Chapter 4 – Dream's End

"Come on, just do it!"

"I really shouldn't…"

"No one will know. Come on!"

"No, no, I can't…"

"You know you want to~."

"…"

Ever so slowly, Reina lowered the hat she got as an item drop until it sat on her head. She pulled out the small, cheap mirror she bought—which was more like a reflective glass square—and checked herself out.

…

…

"[Oh my god!] It blends in with my hair and everything!" She had to keep herself from squealing with delight.

With reckless abandon, Reina struck pose after pose with her newest bit of 'armor', her totem safely tucked away. It wasn't as if she had a helmet or anything, anyway. Why shouldn't she use this one? Just because it didn't actually increase her defense—or any of her stats, for that matter—didn't mean she couldn't wear it. She had absolutely nothing to be ashamed of.

She held out both her hands, one holding the mirror and the other pointing right at it.

"Yare yare daze."

"What is it—"

"I wasn't!"

Fast as lightning, Reina threw the hat to the side. Thanks to air resistance and physics, the hat spun up and back down again, landing on her outstretched fingers.

Reina continued to look at Celia as the archer woman looked between her and the hat.

"Well...if you're ready, we should return to town for the evening, Spirit Forger." Celia finally said.

"R-Right, of course!" Reina quickly agreed. She followed after the archer, stuffing the offending hat back into her totem. "Never again!"

The day had progressed well enough. Her party knew the locations of a number of these doll monsters for the quest, and she endeavored to use none of them for her power up method. The gacha one, at any rate. She was still able to store them in her totem and collect tokens for her other method.

Over the course of the day, she discovered a few things. The first of which involved the monsters she encountered, all of them being dolls. Her party assured her that there was a wide variety of monsters out there. They simply focused on the dolls for the quest.

What she actually discovered was a certain trend. In many videos games—which this wasn't, of course—there were sometimes enemies that looked mostly the same but had some minor differences about them. Enemies would appear as palette swapped versions of themselves, or some minor feature was added. Sometimes it was cosmetic, sometimes they'd be a little tougher, and sometimes they'd be much stronger. For instance…

River Doll Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: spirit agility 1

Hill Doll Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: spirit defense 2

It was the first two, given how easily they were defeated by her party. The river doll had a reed skirt around it, while the hill doll wore a thick pelt loincloth. Reina could fight them herself with no greater difficulty than regular dolls, so they really weren't difficult enemies at all. The bonuses they provided were indicative of their fighting styles, with the river doll being more of a skirmisher and the hill doll able to take hits better. They both hit about as strong as the regular doll.

Really, these dolls reminded her of certain mask-wearing enemies from a popular platformer franchise involving a green dinosaur.

The second thing she discovered was in relevance to her power up method. Every doll she absorbed gave her one token. These tokens were unique to the monsters they came from, so there were doll tokens, river doll tokens, and hill doll tokens. If she put them into her weapon, they would provide different stats. The more she put in, the higher the increase. The only drawback she could see was that weapons could only use one token type at a time.

As such…

Hill Doll Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: spirit defense 2
Hill Doll Tokens (24): 2.1 defense
Gacha Bonus: +2 spirit attack

The tokens didn't necessarily give what the equip bonus the corresponding totem gave. For instance, the regular doll tokens increased defense specifically against other doll-type monsters. It was a percentage bonus, so she could make herself immune to any dolls' attacks if she had enough, though it looked like some bonuses required more tokens to continue increasing.

Once they got into town, they settled down at the inn. They were actually one town over from the capital, since this was closer to the monster spots. They had a light dinner and relaxed in the common area, or most of them did. Reina and Martin went up to one of their rooms.

"Alright." Martin began, sitting on the bed opposite of Reina. "For magic, you must form contracts with spirits. These spirits grant you the spell outlines you'll need to actually cast spells."

"Got it." Reina nodded.

This was exciting. Being brought to a new world was one thing, but she was going to start learning magic! Sure, maybe creating a physical spirit to fight for you counted at magic, but this was different. Spells!

