Interdimensional RED-Coded Contract

The Brave Knight


Ever since he was a child, Leonard was interested in knights.

His father was honored as a knight, he was strong and people respected him. Whenever there was a conflict, his father was there to resolve it. He always knew what to do, and people listened to him.

He also met other knights as well, each one a friend of his father from work. Just like him they were also strong and kind, they protected people from harm.

Leonard wanted to be a knight, so one day he asked his father how to become one.

"You need to be strong and brave. You need to be brave and always willing to take action, to not stand by and watch as someone is hurting. You also need strength to support and protect them."

Strength and bravery. He needed strength and bravery to become a knight.

He will do it.

He will become the strongest.

He will become the bravest.

He will become the Knight of Planeptune.


CFW Brave waited for Hilda to make the first move, watching how she was getting visibly more angry over his intervention, seeing the dark aura appearing around her, staring at the face of the incarnation of death.

She charged at him with abandon, roaring loudly and holding her sword high. She was fast, faster than sound even.

But he was ready.

The distance between them diminished in an instant, the Gehaburn and Freezing Yasha collided together, stopping in each other's paths. At the same moment the Burning Agony moved in from a different angle.

Hilda swayed to the side, avoiding the burning blade. "Think you're clever?" She spat at him, before grabbing the burning sword. "I am the flames."

The ex-felon wrenched his sword free of her grasp. The bright red edge became pure black where Hilda grabbed it.

CFW Brave shook it a bit and the black stain disappeared. This time he attacked Hilda, swinging his sword with elegance and skill above what you would expect from a giant robot. Although it was to no use, as Hilda avoided his attacks or parried those she couldn't. Then when she saw an opportunity, she thrusted the Gehaburn towards CFW Brave's abdomen, ending his assault.

He stepped back, putting himself out of reach of the cursed blade. Hilda retracted her arm before she over-extended herself, and she too took a step back.

This brief exchange told them many things about their opponent. Hilda was slightly faster and stronger, but CFW Brave was bigger and had longer reach.

But against an opponent of her caliber, and with her abilities, height and range advantage might not be enough.

In a battle of attrition they were evenly matched, as neither of them could get tired. One was a machine, the other a malevolent spirit. One had thick armor covering his entire body, the other could become incorporeal on a whim.

So CFW Brave was at an advantage, as he was just buying time for Neptune to get away.

But what if he could do… more than that? What if he could leave an injury on Hilda. Introduce a weakness that could be exploited later. If he achieved that, it would be a grand victory for him.

"You will fall here." Hilda said, glaring holes into the ex-felon. "Then I'll come for the Devil."

Exchanging banter, eh? "You will go back to whichever hole you crawled out from, Traitor."

Hilda blinked, her eyes slightly widening. She was surprised, and CFW Brave took that as an opportunity to strike. He fired a stun missile at her. The projectile came at her so quickly she had no other choice but to disappear.

When she reappeared, CFW Brave was already attacking her. Forced onto the defensive Hilda defended herself, taking steps back with each strike.

Her back hit the wall, and she ducked just as Freezing Yasha came for her head. This would be Hilda's opportunity to strike back, only to be denied by Burning Agony appearing right in front of her, stopping Gehaburn's advance.

Hilda turned into black flames, making CFW Brave unable to harm her. Instead of returning to her normal form, the flames were taking the form of a dragon's head - CFW Brave was already backing off to a safe distance.

The dragon roared and flames left its mouth. They covered the entire floor in an inferno and prompted the ex-felon to turn on his jets and take off. The heat covered the floor, and the flames gnawed at everything they touched.

His armor shifted, opening slots from where missiles were launched. Hilda was again scattered as the rockets exploded inside the dragon's head. Once again she disappeared, and the ex-felon awaited her reappearance.

He landed back on the floor, surrounded by flames that began slowly eating the furniture and destroying whatever they caught. Hilda appeared behind him, and he just in time managed to parry her sneak attack.

She disengaged, taking a few steps back to reassess the situation.

They started circling each other, looking for weaknesses or opportunities to get an upper hand. Neither of them cared about the fires around, there was a much bigger threat right in front of them. "I will end your reign of terror. Here and now." CFW Brave said. "Not because Samantha ordered me to do so, but because doing so will protect everyone. You are the devil of this world, not the CPUs."

"You don't understand the words you say!" Hilda said. "If it wasn't for the CPUs, for Uzume's powers, none of it would've happened! Thousands of lives would still be alive! You wouldn't be a machine! My family would still be alive... and I wouldn't be stuck inside this sword, forced to possess others' bodies to save this world from danger!"

