The Demi-Human Liberation Front
"Why have we been summoned here?" asked Crucsh.
Along with Crusch Karsten, Felix Argyle, Reinhard van Astrea, Julius Juukulius, Wilhelm van Astrea, and Roswaal L. Mathers were all in attendance in the Throne Room.
The people who called for this meeting?
The Elders Miklotov McMahon, Bordeaux Zellgef, and the newly appointed King, the sole surviving member of the Lugnican Royal Family, Fourier Lugnica.
"We've received multiple reports from the Six Tongues that many DIvine Generals of the Vollachian Empire have resigned their positions and have disappeared," Fourier explained.
"They have?" questioned Julius, hiding his shock.
"Along with that, countless demi-humans of the Capital and people from the Slums have also disappeared," the King continued, ignoring the continuing shocked faces of the group.
"I seeeee," mused the Margrave. "So the ruuuuumors are truuuuue…"
"And from the sound of it, these two things are connected, nya," said Felix, connecting the dots.
"Who could have caused such a thing?" asked the Sword Demon.
"We've had our spies snoop around," Bordeaux sighed," and apparently, they found an organization… something called the Demi-Human Liberation Front."
All those in attendance had mixed reactions. Most, however, were fearful, as the name sounded awfully familiar to the Demi-Human Alliance from over forty years ago.
"From what we could gather, their objective is to liberate all demi-humans, to demolish the existing framework and rebuild it with them on top," Miklotov explained. "They have been preparing for something big for the past few months, but we don't know what."
This can't be real… thought Reinhard. But it was real.
"So, what is the plan?" asked the green-haired valkyrie.
"Our spies have found a woman who matches the description of the former 7th ranking Divine General, Yorna Mishigure, in Flanders," spoke the blonde royal. "Additionally, over the past few months, there has been a major increase in the demi-human population in Flanders."
"That can't be a coincidence, nya."
"Indeed. You will be taking Captain Marocs Gildark and Vice Captain Heinkel Astrea, along with some veterans of the civil war, Carol Remendis and Grimm Fauzen, and the rest of the Royal Guard, to Flanders, where we believe the Demi-Human Liberation Front is hiding."
"I seeeee," hummed the clown. "And dooooo tell, your Majesty, why us, specifically?"
"The six of you are the most powerful nobility in Lugnica," explained the red-eyed monarch. "You will be the leaders and supporters of this operation. You will be deployed in one week."
"We understand," bowed Reinhard. "And we shall not fail you."
"They want us to go to Flanders in a week?" asked Julius. "And we will be fighting people who could easily pose as citizens? If that is true, this will be quite the challenge."
After the meeting ended, the six of them had left the Throne Room, and were now walking down the halls, thinking of all the different ways they would have to prepare.
"If the Divine Generals are there, then this is a serious threat…" said Wilhelm.
"I agree, grandfather," Reinhard responded.
The Sword Demon did not respond to his grandson.
Reinhard knew why. He had murdered his grandmother, and his grandfather was one of the few people who actually acknowledged he was a monster.
Somehow, though, the silence hurt more.
"Then we have to go there and stop it!" Julius exclaimed.
"You want us to go charging in there with our swords swinging wildly around, Juukulius?" asked Crusch. "We need to come up with a better plan than that."
"I agree with Crusch-sama," spoke the old man. "Hearing that the Demi-Human Alliance, or some new form of it, has returned, is really shocking."
"Whyat time will we be leaving?"
"If I haaaaad to guess, as sooooon as the sun rises on the seventh daaaaay, Felix."
"Good guess," Julius said. "Where are the Captain and Vice Captain?"
"If I were them, I would be training and preparing the rest of the Royal Guard."
"That makes sense, Reinhard. We should probably prepare ourselves, too."
"But it's so scary to think, nya," Felix said. "They could have thousands of soldiers."
"That is true, but…" Crusch said, patting Reinhard's back. "We have the Sword Saint."
That's right, Reinhard smiled somberly. You have a monster on your side.
As the Royal Guard and their respective leaders marched towards the Ground Dragon Capital, Wilhelm trailed behind, as his mind was thinking back to the memories of his youth.
When the Demi-Human Alliance was still active.
Wilhelm remembered the chaos of the war. He remembered the ideals that the demi-humans possessed, especially the leaders.
Valga Cromwell, Libre Fermi, and the Witch, Sphinx.
In their time, they brought together like-minded individuals and created their alliance. They confronted the Kingdom, and fought. They had caused untold amounts of chaos.
The Sword Demon felt a bit easier knowing that they were all dead and gone.
Too bad their ideas weren't gone, given the fact that he had to do this again.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Wilhelm looked ahead of him, and saw that his son, Heinkel, had signaled the rest of the Royal Guard to stop.
"Welcome to Flanders," he said. "Completely unremarkable."
"There's a force of thousands hidden here?" Crucsh asked sarcastically, given the fact that the city looked peaceful and quiet. "How could that be possible?"
"Someone's coming!"
Upon hearing the Greatest Knight's warning, everyone was prepared for anything.
What they weren't prepared for, however, was a short, deer-like demi-human.
"Greetings," she spoke softly, her hands in the air. "I come unarmed."
"Crusch-sama?" asked Felix.
