Author's Note: Thanks for being so patient with me; I'm sorry that I'm so bad at sticking to a schedule and actually DOING things. But I really am trying! School is just getting a little stressful at the moment, and I suppose you could say I'm starting to feel the 'cabin fever', what with the snow beginning to pile up the windows again. It is really that time of the year already?! *yes* … Blegh.
Let me be honest; I only endure winter for the holidays. Besides that, I'm more of a summer person (probably because I was born in August). If you ask me, I'd rather be really hot than really cold.
I had planned to have this chapter finished and posted on Christmas, but it looks that that didn't happen, so I'll be going for the next best thing; New Years! I've kept you all waiting long enough, so I'll just get this started.
Covenant Castle - Conrart's POV
Ever since I promised to protect Yuuri, I've been keeping a close eye on him. I feel as though he's already been through so much, and that adding to it would only put more unnecessary pressure and stress on his shoulders. I asked him the other day if he would allow me to give him proper sword training, and he surprisingly agreed. At first, his handling was rather awkward, but as we progressed, I saw that he seemed to have a natural talent and strength for it. Perhaps if we can justify his stance and battle technique a bit, he would be more than capable of protecting himself, should he be attacked at a time when I am not with him. So for the past few days, I spent about two hours after lunch each day training him. One would think from his somewhat small build and height that a lightweight sword would be his best option, but he appears to prefer and better handle using a midweight sword, surprisingly enough.
He's been doing an especially good job these last couple of days. He's been getting better at dodging and deflecting my attacks. Very soon, he may even become strong enough to spar with me on an equal level. When that day comes, surely, my brothers will then see that he is truly worthy of the title of the demon king.
Royal Dining Hall - Neutral POV
As the final person stepped into the room, the somewhat calm mood shattered almost instantaneously. The raven-haired teen made his way to the chair at the far end of the table, trying to ignore the two disapproving glances sent his way. He sat stiffly in his seat as he nervously glanced towards the other occupants in the room with him, sinking slightly lower as he noticed all eyes basically glued on him. Suddenly, Gwendal cleared his throat, effectively breaking the silence and causing those eyes to avert from him, much to Yuuri's relief. "So, Conrart, you're telling us that this… child is supposed to be our king? I find the notion absolutely absurd. We have no way of even telling if he's even the true Maoh like this." Wolfram stood in his seat, placing a hand on his hip. "I agree with brother Gwendal. He's probably just going to destroy this kingdom. I propose that he be tested. It's the only way we can be sure if he's capable of at least protecting his own self." Smirk. The eyes of those at the table met momentarily, before all looking towards the suddenly scared boy. "Then it's decided." Gwendal stated gruffly, burning holes into the teen's head.
Training Grounds - The Next Day - Yuuri's POV
After dinner last evening, Conrad pulled me aside to explain what was going to happen. They had all decided that, in order to test my strength, I would need to win a duel against Wolfram. Conrad spent the past three hours training with me to make sure I knew what I would need to do. Sure, I'm not great yet, but I'm doing much better. I paused and raised a hand to wipe the sweat from my forehead, my arm briefly making contact with the sky-blue pendant that now hung around my neck. When Conrad first brought me out here, I was so sure that I was going to fail and let everyone down. He turned to me and smiled. "Yuuri, you'll do fine. I know it." Then, he reached up and untied a pendant from around his neck, before extending it out to me. I looked up at him in disbelief. "You're...giving me this?" He nodded. "Yes. It's a lucky charm of sorts. This was given to me by someone very important to me, and now I want you to have it." He dropped it into my palm, and my eyes widened at the feel of the smooth surface against my skin. "But… Why? If this was given to you by someone really important, then shouldn't you keep it?" Conrad only smiled wider. "Take good care of it. It's yours now." Then, he turned to look towards the castle, a look of nostalgia crossing his features, and I couldn't help but take a moment to just stare in silent admiration. He was…really cool. "Shall we continue, Heika? I believe the duel will begin soon, and there are a few more things I wanted to show you." Conrad turned back towards me, but his smile disappeared momentarily at the look of slight annoyance on my face. I threw my hands up. "Hey, don't be so formal! After all, you're technically the one who named me, so the least you could do is call me by my name…" I trailed off. Conrad stared at me for a moment, before raising a hand to his mouth, disguising his light chuckle with a cough. "Of course, Yuuri."
"The appointed time for the duel between King Yuuri and Lord Wolfram von Bielefeld has arrived!" Gunter exclaimed loudly, tears in his eyes, before turning to choke back a dramatic sob. "Majesty~." A few eyes were rolled at this. "Since His Majesty is the one to have accepted the duel, he shall choose the weapon of his choice." I looked over towards the sidelines, where Gwendal, Gunter, Conrad, and Lady Cecilie watched. Conrad looked back at me, a knowing look in his eyes, and nodded. I turned back towards Wolfram. "I have chosen to use a sword for this duel." I further acknowledged this by gripping the hilt of the sword fastened to my belt. Wolfram 'humph-ed' in stubbornness while smoothly drawing his sword out. "Your Majesty! Wolfie! Give it everything you've got, boys!" Lady Cecilie waved enthusiastically from the sidelines before winking flirtatiously at me, sending a shiver of fear down my spine. 'Why me?' I turned back towards Wolfram, drawing my own sword to signify my allowance to move forwards. "The duel has now been commenced!" Wolfram smirked borderline-evilly at me, and I quickly got into the correct stance that Conrad had shown me, mentally preparing myself for what I suspected would be an extremely long battle.
