Allo. Thank you for being so patient, I have your new chapter for you.
I'm still not sure for a pairing, so your opinions are still wide open.
Enjoy.
The door slowly creaked open as Joe pushed on both ends.
A light pierced through the doors, as Joe opened the doors widely open.
The inside of the room on the other end baffled Joe, setting him off guard.
Inside the room was a grandiose lobby, as if it was from a fantasy castle. Pillars, candles, and cloth running everything in a very robust and royal manor.
It was very off putting from the rest of the Nether, much to Joe's surprise.
"Whoa…" Joe said, amazed of his surroundings.
He walked into the lobby to a set of twin spiraling staircases that led to a second floor.
"This is much more nice than the mansion I made in creative…" He said, astounded at the gracious and royal architecture.
He then realized he was completely clueless where to go, as he saw multiple doors and walkways.
"Shit….Where do I go?" He said, his finger on his chin.
In that moment, a little girl came running into the lobby, holding a ball in her hand, giggling to herself.
Joe noticed this, and couldn't help but smile at the girl's seemingly innocence.
The girl had had crimson red hair, which fit with her dark red blouse, along with a small hat that peaked Joe's interest.
"She must be a Magma Cube." He said to himself, as he walked over to the girl.
The girl noticed this, her expression dropping to confusion.
"Excuse me, young lady, can you tell me where the princess is?" Joe asked, crouching down to her level.
"Who are you?" The girl asked.
"I'm Joe. I'm here to see the princess. Can you lead me to her?" He replied.
The girl seemed to think to herself, as her expression beamed.
"Oh, you're that human the princess was talking about!" She said, smiling at Joe.
Joe chuckled at this, as he scratched his head. "Yes, I am. Can you tell me your name? I mean no harm."
"My name's Maggie! I'm Onee-sama's little sister!" The girl said.
This surprised Joe.
"You are? Wow, thats pretty cool!" Joe said, amusing Maggie.
"Yeah! Shes so cool! Shes like an adult!" Maggie chirped, praising the fiery princess.
"I'm sure she is. Can you tell me where she is? She says she wants to meet me." Joe asked.
The little girl then nodded. "Sure! Follow me!" She said, as she walked up the stairs, prompting Joe to follow.
While walking down the halls, Joe was easily able to catch up to the girl by walking, who was hopping down the hall.
They walked until they reached a door, in which the little girl then stopped in front of it.
"Onee-sama's in here. Just go in!" Maggie chirped, prompting Joe to smile.
"Thank you very much, Maggie." He said, as the little magma cube girl nodded, and hopped back down the hall, presumably to her own business.
Joe was then left alone, as he turned to the door.
He reached for the door handle, when something struck in his mind.
In all the anime and manga he's read and watched, he knows exactly what could happen if you open a door with a girl on the other side without knocking.
He then raised his hand, and slightly knocked on the door.
"W-Who is it?" Came a familiar voice.
"U-Uh, its the prisoner...The one you asked for? Joe the Human?" Joe replied through the door.
"O-Oh! J-Just one second, I'm just changing my clothes." The voice said.
A wind of relief blew over Joe, as he sighed in relief.
"And people say Otaku's don't know anything." Joe said quietly to himself.
He waited for a few moments, as he heard footsteps.
He then stepped back, and crouched down, lowering his head.
The door opened to the Princess, as she looked down to Joe, slightly confused.
"Can I ask what you are doing?" She asked.
"Uh….Acknowledging your royalty, and showing respect?" Joe answered back.
"W-Well, just rise. You don't need to do so, I think you already know your place." Blazette said, slightly embarrassed.
Joe raised his head, trying to maintain a respectful posture, as he stood up, and got a good look of the princess.
She certainly seemed elegant, judging from her beauty, which slightly astounded Joe.
"W-Well, You wanted to see me, Your Highness?" Joe asked, his hands behind his back in a respectful posture.
The girl then smiled, slightly laughing at Joe.