"Truth," she said, confirming it with her Divine Protection.
"My name is Tanza," she said, lowering her hands. "I have been commanded to act as your guide. If you wish to speak to our leader, please follow me."
"A child?" questioned Wilhelm. "Or at least, she appears to be a child…"
Inside the city of Flanders, it was quiet. Too quiet.
"There's nobody here…" mused Reinhard.
The Royal Guard, along with the six members that the King himself personally entrusted, were now following the horned girl into what seemed like a ghost town.
Looking around, Roswaal saw that there were some demi-humans on the roofs of the city, staring down at the Royal Guard, but not moving. All they did was watch, and wait.
"I geeeet it," he said. "It's the entiiiiire ciiiiity."
"You are correct," Tanza said, putting her right arm over her heart, and her left arm behind her.
This got the attention of the Royal Guard, as two more demi-humans walked into view, also giving a salute, placing their right arm over their hand and their left arm behind their backs. One of them was a fox-human, while the other was a short hyena-human.
"This is a liberated city," the fox-looking demi-human said. "Ninety percent of Flanders' population are hidden Liberation warriors. The remaining ten percent have already been evacuated. We are not monsters, after all. We do not harm innocent civilians."
Julius and Felix examined the newcomers, and given their descriptions and personal experiences, they both came to the conclusion that they were Divine Generals.
They were Yorna Mishigure and Groovy Gumlet, 7th and 6th ranking, respectively.
"Greetings, I am Yorna Mishigure, the Zeta of the Demi-Human Liberation Front. And you, are the guests of honor…" Yorna continued, lowering her salute.
"Everyone, those two are Divine Generals," Marcos warned the Royal Guard.
"Now, let the festivities begin," she smiled seductively, snapping her fingers. "Welcome friends… TO THE FIRST BATTLE OF THE NEW WAR!"
Immediately, dozens of demi-humans jumped out of the alleya and buildings, ambushing the Royal Guard, and starting off the battle.
BOOM!
Dodging out of the first assault, Felix cried, "They weren't lying abouyt their numbers, nya!"
"It doesn't matter!" yelled Crusch. "WHERE IS YOUR LEADER?!"
"The Alpha is in his tower," she said, pointing to the Vollachian-inspired spire.
"EVERYONE, SCATTER!" yelled Julius, as he cutted down four demi-humans that tried to jump him. He knew if they were crowded like this, they would be picked off one by one.
Nodding, the soldiers and knights all went in different directions, and started fighting.
Rushing towards the tower, Crusch dodged multiple shurikens that were aimed for her. Looking up she saw who threw them, the 6th ranking Divine General, Groovy Gumlet.
"Wassup? I'm Groovy Gumlet, the Epsilon of the Demi-Human Liberation Front. You're Crusch Karsten, the Valkyrie, right?" Groovy asked. "You're King Fouier's personal bitch, or something like that. It would probably break him if you fucking died here, huh?"
Gritting her teeth, she hissed, "Then it's a good thing I won't die here."
Dodging another massive sword strike from a brown wolfin, and another from a blonde beast-human, Heinkel yelled, "Every single one of them is so strong! It's not fair!"
"Well of course," said a newcomer. "Our troops train each day in preparation for the future. They keep on training, to the point where they can truly be considered perfect. That's why you disgust me. The fact that you have such a position of authority with little to no skill baffles me."
Turning her attention away from the red-headed man to the other knight on the field, she said, "You fascinate me, Felix Argyle. Why do you work with them?"
Looking to who was talking to him, Felix saw a petite blonde girl with red eyes, a physical description that made her seem similar to Fourier.
But most importantly of all, she was human.
This caught Felix off-guard.
"What?" she said. "Were you expecting all of us to be demi-humans? You do know that this place also takes in demi-human sympathizers, right? The name's Felt, by the way. I am the Eta of the Demi-Human Liberation Front."
Ignoring the girl, the cat boy dodged another magic strike from a brown-haired oni, and ducked and rolled to a nearby bench, hoping that it would protect his body from further damage.
He was wrong.
BOOM!
"Oh, be careful!" said. "This area is full of fire stones ready to explode!"
Quickly getting back on his feet and dodging more attacks from the demi-humans, Felix was grateful for his rapid cellular regeneration. If it wasn't for that, he'd be screwed.
"Oh, yeah, I was told that you had the Divine Protection of Water," Felt commented. "Too bad that your sword skills are worse than that redheaded jackass over there."
Running through the streets and following behind Felix, Felt kept taunting him. "From the intel we gathered, you were locked up in your family's basement due to your demi-human blood since the day you were born. So, why is it that you don't resent humans?"
Engaging him head-on, Felt was now fighting Felix. "I get it. It's because of that Karsten bitch right? She, in all her benevolence, she "rescued" you, and to pay her back, you ended up becoming her servant! You ended up becoming a human noble's glorified slave!"
Getting back up, the Blue hissed, "Slave? I'm no one's slave. It's tryue Crusch-sama took cyare of me, and I will pay her back for all her kindness, nya. But the fyact remains, she did it out of her own good will. Because of her, I have a life now. I have friends…"
"Friends? Like the former prince?" the little girl sneered. "Oh, you mean those damn knights. Tell me, do they even respect you? Did they even want you to join them in the first place?"
