Chapter 14: Heroes United, Plus A New Hero
Everything went normal for the workers and troopers on the Armorian Military Headquarters. However, it's not for a certain group.
"I need to make a few dozen more SP potions…" Tomori started collecting all the materials and pounding them quickly.
"Tomori, I think we had enough SP potions… We should make more MP potions instead." Akira said to him. She's the one who usually accompanies him when he's making potions.
"You do that, while I do the SP potions. Next, we're making stamina and HP potions." Tomori said as he kept pounding. "That reminds me, what was the thing that you need to do first back then?"
"Oh, that's… You will see it after we arrive at Welle."
"Okay then… Have you seen Reika somewhere?"
"Her? I think she's with Audrey as she wanted to know more about her bow function. Lowri and Thea accompanied her."
"I see… How about your group?"
"Last time I saw them was in the canteen. Rylon probably eats to store his stamina."
"I hope he doesn't hold us back…"
"How about the rest of them?" Akira asked him.
"As for Ivaran and Flan, I think they do some warm up or something. And I don't have any clue as to what Riri and Miya do." Tomori poured the last SP potion mixture onto a vial. "Alright, moving on with a stamina potion…"
A Few Minutes Later…
All of them grouped up in the middle of the base. Potions, weapons and their own body has been prepared.
At the last minute, Tomori upgraded his weapon for the time being.
Rising Enforcer Blade (Awakened)(12)(X)(Divine) : Ability Unlocked
Equip Bonus: Absorver Union
Skill: Reflect Blade, Switchblade, Hover Blade
Special Effect: Element Transmission, Phase Shift II, All Magic Element Resist, Growth Power, Nullify SP Drain, Vitality Boost, Magic Attack Up (Extra Strong), Magic Defense Up (Extra Strong), MP Recovery (Extra Strong), HP Recovery (Strong), SP Recovery (Strong), All Skill Power Up (Small), All Skill Effect Up (Small), Skill Range Increase (Extra Small)
Special Equip Effect: Demolition Strike Edge
Mastery Level: 100
Accessory Equip Effect: Thousand Blades, Comet Wave Slash
Weapon Synthesis: Order of the Pacifier
Item Enchantment Level 22: SP 31% Up
Eclipse Minotaur Spirit Counter: MATK 100, MDEF 100
Status Enchantment: 100 MDEF
" Order of the Pacifier… That's the ability that Rust used to force me out from my curse weapon, but it clearly didn't work on me back then. He said that I resisted it, but I don't remember how I did that. All I did fell is that my body is burning hot as f*ck. I guess it's something like a Holy-based ability to cure the curse…"
Tomori put his hand onto his chest.
"Why is it so hard to resist the Curse Series…"
"Tomori-san? Are you okay?" Ivaran asked with a worried expression.
"Oh, it's nothing. Don't worry too much about it."
"I see… But please tell me if there's something wrong with you, okay?"
"I will."
Ivaran then checks his bag again if he's on a shortage of MP and stamina potions.
"Blade Hero!" Audrey called him while bringing a spear and a shield with her. "This is the spear that you asked for. And for the half-elf, I managed to add everything I can to the shield. From now on, it's called the Rising Protector Shield."
" Rising Protector Shield…" Ivaran picked up the shield and swung it around. "It's a little bit heavier, but I can manage it."
He put the shield onto his back. Tomori then put the spear onto his Inventory.
"That spear is for Tadashi, isn't it?" Akira asked.
"You know that I can copy spears as well, right?"
"Yeah, but the only weapon I see you use is SoAII and TBKDCS. And both of them are swords, not spears."
"Well… In case he comes to help, I don't want him to be a dead weight. So I MIGHT let him copy that spear."
"Eh… Okay, I understand." She then returned back to her group.
"I guess it's about time to move out…" Tomori clapped his hands to gather the attention of the group. "Alright, just like we planned before, this is how it's going to be. Me and Riri will confront the pope. Akira's group will be distracting all of the knights outside the castle while Reika's team will distract the knights inside the castle.
"As for Ivaran, Miya and Flan, they will be freeing the prisoners in the dungeon. Remember, once you knock them down, never let them wake up ever again. And what I mean by that is just knock them harder so that they won't wake up easily. Is that clear?"
All of them gave a nod of agreement.
"I guess this is it, then." He then turned towards Daela, Audrey and Fort. "Thanks for helping us for these few days."
Tomori slightly bowed down towards them.
"No, no. It's a pleasure to help the Blade Hero." Fort said to him.
"Yeah. It's been a while since I pulled an all nighter to upgrade the weapons. Great to see that it functions well." Audrey said while cracking her neck.
"Well then, Tomori. Please be safe. And good luck!" Daela said to him while giving him a thumbs up.
"I will!" He also responded with a thumbs up. "Well then, I'm going to teleport all of us to near Castle Town now."
"Please turn off the anti-teleportation barrier here for around 5 seconds." Fort said through the transmitter. "I wish all of you nothing but luck."
"Thanks…" Tomori opens his menu and selects all of them as teleport targets. " Transport Blade!"
All 12 of them immediately teleported out from Armorian to Welle.
Forest Near Castle Town…
All of them were teleported to the forest near the town. Tomori then turned to Akira.
"Hey, I still remembered what you wanted to say about something when we arrived here."
"Oh, about that… I think showing it to you is easier than explaining." Akira pulled something out from her robes, something that even Tomori himself had.
"A Command Buckle? Doesn't that mean…"
"Come on out, Rumbee!" A green light went out from the buckle and a green humvee appeared in front of them.
"Rumbee!"
"You brought it here?" Tomori asked her. At the same time, the buckle on his pocket pants also started shaking. "You wanted to go out? Okay, then…"
He let Xceed out from the buckle.
"Xceed!"
"Rumbee!"
Both of the vehicles greeted each other.
"Alright, I didn't expect that you would take it with you. Can you even drive a truck in the first place?" Tomori asked Akira.
"Well… My brother had taught me how to play those arcade racing games. So… Does that experience count?"
" Sigh* Nevermind. Actually, this humvee right here could be a good shield to protect you."
"Rumbee?!" It then backed down a little when Tomori said that.
"Come on, Tomori. Don't be scared like that…" Akira then went on to comfort the humvee.
"What I mean is that this humvee can bring you guys inside the town without dealing any damage to you. The front row seat can fit around three to four people, right? The rest of you can go sit in the back." Tomori said to them. "Xceed, it's time for you to shine."
"Xceed!" It parked itself in front of Tomori. He then went on top of it.
"Come on, Riri. Just step on the foot rest and hop on." Tomori said to her.
Riri followed what he said and hopped onto the motorcycle.
"What are you guys standing for? We're moving now!"
After Tomori said that, they all went inside the humvee. Akira, Emil, Thea and Reika on the front, while Mizune, Rylon, Lowri, Flan, Ivaran and Miya on the back.
"Okay… Let's beat the pope's *ss!"
Vroom* Vroom* Vroom*
Tomori led them by being in front of the humvee. The guards who noticed him immediately alerted the others, but it's too late as they had already entered the town area.
"We're lucky that the road is big enough for the humvee to go through."
As they rode through the road, Riri noticed something from afar.
"Tomori, archers in front of us!"
He then slowed down a little and moved to the sides. And then, followed the humvee from behind.
"Reika, take care of the archers!" Tomori shouted loudly so that she could hear it.
"You don't have to tell me twice!" She pulled down the window and let her bow out. " Aiming Projectile! Spread Shot!"
Couple of arrows went towards the archers in front of them and knocked them all at once.
"Nice!" Tomori pulled the throttle to speed up and went through the right side of the humvee. "I'm going to the castle first! Remember the plan!"
Vroom*
He sped up towards the castle. The guards quickly pulled the rope to lift the bridge connected to the castle, but their speed can't outmatched the sheer power of a magic powered motorcycle.
"What-"
" High Chain Lightning!" Riri casted her spells to knock out all of the guards standing near the bridge.
"Argh?!!!" All of them fall to the ground unconscious.
"I hope they expect us to come here this fast… And I hope the queen doesn't mind if I take Xceed for a ride in the castle."
Vroom* Vroom*
Tomori then pulled the throttle and went inside the castle.
Clang* Clang* Clang*
Multiple arrows hit the humvee, but it didn't leave any scratches on it. Akira then pressed the brake paddle with her leg.
" Orb Prison!" She also made sure that she activated the defensive skill first so that they won't get hit by the arrows.
Twang* Twang* Twang*
Reika immediately got out from the humvee and shot every archer that she could see using her bow.
"Alright, seems like there's no other archers left around here." Reika then lightly tapped the humvee's back. "Everyone can go out now!"
