After being saved by my fellow party members, we headed back to the capital of the Belzerg Kingdom.

However, during our journey back, none of us said anything, probably due to the sheer exhaustion of the rescue operation or the serious atmosphere caused by the heavily wounded Saki.

Currently at this moment, I was attempting to heal Saki using the Drain Touch.

She put her life on the line and lost a lot of mana because she tried to save me. I couldn't just stand by and just watch her die, can I?

By the way, I didn't use the mana supply pack within the Light Core Outfit as the mana within it may have holy attributes and Saki will definitely be a goner in this case.

"By the way, I am really sorry for what just happened, Iris." I apologized to Iris.

"Eh? What are you apologizing for, Onii-chan?" Iris responded instantly with a confused tone.

"I failed as a party leader. Not only did I put myself in danger, but I also put you all in danger as well. I've won... but at what cost...?" I elaborated further with a slightly miserable tone.

"What are you saying, Onii-chan? Keep on transferring mana and we will talk about this later-" Iris answered with a shocked tone.

"I placed Saki in serious danger by letting her stay by her mortal enemy's side as an informant. And then I barely manage to get back to my senses with your help, and at the cost of Saki being heavily injured. You may say no one expected that to happen, but it feels like I can actually do a lot better than that."

'By the way, can I stun or disable opponents without using electricity? I could really use a milder alternative to subdue opponents. Maybe using sound can work?'

I should look into the possibilities of a new Core Outfit.

"I don't acknowledge you..." Iris muttered.

"What?"

"I refuse to admit Onii-chan as a bad party leader!" Iris said the same sentence a bit louder with tears in her eyes as she slapped me in the face, which caught the attention of the rest of my party members.

"Iris-sama?!" Alicia looked at Iris with a shocked expression.

"O... Onii-chan is a person who is willing to risk his life to protect his party members, or even people who he doesn't know! A good party leader cares and looks out for his/her party members, and that's you have been doing for this entire time! So don't say anything like 'I am the worst' or 'I failed'! Everyone present in this place think the opposite! If you have doubts about this, go ahead and ask them!"

"It's true... If it wasn't for you, I would still be at the Adventurers' Guild, being mocked by some delinquent adventurers. You taught me Phoenix-plosion and gave me self-confidence to cast the magic spell. I can't say that you are the best party leader I have ever met since this party is the first time I formed with someone else. However, it is safe to say you are a good party leader." Loby was the first one to spoke up as he recalled our interactions beginning from our first encounter.

"Guardian-san invited me to the party and I met some friends as a result. It could not more obvious that Guardian-san is a kind person who would help anyone without question. You headed towards the battlefield without hesitation when you know that we were at a disadvantage, even you were heavily wounded and could barely move. You are definitely a good party leader." Yunyun continued as she placed a hand on my shoulder.

"To be honest, it is like what Iris-sama said, Guardian." Alicia said with a consoling tone as she patted me on the back. "You faced that hideous creature when you realized I was stunned by its appearance. Not to mention the facts you healed me and listened to my willful requests. You could have refused to do all the aforementioned things, yet you still do them anyway. From here, think, and analyze. Don't you think you are a good party leader?"

"You guys... Thank you. I am well aware that all of you are adventurers. Nevertheless, I cannot guarantee that you all are safe from trouble or the chances of dying a horrible, given that the fact I fight against both the Cult and the Demon King Army. I am targeted by various factions as a result, where people would try and kill me. And I may make wrong decisions occasionally. Even so, are you guys still willing to acknowledge me...?" I turned onto them with a slightly teary expression.

"I believe everyone is thinking the same thing, since they all nodded without hesitation. You really have a bunch of good party members, befitting of a good party leader like you, Guardian." Amai spoke up as she showed me the smiles of my fellow party members. "I also know Saki-san wouldn't blame you for this. I spent a lot more time with Saki-san then any of you did. So I am sure she would be pretty happy to see you back to normal. Also, I will help transfer mana as well, but I would need to learn Drain Touch beforehand."