There was sadness within her words. A deep melancholy of someone who couldn't understand how their life turned out to be as it turned out. Hilda casted her gaze at the floor, reminiscing the happier times when she was alive.

"You brought this upon yourself." CFW Brave said. "You led the army to us, you wished for that sword. Your family's death was a mistake, yes. But you're the one who took it too far."

Sadness turned into anger, and Hilda Gehaburn charged once more.

Their blades met again, creating a shockwave that broke the windows around them. Hilda in her anger threw herself at CFW Brave again and again, testing their weapons' durability in the heat of combat.

She was not at fault. This had to be done. They were the Devils, not her! Frustration and fury was more destructive than a hundred cannons, and Hilda showed how true it was by crashing against the ex-felon's defenses. Her burning, almost feral hatred was now at full display. She struck harder and faster, forcing CFW Brave onto the defensive once more.

But this time, Hilda slipped through his guard. CFW Brave, even with his experience, power as a CFW and upgrades, could not keep up with the more nimble Hilda Gehaburn. The purple blade went past CFW Brave's swords, and reached his leg. The Gehaburn broke through the armored plate like butter, and the only thing that saved Brave was how thickly armored his leg was.

That was the first actual injury he sustained thus far. And considering who he was up against, one of many more to come. Hilda was not an opponent you could afford to take lightly, if CFW Brave wanted to achieve victory, he needed to play his cards right.

So when Hilda struck again her blade struck an empty space, as CFW Brave jumped away from her. She glared at him, only to see missiles flying towards her. Hilda disappeared before they exploded, covering everything in a thick smoke.

CFW Brave's vision wasn't hampered by the gas filling the area, he could see through the smoke just fine.

The flames Hilda created started to spread, and their battlefield became awash with fire. Where the sunlight didn't reach, a warm orange light chased the shadows instead. It bathed his armor and the surroundings, painting them with orange colors.

And over there was Hilda, with Gehaburn glowing in her hands. She was charging her SP for an attack.

"Luminous Blade!"

A destructive wave charged at him, threatening an immediate demise. Instead of trying to outrun it, CFW Brave instead jumped out of the window, turning on his thrusters as the gravity wished to bring him down to earth.

The skill missed, but CFW Brave wasn't safe yet. From below the horde of Gray Mann's machines took notice of him and started firing. Their bullets did nothing but provide a distraction, and a distraction was what Hilda wanted. The Possessed Adventurer, seeing her target outside the building, wasted no time jumping at him.

The ex-felon noticed a glint in the corner of his vision, and raised the Burning Agony to defend himself. Once more his and Hilda's blades were together, but this time Hilda wasted no time latching onto the giant.

She was then promptly reduced to smoke, as one of the stray bullets hit her.

She reappeared on his back, Gehaburn raised to stab him in the back. CFW Brave's sensors warned him of immediate danger, but it was too late. The cursed blade went deep into his wing, cutting it off from the rest of the body.

The severed piece fell towards the earth, with the rest following it. With only one wing CFW Brave didn't have the stability to keep flying, and the thrusters shut off to prevent loss of control. Both of them were now in free fall, falling towards the machine horde that made no effort to get out of the way.

Despite falling at terminal velocity, neither of them gave up on hurting the other. CFW Brave turned around to show his back, and Hilda by extension, to the machine horde. The intruder on Brave's back was shredded to pieces without the slightest hesitation.

Then the ex-felon crashed into the ground, creating a small earthquake and crushing every machine that was underneath him. Those that weren't crushed were instead knocked off their feet.

CFW Brave tried to stand, and was met with multiple warnings and failures: damaged motor systems, missile system offline, hull integrity compromised, flight system unoperational. Critical flaws that needed to be fixed immediately, but he couldn't run away. He was stuck here. With her.

The survivors kept nailing at him, unaware of how little effect their attacks had. But CFW Brave wasn't afraid of Gray Mann's army, instead he was afraid of how vulnerable he was to his primary opponent.

If he had his old body, this would be the end of him. Either the small pests finally manage to crack his shell and kill him, or Hilda would find a way to finish him off. But he wasn't in his old armor anymore, he has been given several upgrades after Uni took Vert from his hands.

It was time to use one of them.

With a mental command he activated the emergency repair module, and released a liquid stored within an armored container.

The liquid flowed to each part of his body, like the blood of a human rushing to sustain the flesh and organs. Green light washed over him, coating his body with a bright green tint.

