I went outside where I followed Sanzo across the town. Catarina stayed back at the church to watch over Sophia… I thought back to how she was injured during the fight. This was why I wanted to keep my identity a secret… Of the Phantoms I had encountered, their cruelest tactic to making more of their kind has always been to emotionally scar their victims and make them despair. The easiest way would be through hurting their loved ones or destroying mementos of them.
My life as Wizard had hurt Sophia and killed my own father… How could I even continue to fight knowing they would attack me or my loved ones at any moment?
"Catch." Sanzo lightly tossed me an amber stone. I grabbed it slightly, only for me to drop it. I quickly caught it with my other hand. "Your hand-eye coordination needs work." I inspected the stone, noting how it glowed orange. I held up one of my rings next to the stone. They had the exact same color.
"What… is this?" I asked Sanzo.
"It's crystallized mana from a long time ago. Some say that, before the four elements, there was merely magic. The ability to mold one's self as they saw fit. You have a few of these rings, correct?" She asked me as I showed her the Connect Ring. "For the battles ahead, we'll need to increase your capabilities…" As Sanzo said that, she stopped by a nearby house and knocked at a door. In a few seconds, it opened up, with Sanzo walking right in. I followed her after as the door closed behind me.
I turned to see a small, purple golem standing by the door and eying us. On its head was a ring with the image of itself embedded in amethyst.
"Hey! Quit scaring the customers, Vi!" A woman shouted at the golem as it scurried away. I turned to see the woman as she stood behind a common merchant's table. She had curly red hair tied up in a side ponytail and was busy fiddling with a golden coin. "It's been a while, Clare. Guess this isn't the usual business?" Sanzo went over and laid a ruby, sapphire, and topaz on the table. "Seems not. Funny, you weren't the first person to have come to this shop for this kind of job today." She lowered her head on the table and eyed the stones.
"So, you'll be able to create some PlaMonsters and Rings for me, then?" Sanzo asked.
"I'm sorry, Pla-"
"They will help you out in finding Phantoms. Trust me. If she's similar to a character I know, then she'll help us out a lot." Saito said. I went over to lay down the stone I had in my hands.
"Hmmm… I dunno. Last customer paid a pretty penny for me. What sort of price are you paying, priestess?" The woman asked as Sanzo slammed down a pouch. I heard each metallic coin clack with a sudden force. "Ah, that's the sound I want to hear… Tell me, was this from the church? I won't tell a soul if it is." She stuck out her tongue and winked while she put her index finger to her chin.
"Anna, I do not wish to humor you for a second. See to it that these magic rings and PlaMonsters are made before sundown." Sanzo said. She nodded to me as I placed the amber stone on the table.
"You got it!" Anna glanced at the stones, then nodded. "Three PlaMonsters and six Rings. That's what I'm feelin' from them." She grabbed one of them and went to the back of the room. "The PlaMonsters, will they be tied to you?" Anna asked.
"No, they're for the boy." Sanzo then grabbed my hair and pulled out three strands of it while I winced. She too laid them at the table. I watched as the strands of hair began to stand up on their own and cling onto the magic stones before being fused with them. Anna then picked up the ruby.
"Pleasure doing business with you." Anna smiled.
"To you as well." Sanzo bowed before taking her leave. I followed her out.
"Hey, can we check back with Sophia?" I asked her.
"Sure. But after that, I'll need to train you." Sanzo said.
"Understood." I nodded my head.
We went back to the church with almost no fuss. The moment I saw Sophia sitting and having a conversation with Catarina, I immediately ran to her and held her.
"Sophia…" Even though I knew that her wound had been long since healed, I felt the urge to hold her securely in my arms. "I'm sorry… So sorry about…" My sentences began to blur as Sophia held me.
"It's okay, Wilhelm… I'm fine… But…" She then let go. "You're… You're the Ringed Magician everyone's talking about…" She looked at me. Catarina turned her attention to me as well. Whereas Sophia had a frown and her overall face had a puppy dog look to it that I couldn't resist, Catarina's face was stern and focused with a glare that made my spine shiver.
"… Yes. I have been for about three years now." I said.
"T-three years!? That long!?" Catarina's jaw dropped before she carefully adjusted herself.
"It's a bit of a shock, I know… And I know you have a lot of questions, Sophia. I'll do my best to answer each and every one of them…" I took a deep breath, expecting her to confront me on the times I went away to fight Phantoms…
"So… back in Wachterin Village… Were you…" Instead, she asked me that of all things…
"No. Well, yes… I accidentally set my own house on fire…" I noticed Catarina almost start to snicker. "But… I didn't kill my father." She stopped as soon as I said that.
"Then… who did?" Sophia asked.
"I don't know… But… I'm going to find her. And when I do…" As I was about to finish my sentence, Sanzo stepped in.
"Before that happens, you'll have to master your magic. A Phantom will always try their hardest to destroy whatever hope a person has. Face her as you are, and you'll see your own Phantom burst from you." As Sanzo said that, Sophia opened her mouth.
"W-what? What are you saying?" She asked. I noticed Catarina didn't have a similar reaction.
"Sanzo… They don't know what a Phantom is." I said.
"They will in time. It is best that they are in the loop." Sanzo said.