Hearing that, all of them get out from the humvee.
"Return." Akira transport Rumbee back into the buckle. She then stored the buckle into her Inventory. "We will take it from here. If anything happens, I will send Mizune to you."
"Alright!" Reika replied. She turned towards her team and the rescue-the-prisoners. "We're going to escort you up to the dungeon. After that, you all will be on your own."
"Understood." Flan responsed. "Ivaran, stay in the front. I will protect your back. And Princess Miya, please don't leave Ivaran's side. I may not be able to properly protect you, but he sure can."
"Okay…" Miya gets closer to Ivaran's back.
"Let's move now!" Reika shouted as they spirit towards the castle's entrance, leaving Akira and her team behind.
Crack*
Akira cracked her neck and her fingers.
"Don't let anyone or anything past this bridge." She said to her team.
"Yes!" They all shouted.
Vroom* Vroom*
Tomori rode through the hallways of the castle, trying to find out where the pope stayed.
"That's the Blade Demon!" A knight shouted. There's dozens of them a few metres away.
"Magic wouldn't reach them from here… But I have a skill for that!" Tomori pulled the throttle even further, speeding towards the group of knights. " Hover Blade!"
A red, translucent sword appeared next to him.
"Go!"
Swoosh*
As he shouted, the sword flew straight towards the knights.
Clang* Clang* Clang*
Using his mind to control the sword, Tomori used it to knock out all of the knights that's blocking his way.
"My SP drains a small amount every second. I need to use this skill wisely." Tomori turned off the skill, making the sword disappear. "And where the f*ck is the pope? Where would I be if I'm making myself a leader of a country using messed up religious beliefs… Of course, he would be there… How I didn't think about it before."
He turned around his motorcycle and rode towards the place where the pope might be.
" Spread Shot!"
" High Shadow Spear!"
" High Chain Lightning!"
Reika, Thea and Miya decimated every knight on their path.
"Hah!"
As for Flan and Lowri, they knocked out every knight and shadow that tried to get closer.
Swish*
A shadow tried to stab Flan from behind.
Bonk*
But Ivaran hits the shadow's head super hard with his shield that the shadow instantly knocks out.
"Thanks, Ivaran!" Flan said to him. "The dungeon entrance is only a few doors from here. Projectile Hero, you and your party can do what you have tasked while we are going to save the prisoners."
"Okay! Stay safe, you three. Let's go!"
Rescue-the-prisoners team and Reika's group split up into different directions.
Ivaran, Miya and Flan get closer to the dungeon's entrance.
"DEAD TO THE DEMON SERVANTS!!!" When suddenly, a knight appears from the entrance and throws himself towards them.
Clang*
Ivaran blocked his advances.
" High Lightning!" Miya then used the spell to zap the knight, making him paralysed for a while.
"Hah!" As for Flan, he thrust his rapier straight towards the gap on the knight's chestplate. He pulled his rapier off and swung out the excess blood on the blade to the side. "We need to be quick, or they will decide to execute the prisoners now."
All of them quickly walked down the spiral stairs to the dungeon.
"Hey, have you checked what's going on up-Argh?!"
Ivaran knocked out the knight that guards the staircase with his shield.
"What was that?!" The other knights decided to check what caused the sounds.
"Hiyaah!" Flan leaps forward and started stabbing the sh*t out of all of the knights surrounding him with his rapier.
"I don't think that he needs my protection. Rather, I think that I need protection from him." Ivaran thought to himself. He then turned to Miya. "Let's find the king."
"Yes!" She immediately responded.
Both of them then rushed through the narrow hallway, looking at the prison cells one by one. But they didn't find him in all those cells.
"Maybe he's in the deepest part of the dungeon." Miya muttered, as that's where Flan were confined before. "I think I remember where it is. Follow me!"
Miya then started running ahead of Ivaran.
"Wait, Princess Miya!" He then started chasing after her.
Bam*
Tomori crashed through the door of the royal chamber. As he stepped on the brake, he looked at the individual who sits on the throne in front of him.
The person is wearing a pure white robe, with a rosary of the Church of Transpierce on it. Not only that, there's also three flags that represent the church lined up behind the throne. The individual also holds a golden spear, smiling as he sees Tomori in here. The individual, who's the pope, stood up from the throne and approached Tomori and Riri.
They quickly get down from Xceed. Tomori pulled out the buckle and stored the motorcycle inside of it, then inserted the buckle back to the Inventory.
"I believe this is the first time that we had an interaction with each other. But I think this is also going to be the last interaction that you will have, Demon of the Blade." The pope said with a smile on his face.
"...Pope Bacillus, is it? I had something to say to you." Tomori said with a serious expression. "Stop all of this right now."
"...I beg your pardon?" The pope didn't understand what he meant by that.
"I literally mean it. Look around you. You did all of this… Just because you don't like Blade Hero?"
"Oh, no. If you think that's the case then you are very much wrong." The pope said as he raised his hands to the sky. "All of this… Is the will of our god. And as their subject, I must fulfil what they wished upon."
"By killing innocent people? What do the demi-humans do to the point that you need to eradicate them?"
"The demis are an abomination that must be eliminated. They are pests, an infection towards this world. After all, you should understand that since you're the Demon of the Blade." The pope said to him.
"Tomori, this old guy is nuts." Riri whispered to him.
"I know, but bear it for now. We're going to defeat him later." He replied back. " I thought he could be reasoned with, but perhaps I was wrong."
"After I finish with you, I shall march my soldiers and eradicate all the demis in here, and then the rest of the world." The pope exclaimed.
" Sigh* What a pain in the ass…" Tomori said as he scratched his head. "There's nowhere I would let you do that. Your mad dreams end here!"
He pointed his sword at the pope.
"Well then…" The pope raised his spear to the sky, and then stabbed it to the ground. A few seconds had passed, but nothing had happened. "What is the meaning of this…"
"Trying to lock me out from my best weapon, eh?" Tomoru said as he put his sword onto his shoulder. "I already had a countermeasure for that purpose only. You're going down, pope."
"Hmm… This is unexpected." The pope then holds the spear with both of his hands. "With the power of the church's believers, I shall eradicate the Demon of the Blade! Gaè Bolg!"
The spear shines brightly through the chamber. The pope threw the spear at Tomori and Riri, who made no attempt to evade it.
Blade Charge!
Tomori quickly switched to REB and tapped the gemstone section twice.
" Blade Bash!" He deflected the attack to the left, sending the attack out from the chamber. "I'm going to defeat you, right here, right now!"
His eyes glowed crimson red, as he raised his fist facing Riri's direction.
"Let's do this!" Tomori exclaimed.
"Yeah!" Riri raised her fist at Tomori's, forming a fistbump.
Red magic circle formed under their feet.
" Spirit Union: The Crimson Wolf!"
Without any chanting, Riri disappeared from Tomori's side, as his body was covered with red mana particles, forming a wolf's ears and tail.
Blast*
Red shockwaves disperse from his body after the transformation is complete, pushing the pope back a little. Tomori felt like this transformation was much stronger than before.
"Maybe it's thanks to Tatwulf…"
The pope then walked forward.
"It seems like the Demon of the Blade has shown its demonic power."
"This isn't the power of a demon. It's the power of unity. Someone like you wouldn't understand this kind of power."
Snap*
Tomori pointed his left hand at the pope and snapped his fingers.
"Now then… Let's count up your sins, shall we?"
"What blasphemy. A believer like myself has no sins." The pope responded. " Cosmic Javelin!"
His spear shines brightly and he throws it at Tomori.
" Strike Edge!" Tomori used the skill to destroy the javelin. "You're knock off weapon won't be able to match the real deal. Hah!"
He dashed at the pope and swung his sword at him.
Clang*
But was blocked by an invisible barrier.
"This barrier… It felt like the one that the man child used…"
The pope smiles as Tomori's attack didn't get through the barrier. He then prepared to activate another skill.
"However, I can break this barrier damn easily now!" Tomori tapped the gemstone and held it for a while.
Blade, Reading!
" Demolition Edge!" He slashed the barrier with his sword.
Clang* Clang* Clang* Clang* Clang* Shatter*
Instantly, the barrier shattered apart.
"What?!" The pope was surprised by that. "Ghh?!"
Tomori immediately attacks him, sending the pope flying back to the walls.
" Comet Wave Slash!" Tomori released a horizontal slash at the pope.
" Whirlwind!" The pope tried to block the attack, but it overpowered him so much that he couldn't handle it.
" Blade Throw!" Tomori throws his sword at the spinning spear.
"Gah?!"
This had stopped the pope from using the skill. The power gap between the Blade Hero and the pope using the Legendary Weapon is too vast.
