《Magic Knight Legends: The Phoenix Empire Pilgrimage》 Prologue (Lè°©ng: Four Years Ago) Is it normal to dream only nightmares? Because I can''t remember the last pleasant dream I had. Every time I try to sleep, I see something bad, or something bad happens to me. Being hurt, being killed, being violated... These are the things I see and feel when I close my eyes. The nightmares keep coming, and it''s getting harder to tell one dream from the other. I just try to sleep, and something scares me... Then I wake up. I wake up in a cave in this forest, like I do every other morning. It''s cold... I had nearly forgotten that it was around wintertime. As I allow my body to wake up, I watch as the snow falls from the heavens and covers the green forest in white. After a while, I stand up, and bring my blade with me. I might as well see if there''s something I can kill for food nearby... "!?" I hear something. Moving as fast as I can without making a sound, I move in the direction of the sound. I conceal myself behind some bushes and continue to listen. Something is walking in this direction. From what I can tell, there''s only one of them. The moment I see the source of the sound, I pounce. ¡°Whoa! What the hell!?¡±You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. My mind freezes. A person... a grey-haired, grey-eyed boy, twelve or thirteen, around my age. I haven''t seen another human being in years. What is he doing here? ¡°Who are you?¡± The boy doesn''t answer my question, but he continues to stare at me... ¡°What?¡± ¡°Sorry. I''m not gonna hurt you, so please put the weapon down...¡± He has a bag with him... ¡°What are you¡ª¡± ¡°Stay there.¡± ¡°...¡± I open it. It''s full of scrolls. ¡°What are these for?¡± ¡°Hm... I won''t lie to you. Those are magical scrolls for summoning weapons.¡± I look at him with suspicion. He says he won''t hurt me, yet he has all this... ¡°Oh, come on, don''t be like that. I''m one of the good guys!¡± I sigh. He insists on being trusted. ¡°Fine. Just... who are you?¡± He looks up at me, smiling, proud. ¡°My name is Grey. I''m a magical warrior... I''m the Emperor''s Magic Knight.¡± Chapter 1 (Grey) ¡° The girl in front of me covers her face as if to hide from the sun shining in from her window. ¡°Come on, we''re gonna be late. We were called to the Great Hall. It''s my responsibility to come and gather all of us...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Wake up! I''m the one who gets in trouble if we''re late!¡± I start shaking the bed. ¡°Okay, stop it... I''m awake...¡± The black haired, red eyed girl finally comes out from underneath her sheets exposing her near-naked body, which is only covered by a sarashi. ¡°So, what is it you want?¡± ¡°We were called to the Great Hall. They have an assignment for us.¡± She makes that same irritated face as always... ¡°Come on, don''t be like that. Fl¨¨che is already there, waiting for us.¡± ¡°Tch... fine. Let me get dressed.¡± ... After a few minutes, L¨¢ng is outside, where I stand waiting for her. ¡°Okay? Now let''s go.¡± We walk down the peaceful streets of the city... ¡°...L¨¢ng, you really should take better care of yourself.¡± ¡°What''s wrong? I''m not sick or anything.¡± I shake my head. ¡°No, I mean, you know you''d be stronger if you fed yourself a bit more, right? Plus, it doesn''t look very good for you to be so skinny...¡± ¡°Bah... I''m not skinny. You''re just saying that because you like fat girls.¡± ¡°That''s not true!¡± I feel a little embarrassed when I say this, and it must look like it, too... because L¨¢ng starts laughing. ¡°Th... that''s not funny, L¨¢ng!¡± Saying this, I''m actually fighting the urge to laugh, myself... ¡°It''s okay, your secret''s safe with me.¡± Why does it seem like she''s happiest when she''s picking on me? Ah, whatever. At least she''s happy... We continue to walk to the Great Hall, with a few people greeting us with a ¡°Hello!¡± or ¡°Good morning, Magic Knight Grey!¡± The citizens always seem happy to have me and my team around, which is nice. After some time, we arrive. As I predicted, Fl¨¨che, our blonde, blue-eyed archer, is standing outside the Great Hall''s main entrance, waiting for us. ¡°You''re late, you two. Everyone else is inside.¡± I scratch my head and flash a nervous smile. ¡°Heh, heh, sorry... Remember to beg the Emperor for forgiveness for us later on, would you? You''re a better speaker than I am, after all.¡± Fl¨¨che shakes her head. ¡°I doubt Emperor ¨­tori would punish you for only being a few seconds late. He treats you like family, doesn''t he?¡± I nod. ¡°Yeah, but me showing up late is bad for our reputation... I''d rather not risk that.¡± L¨¢ng, having remained silent up to this point, says: ¡°Well, we should hurry, then. Come on, let''s not make things worse.¡± ¡°I agree,¡± I say, walking toward the guard at the door. ¡°We''ve been called by the Emperor. Please, let us through.¡± Perhaps I should have introduced myself, but this guard recognizes us, anyway. With a quick nod, he steps aside and allows us to open the door. ¡°Ah, thank you for showing up, you three. We''ve been waiting for you,¡± Emperor ¨­tori says, smiling. As Fl¨¨che predicted, he isn''t angry with me for being late. Not wanting to draw any more attention to myself, I spot three empty seats at the table, and sit in the one closest to the Emperor, Fl¨¨che and L¨¢ng taking the other two. I quickly look around the room. Aside from the usual council members, another person is here with us today. A middle-aged man, unremarkable looking, aside from the priest gown he is wearing. Breaking the silence, the Emperor begins to speak. ¡°This man is the High Priest of the Order of Luna. He has come to ask a favor of you. High Priest, if you would, please...¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. With that, the High Priest stands up and speaks. ¡°Greetings, Magic Knights. I am the High Priest of Luna, Jiro. Nice to meet you.¡± He bows. ¡°I beg of you, could you listen to this one request?¡± I look around at the faces of my allies. Fl¨¨che and L¨¢ng both give an approving nod. ¡°We will hear you, so please, speak.¡± ¡°As you may know, the time of the pilgrimage has come.¡± ¡°Pilgrimage?¡± I hear Fl¨¨che ask. Ah, that''s right. Fl¨¨che is from Bevel, and had only come here about two years ago. She doesn''t quite know everything about our religious customs. ¡°Oh? Ah, well, you see,¡± the priest starts to explain, ¡°this is Luna''s Day, the day that the goddess Luna sent her children from the Spirit World to help us humans. Everyday this year, we have someone go on a journey to pray in the forest, at the base of the tree that Luna left for us, as thanks. This year, we are sending my son, Shu, on this pilgrimage. All I ask is that you guard him from any dangers that might be on his way. Can you please do this?¡± I turn to the Emperor, who gives me a nod of approval. Now, I smile at Priest Jiro, saying, ¡°Yes, we will watch over your son on his pilgrimage. We will travel with him to the Lunar Forest and back. Thank you for relying on our services.¡± ¡°Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!¡± Jiro bows again. ¡°Now, I''ll bring the boy here. Just a moment, please,¡± he says, walking away. We wait... ... ¡°G... greetings, Magic Knights,¡± the boy says, wearing a similar gown, after coming into the room with us. ¡°My name is Shu. I must say, I''m very excited to go on this journey for the goddess with you all. I''ll try not to get in everyone''s way, so please, watch over and protect me.¡± After saying that, he looks around nervously, then bows. ¡°I''m pleased to meet you, Shu,¡± I say, extending my hand. He just looks at it for a moment, seemingly unwilling to shake it. Seeing this, I awkwardly retract my hand. ¡°Don''t worry, you''re in good hands. We will let no harm come to you.¡± ¡°You know the way to Lunar Forest, right?¡± Fl¨¨che asks. As if he had just noticed Fl¨¨che was in the room with us, Shu stares at her. I''m not surprised, since there aren''t many foreigners here. She is probably the first person he''s ever seen that looks like that. ¡°Ah, well, miss, Lunar Forest is miles and miles east of here. We''ll have to travel the Eastern Phoenix Road to get there.¡± He looks back at me. ¡°So, shall we be on our way?¡± I nod. ¡°Yes. Let''s be off.¡± I turn around to face the Emperor, and bow. ¡°We shall return to you as soon as possible.¡± With that, we exit the Great Hall. ¡°So,¡± L¨¢ng says as we head for the East Gate. ¡°Will we be taking horses to Lunar Forest? It''s a pretty long walk, especially for someone who...¡± She looks at Shu, seemingly doubting that he''s willing to walk there. ¡°No, it''s okay. I can walk that far,¡± Shu says, coming to a stop. ¡°Exercise is good for one''s Qi flow, after all. Besides, I''d rather not have you waste money on horses because of me.