"No need to be so formal." She said, her face stifling laughter.
Joe then went pink, as he relaxed his posture.
"Sorry, Your Highness." Joe said, scratching his head.
"Please, call me Flare. Its what my friends call me." The princess asked, smiling at Joe.
Joe nodded. "Y-Yes, Princess Flare…" He said in return.
Blazette then smiled, as she closed the door behind her.
"Follow me to the study. I need to fill you in on something." She said, as she prompted Joe to follow her.
"Lead the way." Joe replied, as he followed her further down the hall.
About a half hour passed, as Joe and Blazette were in the study, with the princess looking over her desk sorting through papers, with Joe amazed at all the decorations and trinkets.
"So, what did you want to tell me?" Joe asked, as he walked towards the princess.
"I asked you here to warn you." Blazette said, looking over scattered papers.
"W-Warn me?" Joe asked, intrigued.
The princess then passed what seemed like a picture of a man, who's look made Joe snicker a bit.
The man seemed to be wearing Victorian era style of clothes, with him making a rather grandiose pose. He had brown hair, and Joe couldn't tell if the man was trying to be a woman or not, judging by the "beauty" of his face.
"Who's this?" He asked.
"The man in the picture goes by the name of Dreu. He is the prince of the South Kingdom." Blazette replied.
"South Kingdom? Well, I do remember hearing something about the Four Kingdoms back in the court." Joe said, looking over the picture. "Can I ask why you are telling me about this guy?"
"I'm warning you about him, because he is in the tournament along with you." The princess replied.
"He doesn't look that tough." Joe said, chuckling at the prince's photograph.
In that moment, the princess stepped up the Joe, getting in his face slightly.
"Do not underestimate him." She said.
"H-Huh?" Joe asked, confused at the Princess's action.
"He's a scheming, dastardly man. He manipulates people around him to support him and fight his battles for him." She replied. "He's merciless, brutal, and will stop at nothing to get his way."
"What do you mean?" Joe asked.
She then crossed her arms. "He will try anything to get what he wants. Even going as far as murder."
Joe's face turned to a look of slight disgust after hearing this.
"What a coward." He said, looking over the picture.
"His swordplay is also nothing to undermine. He's learned from the best, as he will utilize anything he's learned to cut down his opponent."
Joe looked over at the picture, examining the man.
"But...I have one question…" He said, then looked over to the princess. "Why are you telling me this?"
The princess then took Joe's hand, and held it his both of her hands.
"Because I believe you could be the one to end all this madness between the Kingdoms." She said, her eyes staring into Joe's.
Joe was dumbfounded at this.
"W-Wait...Me?" He asked.
"Yes, you. You come here from another world, you spared the life of Braug, and you wish to cherish lives of others." She said, looking to Joe.
"I-I...Couldn't amount to anything like that, I barely know anything about this place…" Joe said, doubting himself.
"You may not believe it...But something tells me you are." She said.
Joe then sighed in disbelief. "And how would you know I'm this, 'chosen hero' that will help you?"
Blazette then let go of Joe's hand and walked towards a window, facing away from Joe.
"I've been having these dreams lately. I believe they may be visions of the future." She said with her back turned to Joe.
"Visions?" Joe asked, curious.
"Yes...I can see the Kingdoms, raging in war. Innocent people dying, blood and bodies everywhere...Its a frightening sight to see…" She said. "But...Out of the shadows, followed by a divine light, a hero arrives, branding a sword in hand. The light enveloped everything, rebuilding structures, healing wounded soldiers and people. The war had stopped when he arrived, healing everything."
Joe was astounded at the images of Blazette's dream, listening to every detail.
She then turned around, facing Joe.
"I believe you may be that Hero." The princess declared.
A sudden feeling of responsibility came across Joe, as he looked at his armored hand.
"You really think I might fix all of this, huh…" He asked. He then clenched his fist, and looked at the princess. "I'll do whatever I can to help. Hopefully this vision of yours can be changed."