"Different spirits demand different things from people." He explained. "Some demands conflict with others, making it impossible to form contracts with two specific spirits. Luckily, there are spirits that work great together."

Martin gestured to the amulet around his neck, as well as the four-pointed blue star on his tunic.

"Members of the Azure Star specialize in healing and wards, with some able to perform smites." Martin continued. Reina was at the edge of her seat listening to him. "But like Dalton mentioned, we shouldn't go through a church, at least not just yet. Instead, we will begin with what all aspiring mages and priests do."

Most of this was what Martin explained while they were traveling. While his knowledge of all things magic wasn't comprehensive, it gave Reina an idea of what to expect out of the world. In a way, it was like basically any other fantasy game with its spells. Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Blur, and many others. What was different was how these spells were gained.

From what she understood, the spells she would be able to cast weren't limited to the spells given by the spirits. With enough knowledge and training, she would be able to expand on and alter them. Make a fireball turn into stream of fire, illusions that can be solid, and so on. She would also be able to combine different spells, like images of herself that explode and bring fiery death to those around it. That sort of thing.

The topic back then did change to that mage Reina saw when she was first summoned. Martin had no idea who he was, or that a mage was called in to perform the summoning in the first place. And that spell he cast, Gate, was something Martin had never heard of. He couldn't begin to work out what kind of combination of spirits would be needed to cast such a spell.

But that was a digression. Right now, Reina had to learn the basics.

"The first spell any magic user learns is Prestidigitation." Martin said, holding up a finger. "It is the most basic of spells that will help you learn to use many others. In a sense, it's also one of the most difficult to learn. Since it's the first spell, it'll help determine how attuned you are to using magic."

Reina could barely sit still in her seat. "So how do I learn it?"

"You must make a contract with your own soul."

"…" Whatever Reina was expecting, this wasn't it. "How's that now?"

Martin smiled. "Like I said, it's not going to be easy. The first contract you forge will be with your own spirit. It will help give you an idea of what to expect out of other spirits as well."

If Reina was a more enlightened person, she might say how this whole "looking into yourself" thing could be...well, that would be the metaphor for what was going on.

"How do I...do that?" Reina asked.

In response, Martin repositioned himself. He sat on the bed, legs crossed and arms resting on his knees. With a gesture, Reina mirrored his movements. "First, you must relax your mind. It may prove difficult for you, seeing how eager you are to learn."

The mirth in his voice wasn't lost on her, but he was right. He mentioned how focusing on nothing would be best, easier after a day of combat, but she'd been too excited about the prospect of magic.

"I'll try." Reina said, breathing in deeply.

She tried to calm her mind, letting it do nothing as she sat there.

"Next, let your thoughts return to you. Don't interrupt them, and don't analyze them. Just let them flow freely."

Reina did just that.

The first thought that appeared to her was of her friends back home. Bo just insulted her about her height again. Miki was napping in his seat, waiting to start. Reina said something back to Bo about her own figure. Sean tried mediating, wanting to keep the peace until Hachi showed up.

Next, she saw everything around her speeding past. She was on her bike, riding down a hill to go home. It was the same path she saw every day, though the faces of people melded together. They didn't matter. Only the feeling of the wind through her braided hair as she neared home did. A place of peace.

The scene changed again. She saw Prince Johan approach her. He took her hand in his and kissed the top of it. Reina felt her face flush red. It did so even more when she spotted a pair of dog ears sprout from the prince's head. His eyes looked hungry, like he would eat her up any second. He came closer. No, he pulled her closer, her hand moving to his chest as their faces neared. Her eyes closed, though she didn't know if it was in fear or anticipation. Then…

A spark.

Reina jumped from her seat on the bed, falling to the ground. Quickly looking around, she found herself back in her room at the inn.

"Are you alright, Spirit Forger?" Martin asked, still seated.

"Y-Yeah." Reina nodded, slowly standing. "That was…"

A chuckle escaped Martin's lips. "It can be a bit jarring to see yourself like that, huh?"