¡± He still seems very nervous. Whether the cause is us, this assignment he''s been given, or some combination of both, I can''t really say for sure. ¡°Are you sure? If you don''t feel like you can handle it, then we don''t mind--¡± ¡°No, no, I insist. I-I don''t want to be a burden.¡± He starts staring at his shoes... Smooth move, L¨¢ng. ¡°Well, if you say so. We''re off!¡± L¨¢ng walks out of the East Gate and starts on the trail. We follow her. Fl¨¨che walks up ahead with L¨¢ng, leaving me to talk with Shu. ¡°Hey, Shu, don''t be discouraged. L¨¢ng is always like this with other people.¡± As I say this, I find myself wondering why I have to apologize for her behavior... ¡°It''s not a problem, Magic Knight Grey. It''s not her fault... I don''t have much confidence in myself, to be honest.¡± For a moment, I think to myself. Why would they send this boy on this pilgrimage? This boy, who seems so frail and unsure of himself? ¡°Surely they must have chosen you to do this for a reason, right, Shu? Wouldn''t they have sent someone else otherwise? Even still, couldn''t you have asked them to send another?¡± ¡°You''re right, I was chosen, but because my family has carried out the pilgrimage every year, for a long time, now. It''s supposed to be a great honor to be chosen to go on this journey. I just couldn''t bring myself to say no...¡± ¡°Hmm... you know, I can see why you had a difficult time with it.¡± Shu looks surprised that I express sympathy for him. ¡°Let me tell you a story. I wasn''t supposed to be a Magic Knight at first. I was just a normal kid living in Dragon''s Cradle, but seven years ago, a disaster occurred, and I nearly died. A Stargazer on his way to the Phoenix Empire was there at the time, and, out of compassion, he gave me the power that saved my life. ¡°I traveled with him to the Heart of the Phoenix, where Emperor ¨­tori was waiting for the Stargazer to arrive and choose someone from within the Empire. Imagine his surprise when I, a boy from some island, had already been chosen! Anyway, he asked me if I would be willing to serve him in place of the other person who the Stargazer would have picked.¡± ¡°You couldn''t say no, could you?¡± Shu asks, understanding where I was going with the story. ¡°That''s right. I said ''yes'', not because I really wanted to, but because I felt I had to. However, look at how I''ve been rewarded. Sometimes... well, a lot of times, there is a difference between what you want to do and what you must do, but it doesn''t always have to be bad or make you unhappy. It hasn''t been easy, being a Magic Knight. I have to put my life in danger for others, and there are people who would have tried to kill me to be in the position I''m in... but I feel that it''s worth the hardship. I''ve been blessed with wonderful friends, and I get to make the Empire a better place, little by little. I''m happy I ended up on this path.¡± ¡°Oh, I get it... So, you think I''ll be glad I went on this journey, even if I didn''t really want to?¡± ¡°That''s what I think, yeah,¡± I say, smiling. ¡°Even if you lose heart, you''ve got good people guiding you. We''ll help you do this.¡± Shu smiles and nods. ¡°I understand, now. Thank you, Magic Knight. I''m happy I had this talk with you.¡± I look ahead. L¨¢ng and Fl¨¨che have gotten quite far from us. ¡°We better hurry, or we''ll be left behind. Are you ready?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Shu says. ¡°Let''s go.¡± Chapter 2 (Fl猫che) ¡°Hey, L¨¢ng.¡± ¡°Something wrong?¡± L¨¢ng asks, as we continue to walk down the Eastern Phoenix Road. ¡°You weren''t trying to insult Shu back there, were you?¡± ¡°What!?¡± She''s completely taken aback. ¡°No! I was just making sure whether he wanted to walk or ride a horse!¡± She looks at me as if I insulted her by even thinking she would do such a thing. (She would.) ¡°Truly?¡± I say, looking closely at her, to see if she might be lying. She nods with no hesitation. ¡°Even still, you may have hurt his pride. No matter the meaning behind them, you must choose your words very carefully around some people.¡± ¡°Tch, what are you, my mom?¡± Ironic, considering L¨¢ng is two years older than me. Ah, she''s not listening. Why must she be so difficult... ¡°It''s not as if the kid has any balls or confidence, to begin with.¡± She looks back at Grey and Shu, who are starting to catch up with us. ¡°I''m willing to bet--¡± ¡°Shh!¡± Suddenly, I sense something nearby... Something''s approaching us. I have heard rumors about something dangerous going on outside town, but what is this presence I sense? Thieves? Some wild beast? I can hear Grey and Shu coming from behind. ¡°Oh, look!¡± I look back at Shu, and see he is pointing at someone. ¡°A lost traveler, perhaps?¡± I take a closer look at the person he''s pointing out. They start walking toward us, and I can now sense that something is wrong. My heart speeds up. My mind is screaming... ¡°Hello, there!¡± Shu walks over to this ¡°person¡±. As he comes closer, I see them reach for the sword at their hip. This is bad... ¡°Shu, get back!¡± I pull him away as fast as I can, then we both lose our balance and fall. ¡°Are you okay, Shu?¡± ¡°Wh... what''s happening?¡± Shu looks back at the pale, shriveled ¡°person¡± who slashed at him. ¡°The pain... somebody... please... stop the pain...! uUuuUuUuUuUuuGHgHgHgGGH...¡± They''ve started to spasm unnaturally. What kind of nightmarish phenomenon am I bearing witness to? ¡°AAAAAAAAAAH!¡± It comes running right at us! The ¡°person¡± raises its blade...! ...the sound of tearing flesh and spilling blood. However, it''s not me or Shu that is cut. When I look up, L¨¢ng is standing in front of us, sword drawn. I stand up, and notice that this ¡°person¡±''s sword arm has been detached from the rest of its body. It''s become obvious that L¨¢ng stood in front of us, drew her blade, and sliced its hand off. ¡°Be careful, guys. He ain''t human.¡± I guess L¨¢ng can sense the same ¡°dangerous feeling¡± I do. I''ve never felt a human being give off an aura like this.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°Kill me... kill me... uuuuugh...¡± The more I observe this ¡°person¡±, the more I think... ah, that''s it! ¡°Wait, stop!¡± Shu grabs hold of me as I approach the ¡°person¡±. ¡°Th-this man might just be sick! You don''t have to--¡± ¡°Let go of her, Shu!¡± L¨¢ng shouts. ¡°This guy is already dead.¡± The horror on Shu''s face is clear. ¡°A zombie. There''s nothing we can do for ''im.¡± ¡°He... he''s dead?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± I say to Shu, in as gentle a voice I can manage, ¡°he''s dead, so at least let me grant him rest.¡± With that, he reluctantly lets me go. ¡°O poor lost soul who is doomed to wander the mortal plain for eternity...¡± As I approach the zombie once more, my right hand now glows with a white light. ¡°...let that eternity end for you, now. May you find peace in the next life. Inmortuorum Vertunt.¡± I reach out and touch the zombie''s heart. He begins to crumble to dust. As his body begins to fade away, he looks at me one more time, smiling. ¡°Thank you...¡± and now, even his head has turned to dust. ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Grey asks. I don''t blame him. ¡°A zombie,¡± I say. ¡°They''re usually just corpses animated by magic, but there was something different about this one. I''ve never felt such a terrible aura, not even from magicked zombies...¡± ¡°There could be more stuff like this on the way to the forest,¡± L¨¢ng says, looking at the pile of dust. ¡°In that case, we need to be extra careful.¡± I turn to Shu. ¡°Is something wrong? You didn''t get hurt or anything, did you?¡± He shakes his head. ¡°I''m fine. It''s just... this was once a human being. I wish we could have saved him somehow. What could have happened that would cause him to end up like this?¡± ¡°I hate to say it, but I really haven''t the slightest clue.¡± I hate this. I''m supposed to understand magic, yet I''m stomped by this. Maybe this isn''t magic at all? ¡°It''s alright, though. You said we just have to be careful, right? I''ll try not to worry about it too much.¡± Shu forces himself to smile. ¡°Well, we can''t stay here forever. Shall we be off?¡± After that, we continue east along the path. As we walk, I notice that Grey has been deep in thought ever since we encountered that zombie. ¡°What''s wrong, Grey?¡± ¡°Nothing, really, but I might as well tell you what I''m thinking about. That presence... the ''aura'' we felt from the zombie, I''ve felt it before.¡± ¡°What? Why didn''t you say something earlier? What is it? Where do you recognize it from?¡± ¡°I can''t really say. I just know that it felt really familiar. Sorry I can''t tell you more.