The cat boy collapsed from exhaustion, as Felt approached him. "I doubt they did," she jeered. "The only reason they accepted you was because of your damn Divine Protection."
Leaning down and grabbing Felix by the throat, the blonde continued. "Or maybe was it the fact that you came from a noble family? I know for a fact that those shitty knights don't give a crap about slum-dwellers like me… It's a good thing you had a rich daddy –"
Feeling the life getting choked out of him, Felix raised one of his hands and tried to destroy Felt's circulatory system while screaming, "YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH!"
Knowing what the healer was trying to do, the crimson-eyed girl increased her speed with her Divine Protection, and then pulled out her knife, cutting the Blue's hand. "Ah, ah, ah," she said, wiggling her finger. "I can't just let you boil my blood or fry my nerves, or whatever."
Why? Felix asked. Why is she helping the Demi-Human Liberation Front? She's human.
"Any last words you want to say before you pass out?" Felt asked.
All Felix could muster out was a pathetic, "W-why…?"
"Hmm? Why what?" she asked, before realizing what he meant. "Oh! Why did I join the Demi-Human Liberation Front? That's what you want to know? All right, then, I'll tell you."
Pulling Felix's ear closer to her, she answered. "When I was a little girl, I was abandoned by my birth parents. I was taken in by an old giant, his name was Old Man Rom."
Felix moved his eyes up to see Felt's expression of anger. "He was the one who raised me. He was the one who cared for me, when no one else did. He was my only family."
Tears were threatening to come out as she continued. "Then one day, a group of knights arrived and arrested him, claiming that he was some ex-insurrectionist," she hissed. "But I know the real reason. It was because he was a giant, because he was a demi-human."
"I pleaded with the knights, but they wouldn't listen! They just called me a gutter rat and a whore!" she yelled, as she started crying. "I watched as they publicly beheaded him, in front of a cheering crowd… I WATCHED THEM MURDER MY GRANDPA!"
"And that's why…" she whispered, standing up over Felix's body, her eyes full of hate. "That's why I hate the knights and the nobility. As it turns out, I wasn't alone. And with the help of the Demi-Human Liberation Front, we shall burn this kingdom to the ground."
And with that, she kicked Felix in the face, causing him to black out.
The Demi-Human Liberation Front had captured the Blue Knight, Felix Argyle.
On the other side of the city, explosions can be heard.
"We keeeeep defeating theeeeem, but there are tooooo many," Roswaal said.
"Luckily, they haven't killed a single one of us," Wilhelm said, as he chopped through a group of demi-humans. Even forty years later, he was a master of the sword.
"Captain Marcos is gone," Julius sighed. "Where is he?!"
Near the group, Reinhard walked, while he was being chased by a crowd of demi-humans.
Not that it mattered.
Twenty minutes into the battle, Reinhard van Astrea still showed no signs of exhaustion.
All of his opponents moved like they were in slow-motion.
Another effect of being a monster, he thought grimly.
He remembered the day he was called that, by his grandfather.
"You disgust me, monster!" he yelled, as he slapped him. "To steal her blessing, and to even steal her life! Will you only be satisfied after you have totally desecrated her memory?!"
Shaking his head, he jumped over the crowd of demi-humans trying to kill him, and defeated all of them in a single blow, not enjoying it one bit.
Grandson… Wilhelm thought, as he watched the massacre.
"If Reinhard-samaaaaa is not sparing any liiiiives, then I shall have some fuuuuun, too," Roswaal said, smiling. "I've neeeeever –"
SLASH!
Before he could continue, the clown had to dodge a surprise magic attack that almost appeared as if it had come out from his own shadow.
Then, appearing out of nowhere, a girl with dog features appeared.
"Sneaking up on meeeee from my own shadow? Impressive," the magic-user said. "If I'm correct, you're theeeee former 2nd ranking Divine General, Arakiya."
"You are right. I am Arakiya, the Delta of the Demi-Human Liberation Front. And you are Roswaal L. Mathers," the girl said, jumping away, looking annoyed. "The only person in this sorry group who is any decent with magic. Where is Julius Juukulius?"
"What's theeeee matter? Mistook me for him due to my hair color?" Roswaal mocked. "Weeeeell, you have a lot toooooo learn. Here's the difference between meeeeee and that Spirit Arts user… I'M THE DRAGON KINGDOM'S COURT MAGE!"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Immediately, multiple colorful and explosive orbs were thrown out of the Margrave's hands, all of them targeting Arakiya. The former Divine General gracefully dodged all of them, saying, "Speaking of a lot to learn, pay attention: I'm able to eat Spirits, letting me use their magic. In terms of magical power, I am your equal. No, I'm better than you. The Alpha helped push my limits, as he did with the rest of us!"
"Sounds niiiiiice," he smiled. "NOW DIE!"
Dodging even more attacks, Arakiya kept mocking the mage, "Don't think pathetic magic like that can weaken me!" as she used her wand to create a tornado.
Within the eye of the tornado, Wilhelm grunted, "Damn it! Everyone's been split up. Let's see… Roswaal-sama is over there… Julius and Reinhard-dono were together… Felix is missing… Where are Carol and Grimm? They were with us a few moments ago…"
"No… damn it…" Carol said, looking over her husband's bloodied body. "Is he breathing…? Yes… You have to live… you're the only one I've ever loved…"
With tears in her eyes, the blonde cradled her husband, trying everything she could to keep him alive. However, she was unaware of the group sneaking up behind her…
BAM!
