Marching in a column-like formation the Apollo familia made their way to Shreme castle. They carried backpacks and drove carts with supplies.
Their captain who was leading the group had a confident smirk on his face. He looked back and counted the number of his familia.
His smirk widened counting the extra hundred heads. There was no rule about hiring mercenaries after all. All that was stated was that the Apollo familia and the Astraea familia had to do battle.
It never specified how many had to be a part of the Apollo familia however. Something that the god readily capitalized on.
Hyakinthos turned his attention back in front of him and saw Shreme castle off in the distance. He knew his victory would be absolute. His god's victory would be absolute.
However, as they drew closer to the castle he noticed that there was only one good route of attack. The rest of the castle was surrounded by rocky hills and mountains.
A frontal assault would have to be attempted and he knew that would be costly. But then Hyakinthos laughed to himself.
Costly who was he kidding? There were only five of them. Three-level ones and two-level twos. This would be easy and finished within the first day.
However, further back in the line, a blue-haired woman was nervous. Nervous that their hubris would be their defeat.
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Bell stood atop the wall looking out upon the land. He could see the Apollo familia in the distance pulling off of the road to set up a camp.
He let out a sigh of frustration however seeing the added numbers. Bell was already coming up with a plan to counteract these added numbers.
Subterfuge should work well.
He hopped off the wall and made his way to his familia. Watching where he stepped so as to not step into a spike trap.
Arriving at the campsite he crouched down in front of his familia. Welf was at the anvil still making anything he could to put the self-destruct rune on. Lili was preparing breakfast while Emma and Karen took stock of what they had left.
Bell cleared his throat and for their attention. "Well, good news and bad news. Good news is the Apollo familia finally showed up so we can get this wargame underway. The bad news is there's a hundred more than the last time we saw them." He explained.
Welf stopped forging and turned to look at Bell. "A hundred more? How'd he get so many that fast?"
"Most likely mercenaries. Meaning they're already experienced adventurers or have some modicum of experience. Making our job a lot more difficult." Karen explained.
"Does this mean the plan won't work?" Emma nervously asked. She didn't want to lose Bell to the Apollo familia. He was her friend.
Bell shook his head. "No, it just means it won't work as well as I thought it would. However, not all is lost. They're setting up came right now so we still have some time before they attack."
"I'm guessing you already have an idea, Master Bell?" Lili asked. The prum had stopped stirring the stew.
"Well, I was thinking about doing a little subterfuge. It won't do much but it'll mess with their minds." Bell replied.
"And just what exactly would you do?" Welf asked.
Bell shrugged. "No idea, best I can think of is destroying their food supply and maybe a few tents. That way they'll be hungry and some of them will be tired."
"Not really a lot of options there." Lili pointed out.
"Well, I need to get in and out quick. Sure I'm fast but there's 200 of them out there. Once I make my move I'll have to get out of there quick."
"And why is it you have to do this? If they capture you we automatically lose the wargame." Emma asked.
Bell sighed as he stood up. "Simple, I'm the fastest one out of all of us. Has to be me, no offense but if it was any of you. You'd get captured."
The group lamented in silence as Welf handed Bell a dagger. "Here's the dagger you wanted for the wall. Though now you'll have to use it for the food. Don't worry though I'll get started on making a new one right now."
Bell patted Welf on the back. "Thanks, man. Now all we have to do is wait til night. The Apollo familia won't make their attack today since they're tired from marching all the way here. So once the moon rises, I'll make my move."
"I assume you'll want us to dig more spike traps?" Karen asked.
Bell shook his head. "No, rest. Tomorrow is when we'll do battle. Make sure your weapons are ready and watch your steps. Welf I'll get you a range for the catapult when I'm out there."
The group remained silent as Bell made his way back to the wall. He overlooked the area and saw smoke rising in the distance. He knew where they were camped, and what he had to do once the sunset.
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Hyakinthos stood in his tent looking at a map of the area. Being the captain his tent was much bigger than the others under his command.
Those beneath him.
