Chapter 63

Once upon a time, between the arrival of the gods and the fall of Zeus and Hera, there used to be a small clan in the middle of nowhere. Not even worth calling a tribe even. No connections to others, they isolated themselves in their own madness. It wasn't always small. The people weren't always broken. In the age of heroes, they were valiant guardians of their own vast forests. Protecting nature and living in harmony with it. Yet in the end, the power of time ruled over all and due to many events, they were reduced to a miniscule forest, hiding and chasing after old glory and vengeance. The young girl at the time didn't understand it at all. All she knew was that her mother was obsessed like all others. Obsessed to beat the "fire" that took everything from them.

Rakia. It was a curse word to them. Rakia that burned down their forests, that conquered their territory and their people. Forcing them to escape, flee from the grasp of evil that they were. She as well felt hatred for Rakia, but for an entirely different reason. Every new moon. Every damned new moon, they would perform their "ritual", a practice today she knew was just a savage attempt. Her clan truly went insane, if they thought that setting her and other children on fire repeatedly would make them stronger. Would make them immune to the magic swords of Rakia. Even if that empire didn't bother with small remnants like them for ages, the clan continued on.

"For our lost homes. For our lost people. We must grow in strength to protect ourselves and avenge the fallen."

Empty words. Mad words. Over and over, cast over her as she screamed in agony, bound to a pyre as the wood around her was set aflame. Naturally, most children would've broken, following the path of madness. But not her. She kept onto her sanity. She kept onto her own hatred for the clan, for Rakia, not one that tried to be forced on her. Eventually, she would have enough. Eventually, the survivor would flee. Then she would become the hunted. The madness hated it when they lost what they owned.

If it weren't for chaos itself that intervened that fateful night, Lulope wouldn't be who she was right now. If that hand didn't extend to her, eyes filled with amusement and pity, she would have burned alive and her ashes would become yet another husk of madness. Eventually, those terrible memories were buried in her heart as she went on to the city of adventurers. The dungeon. Her allies. Slaying monsters day in and out, to have a normal life. But then, her past caught up to her.

Crozzo. The name made its rounds when the level up was announced. Crozzo. The reason for her torture. The reason for her nightmares. Crozzo. For the bloodline that was hungry for everything, her origins became insane, twisted. Lost was the potential great life she could'Ve lived, among a kingdom of its own. It was irrational. The past couldn't be changed. She liked the life she had now. But looking at that smug look... Lulope couldn't help herself. Maybe she could forget her own screams, the heat torching her skin away, if she could see that girl die with her own eyes.

/

Solaris let out a weak laugh as she let go of the pathetic stumps that used to be her weapon. Slowly but surely, they were chipped away due to having to divert the daggers that tried to beat her. Cuts were all over her body, some even considerably deep. Yet most of them were sealed shut with her own flames. Still, even without the bloodlust, she breathed heavily, her eyes half lidded as she seemed to struggle to even remain standing.

"Flamma is on her last legs! No weapons left, low on energy!"

"I cannot fathom what goes through her head but to me it looks like a losing struggle."

"Will this end with a loss for the Hestia Familia after all?!"

It wasn't like it was completely hopeless. Lulope herself was starting to run out of breath, as her movements became sluggish themselves. She hissed, holding her side before clicking her tongue in annoyance. The wound she received at the start was taking its toll by now. Still, it was nothing compared to Solaris. Yet the captain could only chuckle at the dark elf's reaction at her wound, causing Lulope to bristle up.

"Always acting so high and mighty, you filthy Rakian! What's there to smile about?! You have no cards left to play!"

"Oh, didn't you know?" She stretched out her tongue. "Acting high and mighty is a privilege of the strong~!"

That self confidence. Nobody knew where she got it from. She was basically out of cards to play. Because of that, Lulope was wary. Some might think she was still messing around, but those with experience knew that not going in for the kill was a decision made based on caution. She slowly walked back and forth, eying her opponent carefully, who leaned her back against the wall, still smiling at the dark elf.

"I didn't expect Bell's captain to be like that," Artoria muttered, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. Hans in return let out a snort, glancing at her.