"…" I wasn't sure how to respond to that. I had my reasons for keeping Sophia out of my business and the encounter I had with the Phantoms yesterday was just one of them. None of us knew how to respond. Our voices were silent as Sanzo stood there, the white Garuda flying to her shoulder. It seemed to break Sophia out of the silence as she went up to it.
"Oooh! That looks amazing!" She looked at it as it took off from Sanzo's shoulder and kept itself in the air with the flapping of its wings. "How… I never seen this sort of magic before…" Sophia said.
"This is ancient magic… The ability to create a facsimile of life." Sanzo held out her hand as the Garuda perched on her index finger. "Wizards once fought and experimented with the perfect method to control this magic… Today, it is seldom heard of. Aside from a friend of mine, I'm the only person in Mond Village who knows of this."
"That's… incredible…" Catarina seemed the most intrigued out of the three of us.
"I wonder why it's been hidden for so long…" Sophia muttered as she closely eyed the Garuda before it booped her nose with its beak, causing her to blush and back away. Just then, I heard some chattering outside the church.
"Huh? The Prime Minister's son is here?" One of the people said, which alerted me, but not as much as it did Sophia. She got up and ran off as I followed her. There, I saw Nicol next to his horse as several villagers were with him. He turned to me and Sophia.
"Brother!" Sophia ran to him as Nicol embraced her.
"Sophia, what's going on?" Nicol asked. I looked at Nicol as Sanzo approached me.
"You can't hide it forever…" She said. I took a deep breath as Nicol looked at me.
My Next Life As A Wizard
Stage 3: GO! The Cage Breaks!
"… I see." Nicol was in the church with us as I had sat him, Sophia, and Catarina down. I had finished explaining to him what I had said to Sophia and Catarina, as well as what the Phantoms are.
"I apologize for not telling any of you this sooner. But…" As I said that, Sophia held my hand.
"I understand. There's… quite a lot for us to take in." Sophia said.
"This whole time… These monsters… Phantoms… They've preyed upon people?" Nicol asked.
"Indeed," Sanzo piped in, "their intent is to increase their numbers. By driving people to despair, they create Phantoms inside of them that would burst from them if they aren't stopped…" As she said this, Nicol looked at me.
"… There's one inside you, correct?" He asked. I felt a chill up my spine as I heard Sophia gasp.
"I… don't know. There's someone inside me, I know that for sure…" I didn't know of how to fully explain Saito's situation nor did I even have the desire to.
"Peculiar…" Sanzo muttered.
"So, you said that you were this Wizard starting from three years ago… Does that mean there's another Wizard that came before you?" Catarina asked.
"I think so…" I thought back to the other Wizard's battles… "I feel like I'm taking up someone's mantle, at least." I said.
"So… If I heard you correctly," Sophia was the next to speak, "you're able to use all four elements. If that's the case… What's your affinity without those rings and belt?"
"…" I looked to the floor and muttered out: "Nothing."
"Nothing? You mean to say you don't have any magic!?" Catarina gasped.
"Wilhelm…" Sophia softly said as she held a hand to her mouth.
"I don't know why… but I was born without magic and had been that way until three years ago. I don't remember much of what happened, just that a Phantom tried to attack me. After that… It's been a bit of a blur until I met you." I looked to Sophia. "I don't even remember how I got these…" I took out the ruby ring. "There's… a lot I forgot in that attack." I frowned. That's when Sophia held me.
"It's okay… We'll help you out in any way we can…" Sophia said.
"Yeah, we got you to Sanzo, didn't we?" Catarina said.
"Barely." I muttered.
"…" I noticed Nicol's signature smile had faded as I saw his hand fiddling with something in his pocket. "There… is something I have that could help. I don't know much about it, but… It was from your grandfather. He anticipated the power you have might be too much for you."
"It's not. I think that's why my father wanted me to find Sanzo." I turned to her. "You know a lot about my kind of magic. Perhaps you know of a way to prevent my Phantom from emerging." Sanzo closed her eyes and shook her head.
"As far as I know, there is no means to restrain a Phantom once it is born. While one could cling onto their hope and force their Phantom back that way, despair will always coax it to return, as you had felt. One can only cope with the Phantom and hope their co-existence will be enough." Sanzo said.
"So… I'm stuck with it." I muttered.
"Yes. However, with proper training, you can master your Phantom. Speaking of… Come, the school year for mages begins in two days, so we must get as much training done as possible before you attend." Sanzo beckoned to a door at the back of the church. As I followed her, I got a closer look at the small statue of the sitting fat man. Sanzo turned her head towards the others. "You're more than welcome to leave. I will handle Wilhelm."
"No. We're staying!" Catarina said.
"Yeah! He's one of my friends. I'm not going to leave him alone." Sophia said. Nicol said nothing, but I can tell with the smile he had that he shared his sister's thoughts. I smiled back and headed to the backyard.
The outside was a simple, yet pleasant looking garden. Petals strewn about the yard, clearly having fallen off of a peach tree with a ginormous, sturdy trunk. I looked at the tree as my jaw was slacked open… Until a petal landed into my mouth. Quickly, I blew it out. Sanzo gazed onto the tree.
"We shall practice with the rings you already have. I assume you have already mastered them." Sanzo said to me.
"Yes. Shall I show you my favorite one?" I took out the ring in question and scanned it.
CONNECT! PLEASE~!
A small, magical portal appeared next to me as I extended my hand out to it. Sanzo saw a similar portal open near a peach. My arm came out of it and grabbed the peach before bringing it back to me.