Inside his tent was a red-haired woman and a blonde elf. The elf was named Lissos and he was his Vice Captain. The elf kept his face covered by a red scarf and wore a green sleeveless shirt with brown pants. Attached to his hip was a sword that curved upwards.
Next to him was the dark redheaded woman named Daphne. She was dressed in a white skirt that looked official. Attached to her neck was a yellow tie and attached to her hip was a fencing sword. Her eyes were yellow like her tie and her features were beautiful.
Hyakinthos had long brown hair he kept in a ponytail with bangs covering one of his blue eyes. He was dressed in an all-black Apollo uniform with an orange blade at his side that had multiple curves in its design.
The trio stood around the table planning out a route of attack. Or it was more like Hyakinthos was telling them his plan of attack that they would have to listen to.
"A frontal assault is what we'll do. With our superior numbers, we'll overtake the main gate like a tidal wave. They'll crumble at the sight of us." Hyakinthos boldly stated.
"And if they don't crumble at the sight of us?" Daphne asked. She had no interest in this nor did she want to be here. But it was her god's orders and she had to be.
"Then they'll fall all the same. We outnumber them 40 to one. They won't last long against our might."
Daphne shook her head while Lissos remained silent. He wanted to go inside the castle and commit subterfuge but was denied by the captain. His reason was no matter what they prepared it wouldn't be enough to stop them.
It was then an explosion and shouting was heard outside and the tent flap flew open. "Captain, the food stores are on fire!"
Hyakinthos and his two executives stormed outside. The tent where their supplies were stored was burning and surrounding tents had been destroyed.
Hyakinthos kicked a rock in anger and pushed the random Apollo familia member toward the fire. "Stop gawking and put it out! Lissos find the bastard who did this! Daphne find Casandra and have her heal those injured! NOW PEOPLE!"
Everyone quickly ran to do their tasks while Hyaknithos just stewed in silent anger. He would take much more enjoyment in winning now.
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Those back in Orario had been watching the war game since the Apollo familia arrived at the castle. This was technically the first day and the city watched as both sides prepared.
Astraea sat in her home along with Artemis and her captain. Astraea had her divine mirror open and was watching her familia. Mainly Bell and how he reacted to the dirty move Apollo pulled.
Artemis crossed her arms. "Hmph, Apollo and his usual dirty tricks. I should put an arrow right in his-
"Artemis!" Astraea chided.
"What?! Such a dirty trick deserves punishment." Artemis protested.
"But it's not against the rules. We never said he couldn't pack his familia full. A blunder on my part to be honest." Astraea mumbled that last part.
"Still there has to be some way he can be penalized for that." Rethusa pointed out.
"Only in the court of public opinion it seems, and that was already low to begin with." Astraea softly said.
She was worried for Bell. For all her children. But she had faith in Bell that he could handle it. She had faith that her familia would win.
All she had to do was believe in them.
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Night had fallen over Shreme castle as Bell stood atop the wall. He knew exactly where the Apollo familia camp was and what he had to do.
The moon was partly covered by clouds and the stars were absent. Leaving it very dark outside.
Bell looked down and saw Welf standing by the gate controls. He would have to be quick to make it back inside in time. Or else he'd be stuck outside.
With a sigh, Bell looked back out toward the camp and hopped over the wall. He slid down it and landed quietly on the ground.
Bell wasn't wearing his armor. The metal clanking would give away his position. He was dressed in all black. It didn't make him invisible but it blended into the night sky as best as it could.
Bell took off in a sprint toward the camp. His footsteps silent against the ground. Once reaching a small rocky hill he climbed and got an overview of the camp.
He laid on his stomach and crawled to the edge of the cliff. Looking down into the camp he saw dozens of tents and campfires. He could also see the carts filled with supplies on the other side of the camp.
People were milling about talking and grumbling. Nobody seemed to be on watch, however. It seemed their bravado left them blind and deaf to what was around them.
Good.
Bell grabbed the cliff with his hands and maneuvered himself to where he was hanging in the air. He let go once he was ready and silently landed on the ground again.
