort on his part to teleport to safety with Mina and Louis.

To Leo, securing their safety mattered most. He knew Elias would be permanently crippled with despair if his attacks led to the death of his friends.

Sutcliff accepted the potion, forced himself upright, and started sprinkling the sappy liquid onto his gaping wounds.

Protecting Sutcliff behind him, Leo stood facing Elias as he drew his dagger.

Successfully rescuing Mina and Louis hinged on whether he could buy enough time against Elias for Sutcliff to recover. Sure, he caught him off guard during his last rescue attempt, but he couldn’t think of another surprise attack, so he was stuck challenging him head-on.

What strategy should I go with this time, hm? Out of the corner of Leo’s eye he saw Sutcliff hop to his feet, his injuries already healed. Humans have nothing on the Shadow Tribe when it comes to agility and physical strength. Making him my ally in this might’ve just increased my odds.

“Sutcliff, can you answer me one thing?” Leo asked, his gaze still trained on the expressionless Elias. “You’re the one who put Elias in this state, right? I’m not gonna wring your neck about that right now, but shouldn’t you know how to snap him out of it?”

He sensed Sutcliff meekly shaking his head behind him. “Yeah, ’bout that…I’d planned for him to awaken his powers, but I didn’t know he’d lose his mind in the process. I’m totally unprepared for this…”

“…Put another way, you don’t have a clue about how to undo what you’ve done to him,” Leo groaned, trying his best not to grow depressed after having his one ray of hope squashed.

Looks like Johann is our only hope. Got no choice but to buckle down and live until Johann and Aki come running to our aid.

Challenging Elias to a duel was a suicide mission, but having the Shadow Tribesman around to help was more encouraging than going at it alone.

Anyways… Leo slowly released the air in his lungs. Pessimism won’t beat me before I even try. I’ve got a promise to keep, after all. I can’t go croakin’ until she’s back.

Leo began quietly chanting a Lunar Magic spell, causing Elias to instantly switch into combat mode with the Holy Sword positioned in front of him. Responding to his command, water swirled around his drawn dagger and hardened into a crystal shell of ice.

He was employing an ancient strategy of imbuing a weapon with Lunar Magic, turning it into a so-called Magic Dagger. Only a select few Mages who had mastered physical skill trees were capable of wielding this dangerous class of magic.

A magic user like Leo didn’t stand a chance dueling a physical damage dealer like Elias without hitting him with everything he had up his sleeve.

“…I can’t believe the day has come where I have to fight you for real, Elias.” Leo crouched with a white chill swirling around the magic dagger in his hand.

Running through his mind were the days he used to smack Elias awake in the middle of the night to train during their travels. When he first joined Elias’s party, he had insisted on learning swordsmanship so he could take on any hard bosses the Hero Party might face in the future. Happily going along with his selfish request, Elias joined him night after night in grueling duels.

…I’d always wanted to duel you once. Not as a part of our training or for fun, but a real duel without holding anything back. I wanted you to acknowledge my swordsmanship. To praise me with that heartfelt smile of yours as you said, “You’re strong.”

Who would’ve guessed the day I fought you for real would be this miserable.

Leo curled his fingers around the dagger’s handle. “Elias, I’m gonna view you as an enemy and hit you with everything I’ve got in order to bring you back to us, and to stop you from making her—from making Aki sad. This is gonna be the fight of our lives. No holding back.” He took a deep breath.

Do it, Leo. So that you won’t leave behind any regrets whether you win or lose!

“Here I come, buddy!”

Sutcliff dashed off in the opposite direction to rescue Mina and Louis from the pile of rocks simultaneously as Leo launched himself toward Elias. The pounding of their feet hitting the dirt overlapped.

The others should be okay in Sutcliff’s hands. Knowing that significantly lifted the weight off Leo’s chest.

Sensing Leo’s intent to fight, Elias’s face hardened and he soundlessly kicked off the ground, zooming across the field at such speeds he closed the distance between them faster than most end bosses could.

