Chapter 192

CHAPTER 27 The Power of the Holy Sword “R-Rista, is he dead?” Lagos sheds one final tear as he passes. It probably wasn’t because he was physically in pain. He continued to worry about the future between dragonewts and humans, despite being treated like a traitor. I suddenly get the urge to start crying as well. Even Rosalie seems to have been touched by Lagos’s sincere feelings. She wears a pained expression and mutters: “I never knew such a dragonewt existed on Gaeabrande.” We all lower our gazes amid the gloomy atmosphere—all of us but Seiya, who casually walks over to Lagos’s body at a brisk pace. “Its status confirms it’s dead, but I should double-check just to make sure.” “Seiya, no… Lagos wasn’t even our enemy, so I don’t think you need to check that carefully…” Even after having said that, Seiya still crouches before Lagos and begins searching his entire body. H-he’s not going to use Hellfire on the body like he always does…right? Have some common sense, Seiya! My heart nervously pounds as I watch Seiya until he suddenly stands back up. “Everyone, start running. Now.” Seiya vanishes into thin air in the blink of an eye. “D-did you just turn invisible?! Why?!” “Turn invisible and start running, too. We’ll meet up at the chapel entrance.” Seiya’s voice slowly fades into the distance as if he is talking while running toward the entrance…but why?! Regardless, I turn invisible and head for the entrance. After everyone else turns invisible, it’s impossible to tell who is where. I timidly head toward shadows behind the debris near the entrance when I suddenly bump into something massive. “Ouch!” “That voice… Rista?! Watch where you’re going!” “I can’t see things that are invisible! What the hell are you doing just standing there anyway?!” “Cerceus, Rista, shut up. Is Rosalie here, too?” “Yes! I am right by your side!” “Anyway, Seiya, what was the point of all this?” “Another dragonewt might come to make sure Lagos is dead, too.” “What?! You think they would really do that? How would they even know Lagos d—” But Rosalie cuts me off. “Look! There’s a bright light glowing by the body!” The blinding light shoots out of the ground near Lagos’s body, rich with mana. “N-no way! Is that a teleportation circle?! Someone really is coming?!” When the radiant light fades, I notice someone near Lagos’s body and immediately shudder. My voice trembles: “M-M-Mash…!” His overpowering ambition and intimidating aura fill the space between us. The Mash I saw in my vision is standing right before us. The invasion of Nakashi Village I saw probably happened a few years ago, and yet his appearance seems to have hardly changed, if at all. The only difference is that the crest of the dragon is even bigger than before, covering most of his arms and legs like a tattoo. “What?! Rista, that’s Mash?! I barely recognize him! He’s covered in tattoos now, to boot!” “That’s the crest of the dragon. It does look like a tattoo, though.” While Cerceus is taken aback by Mash’s complete transformation, there’s something that surprises me even more. “Hey, Seiya? How did you know Mash was coming?” “I found this in Lagos’s pocket.” A red jewel suddenly floats before my eyes. The invisible Hero is showing me a cracked red brooch. “Use Appraise on it.” “O-okay.” The ability begins explaining the item to me. “This is a notification brooch. They come as a pair: one blue and one red, but both are packed with mana. If you place a blue brooch on a map, it’ll give you a rough idea where the holder of the red brooch is. Then…” The explanation isn’t over yet, but I suddenly hear Seiya’s voice near my ear. “Mash thought Lagos was trying to rebel against him, so he must have been keeping Lagos under surveillance even after exiling him from Bahamutros.” “It’s like a GPS tracker!” “It’s even more complex than that. This notification brooch has another feature. When its owner dies, the blue brooch simultaneously cracks.” “So this brooch sensed Lagos’s death and notified Mash?” “Exactly. Of course, I didn’t know exactly who would come…but I predicted it could be Mash himself, since generals and high-level monsters have suddenly appeared before in the other high-ranking parallel worlds.” Hmm…I guess that means Seiya’s caution actually did save us from Mash finding us. We wouldn’t have turned invisible and run away otherwise. Rosalie’s right. Seiya’s actions are usually correct. After rethinking my feelings about Seiya’s cautiousness once again, I suddenly hear a chilling voice in the distance. I promptly look in the direction of the voice—in Mash’s direction—and watch. “Lagos, come on. Did you really die?” Mash hangs his head over Lagos’s body. He seems to be mourning his death. “Huh. I thought Mash turned into some evil monster, but he still has a heart,” mutters Cerceus with relief. H-he has a point! He has deep-seated hatred for humans and demons, but he still has love for his own kind! Maybe we can talk to him and work things out, after all! But the moment that thought crosses my mind, Mash lifts his right foot high into the air and stomps. The chapel ground cracks with a roar as Lagos’s skull shatters along with it. “Hyah-ha-ha-ha! I guess this is what happens when you’re a traitor! You should have died a long time ago!” “Rista?! He just crushed that dragonewt’s skull with his foot!” “Y-yeah! And he even did a ‘hyah-ha-ha’ laugh, too!” “Rista, Cerceus, calm down. Your invisibility is wearing off.” ““What?!”” Cerceus and I glance at each other and jump…because we can now faintly see the outlines of each other’s bodies, despite being completely invisible a second ago! S-shit! Focus, Rista! Focus! After Cerceus and I take in a deep breath and manage to clear our minds, we turn completely invisible once again. “Don’t watch if you have a faint heart,” warns Seiya in almost a reprimanding manner. “S-Seiya, did you not feel anything when you saw that?!” asks Cerceus. “I thought, ‘Hey, he’s stepping on a head.’ That’s it.” “I see…” How does nothing faze him?! I’m so envious of his personality! “That is the cold-blooded tyrant—the Dragon Lord, Mash Dragonight,” exclaims Rosalie’s solemn voice by my side. I swallow my breath while watching Mash. He cackles as he continues to kick Lagos’s body. His incredibly powerful blows squish it until it is nothing more than a pile of viscera. Each kick slightly alters the shape of the fleshy mound. Eeeeeek! He’s laughing while kicking a dead body!! “Th-that is so messed up!” “Hmm…” The unbelievably cruel sight sends shivers down Cerceus’s spine. Even Seiya appears to be disgusted. “I can’t see Mash’s status screen. Maybe he’s using Protect.” I guess not, then! Seiya was just trying to check out Mash’s stats! I’m beginning to think there’s something wrong with this Hero, too! “Our mission was to gather information on Mash through your psychometry, but he seems to be absorbed in kicking that dead body… Which means…” After a few moments of silence, Seiya issues a brief order: “Rosalie, slit Mash’s throat.” Whaaaaaat?! But Rosalie mirthfully replies: “I get to avenge my father with my own two hands! Hero, you have my eternal gratitude!” “Good. Now go.” “I will not fail you!” Only silence reigns over the village. I can’t see Rosalie due to her invisibility, but I’m guessing she’s tiptoeing toward Mash. I whisper to Seiya: “Uh… Shouldn’t you be the one doing this?” “And what if Mash notices?” “Y-your invisibility is perfect, though!” “The faint sound of footsteps, the vibrations in the air—there are various ways he could notice, despite not being able to see me with the naked eye. He might be able to see with the eyes of his mind, through some spell, or even with some sort of item. In the end, all I know is what some perverted old man in the underworld told me, and I don’t trust him.” Slauri gave us some of his aura, and this is how he speaks of him?! “In addition, there is no way to heal a wound made by Igzasion. Even if it isn’t Chain Destruction, who knows what will happen if you or Cerceus are fatally stabbed? Therefore, it is only natural I sent Rosalie, since it doesn’t matter if she dies.” Oh. I guess Seiya’s just watching out for us. But I still can’t help feeling bad for Rosalie… I worry about her welfare, but Mash is still absorbed in stomping on Lagos’s corpse. She has probably already unsheathed her sword and is closing in on Mash from behind. Y-yeah! Who cares if it’s cowardly if we end up fixing Gaeabrande’s distortion! That’s all that matters. My heart hammers against my chest as I wait for Mash’s assassination, but right as I focus my eyes on him, I see something that shouldn’t even be possible. Wh-what is that?! Before I even realized it, there was a redheaded woman wearing a light-pink dress standing behind Mash. “Mash, someone’s coming.” I can hear her whisper into Mash’s ear, despite being really far away. Mash immediately stops kicking the corpse, unsheathes his sword, and thrusts the rainbow-glittering blade into the ground. “Igzasion! Deactivate the enemy’s ability!” The rainbow light emitting from the sword expands around him like a ripple in the water, instantly revealing Rosalie, who is almost right behind him! “Hmph… If it isn’t Rosalie Roseguard!” Still holding Igzasion, Mash furiously glares at Rosalie. She promptly steps back and creates some distance between them after realizing she was both visible and not close enough to strike. “Tsk.” Seiya clicks his tongue. The mission failed, putting us in an extremely dangerous situation. Mash’s move exposed not only Rosalie but every one of us—even Seiya! Perhaps he noticed Rosalie glancing in Seiya’s direction for further instructions, because Mash turns his gaze to us as well. “There’s more of ’em. Your bizarre move caught me off guard, but your tricks are meaningless before Igzasion.” There is a decent amount of distance between us, and yet Cerceus keeps backpedaling as if he were being glared at by a snake. “Er…! You’ve gotta be kidding me! Igzasion can even do that?!” “Yes, I was slightly surprised as well. Not about our invisibility being removed but his timing of the move.” “G-good point! How did he notice that Rosalie was behind him?!” “Rosalie was being extremely careful while approaching him as well. Perhaps he has a sixth sense of some sort.” “…Huh?” Something isn’t right. Neither Cerceus nor Seiya has noticed the woman by Mash’s side. “W-wait. Can you guys not see the—huh?!” But Mash is the only one in the direction I’m pointing. D-did she disappear?! “Mmm… I can’t use Invisibility. It appears Igzasion’s powers are still in effect.” Seiya sounds like he didn’t even notice the woman, and he wouldn’t joke at a time like this. In other words, I’m the only one who saw her. Wh-what