"Is that so...? Thank you for all your support and suggestions." I let out a bright smile as I beckoned Amai forward. "I will teach you how to use the Drain Touch first."

A few minutes later...

"You are a fast learner, Amai. Saki must have taught you well." I commented as Amai began to transfer her mana to Saki.

"Thanks to Saki taught me a lot about mana manipulation." Amai answered as she concentrated on healing Saki.

"I see. By the way, can I open your presents?" I asked my party members as I eyed at their presents for me.

"Onii-chan, I think it would be better for you to open the presents back in the capital." Iris stopped me before I could get my hands on them.

"Not to mention, it would be better if you receive all the presents. I mean, Chris and Karu haven't gave you any, right?" Loby added quickly.

"Also, Guardian-san should be tired at this moment, so you should have some rest right now." Yunyun spoke in a flustered tone.

"Well, it's true, maybe I should doze off for a while. So who is going to take the first watch?"

"Why would you care when you wouldn't be one of them? Take a nap!" Alicia asked as she hit me in the back of my head.

"Ow! What the hell are you doing?!" I asked as Alicia failed to knock me out.

Alicia continued to hit me wordlessly, probably she was trying to knock me out of cold in a cool way.

Iris let out a soft laugh as she witnessed the dumb scene between her party members.

"Sleep." Loby cast a spell on me as everything in front of me turned black.

Shortly after I fell asleep, I found myself in some sort of an old arena.

'Ok, what the hell is this?' I thought to myself as I look around.

The sky is blood red while the walls of the arena were made of some kind of bricks, not that anyone would care anyway.

"How crazy is that!? (yabai desu ne)" An energetic voice spoke up.

Did... Did the arena just talk?

I mean, it would be pretty scary if the arena can just talk like that, since this meant a possibility of the arena being alive.

And a girl with long orange hair and blue eyes walked into the arena with the right side of her hair partially braided. She wore an outfit consists of a white fishtail skirt with blue sleeves and, a metal plate on her right shoulder, a crystal tiara with a red ribbon hanging on the left side, white gloves and knee-high boots.

"Oissu~ I am the stomach ever starving, Peco-"

"Greetings, mortals!" a voice boomed.

"Oh, hello there. I am the Magic Swordmaster-"

"Are you two even listening?! Fine." A dark silhouette walked in as he spoke in a disbelief tone.

Suddenly, the mysterious girl drew her sword as she looked at me with a shocked expression.

Seriously, shouldn't I be the one doing that? Provided the fact she was the one who drew her sword.

Wait, is that a bite mark on her sword? To be honest, I am more interested in her jaw strength than the fact she tried to eat her own sword. I mean, how strong must one's jaws be to leave a bite mark on it?

Ah forget what I just said, I understood why she did that.

It turned out I pulled my sword out as well.

Never did I expect I would unsheath my sword involuntarily.

Anyway, we fought as light and dark blue flashes surrounded us.

That girl... Her swordsmanship is quite odd. No patterns, no definite style, there is only simple sword moves.

I would expect that girl have something on her sleeve, but there aren't any signs of her ready to unleash her special move.

Now, before you say she probably doesn't a special move of her own, I beg to differ. After all, the golden aura flowing outside her was quite strong, and her outfit underwent a few changes, like red frills began to materialize beneath the fishtail skirt, a flower-like red ribbon with a pink stripe started to fade in and the base of tiara was decorated with gold. Her sword, by the way, has a guard that took the shape of... candy?

Come to think of it, is she a glutton? Considering the fact there is a fork pattern on the crossguard, and the candy-like guard for the sword.

Something tells me it's about to go down.

"Ah, Magic Swordmaster-san! Please move aside!"

However, I feel like my movements are getting odd. I feel like unleashing a move of my own, yet these aren't the moves for Retribution.

A large blue beam appeared in place of the blade while it was the same case for the mysterious girl, it is just the beam is gold in color.

We leapt literally at the same time and the beams clashed.

As a result, we became hungry and dropped our swords.

"Fk that guy. Let's just go and eat something. I am hungry at the moment." I turned my attention onto that girl as I was fishing for the white and blue summoning scroll.