"I see… A simple parlour trick." Sanzo took her walking stick and thrusted it back. There, I saw the staff extend to my hand and scooped the peach out from under my palm, before nearly doubling in width as it rolled down the shaft right back into Sanzo's hand. "Show me something better." Sanzo took a bite of the peach as the staff reverted to its normal size.
"… Alright, this might be a little rough but…" I used another ring on my belt.
BIG! PLEASE~!
A magic circle appeared in front of me as I pushed my hand forward. On the other side was my enlarged hand. I used it to grab Sanzo, though that's when she burst into a thick cloud before she reformed on top of my hand.
"Clever, if not primitive. A Phantom would easily overcome brute force if they have a special power." Sanzo sat on my thumb and took another bite. She carefully leaped off when I let go and landed on the ground before she whacked the back of my hand with her staff. I pulled back, reverting my hand to normal size.
"Well then, how's this?" I scanned once more.
FALL! PLEASE~!
While the ground beneath Sanzo collapsed, she stood in the middle of the air and took another bite, almost cleaning the peach of its flesh. Immediately, I scanned a second ring.
CLEAR! PLEASE~!
I then turned translucent as I ran over to where Sanzo was. Leaping into the air, I swapped to my final magic ring:
NICE CHOICE! KICK STRIKE! THE BEST!
I leaped into the air with a jumping side kick, only for Sanzo to gently toss the peach pit at her general direction. It landed on me and, with a smirk, she stepped to the side, dodging my attack while I landed feet first into the hole I had created.
"Amazing how you managed to handle the Phantoms for so long when you can't even lay a finger on me." Sanzo said before she extended her staff to the bottom of the hole. I grabbed it as she lifted me out.
"Well, that was because I had my sword… gun… thingy with me. And my array of elemental powers…" I pouted.
"Those have shown to not be enough, however. I have faced many challenges before to know that a simple trick can only carry you so far." Sanzo said.
"Easy for you to say! You have all these amazing talents and-" As I said that, Sanzo turned to me.
"As do Phantoms. They, like myself, have cultivated and mastered their powers. Part of a battle isn't to have the most powerful spell. It's knowing how to use the weakest spell in your arsenal to its fullest potential." Sanzo said.
"So… Something like…" Before I finished my sentence, I sneakily took out a ring and scanned it.
CONNECT! PLEASE~!
Immediately, I hopped down into a magic portal. Sanzo looked down before she heard it open above her. I fell through the other side, grabbing a peach on the way down. Before I fell through the portal again, I held my hand out as the portal on top shrank as a new one opened right at the trunk. I went through the portal at the bottom and emerged from the trunk portal at a speed that Sanzo couldn't have hoped to catch me at.
I flew right into the wall with a loud smash. I then landed onto the ground, the peach falling out of my hand.
"Yes, but… it needs work…" I could almost hear Sanzo snicker as I heard the door open.
"Is everything okay?" Sophia asked.
"N-nothing… I…" As Sophia helped me up, she gave a gasp.
"Your nose!" Immediately, Sophia reached for her handkerchief before Sanzo calmly walked up to me. I pressed a finger to below my nostrils as I felt blood. It was brief, however, as Sanzo waved her hand as a light shined from her palm. Any blood from my nose went away, along with the pain I had felt.
"You're well adjusted to the magic rings you have, but broadening might just boost your imagination. Keep finding new ways to use your rings, and you'll be a skilled magician in no time." Sanzo smiled.
"T-Thanks." I said. I then patted Sophia on the head before she pulled me into a hug. As she did, I noticed Catarina standing outside the door. At first, I thought she was staring deep into my soul. As she gave a kind-hearted smile, however, that worry of her being the bully in my memory went away.
"Hmm… I didn't see you use this Ring." Sanzo took one of the rings that hung off from my belt. The Copy Ring.
"Oh, that. Yeah, I use that to copy my weapon. Allows me to do double the damage." I gave a chuckle before Sanzo shook her head.
"That's all you can think up with this ring? I can think of at least one other application… But, I'll leave that as homework for tonight." As she said that, I saw the sun begin to set. "I'll arrange a room for you and your friends for tonight, then have someone from the village take you lot home as soon as we're done working with the new rings Anna will have made. Speaking of, check to see if she has them ready before she closes up shop." Sanzo walked to the door leading back into the church as Catarina moved out of the way. A moment of silence later, Catarina spoke up.
"Hey, you mind if I come with?" She asked me. There was definitely something different with her overall tone of voice. Every noble I had met spoke in a refined tone. However, her speech patterns were more that of a commoner. It almost felt… comforting. Approachable, even. I nodded.
"No, it's fine. You're more than welcome to come with, Lady Claes." I said.
"Catarina's fine enough." She closed her eyes and sheepishly chuckled.
Nicol insisted Sophia stay behind, though given what I witnessed earlier, I couldn't blame him. While I would end up being responsible for Sophia's well-being soon enough, he still had his own responsibility as her older brother.
This worked out fine for me, however. Saito seems to be a reliable source of information with his memories of another Wizard, but when it comes to Catarina, he's crying wolf. There's the slightest possibility, however, that Catarina's putting on an act. It gave me an ample chance to judge her character while we were walking to Anna's shop.