¡± ¡°Don''t worry about it,¡± I say, then I continue walking in silence. So Grey recognizes that aura? Perhaps it was something happened to him in his childhood, in Dragon''s Cradle. Grey never talks about that horrible disaster, though, so all I can do is wonder... however, rumors had spread all around right after it happened. Some say that the Cradle was torn apart by a dark power... A power beyond even magic. Chapter 3 (Lè°©ng) After the encounter with the strange zombie, we continue down the Eastern Phoenix Road. We''ve been walking for what feels like hours, and Lunar Forest has just now come into view. ¡°Everyone, look! We''re almost there!¡± Grey says, pointing to the forest in the distance. He starts to run, leaving the rest of us behind. ¡°Hey, wait, Grey! No need to rush!¡± Fl¨¨che shouts, running to catch up with him. As I continue to walk at a normal pace, I find myself walking alongside Shu... He''s staring at me. What do you want, boy? I stare back, and he looks away. After I stop watching him, he stares again. ¡°If you''re gonna say something, say it. I''m not a mind reader.¡± ¡°Oh! I, uh...¡± He looks away again, shaking and sweating. If I wasn''t so irritated with having to drag this little pussy around, I''d be laughing at him right now. ¡°Come on, kid, you''ve got a mouth, don''t you? Speak. I''m not going to bite you, or anything.¡± My tone may have scared him even more, but it can''t be helped. ¡°Wh... who are you calling kid, anyway!?¡± Ah, looks like I''ve upset him. ¡°How old are you, again?¡± He looks right at me, saying this, acting as if no one has ever spoken to him this way before. ¡°Sixteen.¡± Dead silence. Shu and I stop walking. The irritation disappears from his face almost immediately, but is just as quickly replaced with incredulity. ¡°Honestly? I can''t believe you''re three years my senior.¡± He looks ahead and keeps walking. ¡°You don''t look like it... or act like it.¡± ¡°Do I look like a liar?¡± I ask, walking alongside him once again. ¡°Not necessarily.¡± ¡°Ah, so you choose your words pretty carefully, eh?¡± He doesn''t respond. I guess he''s finally gotten sick of me. ¡°Okay, I''ll leave you alone,¡± I say, throwing my hands up. ¡°Just don''t tell Grey I was mean to you, alright?¡± ¡°I''m sure he can hear us. He''s not that far ahead.¡± Not knowing what to say to that, I just shrug. ¡°So, Shu, what were you going to say before?¡± ¡°Oh, that''s right,¡± Shu says, ¡°I had a question. It''s about Fl¨¨che.¡± ¡°Why don''t you ask her?¡± I say, pointing to Fl¨¨che''s back. ¡°She''s right there.¡± ¡°I just don''t want to risk offending her with--¡± Oh... I know what it is. ¡°''What is a blonde girl doing with us'', right? Yeah, we get this question a lot, actually.¡± ¡°Y... yeah, exactly.¡± He blushes. Maybe I should have just let him ask the question himself. ¡°Well, if you don''t mind me asking, what is she doing, here?¡± ¡°Okay, let me start from... when we first met. It was two years ago. Me and Grey were on our way back to the Heart of the Phoenix after completing an assignment. We were to see someone to the Northern Port in the Head of the Phoenix. As we were about to leave, we saw a ship come in from the north. ¡°As we watched the people get off, someone stood out to us. A little blond-haired, blue eyed girl, couldn''t be older than twelve, wearing a coat the color of theBevelishroyal purple and a matching cap,getting off the ship by herself.¡± ¡°...and that girl was Fl¨¨che?¡± Shu asks. ¡°Yes,¡± I say, nodding. ¡°Anyway, me and Grey left the port, and Fl¨¨che just happened to be walking behind us. As we went through some woods, we heard some people shouting, and looked back to see Fl¨¨che surrounded by thieves. She shouted something inBevelish, and--¡± ¡°What did she say?¡± Shu asks, interrupting me. ¡°I don''t know. MyBevelishis terrible. Grey has always translated for me, and I couldn''t even talk to Fl¨¨che atfirst without him to act as an interpreter, but that''s jumping ahead a little bit.¡± If I had to guess, it was probably something as simple as: ''I don''t have any money''. I''ll never know for sure, though. ¡°So, we went back to save her, but then there was a powerful gust of wind... Grey and I knew it was magic. Most of the thieves got blown away and the others ran for their lives. ¡°We walked over and talked to her, asked if she was alright and all that. She smiled and said ''yes''. Fl¨¨che seemed impressed when we told her who we were, and she was grateful when we offered to walk her to the Heart. ¡°As we walked, Fl¨¨che talked a little about who she was. She was a Magic Knight, like us. She said she was a friend of Princess Violet Rolando, daughter of the King of Bevel. Something bad had happened over there, she didn''t say what, and she ran away. At this point, she said she was just wandering, she didn''t know where to go or what to do... she had no one to turn to. To me, she just seemed like the loneliest girl in the world. ¡°She made me remember the loneliness I myself had experienced. All by myself, lost and confused, not a soul in the world to help me out. I knew how it felt, and sympathized with her. However, I met Grey and things changed. I now had a home, a wonderful friend, and people who needed me. That''s probably why I wanted to do the same thing for Fl¨¨che, that Grey did for me. I asked her if she would be willing to serve the Emperor alongside us. She was hesitant at first, but by the time we reached the Great Hall, she had made up her mind to stay with us. Emperor ¨­tori saw her, and eventually decided to take her in as one of his Magic Knight. She''s pretty much been one of us ever since...¡± Shu continues to stare, looking as if he''s thinking. ¡°Wow, what a story, L¨¢ng. I can call you that, right?¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°If you don''t mind,¡± Shu says, now looking into the sky, perhaps to avoid eye contact, ¡°can you tell me about some of your other adventures?¡± ¡°Maybe some other time. Let''s go into the forest and complete your quest.¡± I continue to walk, Shu right next to me, when I notice that Grey and Fl¨¨che have stopped. ¡°L¨¢ng,¡± Grey shouts, looking back, ¡°come look at this.¡± I shrug. It''s probably nothing, but I shouldn''t mess around, anyway. ¡°Come on, Shu.¡± When I get caught up, I notice that there is a figure standing in front of the forest. Wearing all black and coming this way. It appears to be humanoid. I can feel a menacing aura all the way from here... ¡°Shu, get back!¡± ¡°But--¡± ¡°Move!¡± I push him away and place my hand on my sword. ¡°It''s dangerous. Let us protect you.¡± Ah, I sound so professional, saying that... never mind. This... thing is practically right in front of us. A long haired, pale skinned humanoid covered by an armor made of what appear to be black scales. He looks at us with cold, lifeless eyes. If he was a human, he ain''t no more. ¡°Who are you people?¡± Everyone gasps. He spoke? Quite clearly, at that. What is this creature? He''s different from the zombie from before... ¡°Someone try talking with ''im,¡± Grey whispers. Fl¨¨che steps forward. ¡°Hello. Can you understand me?¡± He does not respond. ¡°We are guiding this young man on his pilgrimage. We have no intention of harming you. Can you please move aside?¡± ¡°The Lady is in the forest,¡± he says. Looking more closely, he seems to have a sword, as well, and it seems he means to use it. This does not look good. ¡°I will not let you near my Lady!¡± Fl¨¨che is flustered, as are the rest of us. ¡°Wait! Who is ''The Lady''? Why are you drawing your sword on us? We don''t understand!¡± Ignoring her words, the man brandishes the dark, long sword, stabbing it at Fl¨¨che. ¡°Look out!¡± Grey dives into Fl¨¨che and both of go falling onto the ground. As Grey starts to stand back up, I notice that his right arm is bleeding. ¡°Dammit!¡± ¡°Grey, are you alright?¡± I ask, running up to him. „‡¡± ¡°L¨¢ng,¡± Grey says, ¡°we''ll take him together. I''ll go in first--¡± ¡°No! You''re already hurt. I should be the decoy.¡± ¡°Listen!¡± He whispers, harshly. ¡°This''ll... This should heal on its own. You don''t have powers like that. I won''t have you risk your life unnecessarily.¡± He turns to Fl¨¨che. ¡°Prepare a healing spell, just in case.¡± She nods. ¡°Got it.¡± With that, Grey holds the grip with one hand and places the other onto the blade. ¡°O plain blade of steel, reject your nature as a mere mortal''s weapon and make me the lord of the battlefield! WarMaster!