"Is that what that was?" Reina asked herself.

"May I see your hands?" Martin asked, standing himself.

"Sure." Reina lifted her hands, which Martin took in his. He turned them over, looking at her palms.

"Facing the mirror isn't easy." He said, stretching out her fingers slightly. "But that is the first step in communing with spirits. I don't mean that they can see into you like you just did, but the opposite. Spirits are more pure, rarely hiding what they are from anyone. There are those whose nature it is to be concealed, but from what I've learned most act as themselves without reservations and…"

His voice trailed off as he stared hard into her hands. Reina looked down, wondering what it was he saw. From what she could tell, nothing was different. Was he reading her fortune or something?

"What is it?" She decided to ask.

"You…did it…" Martin slowly said.

"I did it?" Reina looked herself over. She didn't feel that different. Maybe there was something there that wasn't before, but it didn't feel like much. Was that really all there was to it?

"It takes weeks for a beginner to do that. A week for those who spent time around priests or mages, maybe a few days for a prodigy. Yet, you did it in one sitting." Martin explained, a glazed-over look in his eyes.

"O-Oh…Well, maybe that's because I'm the Spirit Forger! That has to count for something!" She tried to assure him. After all, the same term was used for both her own summoned warrior and the beings that provided magic. Maybe there was a connection.

Martin was looking a little distraught. Maybe it took him a while when he first tried. Reina wanted to lighten the blow. It wouldn't be good to crush the spirit of her magic instructor, pun possibly intended.

"They say people who know what they want, who don't hide from themselves, can make the contract more easily." Martin said.

"If that's the case, maybe he took a while to do it." Reina guessed. "It's probably something like knowing yourself and how good you naturally will be with magic or something. Maybe I'm both?"

Wanting to change the subject for Martin's sake, Reina spoke. "Say, are there any demi-humans in this world?"

"Demi-humans?" Martin parroted, gaining a little light back in his eyes.

"Yeah." Reina nodded. "Boys—I mean, people—with some features of animals, like dog or cat ears. Maybe tails too." It wasn't that Reina liked cat/dog boys, she just thought there was a criminally small number of them in media and there should be more. Maybe she'd get to meet one. Maybe they'd really hit it off. Maybe he would hold her tight while she feigned hesitation, only for him to bring his lips close to hers and—

"Come on, Reina! Focus! Worry about your dreams later!" She internally chastised herself.

Ignorant of her thoughts, Martin shook his head. "Nothing like that, Spirit Forger. I've heard of people with claws or monstrous teeth, but they aren't natural. The only thing I can think of are the giants."

"Giants?" Reina came out of her reverie.

He nodded. "More than twice the size of people. They tend to live in small groups in secluded areas. I don't know much else about them, other than they tend not to get along with humans."

"Oh…" That was rather disappointing. It seemed she'd have to give up on her dream—her completely normal desire to meet a dog boy.

Maybe that was part of her making that contract so easily. Not the desire to meet a dog boy, but not denying that to herself. She knew what she wanted, but that didn't mean she'd voice it to others.

"Okay, that's not entirely true. But, I mean, when my own desires are presented right in front of me, I can't really deny it!" She internalized. She would ask Martin about the exact function of gaining a contract with her soul, but…she really didn't want to say any of that out loud.

~Forging Legends~

The next day, the party started making their way back to Savia's capital. They went on a different path, mostly to confront different dolls for the quest and weapon reveals. This time, they went through a forest.

Forest Doll Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: attack 1

Unlike the regular doll, this one would give Reina herself a bonus to attack instead of only her spirit. Obviously, it was better overall, since both she and her spirit would benefit from this. Her spirit would just benefit slightly less.

Strangely enough, the tokens she gained from these dolls increased her agility. She would have expected that from the river doll tokens, which increased her swim speed. Then again...that wasn't exactly a strange thing.

*smack* *smack* The spirit Reina forged struck from behind, attacking the forest doll engaged with Max. Its stuffing was leaking out of its battered form.

