LEO sharply inhaled. “…Aki, did you just mention the Book of Creation?” he asked, not hiding his shock in the middle of her summarizing what happened.
She stared back at him wide-eyed as if she didn’t understand why he was so unsettled by that particular piece of information. “I did. A Shadow Tribesman going by the name Jent Sutcliff was waving it around. From what I gather, the Dark Lord asked him to hand the book over to Elias, triggering everything that went wrong today…”
According to Aki, the Shadow Tribesman had tricked Mina into accepting this Quest in order to lure Elias into the underground lake hidden deep within the Ancient Ruins where he could give him the Book of Creation from the Dark Lord.
And when Elias tried to accept the Book of Creation from Sutcliff, the Shadow Tribesman kidnapped Aki, hurt her, and summoned a magical beast to hinder Elias’s rescue attempt. Pushed to the edge, Elias awakened a great power that caused him to lose his mind when that crest of the sun formed on his forehead.
A lot of complicated things went down before getting to this point, but the Book of Creation concerned Leo the most. After all, that was the sacred scripture detailing the Hero and Dark Lord’s War that Leo had been researching for years.
“Hey, Aki, did that Shadow Tribesman really have the Book of Creation on him? There should only be one copy in the entire world, and it’s under strict lockdown inside Sanctuary walls. How did a member of the Shadow Tribe get a hold of it?” he pressed, leaning closer to her.
“…Only one?” Aki’s eyes wavered with uncertainty. “Oh, that reminds me! Sutcliff said his was a copy of the real Book of Creation. I didn’t pay the comment much attention at the time, but it makes sense now.”
Leo rubbed his chin between his thumb and index finger and contemplated what she said.
A copy, huh? Could there have been a duplicate out there all along? Seems like the Shadow Tribe has had access to the Book of Creation for hundreds of years now. No wonder the Dark Lord is just as knowledgeable about the war as Johann is.
The Dark Lord had learned the truth about the world by getting his hands on the Book of Creation, putting him on the same page as the Sanctuary in the knowledge department. Considering he suggested that the Hero and Dark Lord work together against the Goddess, there had to be some obstacle either party couldn’t overcome alone.
Hence why he wanted Elias to have a copy—to catch the Hero side up to speed.
It’s not under the best circumstances, but I’ll finally get a look at the Book of Creation I gave up on ever seeing. Leo’s heart frolicked with his brimming curiosity. Though there’s no guarantee I’ll get my hands on it since Aki said Sutcliff vanished somewhere after Elias snapped.
Aki stared into space as she recalled her conversation with the Shadow Tribesman. “…Sutcliff made it sound like he was purposely trying to draw that tremendous power out of Elias. He told Elias he’d only hand over the Book of Creation if he awakened the power slumbering within.”
“Good to know…”
In other words, the Dark Lord’s side required Elias to awaken the monstrous power inside and tame it before they were willing to cooperate with the Hero’s side.
That’s even more of a reason for me to punch some sense into him until he gains control of his power.
Leo looked at Aki sitting nervously across from him, waiting for him to comment. “Thanks, Aki. I’ve got a pretty good idea of what happened. So here’s what I suggest we do next. Rescuing Mina and Louis comes first. We’ll have to go down to the lake again and fend off Elias’s attacks until we can escape back here with them.”
“Okay.” Aki nodded, determination burning in her brown eyes.
“Once we’re back here—hopefully in one piece—we’ll toss every potion we have at ‘em to heal their wounds. They not only took a direct hit from Elias, but were buried underneath a ton of rocks, so I fear their injuries could be severe. I seriously hope they’re alive…” his voice trailed off.
Leo was positive he saw Louis cast a defense spell right before Elias’s blades crashed into them. Hopefully the spell mitigated the damage, but Elias had the strength of a level 99+ Hero with epic gear, so it was hard to know if Louis’s spell did any good.