Just in the knick of time, Carol grabbed Grimm and dodged one of the demi-humans' strikes. Looking up from where she was, her eyes' widened in shock.
It was Valga, Libre, and Sphinx.
"No… You're supposed to be dead…" she said, shaking her head. There was no way her old foes had returned; they had to be fakes. "Damn it, who are you?!" she asked in anger.
"Oh, that would be my fault," said a cheery woman from behind the three puppets.
From where she was standing, Carol could see a woman with green hair, orange eyes, and pointed ears. It was clear to her that she was of elven descent.
"Hi there!" the green-haired girl said. "My name is Shion, and I'm a half-elf! I'm also the Gamma of the Demi-Human Liberation Front! In case you're wondering… I have an ability that allows me to create phantoms from your memories!"
So, that explains why I'm seeing them, Carol thought. After all, the dead couldn't come back to life. She said they were phantoms… so nothing more than illusions, right?
"YAAHHH!" Grabbing her sword, she charged towards her first target, the false Sphinx, only for her to get hit with a Jilwad spell, piercing her shoulder.
"Oh, did I forget to mention that my puppets have the same abilities as the originals?" asked Shion, in a mocking tone. "They are based on your memories, after all."
Shit, the blonde internally cursed. Looking back at her husband, she decided that a tactical retreat was her best option. She grabbed Grimm, and jumped her out of the way of the half-elf and her puppets using her acrobatic skills.
"Big Guy, Greenie, sic 'er," Shion commanded, having the fake Valga and Libre follow Carol.
Following the woman and her wounded husband, the giant and the snake-human pursued her and attacked her every time they had the opportunity.
THWIP!
The fake Libre threw his double-blade sword to where Carol was trying to do parkour, causing her to lose her balance and to fall back onto the street, losing her grip on Grimm.
"Ugh!" she grunted, trying to regain her bearings.
Suddenly, she felt two individuals grab her arms.
"Break them."
KRAK!
"AIIEEE!" she screamed, in excruciating pain.
"Do what I say, and this stops, got it?" the green-haired half-elf said. "Resistance is pointless."
"My arms… it hurts…" as she hissed in pain, her life flashed before her eyes. Being best friends with Theresia and Julia, meeting Wilhelm and Grimm, falling in love with Grimm, getting married, spending time with her granddaughters, all of it.
Looking up from where she was pinned down, she could see the orange-eyed woman approaching her husband on the ground.
"I'LL NEVER LET YOU HURT HIM!" she screamed, struggling to get free.
"Oh, relax," Shion smiled, picking up the man who had passed out long ago. "We're not going to kill either of you. After all, it's just plain savage to kill soldiers who can't fight anymore."
"Wha…?"
"But, then again… that is what you humans are best at, right?"
"No, you're wrong… You're wrong!" Carol said, ignoring the pain as best as she could. "The Royal Guard… aren't like that… they aren't monsters!"
"Oh, really?" Shion asked, her voice laced with hatred. "Tell that to my dead mother."
Carol didn't have a chance to respond before she fainted from the pain in her arms.
The Demi-Human Liberation Front had captured Carol Remendis and Grimm Fauzen.
Launching more spells at Arakiya, Roswaal said, "Your power maaaaaay be useful in the right situation, sure, buuuuuut you must have digested all the mana in your body by now."
Dodging more attacks from some dwarves, Julius shouted to him, "If you can, help me!"
"Why should I heeeeelp you?" asked Roswaal, as he was still busy fighting the former Divine General. "There are pleeeeenty of knights who can help you."
Looking to where the Margrave had pointed, the purple-haired knight saw a group of his comrades heading towards them, being led by Captain Marcos.
"We're here to the rescue!"
"You guys came…?" Julius asked, relieved.
"Is it right for a Captain to let his subordinates die?" Marcos asked, sarcastically. "There are many more of the enemy than there are of us, so we need to help everyone!"
KABOOM!
Suddenly, the earth erupted into a bunch of massive spikes, skewering multiple knights.
"What is this?" Roswaal asked, dropping his accent. "How do you still have any mana left?"
"I would have run out of mana long ago if I had finished digesting the Spirits I ate."
"Is that so?" Roswaal asked the dog-human.
"If it wasn't for the Alpha's warning, I would not have restrained myself from eating all of those Spirits. But he knew you were coming, making me eat an hour before you arrived."
"You could have told me that from the beginning, and now I'm angry."
"If I told you that from the beginning, I would have been giving away crucial information…" Arakiya said, using her magic to fly up. "You seem to have forgotten… THAT THIS IS A WAR!"
BOOM-KRSH!
Getting out of the way, Roswaal and Julius were able to avoid a secondary attack from the ground. Unfortunately, even more knights were killed by the attack.
"You are going to perish here, Roswaal L. Mathers. Unlike someone who uses Spirits, your magic comes from within. Meaning you'll tap out eventually."
Looking up to the sky where Arakiya was flying, Julius shuddered. "She willingly sacrificed her own allies. She and the other Divine Generals will be the biggest trouble."