A short moment later, with CFW Brave withstanding the onslaught of the smaller bots, warnings started to disappear one by one. The liquid was working, mending the damage, fixing the broken parts, replacing the missing units, debugging the whole system. CFW Brave was back in action.

For one time only CFW Brave could fix himself in combat. Deny death and try again, hoping this time he succeeded. The ex-felon stood up, his joints and limbs working as if brand new. His eyes scanned the crowd, ignoring the smaller robots and their feeble attempts at hurting him. He was looking for the bigger threat.

And she was standing right there, on top of a car and surrounded.

She wasn't in her human form as the robots kept shooting at her, keeping her in her fiery form. CFW Brave took a little bit of humor in that. While he was unbothered by anything these small robots could throw at him, the weakness of the mighty Hilda Gehaburn was swarm tactics.

He sensed her staring at him, drilling holes with her vision. "You think this is funny?" The malevolent spirit asked, her voice distorted and menacing. Though her intimidation effect was diminished by what CFW Brave saw before him.

"I'll admit it, I am a little amused." CFW Brave said. "I remember us using the same tactic to slow you down back then."

"It didn't end well for you, though. I still broke through them and you, remember?" Hilda responded.

"Yes, but we bought Uzume enough time to fulfill her wish."

"And I'll make sure the world doesn't go through that again!"

Once the threat was made Hilda started to move, launching herself at the closest robot to her. The machine melted upon contact, becoming broken and destroyed almost instantly. From there she went onto another robot, and then another - taking out the soldiers of Gray Mann's faction with surgical precision and bullet speed.

And soon enough Hilda Gehaburn was allowed to turn back once more, prompting CFW Brave to brace himself for some other tricks Hilda was pulling now.

A few of the machines, seeing Hilda alone and free, have decided to stop attacking CFW Brave and go for the different target. They charged at her, shot at her, but they were nothing to her.

"Flames, gather on my blade... Azure Slash!"

Two swings. Each one summoned a wave of azure flames. They engulfed the army whole, leaving only melted husks of metal. CFW Brave was caught in-between the waves, in a narrow safe area left by Hilda Gehaburn herself. Whether it was a courtesy, a threat or simply an accident was yet to be decided.

But now it was just the two of them on the street, with every member of the third party gone.

And with no interference Hilda Gehaburn was allowed to rematerialize without any interruption. But this time she looked all the more threatening to CFW Brave, who learned a bit more about her powers.

"Unlike you people, I learn from past mistakes."

His once comrade has evidently learned a few new tricks, and become all the more unpredictable for it.


Every day Leonardo spent his time studying and training, forging both his body and mind.

This accumulated to him being on top of his class, both in academic and physical periods. Teachers were singing praises of his diligent work, coaches and classmates were amazed at his superior physique and peerless intelligence.

Some even called him a prodigy.

A knight had to be strong, smart and brave. And Leonardo was the best in his school. Nobody could match him in any subject. But while this would turn other people arrogant, Leonardo kept himself humble and helpful - offering his help to any and all in need.

Whenever a classmate needed help with homework, he would be there to tutor them. If a teacher needed help with something, he was the first one to volunteer.

If he saw a person being bullied, he would not hesitate to stand up for them.

He was the strongest, the smartest and the bravest of his peers.

And nothing more.


This time Hilda didn't hesitate nor held back. The Gehaburn was constantly glowing from SP use, and with each swing waves of fire threw themselves at CFW Brave. On the first try he activated his thrusters and took off, the rest he avoided while flying.

Not once he attacked his opponent, Hilda didn't give him an opportunity to do so. She kept him at a distance, where she was free to pelt him with fiery blasts until one managed to hit. And seeing what they did to Gray Mann's robots, it would be best to avoid them.

His missiles were useless. The moment they made contact with the flames they would either explode prematurely or melt mid-air. The sheer temperature was enough to immediately melt the metal that it made contact with.

"Azure Slash! Azure Slash! Azure Slash! Azure Slash! Azure Slash! Azure Slash!"

Hilda constantly repeated those two words like a mantra, and each time more and more of her SP was used. But that was fine, as her reserves were practically limitless. The Possessed Adventurer could keep it up all day, and sooner or later she'll get lucky and score a hit.

Car alarms loudly blared their song, ignored by the two fighters. The ground underneath Hilda's legs was boiling, while the walls of the surrounding buildings were slowly liquefying. If the invasion won't destroy Planeptune's coast then Hilda will, and CFW Brave wanted to avoid that.

He needed a plan.