Such speed! You’re seriously not made like the rest of us, buddy.

The Hero: a legendary and heroic entity born to save the world.

People stayed away from Elias, leaving him to live a solitary existence because of the overwhelming power he was endowed with as the Hero. Gentle spirit that he was, Elias never voiced his loneliness, instead choosing to accept the path laid out for him all the while silently struggling with isolation.

He never once strayed from his path until she appeared like a comet lighting up the night: Aki.

She shined a light on his loneliness by insisting with all her being that he, the man who pretended being a Hero was all that mattered, was just another human being before he was this legendary warrior.

That’s why…that’s why it shouldn’t be surprising he fell for her so hard he lost his mind seeking the power to protect her. It should’ve been expected.

…I don’t care what reasons Sutcliff had, I’ll never forgive him for abusin’ Elias and Aki’s relationship. I’d better snap Elias outta it so the two of us can wail on Sutcliff later.

Leo brandished the dagger in front of him as he sprinted toward Elias and jumped into the air. “Try a taste of this first, Elias!” he boldly taunted, slamming his raised dagger against the ground when he landed.

As soon as the blade struck the ground, icicles erupted in a straight line toward Elias.

The nifty thing about magic swords was that they allowed the user to quickly perform magic attacks without a spell. It made Leo capable of fast, continuous long-range attacks, which should’ve leveled the playing field against Elias’s newly acquired skills.

Elias paused in front of the imminent icicles, slightly narrowed his eyes, exhaled once, then swept the Holy Sword to the side. Platinum air blades soundlessly fired from his sword, destroying the icicles in a row as if they were dominoes. Shattered pieces of ice hailed onto the ground like miniature daggers.

Leo adjusted his grip on the dagger as he mildly watched his icicles crumble.

…Go figure. You won’t even bat an eyelash at a spell like this. But I’m not backing down either. I can’t lose here. We can’t lose you here forever. Everyone is waitin’ for you to rejoin us!

Leo braced himself and spun the dagger in all four directions with dancelike precision. Ice blades sliced through the air and ran across the field toward Elias each time he brought down his dagger.

Elias didn’t slow down, but cut through each ice blade as he ran closer. It was only a matter of time before he closed the gap between them.

Have you done your job yet, Sutcliff?! I’ve gotta keep this guy busy until Mina and Louis are outta harm’s way!

Just as Leo was holding back Elias’s monstrous pursuit with his barrage of ice blades, he heard the call he’d be eagerly waiting for.

“Master Leo! Your friends are alive! They’ve been knocked unconscious, but they aren’t seriously injured!”

Some good news for once!

Louis had likely mitigated the damage with his last-minute spell. His boasting wasn’t for nothing because he’d managed to activate a spell in the short few seconds before Elias’s blades had hit.

Relief caused Leo to look over his shoulder. “Sutcliff! Can you escape somewhere safe with th—”

“Master Leo, in front of you!”

Leo swung his gaze back to his opponent at the sound of Sutcliff’s hair-raising cry.

Careless mistake.

In the second his joy caused him to look back, he had removed his gaze from Elias.

Next he saw him, Elias was right before his eyes.

Y-You gotta be kiddin’! Did he close a mile in a second?!

He hadn’t made a sound nor left a tangible aura. Leo had only looked away for a fraction of a second, too.

Leo threw up his dagger and braced his legs to meet Elias’s attack. The Hero’s vacant golden eyes had come within a foot of Leo’s face.

“Elias…!” he cried his best friend’s name with the threadbare hope he’d react despite knowing his voice couldn’t reach him. Elias showed no visible reaction.

Biting his lip, Leo prepared himself for the weight of Elias’s raised sword—except, it never came. Elias vanished from view.

Huh? What happened? Where did Elias go?

“Master Leo! Behind you!” Sutcliff warned in a shrill cry.