The Court Mage and the former Divine General continued to throw volley after volley of Al Humas and Al Goas at each other, as Julius and Marcos ran to find cover.
Running through the streets, Reinhard asked, "Grandfather, are you all right?"
"I'm starting to regret agreeing to come here," Wilhelm said, in a flat tone.
"But if we didn't, who knows how much more their forces would grow?"
"Yes, I suppose that is true. Look over there, Reinhard-dono, the tower is close," he says, as the two of them stop running. "And it's well guarded. Where did they all come from?"
"Hey, you two!" called out Heinkel, who was followed by a group of knights.
"Incredible, Heinkel!" exclaimed Wilhelm, making this one of the few times he ever praised his son. "One of the Divine Generals said that their leader was in the tower. Do you think you have enough knights to make it there? The closer we got, the more foes we faced!"
"Uh, yeah! We'll take down these filthy demi-humans for Lugnica!" Heinkel cheered, thinking that this would be an easy way for him to get some glory.
"The Demi-Human Liberation Front is threatening the good people of Lugnica," the Sword Saint said, getting ready to run again. "I'll make sure that they're stopped."
Jumping down from one of the roofs was a wof-human, wearing a black kimono with purple accents, giving off a laid back appearance, all while smoking a kiseru.
When he was noticed by all three Astreas, he said, "You! Heinkel-san!"
Not reading the room, Heinkel asked, "What the fuck do you want?"
"I am Halibel, the Beta of the Demi-Human Liberation Front! We believe that humans are not our masters! We will show you how strong we are! Witness us!" the demi-human said, placing his right arm over his heart and his left arm behind him.
"IT'S TIME! DEFEAT THE KNIGHTS! CRUSH THE HUMANS! SHOW THE WORLD THE COMING OF A NEW ERA!"
Riled up by the black wolfin's words, the rest of the demi-humans fought even harder against the knights. After thinking of whom it could possibly be, Reinhard came up with a guess.
The appearance, the laid-back personality in battle, all that pointed him to one answer.
He was Halibel, the Admirer of Kararagi.
That explains why the soldiers are now in a frenzy! It's his charm!
"Go!" yelled the Sword Demon. "It's up to you know!"
Nodding, Reinhard went past the Eternal Playboy, and continued to the tower.
As his grandson ran, Wilhelm looked towards the smiling shinobi. The enemy is still attacking, the old man thought. But knights are beginning to get exhausted. What should we do?
"There you are," Reinhard said, in a cold tone. "You are the one who organized the Demi-Human Liberation Front. Why would you do this?"
"Oh?" said the leader. "So you've made it to the top floor."
Upon looking at the leader, Reinhard saw that something was off. "No excessive body fur… no horns… normal black hair and brown eyes… wait, you're human?!"
"That was quite the large number of warriors waiting for you downstairs," the leader said smiling, ignoring Reinhard's comment. "You truly are the Sword Saint."
Rushing toward the leader, Reinhard prepared to punch him square in the face, effectively taking him out, and ending this madness. Only…
GRAB!
The leader merely blocked Reinhard's punch. With a single hand.
"Were you going easy on me?" the black-haired boy asked.
"What did you do…? How did…?"
"Sword Saint. If you try that again, your remaining comrades are dead," the nasty-eyed boy spoke in a threatening tone. "I really don't want to kill them, but I will."
For a moment, Reinhard was afraid.
But then, he remembered. He was a monster. He had the advantage.
All he needed to do was defeat this man, and victory was theirs.
Reinhard tried again with his free hand, even harder this time…
FWOOSH!
…only to have the leader's left arm morph into that of a giant blue dragon arm, and toss the Sword Saint to the side of the room, like a ragdoll.
CRASH! SMASH! BOOM!
"Hmph, humans," the leader said, with disgust. "It's ridiculous to think that you're the dominant species. As long as your kind exists, we'll never be able to compete –"
Immediately, Reinhard leaped towards the leader, and tried to cut him with a spare sword.
The leader dodged, looking surprised. "Oh, still alive, are you?"
"Why?" Reinhard asked. "Why are you saying these things?! You are human yourself!"
"Oh? You wanna know why?" he asked, smiling like a maniac. "Okay, then."
"Seven years ago, life was saved from the jaws of ferocious Mabeasts by a demi-human. She was a silver-haired half-elf with beautiful eyes of amethyst," the nasty-eyed boy began, as he tried to punch the Sword Saint, his arm still in it's dragon form.
"She was a girl pure of heart, but the villagers hated how she looked, so she was forced to live in the frozen forest, alone! I was the first person to never look at her with disgust! Aside from a random Spirit passing by, I was the only person she ever thought of as a friend!"
The redhead dodged the dragon arm, as it crashed and went through the wall.
SMASH!
"But apparently, that was too good for her! The people of the village didn't even want her anywhere near them, so you know what they did? They hired slavers! They invaded her home… and while she tried to protect me… THEY KILLED HER!"
As the black-haired boy continued to attack, the Sword Saint continued to dodge, all the while he kept telling his tale. "She died trying to protect me! And you know what they said?! They said that I should have been grateful that I was saved from the Witch!"
Getting grabbed by the dragon arm, Reinhard was pinned down.