"So… You and Sophia... You're rather close, huh?" Though, seemed that I wasn't the only one who took advantage of Sophia's absence.
"Yes. She's a very kind woman who made me smile when we first met. When I was told I would be betrothed to her, I worried that I would be put into a marriage without love… However, she approached me and offered friendship. In fact… she was the first face I saw since…" I paused before I shook my head, lest I remembered the skeletal monster. "She had this reassuring aura around her that made me feel safe."
"And… you're not at all scared by her looks?" Catarina asked. She probably knows of the rumors of her being cursed.
"No. In fact, I find them beautiful. It's… a weird feeling to have, but I think it only adds to that aura of hers. It doesn't help that my mom shares her hair color…" Immediately, I felt awkward bringing her up after what I had known about her reasons for betrothing me. I spoke up, hoping to change the topic. "You and her seem to have a deep bond, so… how did you meet her?" I asked.
"Well, it's actually an interesting story. I found her being bullied and so I leaped to her defense and scared those bullies away. I… too fell for her beauty." Catarina blushed a bit. Hmmm… Perhaps Sophia's 'curse' is more of an attracting presence?
Though, it was what she mentioned that piqued my attention. As I had said to Saito, his version of Catarina would jump at the chance to bully Sophia, and yet not only did she admire her looks but also defended her. It almost seemed like night and day…
"Speaking of… Earlier…" Catarina spoke up. "You said you… knew someone with light magic. M-mind if you talk more about them?" In a moment, my head ached as I thought back to the person in my memories. As I did, I could feel a small, relaxing feeling rising from the bottom of my head. I… remembered holding something.
A cookie. It seemed I had taken a bite out of it. It was clasped in my hand as I remembered my other one holding the young girl's hand. That's when I remembered her bullying at the hands of Catarina. I gripped my fist… Even if she's a far cry from the villainess Saito made her out to be, I still needed to know for myself.
"I… don't know much about her. Just that she was lonely and needed a friend. I don't know where she is currently, but… Promise me something, okay? If you see her… Please don't harass her." I said.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Catarina asked.
"I… heard some troubling things about you, Lady Cl…" I shook my head. "Catarina. While I think they're rendered false by you proving otherwise, I don't want to leave things up to chance. That's why I'm asking you right now… If, deep down, you are a bully… That you leave her alone." The tone of my voice deepened a slight nudge.
"Huh? I don't think I've ever acted like a bully… Wait… Her…" Catarina stopped in her tracks. I turned to see Catarina. "Your friend… Does she go by the name of…" My eyes widened at two things. The first was that she might actually know the girl in my memories.
The second, however, was seeing Jormungandr's human form right behind her.
"Look out!" I pushed her down as I immediately scanned my Connect Ring. Pulling out the WizarSwordGun, I fired at him. He transformed into his Phantom form before he blocked the shots with his body.
"We meet again." I turned to see Hekatonkheire approach us.
"Catarina… Stay back." I held out my hand and took out my Flame Ring.
"You really think something that plain could defeat me?" Hekatonkheire took out his modified glove. "If only you knew of a greater power."
"Are you another Wizard as well? If so… why do you fight for the Phantoms?" I asked him.
"Do not be mistaken. I am no Wizard. I have openly embraced the Phantom inside me and became one with it… To the Phantoms I work with, I am an Einherjar. And you could be a powerful Einherjar too… Just accept that the Phantom inside is you. Let its despair become your last hope." Hekatonkheire said.
"If you believe me to turn into a monster like you, then you are sorely mistaken." I scanned the Driver Ring onto my belt, then activated at the same time that Hekatonkheire activated his.
DRIVER ON! PLEASE~! SHABADOOBIE TOUCH TO HENSHIN! SHABADOOBIE TOUCH TO HENSHIN!
SHAKA LAKA SHAKA LAKA CLAP TO CHANGE! SHAKA LAKA SHAKA LAKA CLAP TO CHANGE!
"Henshin!"
"Verzweiflung!" And we both scanned our transformation rings.
FLAME! PLEASE~! HI… HI… HI HI HIIII~!
CHANGE! HEKATONKHEIRE!
We allowed the magic circles to engulf us and imbue our bodies with armor. Immediately, he rushed at me with a sword while I rolled to the side and switched rings.
CONNECT! PLEASE~!
Pulling out the WizarSwordGun, I clashed blades with Hekatonkheire.
"RUN! Get the others!" I shouted to Catarina. She nodded and tried to run, only to run into Jormungandr. "Damn!" I gave a mutter as Hekatonkheire shoved me aside and slashed at me. He grabbed me and turned me around to see the two.
"Finish her off!" He shouted a command as Jormungandr held out his snake-head arm. As it opened up its maw, a red version of Sanzo's Garuda flew out and struck Jormungandr. "What the…" Hekatonkheire tensed as two more tiny figures flew out to attack Jormungandr, a blue unicorn and a yellow kraken.
"Here's your order! Fresh from the chisel!" I turned around to see Anna holding a case of six rings before she tossed it over to me. I grabbed it and looked at the etchings. Each showed the similar theme of a dragon and a rough idea of what the spell would do to the dragon. They were in the same style of my other Rings, so either this dragon motif was the norm or both sets were made by Anna.
In the order I've seen the rings in my case, there was a dragon with a shield in front of it, a dragon being chained up, what looked to be a dragon shrinking in a style similar to my Big Ring, a dragon flexing its wings, what seemed to be a light shining from the dragon's eye, and lastly a dragon with a long, curly tail.
