"What...?" Eri asked if she heard that right.

"I said, what's your favorite food? You told me it was cheesecake, but that might've been another lie." Suzu repeated her question, sounding completely serious. "I didn't come here to kill some stranger, so I want to learn as much as I can of the real Eri."

But Eri wasn't gonna humor her. "Have you finally lost your marbles? Gloom Field." Eri summoned a black sandstorm that clouded Suzu's vision and assailed her ears.

"Hallowed Ground - Etherian Citadel." Suzu created a barrier that not only protected her and Inaba, it also had status cleansing aura in it. Too bad Suzu, her butterflies were being cut down, bu that wasn't get her down.

"So what's your favorite music? You said it was classical, but it kinda looks like punk rock right now!" Suzu shouted through the sandstorm.

"Would you cut that out! Now fire." After summoning the sandstorm, Eri had the corpse apostles circle Suzu and fired a simultaneous disintegration beam.

It hit, and Eri's grin dropped once she sees that Suzu was completely unharmed, and that her barrier was still standing. "I'm also confused, about something else..."

"Shut up! Scatterdust!" Eri tried disrupting the mana of the barrier and inside Suzu to end her...

"That won't work." Suzu muttered. Not only was her barrier intact, Suzu was creating even more. It gave her the chance to resume her question. "If you wanted to be in the popular clique, why did you become the librarian's assistant?"

"Maybe I just liked books!" Eri finally snapped and just answered out of reflex.

Suzu giggled at finally getting an answer. "See? That wasn't so hard. Now, dance my petals."

Suzu summoned back her cherry blossoms, and Eri countered by having her corpse apostles form some sort of disintegration barrier. Unfortunately for Eri, she wasn't Suzu's target.

"Stardust Flowers!" Every single one of Suzu's petal exploded, wiping out the corpse apostles.

"No...way..." Eri as stunned by the sight of her obliterated corpse apostles.

"Inaba, now!" That shock was the perfect moment for Inaba to hop in and used it's legs to start wailing at Eri. The necromancer tried to fly away, but she couldn't escape the flurry of kicks, and was getting trashed around like a ragdoll. Inaba wasn't too happy with Eri trying to off his master.

Inaba eventually broke Eri's sword and arm, the girl unleashed a disintegration blast, which made Inaba retreat back to Suzu, who was still in her perfectly fine barrier.

Eri was grinding her teeth and punching the ground. "WHY!? WHY WHY WHYYY!? I HAVE A NEW BODY, NEW CORPSES, NEW POWERS! WHY AM I LOSING TO YOU!? IT'S NOT EVEN THAT DAMN MONSTER NAGUMO!"

"Eri, you're just not as strong you think." Suzu bluntly stated, earning a glare from her former best friend. "You're only part apostle, Seiji was in the body of a pure apostle."

"ARE YOU SAYING I'M INFERIOR!?" Eri couldn't stand the fact that Suzu of all people was looking down on her.

"Eri, you've never even picked up a sword before." Suzu casually reminded. "Seiji had Noel's muscle memory to-"

"SHUT UP!" Eri was pulling her hair while screaming. "WHAT ARE YOU SO SMUG ABOUT?! YOU WERE NOTHING BUT MY TOOL! YOU'RE AN IDIOTIC, SHALLOW, STUPID FOOL, I USED YOU AND DUMPED YOU WHEN YOU BECAME USELESS!"

"Yeah, but I kinda used too, so it's fine." Suzu admitted, not the slightest bit fazed by Eri's insults.

"Huh...?"

"You're right, I was a shallow idiot that just kept smiling at everything. I was trying live what I thought was a perfect live, that included having someone play the role of my "best friend", you." Suzu couldn't help but laugh at her old self. "I called you my best friend, but I didn't even know where you lived."

"What...what...are you talking about!? You think I care!? I only need Kouki and nothing else!"

"Yeah, about that, I've been meaning to ask, but why exactly do you like Kouki?"

"..." For once, Eri didn't scream at Suzu's question, but she did look a bit nervous.

"And how come you were so intent on not going to your home? Are you having problems at home? Did Kouki help you with them? Is it the prince charming effect that Nagumo talked about?" Suzu just casually kept asking the personal questions.

As she did, Eri just remained stone faced, until. "...SHUT UPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!"