"I will give you one more chance. Stop all of this, or prepare for the worst. Cuz I ain't gonna be holding back any longer." Tomori said to the pope.
He then slowly stood up.
"If I give myself to the demon temptation, then I wouldn't be able to receive our lord's grace."
" Sigh*" Tomori just sighed disappointedly. "It's good that he's loyal to his religion, but this is getting out of hand-"
Blast* Blast* Blast* Blast*
He felt four sources of mana coming towards him. Tomori turned around and saw four types of magic were going to hit him.
Boom*
A huge explosion appears after all of the spells hit Tomori.
" All High Wind Prison III!" Akira cast a spell that summoned several sphere prisons made out of Wind magic to encase the knights that wanted to go inside the castle. Then, she tapped the gemstone on her staff twice.
Magic Charge!
The staff glowed brightly.
" Vine Bind!" The other knights that's not caught up with the spell get binded by her skill. "Hah… Hah…"
Akira began breathing heavily after using a large amount of MP and SP.
"March forward!"
Dozens of knights came from the front towards Akira's group.
"When they're going to stop…"
She then slowly started moving around tiredly.
"Akira-sama!" Emil caught her before she fell down to the ground. "Please leave this to us…"
"Yeah! You can rest a bit and then come join us back later! Hah!"
Bonk*
Rylon then bonked one of the knights that came his way.
" All High Shadow Spear!" Mizune cast an AoE spell on all of the knights. "You need to rest, Akira-dono. We are going to take this over."
She then threw herself towards the marching knights.
"I'm going to stay here to protect you." Emil said as he drew his dagger.
"No… I need to get back up…" Akira then pulls out the stamina, MP and SP recovery potions and chug all of them up.
"That's reckless! You aren't even fully recovered!"
"I don't care about that. I'm going to fight… As the Magic Hero! Earth Rupture!" Akira stabbed her staff to the ground, splitting it slightly open so that the knight's feet got stuck on the rupture. "Knock them all out!"
"Roger that!" Rylon and Mizune responded. Both of them knocked out all of the knights that got their feet tripped into the rupture on the ground.
"Ugh…!" Akira felt a sting in her right arm. She held it tightly, as she quietly groaned in pain. "My body… Is reaching its limit…"
"Akira-san, are you okay?" Emil asked her. He looks worried about her condition now.
"Yeah, I'm fine…" She then slowly returned back into the fight.
"Don't flatter! The castle is in front of us! After we defeat this fake Magic Hero, we can assist the pope! March forward!"
The knights continued to march forward to them with full confidence.
" Sigh* I knew that we should do this tomorrow… But it's already too late to complain about it." Akira holds her staff with both of her hands. "Before I pass out, I'm not letting them past this bridge!"
As she prepared to cast her skill, Akira saw something coming down from the sky. No, it's not just "something", there's a lot of them falling down. But not towards her, nor her group. But rather, towards the marching knights.
"Argh?!!!"
In an instant, all of the marching knights fall to the ground, heavily damaged by the incoming attack. Then, two people walk past the unconscious knights towards Akira and her party. Akira knows one of the people pretty well.
Reika sneakily walks towards the marching knights and priest inside the castle.
"The pope has engaged the Blade Demon in combat! We need to assist him!" One of the priests said.
"Seems like he had made it to the pope." Reika thought to herself. She then turns to her party and gives hand signals to ambush the knights and priest.
Both of her companions replied with a nod.
Reika pulled her bow string, charging a skill and pointed her bow towards the top of the hallway.
" Shine Arrow!"
The arrow went to the top of knights and priests and exploded, blinding all of them.
Thud* Thud* Thud*
The three of them went towards the knights and priests.
"Hah!" Lowri smashed her mace at a knight, sending him flying back towards the group of priests.
" All High Shadow Arrow!" Thea casted a spell that summons a bunch of purple arrows and send it flying towards the knights and priests.
" Spread Shot!" Reika shot her skill on top of the knights and priests. The arrow then splits and hits all of them.
"Argh!!!"
In an instant, the large group of knights and priests is laying down on the ground unconscious.
"I guess the only advantage that they had against us is only numbers…" Reika wondered what would have happened if another country decided to wage war against Welle now. "Don't think about it now. There's still probably more of them in here. We need to knock them out before they overpowered us with their large numbers."
Reika and her party moved towards the next section of the castle.
"Reika!"
The Projectile Hero knows who's voice that belongs to. She turned around to see the Magic Hero and a person she couldn't recognise that's following Akira from behind.
"Akira? What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to defend the bridge?" She asked her.
"Yeah, but all of the knights surrounding this town have been knocked out. Partly thanks to him." Akira moved to the side to show the person's face.
"...I see, so you come to help, huh?"
Thud* Thud* Thud*
Miya quickly ran downstairs while Ivaran chased her from behind.
"Her level is lower compared to mine, but how come she's faster than me? Maybe it's because of this bulky armor and heavy shield on my back…" Ivaran thought to himself.
"S-Stay back!" Ivaran heard a loud voice from the door in front of him. He quickly dashed out to see what's happening.
He saw the princess standing in front of an opened cell. And inside of it, there's a knight holding an old man who's blind folded while pointing his sword onto the old man's neck.
"That must be the king… And he looks horrible…"
The former king of Welle now has shackles that restrict his movements on his limbs. His body is filled with fresh whip marks and his skin also looks dry. Maybe the cause of it was from dehydration.
"If you move, I will slit this old geezer's neck! So back off!" The knight yelled at Miya. It seems like he hasn't noticed that Ivaran is here as well.
"Listen, you don't have to do this. The one who you're pointing your sword at right now is the king of this country. What you're doing now is treacherous! Please stop this at once!" Miya exclaimed.
"S-Shut up! My loyalty is only to my religion! And this country has brought in those filthy demis just so that we can have a political relation with Klinge! Those filthy monsters can die for all I care!"
"But my father has nothing to do with it!"
"Oh, he has… He's going to be a sacrifice to calm our lord from releasing its punishment onto us for letting the demis in this country. After all, what's even better is to sacrifice an old geezer with a Six Progression Heroes' weapon!"
Ivaran realised that this knight couldn't be negotiated any longer. And he also noticed that the knight would kill the king if Miya kept pestering him.
"I should use the spell that Thea-san taught me before…" Ivaran put his right hand onto the ground and stared at the knight from the side. " Low Shadow Spear!"
"Argh?!"
A purple needle that erected from the ground hits the knight's shoulder, making him release the king from his grasp.
"Damn you-"
" High Shock Burst!" Miya then sends a spell at the knight, causing him to fly back to the walls of the cell. She then hurried to her father's side. "Father, are you okay?!"
Ivaran then came strolling into the cell and stood by Miya's side. After unveiling the clothes that blinded the king, Miya is shocked to see what displayed on his eyes.
"..." There's nothing in the king's eyes, as if his soul leave his body. But clearly from the HP bar displayed on top of his head, he's still alive.
"Father, it's me, Miya! I come here to rescue you!" She kept pestering her father to talk, but he still isn't responding.
Miya didn't know what happened to him, but Ivaran knew. The king has fallen into despair. He didn't know how, but it clearly showed on his face. Ivaran then placed his hands onto Miya's shoulder.
"I don't think he can talk now. Let's get him out of here first and figure out something to make him talk later." He suggested it to her.
"Okay…" She quietly responded.
Ivaran carried the king by the shoulder and quickly went upstairs.
"Flan, we already rescued the king! We need to get out of here now!" Ivaran shouted at him.
"Understood! Hah!" He quickly decimates every knight in front of him to pave ways for their escape road. After they got out from the dungeon, Flan stared at the king, wondering what's wrong with him. But he quickly ignored it as they needed to get to a safer place before more knights came to their path.
Swoosh*
There's something flying towards his head. Flan quickly evades it and the thing gets stuck onto the wall.
"What was that?!" Ivaran asked.
Flan then looked at the thing that was going to hit him back then.
"A hatchet? And the inscription on it… It can't be…"
This is definitely bad news to them.
"What's wrong, Flan?" The princess asked.
"Ivaran, I wanted you to take the princess and king out of here immediately!" He said with a worried face.
"Flan, tell me what's happening right now." The half-elf asked him.
"He's here…" The royal knight stared at the direction where the hatchet came from.
Thud* Thud* Thud*
A tall old man with blonde hair, wearing Welle's official knight armor that was made out from Mithril, walked towards them.
"Oh my… I didn't know that Bassett's son could evade that. Perhaps I underestimated you…" The blonde old man said.
"I hope you do not, Lord Bradforde…" Flan said with clear hatred in his eyes.
"Lord Bradforde? That's him?!" Ivaran instantly pulled out a shield to the front. Bradforde then turned his gaze towards him.