¡± Suddenly, his blade starts to glow with the force of his mana. Grey runs forward, towards the inhuman monster that stands in our way. I fight the urge to run forward, putting my trust in him, for now. He raises the blade, preparing to perform a vertical slash. Grey was never the fastest swordsmen I''ve met, even with all his fancy magic powers, so I can see our foe blocking or dodging this without a problem. However, while the enemy is doing that, he should be distracted. That should be my chance... Thinking of this, I grip my katana again, letting nothing enter my mind but the thought of seeing that opening and taking advantage of it. Finally, Grey swings, but the creature easily dodges, despite the heavy looking scales he''s wearing. Doesn''t look like a good time to strike, as not only does he quickly counterattack, kicking and catching Grey off guard, but he seems to have taken notice of me, seeing that I''ve taken an Iaijutsu stance. He approaches me, running at high speed, faster than I would have expected. His abilities... are definitely beyond human limits! "Ventus!" All of the sudden, the armored monster is hit by a strong gust of wind. I don''t have to look to know that Fl¨¨che cast a wind spell rather than casting healing, like Grey asked. I don''t know what possessed her to try doing this, but I do know that the time to strike... is now! I feel as if time has stopped. I kick off the ground, dashing forward at as high a speed as I can, toward my enemy, who is completely defenseless in just this one, perfect moment... I draw my blade, aiming right for the neck! It happens in an instant. My blade forms a horizontal arc, slashing at his throat, tearing it open, bringing an alien, black liquid gushing forth... My momentum continues to carry me forward, until my feet skid across the ground, kicking up dust. Standing behind the pale humanoid, I look back at him, and see him fall onto his back. I sheathe my sword.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°It''s done.¡± After a short moment of silence between the three of us, I walk over to Grey, who had been knocked off of his feet by the creature. ¡°You alright?¡± I reach out for his left hand, he takes mine and pulls himself up. ¡°I''m okay. The, uh...¡± Grey points to his right upper arm, I look and can see that the wound is closing. ¡°The regeneration magic is working. I''ll be fine.¡± That''s right, when a Magic Knight is chosen, they gain a few special magic abilities along with it. A rather common one is regeneration, which is exactly what it sounds like. Not as fast-acting as a good healing spell, but it can keep someone from dying when they are killed... to a certain degree, at least. I let out a chuckle. ¡°Sometimes I forget the ''Knighting'' gives you powers like that... I''m jealous.¡± ¡°Ah, don''t say that,¡± Grey says. ¡°You know how guilty it makes me feel.¡± He scratches his head and looks into the sky. A moment of awkward silence. I suddenly find myself fighting the urge to laugh... and failing. ¡°Pfff...!¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Oh, Grey... you are so... ha, ha, ha!¡±I look at Grey''s face again, and he looks a bit embarrassed. This makes me laugh even harder. ¡°Oh, come on!¡± Grey sounds like he''s irritated, but he''s actually starting to smile. ¡°That''s... not funny!¡± Despite saying that, he starts laughing, too. ¡°Uh, I''m sorry, but I''m not sure I get it,¡± Shu says, wondering what we''re laughing at. Fl¨¨che seems a bit puzzled, as well. ¡°Ah, it''s nothing--¡± Just as I turn to look at Fl¨¨che, I notice that the corpse is gone. That guy''s not dead. He couldn''t have gone far. He doesn''t want us to get any further. Reacting on instinct, feeling a sinister presence, I roll forward, just barely dodging the longsword''s strike. ¡°What the hell!?¡± The cause of Grey''s surprise is obvious. The creature, whose throat I just cut open, is moving... His head still barely hangs onto the rest of his body, the black blood continuing to gush forth. ¡°What kind of dark art is this!? I killed you!¡± ¡°I cannot be killed, for I am already dead. Life is given to me anew by my Lady, the Dragon of the Forest.¡± "A dragon!?" Grey shouts. "That''s right, a dark beast from parts unknown, with powers beyond human imagination..." as he says this, he grabs his head, and begins to pull upwards... more and more... the sounds of tearing flesh and breaking bones... until the head comes off. Silence... no one says a word or knows how to react. I myself have never seen anything like this before. We can only watch as the strange, undead man holds his head in his hands. Suddenly, his eyes snap open. ¡°Can you see? Even something like this...¡± He now places his head back on his neck. The muscles, bones, and skin regrow and reattach themselves. It is as if I never cut it... ¡°means nothing to me.¡± He points the long sword he''s holding at me. ¡°No matter what kind of tricks you come up with, you will never defeat me. You have two choices: leave or die.¡± Well, both of those options suck. Not even giving it a second thought, I reach for my sword, starting to draw it. I don''t care if he says he is immortal, I have to try. I have to win! I just know he has some weakness that I can figure out. I just have to bait him into showing it to me... ...another presence. To my right side. Approaching fast. I turn just in time. Any slower, and I''d have likely been sliced clean in half. The force behind the strike is still enough to send me backwards, tumbling across the ground. As I get up, I realize that I recognize this presence. Ah, dammit, this is bad enough as it is. When I look forward, my eyes confirm my fears. ¡°Ghostmask...!¡± The masked ghost swordsman... he appears before me again!? What is he even doing here? He faces me, wearing a smooth, white, featureless mask under the dark hood of a black robe with red flames. ¡°You, whose name is Xu¨¨ Sh¨ªs¨¡n, your power has yet to reach its peak.¡± ¡°Shut up! This is a bad time!¡± I shout. ¡° Xu¨¨ Sh¨ªs¨¡n?¡± I hear Shu ask. ¡°Th-there''s no one by that name here!¡± Silence... ¡°You guys...? Who is this Xu¨¨ Sh¨ªs¨¡n person?¡± Grey is the one who says it. ¡°He''s talking about L¨¢ng.¡± I can hear Shu''s gasp in response to Grey. ¡°But that''s... I don''t understand!¡± ¡°It''s a long story, Shu!¡± I shout, trying not take my attention off of Ghostmask. ¡°Just be quiet! There''ll be time to play twenty questions later.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t be so sure about that if I were you...¡± The pale creature grips his sword with both hands, taking a fighting stance. ¡°Because right now, you''re about to die!¡± At that moment, Ghostmask draws his sword, as well. Then, he points his finger at Grey... The sound of a fast moving projectile. I did not see what it was that flew, but I look in Grey''s direction and see that his right knee is bleeding. ¡°Ah!¡± He falls. ¡°No!¡± Fl¨¨che starts to chant a healing spell, but with his other hand, Ghostmask throws a magic seal in her direction, which affixes itself onto her forehead. She won''t be able to cast a single spell with that, even if she is a Magic Knight... ¡°What in Luna''s name...!?¡± I hear Shu shout. Ghostmask finally points his sword at me, and the pale humanoid creature stands there, waiting. ¡°So that''s how it is... you''re serious.¡± I''ll have to fight both of them at the same time, then. This is not good. Still, I can''t help being a little excited. I can feel that I''ll have to push myself to the limit if I want to win... if I want to live. ¡°Shu, get back.¡± I take a defensive stance. ¡°Don''t worry about us. We''ll be fine.¡± ¡°You sound confident for one who hasn''t a prayer,¡± the undead in black says. ¡°Well, I''ve been in some pretty tight spots before,¡± I say, smirking. ¡°Besides, I don''t run away from anything. I''m not concerned with whether or not I''m sure I can win. I would never let the enemy see me flee. I would rather die.¡± Hearing me say all of this, the knight starts to laugh, like a madman. ¡°Ha! So you''re one of those... The kind that lives only for battle. What a disgusting woman...¡± He suddenly charges forward! ¡°You''ll die with an attitude like that!¡± He lifts the black sword, then brings it down. It clashes with my blade, but... The sensation of the clash is... wrong. Snapping my blade right in two, the blade I had just blocked is now headed straight for my torso. Acting as fast as I can, I quickly roll out of the way. Coming out of the roll, I feel a sharp pain in my chest... When I touch it with my fingers, they come away bloody. Dammit, I wasn''t fast enough. It''s not enough to kill me, but it''s no mere scratch, and it hurts badly enough to hinder me. Then there''s the issue of my broken blade... I don''t have time to think about it, though, as Ghostmask is charging toward me, as well. He swings with his right hand, but I can see it coming. A horizontal slash, aimed at my midsection. Crouching right under it, I avoid it completely, and the blade goes slamming into the monster''s armored torso.Nearly unfazed, he kicks at Ghostmask with his just as heavily armored leg, but Ghostmask stops it with his sword. ¡°L¨¢ng!