She then smiled brightly, as tears seemed to be leaking from her face.
Joe finched at this, as he stepped to the princess.
"D-Don't cry! I-I'm sorry!" He said, waving his hands at the princess.
Blazette then giggled, as she wiped her tears. "Its just...You're the first to believe me…"
Joe scratched his head, as he chuckled. "Well, I don't see how I can get out of this…"
In that moment, a horn could be heard.
"What was that?" Joe asked.
"Its the next match. We have to go spectate." The princess replied.
"'We'? Don't I have to go to the prison?" Joe asked.
She shaked her head. "Not if I don't say so. Come, we must go."
"Well, lead the way, I guess." Joe said, as The princess lead him out the door, back into the hallway.
They arrived at the royal seating, in which Krieg was surprised to see Joe with the princess.
"Y-Your Majesty, why is-!?"
Blazette then shut up Krieg with her hand.
"One word, and you will be down there fighting."
Krieg the nodded, and remained silent.
The princess then took her throne, as Joe hid behind shadows to keep himself concealed. He knew if someone saw him, there'd be suspicions of foul play.
Krieg then took the microphone and spoke into it:
"We have our third match for the day in the Tournament! To the east gate, We have hailing from the East Kingdom, Ludvia the Swift!"
Then, from the eastern gate of the arena, came a young woman, who came in what seemed wizard attire, with robes and a pointed hat. She carried a long staff, with a spherical jewel on the end.
She looks like a female magician from a fantasy game...Joe thought as he saw the woman.
"And to the west gate, hailing from the South Kingdom…"
Wait, South Kingdom? Is it…?
"Dreu the Champion!"
At that moment, from the west gate, came a man that Joe recognized from the picture.
He looked exactly like he did in the picture, the clothes, the look, everything. He carried what looked like a rapier, strapped to his left side.
When he walked out, Joe could swear he could hear a massive applause and swoons of female voices.
"Man, what a tool…" Joe said, causing Blazette to snicker.
Both combatants walked to their respective spots, as they stopped, facing each other.
Dreu seemed to have a rather snarky, overconfident look on his face, as Ludvia had a rather determined look.
Krieg then took the microphone, and yelled into it:
"FIGHT!"
The start of the match was quick, as Ludvia raised her staff, conjuring a spell through a red sign floating in midair.
Dreu simply laughed, as he drew his sword.
"Burn!" Ludvia yelled, as a fireball shot from the sign, darting towards Dreu.
He made a sneer smile, as the fireball hit him, causing a large explosion.
When the dust settled, it was as if Dreu was never harmed, as he retained his position.
This surprised everyone in the arena, as Joe was astounded.
"Wow, he really is tough…" Joe said, as he spectated the match.
In that moment, Drue dusted off his shoulder his his hand, as he looked at Ludvia.
"Are you quite done?" He said, taunting his opponent.
Ludvia grew angry, as a blue sign appeared in place of the red sign, as she raised her staff.
"Freeze!" She yelled, as a blue light shot from her staff, heading towards Drue.
He simply swung his sword at the light, deflecting it away from him. It flew and hit a wall, which was covered in a glacier of ice.
He simply laughed, as he swung his sword in the air towards Ludvia.
In that moment, something seemed to cut Ludvia, as her left arm seemed to have a gash on it.
She fell to her knees, tending to her wound. She raised her staff again, conjuring a green sign.
"H..Hea-"
"Oh no you don't."
In that moment, Dreu seemed to appear behind Ludvia, and delivered his foot to the back of Ludvia's head, causing her to fly forward.
Joe and Blazette were both shocked to see this.
It messed with Joe the most, as he carefully watched the match.
"How in the hell did he do that?" He asked himself.
Meanwhile, Ludvia managed to stand up, balancing herself.
Drue then swiped this sword multiple times in the air, causing more gashes to appear on Ludvia's body.
She somehow kept her balance, as she used her staff for support.
Meanwhile, Joe was suspicious of what was going on.