"You know, this almost feels like a game with censorship, considering how I don't think I've seen any blood since I got here." Reina mused. "I suppose these dolls don't really carry sharp objects, besides that thunderstruck doll."

Reina lowered her totem to the doll and absorbed it. However, it continued to glow as if it wanted to absorb another corpse. She looked around the spot, not noticing anything particularly noteworthy. Except for a mushroom. Curious, she tapped it with her totem.

Mushroom Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: potion compounding bonus (small)
Equip Effect: minor poison resistance

Reina stared at her status screen. Now, she wasn't one to not understand the rules of a game before playing it, and this world was certainly not a game, but…

"Really!?" She cried out.

"Is something wrong, Spirit Forger?" Dalton walked over in his heavy armor and asked.

"I can absorb plants, too!" She yelled. All along their traveling to this spot, there were numerous plants—and fungi—she could have tried absorbing. She looked into her help to see what else she had missed.

Absorb monster remains and objects to reveal weapon forms.

Objects.

So, not just plants and fungi, but other things. Rope? A mirror? A rock!? The possibilities were endless. She was half tempted to buy one of everything the next time they stopped by that adventurer's shop.

Reina stood up. "Do you think we can go back so I can absorb more things in the forest?" She asked her party.

"If that's what you wish, Spirit Forger." Celia said with a nod. "You decide what we do, we just give you advice."

Right. She was the Spirit Forger. The Hero. She was supposed to take charge and make the decisions. She could do that.

Straightening out, Reina addressed her party. "We will backtrack so I can reveal and unlock more totem forms for later."

"Yes ma'am!" The four of them said together. The smirk on Max's face told her he knew she wasn't at all used to this sort of thing.

And so, that's what Reina and her party did for the next few hours. Being more of a ranger-type, Celia was able to point out various plants that might be of use. The most common they saw were those used to make healing potions.

Seeing so much of it, it made Reina question what the point of healing magic was, though she quickly added how she meant no offense to the party healer.

Martin wasn't at all offended and happily explained. "It costs time and resources to prepare potions. My MP will recover on its own. While it might take longer than the time to gather ingredients and make the potions, the recovery happens on its own, so I can perform other tasks as well. Including, ironically, making potions!"

His little joke was enough to convince Reina he truly wasn't upset at her comment.

As the light from the sun started to wane, the party began their trek back to the capital. Reina had gotten a few new forms to unlock.

Aloe Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: HP recovery (small)

Iron Ore Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: metalworking 1

Fish Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: cooking 1

Old Wood Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: plant appraisal 1

Leaf Totem
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: gathering 1

There were a few more, but they mostly provided these sort of bonuses. The iron ore was actually from her inventory when they defeated another hill doll. It was a nice little find.

With the sun nearly set, they neared the edge of the forest. That was when they heard a low growl.

"Hold." Dalton softly spoke, raising his huge shield. Pulling out his spear, he gestured to the moving foliage up ahead.

Reina could see it. The eyes of a predator. They came closer as the monster moved out of the bush.

Krindar

The name of the monster appeared in her status. Its hind legs looked like they were rolling in muscle. The front ones were shorter, but had razor sharp claws on them. It somewhat looked like a ferocious combination of a kangaroo and a wolf or dog, and was about a foot shorter than her.

Reina had her spirit out and in front of her. As she gained levels, it looked less like a ball and more humanoid. It was still plenty round, but its limbs and 'torso' elongated and stretched a bit.

"Be careful, Spirit Forger." Max warned. "Krindar are fast and vicious. We should be able to defeat it without much issue, but don't let your guard down."

"Got it." Reina gave him nod.

The krindar took a slow step forward. Dalton had his shield up and ready to intercept it. Celia nocked an arrow and let it loose. It struck the krindar in the shoulder, narrowly missing its head as it jumped to the side.

It lunged forward, claws ready to rend. Dalton thrust forward with his spear, grazing the side of the monster as it slammed into his shield. Max veered to the side and swiped at it with his blade, making it howl in pain.