"Yeah, fighting is bad. Eating is good." The girl agreed as she nodded and sat down.

"Nice quote." I summoned a handmade energy bar and handed it to her.

"I know right? How crazy is that?!" The girl said with vigor.

She took it from my hand and wolfed it down in seconds.

That girl must have depleted her energy, given that the fact how fast she finished the energy bar.

"Thank you for your food. Here, please take this." The girl answered as she gave me an onigiri.

I took a bite and it was fantastic. That onigiri has tempura in it and the fact of the tempura is still crispy is amazing, not to mention the well-matched flavors of salt, rice and the shrimp.

I should probably ask her for the recipe just to enjoy the delicacy a few more times.

"Um, excuse me, but what is your name? And may I have the recipe for that onigiri?" I asked after I finished the onigiri.

"Ah, yes. My name is Pecori-"

The earth trembled as a white ball of energy consumed us.

I sat up abruptly as I opened my eyes, then I bumped my head into Iris' on accident as she attempted to wake me up.

"Ow!" I groaned as I rubbed my head.

"I am sorry, Onii-chan! We have trouble on our doorstep!" Iris said in a slightly desperate tone.

Well, I reckon she wasn't lying as the scenario behind her looked pretty bad.

"What happened over there...?" I asked sheepishly as I stretched my body.

"Karu is approaching Saki-san!" Iris cried.

"Yeah, and?"

"Karu did not join us in searching or rescuing you..." Iris continued with a slightly frightened tone.

My face went a bit pale.

"Oh fk... Let's go, Iris!" I rose instantly and ran towards where Saki is.

"Yes!"

I deployed the Wind Aquila to scout the camp while Iris equipped her combat outfit.

I did not see anyone that looks like Karu, yet I found a hooded figure heading towards where Saki was.

Don't tell me that thing is from another universe...

"Zulu to Alpha. Tell me where your location is." I changed the channel of the communication device and began talking.

"I am next to Saki at the moment. By the way, can you get here quick? I see a cloaked figure and it got... tentacles."

'First Karu, then a tentacle guy. Interesting.' I thought to myself as I took a sip from a cup of tea.

Before you ask me where that cup came from, I summoned a cup of tea via the white and blue summoning scroll.

Then I brought out the binoculars from the blue summoning scroll and to obtain a more accurate location.

'Location pinpointed. Let's a go. Core change, Pegasus to Aquila.' I changed my Core Outfit and channeled my mana into it.

The white and blue outfit began to turn green and blend in with the pasture.

I aimed my sniper rifle at the hooded figure and ready to take it down silently.

However, before I could pull the trigger, the hooded figure turned around and almost made me dropped my rifle.

His looks is similar to the odd man in the white tightsuit, like extremely huge eyes, the white face and that creepy smile.

That thing... Is it really from another universe or book I have read...?

"That's right," A raspy voice appeared in my head. "I have read everything you have read and watched, not to mention the amount of research I did on you, Magic Swordmaster."

"You son of a gun..."

"And yes, the monsters I created are based on the things you watched and feared. The man you killed before? He is based on the Spinning man from totaljackass and kunekune. This time, this monster is a certain famous novel series you have read, which change its form according to the things people feared. I never expected that would worked on you. Grinning man was something more hideous than the last time, I got to admit. But I have watched them all. I have to got thank you, for watching that much stuff, and giving me ideas for new subordinates and monsters."

"How... are you still alive...? I thought I killed you a few moments ago."

"It is true that you have destroyed my body, Magic Swordmaster. Or rather, what's your new alias again? Ah yeah, God Slayer. However, you know what? I will show you later. You should go ahead and save Saki, you know. Since she is about to die." The voice faded as it spoke.

"Fk my life... If that's the case..." I muttered as I reached for my communication device.

"Lima, do you see a hooded figure or a random person approaching you?"

"Yeah, who is that? He looked scary."

"Ok then, try and say 'riddikulus' in a wizard-like way. No incantations required." I requested Loby to do the aforementioned things as I kept an eye on him with the scope of my sniper rifle.