"The hell is going on? He swipes at the air, and it hurts Ludvia…" He said, as he looked around, trying to find an answer.
Blazette saw this, and crossed her arms. "I told you, his swordsmanship is nothing to underestimate."
He shook his head in denial. "No way, there's no way he's that good. It's impossible to cut someone with air." He said, looking around every nook and cranny he could find in the arena.
He couldn't see anything that could give an answer, while Ludvia was being tortured down below.
He could see her being repeatedly cut, as he desperately looked around.
His mind then flashed back to a few hours ago.
You can even see invisible enemies.
"I wonder…" Joe said, as he closed his eyes for a moment, and reopened them, activating his Miner's Vision.
He looked around for a moment, when something caught his eye.
There were two yellow lights along the higher walls of the Colosseum.
He looked closely, and could see figures behind the lights.
The figures seemed to be soldiers, both holding bows, each with an arrow pulled, ready to fire. They stood on very high ledges above the battleground, both having the perfect views.
He then looked down to Ludvia, who was struggling to keep herself up, as Dreu swung at the air again.
He looked over to Ludvia and saw her flinching from her wounds, but he could see streams of yellow grazing her. He looked back to the archers, and noticed they were both firing a series of arrows, purposely grazing Ludvia with arrows.
"Oh you dirty son of a bitch…" He said, as he turned around, finding a weapon.
Blazette and Krieg noticed this, as they looked at Joe, confused.
He managed to find a bow, mounted on a wall, assumably for defense purposes.
He grabbed the bow, along with an arrow.
Blazette watched this, as she ran to Joe, stopping him.
"What in the world are you doing!?" She yelled.
"Watch." Joe said, as he slipped away from the princess and aimed his bow.
He aimed carefully, and shot his arrow, heading for one of the archers.
Thankfully, the arrow missed, but it surprised the archer, causing him to panic, and flee into a window.
The other archer saw this, as he fled as well.
"What was that!?" Blazette screamed in Joe's face.
"I just found Dreu's little secret. Look over to him." Joe said, pointing down to the battle.
She looked down, and noticed Dreu swinging at the air as usual, but he wasn't getting the same reactions from Ludvia at all.
Down at the battle, Dreu was getting rather concerned over his archers not firing.
"What is going on?" He said, as he kept swinging at the air.
Ludvia took advantage of this, as she raised her staff straight in the air.
"Shock!" She yelled, as a ball of yellow light appeared above Dreu.
The ball then discharged, as a bolt of lightning came down towards Dreu from it.
He managed to step out of the way, as his face grew annoyed.
"I was done playing with you anyway." He said, as he charged at Ludvia.
She responded by raising her hand, pointing at Drue.
"Immolate!" She said, as a stream of fire shot fired from her hand, like a flame-thrower.
As Dreu charged, he raised his sword in front of him, making it take the full brunt of the fire.
At that moment, as Drue was charging forward, his sword was practically spitting the fire in half, completely unharming him.
He then charged until he was close enough to Ludvia, who was terrified to see he was that close.
She tried to react in time, but Dreu swung his sword diagonally, delivering a powerful slash across Ludvia's body.
This sent her back, as a large, bloodied gash ran across her chest, as she layed down, face up.
She raised her head up to Dreu, who was slowly walking up to her, bloodied sword in hand.
"W-Wait! I-I surrender! Please!" She cried out of fear and desperation.
"Tsk tsk tsk." Drue said, while he walked closer. "You know the only way out is death."
Her eyes started to tear up in fear, as her body started to shake.
He then stopped until he was right above the weakened Ludvia, who laid there, shaking in fear.
"You should have ran while you could." Dreu said, as he raised his sword, ready to deliver a final blow.
"No! Please! I beg you!" Ludvia begged, as she saw Drue's sword above his head.
He then smiled maniacly, as he brought the sword down.
Watching this, Ludvia has screamed at the top of her lungs, afraid to open her eyes.
Clang.