And the only thing that popped into his head, as he continued to narrowly escape his tragic demise, required a prayer and insanity, because what he was about to do was just stupid.

He sheathed the Freezing Yasha, holding Burning Agony with both of his hands.

Then he moved away to avoid another Azure Slash, letting it destroy a holographic billboard. Then he threw the sword at Hilda Gehaburn.

His reasoning was 'fight the fire with fire', and threw the infernal blade hoping it would actually survive Hilda's attack.

The Azure Slash and the Burning Agony collided together… and the sword of fire went through unhindered, undamaged, right towards Hilda Gehaburn. Her eyes widened in surprise as the weapon went through her, scattering her body as easily as anything else.

While it hasn't done any damage, it gave CFW Brave an opening to attack.

And when Hilda reappeared a few meters away the ex-felon was right there, with Freezing Yasha raised high and ready. It was Hilda's turn to feel the unyielding strength of a machine, her knees buckled an inch as she parried the blow. Underneath her feet the earth cracked from the pressure, and the sound of their blades colliding dwarfed everything else.

It was all for nothing in the end, as Hilda stood unharmed.

She wasn't expecting a knee to the face though.

While the attack did not achieve anything, CFW Brave didn't relent. He chased after her like a madman, always keeping her within his range. Wherever she tried to escape, the leader of ASIC chased after her, swatting away the dark flames and smoke. Because if he wasn't near her, then Hilda would be free to use her skills again, and CFW Brave would be back to square one.

With no more heat coming from the malevolent spirit, the asphalt has been given a chance to cool down. It didn't look like a proper road any longer, but rather like something stirred the road and left it that way.

His vision was growing darker, but his focus was solely on chasing after Hilda. It was too late before he realized something was wrong.

"Let's end this."

He was not in Planeptune, or Gamindustri anymore, but rather in a closed space created by Hilda.

CFW Brave remembered this place, and what it meant. Stuck on top of a white pillar, with only a dark starry sky surrounding him. Surrounding him was a glyph made out of green flames. This was it, Hilda Gehaburn's EXE Drive.

But then… why was she just standing there?

"If you thought I would just kill you and be done with it… then you're not giving me enough credit. Leonardo."

Instead of listening to her, CFW Brave turned on his thrusters and took off.

Or rather… he tried to, but he didn't have them anymore. His head turned around to check his back, and he found nothing there. CFW Brave looked down at himself… and what he found scared him.

"What in the…?"

It was not his body. Gone was the tall and wide hull that he was known for as the leader of ASIC. Gone were the metal hands and legs he was so used to. Gone was the head-up display and the systems he grew familiar with.

Gone was everything that made him CFW Brave.

And replaced with a body of flesh and bone.

The body of Leonardo.


Becoming a squire was an easy task. His academic record was perfect, and his father had connections. There were zero chances of them rejecting him.

The hard part was everything that came afterwards. On his first practice session, his instructor completely wiped the floor with him. Years of training his body and mind, endless hours of learning how to swing his sword or use SP, countless lessons his father gave him on being a knight. All of that effort accumulated to complete and utter nothing as his instructor continued to demolish him.

It was the best day of his life, as he finally had a taste of a true knight's power.

Once their sparring match was over, his instructor gave him a rundown on what he did right and where he should improve. Leonardo diligently took notes as he listened to his instructor.

Her name was Hilda Gehaburn, and to Leonardo's surprise she was in charge of the CPU's protection.

Being trained by a knight was already an honor, but by one so close to the CPU herself? Leonardo felt himself becoming nervous at the prospect of letting her, and his father, down.

But as days continued, and Leonardo gained more strength and skill, his fears became unfounded. His hard work quickly raised him through the ranks, aided by his connections with people in high ranks and his spotless record.

So when the CPU's guard sought to expand and hire more members, Leonardo was one of their first picks.

His dream of becoming a knight was coming true, alarmingly fast.


The weight of his purple coat felt both familiar and foreign, like something he hasn't felt in a long time. The pink hair on his head was set up just like he once remembered, down to the bindings of his ponytail.

Like a switch, the memories flocked back to him. How to move his body, how to wield and swing his sword… how to be human again. It all came back to him in a single second.

He was wearing his old uniform but in his hands was the Freezing Yasha, and sheathed on his hip was the Burning Agony. While their shape was unchanged, their size was smaller than he remembered - scaled down so he could use them comfortably even with a smaller body of flesh, blood and bone.

While momentarily confused, Hilda forced the ex-felon to push his questions away. She charged at him, her pace slower than before. She attacked him with Gehaburn... and he blocked it without issue.