When it landed, it tried to claw at Max, only for Reina's spirit to intercept it and take the attack. Its HP dropped in her status, but it was still standing—or floating. It gave the monster a hard smack, knocking it back slightly. That gave Dalton the opening to skewer its thick back leg with his spear.

The krindar howled in pain once more, snapping at Dalton with its fangs. The tower shield he wielded kept it back. Celia moved in with her bow and shot an arrow into its skull, killing it.

As the monster fell, Reina got the XP. Her level just went up to 15.

"Nice." Reina smiled at their accomplishment. Martin cast his healing spell on her. Though she didn't take any damage, she found that any healing she received was also applied to her spirit.

"Let's see what this gives me." She tapped her totem against the monster, absorbing it.

Krindar Athame
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: attack 2
Equip Effect: Bleed

For the second time this day, Reina stared at her status screen.

"I have weapons other than totems!?" She cried out.

Once again, she wished she paid more attention to her help menu. The implication of this was immediately apparent to her. She came across something called "weapon copy" the night she learned about her power up methods. It meant she could copy any weapon she touched that was like her own and then use it. Of course, she thought she only had totems to work with, and Martin told her none of the churches in the capital had totems.

But that was just it. She wasn't the "Totem Hero", despite what most of her weapon forms would suggest. She was the "Ritual Implement Hero". She had many more options than she initially thought. Ceremonial knives, incense, bells, talismans...amulets.

"Martin." Reina turned to the healer. "Can I see your amulet for a minute?"

"Of course." He replied hesitantly, seeming still confused at her outburst.

Reina held the amulet in her hand, having moved the totem to her shield hand. After a moment, a popup appeared. She gave the affirmative and was greeted with another popup.

Weapon copied!

Azure Star Amulet
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: Forge "Healing Touch"
Equip Effect: healing bonus

She could feel her eye twitching in annoyance. It wouldn't do to act out in front of her party, so she pushed it down to release later. Instead, she looked up a term she wasn't quite sure about.

Forge: abilities which may be added to your spirit from the Forge menu. Abilities from your current weapon form are automatically applied to your spirit until switched.

This was going to be another trend, Reina could just tell. Still, of all the times to be making these mistakes, near the start of her journey was among the best. Imagine if she spent months without any of this knowledge. How far behind would she have been then?

"Martin." She looked at the healer as she handed him back his amulet. "Is there any problem with going around to the churches in the city so I can hold the amulets of the priests there?"

Martin scratched the back of his neck. "I suppose...if you aren't actually joining, there shouldn't be much issue. If anything, it could be seen as a sort of pilgrimage.

"Then that's what we'll do next." Reina decided.

"We may wish to wait for tomorrow." Celia voiced. "By the time we get back, the sun will have set."

"Hmm." Reina considered it. If she was going to visit them all, it seemed rude to come in at night just to ask to hold an amulet—and whatever else she could realistically get her hands on. "Yeah, that sounds good."

That should work out pretty well. They had a number of doll corpses for the quest, so that'd put a decent amount of bronze and silver in their pouches. Come tomorrow, they'd hand over the dolls—assuming Reina could control herself tonight—and then they'd visit the churches. She didn't know how good Healing Touch was, but it was an ability for her spirit. If the other church amulets and whatnot gave similar things, that'd be the start of great things to come. She could just tell.

~Forging Legends~

As night fell, they quickly found an inn. Something light to take a bite out of, then it was time for bed. Reina spent a little time playing with her newfound magic. Or, she was trying to.

It was strange. It was like she knew what to do, but had no idea at the same time. Having knowledge just put in her brain wasn't something she was used to. It was kind of like with that Fish Totem with the cooking bonus, but different. It only really came up now that she was trying to do magic. If she was trying to cook, maybe it'd be exactly the same.

But right now, she needed to focus. She knew about this spell from playing with her gaming group and Martin confirmed it. She could make a small flame, slowly move an object, flavor food, make minor images, and a few other things. It was the first spell for a reason. It could a little of everything, just not enough to really hurt someone...unless she set a fire or something.