Didn't have time to play with any of them, as Hekatonkheire went to attack Anna. I ran forward and struck him with the WizarSwordGun. Instinctively, I took out the Copy Ring, but just before I was about to scan it, I saw the image of the dragon and how there were duplicates of it…
Wait…
Duplicates…
I looked over to Jormungandr. Wouldn't be long before the PlaMonsters tire of fighting him. I scanned the Ring with my belt…
COPY! PLEASE~!
And suddenly, a second me emerged from a magic circle. Yes! This had to work! Now I can send my copy over to beat up Jormungandr.
I continued my assault on Hekatonkheire… But… The copy moved with me. Fighting in-sync. That… wasn't what I had in mind… My idea was to have my copy change to a different elemental style and…
"It was a good idea… but… Copy isn't the Ring that can do that." Saito's voice came into my head.
"Wait… There's a Ring that can let me do that?" I thought. As Anna ran off, my focus poured all the way into the Copy Ring, allowing a strike from Hekatonkheire that knocked me down. I was about to get up before he stomped on my back.
"Let her die and greet the Phantom with a big ol' hug! Worked wonders for me!" Hekatonkheire said.
"N…Never…" I grumbled as Hekatonkheire applied pressure onto me.
As Nicol got the guest room ready for bed, he turned to see Sophia sitting in the corner.
"Brother…" Sophia spoke to him. Nicol kept his signature smile, but it was clear that there were a lot of issues in his mind. "What… do you think of Wilhelm?"
"… I… don't know right now. I understand why he kept all this a secret though… But…" He took a moment before shaking my head. "He should have at least told us something… Even though it's not official yet… we're still his family."
"Then… We should at least show we're there for him. I'm sure he wanted to tell us long ago, but didn't or couldn't… And… Given what happened… I can't blame him for not saying anything sooner. Still…" Sophia teared up a bit. "If what he says is true… Then he might…" Nicol held the gate in his pocket. He was about to talk about the letter when he heard the door open.
"Clare! It's the kid! The Phantoms are attacking him and a friend!" He heard a woman downstairs and he ran down to see Anna speaking to Sanzo. Immediately, he stepped forward.
"Where is he!?" Nicol asked.
"Ten minutes down that way!" Anna pointed to the left of her. Sanzo nodded and got herself ready. Nicol, however, gripped his fists and gave a determinant glare. He then ran off. "Hey! Wait! You're gonna get yourself killed!" Anna turned around to shout, only for Sanzo to walk up to her.
"Let him go, Anna." Sanzo said.
"He's going up against two Phantoms! It's suicide!" Anna said.
"No… That boy… He has the proof of magic in him." Sanzo gave a confident smirk as all Sophia could do was watch from the sidelines.
I suddenly felt Hekatonkheire's foot lift from my back as I saw the violet golem hoisting him by the foot and tossing him away. I got up and noticed my copy was by my side. With our swords, we slashed Hekatonkheire as he was getting up. I knew I had to focus on Jormungandr before he hurts Catarina… Especially since she might know about that girl from my past. I tried to run to Jormungandr, but suddenly a spear collided onto my back, right where Hekatonkheire stepped on me. I got onto my knees and felt Hekatonkheire grab me.
"Watch. Carefully." He harshly whispered as I saw Jormungandr knock down the PlaMonsters. Just as he was about to attack Catarina…
He noticed Catarina had ran off, now about sixty feet away from him.
"DAMN IT! You good for nothing Phantom! You let a bunch of tiny jewel pets beat you up!" Hekatonkheire twisted my arm and threw me to the ground. "You know what? Screw it! We're doing this the old-fashioned way! Let the fear of death drive you to despair!"
"That won't be happening." I noticed Nicol arrive.
"Nicol, what are you doing!?" I asked him as I got up, taking a precaution to strike at Hekatonkheire's sword swing, our weapons colliding and locked.
"Wilhelm! Your grandfather gave me the means to save you… You don't have to bear that Phantom inside you any longer." Nicol then took out what seemed to be a silver gate.
"Oh no…" Saito's voice appeared in my head.
"What the…" Hekatonkheire worded my thoughts. Nicol took a moment before he looked at it.
"Wait… What… do I do with it?" Nicol muttered. I remembered a man with spiky, light brown hair striking a pose with that gate acting as a belt buckle. This was accompanied by another of Saito's warnings:
"Wait, don't let him use it!" Saito said to me. I could, but the problem was that I had the matter of fighting Hekatonkheire. I couldn't just stop him without getting attacked. Nicol seemed to stare at the cage in his hand, as though he was focused entirely on it… then slammed it on. Still having a focus in his eyes, he suddenly then went for a ring before setting it on his finger and locking it onto the side of the belt before twisting it.
SET! OPEN!
Suddenly, Nicol's body jolted and froze still. "W-what happened!?" I muttered.
"He shouldn't have done that…" Saito said.
"Where… am I?" Nicol said as he looked around the vast, empty void. Empty, save for a thick cloud of golden dust. The dust then formed into a giant, golden lion. However, its body mostly comprised of other animals, such as a buffalo serving as the bottom-most part of the body, a falcon and dolphin acting as its shoulders, and a large chameleon being its tail and top portion of the body.