There was suddenly a bright light coming from behind Suzu. She turned around and sees a magic circle constructed by feathers. "When did she-"

"Should've kept your mouth shut, now die!" After the circle was activated, monsters came pouring in.

"Oh no, Inaba, deal with the circle!" Following her command, Inaba hopped off, easily kicking through the horde of monsters.

"Was it wise to be separated from little bunny?" Eri taunted. She had gathered what leftover corpse apostles she had, preparing to fire a disintegration bea-

SPLURT

Eri thought she heard something pop, and turns to see one of the corpse apostle's suddenly headless and falls to the ground.

"What...?"

Eri then a black streak dash by her, following the streak, she saw it go right through the heads of her corpse apostles one by one. Until finally...

"GAAHHHHHHH!" Eri howled in pain as something goes straight through her stomach. "A...spear...? Ack!"

The spear flew out of Eri's wound and goes back to it's owner, Suzu. "It's a gift...from Reichii."

Reiichii Kondo, the classmate that Eri killed, and then was revived along with Seiji. After that night, he had pushed his training into overdrive, in the hopes of being strong enough to exact revenge on Eri.

Unfortunately, that training was not enough, Reiichii had no problems admitting he would be no more than a hindrance if he went to the sanctuary. So he entrusted his revenge to Suzu. Being a dragoon, Reiichii's signature was a spear, that's why Hinata had made that spear solely for this revenge.

"It works the same way as Shizushizu's swords." Suzu started walking closer.

"S-Stay back!" Eri started huddling away, for the first time in this world, she finally true fear. "Why are things like this...?"

"This is it Er-"

"RAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

The two girls suddenly hear a familiar cry. "Is that Kouki?"

"Kouki...?" Eri suddenly forgot about her recent feeling, and immediately changed her main focus. "I'm coming!"

Despite her injuries Eri forced her wings to take to the air, not caring about anything.

"Eri!" Suzu wanted to give chase, but Eri's monster horde still stood. "Crap!"

A few minutes ago.

It was looking bad, there was still a handful of corpse apostles. And Kouki's control over the dragon has increased, not only was the large one back, it's little clones were also present. Those little pests were swallowing Shizuku's onyx blades one by one, both Seiryu and Suzu's familiars were getting tired.

"Take this!" Ryutaro threw a punch that Kouki easily dodged.

"I can read your every move." The mini dragons were about blast Ryutaro, who at first wanted to dodge but realized that Shizuku was behind him.

So he had no choice to tank the blast for a while. "Shizuku, watch out!"

Once Shizuku was out of the way, Ryutaro managed to get out of the blasting range, albeit with badly burned arms. "Fuck! You lined us up on purpose!"

"It's not hard to lure you all to move the exact way I want you to."

"Tch, where was this competence before?" Kaori said as she flew down and healed Ryutaro. "Anyway, time for our comeback!"

""Yeah!"" Shizuku and Ryutaro raised their weapons.

"Honestly." Kouki exasperated. "My stats are way higher than you guys, you can't-"

"""SHUT THE FUCK UP FOR ONCE!""" All three shouted in unison.

""Supreme Ascendance!"" Kaori and Shizuku used the same spell, Evolution magic that surpassed Limiter Removal. In Kaori's case, she had casted it on herself and Seiryu.

"Fusion transformation - Wereogre!" Combining his transformation, Ryutaro was now a werewolf with the large build and horns of an ogre.

"First, let's get rid of those pesky corpse apostles." At blinding speed, one which Kouki could not get a glimpse on, the three of them went up to the sky. The remaining corpse apotles were either crushed or sliced into pieces.

"Now for those annoying and lame dragons, I'll handle the big one." Seiryu dove straight at the dragon like an arrow. The dragon of course reacted by firing at them.

But they didn't even try to dodge it, Kaori simply created a barrier around them, and went right into the blast. The barrier withstood the attack, and as they get closer, Kaori swings her axe which destroys the dragon's head.

But then Seiryu's speed immediately started to drop, and the hyveria makes a not so soft landing on a pile of rubble. Their power ups were great, but their time was very limited, especially for Kaori, who used it on herself and Seiryu.

Kaori got off her mount, and returned him into the familiar holding artifact Hinata gave them. "Thanks Seiryu, now it's their turn."

As his dragons were being destroyed one by one, Kouki desperately fired slashes of light. "I'm sick of these games!"