"I LOVED HER! SHE WAS THE ONLY PERSON WHO WAS KIND TO ME IN THIS FOREIGN WORLD… AND THEY JUST BEAT HER TO DEATH! JUST BECAUSE OF HOW SHE LOOKED! SHE DIED TRYING TO PROTECT ME!"
Being lifted into the air by the dragon arm, Reinhard choked out, "Silver-haired half-elf…?" Those features were the ones that described…
"Her name was Emilia," he said, making sure that there would be no mistake. He would make sure that the woman he loved would not be mistaken for a Witch.
"Now do you understand why I hate humans so much? Any race capable of such evil doesn't deserve to exist! THIS WORLD WILL CHANGE AT THE HANDS OF SUBARU NATSUKI, ALPHA OF THE DEMI-HUMAN LIBERATION FRONT!"
Subaru Natsuki? The same one who… Reinhard thought, before shaking his head, remembering that he had a job to do. I need to bring down the tower.
Squirming out of Subaru's hand, the Sword Saint managed to break himself free, and proceeded to punch the floor with all his might.
The tower collapsed mere seconds later.
I need to lighten everyone's load and take out the bigger threats, Crusch thought, as she was running through the streets, and straight towards Groovy. Like him!
"What's a Divine General like you doing out here?!" she asked.
"From what I'm guessing, you're asking why I'm not safely strategizing?" asked Groovy. "Sorry to disappoint you, but not all of us are weak as fuck like Chisa Gold prick, toots."
As the two of them continued fighting, the hyena-human spoke to the other demi-humans in the area. "LET US BRING JUST PUNISHMENT TO THOSE WHO THREATEN US!"
Hearing the former Divine General made the rest of the demi-humans become even more zealous, as some of them proceeded to attack the green-haired warrior.
"What's this?!" Crusch asked. She was hoping that Groovy would saty forced on her. Sure, he had a crude mouth, but if the others wouldn't fight, that would be worth it.
Some of the demi-humans proceeded to strike down the knights that were assisting her, while others decided to assist Groovy in taking down Crusch.
The valkyrie tried to dodge and slash her way through the demi-humans, but a small one with orange cat ears had some sort of sonic-attack that hit her in the back.
"WAAAA!"
BOOM!
Hitting a wall, Crusch looked around to see she was surrounded.
"Looks like you can't do shit, Karsten. All that fame of yours must have been from your old man, yeah? Are ya here now just to prove you ain't a pussy?" the short Divine General said, in a mocking tone. "Unfortunately, all that money and status doesn't mean dick to someone like me."
BOOOOM!
Crusch and Groovy both looked away from each other to see that the Vollachian-styled tower had collapsed to the ground, and was now just rubble.
"They're at the fucking tower?!" Groovy screeched. "Our warriors should have stopped them!"
Crusch tried to use the diversion as a way to escape, but she was tackled to the ground by lizard-human and clawed at her abdomen.
"GHAAA!"
"CRUSCH-SAMA!" yelled one knight, but was killed before he could do anything.
"Warriors!" Groovy called out to the other demi-humans. "Go to the Alpha! This human filth is attempting to assault the soul of our army!"
Down on the floor, Crusch was trying to get uop, despite the pain.
"Like I said, you ain't hot shit," Groovy sneered. "And neither is your human king."
"Shut up," Crusch grunted, grabbing her sword. "It doesn't matter what your race or place in society is… what matters… is what you do with the life you have…"
Continuing, she said, "When I see Fourier, I see someone who helps anyone he can, not because he's a king, but because that's the sort of person he is… SO DON'T YOU DARE SAY ANYTHING ABOUT HIM! HE'S FAR BETTER THAN YOU, BASTARD!"
Groovy looked unimpressed. "You're a fool to compare us, bitch."
Everyone, keep fighting… Crusch thought. I'll take out as many as I can…
In the rubble of where the tower stood, there were now two people facing off one another.
Subaru Natsuki and Reinhard van Astrea.
"Wow, you're a tough cookie," Subaru joked. "So, how are your buddies handling all of this? Too bad you underestimated us. What? Ya got nothing to say?"
Reinhard immediately went to strike the black-haired boy again, only for the Japanese teenager to jump over him. "To tell you the truth, I'm a tad bit upset. Though, to be more honest, I'm more interested in that power of yours. What is it?"
"Oh, that? It's my version of the Authority of Lust. A nice reward for killing Capella, don't you think?" he said, as his arm changed again. "I call it 'Race Changer', and it allows me to change into any race I desire. I changed my arm to that of an elf to block your first punch, the giant blue arm was that of a dragon, and the acrobatics I performed just now belonged to the oni."
"So you are the one who killed the Sin Archbishop of Lust!" Reinhard yelled, remembering the day the Dragon Tablet announced the news. "But, why –?"
"Oh, don't get me wrong, I never did it to be a hero," Subaru said, interrupting the Sword Saint. "I only killed her to get her power. Each Authority apparently changes to the desire of the user, so if I stole one of the shape-shifter, well…"
Hearing the nasty-eyed boy's explanation, Reinhard felt something. Looking down to his waist, he saw that the sword there was loosening from it's hilt.
The Dragon Sword Reid had deemed Subaru Natsuki worthy.