"It's finally good to see you face-to-face, Nicol Ascart… I am Chimera." The lion spoke to him in the same growly voice that he heard earlier in the forest and just recently when it told him to use the golden ring. "Now that the belt has opened, our contract is signed."
"Contract? What do you mean?" Nicol asked.
"I shall give you the means to combat Phantoms with powerful magic… However, I expect something of equal value… These Phantoms give off mana… And I have hungered it for so long… Do you get what I'm saying?" Chimera asked Nicol.
"You want me to… feed them to you?" Nicol asked.
"A rather simpleton way of putting it… Merely killing the Phantoms will have them release their mana the world. The belt that Fredrick von Schwartz made is able to siphon the mana into it, allowing me to feast on it. However… Should I find myself still starving even with your help… I might just settle for you as my lunch." As Chimera said that, Nicol trembled.
"So… That's what he meant by taking his place…" Nicol remembered the letter Fredrick wrote for him.
"There is no turning back now… Feed the Phantoms to me… The Devouring Magician… BEAST!" Chimera flew right towards Nicol as his body flashed a golden light.
L-I-O-N! LI-ON!
I saw a golden magic circle open up in front of his belt, now having opened to reveal a roaring golden lion as its buckle. The circle engulfed Nicol before giving him an appropriately lion-themed armor for him with large, emerald eyes. A noticeable feature was that one of his shoulders was bare, with the other having a molding of a lion on it.
"Another one!? No… It can't be… I thought it was only a myth!" Hekatonkheire pushed me away to get a better look at Nicol.
"Huh? What do you mean?" I asked him, though I doubt he'd give me an answer.
"Nicol has become Kamen Rider Beast…" Saito's voice lost all emotion. Kamen Rider… Beast? Memories flashed in my head as I remembered this Beast fighting alongside Wizard.
"I don't get it… Beast's an ally, right? And he's Nicol! Why are you upset?" I asked back. I didn't get an answer, but it didn't matter…
I had to defeat a Phantom.
I took the WizarSwordGun from my copy and dispelled it. With both in my hands once more, I cut through Hekatonkheire's armor, causing sparks to fly out. I noticed that he reached for another weapon. I leaped back, changed the swords to gun forms, and fired wildly at Hekatonkheire. He began to stagger as the bullets dented his armor.
"Bastard!" He shouted to me before he threw several lances at me. I quickly threw one of the guns away and grabbed the lance.
"Thank you!" I struck the other lance with it in one powerful swing. The two exploded as I rushed through the smoke it caused. With my remaining WizarSwordGun, I slashed wildly at Hekatonkheire. However, with my rashness, I didn't account for Hekatonkheire to pull out a glaive and strike me…
I needed to think outside the box like what Sanzo said. That's when I remembered how Copy worked… Once more, I scanned the Copy Ring.
COPY! PLEASE~!
I jumped to the right just as the magic circle appeared, allowing the copy to take the hit while I opened the hand on my sword and scanned the Flame Ring.
FLAME! SLASH STRIKE! HI HI HI!
Taking him by surprise, I cut through the unprotected side of his armor and, once my blade cut through it, one more slash to completely destroy the armor. Rolling to his backside, I cut an X into his back. The X burned into the armor as he got onto his knees.
"It's not too late… to embrace your Phantom… Especially since you look…" Hekatonkheire's human face briefly appeared on the Phantom's face before he exploded, unable to finish his sentence. What remained of Hekatonkheire, a golden magic circle, flew towards Nicol's belt. Alongside it was a similar magic circle, one from what I assumed was Jormungandr. Both of them were sucked into the belt with loud, audible gulps.
As Wilhelm was fighting Hekatonkheire, Nicol was getting adjusted to his newly found situation. He heard the voices of Chimera when he held the cage and followed its instructions to put it on his waist and activate it via the golden ring.
As the son of the Premier, Nicol had some experience in self-defence. Compared to his friend Geordo and, to an extent, Wilhelm, he only knew the basics of the sword. Something he didn't have on his person. And yet… As though Chimera had taken over Nicol, he ran and struck his free hand at Jormungandr. Jormungandr didn't expect the hit. However, he held up one of its hand mouths and fired point blank at Nicol, knocking him back.
"Nicol, you have full access to my powers… And all of my aspects." Chimera said as Nicol subconsciously took out a bronze ring that had an emboldened buffalo on it. In the brief time he had fiddled with the cage, Nicol felt one indent on each side of the belt, appropriately ring-sized. The right-hand side was mainly used for the golden ring, but he felt the instinct to use the buffalo ring on the left-hand side.
BUFFA! GO! BUFFA! BA-BA-BA-BUFFA!
A crimson magic circle appeared at Nicol's bare shoulder was now covered with a small, crimson mantle with a buffalo's head molded on the shoulder. He noticed Jormungandr spew out purple fireballs to him. He pressed the buffalo-mantled shoulder against the flames and broke through with a shoulder tackle. As the golden horns on the mantle struck against Jormungandr, it pierced the eye on his chest and knocked him down.
"Rather uncouth way of fighting…" Nicol muttered.
"Then perhaps this is more your style?" Chimera said as a magic circle appeared from the belt. It seemed to be a rapier with a rather bulky hilt, complete with another indent for a ring.