was she, then?! An illusion?! There’s no time to wonder about an illusion right now, though. Mash glares at Rosalie while emitting an overpowering aura. “Long time no see, Rosalie Roseguard. I haven’t seen you since…that day, huh?” “Dragon Lord…Mash Dragonight…!” Not to be outdone, Rosalie glares right back at him with hatred burning in her eye. “You’re mad. I guess I don’t blame you, though. I did beat your dad to death, after all. But I’m angry, too, you know? I never thought humans and demons would survive this long when I let you escape,” groans Mash while crushing Lagos’s now-sludgy remains with his foot. “It’s a bad habit of mine. Killing you on the spot that day instead of messing around would have saved me a lot of trouble. After all, there would have never been a town where both demons and humans live side by side inside some magic barrier, otherwise.” He then leans Igzasion against his shoulder while slowly approaching Rosalie. She adjusts her stance and gets ready for battle, but… “Rosalie, fall back. We’re retreating for now.” “Y-yes, sir!” Seiya gave orders for her to retreat. Thank goodness! I totally thought he was going to make her fight! “Rista, open a gate to Iglu. Make sure to put it somewhere in the rubble where Mash can’t see it.” “Okay!” Rosalie and Mash have enough distance between them, and Rosalie is no ordinary person. She should be able to make it back to us if she puts everything she has into escaping. Mash probably understands that as well because he doesn’t even move while he watches Rosalie turn her back to him and run. But all of a sudden, Mash vanishes into thin air! And when he reappears, he is already right behind Rosalie with his sword raised! “Rosalie, watch out!” I shout. Rosalie swings her sword behind her back, which is immediately followed by the sound of flesh being carved through. Rosalie’s severed arm, still holding her sword, flies into the air. “Eep?!” pathetically squeals Cerceus. “Oops. Clumsy me. I was trying to cut off your head, but it looks like I got your arm instead… Hold on. Oh. You’re right. I shouldn’t have stabbed her in the eye. I should have cut off her limbs, then tortured her. All right. That’s what I’m gonna do today.” “Gwah…!” Rosalie’s lips twist in agony as blood sprays from her severed arm. I shake Seiya by the shoulders. “Seiya! This is bad!” “Yes, he instantly closed the distance between them. I could barely even see him move. Not only can he neutralize abilities, but his extreme speed is a mystery to me as well. This is bad.” “No, not that! I’m talking about Rosalie! She needs help!” “Rista, let’s go.” “What?!” “Mash’s powers are still unknown. It’s too dangerous to approach him.” Seiya then walks to the gate I made as if nothing were wrong. He places a hand on the door and begins to open it when… “D-don’t tell me you plan on abandoning Rosalie?!” “I do.” “No! We can’t do that!” “Rista, wait. Where do you think you’re going?” The fact that she was an illusion completely slipped my mind the moment I saw her lose an arm and get in trouble. I desperately rush to help her, no longer listening to anything Seiya has to say. “Rosalie, are you okay?!” “Goddess…! Stop… You must go…!” But Mash seems to be exercising caution after my sudden appearance, seeing as he doesn’t even approach us, so I use this moment to cast Heal on her wound. I can stop the bleeding, but her cells aren’t regenerating! “You a healer? You’re wasting your time. You can’t regenerate anything cut by Igzasion, thanks to its ability, Crushing Wound. Not even the reaper Thanatos was a match for it.” Mash begins walking toward me with his sword soaked in Rosalie’s blood. I’m terrified, but a crimson trail of light suddenly slips in front of me. Now standing between Mash and me is Seiya, transformed into a berserker. “Seiya!!” “I honestly can’t understand why you did that. Why would you put yourself in danger for an illusion?” grumbles Seiya while he gets into stance with his sword to protect Rosalie and me. “Oh? Looks like there’s still someone with some balls around here.” Seiya and Mash stand face-to-face. I hide behind Seiya while asking Mash: “H-hey… Are you really Mash?” “Huh? What the hell does that mean? You don’t know me.” “I’m the Goddess Ristarte, and I know you very well! You and I went on an adventure with this Hero when you were younger! We were friends!” “‘Hero’?” He glares at Seiya with a piercing gaze and almost immediately frowns. “Shut your mouth, you lunatic!” “Wh-who are you calling a lunatic?!” “You. Regardless of who he is, how could we be friends if we just met today?” “We didn’t just meet today, though! We were friends in another world!” Seiya chimes in: “Technically, you just carried my stuff.” “…?! Bag carriers aren’t friends, dammit!” shouts Mash before striking the ground with Igzasion. H-huh? The way he reacted kind of reminded me of Mash…but that feeling is short-lived. Mash’s eyes are already dark pools of emptiness once again. “What the hell…? Talking to you two is throwing me off. Killing you should solve that problem, though.” “Rista, stand back.” Just when Seiya and Mash are about to clash… “Waaaaaaaaaaaait!!” A deep voice echoes from the half-destroyed chapel. But when I look over, I gasp. Because it’s Cerceus in an apron with his arms crossed while standing in front of a table covered with a white cloth.