¡± Before I realize what''s going on, I see two swords flying my way. Grey must have summoned them from his scrolls. I reach out and grab them both, and I can feel the power in both of them. They''re light, yet I feel they won''t break so easily. There''s obviously some kind of magic at work, here, but I can ask Grey about that later. "Heh..." I can feel the smirk on my face again. The dead man is right. I live for fights like this. A fight, where I''m not sure where I''ll live or die. In a place like this, I feel like this is where I truly belong. And yet... "I will live." If I die, here, I won''t be satisfied. I won''t let even something like this kill me! So, I go charging into the fight once again. The two clash blades, and I decide to strike while they''re locked. I jump towards the undead, and, as he has no chance to react, I stab him in the eye. Sure, he claims he can''t die, but I can still hinder him like this. I then swing at Ghostmask, who steps back just as my blade reaches where his head would have been. The undead now swings at me, bringing the huge blade down from overhead, but his eye is very much affecting him... The swing misses completely. While this would be a golden opportunity to counterattack in any other situation, I realize that Ghostmask is right behind me, likely to attack at any second. Seeing that the undead is still immobile, I quickly slide between the space between his legs. Ghostmask instead charges at the undead, hitting him right in the torso again. Just as I start to relax, Ghostmask suddenly vaults over the currently stunned undead knight. He is in midair, sword drawn... ...he''s going to attack me from there. Not waiting to see this happen, not even thinking about how it''s possible that he can, I roll. I look at where I was standing and see that the ground looks as if it''s been struck by a sword. I was right to move from there... As soon as he hits the ground, Ghostmask dashes towards me. It happens so fast I barely have time to process what I''m seeing. There''s no time to dodge, and he''ll be expecting me to try and parry his blow, so there''s some kind of trick he''s got up his sleeve. Acting faster than I can think, my right foot goes flying forward. I don''t see him moving to react to it. Ha, I guessed correctly! He wasn''t expecting me to try and fight back, so he''s left his guard down! How pathetically predictabl-- ¡°!!!¡± Impact. Pain. From behind. Suddenly, my world shakes. Ghostmask is gone from my sight, nowhere near where my kick went. I feel weak and dizzy... I fall forward. ...what the hell just happened? He was right there. How could he have possibly moved so fast? I slowly recover and try to get up, but as soon as I am able to focus, I realize that Ghostmask is still behind me. When I turn to face him, his sword is pointed at my face. He suddenly thrusts the sword forward...! ...the sword stops before stabbing through my face. However, it is not by Ghostmask''s hand that it stops, but my own. I grabbed the blade with my hands. The gloves I''m wearing have saved me from some of the damage, but it still hurts like hell. Before he is able to pull the blade away, and take some of my fingers with it, I quickly rise and smash my head into his mask. It takes me a second to realize that that actually connected, but I do immediately notice that his grip on the sword has loosened. Not letting this opportunity get away from me, I kick at his left arm, and he finally lets go. I hear someone charging from behind... Ah, the undead knight! How could I have forgotten!? I turn around and see that with his next swing, he will try to take my head. He''s fast, but compared to Ghostmask, he might as well not even be moving... I''m easily able to duck out of the way. Ghostmask dodges, but manages to keep his footing, and offers the undead a powerful counterattack... He drives his right fist into the knight''s torso. I have to wonder why he... wait, I see something glowing. As Ghostmask pulls his fist back, I see that the glow is coming from where he broke the armor. That means... ah, it makes sense, now. Suddenly, the sword in my left hand, Ghostmask''s sword, starts pulling away from me. Or perhaps, Ghostmask is pulling the sword to him? Unable to maintain my grip, I let go. It takes until now for me to realize that I am completely unarmed. Dammit! In the chaos, I let go of the swords Grey gave me and let them lay somewhere. Here I am, standing in-between the two of them, unarmed... The undead knight charges forward, coming for me. Before I can think to dodge or do anything else, Ghostmask appears in front of the knight, and slashes diagonally at his torso yet again. I cannot allow myself to get distracted. My swords are where Ghostmask was previously standing. I run, quickly, and grab them from where they were resting. This battle has gone on too long. I''m starting to feel fatigued. I have to try and end this now, or else...! Ignoring the pain, ignoring the exhaustion, I charge toward them at full speed. Right now, the undead is preoccupied with Ghostmask, who looks like he''d be caught off guard by my attack, but the truth is that he''s most likely awaiting my next strike as much he is the knight''s. I have one chance. I must do this perfectly... Steel meets steel... sparks fly... blades clash...! I now stand between the two of them, in exactly the way I wanted. The undead has his sword pointed at Ghostmask''s heart. Ghostmask has my sword locked with his own. The sword in my left hand is aimed at the hole in the undead''s armor, which seems to have been enough to give him pause. Neither of us move an inch... Suddenly, the knight''s longsword disappears into a black mist. ¡°...I have wasted enough time playing here. I must return to the Lady of the Forest.¡± He starts to walk away, but shouts back to me: ¡°Do not wander within, human, for it will cost you your life. There will be no distractions, there...¡± The undead knight vanishes into the forest... After that, Ghostmask steps away and pulls out a smoke bomb. ¡°Wait--¡± My words go unheeded. The smoke obscures my vision. I breathe some of it in, and start to cough. When I finally regain my senses, I see that Fl¨¨che''s seal is removed, and Ghostmask is gone. ¡°L¨¢ng... You did it...¡± I hear Shu say this, having remained silent for so long. Wow, did I really manage to fight both of them off? I must really... ...oh, crap. The bleeding... all that fighting... it''s finally gotten to me. I can''t see straight... or stand up at all... Before I realize what''s going on, I''m watching the blue sky as my consciousness fades... ¡°L¨¢ng!? Hold on, L¨¢ng, you''re gonna be okay! Hang in...¡± Chapter 4 (Grey) ¡°Damn you!!!¡± Just as I turned to look at the source of that voice, I saw a fist flying into my face. With no time to defend myself or avoid the punch, I ended up falling to the snow-covered ground, a fresh pain blossoming right between my eyes. After I regained my senses, I looked again in the direction of that voice. I saw that it was the girl I brought back from the forest the day before. Now, being a Magic Knight serving the emperor, I was expected to keep up a certain image around people, so I responded to this in the best way I could. ¡°What the hell is your problem!? What was that for!?¡± Well, I tried. ¡°All this time,¡± she began, ¡°all this time I''ve been wondering who took it from me. Who robbed me.¡± She pulled me off of the ground by the white gi I was wearing. ¡°It was you! This is all your fault!¡± Not stopping to think, I made a fist with my right hand and punched her with it. She hit me first, after all. That''s what I thought to myself at the time. ¡°What are you going on about? Don''t hit people and go spouting crazy shit only you understand! Tell me! Why the hell did you hit me!?¡± ¡°What is your birthday?¡± She asked as she wiped away the blood from her mouth. ¡°What does that have to do with--¡± ¡°Just say it!¡± I held back my anger and told her. ¡°The tenth of January! Why!?¡± She put her hand on her forehead and started laughing. ¡°It''s the same...¡± ¡°Wait, you don''t mean...¡± ¡°Yeah, I do. That power you''re using, I had been training my whole life for it.¡± I thought back. I thought back to when I first spoke to Emperor ¨­tori. He did say there was a girl that was meant to become a Magic Knight, but since the Stargazer chose me... ¡°You call it WarMaster, right? That power was supposed to be mine...¡± She smirked, mocking me. ¡°You must be feeling awful lucky right now, huh?¡± ¡°Tell me, who are you, really? You called yourself L¨¢ng, but I know that''s not your real name.¡± ¡°Xu¨¨ Sh¨ªs¨¡n. I was the youngest child of the Sh¨ªs¨¡n family before another boy was born two years ago. Once word spread that a child under the same Birth Star was chosen, my mother threw me out like so much trash. No magical knighthood for me,¡± she said, shrugging, ¡°but it''s okay, right? It''s not a big deal, you''re a hero, right? You can solve my problem, can''t you, Magic Knight?¡± Because of that, even if only for a few moments, I hated myself. I suddenly regretted hitting her. The training she went through to be chosen must have been hellish, and then she wound up in that forest... While the pain I''ve caused her was indirect, what I had done was somehow worse than if I had hit her a hundred, no, a thousand times. Perhaps even worse than if I had killed her. I had no right to punch her back... ¡°No, I can''t,¡± I said, trying not to make myself look more shameful than I already did. ¡°I can''t ever make something like that right, ever.