In the same moment, Leo sighted Elias’s white coat whooshing by out of the corner of his eye.

He got behind me?!

Cold sweat slid down Leo’s cheek as he stood rooted to the spot as if invisible hands held him there. He fearfully jerked his neck back to where Elias had soundlessly appeared.

Fast! He’s too damn fast! I didn’t even see him move!

An overwhelming difference in power.

It doesn’t matter how much I use magic to my advantage, I can’t win with this power disparity between—

“Master Leo----!”

Sutcliff’s harrowing scream in the distance, Leo felt Elias’s Holy Sword mercilessly shred through the muscles in his back.

Searing heat took the place of intense pain and black dots blurred his vision.

Bright red, which he assumed was his blood, sprayed onto the ground in puddles, painting the blue flowers a gruesome color.

…Oi, oi. I’m pretty screwed, aren’t I? Not even a second after his dazed mind managed that thought, he was sent flying by the slash to his back. He sailed several feet before hitting the ground rolling.

With no means to stop himself, he tumbled until he lost momentum and landed with his face shoved in the dirt. He broke into a violent coughing fit. He dyed the ground red with bloody vomit as he felt an immense amount of blood gushing from the throbbing sword wound in his back.

…He dealt me a fatal blow all right.

He heard each crunch of the dirt as Elias slowly stalked closer. It was literally the sound of death approaching.

Is this the end of the road for me…? The will to fight rapidly oozed out of him. I bet you can’t forgive me for takin’ away your precious Aki.

“Pft,” Leo managed a gargled snort.

He thought he’d lived life to its fullest up to that point, but apparently he wanted to live longer. Death came out of the blue. Frankly, he’d rather go out with a bang than die face down in the dirt.

What a lame way to die—

“I know you’ll keep your promise…!”

The memory of Aki shouting that as she ran off for his sake infiltrated his depressing thoughts.

Just how heartbroken would she be if she came back to find Elias standing over his dead body?

And that’s why I can’t just let myself get killed in a ditch like this!

He couldn’t move anything.

The footsteps he’d heard at regular intervals came to a complete stop. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the tip of Elias’s familiar white boots. Laboriously lifting his gaze from the dirt, his eyes met Elias’s staring heartlessly down at him.

Gone was the best friend who always had a gentle smile in store for everyone. In its place was an unforgiving mask of ice sharper than any blade.

…You really aren’t yourself, are ya, buddy? Did you seriously forget me?

“Did our time together mean nothin’ to you…?! Damn it!” he sputtered in a weakened voice.

Elias slowly raised the Holy Sword to deliver the killing blow. Leo no longer had the energy to counter his strike or the power to deflect it with a miraculous show of magic.

…Well, I guess it’s not the worst way to go, having my last breath taken by my best friend. Way better than bein’ done in by some random monster somewhere. But I do have one lingerin’ regret…

Aki.

Leo weakly stretched out his hand toward where he imagined he saw her smiling.

Sorry I couldn’t keep my promise.

Sorry for being uncool until the end. Sorry for being pathetic.

“…I wanted you to reject me so hard I wouldn’t know what hit me…”

I wanted to laugh through my tears and say, “You’ve got guts for rejectin’ me! You’ll definitely regret it!”

I won’t even get the chance to be rejected…?

Through his contorting vision, Elias’s raised Holy Sword gleamed blindingly.

“…Aki, Elias, I’m sorry. Sorry for failing to save you…”

I pray that someday…you two…at least…can be happy…

About to close his eyes on his regrets, Leo barely made out a black coat whisking in front of him.

“Sutcliff…?” He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Sutcliff had appeared out of thin air with his arms spread protectively in front of Leo. Shadow Tribesmen excelled at teleportation spells—he had used one to come to Leo’s rescue in the blink of an eye.

The unexpected turn of events anchored Leo’s fading consciousness to the present. “Wh-What…you…doin’…Sutcliff!” he raised his voice, hoarse and parched from vomiting blood.