Bell stood still and waited for a moment. He wanted to make sure no one heard him. After waiting for a minute he began to make his way deeper inside the camp.
The people who cared for Bell watched in nervousness and anticipation. One wrong move and the boy would be caught. Whether he fought his way out would be up to him and luck.
Bell continued silently through the camp. Staying in the shadows and ducking between tents to avoid detection.
He cut the empty ones open with his dagger. Not the one that Welf had given him, however. That was meant for something else.
After cutting up a few tents Bell stopped in his tracks as two Apollo familia members walked past. He didn't move a muscle and held his breath.
The two didn't seem to notice him as they walked past. Bell waited for another minute before moving on. The sounds of chatter and laughter filled the camp.
They were having dinner at the moment.
Bell felt a little sorry for them as this would be their last meal for a while. But they were simply on the wrong side of this conflict.
After more maneuvering around the camp Bell finally arrived at wagons on the other side. His eyes could faintly make out the supplies.
However, there was someone that seemed to be taking stock. From what Bell could make out she had blue hair. But other than that defining characteristic he couldn't make out much more.
Also who would make someone take stock in the middle of the night? That seemed like something one would do during the day when one could see better.
Bell slowly approached the woman. She seemed nervous judging by her posture. Her counting also seemed quick and frantic. Like she wanted to be done with this as fast as possible.
She didn't hear Bell approaching her. Nor did she feel him. That was until Bell's arm wrapped around her neck and he squeezed.
She let out a strangled gasp as Bell squeezed harder. Her hands slapping on his muscular forearms as his grip tightened even more.
Eventually, the corners of her vision started to darken and she went unconscious. Bell waited for a few more seconds to make sure she wasn't faking before letting go.
He gently laid her down in the dirt before walking over to the supplies. Taking out the knife he got ready to use it before he stopped. Bell turned back around at the unconscious form of the woman behind him.
With his close she was there was a chance the flames could hurt her. Part of Bell told himself he shouldn't care. It was a wargame and he was heavily outnumbered.
But another part of him didn't want this girl to burn to death.
So with a sigh, Bell sheathed the knife and grabbed the woman's legs. He dragged her to hide behind some of the tents he ruined before going back to the supplies.
Taking out the knife again Bell threw it without hesitation. An explosion rang out and the supplies started to burn.
Bell took the chance to sprint through the camp and back to the castle. In the midst of the chaos, no one seemed to recognize him as they made their way to the blaze.
Which made getting back to the castle easy.
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The next morning arrived and the Apollo familia was worse for wear. They had spent hours trying to put the fire out. But with limited water, they had little success and had to watch as the fire engulfed the rest of their supplies.
They also had to deal with some of their tents being destroyed meaning some of the Apollo familia didn't even get to rest properly.
Which led to a tired, angry, and hungry mob of people ready to storm Shreme castle and win the day so they could all go home.
No plan was made. Be it hubris, anger, or sheer cockiness they were just told to assault the main gate.
They got into formation on the narrow road and began making their way to the front gate. However, what was odd was that the front gate was wide open.
Almost as if they were inviting them in.
This made Hyakinthos smirk. "Look at that! They're so cowardly that they left the gate wide open! They're too stupid to even wage warfare correctly!"
A chorus of laughs rang out along the road as they drew ever closer. Then they noticed a lone figure standing atop the wall. Their hand raised in the air and Hyakintos assumed it'd be a surrender outright due to cowardice.
It seemed Bell would be worried about his retaliation for what he did last night.
That was until the figured hand dropped and a giant conglomeration of metal came flying towards them.
Hyakinthos's eyes widened in horror. His troops had nowhere to move as the road was too narrow for 200 people to move freely.
So he could only say one thing. "Charge! Run! Run forward!" He cried.
The familia followed his orders and began running to try and avoid the giant ball of metal headed their way.
When the metal sphere impacted the ground and a fiery explosion shot forth sending shrapnel everywhere.
Molten pieces of metal shot in all directions hitting dozens of people. Their screams of pain rang out along the road as another volley was fired.