He needed no time to readjust, it all came to him naturally. His body moved into a proper parry and deflection like he has done it countless times. No rust, no hesitation. He has stopped an assault without any problems, and keeping the threat at bay came even easier.

Hilda has been able to overpower him while in his robot body, she should wipe the floor with Leonardo. "You're holding back?" He asked aloud.

Her face shifted into visible surprise. "You noticed?" She said, before sending her knee into his abdomen. CFW Brave disengaged and stepped back before he was hurt. "I'm using as much strength as I had during our last battle. It's only fair." Hilda continued.

It was his turn to attack. He swung his sword at Hilda, and demolished her defenses with his first strike. The shock in her eyes was brief, but it sent a smile to Brave's face. Hilda was swept off her feet, almost falling down onto the ground. She caught herself at the last second, and parried CFW Brave's follow-up strike. This time Gehaburn didn't yield against the icy blade.

"I miscalculated, you're still as strong as in your robot body." Hilda said. The two of them disengaged and stepped away from each other. "Looks like I won't need to hold back after all."

It was amazing how much CFW Brave was used to his old body. His stance was perfect, his legs moved fluidly. It was like those years as a robot were just a dream.

"No please, do hold back." CFW Brave deadpanned, earning an eye roll from the malevolent spirit.

She lowered her blade, its tip pointing at the ground. "How much do you remember?" Hilda asked him.

"I remember my childhood, your training, us working with Uzume and the final battle." CFW Brave answered. It took him a long time wondering how he has forgotten those past events. At first these memories were fading out with time, but now… it seemed that the opposite was happening. Ever since Samantha came into his life, CFW Brave was recalling some of the past events, and every time that happened he has found himself asking how he had even forgotten about it.

Hilda sensed an opportunity, a chance she could take. Something she had to try at least once.

"Then you remember why I did it, how much of a threat the CPUs can be. Uzume is long gone, and you don't need to work for her anymore. Help me instead! We can destroy the CPUs together, those machines too while we're at it, and whoever is behind them! Think of all the lives we can save if we just work together!"

She gave him an offer and reached out to him.

It seemed only sensible in her mind. Both of them wanted to save lives. With more help, she wouldn't even need to dedicate herself solely to eliminating the Devils! These robots and their controllers, those psychotic mercenaries, together they could destroy them all in one fell swoop! It was a logical partnership!

Yet, CFW Brave shook his head and swatted her hand away. "No." He said.

Hilda didn't look surprised, only disappointed. "No?"

"No." The ex-felon repeated. "Magic and I still have faith in Uzume. She's still out there waiting to be recovered, we know it, and we even found a solid lead to find her. You're just in the way."

"Faith? After everything, you would still put your faith in that monster over me, when I taught you everything you know?"

"It's you that's the monster." CFW Brave retorted. "You claim to be saving lives, but corpses and blood are the only things following in your wake. You led that rebellion and caused all that bloodshed, and even in the end you sold your humanity just so you'd get another chance to do it all over again today. Even now, you care more about killing the CPUs than stopping the massacre happening all around you, those lives you claim to care so much about are nothing but an afterthought! You are not the Captain, and you're no savior of anything. You're just a spiteful wraith that doesn't know when to quit."

A moment of silence fell between them.

"...Okay then. I tried."

Hilda took the rejection better than CFW Brave expected. She didn't get mad, angry or started shouting. It was like she expected him to reject her from the very start.

"If you're not joining me, then you're against me." She spoke to him, the faint quiver in her voice betraying the fact she was just feigning composure. "Just like last time… But this time it won't end the same."

Then she charged at him, the ground cracking underneath her feet. CFW Brave didn't even have a second to bring up his sword to defend himself. The sound of metal against metal resonated through the whole closed space.

Then Hilda grabbed Brave's sword, her fingers coiling around the edge of the icy blade with no regard to its biting cold.

CFW Brave's eyes widened as his opponent wrenched the sword out of the way, making sure that nothing protected him from her follow-up blow. With no other option CFW Brave let go of Freezing Yasha and backed off. The sword of Gehaburn reached him and left a small scratch on his chest, cutting through his coat with ease.

Hilda threw away Freezing Yasha and chased after Brave, as he hurriedly unsheathed his other sword. He ducked underneath her second attack and stepped away from the third one, each one drawing a small cut on his body.

Then CFW Brave stabbed her with Burning Agony - finally having drawn his sword allowed him to go onto the offensive. Hilda blocked the sword of fire, and CFW Brave sent a left hook right into her cheek.