"Well I'm sick of your bullshit." Kouki can hear Ryutaro, but he couldn't see him, until it was too late...

Ryutaro appeared near him, and with all his might landed a powerful punch right into Kouki's gut. The hero staggered while coughing blood, but Ryutaro still wasn't done and lands a palm push.

Kouki tries to get up-

"Don't even bother." Before he can even turn around, Shizuku zips forward pass him after doing her strike.

Kouki immediately checked his body, but found no cuts. At first he thought it was sign. "Shizuku, you finally-"

"Check again." The swordmaster didn't even turn around.

Inspecting his body again, Kouki finds a disturbing revelation. "My...mana... I can't feel it..."

The remaining dragons and his Limit Break soon disappeared. Kouki fell on all fours panicking. "Shizuku...what did you do to me!?"

Shizuku and Ryutaro's power up also disappeared, and Kaori joined them. Shizuku finally turns around her eyes devoid of any sympathy. "Did you know Spirit Magic can alter a person's mana?"

Her sword, which was enchanted with Spirit Magic had the ability to cut any non physical aspect of a person, their mana, their stamina, everything. "I just needed to cut you off your mana supply, along with your Spirit Bind. I cut only what I needed to cut."

"It can't be...it can't be...it can't be..."

"Hm, did I not cut completely through it? You seem to still be daydreaming." Shizuku walked closer to the boy.

Kouki looked up with pleading eyes. "Shizuku! Y-You still care about me right!? That's why you didn't try to kill me right!?"

"Kouki..."

"A-And nether did Kaori or Ryutaro, don't worry, I'll save you, I'll save-"

"Idiot!" Shizuku performed another slash, with a bit more force this time. "There! No more excuse, now wake up!"

"Yeah man, we gotta go help Nagumo!" Ryutaro added.

Kaori just shrugged. "I still think we should just kill him."

Kouki was still trembling on the ground, completely freaking out. Nobody on earth would ever recognize this as the popular Kouki Amanogawa . "T-There's no way I would try to kill my friends...I must've been brainwashed! Yeah that's it! After all, I-I always fight for justice, but then...why! Why did they all leave me for Nagumo, Kaori, Seiji, Shizuku, and now even Ryutaro..."

Kouki couldn't listen to Shizuku and Ryutaro calling out his name. Kouki even started to to claw the ground until his fingernails broke.

"T-There's no way I'm the bad guy, it was all Nagumo's fault, because of her, everyone...EVERYONE BETRAYED ME!"

Kouki got up, his face filled with sorrow under a layer of anger. A huge amount of mana covered him, it started to take form, but instead of a dragon, it was more of a humanoid giant "THIS ISN'T HOW THINGS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE! IF THAT'S THE CASE, I'LL JUST DESTROY EVERYTHING WITH MY OWN TWO HANDS!"

"What the hell!? Shizuku, I thought you cut off his mana!"

"I did! He must be using something else." Shizuku then realized. "I think...he might be using his life force."

"What!?" Ryutaro gasped.

"Oh no, what a shame, hehe." Kaori sarcastically said while trying not to laugh.

"Like hell, I'm just gonna let you kill yourself! We've gone too far." Ryutaro declared.

Shizuku agreed wholeheartedly. "Yeah, now snap out of it!"

As for Kaori...she simply sighed. "Fine, here have some mana."

She gave her remaining mana to Ryutaro and Shizuku, the gesture was definitely only about helping her friends and surviving this. Kaori still couldn't care about wether the whiny asshole lived or not.

Ryutaro cracked his knuckles as walked closer to Kouki, which seems to make the hero even more scared. "Stay back, I said STAY BACK!"

Out of fear, Kouki swung down his sword down, firing the Divine Wrath. He expected Ryutaro to dodge it, but the monk simply kept walking and-

"Come, mighty tree of the abyss, Treant!" After his transformation, his arms were thick and strong tree trunks, his eyes and mouth were holes on a wooden head that branches growing on it.

A first glance, this transformation didn't have much use. Wood wasn't as durable as ogre skin, and it was very weak to fire. Not to mention this form made him very slow. But the one power a Treant had that made Ryutaro wanted transform into it, is that it can absorb light, Kouki's main affinity.

At a slow pace, Ryutaro makes his forward, powering through the Divine Wrath. His new form might be absorbing the light, but he was still receiving the full force of the attack, meaning he still takes damage. And yet, Ryutaro didn't show any sign of feeling pain.