Wolfram and I stood before each other, our swords evenly clashing, and our faces only inches apart. He attempted to overpower me by pressing my blade towards my face, but I pressed back even harder, sending him a couple of feet back. Then, he charged at me, his sword raised over my head, as if to slash through me, but I side-stepped his attack and countered it with jab from the flat of my sword. This caught him off-guard, and he almost toppled over forwards, but he regained his footing. As soon as he turned back towards me, he rushed at me once more, but I was all ready for it, my fists subconsciously tightening around the handle of my blade. I stepped in and raised my sword from below at an angle, which, when having made contact with Wolfram's, sent his sword flying from his hands, before landing and embedding the tip partially into the earth. As everyone watched on, time seemed to have moved in slow-motion. Only when we had all stared at the sword sticking straight up out of the ground did we realize that I had won. When this dawned upon us, I heard a small chorus of cheers erupt from around me. "Ah, Your Majesty, I must commend you on this terrific victory! This was-" Gunter's excited exclamation was rudely cut off by Wolfram. "No, I haven't lost this battle yet!" Wolfram raised his balled hands in front of him. "All particles which dwell in flames, obey the call of the tribe who defeated the originators!" A bright orange ball of fire suddenly formed within his hands, and another creepy grin manifested itself onto his face. "You want to be the king of this country, right? So stop acting like a fool and fight like a real mazoku!" Wolfram flung his palms outward in my direction, and the next thing I knew, two large spheres of fire were being hurled straight at me (Aah! Duck! DX). At first,my feet wouldn't move; I was frozen in place. Luckily, though, just before it hit me, I managed to drag my lead feet to the side, just barely avoiding third-degree burns, but I felt the heat of the flames as they passed beside me, lightly scorching my cheeks. Although I was lucky enough to have missed being hit by the flames, apparently somebody else wasn't so lucky. I heard a high-pitched screech from behind me, and spun around just in time to see the bright fireball dissipate upon contact with what appeared to be one of the maids, just as she began to collapse backwards. I stared as a couple of guards rushed to help her, my left eye involuntarily twitching. That was when the sudden wave of nausea and the headache washed over me, and I nearly stumbled forwards. I brought a hand up to my face as my vision began to grow blurry and extremely unfocused. My head spun in circles, and I could faintly hear someone calling my name in the distance before the darkness of unconsciousness gave way.
Training Grounds - Neutral POV
Everyone near the outer training grounds watched as the king suddenly stumbled forwards, before bringing a hand to his face. One of the maids had been struck by Wolfram's fire magic and collapsed, and just a few moments after, the king turned deathly pale.
"Yuuri!" Conrad immediately rushed forwards and caught the boy in his arms before he could hit the ground. Wolfram, having realized a while ago that something was going on, took a few steps forward, a slight amount of concern evident on his face. "What just happened?" Conrad looked to his younger brother and shrugged. "I'm not sure. He seems to be-." Conrad backed up in surprise as the body he held began to twist violently in his arms. "Nghaa! Graaah-uh!" The king's mouth opened and he screamed out a line of jumbled, nonsensical gibberish, sounding like something akin to a demon-possessed child, voice lowered by several octaves. Then, he slowly stood up, facing the blonde prince, and his previously closed eyes suddenly snapped open, making the prince visibly flinch. His eyes were no longer...normal. His eyes were now completely black, with what appeared to be two small dots of white light shining in the center. Yuuri stood motionless, just staring intensely at Wolfram, who by now had begun to squirm under the glare of the double-black. The teen's mouth suddenly began to foam, with small bits of blood tinging the saliva running down his chin crimson. A static sound began to erupt from the depths of his throat, and the startled advisors (and Wolfram) took a wary step back away from the malfunctioning king. Then, something even stranger happened. Yuuri began to speak in a language they couldn't clearly understand, and his voice was low and hoarse. "Hey, kids! W-welcome to Freddy Fazb-bear's Pizza! W-w-who's hungry...for flesh?" The only one who seemed to somewhat understand the teen's garbled words was Conrad, who's eyes widened in, presumably, fear. The king took a few steps forward, stopping to stand directly before Wolfram, leaving only mere centimeters between them. Then, what he said next was much more understandable. "You have trampled over the life of an innocent, and for what? You have clearly ignored the rules of combat, and yet you still desire victory? You SCUM. I will not tolerate bigots in my presence. I did not intend for this to end in bloodshed, but you have left me no other alternative. I SHALL STRIKE YOU DOWN!" He raised his arms with his open palms facing outwards to the side, and blasts of water shot from them, forming into transparent serpents that cascaded in spirals downward towards the confused and slightly panicked prince. Wolfram turned to run away when he realized what was happening, but the water serpents wrapped around him, trapping him within their slippery grasp as they slowly raised him into the air. The bodies of the serpents formed the character "Justice" above his very head, symbolizing his intentions. "Help! Let me go, please!" Yuuri turned to look at the ascended blonde, face twisted in a grimace. "Why should I be compelled to show you mercy when you clearly show none yourself? The only reason I have not killed you yet is because I feel that you are able to change. Wolfram von Bielefeld, I command you to change your ways. I can be merciful, but only to those who are deserving of it." Everyone watching let out a quiet, collective sigh of relief as Yuuri swayed and fell backwards, and the water choking the blonde dissipated, allowing him to drop onto his backside on the hard ground.
Author's Note: Welp, that took an unnecessarily long time to write. I apologize for the extended wait, and I will try to get onto the next chapter right away, but seeing as life has...obstacles, I wouldn't hold your breath. Also, remember when I said that when I was done writing the whole series, I would go back and edit the chapters I wasn't satisfied with? Well, this one is currently on the top of my list. I am, honestly, not happy with how this turned out, but I'm not going to make you guys wait any longer, so I just decided to upload it as is.
As I've mentioned before, if there's anything you can think of that might make this story better, or if you have any kind of suggestions for me, let me know about them, and I'll see what I can do! Thanks for reading thus far, and I'll see you guys in the next chapter.