His fist collided with her face, and he could feel something crack underneath her face. The sensation of his fist actually colliding was a surprise to him, especially when Hilda disappeared after the blow, not before like she usually was doing.

Was she actually holding back for the sake of a proper duel? Or was there something more to it?

With Hilda gone, CFW Brave had some brief time to reassess the situation. The small cuts on his body stung, but they were not life threatening. The sword barely broke through his skin, they wouldn't impede him. His Freezing Yasha was lying on the ground in the middle of the pillar, he had to get it back.

CFW Brave stepped towards it and had to immediately step away, as a spear suddenly burst from the ground in front of him.

Ah yes, he was still in Hilda's EXE Drive - where she could summon spears at will.

While CFW Brave avoided his death, his hair was not so lucky. A few strands of his hair fell onto the ground. The next spear shattered and burned as it struck his blade.

Hilda reappeared in front of him, wiping her mouth off her spit. "Ow."

Then she charged again, and CFW Brave could only brace himself.


He was now an elite.

He has long surpassed his father, as Leonardo found himself patrolling the halls where a CPU - the ruler of Planeptune - lived. He was speaking as equals to people others thought of as heroes. He has been allowed to get a peek of a CPU's daily life, which was an honor no ordinary people could claim.

The CPU even entrusted him with her Blessing. People who also had it could be counted on two hands.

He was now an elite knight. One of the strongest and bravest people in Planeptune.

And nothing more.

While others socialized or engaged in their hobbies, Leonardo studied the blade.

While others gathered experience and skills useful to them in daily life, Leonardo was training.

While others enjoyed themselves and their lives, Leonardo was sparring with other instructors - losing badly to each of them.

Leonardo has devoted his whole life into becoming a knight, that he abandoned everything else. He was fluent in 4 languages and could calculate the calculus that would make other professors' heads spin, however make him do the laundry and you would find your clothes in ruins.

He was the youngest to reach the rank of master in his school of swordsmanship, a feat that required decades of training he has achieved in years. Yet he's never even had a girlfriend, nor had any interest in one.

In every school he was in he graduated with top scores in every subject, while others graduated with passable marks and also managed to enjoy their lives a little.

Leonardo was so focused on his goal, that he forgot to be a human. Minimal social skills, almost no experience with everything that weren't directly related to knighthood.

Leonardo was a perfect knight. And nothing more.


Everything hurt.

The pain was too great.

His body felt heavy.

CFW Brave lay covered in his blood, his legs unable to support him any longer. The Burning Agony lay on his left side, while the Freezing Yasha was on his right. His weapons were there, but he barely had any strength left.

He could only breathe. Take some air in, let some air out. Rinse and repeat.

His dull eyes stared at the dark starry sky above him. Even if it was a fake sky, it was still beautiful to look at.

He had given it his all, got Neptune out of the area and held Hilda back long enough for her to actually escape. He already ruined Hilda's plans, that was plenty… right?

Samantha and Magic were in Lastation looking for Miss Pauling. They will not be here to save him.

His body was getting colder. His fingers and toes felt like they were made out of ice, while the pain of his injuries kept nagging his brain. That was one weakness of humans. It was so easy to damage them. So easy to hurt them. So easy to kill them.

He learned that lesson on his own skin. A small accident would rend the flesh and cause an injury, no matter how small. And those injuries then added up, building up until the human body just couldn't handle it any longer.

And so CFW Brave lay on the cold hard ground, with so many injuries he looked as if he got out of a shredder. On their own none of them were life threatening, but each one slowed him a little, becoming a burden he had to carry through the battle.

Until the burden became too great.

Loud footsteps reached his ears but CFW Brave didn't turn his head to look. Even when Hilda entered his vision the ex-felon kept his eyes looking at the sky.

Death shouldn't feel so peaceful.

The Gehaburn has fresh blood on its edge, but CFW Brave ignored it. "You've made a valiant effort, Brave." Hilda Gehaburn said to him. "You have done well. Both in the past, and now. As your once instructor, I'm almost proud of you."

While CFW Brave was a mess of injuries, Hilda Gehaburn was pristine and clean, not even sweat ruined her looks. And if CFW Brave bothered to actually look at her face, he would find her looking at him with… satisfaction.

He fought to put even a single scar on her, to introduce a weakness that would hold her back.

...Freezing Yasha was within reach.

"No matter how hard I tried…" His voice was hoarse, and his throat felt dry, but CFW Brave forced the words out. "I could not defeat you, not once."