Ryutaro was eventually close enough to just grab the sword and throw it away. Despite that, Kouki still had that giant with him, and the pathetic guy looked even more scared. "S-Stay away...! I-I-I'll kill you for real!"

Ryutaro just laughed at the empty threat. "Hah! So you weren't trying to kill me earlier?"

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Kouki's anguish filled scream acted like a trigger for the giant to bring down it's fist right onto Ryutaro.

At that moment, Kouki had truly thought he killed his friend right then and there. "Wh-What have I do-"

"Oh please!" Kaori shouted. "Don't think for a second that you've accomplished anything!"

"Huh?" Hearing that, Kouki looked forward and saw that the giant's fist never made contact with the ground, because Ryutaro stopped it. The monk was back in his human form, and held up the giant's fist with one hand. "How...?"

"Heh, you kidding me? You actually think that pansy ass attack like that was gonna kill me?" Ryutaro pounded his chest. "I ain't dying till I drag you back where you belong."

"W-Why would you go so far..?"

"Why? Because your my friend idiot!"

"Friend...?"

"Look at Nagumo, she's a teenage girl challenging a god to help Akira."

Kouki looked down, finally seeming to calm-

"Take this sucka!" Shizuku came with another spirit slice, getting rid of the giant.

Kouki fell onto all his fours again, but this time he wasn't freaking o-

"Grit your teeth, you son of a bitch!"

Before he knew it, Kouki felt a strong impact hit his cheek that made him fall to the ground. He then sees Shizuku, looking extremely pissed as she raises hair hand and brings down a powerful slap onto Kouki's other cheek, she the gave another and another.

"This is for the mess you caused! This is for not listening to me! This is for being such a whiner!..." Shizuku kept listing things off reasons for each slap, and all Kouki could do was feel the pain.

"W-Wai-"

"Screw waiting! I've been patient with you for over a decade! If words ain't gonna cut it, then it's time for violence!"

At some point, Kaori had joined in pummeling him, but not utter a single word from her mouth that had a very large smile.

"This isn't how it's supposed to be? Of course not! That's not how life works, we can't choose how it goes! Whatever life throws at us, we just need to suck it up, like getting transported here! So stop being a spoiled brat that just ignores anything he doesn't like!"

Once the slapping onslaught had stopped, Shizuku pulls on Kouki's neck. "And don't even think I'm just gonna let you die without owning up to your mistakes! You're coming home with us, then I'll make sure your parents learn to be more strict with you."

Kouki remained silent for a while before opening his mouth again. "You...don't love me do you...?"

"No, I love Kaori." Shizuku stated.

"And you're way below her league." Kaori added.

"Not now, babe."

"Then...why, why didn't you abandoned me?"

Kaori crossed her arms. "Don't look at me, I still want to chop off your head right now, these two are the ones that want to help you."

Shizuku sweatdropped at her girlfriend's remark. "Anyway, as for me, I wanted to help you because my friend."

"!?"

"We trained at the same dojo together, that makes you family." Shizuku smiles. "You're like my annoying little brother."

After hearing their simple reasons of why they went through so much to save him, Kouki couldn't believe it, but all of his ambitions of saving the world and becoming a hero felt so...unimportant.

Soon, tears were dropping from his eyes. "I...I'm so sorrrrryyyy!"

This realization unleashed a flood of guilt and shame. It was so bad that he wanted to kill himself right then and there. But since he was finally listening to his friends, he knew that would defeat the whole purpose.

All in all, finding out how much his friends cared for him, also filled him with a new determination. "You're right! I won't die. I need to fin-"

"WHAT ARE YOU SMILING ABOUT!?" Kaori shouted while interrupting Kouki's declaration with a foot to the face.

After falling to the ground, Kouki whimpers at the sight of Kaori's face, which is a much understandable reason.

"These two might've given you pity, but don't think you're getting any of that crap from me, asshole!" Kaori spat. "You're lucky we've got more important things to do. But after all this, I'll make sure you never experience happiness again! So enjoy your last moments of joy!"

"...Yes...Mam..." Kouki squeaked. And it wasn't just him, Kaori also struck fear to the other two.

"Who knew Kaori had so much rage in her..."

"That's...that's my girlfriend...hehe..."

After that, things did calm down, and they were about go join Suzu, but...