“We can’t lose you here…!” Sutcliff responded without looking at him. “You are our only hope!”

“Don’t…say stuff I can’t understand…!” Leo fought with every aching fiber in his body to push himself up onto his hands and knees. He forced his dimming vision to focus on Sutcliff’s back.

I’m beggin’ ya, please dodge, Sutcliff! You’ll die for real if you’re on the receivin’ end of Elias’s slash!

Sutcliff maintained his forward facing stance as he held his left hand over Leo behind him. Under his breath he chanted a familiar teleportation spell. He was trying to teleport Leo away from Elias.

The Holy Sword gleamed viciously above Elias’s head. His inscrutable eyes were locked on Sutcliff eagerly chanting the teleportation spell with Leo hidden behind him.

Stop…

The merciless swing of the Holy Sword. The incantation wouldn’t make it in time. And still, Sutcliff wove those words as fast he could to save Leo.

Stop it…!

“STOP IT!” Leo roared from the pit of his stomach, reaching for Sutcliff’s leg.

A gust of silver light blew through the field as if stopping time itself. The luminescent flowers rustled as the wind warmly wrapped around Leo and Sutcliff. The pain instantly abated as if they’d never been injured.

Could it be—

“Good grief. Could the situation get any more pathetic than this?! I expect more from you two!”

That angry scolding brought Leo the greatest relief possible. Before Leo could call out the name of their most welcomed visitor, a powerful silver barrier formed in front of Sutcliff, repelling Elias’s downward strike and knocking his arm back with the force of it.

The aftershock still managed to knock Sutcliff on his butt while the silver wind finished fully healing the countless injuries marring his and Leo’s body.

Only one person in the entire world was capable of perfectly wielding such fussy recovery spells.

Regaining the feeling in his numbed back, Leo sprung to his feet and swung his gaze toward their savior.

There he found Johann wiping the sweat off his brow with one hand, his staff thrust in front of him with the other, and Aki at his side. Behind them Mina and Louis were getting to their feet.

Tears inconsiderately sprung to Leo’s eyes the second he saw his friend’s gallant arrival. Beyond his misty vision Johann’s lips curved into a triumphant smile.

“Be grateful I made it just in the nick of time. Can’t you figure out how to heal yourself without me? Honestly, you’re nothing but trouble.”

“Now you’ve said it, Johann! You’re damn late!”

Johann’s relieved smile and gentle expression eased his usual barbed remarks. Leo countered him with a teary grin.

With Johann here we can pull this off… thank the elements. Leo’s knees nearly buckled with the peace he felt. Just as his face softened into a dopey grin, he saw Aki lean forward with her hand on Johann’s shoulder, tears brimming in her eyes.

“Leo! Are you all right?!”

Leo nodded so hard he felt his head might fall off in response to the woman he was positive he’d never see again. “Yeah! Yeah! Somehow, I am. Thanks for keepin’ our promise, Aki. I kept up my end, too.”

I stayed alive ’til you came back.

“Thank you!”

Leo held out his right hand to stop Aki from running across the field to him.

Elias swept down his deflected sword arm, then lowered it to his side as his eyes fastened on the newcomers. His glazed gaze burned with the first sign of life when it anchored on Aki and Aki alone.

Is that it? Leo looked from Elias to Aki.

Elias was showing his first emotional reaction with Aki there. Desire to protect her cracked through his lack of expression. Couldn’t they use that to their advantage to appeal to the real him?

Aki’s presence might be the key to bringing Elias back to us.

As Leo was contemplating their next move, shock over the crest glowing on Elias’s forehead widened Johann’s eyes. He shot a pointed glare at Sutcliff who was standing in front of Leo with his two daggers at the ready to take on Elias.

“…I see. So that was what you were after. You triggered the Solar Goddess’s crest, didn’t you, Sutcliff?”

The Solar Goddess’s Crest: that was the name of the Hero’s true power slumbering within Elias.