She decided to start with that. She focused on the tip of her finger. A flame sticking out of it, no bigger than that of a lighter. That's what she wanted to create. It shouldn't be that difficult. She thought of her magic, her MP going down. It would fuel the spell she wanted to create. It would create the fire she wanted.

…

And...nothing.

"Darn." Reina let out, leaning back on the bed. "I just can't seem to get it."

"It didn't come to any of us in a day." Celia said.

"You can do magic, too?" That got Reina's attention.

In response, Celia flicked her fingers, making sparks come out of them. "It's handy when you're out in the wild and need to light a campfire."

"Heh. Adventurers are ready for anything." Reina said.

"That we are." Celia gave her a smile. It seemed strange, like something was wrong. "Anyway, if you're planning on using magic more, you may want to change your armor."

"Huh?" Reina cocked her head. "Why?"

"Armor affects spellcasting." Celia informed her. "That's why Martin wears bronze armor. I don't really get it, but spirits don't react well to iron. I know much higher ranking priests in other churches have stronger armor, so it really depends."

"I see. I'll have to look into that later." Reina said, moving to get ready for bed. At the moment, her forged spirit was her best thing for combat, so wearing weaker armor for spells she couldn't even cast yet wasn't smart. But, if she could cast something like Meteor Swarm or Time Stop, she'd happily wear one of those skimpy wizard outfits she'd seen in a few shows. Even if she didn't have the figure for it.

That would be a problem for later. Now, it was time to rest. New weapon forms awaited her in the morning. Hopefully the Azure Star Amulet would be unlocked by then. Since she'd be wielding it tomorrow, the Krindar Athame could wait.

Reina laid her head back and closed her eyes. She felt her mind drifting off into unconsciousness.

*BANG*

A loud noise. Loud and heavy. It seemed to rock the room, Reina falling from her bed.

"What was that!?" She called out, seeing Celia standing next to her. The woman was quickly getting her armor on.

"I don't know. Get yourself ready, Spirit Forger." She quickly replied, strapping her shortswords to her hips and grabbing her bow.

Reina followed suit, pulling the chainmail over her shirt. The thick pants were comfortable enough, so she just slept in them. With her boots strapped up and her shield strapped on, she left the room with Celia.

In the room next to theirs, they found Martin and Max fumbling to help Dalton into his heavy plate armor. "Any idea what's going on?" The slowly armored man asked.

Celia shook her head. "Not a clue. We—"

"AIEEEE!" A cry shot through the air.

Reina looked in the direction of the cry and started down the hall. "We need to help with whatever's happening!"

"Spirit Forger!" Celia called after her.

"Go!" Dalton said. "We'll catch up once I'm ready!"

Celia ran after Reina, quickly coming up behind her. The pair came out of the inn to the aftermath of what must have been a massive fireball. The inn was spared, but shops across the street were aflame. People ran around in a panic. Some of them had parts of their clothes on fire, furiously trying to put out the flames on the ground.

A group was being chased through the streets by short creatures. They looked like they might be dragons, but ran on two legs. A dinosaur, perhaps? Whatever they were, Reina couldn't identify them. Her status told her what a bunch of dolls were, but not these. Maybe she needed something to give her that information.

"Hisss!" One of the dragon-like creatures noticed her, which quickly drew the attention of the others.

"Forge Spirit!" Reina brought out her spirit and switched to the Krindar Athame. While most of her weapon forms were relatively balanced, this one was more focused on attack.

She sent her spirit forward, accompanied by a pair of arrows. They struck the leading monster, which fell after taking a hit from the spirit. The remaining four charged as Reina recalled the spirit to her, though not before it got off another attack on one. The struck area began to bruise and slowly bleed, curtesy of her weapon's equip effect.

Even with unknown enemies, Reina felt confident. Her level was still the lowest in her party, but it was coming along. They would handle these monsters, regroup with the rest of their party, and then figure out what all was happening. It wasn't as if this was the only place cries for help came from, or the only area with buildings on fire.