¡± Unsure what else to do, I found myself kneeling. ¡°I can never make it right, so do with me as you please. I''ve heard that Magic Knights that die can pass on their powers to those under the same Birth Star. Hit me until you''re satisfied. Until the life leaves my body. Until these powers belong to you, as they should have in the first place.¡± I couldn''t bring myself to look up, but I could hear her sighing. ¡°No. No, I won''t do that.¡± She knelt down and touched my face. ¡°This is kind of your fault, but it can''t be helped, right? You''re not the person I should be angry with.¡± She placed her hand on my chin, prompting me to lift my head up. ¡°You don''t deserve to die, so I won''t kill you. Just... remember that I need you to do me a favor, got it?¡± I was shocked. Was she really willing to let me go with just this? ¡°Truly? Is that all you want?¡± ¡°Yes. You just have to do me this favor and it''s alright.¡± I was almost moved to tears... ¡°Yes! Yes, I will do it, Xu¨¨! Anything, no matter what it is, I''ll do it! Just tell me what you want!¡± ¡°Nope, not telling you, yet.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± For a moment, I was confused. How could I do her a favor if she wouldn''t tell me what it was? ¡°Don''t worry, I''ll tell you when the time is right. Until then... don''t die, okay?¡± I nodded enthusiastically. ¡°I''ll do it. I''ll live. It''s a promise!¡± I reached out for a handshake. Instead of taking my hand, L¨¢ng wrapped herself around me, embracing me. Being a teenage boy, I couldn''t help being excited, but I was more nervous than anything else. It didn''t matter, though. What I was most concerned with was keeping my promise. What I wanted most was to make things right for her... ¡°Thank you, my Magic Knight. Thank you, Grey...¡± Grey... Grey...! ¡°Grey!¡± All of the sudden, I find myself laying on the ground. Fl¨¨che''s face is hanging above me, blocking the bright sun. ¡°Ah, you''ve finally woken up!¡± She smiles, then stands. I sit up and notice the bandages on my right knee. ¡°What happened?¡± I remember feeling terrible pain in my knee and falling over. Then I summoned swords for L¨¢ng so she could fight Ghostmask, and... everything is a blur after that. ¡°L¨¢ng fought them off by herself, Grey,¡± Fl¨¨che says. ¡°Is she okay!?¡± Unable to contain my worry, I try to stand up and look for her, but pain shoots through my knee, immediately sending me tumbling back to the ground. Not quite as bad as before, but it still hurts. ¡°Don''t try to stand! You still haven''t fully recovered! Pain and suffering, be undone...¡± A light appears on her hands. She places that light on my wounded knee. ¡°Normally, I''d let you regenerate, because you''ll be okay after the little injuries you usually get, but this knee was completely blown open... This isn''t going to heal itself.¡± After a couple more seconds of Fl¨¨che healing me, the pain starts to go away. ¡°So, how long was I out?¡± ¡°Not even a half-hour,¡± Fl¨¨che says, ¡°I don''t think. I did tend to L¨¢ng before coming to treat you, so don''t worry about her.¡± ¡°Was it bad?¡± I don''t know why I''ve bothered to ask, given that she just said L¨¢ng is fine, but I guess I just can''t help myself. ¡°...she would have died if I wasn''t here to heal her.¡± Fl¨¨che looks very sad when she says this, but then she smiles. ¡°But I managed to save her, see?¡± She points to L¨¢ng, sitting on the ground to my left, with Shu sitting nearby and talking to her. ¡°Healing is something I''m rather good at, so I won''t let either of you die. You can count on it.¡± She stands again. ¡°Come on, try standing, now.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I push myself off the ground and take my feet under me. There''s still a little pain, but it''s nothing compared to what I felt earlier, and it should go away on its own. ¡°It''s good.¡± That makes Fl¨¨che smile. ¡°Are we ready to go?¡± ¡°L¨¢ng?¡± Fl¨¨che calls. L¨¢ng stands up from where she''s sitting and gives a quick nod. ¡°Alright,¡± I say, watching L¨¢ng help Shu off of the ground. ¡°Into the forest we go.¡± I take a deep breath, and prepare myself to step inside, knowing everyone else is behind me. Feeling little fear, now, I enter the Lunar Forest... ... Heading deeper into the forest, I''ve noticed... it''s the middle of summer, isn''t it? Why do the trees look so dead? Why do orange leaves cover the ground? Where are all the animals? Something is definitely wrong. Indeed, if a dragon is here... ¡°You missed it, Magic Knight Grey!"I suddenly realize that Shu has come up front with me, which snaps me out of my thoughts."L¨¢ng fought them off all by herself! It was amazing!¡± His enthusiasm gets me thinking back to the first time I saw L¨¢ng fight. Yeah, at the time, I truly was amazed. Walking through the forest still, I smile at Shu and nod. ¡°Is it true that she has no magic, though?¡± Shu asks. ¡°Hmm, what, Shu? Why?¡± ¡°I asked L¨¢ng what kind of magic she was using during the fight, but she said that she can''t use any.¡± Shu laughs nervously. ¡°I mean, she was joking, right? She seems like she messes around like that a lot, so I think she was pulling my leg. There''s no way a normal human can fight like that, right?¡± ¡°L¨¢ng was telling you the truth,¡± I say, casually. ¡°What!?¡± Shu raises an eyebrow. I have to admit, it''s always funny when people react like this. ¡°Ah, you''re in on the joke, too, aren''t you? Come, now, Magic Knight, this has gone on long enough, don''t you think? So, what magic is she using?¡± Walking forward, I just say: ¡°I said she doesn''t use any. It''s not a joke, L¨¢ng can''t do magic.¡± I look at Shu again, and he seems to have been taken completely aback. ¡°You''re serious, aren''t you... You really mean to tell me that L¨¢ng isn''t a Magic Knight?¡± I look back at him and shake my head. ¡°She isn''t. All of her sword-fighting abilities come from talent, intense training, and skill. She''s developed all of that power by herself. No Stargazer ever gave her any gift of Knighthood.¡± For a moment, Shu is left speechless. He starts to speak about a minute later. ¡°...I can''t believe it. It''s so... ridiculous, but you''re telling me the truth, aren''t you? I guess there are some really crazy things in this world, huh?¡± I nod. ¡°Yes, indeed.¡± ¡°But yeah, it''s amazing,¡± Shu says, smiling. ¡°Even though she hasn''t been Knighted, I hope that one day, the chance for that to happen comes her way. She''d make a great Magic Knight.¡± I have a ton of thoughts on that... far too many, some too painful, but I choose to voice the simplest one. ¡°Yes. Yes, she would.¡± I keep walking forward... ¡°Yo, Shu, we are going the right way, aren''t we?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Shu says. ¡°The Tree of Luna is in the center of the forest. I can feel us getting closer to it... Just keep going.¡± ¡°Gotcha,¡± I say, smiling. Our walk through the forest continues... ... ¡°YOU SHALL NOT PASS!¡± Out of the darkness of the forest, arrives the undead knight from before, approaching us with his large, black sword in hand. ¡°The Lady of the Forest is just ahead,¡± he says. ¡°I will not disappoint her. All four of you must turn back, or die here!¡± L¨¢ng steps forward with no hesitation. However, for a moment, she just stands there, looking at him. I eventually notice what is bothering her. The armor that''s been broken by Ghostmask has not been restored. I can see the otherworldly glow coming from inside of it. ¡°The Lady of the Forest has not restored you to full power,¡± L¨¢ng says, then, to the surprise of Shu and Fl¨¨che, she walks into the shade of a nearby tree and sits there, swords sheathed. ¡°I will not fight you. Not like this. Return to your Lady and come back, completely prepared.¡±Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°But L¨¢ng--¡± Shu starts. ¡°Calm down, I got it...¡± I cut him off and walk over to L¨¢ng. ¡°L¨¢ng, this is no time to be selfish. Let''s just stomp this guy, since you seem to know how to beat him, and move on.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Come on, now, just sacrifice your pride for a few minutes, so--¡± ¡°Shut up! It''s not about pride!¡± It couldn''t be more obvious that she''s lying. ¡°You know, I can usually count on you to be honest,¡± I say, kneeling down so I can see her face. ¡°Fine, then. What''s the problem?¡± L¨¢ng averts my gaze, looking toward the undead knight. ¡°It''s not about my pride, it''s about his.¡± I look at the knight, myself. ¡°He''s arrogant enough to come out here and face us, despite being not being at full strength because of the last fight. It''s like he means to mock me...