This time it was an assortment of weapons ranging from dagger to great axes. When they impacted another explosion rang out and more shrapnel flew everywhere.
The searing molten metal buried itself into people's bodies and more and more of them fell out of line.
Screams of absolute agony filled the road as Hyakinthos ordered for them to pick up the pace. But then there was a third volley, then a fourth, then a fifth.
More flaming shrapnel littered the field taking out swaths of the Apollo familia. After the sixth, the volley stopped as they had reached the wall.
By this point, there were only 75 of them left. The barrage had taken out the vast majority of their party with burning shrapnel digging into their flesh.
The remaining few were panting and wheezing from the mad dash to the wall. Now that they were out of range artillery fire wasn't raining down on them anymore.
Which everyone there was thankful for. That weapon had taken so many of them out because how how compact they were.
It was a slaughter that cut down over half their number. But they were still in an advantageous position. They still outnumbered the Astraea familia 15 to 1.
They would still win.
"You coming in or not?!" Bell taunted.
This enraged the rest of the group as they began to put in the gates.
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Astraea, Artemis, and Rethusa watched from the Stardust Garden. They watched as the artillery barrage absolutely tore through the Apollo familia.
No limbs were lost, however. Only burning shrapnel burying itself into those who were unprepared.
They watched as the rest of the Apollo familia made a mad dash to the wall. Running as fast as they could to get away from the barrage.
The three women were entranced by the sight. What had seemed hopeless to Astraea's familia just a day before had become hopeful once more.
"He did it! That catapult brought his numbers down!" Astraea cheered. Her worry from the previous night starting to leave.
Her familia had a real shot at winning this now.
"You coming in or what?!" Bell taunted. The three women laughed hearing Bell's taught. It also made them less nervous for the battle that was about to come.
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Bell stood at the gate watching as the remainder of the Apollo familia caught their breath. Part of him was really ecstatic that his plan had worked that well. What made it better was that the second part hadn't been enacted yet.
He just needed them to walk through the gate. So Bell decided to help move them along. "You coming in or what?!"
Bell watched with a smile as their tired faces filled with anger. After one final deep breath, the Apollo familia once again began to charge.
One by one they entered the gate and drew closer to Bell. But the boy simply waited and watched. More and more poured into the gate. So many were doing so that the gate began to clog and that's when Bell struck.
He threw the knife in his hand and everyone watched as it didn't hit a single Apollo member. It kept soaring through the air and right before the Apollo familia could taunt back it impacted the wall.
Like clockwork, the runes carved into the wall began to glow and then explode causing the entire wall to collapse on top of them.
Tons of stone and rock buried those still stuck in the gate and most outside it. Bell meanwhile stood there and counted those that weren't buried by the rubble.
His number came to 15. Much better odds than 200. Bell's plan had worked better than even he thought it would.
Which meant all that was left was to win.
"Now!" Bell yelled unsheathing his sword. He shot forward his blade aimed At Hyakinthos. The man blocked it as he already had his blade drawn.
Bell pushed down and then elbowed Hyakinthos in the face. The man stumbled back as Bell pressed his advantage.
No words were said between the two. They just simply moved their battle elsewhere on the battlefield.
Trusting his familia to handle what was left of the Apollo familia.
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Welf was dressed in his black plate mail armor with the dwarven mail chestplate front and center. He watched as an elf, redhead and blue-haired woman approached him.
He was ready for battle and was holding his longsword in his hands. His eyes were focused and his grip tightened slightly on the handle.
"Crozzo!" The elf growled.
Welf didn't let it get to him as he focused on Lissos and Daphne. They seemed to be the biggest threats out of the three that approached him.
Before anything plan could be formed Lissos charged forward intent on cutting Welf up like a ribbon. His blade was aimed at the boy's neck but Welf was quick to parry it.
Using his superior strength Welf pushed him off and kicked him back. Then almost as if second nature he blocked a thrust from Daphne's rapier.
Again using his superior strength he knocked her aside as well. Though this was much easier than Lissos.