"That elf… You're the one who's the Blade Hero's companion, right? How lucky am I to meet you here. Because I really, really wanted to kill you now in front of the Blade Hero right now." Bradforde said calmly. "Not only did the demon destroy my territory, but also killed the knights that I carefully selected for decades, for it to be gone in mere seconds. And that foolish son of mine… All he had was his intelligence, but he's still my successor in the end. I'm going to make you regret destroying my legacy! Hah!"
Bradforde then drew his sword out and went straight towards Ivaran.
"So fast-"
Clang*
The sword hits his shield. Bradforde then overpowered him and threw him to the sides, leaving Miya and the king defenceless.
"Hah!" Flan instantly parried Bradforde's sword with his own rapier.
"You should know that you can't defeat me. My levels and experiences in combat are far superior than yours, son of Bassett. And besides that, it's already over. All of the nobles that supported the church had already arrived to assist the pope in order to kill the Blade Hero. And all of the knights in this country will arrive later. To be honest, I wanted to make him suffer first, but it's inevitable now. I guess what I can do now is to kill the king and the princess in front of the queen." Bradforde calmly said.
"Why would you want that?!" Flan shouted at him.
"It's because I can!" He exclaimed. "Can't you see the despair in their eyes when their loved ones were killed in front of them?! It's so pleasant…"
"You crazy bastard…!" Flan pushed him back.
"Ugh…" Ivaran stood up and went to Flan's side.
"Didn't I tell you to run away now?" Flan said to him.
"I know, but you can defeat him alone."
"Who's said I can't?"
"Don't act confident, Flan." Miya said as she stood between them. "I always felt something off about Lord Bradforde. I can't even imagine why the queen would let him stay as a noble considering his evil deeds in plain sight."
"Oh my, so you three wish to stand against me?" Bradforde asked them.
"I'm not afraid of you!" Flan said as he pointed his rapier at him.
"You're going to pay for what you did to my friends!" Ivaran holds his shield in the front.
And thus, the battle between Ivaran, Flan and Miya against Lord Bradforde has begun.
" High Lightning Shield II!" Tomori summoned a shield made out of red lightning to defend against the four spells.
Boom*
All of the spells then hit the shield, protecting Tomori from it.
"What now…" He then annoyingly looks at the chamber's entrance, which is filled with people that's wearing fancy versions of the knight's armor.
"Hahaha! This is where you meet your ends, Blade Demon!" One of the people from the group said.
" Sigh* I need to deal with them too… What a pain in the *ss…" Tomori then prepared to cast another Lightning, but suddenly something else happened.
" Air Needle!"
" Hydro Shot!"
" Flare Lance!"
Three attacks went towards the group of fancy armor people.
"Argh?!!!"
All of them then were sent flying back from the entrance of the chamber. Three individuals then appeared right in the chamber and quickly stood by Tomori's side.
"You guys… Why are the two of you here?" Tomori asked.
"I'm already done with protecting the bridge." Akira, the Magic Hero, replied.
"As for me, there's no one around the castle for me to shoot my arrows at." Reika, the Projectile Hero, replied.
"I see… How about you then?" Tomori, the Blade Hero, asked the last person besides Akira and Reika.
"Well… I've been keeping on the lookout around the castle waiting for you guys to come so that we can take down the pope together…" Tadashi, the Shaft Hero, replied.
"Is that so… Well, I can beat the pope with Riri and myself. But… Since you guys are here, I can use some help to make the process easier." Tomori said to them.
"Come on, just tell us that you wanted our help." Akira said to him.
"Yeah, we gladly would help you either way." Reika said to him as well.
"That's right. I really wanted to help out." Tadashi said as he gripped his spear tightly.
"Oh well…" Tomori then pulled out the spear and accessory that he got from Audrey and gave it to Tadashi. "Copy this spear and attach that accessory onto the new weapon form. It will negate the effect of the pope's weapon to lock our weapon forms. As for the accessory, it will upgrade your Comet skill."
"Okay…" He copied the metallic white spear and instantly changed it. " Absorver Spear… Its stats are quite high. And the special effects are pretty good too. And the Comet skill is really upgraded."
All four of them then stood in front of the pope, who had just recovered from Tomori's attack.
"It seems like all of the other heroes are fake, considering they sided with the Demon of the Blade." The pope commented. "I shall eradicate all of you now, for the peace of this world."
"Peace? This ain't peace! If you kill us, the world is doomed from the waves!" Reika shouted at the pope.
"If you really want peace, then stop all of this nonsense." Akira said to the pope.
"Don't bother trying. I already did and he still didn't stop. So we have to do what we must have done a long time ago…" Tomori pointed his sword at the pope. "Band together as heroes to protect the world from injustice!"
"That sounds cheesy, but I'm okay with it!" Reika readied her bow.
"We really should have done that from the beginning." Akira prepared her staff to charge up for an attack.
"The Four Holy Heroes are together… It really gives me goosebumps!" Tadashi said as he already upgraded his new spear.
The four of them stood in front of the pope with conviction in their eyes. All of their weapons' gemstones faintly glowed as all of the heroes charge up for a skill.
"Well then, I shall purify all of you in the name of god." The pope's spear changed into a bow. " Cosmic Shot!"
The attack went straight at Tomori.
" Comet Wave Slash!" Tomori returns by sending a long range skill of his own.
The two attacks clash with each other, but Tomori's skill is far more superior than the fake one. His skill went through and headed towards the pope, but he swiftly evaded it.
" Comet Spread Shot!" Reika then shoot her arrow on top of the pope, which splits into multiple arrows and hits the pope.
" Whirlwind!" The pope used a defensive skill to block the arrows from hitting his body.
" Comet Spread Javelin!" Tadashi's spear glowed brightly as he threw it at the pope. Then, the spears split into more spears and hit the pope from his defenceless side.
"Argh?!" The pope moved backwards after receiving the attack. But he recovered quickly to use another skill. " Crimson Shot!"
A red arrow is released at them.
" Whirlwind!" Tadashi stood in front and blocked the attack from reaching them.
Thud* Thud* Thud*
Tomori leaps over him and sprints towards the pope. Seeing this, he quickly switched back from the bow to the spear.
" Strike Edge!" Tomori swings his sword at the pope.
Clang*
However, the attack was blocked by the spear shaft.
" Second Blade!" But Tomori didn't waste any time as he used the skill to summon TBKDCS onto his left hand. " Erst Slash!"
He overpowered the pope by slashing the spear shaft, making him move backwards.
" Zweite Slash!" Tomori continued to attack by using another skill of his.
"Ugh…?!" The pope continued to move backwards.
" Pyro Edge!" This time, Tomori slashes him from the right, making his front unprotected. " Typhoon Edge!"
"Argh!!!"
In a single swift motion, Tomori slashes the pope using REB on his right hand.
" Sunlight Beam!" Akira, who hasn't gotten any action yet, blasted the pope with a bright beam.
" Erst Shot! Zweite Shot! Scarlet Shot!" Reika releases a barrage of skills at the pope.
" Erst Javelin! Zweite Javelin! Drill Javelin!" Tadashi also followed her by sending a bunch of skills to the pope. Smokes filled the chamber as they finished using their skills. "Alright! Let's finish this!"
Tadashi then sprints towards the pope. Tomori followed him from the side while charging a skill. The three heroes who are used to the Absorver System activated it.
Blade Charge!
Magic Charge!
Projectile Charge!
Tadashi stared in awe as he heard sounds of a person speaking from their weapons.
"They need to tell me how they do that!" Tadashi thought to himself.
" Demolition Shot!"
" Demolition Force!"
" Demolition Thrust!"
" Demolition Strike Edge!"
All of the heroes then activate the strongest skills that they have in their arsenal.
The battle ends now, or so they thought. The Smoke that surrounded the pope disappeared as he held his spear shaft with both of his hands.
" State of Magnanimous!" The pope's spear shines in the golden color.
Clang* Clang* Blast* Blast*
All of the four skills then directed to the spear shaft.
"F*ck! Guys! Be ready!" Tadashi suddenly yelled out. "That's one of the advanced defensive skills!"
"Huh?! What does it do-"
"You all… SHALL BE PURIFIED!!!" The pope pushed Tomori and Tadashi backwards. His spear glowed even brighter than before.
"Ah sh*t… I think I know what it does…" Tomori quickly used both of his swords to defend himself.
The pope swipes his spear from the left, sending a wide range of attacks that target all of the Holy Heroes.
Boom*
"Argh!!!"
Tomori, with his TBKDCS instantly shattered, and Tadashi were sent flying back from the attack, while Akira and Reika got smashed to the walls by it. They're not the only ones which were damaged by the attack. All the parts inside the royal chamber were destroyed by the attack as well.