The injured monster lunged at the spirit, only for Reina to step forward and deflect it with her shield. She started to understand how to use it properly. If she tried to use it as a weapon, it would do nothing. If she used it as armor, it would function perfectly. One of the uses of a shield was to knock weapons aside and create openings, which she just did. A thrust with her athame and another strike from the spirit put this monster down.

That still left three more monsters. One was hit by an arrow, making it back off slightly. The other two tried to flank Reina, but the spirit to her back prevented that. Then, it was just a matter of having her spirit attack one while she staved off the other, with support fire from Celia.

Another lunge at her prompted another block with her shield. The monster was able to right itself before Reina could swipe at it with her short blade. The opposite occurred with her spirit, which took the attack on its stubby arm and struck back twice. The one with an arrow sticking from it was hit with another before it could engage either Reina or her spirit. It turned its attention to Celia, who drew one of her swords.

Fortunately, a three-on-three battle wasn't about to happen. Another arrow struck the monster Reina was fighting, killing it instantly. She looked over and saw a knight with a bow, his gilded armor gleaming in the fire around them. Not wasting the opportunity the royal knight provided, Reina turned to the monster her spirit was engaged with and sunk her weapon into its head. From there, slaying the one Celia was parrying was all too easy.

Once all the enemies were dead, the knight started running over. A short way away, Reina saw the rest of her party approaching.

"Spirit Forger!" The knight called as he slowed, still about 20 feet away. "Quickly, regroup with Prince Johan!"

"What about the people?" Reina asked as her party regrouped.

"We will assess the situation and deal with this threat. Your safety is top priority." The knight pointed toward the castle gate, stopping just 10 feet from her. "Hurry! We don't know how many invaders are—"

A burst of rock, dust, and smoke bellowed behind the knight. The shockwave from an impact rocked the ground, forcing them to stagger to remain standing. The knight, who was nearly knocked to the ground, turned around.

A figure appeared from the cloud next to him. Horns protruded from the forehead of a man, black wings spread out behind him. A long, black coat seemed to bellow in the light wind, showing off his toned chest. He stood at least a head tall than the knight, who himself looked above average in height.

"You—" The knight took a step back and pulled back on his bowstring, but a clawed hand reached out and grabbed his head. In an instant, the knight was slammed into the ground. A sickening snap echoed all around, as if the roaring flames were muted.

He was dead. Just like that, Reina saw a man die right in front of her. She didn't know what level the royal knights were, but to kill him so easily…

The winged man stood tall, his piercing, slitted golden eyes staring straight at her. That color…it wasn't like what she saw in the castle. The halls were decorated in gold or gold-like material, making everything look beautiful. It showed power, wealth, and prestige, same as the royal knights in the gilded armor.

This man's eyes only showed power, an unyielding and unwavering force waiting to be used.

There was no way Reina knew for certain, but her gut feeling told her it was true. It felt even truer as the man took a single step around the now-dead knight, his thick, black pants gliding over the dead man's helmet. When his foot hit the ground, his boot seemed to crush the stone path beneath it.

"That's the Demon Lord." The dread in her body froze her in place. "And he's right in front of me."

Author's Notes:

If you've read my other work, you'll know I punish characters for looking on the bright side. Things won't be as bad in this story, I promise.

Maybe still acting a bit like a weapon, but I still say her using a shield to bash like this is fine. Slamming into someone while wearing heavy armor could knock them down, possibly even damage them, and I doubt that would be considered a weapon (LN readers, please ignore the fact there exists an Armor Hero). Maybe if it had spikes, but not armor by itself. Eh, Imma say as long as I don't try to have her inflict actual damage with her shield, using it like this should be fine. If you can't accept it, wise man say: "Hey you, watcha gonna do?"

Just to throw it out there, I don't plan on dropping this fic partway through without a word. In the highly unlikely event I do abandon it, I'll at least give a final chapter that tells where I was going with things. I've seen too many fics die that don't even do that. The only reason I won't is if I'm dead or in a coma.