"What-"

"Do it right now. I am serious at the moment. Over." I lowered the volume after giving an order firmly.

"Uh... ah... Riddikulus!" Loby's voice rang through the communication device in a barely audible volume as I readied my sniper rifle in my position, ready to provide fire support if necessary.

"That's ridiculous!"

"But hey, at least the tentacles are gone, to say the least."

Kudos to me for actually remembered the countermeasure against this kind of monster.

Before I could actually sit back and celebrate, that guy (The Grinning Man to be specific) popped out in front of me.

To make things even worse, I was looking at the area with the scope of my sniper rifle, which magnified his face a few times.

To be extremely honest with you, that actually scared the shit out of me.

Well I did exaggerate a little bit here, considering the fact I didn't shit myself actually, but it is still scary af nonetheless.

Never have I thought those things would still haunt me up until this very moment.

By the way, why am I monologizing here? Here I am, with a guy trying his very best to kill me with a deranged grin.

Maybe I should do that once I am done with this guy.

Should I try and use the new gimmick mentioned by the blacksmith, which I have zero clue about what he is talking about.

I don't know what has he done on the Core Outfits, but I am telling you, if I died because of that gimmick he added, I will definitely ask Eris to revive me, and then head out and kick his ass.

Alright, here goes...!

"Do whatever you have to do, Aquila...!" I muttered in a desperate tone, which the core glowed brightly a few seconds later, as if the Core Constellation was making a response.

A strong gust of wind bursted out of the core and repelled the creepy guy.

"Ho~? Aren't you an intriguing one. If that's the case, how about this?" The raspy appeared in my head once again as the creepy man was summoning something humanoid.

Maybe the thing is a person? Given that the silhouette extends as the hair appeared.

"You dirty little... Resorting to cheap tricks like that..." I muttered.

"Henlo." The Grinning Man (I am going to call him that) said in a deep voice as he grabbed a woman by her neck. She has long brown hair, and wore an outfit that consists a green cloak and yellow dress, brown knee-high boots.

For those who guessed Saki, I think you are right here.

"This is what you would always say: Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail. You should have done better than that. You failed to come up with a plan to ensure her safety." The man spoke as the woman began to glow and writhe in pain.

"Thanks to your Drain Touch and Core Mana Supply Packs, I have received different elements and a lot of mana. It would be hardly possible for you to take me out with the Light Pegasus." The Grinning Man said as I changed my Core Outfit and pulled my sword out.

The Light can absorb every element in this world. Yet, would it alone be enough to defeat that man...? Should I use the Dark Core to save her?

"Don't listen to him, Onii-chan!"

Iris drew her sword and attempted to cut the man into halves.

However, the man dodged and threw the woman aside like a rag doll.

"Please leave him to me, Onii-chan! I will take care of that man! Go and tend to that person!" Iris shouted as she readied her battle stance and stood in front of us.

"Alright, I am counting on you, Iris!" I responded as I ran towards the injured woman while Iris on the other hand, engaged in battle with the man.

"Well then, face me!" Iris turned her attention onto the man.

I knelt next to Saki and began to transfer my mana once again.

"Alpha to Zulu! Alpha to Zulu! Bad news! A large horde of monsters got us heavily surrounded!"

"M'kay. So how can I help you? By doing that? Go, go Alicia– Go, go Alicia– You can do it, Alicia–" I said nonchalantly as I gave Saki intensive treatment.

I think the others heard our conversation, as I heard people clapped their hands in a light beat in the background.

"Go, go Alicia– Go, go Alicia– You can do it, Alicia–"

"Idiot! What are you thinking!"

"I thought you were scared and needed some vocal support." I replied as I shrugged my shoulders.

"Huh, very funny." Alicia sounded unimpressed.

"Well, jokes aside. I need you to lead the crew this time. Consider the Explosion as the last resort to save yourselves."

"What?!"

"Don't you guys dare die on me. Over and out." I shut down the communication device as I started to concentrate on transferring mana.