"Be like what? A little hellion?" He waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah, that fire isn't just her magic. It also makes for a nasty personality sometimes."

"I like her." Hans rolled his eyes at Penthesilea's words, who smiled slightly. "I'm almost jealous, Romulus. Some of my amazons could learn from her."

Romulus in return chuckled, his arms crossed as he patiently watched. As if sensing that smile, Solaris groaned, stretching her neck a few times.

"I know what you're thinking."

"Hm?"

Solaris grinned, having somewhat caught her breath as she pointed at herself.

"I'm wasting my energy. Why keep using fire that hurts me?" She shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, it's simple, really."

Lulope narrowed her eyes. She checked her opponent for any other weapons one last time. Then she shook her head with a scornful scoff and twirled her daggers.

"Yeah, no, I'm done with you."

Having decided there was nothing left to protect herself with, Solaris was a prime target to go all in now. She ignored the gut feeling she was having that was out of touch with reality. She lowered her center of gravity, like an animal about to pounce on her prey. Solaris in return merely spread her arms open, as if ready to catch the dark elf with a wide grin as she hobbled forward a bit.

Lulope cracked the ground she stood on as she leapt forward. Her dagger flashed, shot out like a spear. What happened next shocked everyone. With the distance she created from the rock. Solaris could let herself fall backwards, the first stab missing her. Of course Lulope didn't miss a beat and stabbed down, but the short delay was more than enough for Solaris to divert its path. Her neck was cut, but not deep enough, as she used her own arms to redirect and hold onto Lulope's arm. Hitting the ground, Solaris pushed her healthy right leg against the dark elf's right cheek. The dark elf was angered, but also severely confused. What was this supposed to accomplish? She could free her right arm in various ways. Her left arm was still free for example. But before she could do her action, SOlaris laughed loudly, like a maniac.

"Finally got you!"

Lulope felt time slow down as a shiver went down her spine. In that instance of locking eyes with her opponent, she didn't see a human. No, it was like a shapeless demon of fire. An image from nightmares, from hell itself. But that couldn't be. There was no way she was seeing that. Yet the image didn't disappear, as Solaris began to steam up while her mouth moved. Time resumed. For one instance, the human returned. But then, the captain roared out like a beast.

"Plus Ultra!"

Pain. The Nightshade didn't know why she felt pain. She could only scream as her arm flared up and her right cheek burned. Without hesitation, she slipped her arm away after twisting it, backing off immediately. It was then she realized what that pain was. Burns. She was burned. Her limb and face were red, bubbled even a bit. But how? She was immune to fire. Her skill made her invincible against flames! But she could only stare numbly at what she saw in front of her.

The fires turned blue. That thing pushed herself off the ground with both her arms. She couldn't distinguish any features. Just a maw stretched into a manic smile, as its skin burned and blistered itself underneath the azure inferno. It was a wonder that those clothes of hers didn't incinerate themselves. In that moment all Lulope saw was a demon leaning forward, as if mocking her.

"Whoa there!"

"I can feel the heat even from up here!"

Naturally the spectators were shocked. That Solaris could turn up the power of her magic even more. But they also saw the damage she was inflicting upon herself. Haruhime covered her mouth in shock, eyes wide.

"Is she insane... ?!"

Unbeknownst to her, a certain god stared down at her. The martial artist huffed, arms crossed as he nodded in approval.

"Haruhime will learn a lot from this."

"Lord Hachiman?"

"Should I be bothered by a little burn?!" Solaris let out a manic laugh, causing Lulope to step back, eyes wide. "I'm a Crozzo! I'm blessed by the Spirit of Fire! She gave me this gift to protect and succeed! So what if it hurts a bit?!"

She hit her chest a few times as she turned her fire down for a moment, revealing her human, damaged form.

"Why the fuck should I spit on that honor?! That pride?!" She pointed at Lulope. "Fuck your skill, fuck your trashtalk! You wanna test ya stamina against me?! Then come and try it, you elven shit! This ain't a game! The winner is the one who murders the other one, fucker! So feel free to take your potshots, I'll be busy choking the life outta you!"