"Hmm… Very." Nicol swung his sword against Jormungandr. Each strike was precise and focused, cutting through the limbs and slicing the eyes. He assumed a fencer's stance and placed accurate thrusts to Jormungandr's chest before finishing on the head. Sparks flew out of Jormungandr as he rolled over.
"The Phantom's weakened! Finish him off!" Chimera commanded as Nicol looked at his gold ring once more, then plugged it into the belt.
KICK STRIKE! GO! BUFFA MIX!
Nicol suddenly felt imbued with wild magic in him as he rushed down Jormungandr, who tried in vain to get his limbs to fire off any sort of flames. However, as he held out his hands, the snake heads on his hands exploded in purple flames.
The buffalo head on the mantle grew to a large aura of the creature as the horns gored on what remained of the chest eye. Jormungandr screamed before he exploded, his remains turning into a golden magic circle before the belt ate it alongside Hekatonkheire.
As the smoke cleared, he looked over to Wilhelm.
As we stood, I noticed some villagers coming out of their homes and began to murmur among themselves.
"Isn't that the Ringed Magician?" "It is! But… Who is that with him?" "They seem to be working together so… maybe his partner?"
To my surprise, the murmurs weren't full of fear or panic. I gave a nod to Nicol before I switched the belt off. A magic circle flew from my feet to my head as the ruby armor came apart into tiny colorless jewels. The villagers backed away and gave a gasp. I looked around to see their faces. All of them were mixtures of shock, curiosity, and even joy. A more pleasant reaction compared to my own village.
I saw Sanzo calmly approaching us, using her staff as a walking stick.
"Seems you're not too fond of keeping this a secret, hmm?" Sanzo asked me.
"Tired of keeping 'em." I said to her. Nicol looked away before he walked off, all without taking off his armor.
"A bold reason… Let us hope you do not regret it." Sanzo gave a smile before she turned and left.
"Wait! Priestess! What is going on?" One of the villagers asked.
"What were those monsters? Have they come from the Underworld?" Another villager asked before Sanzo spoke up.
"No. These are different… However, you need not worry. I am personally training this noble so that he can protect everyone from this threat. As such, he has received my blessing." Sanzo placed her hand on my head. With that, the villagers began to silence themselves, a few even bowing before her. I was silent as well, though only because I had tons of questions…
The only thing I could see was a familiar myna bird flying in the sky.
We returned to the church with little to no fuss. Once I entered, Sophia suddenly tackled me and held me tightly.
"Wilhelm! I'm so glad you're okay!" She cried softly.
"H-hey. Of course, I'm fine…" I gave a small blush as my hands automatically brushed her long, silky white hair. Catarina looked at us before she gave a small smile. Nicol, however, looked outside the window, clearly having his mind focused on the golden ring.
The three PlaMonsters I was given flew into the church, making their noises as they approached me. They coming apart into pieces, with one of the pieces being a magic ring. A magical slab appeared beneath each of them as the pieces clicked onto the slab. They then faded away. I held onto the three rings and saw the designs. These were different, as they had the symbols of the PlaMonsters on them, each with their unique color.
"What do you think? They can be messengers, reconnaissance, or as you just discovered, attackers." Anna was also there, sitting on one of the pews.
"I like them… Thanks." I was more focused on getting my questions answered, starting with Nicol. As I looked at him, Saito knew what I would ask.
"I don't think I need to tell you his belt is eating the mana of Phantoms." That much I knew for sure. "However, there's the problem of what happens if the belt doesn't eat…" As he said that, I knew something was wrong.
'What do you mean?' I thought.
"Nicol now has an Inner Phantom… If that Phantom starves… Then the next meal will be…" Immediately I stomped forward.
"Nicol! Did you know the risk of putting on that belt!?" I didn't even give any mind to realize I said it out loud.
"Wilhelm?" Sophia asked. She then turned to see Nicol. "Wait… Belt?"
"…" Nicol said nothing for what seemed to be a long minute before he spoke up. "I… didn't at the time… But your grandfather trusted me with this power regardless."
"Okay, what's going on here? Are you trying to tell me that Nicol is a," she stopped herself short before continuing, "Wizard like you?" Wizard was definitely not the term she wanted to use, but I didn't want to press her much more, especially since I have another question that I needed answered from her.
"Yes… He's become… Beast, I think his name was." I said. Nicol gave a sigh and turned around, allowing us to see the belt and the steel gate door that served as its buckle.
"Nicol… You're like Wilhelm now!" Sophia smiled as Nicol and I glared at each other.
"Not exactly…" Nicol then stood firm and made his intention known: "Wilhelm… If this pain of being Wizard is too much… If your Phantom is to destroy you… Then… Your grandfather had requested me to stop that from happening."
"My… grandfather?" I raised an eyebrow.
"He was the one who made this belt and the Rings. He anticipated this happening and elected me to save you from that fate." He said.
"I…" My eyes began to water before Nicol came by and held me.
"Wilhelm… I know you may be angry at me for this… but I did this for your sake… And Sophia's. You're going to be my brother-in-law, and I'll make sure it stays that way." Nicol said.
"And what about you? You have a Phantom inside you too. What if the reverse happens and your Phantom attacks?" I asked.
"Then… I guess you'll be the one saving me." Nicol smiled.
"I guess so." I wrapped my arms around Nicol and Sophia, beaming the whole time.