However, my efforts seemed futile as there are zero signs of Saki's condition becoming better.

"It's useless, Magic Swordmaster!" The man grinned as he dodged Iris' attacks and showed me his right wrist.

Something was glowing on his right wrist, maybe it was a bracelet or something like that.

"You... Are you draining the transferred mana?" I asked as I brandished my sword.

"Be grateful that you are the first to witness my abilities, you two." The man glowed after he finished what he said.

'It seems like I am in deep shit at this moment... If I use the power of the Dark Core, Volras can be revived instantly. If I use the Light Core, I can weaken Volras a bit further, but Saki will most likely die in the process.'

Suddenly, someone grasped my hand.

It turned out it was Saki, who was trying to put on a tough appearance with a smile.

However, the smile of hers gave it all away - she was trying to request me to take out Volras at all costs, even at the cost of her own life.

"No... You can't be serious..." I muttered softly as I looked at her with a gentle gaze.

"Even if you refuse to do it, I can cast Sacred Highness Heal on myself to bring him down with me. But I would want to die at the hands of a person who I actually cared. Not to mention, I did cast Cursed Lightning on you and made you suffer. This can also act as a payback." Saki's voice rang through the communication device in a barely audible volume.

This meant Saki was extremely close to dying. There is no telling that she wouldn't die at after all that stuff.

"Saki... Forgive me...!" I muttered as I started to transfer the mana within the Light Core Supply Pack into Saki's body.

Tears trickled down my face as light emitted from my hands. Why am I crying anyway? I am just doing what Saki asked me to do.

"Revive, my master! Resonance Resurrection!" The man yelled as he was glowing.

"Eh, what happened? It hurts!" The man yelled in agony.

The process went wrong I guess.

On the other hand, Saki was becoming more and more translucent, as if she was one step away from the doors of death.

This... is NOT something I desire. Like I said, I would rather let a villain be rather than stopping him at the cost of a comrade I treasured. Because my comrades are way more important than stopping a bad guy anytime.

I still feel like this is wrong no matter how I slice it. But at least, we stop that guy-

"Hello." A deep voice boomed as a dark silhouette emerged from the corpse of the Grinning Man.

"Did you honestly think you can stop me, mortal? Well too bad, the Great God of Darkness and Death, Volras, has-"

"Screw you! We are in the middle of a serious scene right now!" I yelled as I gave zero fks at the threat standing right in front of me and gave him the bird.

"O... Onii-chan!" Iris looked at me with a wide-eyed expression.

"Heh. Never did I thought there would someone who dares to interject a god. As expected of the Magic Swordmaster."

"Charlie. Charlie! Meet me at Echo!" I yelled at the communication device as I began to turn the Light Core Outfit into the dark one and channeled the dark mana into Saki's body.

"This is the furthest as you go!" Iris warned as she readied her battle stance and stood in front of us.

"I won't lose... I won't lose anything anymore... I can make it. Definitely!" I muttered as I continued to insert the dark mana into Saki's body.

But still, my efforts were futile as Saki's condition remained the same, most likely because the light mana dealt quite some damage on her.

"No... No! Just wake up already!" I shouted in a deeper tone as Saki is currently barely visible to anyone.

Then everything turned black before I realised it.

A/N: This is the first I made a little crossover. I think I did a pretty good job on this.

As for the info. of the OCs, I have thought of different ways to do this:

1. I can just put the link on the next chapter (But you would have to type this on your own as copy and paste is nearly impossible in here.)

2. I can PM you the link

I also considered creating new stories for their bio, yet this wouldn't work as well as I thought, since some characters have different forms.

Wattpad can be a good alternative as it can put videos and pictures on it as well.

Anyway, tell me what you think either on reviews or PM, regarding on how to post the info. or constructive feedback.

In case you are wondering, the things mentioned (Spinning man, Grinning man and Kunekune to be specific) can be found on the Internet, yet I would say viewer discretion is advised, considering the fact the first two are from the Dark Web and the last one is a Japanese Urban Legend.

Stay tuned for next chapter and I hope I get to post the next chapter as soon as possible.