Hearing this clang of metal, she opened her eyes, to see Dreu's blade stopped by another.
The blade was rusted, and was chipped on the edge.
Dreu noticed this, as his face went to a look of disbelief.
They both looked to their sides, finding who was holding the rusted blade.
They looked to see Joe, who was holding the sword, his blade keeping Drue's from Ludvia.
"She said she gives up, asshole." He said, as he continued to push against Dreu's blade.
"You!" Dreu yelled, recognizing Joe.
Joe then pushed his blade forward, pushing Dreu backwards.
"This has nothing to do with you!" Dreu yelled, pointing at Joe.
Joe returned this with pointing his blade at Dreu.
"I won't stand by as a begging opponent is about to be slaughtered!" Joe yelled back. He then turned his head over to Krieg. "End the match! Dreu won!"
Back at the royal seating, Blazette was about ready to burst with anger, as Krieg stumbled to the microphone.
"I-It would seem an interference has spared Ludvia's life! But, Drue the Champion, remains the winner!"
The crowd then went wild with applause, as the three contestants stood on the battleground.
Joe twirled his blade, and sheathed it like a samurai again, and then turned to Ludvia, who couldn't move because of her crouched down to Ludvia's level, as he pulled out a few bandage rolls out the pockets of his armor.
"Don't worry, you're gonna be ok." He said, then started to wrap the bandages around Ludvia's wounds.
Meanwhile, Dreu was looking over Joe doing so, as he was then joined by the same archers from before.
"M'Lord, are you alright?' One of the archers asked.
Dreu looked over at Joe, who was finished bandaging Ludvia. He then sheathed his sword, and turned around, walking into the darkness behind the gate.
The archers looked at each other and shrugged. They then followed after him, as they all disappeared into the darkness.
Meanwhile. Joe had finished bandaging Ludvia, who was staring at him.
"How are you feeling?" Joe asked, dusting off his hands.
"M-Much better…" Ludvia said, looking at a bandage on her left forearm.
"Good. Don't worry, I'll get you to the infirmary." Joe said, as he picked up Ludvia, and carried her bridal-style. She was relatively light, despite her curvy body and rather large breasts.
She was a tad surprised at first, but she led rested her head on Joe's shoulder, as she looked at him.
"Who...Are you?" Ludvia asked Joe, who was walking out of the battleground, towards the east gate.
"Joe the Human." He replied, as they walked out of the light of the battleground, into the darkness.
About an hour passed, as Joe had previously taken Ludvia to the infirmary. He walked down the dark corridor, in the direction to the royal palace.
He had opened the door only to have a fuming Blazette waiting for him on the other side of the door.
"Just what the hell was that!? You interfered with a match!" Blazette yelled, her arms twitching in anger.
Joe sighed. "I wasn't going to let that bastard finish her off like that. Especially after he tried pulling that dirty shit!" He screamed back.
"What were you thinking!? What was going through your head when you did that!?" She yelled back.
Joe then clenched his fist, and screamed back at the princess:
"You expect me to be the hero to stop all of this, so I'm going to start by saving a life!"
Blazette's expression dropped, as he heard Joe's outburst.
"If you really think I'm this 'Hero' you think I am, then I expect you to know that I'm not going to stand by, while that piece-of-shit Dreu finished off a begging woman!"
The princess's lowered her head, as she understood what Joe was saying.
"If you don't want me to save innocent lives, then forget it. I won't be your hero!" Joe said, as he turned around, and stormed back down the hall.
"J-Joe, wait!" The princess yelled, only to see Joe walking into the darkness.
She looked back down, having the most guilty look on her face.
Meanwhile, Joe was steaming down the hall, heading back towards the prison.
"If I can't save lives, then I won't be a hero." He said to himself, as he walked down the dark corridor.
Phew, another action scene… Man I can never describe these like I imagine them to be.
Anyway, I brought you your chapter as usual, so I hope you can enjoy it as much as I did typing it.
Thank you for your time. I will see you in the next chapter.