Garuda stood on the furthest edge of the dungeon's lair. He heard the caws of the myna bird and grumbled before flicking his wing. A bolt of lightning shot out from his wing-like arms, briefly lighting up the dungeon.
"This is getting out of hand! Now there are two of them!" Garuda shouted.
"This… has become troubling. Especially with the legends I have heard of this new magician's Inner Phantom." The Kaiser said. Legion darkly chuckled.
"A Cannibal Phantom… This is truly exciting…" Legion said.
"It's going to be just a bit harder for us to make Phantoms, but I don't think it'll be a huge problem." Sprite said.
"Kaiser, with your permission, I wish to-" Garuda tried to talk, but…
"You had your chance, Garuda." A new voice entered the area before the group saw a grayish purple wormhole appear in the dungeon. As it disappeared, a bronzish brown colored phantom with pale gray chest armor, spiky armlets and leglets, and the smiling face of a demon appeared. "Let a professional conduct this next orchestra."
"Beelzebub… You pompous ass." Garuda muttered.
"To what do you have in mind?" Legion asked him.
"Despair?" The myna bird asked.
"Precisely… But… not just any sort of despair." Beelzebub looked to the myna bird perched on Legion's shoulder. "Your services are required once more, Legion." As he said that, the Kaiser rose up from his bed.
"No, I forbid it! We already have two magicians against us, we do not need another!" The Kaiser said.
"Ah… But… That was before I came along. I shall oversee this performance personally… And with this…" Beelzebub held up a small, brown insect that looked like an enlarged silverfish, designed to look exactly like Beelzebub. "We can ensure these magicians will be our allies…"
"Wait… Magicians? What are you planning?" The Kaiser asked. Beelzebub merely chuckled before he waved his hand, transporting both him, Legion, and the bird away. The Kaiser looked over the dungeon before slamming his fist onto the stone bed, cracking it.
The next day, the others and I prepared a new carriage for our return home, with Sanzo and Anna helping out.
"And every day you have off, report to me for additional training. The Magic School will only teach you the basics of Elemental Magic and have no record of the magic both of you possess. Especially with you, Nicol." Sanzo said.
"Got it." I said as I loaded the last of my luggage.
"And if you ever need more rings, just hook me up with a stone and we'll see what sort of price I'm feeling." Anna stuck her tongue out in a playful manner.
"After the events of yesterday, I can with absolute confidence that Mond Village has your back. Say the word and they'll donate to your cause." Sanzo said.
"Thanks, but… I think I'm good with exploring these six. There's still quite a lot I haven't figured out about my powers." I said with a chuckle.
"That reminds me… Wilhelm… The news of the Ringed Magician has reached the ears of royalty. There's not a single noble who doesn't know about him. I'm not sure how you will be perceived by the people if you continue to fight." Nicol didn't bother to look at me as he packed up his side of the carriage.
"If I continue to fight, it will be out of duty to protect them. Even still, I doubt I'll be able to get any heroics in during my time at school." I, however, made sure to look at Nicol in the eye. "Besides, I think you should have some time in the spotlight. After all… Your Phantom…" Suddenly, any joyous feeling we had died down, especially once Nicol got around to look back at me.
"I'm not too bothered with it. If I hadn't intervened…" Nicol said.
"Guys! Stop worrying about it! You're both heroes now! Everything's gonna be A-Okay!" Catarina held up her hands. I got a slight chuckle from the bombastic way she said it, though it turned into a brief laugh when I remembered she was a noble.
"I regret not meeting you sooner, Catarina. I have definitely enjoyed your company these past few days." I said.
"Well, you're gonna have a lot more of me at the school." As she gave a smile, my mind flashed to the sinister smirk she had in my memories with a glare that embodied all her malice. I shivered before I remembered…
"Speaking of… You were cut off by that Phantom yesterday…" I asked her.
"Huh? Oh! Right! Your friend with the light magic… She wouldn't happen to be Maria Campbell, right?" As soon as she said that, my mind blanked out. I could faintly hear Sophia and Nicol speak about Maria, how she was a rare sight for the nobles…
Tears flowed down her face as she bitterly took a bite out of a cookie. I wasn't sure what I was doing out in the fields other than an overwhelming feeling of sadness. I definitely remembered my back rested against the tree. When I saw her… All I remembered was a sense of familiarity. Perhaps it was memories of Saito remembering her story or maybe even a sense of empathy that had overtaken me.
Whatever it was, I was motivated to talk to her.
"Um…" She turned to see me, her mouth agape as I saw the tears… But just that… the tears. I couldn't see her actual face. "Do you… mind if I have a cookie?" I asked her. She smiled and nodded…
We spent the next thirty minutes eating her homemade cookies, talking about something I couldn't remember… But… It was there that I told her my vow…
"I promise you! You'll never be lonely again! I'll be your friend." Usually here… The cracks would distort her face further. However… Time seemed to freeze…
"Lady Claes! Lord Ascart!" I instantly snapped out of my memory as I saw a carriage pull up. A maid with short brown hair had emerged from it.
"Anne, what's the matter?" Catarina seemed to know her… Perhaps it's her maid?
"Monsters broke into the manor! They've taken your brother!" Anne said as we all turned to her.
"What!?" Catarina said.
"We've heard that Geordo and Alan have also been taken." That made me tense up. The Phantoms just kidnapped one of the princes of the Stuart family. I only feared what the Phantoms would do to them…