Those words were more than enough for Lulope to snap out of it. Her face turned red, not from the fire, but from her inner shame. Such dishonor. Such embarrassment. What did she feel fear for?!

"Hahahahaha…! You think I'm scared?! Bitch, I conquered fire! This is nothing!" She spat to the side as she tightened her grip on her weapons. "You want me to come?! Well here I come!"

With those words, Lulope leapt into the eye of the storm as Solaris inhaled deeply and held her breath for some reason just as she turned up the inferno once more. The spectators winced, some even looking away. They could see the dark elf getting burned herself, yet she ignored the pain and cut away at Solaris. Yet each slash, some even deep, was merely burned away. And that was only in the first seconds. After the few strikes, no cuts were created anymore, as the heat actually deformed the metal, turning them into blunt instruments instead. Still, Lulope didn't get hit at all, even as Solaris did her best to punch with only one leg. Lulope grinned widely as she laughed. Ah, the sweet taste of victory was so close! Even if that fire hurt, she still had more than enough resistance to it! Hyperventilating in joy and exhaustion, she reared back, intent to smash that little bitch's face in. And then... her vision became blurry and she stumbled. S

Solaris didn't miss her chance. With her cheeks puffed up, she stopped the fire around her, instead focusing it on her arms instead. She took a deep breath of clean air before socking her opponent with haymakers over and over again.

"What's this?!"

"She was having the upper hand in terms of blows but now she is on the backfoot!"

"Did Flamma get a lucky hit in?!"

Everyone was confused why that sudden change occured. Everyone normal that was. Someone like Arash let out an awkward laugh as he leaned forward, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Lack of oxygen... "

Fire, after all, didn't just burn. Some might even consider its main danger the smoke it created, that caused even the mightiest to faint. Left and right, Lulope's head was burned and moved at the same time. Yet the damage, the agony, caused her brain to essentially reset. In that instance of clarity, just as Solaris reared back one more time, she made a decision that any veteran would've done.

She retreated. Far, far away, further than her combat range with her own speed. Her face distorted into an ugly mask, burned and swelled up, but she heeded her instincts and realized that close combat was too dangerous. She pulled out throwing knives as she reached the other hand of the arena, soaring through the air, and threw them at Solaris. She in response summed up a fire wall, making her actions invisible to Lulope. The dark elf breathed heavily before wincing in pain. At least the fire sealed her wound shut at her side, but the pain in her face was equally distracting. Still, she shook her head with a smile. Fine, she couldn't win in close range. But that meant she just had to stall out in a different way. Long range was her chance, she thought as she leaned her back against a rock, her resting and hiding spot, as she pulled out more knives.. Just keep pelting her opponent, make her burn herself and exhaust herself and-

She only heard it. The rattling of metal. In the next instant, a sharp noise cut through the air... before the dark elf screamed in agony when flesh was cut out with a disgusting wet noise. She covered her left eye, stumbling out of her hiding spot. She snapped her head around, whimpering in pain as blood flowed and flowed. At the sight of the kneeling dark elf, Solaris only let out an ugly laugh.

"Hot damn!"

"That is... ?!"

A certain red head in the audience chuckled, a warm, brotherly smile on his face as he leaned over the railing.

"Was wonderin' when you pull that out, sis!"

It was a sound similar to a fast moving wheel. It was the sound of many prisoners marching through the streets in their bindings. As if it was meant to reap life itself, the captain stood upon an elevated position on a rock as she created two large circles with her hand movements. Solaris' jacket was wide open, revealing a black vest that only covered her chest, leaving her arms and midriff bare. Her hands both moved in sync and rhythm as she spun her tools. Connected by an impossibly long chain, on one end a heavy weight of steel was attached. On the other end, a blood stained scythe was attached. Solaris snapped her wrists, calling the ends of the weapon back as if summoning them. She dangled the scythe in front of her, tilting her head with a half lidded expression, as if she was in ecstasy as she stared at her opponent missing an eye now.

"Let's do this, Grand Beast Devourer, Kira-Kusari~!"