It was time to show Subaru Natsuki what it truly meant to be a monster.
"Reinhard van Astrea, of the line of the master –"
Before he could finish, the Alpha rushed him and grabbed the Sword Saint with the dragon claw. "Yeah, no I'm not gonna let you blow me away," he said.
Now, in my last loop, he pulled that sword out, and then he blew me away. Good thing I caught him off-guard this time, Subaru thought to himself. Now… It's time.
With his one free hand, Subaru placed it on Reinhard's face, and smiled. "You know, it's not only myself who can change their race. I can change others, too," he smiled sadistically.
Immediately, Reinhard felt pain. It was so bad, that he felt himself burning up, as the pain of what Subaru was doing made his life flash before his eyes.
"My Sword Angel."
"You disgust me, monster!"
"Nice to meet you, my name is Julius Juukulius."
"SUBARU NATSUKI, ALPHA OF THE DEMI-HUMAN LIBERATION FRONT!"
"AIIIEEEEE!"
Pulling the conversation mirror out of his pocket, Marcos opened the metia to see Julius on the other side. Speaking first, he asked, "What is the report, Juukiulius?"
"SIR! BE ON YOUR GUARD! THEY HAVE THREE DIVINE GENERALS ON THEIR SIDE, ALONG WITH THE HALIBEL THE ADMIRER! TWO OF THEM ARE –!"
"Yaaah!"
Before Julius could finish his report, Marcos turned and saw that his knights were getting cut down by multiple, identical-looking shinobi.
"Yo, are you the Captain of the Guard?" one of them asked.
Marcos didn't know how to answer. Not that he had time to answer.
BOOM!
Turning around, one of the shinobi clicked their tongue, as they saw the tower collapse.
"Su-san!" the wolfin cried, and all four shinobi ran towards the crash site.
"Great, they're all heading to the site of the collapsed tower," Julius sighed. It had now been a few minutes since all the demi-humans had left the area, giving Roswaal and himself a chance to rest, but Greatest Knight was still on edge.
"Suuuuuch terrible timing," Roswaal groaned, looking over at the spot where Arakiya once stood. "I was juuuuust about tooooo incinerate that Spirit Eater, too."
"Captain! Are you there?" the purple-haired knight asked, holding up the conversation mirror. "Call the order to retreat! This is too much! The knights are going to die!"
"Are you trying to get us fired?" Marcos responded, on the other side of the mirror.
"What?"
"If we return to the Capital now, our careers are over."
"That doesn't matter!" Julius yelled. "We need to leave while we still have the chance!"
"We need to get rid of the Demi-Human Liberation Front first!"
"Are you fine with all of us dying?!"
"Not to worry," Marcos smiled. "We have the Sword Saint on our side."
Running through the rooftops, Felt saw that the tower had collapsed.
Her thoughts immediately thought of how the Alpha was about to be arrested by the Sword Saint, or even worse, die. He had placed his faith in her, and look what happened now.
"I'm so sorry, Big Bro," she cried. "I can't believe I let you down!"
Looking down at the streets, Felt saw that Yorna and Shion were also there, running towards the same direction as her, taking down as many human soldiers as possible.
"We must protect our leader!"
"QUICK, GET TO SUBARU!"
Opening his eyes again, Reinhard looked around and only saw Subaru sitting in front of him, smiling. "Oh, good, you've woken up."
"..."
Handing the Sword Saint a mirror, the Alpha said, "This was the only thing that survived the tower's collapse. Good thing, too. How else would you get to see the new you?"
Wait, what?
Grabbing the mirror from his hands, Reinhard looked and saw…
… a pair of purple irises, with blue pupils, staring back at him.
What?
Looking further up, he saw that his hair was no longer red.
It was silver.
No… n-no way…
Making sure he wasn't dreaming, Reinhard touched his ears.
They were pointed.
"Ahh… aughg…" Reinhard couldn't form any words as the realization hit him.
This man had turned him into a silver-haired half-elf.
The newly made silver-haired man looked up towards the black haired boy who approached him. His face didn't show any sign of hated, or disgust, despite the fact Reinahrd was now a –
"I know what you're thinking," Subaru said. "You're probably wondering who would even want you now, knowing now that you look like a monster both inside and out."
Reinhard's eyes threatened to spill tears, as Subaru kept walking towards him.
"Well, as far as I'm concerned…" he said, kneeling down, and hugging him.
"... you truly are now the most beautiful person in the world."
Running towards the scene of the crash site, both knights and demi-humans, the only thing anyone could see was rubble.
"SUBARU!" cried Shion.
"Has the Alpha been hurt…?" asked Arakiya.
"It can't be…" said Yorna.
"DON'T JUST STAND THERE!" screamed Groovy. "GO SAVE OUR GLORIOUS LEADER!"
But before anyone could jump into action, the rubble moved.
Subaru stood up, and was carrying a sheathed sword.
The Dragon Sword, Reid.
"Knights of Lugnica," he announced to all the knights who were watching him. "Any more fighting… would be pointless. The Sword Saint has been defeated."
Lifting up the Dragon Sword into the air, Subaru placed his right arm over his heart, as he screamed to the heavens, "THE DEMI-HUMAN LIBERATION FRONT HAS WON!"