The two landed on their feet and dust kicked up as they skidded back. Welf's gaze moved over to Cassandra who looked to be a mage.
What was odd to Welf was that she wasn't casting anything. Even if she tried to he could easily counter it. But it was odd that she wasn't trying.
Welf quickly spun on his heel and parried another attack from Lissos. The elf seemed to be fighting more out of anger than anything else.
Sparks flew as their blades connected one more. Welf remained calm as Lissos wildly swung. Block after block parry after parry. Welf kept his focus.
Daphne didn't remain idle, however. Wherever there was a gap she abused it. However, Welf's armor was like a thick hide she couldn't pierce so it did nothing to him.
Welf beat the two of them back once more with his superior strength. It was his only leg up in this fight. Both Daphne and Lissos were faster than him.
He planted his left foot behind him and waited. Lissos charged not a second later. The elf jumped in the air and thrusted his blade toward Welf's eye.
The boy waited and didn't move as the blade drew ever closer. Right before it pierced his eye Welf spun on his heel and was at Lissos's open side.
Taking this opportunity he swung down with all his might. His blade met true as metal met flesh and began dragging down.
Lissos let out an exhale of pain as fresh blood poured from his wound and mouth. Welf still wasn't done however as his knee met Lissos's gut.
Even more wind was knocked out of the elf's lungs before he rolled off Welf's armored knee and landed on the ground. Welf then easily kicked the broken body away from him like it was trash.
Lissos went flying away and slammed into another of the castle's walls. Welf was a little surprised because he knew that was more kicking power than he should have as a level two.
But that thought was quickly brushed away when he ducked under Daphne's blade. The redheaded woman had cut a few strands of his hair off.
No words were said as she ran forward again. Fully intent on beating Welf to help end this war game quickly.
She used her superior agility to quickly maneuver around Welf. She was trying to find a blind spot. A chink in his armor. Something she could exploit.
Yet she found nothing. His armor was expertly made and well crafted. But that didn't stop her as she ran forward.
However, her foot sank into the ground, and pain shot through her ankle. Daphne dropped her rapier and screamed in pain as she looked down.
Her foot had gotten caught in a spike trap and was currently being stabbed by all six of them. She attempted to pull her foot out but was stopped when Welf kicked her in the face.
The kick caused her nose to start dripping blood and the pain made her drop her rapier. Her ears rang as Welf easily kicked it away before aiming his blade at her throat.
"Surrender, or I'll leave you in there." He threatened. His voice was calm and collected. Yet held the promise of more pain should she resist.
Daphne would have if she still had her blade. But with her foot caught, her nose bleeding and her ears ringing she surrendered.
It was then Cassandra came over and started to heal her. Welf didn't stop her as their battle was over.
Now it was up to the rest to win.
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Emma watched as Bell and Hyakinthos took their fight elsewhere. Leaving her, Lili, and Karen with the remaining level ones.
The level ones were quick to surround the three girls but this didn't scare them. Bell had faith in them and their abilities which he had been molding ever since they met.
They could do this.
The first three charged without hesitation. Both Emma and Karen moved to intercept while Lili stayed behind them with her spear.
The two charging them both had swords as well. Karen took the one on the left while Emma took the two on the right.
Karen's skill activated as she was in a one-on-one duel right now. She placed her free arm behind her back and began fencing.
Her defense was like solid metal. The adventurer in front of her couldn't pierce her defenses. But during this time the rest decided to charge forward.
Out of the eight that charged forward three fell into spike traps and were taken out of combat. That didn't seem to disturb the other five as they kept charging forward.
This was when Lili struck. She easily took down her first target with a thrust to their knee. Ripping it out she maneuvered her way behind another man and took out his knee as well.
The third man stepped into another spike trap and was immobilized. By the time the last two realized what was going on Lili was already upon them.
She thrusted her spear forward which was easily deflected. She didn't stop however and lowered herself. Then like a spring jumped up and kneed a woman in the nose.
An explosion of blood spurted force as Lili then used her face as a springboard. She shot forward to the other woman and took a slash at her face.