"Well..." Hilda drawled out, stretching her arms. "In the past your mistake was never doing anything… new. You kept clinging to what your dad taught you, what the books instructed, no matter how much I tried to teach you otherwise. You were a good swordsman, yes. But that lack of flexibility ultimately doomed you, then and now."

Leonardo was the biggest rank-and-file knight that ever was. Brave, strong and honorable... and nothing more. He was the textbook definition of a knight. While there was nothing wrong with that, the most known fighters picked their own paths to complement their training. His father was not only a swordsman but also a Guild member who quested and adventurered, while Hilda Gehaburn took what she learned as a knight, and fused it with the Loweean's style of swordsmanship and magic - creating her own style of fighting.

Leonardo… was just a knight. The best knight, and nothing more.

He put his hand on the Freezing Yasha, squeezing the grip tightly. Putting everything his dying body had left.

"I liked the rockets though." Hilda added. "I was actually surprised the first time you used them, and how you demolished… basically everything. First time you finally used something other than what you learned as a knight… too bad it wasn't enough."

CFW Brave, grunted as he forced himself up. Hilda raised her eyebrow and rested the Gehaburn on her shoulder. "Still want another round?"

"Yes."

And CFW Brave swung the sword.

The blade was heavy and almost fell out of his grip. There was no strength behind the swing, nor any skill. He only swung it because he was brave enough to do it one last time. One last act of defiance.

It was a pathetic attempt that had no right to work.

But the blood loss must've made him hallucinate, because he could've sworn he saw someone behind her. Two people, holding her still so she couldn't move. Hilda's eyes widened as her arm wouldn't move, nor would the rest of her body. She was forced to watch as Freezing Yasha came ever so slowly towards her.

Until it went right through her eye.

The pain exploded and Hilda's head reeled back. She dropped the Gehaburn, the cursed blade clattered onto the floor, and her hands clutched the injury. At the same time the Freezing Yasha did a full circle, crashing onto the pavement as well and forcing CFW Brave to lie on his stomach.

Hilda's screams of pain and anguish filled his ears, and they sounded like victory. She was now injured and weakened - CFW Brave has done it.

His final achievement… in protecting everyone.

"T-Tear-All! Tear-All! Tear-All!"

In the corner of his eye he could see the light of Hilda's SP, and her desperate attempts at healing the injury. But no matter how many healing spells she casted the pain still remained, and the blood on Freezing Yasha remained.

"Why is this not working!?" Hilda violently kicked Leonardo onto his back and forced him to look at her. "What did you do?!"

Her right eye was completely frozen, letting Leonardo look at the single wound he has made through this entire fight. One tiny slice right in the middle of the eye, cutting through the lens, iris and the pupil.

One completely useless eye.

"My blade…" CFW Brave started to say, his voice full of pride and joy. Hilda just gave him the privilege of delivering the news to her, and he will enjoy every second of it. "Leaves injuries that can never heal."

He finished with a broken grin, a grin that screamed 'I am victorious!'. Now even when Hilda killed him, he can rest easy knowing that Magic and Samantha will have a much easier time taking her out. In that one moment CFW Brave ensured Hilda's eventual defeat.

Hilda took the news just as easily as he expected, by punching him into the ground. She put all of her strength into this blow. His bones broke and his organs were crushed. Now even if by some miracle he was rescued, it was too late. He would die anyway.

And yet… he kept grinning.

Why did death feel so peaceful?

"You-!" She shouted at him, anger plasted clearly on her face. It made his victory all much sweeter to watch. "You have-!"

Then she sighed, and all of her anger disappeared. "Congratulations. You've finally wounded me."

After so many training sessions, each one ending with Hilda coming out unscratched, CFW Brave has finally landed a blow on her. Left a mark that she will always remember. If it was anyone else she would have been truly furious, but instead Hilda felt a bit of pride knowing that all of those training sessions didn't end in vain.

And it was nice meeting someone she knew as a friend again, even if now she had to kill him.

"T-Tell Magic... I did my best."

Hilda picked up the Gehaburn and held it above CFW Brave, with the sword's tip pointed at his chest. The ex-felon knew what was about to happen, but he didn't feel fear.

Death felt so peaceful.

"I will... Goodbye, Leo."

And she stabbed him in the chest with Gehaburn, Looking into his eyes the whole time he was dying. She saw blood building in his mouth, and him choking on it. His body twitched and his arms took grasp of her own blade… before they lost strength.

CFW Brave was dead.

Hilda canceled her EXE Drive and the area slowly turned back into normal. The smell of blood, gunpowder and oil hit her nostrils like a wave.