"Brr, I just felt a chill up my spine. Wait." Knowing the cause, they turn around and found it.

"Eri..." The girl was so injured that she looked like one of her undeads. She didn't even pay any attention to Suzu, who caught up to her.

"Why...?" Eri's pupil shrank, as she began spiraling. "Why are you talking to them? Why do look so happy? Aren't they the ones that betrayed you? Why...?"

"Eri... I'm sorry, I can't fight against them anymore, I finally realized I was in the wrong side..."

"What was that...? What was that? What was that? What was that? What was that? What was that? What was that?..." She just kept repeating the same words.

"E-Eri! Please just listen to- Ack!" Kaori kicked Kouki in the face to cut him off.

"Hold on, something's wrong!"

"Uhh, you didn't have to kick him." Ryutaro pointed out.

"I know, but still, look!"

Blinding light started coming out from Eri, the trio felt as they were seeing Eri's distorted and crazy emotions. "Liar..."

"Her mana's going crazy! She's gonna blow herself up!"

"Guys!" Suzu, who was rushing towards her raised her fans, and then-

BOOOOM

In a vast pure white space, only two people stood. One was Suzu Taniguci, and the other, Eri Nakamura.

"Eri..."

"Suzu..."

The two spent some time staring at each other, before Eri finally opened her mouth. "Is this...the after life...? It should be considering I blew myself up."

"So we're dead...Well, at least I made a barrier for everyone." Suzu said, relieved that her friends aren't here.

"Tch, I wanted to kill you all." Eri expressed her regret.

"Yeah, and I wanted to live." Suzu retorted. "Well, while we're here, I have some to say, Eri."

"What?"

"It's really gross how you're a necrophiliac." Suzu flatly stated.

And for once, Eri actually seemed offended by an insult. "Oh yeah? Then what about you? You brought all those icky bugs!"

"Well...well.. I at least I don't go acting mature when I'm actually not!"

"At least I'm not someone, who just smiles and laughs my problems away!"

They just kept hurling insults at each other, pointing put each other's worst qualities. And yet, while they did it, they were smiling the whole time. When they finally ran out of insults, cracks started to appear in the white space.

"Well, looks like our time here is done."

"Yeah...what a shame." Suzu said with tears on her eyes.

"Cut that out...we both know I'm the only one dying here." Eri knew it the moment they got here. She didn't know how this was possible, but considering she herself was part apostle, and the fact they were in a world made by a crazy ass god, there wasn't any point in asking.

"Honestly, cut it with the tears, don't cry over a crazy bitch that tried to kill you." Eri sternly said. "Go make new friends, ones that are better than me, which ain't that hard."

"But-"

"I mean it! Stop being so clingy! Weren't you trying to kill me anyway?"

"Yeah..."

"..." Eri gave a small side glance as she recalls something. "Maybe if I met you on the bridge that night, my life would have been different."

"Bridge? Eri, did you.." Suzu stopped herself, seeing their time was about to end, rather than probing about Eri's past, Suzu decided to say something else. "Eri! Even if it wasn't real, I really enjoyed our times as friends!"

Hearing that Eri flashes a smiles, not one filled with perversion or malice, but one full of joy. "Yeah, my time with you wasn't all that bad..."

With that, the world fades...

Suzu woke up with tears flowing down her face, she was surrounded by her friends, who had been worried sick. Kaori was using up as many healing power she had left. Suzu looks down on her fans, which were very much, they must've absorbed most of the blast.

"You okay?"

After Kouki asked that, Suzu simply got up...and punched him in the face, earning a laugh from Kaori.

"Idiot." Suzu then walked forward. "Come on guys, we gotta go help Nagumo!"

Seeing her like this, the group's concerns were gone in an instant. But there was another problem...

"Um, about that, the clock tower that had the portal kinda got destroyed." Shizuku explained.

"Gee, I wonder how that happened." Kaori gave a short glare at a frightened Kouki. "But this place is consisted of multiple worlds, so there should be another way."

"Then we'll find it, let's go!" They followed Suzu's lead. And as they do other fateful battles were occuring.

I don't know if I've been obvious with this story or not, but I'm not a really big fan of Suzu. Mostly because in the original story, she actually said she would go against Hajime to help Eri. It might sound sweet for her to stand up for Eri, but honestly it felt more like she was ungrateful to Hajime, who Suzu kept begging to over and over again.