¡± Hearing that, the knight laughs. ¡°You pompous mortal girl! You''re still saying ridiculous things like that... It makes no difference if my armor is complete or not! The end result will be the same!¡± ¡°Yeah, of course,¡± L¨¢ng says, ¡°the end result of me killing you.¡± She stands up and starts to draw one of the swords I had given her. ¡°At least, the way I wanted to do it, you would have been able to keep a little dignity.¡± Sword drawn, she now holds it in front of her. ¡°Grey.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± I ask, standing next to her. ¡°I''m assuming you''ll want to help, although either way, this will be over quickly.¡± Instead of complaining about what she just said, I simply nod. ¡°Use something heavy, like a great axe. You have one, right?¡± I go digging through my sack of scrolls, find the one I''m looking for, and open it. I touch the ¡°îᡱ and send my mana flowing into it. The handle of the axe comes through the scroll. I grab it and pull the whole axe out. Normally, these would be awful heavy, but... ¡°WarMaster!¡± Thanks to this spell''s ability, and my heightened strength, I can barely feel the weight at all. I now hold the great axe with both hands. ¡°Strike his chest,¡± L¨¢ng says to me. ¡°We need to expose whatever''s glowing inside his armor so we can strike it and defeat him.¡± She seems to smile as she says this: ¡°Though you might protest, I''ll distract him, this time. When you see an opening, hit him with the axe.¡± I don''t bother raising a complaint, knowing she won''t back down even if I do. I just smile and nod. ¡°Alright...¡± L¨¢ng dashes forward. ¡°Here I come!¡± As she runs toward him, the undead swings at her feet. L¨¢ng hops, and, in midair, slashes diagonally at the knight''s face. Would now be a good time to strike... Just as I think to move in, the undead knight tries to swat L¨¢ng away with his free hand. She quickly steps back, and then counterattacks, stabbing at the joint in his armor''s left arm. The strange black blood spills out of the joint where L¨¢ng stabbed him. Suddenly, I feel it... I need to move, now! As I dash toward them, I see the knight raise his sword overhead, then bring it down. However, L¨¢ng easily deflects it with her sword. While he stands there, stunned, she moves out of the way, and I come from right behind her... ¡°RRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!¡± I lift the axe above my head, then swing diagonally, bringing the axe down with a loud crash. I can now see what he was hiding behind this armor... I see what looks like a gem of some sort. A gem, attached to his flesh where his heart should be. The ¡°skin¡± surrounding the gem is pitch black, veins are spreading out from the gem, seemingly all over his body. I have never seen anything like this... I don''t believe I have, at least... Suddenly, an arrow goes flying into the gem, breaking it. I look at it and see that it''s just an ordinary arrow. For it to have broken the gem... it must have been enhanced by magic. ¡°Fl¨¨che?¡± ¡°Well, I couldn''t just sit back and let you two have all the fun, now, could I?¡± Fl¨¨che says, holding her magic bow in her right hand. I gotta say, I almost forgot that she had that thing... This is the first time she''s pulled it out on this quest, as far as I know. She approaches, walking past us and kneeling down to look at the undead knight. ¡°...Is this is end...? Will I pass away, being of no use to my Lady? Even this time... even this time... I have failed her.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Fl¨¨che asks, calmly. ¡°Do you know of the Thirteen Houses War, foreign girl? I was of the House of Y¨©. It was my duty, no, my purpose in life, to guard Lady Y¨©. However, I was arrogant. I was no match for the Phoenix Emperor and his men. I failed her... but it wasn''t over! By some miracle, Lady Y¨© came back from beyond the grave and breathed new life into me! I thought to myself, the gods have given me another chance! The Lady told me that she needed the prayers from the Lunar Forest to stay alive, so I brought her here, and told myself I would guard her with my life, but even this time... I have failed her...¡± L¨¢ng, Fl¨¨che, and I all share a knowing look. We''ve all come to the conclusion that this Lady of the Forest can''t possibly be his Lady Y¨©. ¡°The prayers of the forest...¡± Shu says, to himself. ¡°That means...¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I say, ¡°the Lady is the one causing the corruption. The undead we''ve been seeing, here, have been raised by her.¡± ¡°This is correct,¡± the knight says. ¡°If you... purify the spirit of Lady Y¨©... the corruption will stop and the prayers will reach the goddess again...¡± Fl¨¨che asks: ¡°Shu, would you be able to prepare a Holy Blessing? This Lady is likely something my Inmortuorum Vertunt will not work on.¡± ¡°I will try.¡± Fl¨¨che turns to the knight again. ¡°Knight of Y¨©, worry not. This shall all be over, soon. You''ve endured a great pain. However, despair not. You shall pass on to the next life, and hopefully find peace.¡± Her hands glow, and she touches the broken gem. ¡°Inmortuorum Vertunt.¡± With that, the undead knight begins to fade away... ¡°Ah, perhaps... for it to end like this...¡± He sheds a single tear. ¡°For it to end like this... perhaps it isn''t bad after all...¡± He smiles. It was the first real smile I''ve seen on him, and, of course, it will be the last. In that moment, I find myself hoping that he finds peace... and then he is gone. ¡°May you rest in peace.¡± Fl¨¨che stands up, now. ¡°Well, are we all ready? Let''s go and cleanse the forest. Our quest is almost over.¡± She smiles, saying this. ¡°Grey, lead the way.¡± Nodding, I walk forward. ¡°Alright, Let''s go, everybody.¡± We head onward. Deeper into the forest... ... We finally reach the center of Luna''s Forest. We stand at the tree, larger than any other tree in this forest. At the base of the tree, the Lady of the Forest is waiting for us. ¡°I see. So he died...¡± She looks at us with hellish, purple eyes. The instant I see them, I know something... just isn''t right. How I am unnerved by her grey hair and unnaturally pale skin is beyond me. Somehow, it feels very familiar... yet this feeling isn''t as strong as the one in my memory. ¡°Shu,¡± I whisper, ¡°what do you need to prepare a blessing?¡± ¡°Time,¡± he says. ¡°I just need time.¡± ¡°Alright. You will get plenty of it.¡± I walk towards the Lady of the Forest. L¨¢ng and Fl¨¨che follow me. I hear Shu speak, preparing to purify the Lady. Standing here, I say to the Lady... ¡°You''re a dragon, aren''t you?¡± L¨¢ng and Fl¨¨che look at me after I ask this question, but remain silent and keep listening. ¡°That''s correct, mortal,¡± She says, smiling. ¡°You''ve encountered a dragon before, haven''t you?¡± ¡°I have to say, you don''t seem as strong as the other dragon I have seen. You''re not at your full strength, are you?¡± ¡°You''re smarter than you look,¡± she says, giggling. ¡°That''s right, I''ve lost a lot of power on my trip to this plain, the world of the humans...¡± A twisted grin... ¡°I happened to be near this forest, so I decided to twist the prayers to that goddess Luna and use them for my power. Of course, I wouldn''t be able to do this if a bunch of brave adventurers on a quest of glory or whatever else came and thought of slaying me. So I sacrificed some of the little power I had to reanimate that guy and keep people from disturbing me. Manipulating him was easy, all I had to do was search through his memories and make myself appear to him as his Lady Y¨©.¡± ¡°So you just used his emotions for your own benefit...¡± I see... that knight was a victim, too...¡°That''s... that''s terrible! Why did you have to toy with him like that!?¡± ¡°Because it''s funny.¡± She grins again, showing her sharp dragon teeth. ¡°Humans are funny things, so sometimes, us dragons come and play with them, like this!¡± She stands. A horrible aura exudes from her... ¡°Sometimes they break, and that sucks, but I can always find a new toy, right?¡± ¡°DAMN YOU!!!¡± I can''t listen to this anymore! Messing with people like that... Messing with the dead like that... Unforgivable! I''ll kill-- ¡°Get down!¡± Suddenly, I''m knocked over. Before I realize what is going on, I feel strong heat just above me. Once the heat is gone, Fl¨¨che gets off of me and stands up. ¡°Are you okay?¡± She reaches out her hand, and I take it. ¡°Yeah.¡± Shu shouts out: ¡°Magic Knights! I just need a little more time! Distract her just a moment longer, please!¡± ¡°Got it.¡± Let''s see... I have to think rationally. I do not think I can take a dragon in a straight up fight. Even with L¨¢ng and Fl¨¨che here, we won''t be able to beat her. We would need to be stronger than we are... Our only option is fight defensively and wait for Shu to finish... ¡°Alright, let''s do it! Fl¨¨che, cast a spell that will protect us! L¨¢ng, for now, watch the dragon carefully.