Immediately, the demi-humans cheered for their victory, while the remaining knights retreated in fear while they still had the chance to make it out of the city alive.
Overlooking the victorious Alpha, Halibel smiled. I was right to follow this guy…
Hearing the cheers of the demi-humans, Subaru thought to himself happily, After hundreds of failed loops, I finally came up with a strategy where we won…
However, he still felt bad that he never discovered Return by Death before Emilia died.
It had now been four days since the return of the knights from Flanders.
Or at least, as many of them as there were left.
Inside the Throne Room, the only nobles who had returned were Crusch Karsten, Wilhelm van Astrea, Julius Juukulius, and Reinhard van Astrea.
Them, along with Heinkel Astrea and Marocs Gildrak, were ready to give the report to King Fourier Lugnica, along with Mikltotov McMahon and Bordeaux Zellgef.
"It was a massacre," Crusch said, bluntly.
"All of Flanders was controlled by the Demi-Human Liberation Front," Julius explained. "Their army numbered in the thousands, and they had with them three Divine Generals, and the Admirer of Karatagi. The Royal Guard was an easy target for them."
"There are also reports saying that several higher-ranking officials went missing there," Miklotov said, moving on to the next topic. "Care to elaborate?"
"Of course," Wilhelm agreed. "The Blue Knight Felix Argyle, along with the veterans Carol Remendis and Grimm Fauzen have been reported missing in action. There is also the claim from the leader that he… had defeated the Sword Saint, Reinhard van Astrea."
"WHAT?!" screeched Bordeaux. "BUT THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!"
"With all due respect…" Crusch said, regretting her every word. "We were all there when their leader lifted the Dragon Sword in the air. Also… my Divine Protection indicated that he was telling the truth."
Everyone was silent for a moment. The implications that the Demi-Human Liberation Front had someone capable of defeating the Sword Saint… was something they didn't want to think about.
Wilhelm, however, silently mourned for his grandson.
"What happened afterwards?" asked Fourier.
"I called upon the retreat of the Royal Guard," Marcos said. "With over half of the army defeated, and seeing the demi-humans' victory, they would have fled either way."
Nodding silently, the king lifted his head and looked at the soldiers in front of him. "We must be sure of when they will attack. Hopefully, we will be able to prepare ourselves. Until then, we must gather information, and learn everything about the Demi-Human Liberation Front."
Looking towards everyone, he continued, "We must plan for an evacuation, the Demi-Human Liberation Front is definitely plotting something. And whatever they do… we know that they will do it soon, and it will have massive consequences. Understood."
Hearing a chorus of 'yes', the blonde monarch dismissed everyone from the Throne Room, as he himself was left alone to dwell on these thoughts.
In the city of Flanders, it was quiet.
All the participants of the battle were waiting patiently for their leader to speak, ready for him to give another one of his rousing speeches in celebration of their victory.
Then, he walked on stage.
"Welcome, and thank you for coming, warriors of the Demi-Human Liberation Front!" he smiled. "I am the Alpha, Subaru Natsuki! It is a pleasure to see you!"
"Today, we celebrate the Demi-Human Liberation Front's first victory!"
"As we move towards freedom, and strive for a new world, we shall march upon the Capital of Lugnica, and remove the Council of Elders who have trampled on you for far too long!"
Hearing the cheers of the crowd, the top followers of the Demi-Human Liberation Front came up to the stage, to show their allegiance to the cause.
"Halibel, Beta. Shion, Gamma. Arakiya, Delta. Groovy Gumlet, Epsilon. Yorna Mishurge, Zeta. And Felt, Eta. The six of you are my lieutenants, and teams will be assigned to you, based on your needs," he said, turning toward his comrades. "Anyway… LET'S CELEBRATE! FOR NEXT WEEK, WE LAUNCH OUR ASSAULT ON THE CAPITAL!"
As the cheers became even louder, the crowd saluted, placing their right hand over their heart, and their left behind them, symbolizing that they would give their heart to the cause.
"YEEAAAHHHH!"
Looking up to the sky, Subaru thought to himself, Are you watching from Heaven, Emilia-tan?
Tearfully, he smiled. I will always love you.
Somewhere within Flanders, the prisoners of war were in their rooms.
Felix was being put to work helping the wounded.
Carol and Grimm were placed in a room together.
Meanwhile, Reinhard was placed in the best room, where he was usually alone.
Holding a mirror, he looked at himself again.
He saw his new look, and smiled.
He was no longer a monster.
He was now truly beautiful.
Author's Note: The end, question mark? I don't know. If people really like this, then I might make a second part. In case anyone is wondering, the idea mostly stemmed from the Meta Liberation Army from "My Hero Academia". The salute the demi-humans do is from "Attack on Titan". I would like to thank Infinite the Celestian and Im The Person for helping me with their suggestions, and supporting me through the whole thing.
Also, fun fact, throughout the entire story, I had multiple demi-human characters not mentioned by name, but you can identify them from their descriptions. If you want to figure out who is who, go crazy. Post your answers, if you like.
Also, no this isn't connected to "The Otherworldly Sage" or any of my other works in any way. This is just my messed up one-shot in an alternate universe.
If you want, you can leave comments, I'll totally read them.
Well, that's all. See you all in my next work!
- Ernalore