She was again easily parried and Lili landed behind the woman. She quickly spun on her heel and stabbed her spear into the woman's foot.
The woman yelled out in pain and fell to her knees. She went to grab her foot but the bottom of Lili's spear hit her directly in the forehead.
The woman fell unconscious and Lili turned her attention to the last one standing. She was holding her broken nose as blood continuously poured from it.
She still had her sword in her off-hand and was ready to fight. But with her nose broken, it made it hard for her to see.
Something which Lili readily capitalized on.
She sprinted at the woman who swung down. The prum using her height to her advantage slid under her legs and popped up behind her.
Before the woman could react Lili drove her spear into her knee. The sound of a bone popping filled her ears as the woman fell.
Then her spear was swung like a bat and the bottom of it hit the woman in the temple knocking her out.
In the span of about two minutes, Lili had just taken out four high-level one adventurers by herself.
Something that another prum watching the war game took a great interest in.
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To those watching Karen, it looked like she was dancing. She easily swatted any attack that came her away. Her eyes were hard and focused and she parried and blocked each strike like it was nothing.
The man attacking her seemed to get more and more aggressive with his strikes. Trying anything he could to even land a hit on Karen.
His attacks became more sloppy and his breathing ragged. Yet he still persisted thinking if he could just score one hit he'd be able to win.
But as the fight wore on his breathing became more and more ragged. His attacks were so sloppy and predictable that even a five-year-old could dodge.
That's when Karen attacked. She thrusted her rapier five times in quick succession. All five of her strikes met flesh and the man was too tired to block any of them.
Two to the legs. Two to the shoulders and one to the gut. The man fell to the ground soon after that.
Karen then turned her attention over to Emma who was just finishing up her fight. Meanwhile, a certain elf watched in excitement and delight.
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Emma rushed forward to her two opponents each of her blades by her side. The distance between them was closed in a matter of seconds.
Her two opponents swung their blades down at her at the same time. Emma was quick to dodge but suffered a knick to her cheek.
She ignored it as she slashed at a woman's leg. The woman jumped out of the way but not fast enough suffering a similar knick to Emma.
The man then swung down at Emma. She was on the ground and supposedly vulnerable. Emma was quick to roll out of the way and this time she parried.
To her surprise it was successful and Emma was quickly on her feet again. But to her surprise, her two attackers were already on her.
Emma was now on the back foot as she parried and blocked as best she could. Lucky for her the armor Welf crafted was holding up well.
But it still hurt Emma to get hit nonetheless.
However, to Emma's luck, the man had fallen into one of the many spike pits she had helped dig. Taking some of the burden off her.
Emma was quick to parry the woman's strike. She thrusted forward with Gekka but the woman jumped back.
Emma stumbled a bit but quickly regained her footing. Emma wasn't quick enough to block the woman's slash but her armor absorbed most of the blow.
Emma grunted in frustration as her lack of experience was starting to weigh her down. Everyone else was doing good in their roles except her.
She pushed herself forward. Anger and frustration reinvigorating her. But she didn't let it control her actions.
She swung Gekka up making the lady focus on her left. Then slashed her other sword down at the lady's legs.
The woman was quick to dodge but Emma wasn't done. She quickly stabbed with Gekka trying to get the woman off balance.
Which was exactly what happened.
The woman landed on her foot wrong and rolled her ankle. That's when Gekka met her leg and drove itself into her.
She screamed in pain and dropped her weapon. Emma was quick to kick it away and make the woman surrender.
Emma let out a shaky breath as she almost bit off more than she could chew. She got cocky and nearly lost her battle.
She just hoped Bell was almost done with his.
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Bell and Hyakinthos had taken their fight elsewhere. Bell was worried about his familia but had faith in their abilities.
They had their job and he had his.
Hyakinthos slashed and aimed for Bell's face. Bell ducked and drove his fist into Hyakinthos's stomach.
The man hunched forward but pushed past the pain. He brought the pommel of his sword down and hit Bell in the head.