Her eye kept hurting, prompting Hilda to cover it with her hand.

She took one last look at Leo's body, now transformed back into his CFW Brave chassis. The armor was cracked, shredded and destroyed, and in his chest was a giant hole that allowed Hilda to peer into his insides. Nothing but circuitry and machinery, not a sign of him ever being a human.

The blue-haired woman sighed and left, taking Burning Agony with her… while leaving Freezing Yasha with CFW Brave.

"Rest in peace."


His final day was chaos.

The castle was under siege and the walls were breached - the rebels and bandits were pouring in. Their objective was clear, kill the CPU and put a stop to the disasters that plagued the nation.

His colleagues were already fighting, slowing down the tide so that their Lady and her friends could evacuate deeper into the castle.

Leonardo was fighting with them, disarming and knocking down everyone that came near. While others' swords were tainted, not once has he spilled blood - as a knight should. After all they were still Planeptune's citizens.

Nothing could get past him. Whoever came near was swiftly taken out of commission - made unable to fight and forced to retreat. Those that dared to attack him from a distance failed to harm him even once.

He was stronger and braver than any of his opponents, able to fight all day.

Until she came.

Her blue hair was tied into a ponytail, and her dark eyes stared at him. The traitor of the guard stood before him. The one that has led this assault on the holy grounds. Hilda Gehaburn was here to break their lines.

Nobody else was with her, as Leonardo chased them all away. However he also didn't have anyone on his side, as Hilda already killed them. Now it was just the two of them.

Leonardo didn't move, intending to hold his ground until his dying breath.

So Hilda moved him herself.

Their battle was a spectacle to behold. Elegant, fluid and calculated - exactly how a battle between the pinnacle of knighthood should be. Though, Hilda didn't shy from tainting the duel's honor by using tricks to get an upper hand, or move for the kill.

While Leonardo fought to disarm and knock out, Hilda fought to draw blood.

And as she buried her sword into Leonardo's gut, Hilda had won the battle.

The years he has spent training, all of his achievements and honors, the dream he was working so hard for. One mistake has made them all go in vain.

Hilda wrenched her blade out and Leonardo fell onto the floor, smashing his head against the cold hard floor. The traitor didn't even give him the honor of watching him die. The moment her sword was free, Hilda was already going deeper into the castle - leaving her former colleague and student slowly bleeding to death.

With his last breath, Leonardo made his wish.

"I wish I was stronger."

Then a brilliant light engulfed him, and next time Leonardo opened his eyes - he had become something more.


Interdimensional RED-Coded Contract

The Brave Knight


This was a fight that I didn't actually plan for, but as I kept writing it the more I felt this deserved a whole chapter dedicated to it.

CFW Brave was a hard character for me to write and plan. Just like with Angela I actually had no idea what I should do with him. So while writing this battle I suddenly had an idea to just give him a backstory and kill him off.

At least his death will not be in vain.

The backstories are also something I wanted to try out ever since I've read Naryfiel Lilith's House Hanover series. If you're looking for a good Fire Emblem fanfic, I recommend her Tactican's Testimony story and its sequel / spin offs.

Going back to CFW Brave, I am actually satisfied with how I made his death. Giving Hilda a permanent injury was something no one has managed yet, so CFW Brave didn't die without any achievements.

And Hilda got more screen time, which is nice.

In fact I don't think I ever asked you to tell me what do you think about Hilda. Do you like her? Dislike her? Any interesting details you've noticed about her? I would love to hear it.

Responses:

- CALIBORNLORDLING

Well, I guess I earned your review then. Thank you for being so dedicated to this story that you even read my notes. Appreciated!

Also are you a fan of Homestuck?

- Mad Android

You know, I actually have no idea what are you talking about. Where is that reference?

- Smashgunner

It's still going and it will go until I'm finally done with this story. Then I'm going to write another one.

And it's only surprising when you look at the big picture. When you take a closer look you can notice the story going off-rails right from the start. First it was killing the CFW Judge, then attacking ASIC, and after that it's just the cause and effect.

I wanted to go off-rails right from the very start… but I'll admit it. I wasn't expecting going into this direction. A lot of these things were me suddenly going 'I got an idea!', then I did that idea, and after that I wrote how the world would react to said idea.

At least it makes things interesting.

- GeneralUrist

The 19th rule of storytelling, according to Disney is: "Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating."

In this chapter I applied both. Hopefully CFW Brave's rescue didn't feel too cheap.

- AngelTheDragon1992

Thank you.

- Harmless Orange