They wouldn’t be hurtin’ if I had successfully blocked Elias’s attack… Regret over his powerlessness wouldn’t release its hold on him. Protecting the Hero from his enemies was his duty as a member of the Hero Party, but it was also his duty to stop the Hero from taking the wrong path.
Leo shook his head, smacked his hands against his thighs, and lifted his chin.
“I also sent Johann a distress message requestin’ his help.”
“You did?!” Aki’s face lit up.
“We can’t break our way through this hellish situation without ‘im. Problem is, there’s quite a distance between the underground lake and the inn. No promises the message will reach him in time. So can you do me a big favor and return to the inn alone to fetch Johann? It’ll be tough on you with the monsters roamin’ this area. Are you up for it?”
“Of course! You can count on me! I’ll bring Johann back with me no matter what!” Aki exclaimed, brimming with the determination to serve her role well. “What do you plan to do in the meantime? You’re not coming with me, right?”
“Yeah…” Leo hesitated over how to tell her his plans at first, but he manned up and looked her straight in the eye. “I’m gonna head underground and challenge Elias to a one-on-one fight. If I can create an opening to save Louis and Mina, that’d be perfect. And it’ll be a huge success if it gives me a chance to pound the sense back into my good ol’ friend.” He flashed an indomitable grin.
Aki looked at him as if he had just slapped her. She captured his arm with both hands and pleaded with him from under fluttering lashes. “What? Wait… What are you thinking?! Elias relentlessly attacks anything that moves! Including you, Leo! I know we have to save Mina and Louis as soon as possible. But not even you will be able to walk away from a fight with Elias when he’s like this… You might die…!”
Leo cast his gaze to the ground, escaping from the desperation shimmering in her big eyes. True enough, he didn’t stand a chance against Elias as he was now. Considering their prior battle, it’d take everything he had to deflect Elias’s attacks long enough to help Mina and Louis.
Worst of all, Leo had already used the water from the lake to attack Elias during his last rescue efforts; he didn’t have anything left up his sleeve to catch the emotionally dead Hero off guard.
Without a trump card, he didn’t even have a one in a million chance against Elias.
I might…die next time, he calmly noted as if it wasn’t his life on the line. It didn’t matter how dangerous it was, he didn’t want to risk being too late to help the others by waiting for Aki to come back with Johann or going with her.
He’d forever regret his choice if it led to their deaths. Better to gamble with his life than theirs.
Leo placed his hand on Aki’s head as she caught her breath from talking all at once, and silently stood. He flashed one of his killer grins when she anxiously looked up at him.
“C’mon, don’t worry so much. I don’t go ’round calling myself a genius Mage for nothin’—” He stopped joking midway and gaped at Aki who stood with her head down, tears staining her cheeks. Her shoulders trembled with suppressed sobs as she clenched her fists in front of her chest. “Aki…”
“You always do that, Leo…! You always flash a silly grin to stop the rest of us from worrying while you take on all the problems by yourself! You know you might not come back from this one, but you’re still going to fight, aren’t you? I…I’m very, very scared that I might never see you again if I leave!” she exclaimed between sobs.
Leo clenched his fists at his side. Happiness filled him over how strongly she felt for him. He couldn’t help thinking how blessed he was to have the woman he loved crying out of concern for him.
He grabbed her fists and pulled her toward him before she could finish talking. She fell against his chest with a look of shock on her face, and he wrapped his arms around her back.
“Leo…?” she whispered.
“…You’re absolutely right. I might never see you again after you leave.”
“How could you say—”
“So there’s something I want to tell you before it’s too late.” He rested his hands on her shoulders and slowly pulled away.
Should he tell her? He had never hesitated more in his life than right now. Wouldn’t it be better to let her go on never knowing the feelings he had hidden in his heart?
But, what if, at the end of his battle with Elias, he never saw her again? Did he want these feelings to die with him? No, he wanted to tell her so he wouldn’t have any regrets if worst came to worst.
Hands still on her shoulders, he gazed passionately into her wavering eyes. And then he came out and said it.
“I love you.”