As for the heroes themselves, they all are in pretty much bad condition as blood flows out from their body. The ones who are quite fine are only Tomori, who has the highest DEF stats among the heroes. But his HP is only around 30%. Next would be Tadashi, as his DEF is quite high from the start. But the same couldn't be said as Akira and Reika are in critical condition right now due to their health being in the red zone.
In conclusion, they're all f*cked up.
Clang*
"Ugh…!" Ivaran blocked a sword strike from Bradforde using his shield.
"Hah!" Flan then comes from the side and tries to stab the nobleman, but he dodge it by moving backwards.
" High Aqua Slash!" Miya then used her spell to send slashes of water at Bradforde, but he deflected it with his Magic Sword.
"Hmph, bunch of amateurs. Hah!" Bradforde continued to target Flan with his sword.
Clang* Clang* Clang*
Multiple clanging between Flan's rapier and Bradforde's sword can be heard throughout the hallway.
Both Ivaran and Miya didn't butt in because they thought that they would only hold him back.
"Impressive… Your strikes are much sharper than before." Bradforde said to him.
"I don't need your praises! Hah!" Flan continued to send barrages of strikes towards Bradforde to the point that he had to go defensive against him. With the objective of winning inside his head, Flan sped up his attack like he had never done before in his entire life.
"Good… Very good…" Despite struggling a bit, Bradforde continued to deflect all of his attacks.
After a few seconds, Flan felt something off with his rapier.
"Oh no!" He soon realised the problem with his rapier.
Bradforde smiles widely after seeing Flan's reaction to it. He then released a huge slash onto Flan's rapier.
Crack* Shatter*
In an instant, his rapier blade shattered in pieces.
"Heh, you're good, son of Bassett. But not good enough!"
"Ugh…!" Bradforde then stabbed Flan with his sword into his stomach. "Cough…!"
He then started coughing blood.
Splurt*
After pulling out the sword from his stomach, Flan falls down to the ground as his blood flows through the surface.
"Flan!" Miya called his name.
"One down, two more to go…" Bradforde then walked towards the princess.
"Hah!" Ivaran tried to bash his shield at the nobleman, but he swiftly evaded it. "You're not getting close to her!"
" Sigh* The audacity of an elf, or should I say half-elf? Someone like you who shared half human and elf blood should be considered impure, you know?" Bradforde tried to taunt him, but it clearly didn't work. "Such a strong will… I hate people like you! Hah!"
Clang*
Ivaran blocked the attack with his shield.
"People like you who aren't easily breakable aren't fun! That's why I send people like you to be my pets dinner! Maybe I'll do it now!"
Clang* Clang* Clang*
Bradforde continued to slash him, but Ivaran blocked every attack that the nobleman sent to him.
"Hmm… What a sturdy shield… It's perfect for my collection."
"?!" Ivaran then smashed Bradforde with his shield so hard that he went backwards. "Don't you dare touch this shield with your filthy hands!"
"Well… Why would I listen to you anyway?" Bradforde dashed forward and continued to attack Ivaran. "Someone like you had no authority on me! A person as dirty as you doesn't have any right to speak against me! A person as pure as I am is allowed to treat everyone else like dirt, because that's who they are. The queen? The pope? They're just a bunch of shiny rocks from the streets. But I am a Mithril! My worth is far higher than them! After I finish with you, I will take Welle for myself and cleanse the world with my authorization!"
"Like father, like son… Both of them are similar. No wonder they're so twisted in their heads!" Ivaran said as he blocked all of his attacks.
"You shall FALL!" Bradforde then tackles Ivaran to the ground.
"Ugh…?!"
Due to the nobleman pinning him down, Ivaran can't move his legs. As he prepares to cast a spell, Bradforde holds the RPS with his hands.
"And with this, this shield shall be mine!"
Crack*
"Argh!!!"
He forcefully pulled the shield off from Ivaran's arm, which also broke his right arm in the process.
"Oh… The stats are high. And it was made from Mithril. Someone like you shouldn't possess something like this-"
" High Shock Burst!" Miya casted a spell onto the nobleman.
Boom*
The spell hits, but not on the right target as Bradforde holds the RPS in front.
"Seems like this is going to make my job easier." Bradforde stood up and walked towards the princess.
"Ugh…!" But Ivaran pulled his leg with his left hand. "You're not… Going anywhere!"
"Hmm… You're not making this fun, are you?"
Stomp*
"Argh!!!"
The nobleman stomped Ivaran's broken arm with his foot.
"Just wait for your turn." He then continued to walk towards the princess.
"Don't get closer!" Miya casted a barrage of spells at Bradforde, but he blocked it with the RPS easily.
Flan is down, Ivaran's right arm is broken, Miya and the king are in danger. Are there any ways to turn the tide?
"Ugh…" Both Tomori and Tadashi slowly stood up from the ground, ignoring their injuries.
"Your struggles are meaningless, Demon and the fake hero." The pope said with a smile on his face. "It was planned by god that it happened this way! For all of this to happen, it was already your fate!"
"Screw that!" Tadashi shouted at the pope. "You haven't won yet!"
"As long as the two of us are standing, you will never win!" Tomori exclaimed.
"Oh, but I had already won, Demon." The pope said as he raised his spear. "Now that it comes to this, I shall purify all of you with Judgement."
His spears then glowed, resourcing the MP needed for the Ritual Magic.
"Are you insane?! You're gonna get caught up in it too!" Tadashi said to the pope.
"Reika mentioned that he has a skill called Pole of Return." Tomori said to him.
"Tch! Of course he had that skill as well…" Tadashi clicked his tongue. He still tries to reason with the pope. "How about your knights? Your followers? The maids in the castle? The civilians?"
"A small sacrifice is needed for the peace of this world." The pope said as he continued resourcing MP to the Ritual Magic.
"No way…" It's official. The pope is crazy.
"Ugh…" Tomori tried to sustain the damage he received from the pope's attack. "It's not good… I'm getting tired right now… Maybe it's because I used too much of that Mana Skin to protect myself. Tadashi isn't strong enough to defeat the pope on his own…"
Tomori started thinking of the things that he should do now. Then, he remembered the talk he had with Tatwulf a few hours ago.
"Wait, you're telling me that there's a stronger form of Spirit Union?!" Tomori exclaimed.
"Yes, however… I don't recommend you do it." Tatwulf warned him.
"Why not?" He asked.
"Even though you're the Blade Hero, you're still a human in the end. Your body can't receive that much energy. If you do it, you're either going to die in a few seconds… Or lose your humanity."
"What?! How does that happen in the first place? I mean the losing my humanity part?"
"That's… Something that's beyond my knowledge."
"Okay, you're the Spirit Beast's Deity, and you don't even know it?"
"It's not that I don't know it, but no human had done that before."
"If that's the case, then is it really true though?"
"I'm telling you, you shouldn't do that. A human and Spirit Beast weren't meant to be together in the first place."
"Who said that? Who decides that?" Tomori asked the giant wolf.
"That's…"
"Is Spirit Beast only serving the elves and dwarfs?"
"No, but-"
"There's no problem with it, right? I want to get stronger, Riri also wants to get stronger. If this is one of the ways, then I'm willing to take the risk."
"But this involves not only your life, but Riri's as well. If you don't know, Spirit Beast is just a reincarnation of those who died in the real world. Someone who's lucky enough to be reincarnated by the Earth Vein will become a Spirit Beast.
"So… Is that the origin of Spirit Beasts?"
"Yes… Even though I was a human once. But the other Spirit Beast won't remember their memories from their past life. It will be as if they're reborn into another entity."
"I see… So Riri's just the same as them?"
"No… Riri is a special case. But not that it matters to you. Not now."
"Okay… But I still stand on my point. I want that form. In the future, I would face enemies that were stronger than I was.I need every method so that I can survive… And to not rely on the Curse Series any longer…"
" Sigh*" Tatwulf just sighed. "You are really stubborn… Oh well, I did warn you. Make sure you don't regret it in the future."
He had to do it. Not just for himself, but for the other heroes, for the innocent civilians and for those who believe in him.
"I need time to do it. And I clearly don't have it now. I just need a little distraction…"
"Ugh…" Ivaran tried to cast a spell, but pain from his right arm distracted him from being focused. "So this is it, huh? Why can't I be more useful…"
Why does it end badly when everything involves him? He failed to save Liyana, he failed to stop Tomori from Azamiere, he failed to stop Rust from killing Tomori… But most importantly, he had failed to keep his promise with Liyana.