Bell was quick to jump back and had to lean back almost immediately. Hyakinthos's blade was right above his face.
Bell flipped back and kicked the sword up. Hyakinthos stumbled back slightly but Bell took this chance to get some distance and formulate a plan.
Hyakinthos had the advantage when it came to reach. His speed was also nothing to scoff at either but Bell knew he could take him.
Alise's skills he had inherited had most likely already activated. Giving him the extra push needed to be able to stand up to a level three.
Plus his breaking the stat ceiling helped as well.
Knowing he had to keep the distance between them close Bell charged forward again. Hyakinthos was ready as their blades clashed once more.
The two exchanged slashes, stabs, and thrusts yet neither was able to hit the other. It's not that they were evenly matched.
Far from it.
Hyakinthos was simply keeping Bell back thanks to his longer blade. He had more reach since Bell's sword was a short sword.
Part of Bell wanted to draw the cursed saber. That could close the gap between the two. But decided against it not knowing what it would do to him.
Hyakinthos shot forward and the sand beneath his feet disappeared. However, since he was moving faster than the rest of his familia the spike trap didn't work on him.
Bell spun on his heel and avoided the thrust from Hyakinthos. Bell slashed down aiming for his leg. But Hyakinthos kicked Bell in the face stopping that.
Bell stumbled back and spit out blood before locking blades with Hyakinthos. The two were face to face. One man's eyes were full of hatred while the others were laser focused.
Bell flexed his arms and began pushing down. He had taken Ratto's advice and focused more on upper body strength these last few months.
Hyakinthos started to lean back and Bell took this opportunity to elbow him in the nose again. Hyakinthos stumbled back and Bell was able to slash down his chest.
The wound opened and blood started seeping into his clothes. The man grunted in pain but didn't surrender.
He shot toward Bell with his sword swinging upwards. It bounced off Bell's chestplate and Bell once again elbowed him in the face.
By this point, Hyakinthos's nose was broken. Its crooked and grotesque shape made some spectators queasy.
Hyakinthos still fought however and Bell had to give him props for his tenacity. He wanted to end this fight quickly so he could go back home. He didn't want to be a part of the stupid Apollo familia.
But Hyakinthos refused to stay down.
Bell knew he could beat him. He just needed an extra push. Luckily for him, he had just the magic for it.
"AGARIS ALVESYNTH!" Bell chanted.
His body exploded into a white flame that surrounded and warmed him. Those watching looked on in shock.
Bell and the same magic as the old Astraea familia captain.
Before Hyakinthos could say anything Bell shot forward again. Bell's attacks were much faster this time. His sword appeared like a blip. There one second and somewhere else another.
Yet the Apollo captain persisted. However, it was clear to all who were watching that he was now on the back foot.
Bell was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Even though their blades kept meeting Hyakinthos was only able to block on pure instinct rather than sight.
Which eventually culminated into Bell slicing off the man's sword hard.
Hyakinthos screamed in pain as he held his stump. The wound was cauterized almost immediately since Bell had his magic activated.
His blade was inches away from Hyakinthos's neck and his eyes stared coldly at him. "Surrender," Bell demanded.
Hyakinthos gritted his teeth as his eyes looked over to his sword. Bell saw this and spoke again. "Don't, just surrender." He firmly told him.
For those few agonizing seconds, Orario watched with bated breath to see what would happen. Would Hyakinthos take the sword or surrender?
"I…I surrender." Hyakinthos said.
Bell took his sword away and shut off his magic. A horn sounded over Orario signaling the end of the war game and the victory of the Astraea familia.
Well, this took a while to come out. All I can really say was I was just in a slump and didn't feel like wiring much. Don't know why just happened.
Anyway sorry if the fights sucked I'm the best at them but I hoped they're alright.
But other than that the artillery worked and so did the spike traps.
But well now everyone knows about one of Bell's magic and everyone in the Astraea got their moment to shine.
Lili especially.
Well, that's all I really have to say. I'll see you guys later and I promise the next arc will be better action-wise.