"Ivaran… Can you come closer?" Liyana asked him on her deathbed. Ivaran just followed what she said. "Can you become the Blade Hero's companion in my place?"
"Huh?" Ivaran was confused by her request.
"It's always my dream to go on adventures with the Blade Hero, but since I'm going to go soon, I don't think I can accomplish that." Liyana said to him. "Well, since you're more capable in terms of defense, I thought that you can protect the Blade Hero better than me. Can you do that for me, Ivaran?"
This is a big request from his childhood friend. He doesn't even know if the Blade Hero wanted him to be his companion in the first place. However, it's a request from his friend that will go soon. And he wanted to respect that wish.
"...I'll try, but no guarantees." Ivaran replied back to her.
"I'm sorry, Liyana… I failed you… I failed Tomori-san… I failed everyone else…"
As a drop of tear fell out from his eyes, Ivaran felt something warm in front of him.
"No, Ivaran…"
He looked to the front and can't believe what he's currently seeing right now, as if he's seeing a ghost right now.
"You didn't fail me, nor the Blade Hero, nor anyone else." Liyana, whose body is transparent, said to him.
Ivaran thought that he was just hallucinating, so he just outright ignored her.
"Hey, I didn't come all the way here just so that you can ignore me, you know?!" The raccoon girl shouted at the half-elf man.
"Wait… Liyana?! Really?! Am I not hallucinating right now?!"
"Yes! It's me!"
"But how… How did you-"
"Nuh-uh, can't tell you that." Liyana shushes him down. "I'm here to help you now, but not physically fighting, as you know… I can't do that right now."
"Yeah, I understand… So how can you help me?" Ivaran asked her.
"Well… Let me ask you something first, Ivaran." Shs said to him with a serious tone. "What are you now?"
"Now? I'm the Blade Hero's companion, and also his shielder."
"And what's a shielder supposed to do?"
"To protect everyone from danger during battle."
"But can you do that, Ivaran? Can you do that as the person you currently are?"
Liyana's question makes him think. Can he protect everyone in the first place? Heck, he couldn't even protect himself back then. But even though he can't, he wanted to. He wanted to protect everyone that he cares about. He wanted to be like Tomori, who is kind and will stand up even though he was badly injured. That's the kind of person who he wanted to be, a person who has compassion and strength.
"No, I can't…" Ivaran answered. "But I will become that person. Even if I'm hurt, even if I fail so many times, I will stand up and protect everyone… Because that's my job as a shielder. To protect everyone!"
Hearing that, Liyana couldn't help but to smile, seeing her childhood friend didn't even change a bit since she left this world.
"Well then, that's a good answer Ivaran. Even the spirit here likes it." Out of the sudden, a grey dot of light appears next to Liyana. "And it's satisfied with your answer. I hope you will do as you promised, Ivaran."
The grey light then moved towards Ivaran's broken right forearm. As it touches his forearm, it's starting to change shape.
"What…"
From a grey light to a small, white buckler with a gold accent on it. Not only that, it also has a grey gemstone embedded in the middle.
"With this, you can protect everyone… Ivaran." Liyana slowly disappears as the buckler takes form on his right forearm.
Job Class Change! Shield Hero!
Ivaran's HUD started to change. New sections that he never had seen before appear. His stats also went skyrocket, especially his DEF and MDEF stats. Other than that, the pain on his right forearm slowly healed up.
"I'm… A hero now?" Not in a million years Ivaran thought that he would be a hero, but also a hero that specialises in defence? Someone is probably cooking something for him. "Whatever! Now that I have this…"
He stood up and sprinted at the nobleman who stole his RPS.
"I never felt so agile!" Ivaran thought to himself as he saw the difference between before and after he became a hero.
"What was that-" Bradforde turned around, just to see Ivaran coming at him in full speed.
"Return my shield back!" Ivaran then bashed his buckler onto the nobleman's face, knocking him to the sides and also making him drop the RPS.
"Ugh?!" Bradforde then got knocked to the sides.
"Hah… Princess Miya, are you okay…?" Ivaran asked her.
"Oh, I'm fine… But what's the shield on your forearm, Ivaran?" Miya asked as she observed the white buckler.
"Well… Long story short, I'm a hero now, the Shield Hero to be exact."
"Shield Hero…" As she thought about it, she remembered something. "Flan!"
Miya quickly went to his side and cast some healing magic on him.
" High Aqua Healing!"
Flan's HP slowly went up as the cut on his stomach slowly closed up.
" Sigh* I made it in time…" Miya sighed as she saved her friend's life right there.
"You…!" Bradforde then stood up and started yelling. "How dare you smash that filthy thing onto my face!"
"You called this shield dirty? You must be really blind." Ivarans said to him.
"Just shut up! You don't have any right to talk back to me!"
"If that's the case, then how am I supposed to have a conversation with you?" Ivaran now is picking up those sarcastic tones that Tomori always uses to taunt his enemies.
"Urgh!!! So annoying!" The nobleman dashed at the half-elf with intention to kill him.
"Hmm… Let's see what this shield can do…" Ivaran opened up his Skill Menu and saw some skills that he can use. " Erst Shield?"
An indication appears in his HUD to decide where he should place the skill. He chose to place the skill in front of him.
All of the sudden, a grey shield that's a little bit bigger than Ivaran's body appears between him and the incoming nobleman.
"What?!"
Thud*
Bradforde stupidly ran into the walls, as he can stop sprinting. The grey shield then disappeared.
"So this is what the heroes always use… It's quite convenient." Ivaran thought to himself as he read the other skills description.
"Ugh… What kind of sorcery did you do?!" Bradforde angrily asked.
"Why should I answer you? Didn't you yourself say that I'm not worthy enough to speak against you?" Ivaran said in a mocking manner.
"Grr…!" Like father and son, both of them can get angry quickly.
Ivaran then picked up his RPS from the ground and looked at it. After a few seconds, he heard a beep.
Weapon Copy System Activated!
Rising Protector Shield : Ability Locked:
Equip Bonus: Absorver Union
Skill: Reflect Shield, Switchguard, Hover Shield
Special Effect: Element Transmission, Phase Shift, All Magic Element Resist, Nullify SP Drain, Vitality Boost, Defense Up (Strong) Magic Defense Up (Strong), MP Recovery (Medium), HP Recovery (Medium), SP Recovery (Low), All Skill Power Up ( Extra Small), All Skill Effect Up (Extra Small)
Ivaran switched into the shield, which placed the grey gemstone onto the middle part of the shield as well.
"My stats also have increased further…" Ivaran then gave his shield to Miya. "Can you hold this for me?"
"Yes, sure." Miya gladly takes the shield from him.
Ivaran then stood in front of the angry nobleman.
"Heh, you only have a shield! What can you do with it?!" Bradforde tried to taunt Ivaran, but again, it didn't work.
"Can you stop talking? Your voice makes me sick…" Ivaran taught him, but since Bradforde is a snowflake, it works really well.
"DAMN YOU!!!" He blindly charges at Ivaran without thinking of the consequences.
"Now then, if I remember correctly, Tomori-san does this and then…" Ivaran touched the gemstone on the middle part of the shield.
Shield Charge!
"After that… I use a skill and it should work…" Ivaran stared at the incoming nobleman. After he got closer, Ivaran activated his skill. " Shield Bash!"
Ivaran bashed his RPS onto Bradforde.
"Argh!!!-"
Boom*
Which immediately sends him off towards the walls in the back.
"Oh wow… That was easy." Ivaran muttered as he looked at the RPS on his forearm.
Glow*
The gemstone on the shield started blipping.
"What?!" Ivaran suddenly shouted.
"What's wrong, Ivaran? Are you hurt somewhere?" Miya asked him.
"No… Tomori-san and the other heroes need help. And I really need to help them immediately!"
"If that's the case, then let me help you. High Lightning Speed!" Miya casted a spell on him. "Now go! I can defend myself here!"
"Alright! Thank you!" He then started sprinting towards the heroes' location that the shield told him.
"Come on… Think, Tomori. Think!" Tomori is still brainstorming ideas on how to distract the pope.
"This is the end for the Demon of the Blade and the fake heroes!" The pope exclaimed.
"Grr…" Tadashi closed his eyes, thinking that this is the end.
"No way that I'm going to let that happen!" Tomori prepared by tapping his gemstone on the REB. Until…
" Shield Throw!"
Out of the sudden, the RPS went flying through the chamber's entrance and went straight to the spear that the pope's holding.
"Guh?!"
The impact from the shield makes the pope lose the grip on the spear shaft.
"This is…" This is the chance! "Tadashi!"
Tomori called his name.
"Huh?" He opened his eyes and saw the pope losing the gripping on his spear. After he saw that, he immediately knew what to do. " Erst Javelin!"
Tadashi threw his spear at the pope's right hand, which split from his body.
"ARGH?!!!" The pope screams in agony after his right hand is splitted from his arm. He then tried to grab the golden spear with his left hand.
" Scarlet Shot…!" Reika, who's still gravely injured, knelt down and shot her skill at the pope's left hand, splitting it from his left forearm. "N… Now…!" She said before passing out back.
Without the golden spear, the pope can't TP out from the chamber, which means that he will be hit by the Ritual Magic. And since he can't stop the magic considering it's 90% charged, it means that he will be blasted off along with everyone inside the castle.
But Tomori is determined to stop him.
"Alright… This is an emergency… I need to neutralise him!" Tomori put his right hand on his chest. "Please lend me your strength… Riri!"
Blast*
A blast of red shockwave came out from his body as the red particles covering his body disappeared.
"I, the Blade Hero, borrow the strength of the Spirit Beast, Riri! Oh, may the Spirit Realm bestow their blessings towards us! The source of power is the Blade Hero commands you! I am the one with the Earth Vein and the Earth Vein is the one with me! May our will and soul intertwine! Evolution! Let the raw energy be imbued into my body to form a blazing red armor!"
Tomori's Crimson Crest Armor started glowing bright red. Then, a cloth made out of red mana covered Tomori's neck, forming a red scarf around it. And lastly, his eyes and hair turned crimson red.
" Spirit Union: The Crimson Swordsman!"
Tomori's voice this time isn't mixed with Riri's voice.
"The victory… Shall be ours!" Tomori exclaimed. "Hah!"
He raised his sword to the sky. As he did that, some particles came out from the Holy Heroes' gemstone and went towards Tomori's REB gemstone. He then pressed the sword gemstone and held it for a while.
Blade, Reading! Magic, Reading! Projectile, Reading! Shaft, Reading!
All Cardinal, Reading! Ready to strike!
The REB started blipping from red to green, blue and yellow. Phase Shift S, the power to combine every Absorver System related power onto the REB. Combined with pure Spirit Energy, the attack that Tomori would do now is going to be lethal.
Tomori then moved his sword downward, as he raised his center of gravity.
" Breath In* Breath out*" Tomori then grips his sword handle tightly. " Quad Cardinal Strike!"
He slashed his sword upwards, releasing an attack that's stronger than he had ever seen and felt before.
"ARGH!!!-"
The pope, who's hit by the attack, keeps screaming until his scream can no longer be heard. After the attack fades, there's no sight of the pope anymore. Tomori believe that this attack here had completely erased him from this planet, leaving no trace of the pope left in this world.
" Unite Out!" Tomori immediately split Riri from his body. He thought that he would be super tired after the transformation, but he felt fairly exhausted.
"Ugh… So tired…" Riri, on the other hand, felt like someone had forced her to watch a mathematical equation video for more than a month as she groaned in exhaustion.
"You did good there, Riri." Tomori patted her head.
"Really…? Yeah…" She tries to be excited about it, but she's too tired to do it.
"And you too, Ivaran." Tomori said as he turned towards the chamber's entrance.
"You noticed it was me, huh?" The half-elf man said as he walked inside the royal chamber.
"Of course, I mean, you're the only one I know who has the RPS. And also… I felt something different about you now…"
"Oh yeah, about that…" Ivaran raised his RPS, which has a grey gemstone in the middle of it.
"Wait… You're a hero now?!" Tomori exclaimed.
"To simply, yes. I am a hero now." Ivaran answered.
"And since the weapon is a shield, you're a Shield Hero now, right? Considering your main weapon is a shield, I don't think this is just some mere coincidence." Tomori said to him.
"I think so too."
"What?! Your elf companion is now a hero?!" Tadashi said as he carefully inspected Ivaran.
"Well, it makes sense to me that Ivaran's a hero now. And since you're a hero now, it means that you don't have any level cap, right?" Tomori asked the half-elf man.
"Yeah, my level also just went to 83 just now." He replied.
"Wait, how come you gain EXP when all other heroes are around?" Tadashi asked.
"Well, unlike the Holy Heroes, Vassal Heroes are a completely different set from us. Maybe they don't share the same rules as us, Tadashi." Tomori answered him.
"Hmm… Yeah, it makes sense." Tadashi is satisfied with Tomori's answer, which weirded out Ivaran as he and Tomori never get along since a few weeks ago. He wondered how could these two people get along just like that.
"Alright, since you're a hero now, there's a lot of things I need to tell you now." Tomori said to Ivaran. He planned to tell him about all of the Power Up Methods.
"That could wait now, Tomori-san. We have a bigger issue on our hands right now." Ivaran said with a serious expression. "Church's knights all over the country are heading towards here. I already warned Reika-san's party about it. They informed Akira-san's party about it and I believe they already stood guard outside the town."
"I see… Thanks for telling me about it, Ivaran." Tomori thanked him. "I wanted you to stay here and protect these sleepyheads here while me and Tadashi go to check on those knights."
"Understood!" Ivaran complied with Tomori's request.
"Okay. Tadashi, you have a TP mark on this castle here, right?" Tomori asked him.
"Yeah, but it leads to the guest room that I usually stayed at in this castle."
"That's more than enough. Here." Tomori sends him an invitation request, which Tadashi immediately accepts. " Transport Blade!"
Tomori then teleports them elsewhere.
He teleports himself and Tadashi near the walls outside of the town. Both of them then group up with Akira and Reika's party outside the castle.
"Tadashi-sama!" A girl Tomori didn't recognize called the Shaft Hero's name. Wait… He did recognise her.
"I think she's Tadashi's companion. And really, from four girls to only one?" Tomori didn't have any comment on that.
"Tomori-san, is Akira-san alright?" Emil asked as he saw that her HP is low right now.
"Yeah, how about our Miss Reika?" Lowri asked him.
"Both of them are in critical condition right now. They might have a day or two to rest. But don't worry, Ivaran is there to attend to their injuries. So we need to focus on our next task now. To stop the marching knights from reaching this town." Tomori said as he looked at the front of the gates, where several hundreds of knights were marching towards them.
"Damn, as if we're participating in a guild war or something…" Tadashi commented as he prepared his battle stance. "So how do we stop them? I don't think they will stop even if we send our skills and spells at them."
"But that's our only hope now, unless we want to 'purify' them."
"Come on, Tomori. Don't joke with me like that…"
"Just kidding, man. But seriously, we really need to stop them right now." Tomori said as he prepared for his skill. "Make sure you guys support us with long range spells. I don't care if your magic is weak or not. Our objective is to stop them, not kill them."
All of them nodded back at him. And with that, Tomori tapped his gemstone three times.
Blade Charge! Blade Rise!
Red aura started flickering on his sword.
"Yo… Can you tell me how you actually do that?" Tadashi asked him since he also wanted to do it as well.
"Tried tapping your spear gemstone."
"Okay…" Tadashi followed what Tomori said, but nothing happened. "Nothing."
"Well… How about waving your hand in front of the gemstone."
"Alright…" Tadashi waved his left hand in front of his spear gemstone.
Shaft Charge!
A sound came out from his spear as it flickering with yellow color.
"Hell yeah! It works!" He turned back to face the marching knights.
As for the others, they prepared to cast their spells. But the heroes don't need to prepare for that.
"?!" Mizune, who has been looking at the sky, has noticed something is coming towards them.
" Thousand-"
" Hundred-"
"Wait for a moment!" The kunoichi yelled out.
"Huh?" Tomori and Tadashi stopped their skills before activating it.
"Look at the sky." Mizune then points in the direction that the knights are coming in the sky.
"Hmm…" Tomori keenly observed the sky. And he did notice something flying on top of the knight.
"Isn't that… A dragon? And three of them as well.." Thea spoke up after they could clearly see the silhouette on the sky.
"Wait, I don't remember Welle taming dragons right now." Rylon spoke up.
"Maybe the church tamed them in secret. In any case, we should really slow them right now." Tomori said as he prepared to cast his skills again.
"Wait, Blade Hero-dono. Can't you see the person riding the dragon in front?" Mizune said to him.
"Yeah… I could clearly see it now…" There's an orange haired woman who looks like in her late 20's, wearing even fancier armor, riding the dragon in front.
"Wait… Isn't that…"
"How could she be here so fast…"
The others, aside from the heroes, were confused.
"Oh… Now I get it…" Tomori had finally cracked the code. He now knew who that woman was.
The Queen of Welle is back, and she wanted to break all their backs.
"As the source of power and the Queen of Welle, heed my words and decipher the law of nature!" Her voice echoed through the sky. "Restrict their movements and encase them in a cage of ice!"
" All High Icicle Prison!"
Moments later, several ice spikes erected from the ground, stopping all hundreds of knights from their advances.
"Damn… She's OP as f*ck…" Tomori gave his comment on his thoughts.
Flap* Swoosh*
After all of that, the dragon that the queen is riding lands in front of the heroes and their other companions. All of them are relaxed, while Tadashi is still on his guard since he didn't know that's the queen.
The orange haired woman got down from her dragon and walked straight towards them. The Shaft Hero wanted to raise his spear, but Tomori held him from doing so.
"Are you crazy man? That's the queen, you know?" He whispered to him.
"What?! The queen?! I thought she's on some diplomatic, political, whatever that is in a country far away from here. How could she be here when the pope announced that he's taking over the country two days ago?" Tadashi whispered back to Tomori.
"Well, we're getting our answers now."
Both of them then turned their heads back to the queen.
"I'm sorry that I couldn't come earlier with the forces of my armies, heroes and their companions." The queen said to them. "My name is Matilda Q. Welle, the queen of this country. And I believe we have a lot to discuss."
Author Notes:
Well, after introducing a lot of sh*t ton of St*r W*rs and K*m*n R*d*r references (especially the latter) I think I'm (quite) satisfied as this chapter is and the last one (CH 13) are the hardest chapter that I ever write. The fact I can complete it by sacrificing my time on this planet is a plus (please help me, I'm suffering).
On and all, the next chapter is going to be a little bit easy for me to write as I already set the foundation on how things are going to go.
And what a better way to end this with some…
…
…
…
Omakes.
Omake:
A masked group riding through the wind
"Oh, yeah!!! The four heroes are united!" Tadashi raises his fist to the sky in excitement.
It only takes 14 chapters for them to be together. Even though it seemed rushed, the Shaft Hero was still going to take it.
"Well then, since the three of us are here… I guess we could do 'that' now. What do you two think?" Tomori asked Akira and Reika.
"It's been a few hours since we did 'that', I really wanted to do it again!" Akira said excitedly.
"Yeah, it was fun back then. Let's do it again!" Reika shouted in excitement.
"Alright, let's do this again!" Tomori said as he walked to the front, followed by both Akira and Reika on his sides.
"Eh, what are you guys doing?" Tadashi asked confusedly as the three of them suddenly walked to the front.
Shine*
All of the sudden, their weapons started glowing brightly.
"What kind of devilry is this…!" The pope said as he was blinded by the light.
After the glows went down, Tadashi can see what the three other heroes are holding in their hands.
"Tomori and Reika are holding something on their right hand, while Akira have rings on both of her middle finger."
The Blade Hero and Projectile Hero put the thing on their left hand onto their waist, while the Magic Hero waved her right hand in front of her waist.
Driver on, please!
A belt appears out of the things that Tomori and Reika put on their waist, while something magically appeared on Akira's waist.
"Um… Guys… What's going on here?" Tadashi asked. Even the pope looks confused as to what the other heroes are doing.
"We're finishing this, once and for all!" Tomori said as two things that weirdly resembled a book appeared on both of his hands.
Primitive Dragon!
Elemental Dragon!
And become an all-saving divine beast by joining hands with ancient powers!
He opened both of the books.
"Hey, where does that come from-"
"You guys… Let's do this!" Tomori shouted loudly.
"Yeah!" Akira and Reika shouted enthusiastically.
Tomori put the red book first onto the white book, and then slid it onto the device that warped his waist. Suddenly, an electric guitar tune comes out from the books.
Shabadoobie, Touch to Henshin! Shabadoobie, Touch to Henshin! Shabadoobie, Touch to Henshin!
Akira then flipped the switches on the device that warped her waist. Then, she flipped down the green diamond ring on her left middle finger.
Kaizoku! Densha! Best Match!
While Akira slid a blue and green bottle-like thing into the device that covered her waist.
"What the hell is happening?! Where do all of these sounds come from?!" Tadashi started freaking out like now, while the pope is starting to have seizures from all of these noises.
Tomori pulled out a sword from the device.
Rekka Battou!
Akira waves her green diamond ring in front of the device.
Hurricane Dragon, please!
Reika then spun around the handle on the device, which let out clanging sounds. A machine that makes plastic molds also appears out from the device on her front and back.
Are you ready?
" Henshin!" The three of the heroes said simultaneously.
Two dragons then appear and spin around Tomori.
Baki! Boki! Bone! Mera! Mera! Burn! Shake hands! Elemental Dragon! Increase the element! Tightening the bonds!
Dragon made out of wind appears on top of Akira and spins around her.
Byu-Byu, Byu-Byu-Byu-Byu!
Both of the machines then encases Reika inside, before slowly sliding out.
The scheduled renegade! KaizokuRessha! Yeah!
In an instant, all of them were covered in costumes. Tomori, out of them all, is the flashiest.
"I will decide how this story's ending!" Tomori said as he pointed his sword at the pope.
"Now, it's showtime!" Akira said as she flipped her cape on her waist.
"Now, shall we begin the experiment?" Reika said as she pointed her weapon, which was now a mixture of bow and train.
"Woah, woah, woah! Since when have you guys had all of these?!" Tadashi said to them.
"Someone gave it to us." Tomori said. "There's also another one here for you."
He then throws something at Tadashi, which he immediately catches.
"What is this…" Tadashi inspected the thing that Tomori threw at him.
Sengoku Driver!
That's what the thing said out loud. As for the other item… It looks like a lock, but not just any lock…
Banana!
It was a lock… A banana lock.
"How come I get something like a banana lock while you guys have dragons, a pirate and a train?!" Tadashi exclaimed.
"IDK, man. In any case, we can defeat the pope using this power!" Tomori turned back to face the pope. "Get your game on, pope-"
However, due to a bunch of flashy lights and sounds, the pope passed out, while bubbles came out from his mouth.
"Oh wow… Didn't know that all of our transformation sequences can get him like this." Akira said.
"You know how long it takes us to get here? Come on, pope! Wake up! The round isn't over!" Reika commanded.
" Sigh* What a waste of time… Come on, guys. Let's Netflix and chill this one out." Tomori said as he and the female heroes went out of the chamber.
"...Really, what the actual f*ck just happened now…" Tadashi thought to himself, as he was still holding the banana lock.
Omake:
Freedom…?
"Ugh…" Tomori and Tadashi stood their ground as they glared at the pope.
Really? A counter attack from the pope? When they all were united at last? The pope is a prick!
"All this is the end for the Demon of the Blade and the fake heroes!" The pope shouted as he prepared for his last, super duper, overpowered attack that can split the sun into 69 parts.
"Is this really the end…?" Tadashi muttered as he hopelessly clung onto his spear.
"No, Tadashi…" Tomori walked to the front. "Don't give up! We're the Holy damn Heroes! This old, lunatic geezer doesn't stand a chance against the power of bullsh*t friendship that those animes kept overusing! With the power of chads and Mountain D*ws, we can assert dominance by T-posing the old pope!"
"Yeah… You're right, Tomori!" Tadashi confidently stood and walked to Tomori's side.
"Now follow me!" Tomori started T-posing. Tadashi also followed him.
"...What tomfoolery are both of you doing right now?" The pope is super confused right now.
"Don't falter! It's working!" Tomori shouted loudly.
"...Whatever." The pope then pointed his spear towards the T-posing duo. "It's time for you to-"
Smash*
Out of a sudden, a huge mechanical arm smashed the pope like a mosquito. Bloods started flowing out from the mechanical hands.
"That hand… It can't be…" Tomori knew that kind of hand.
Moments later, a huge robot head peeked into the chamber through the broken windows.
"S-S-Strike Freedom?!" How the hell there's a freaking G*ndam in this world?! Who the f*ck is the past heroes for them to build such a thing?! And also, who's the pilot?!
Swosh*
Steam came out from the cockpit as it slowly opened up. The pilot then poked their heads out to see the two standing only heroes.
"Wait… Rust?!" He's the pilot?! "What are you doing here?!" Tomori asked him.
"Well… The Grand Armorer told me that I need to help you for causing you guys trouble back then. So, here we are. As for the incoming knights, I also neutralise them with the DRAGOONS. So you don't have to worry about them any longer." Rust said to him.
"Yeah…" How the hell do the DRAGOON System works on Earth, where there's gravity?
"Alright then, I need to go." Rust goes back into the cockpit and flies off the Strike Freedom to the sky.
"...Now that's weird, isn't it, Tadashi-"
"T-POSE!" The Shaft Hero continued to T-posing on the pope, which now is just a pool of blood.
"...I need to Netflix and chill right now…"
Tomori then leaves the chamber, while thinking of what shows he should watch after this.