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Gotcha!¡± I watch as the ¡°Lady of the Forest¡± begins to change. Her pale skin becomes black scales, looking similar to those the undead knight was wearing. From her head grows two ram-like horns, and her grey hair becomes like porcupine spines... she continues to grow in size. She begins to inhale, and her throat starts to glow... not good. ¡°Vento Scutum!¡± Just before the flame hits us, a powerful wind surrounds us all, protecting us, like a shield. The dragon quickly sees that her attack isn''t working, however, and stops breathing fire. ¡°Oh, twisted creature who fills their cup with rage at the divine arrangement...¡± I hear Shu start to chant. The dragon stands on its hind legs, somehow extends its front claws, and swipes them at us. The wind shield will not be able to protect us from this... ¡°Everyone get out of the way!¡± With the split second we have, we all jump into the sky. The attack barely misses, but tears up the ground where the dragon struck. She''s barely missed Shu, who hasn''t moved... We fall back to the ground, and form a ¡°wall¡± around Shu. The dragon makes a fist... ¡°!!!¡± Thinking as fast as I can, I go through my scrolls and pull out as many as I can with ¡°¶Ü¡±, about twenty, and I throw them up into the air. I have to charge a lot of mana for this to work... Flame within my soul, burn ever hotter, that I may overcome any challenge! Burn... Burn...! BURN! ¡°SHIELD!¡± All the mana that I''ve built up goes out... It touches every scroll, and out from each of them comes a shield. I''m not done, yet, though. I reach out my hand to the shields, and continue to manipulate my mana... ¡°Be bound!¡± With that, all twenty shields connect to each other, forming one large shield. ¡°...behold the price for opposing the order of the gods!¡± Shu continues to prepare the blessing... The dragon''s fist finally comes down! The sound of impact... The shield was able to withstand it, but the dragon pounds the shield again... again... again... I hear the shield crack. Damn, I can''t do anything! Come on, a little longer! Just a little longer! CRASH The shield shatters... The dragon''s fist comes right toward us, Immediately, I think to dive and pull Shu out the way...! BOOOOOOOM!!! The ground breaks under the power of the dragon''s fist. It almost looks as if there was an earthquake of sorts... ¡°Shu, you alright?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± He presents to me a small piece of paper, which I assume holds the Holy Blessing. ¡°Touch her with this. It doesn''t matter how you do it, as long as it reaches her...¡± ¡°...we win,¡± I say, taking it from him. The dragon seems to notice what''s going on, and the wings on its back spread. It flies... higher... higher... higher, still. ¡°Here I go.¡± I pull out another ¡°„‡¡± scroll, and shout ¡°Sword!¡± putting my mana into it. I pull the sword from the scroll, and then I pull out another scroll. One last ¡°¶Ü¡± scroll. ¡°Shield!¡± I pull the shield from the scroll, and charge mana into my feet. I jump. I jump higher than any human possibly could. Into the sky. With the birds, and even higher. The dragon''s throat lights up, and it shoots one more blast of fire at me. I hold the shield up before it''s too late. The fire blocks my view of the dragon, burns my skin... Come on, Grey... it''s not so bad. You''ve been through worse...! You have to keep going! You have to endure! Endure it! I know you can! Go! Keep going! I discard the shield, burned beyond use, and keep going... ¡°RRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!¡± I appear out of the flames like a demon out of Hell. I affix the Blessed charm to my sword and stab at the dragon. I tear through its underbelly like a hot knife through butter. I now slash, opening it up vertically! ¡°RAAAAWWWWWWRR!!!¡± Gallons upon gallons of black blood spill out. Both me and the dragon go falling to the ground. It''s no question that the dragon is dead. I did it... I did it... ¡­ ¡­¡­ ......... ¡°Grey, wake up!¡± I find myself lying on the ground again, this time, next to the great tree of Luna''s Forest. This time, it''s L¨¢ng who I see watching over me. When she sees me open my eyes, a smile comes to her face. ¡°You''re alright!¡± She embraces me. ¡°You did an awesome job, Grey. You did great.¡± Unable to think of a better reaction, I just smile. ¡°Shu,¡± Fl¨¨che says, ¡°are you ready to pray to the goddess, now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I see Shu approach the tree, kneel down, and start to pray quietly... It''s just a little at first, but I can feel it. Life is being restored to this forest... grass grows, green returns to the trees... That horrible aura brought on by the dragon is gone. I needn''t see it all, but I know its divine beauty has returned... ¡°Grey, look,¡± L¨¢ng says to me. Fl¨¨che is looking upwards, as well. I look up and see it... A beautiful woman... white hair... gentle blue eyes... a warm smile... a crescent mark on her forehead... ¡°Luna...¡± Ah, yes, it is her... Looking down, smiling at us, perhaps even thanking us... I can see her... What an amazing moment... I really am in the presence of a goddess... Epilogue (Grey) That evening, we return to the Great Hall of Emperor ¨­tori, with the priest boy, Shu, in tow. ¡°Ah, you have returned alive!¡± The High Priest, Jiro, runs over and hugs his son. ¡°Thank you all so much for watching over him! Luna will surely bless you!¡± Seeing that, seeing a father so thankful that his boy has come home alright, it brings a smile to my face. ¡°Another good job, Magic Knights,¡± Emperor ¨­tori says, smiling. ¡°Jiro, I trust we''ll be sticking to the arrangements we''ve made about their reward?¡± ¡°300,000 Gien each, right? I''ll have it mailed to them as soon as possible. Thank you.¡± ¡°300,000!?¡± Holy crap, that''s a lot! You could almost buy a small house with that! ¡°High Priest Jiro, I don''t think--¡± ¡°Please take it,¡± Jiro says, smiling at me. ¡°It''s the best way I could express my gratitude.¡± ¡°Hey, I won''t argue with that,¡± L¨¢ng says, shrugging. I let out a sigh. ¡°Neither will I.¡± I smile at the holy man. ¡°I''ll take it gladly.¡± He laughs. ¡°Good, good. Just remember not to spend it all in... ah, who am I kidding. It''s your reward, do as you wish with it.¡± He starts to leave. ¡°Let us be on our way, son.¡± ¡°Just a moment, father,¡± Shu says. He stands in front of us. ¡°Grey, L¨¢ng, Fl¨¨che, thank you. If it weren''t for you, I would not have had the strength to complete my journey. I wouldn''t even be standing here...¡± He wipes a tear away from his eye. ¡°Deeply, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you.¡± Feeling no need to say anything, I reach out my hand. Shu takes my hand in his and shakes it. He then departs from the Great Hall with his father, Hopefully to get a night of well deserved rest... Emperor ¨­tori dismisses us, and it is time for us to head home, as well. ¡°Well, my home''s this way,¡± says Fl¨¨che, pointing right. ¡°I''ll see you in the morning, okay?¡± ¡°Okay,¡± I say. ¡°Good night!¡± I wave to her, and go down the street with L¨¢ng. ¡°Why are you walking me home, again?¡± L¨¢ng asks, after a moment. ¡°My house just happens to be in the same direction,¡± I say, not trying to bring my feelings into it, ¡°but hey, if it bothers you that much...¡± ¡°No, no, it''s not a big deal. You can walk with me,¡± she says, still walking. ¡°Come and walk next to me, it feels weird when you''re behind.¡± Not willing to argue, I just do so.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Another quest completed successfully, huh, Grey?¡± ¡°What? Uh, yeah. Mission complete,¡± I say, lost in my thoughts. ¡°Something bothering you, man?¡± ¡°No, it''s nothing.¡± ¡°No, you''re lying.¡± L¨¢ng walks a little ahead and stands in front of me. ¡°We''re a team, right? We''re supposed to rely on each other. Tell me... what''s wrong?" ¡°...Fl¨¨che told me that you almost died fighting Ghostmask.¡± L¨¢ng''s eyes widen when I say this. ¡°You could have died, and... and I was unable to do anything.¡± ¡°Ah, where did this come from...¡± she says, scratching her head. ¡°Well, yeah, I could have died. I was fighting someone who was trying to kill us, so what do you expect? Why are you worrying right now, though? I''m alive. Everything''s fine...¡± ¡°No, it''s not!¡± I shout, grabbing onto L¨¢ng''s shoulders. ¡°This isn''t the way things should be! Shu said that you would make a great Magic Knight... I know that truth better than anyone... but look at the way things ended up!¡± ¡°Grey, don''t start--¡± ¡°This power should''ve been yours in the first place! I have to stop being useless... I have to get strong enough to fight for both of us! Don''t worry, L¨¢ng, I''ll pro--¡± L¨¢ng shoves me away. ¡°Don''t you dare say it, Grey! We''ve been over this before, and if you say such an idiotic, cliched thing like I think you''re about to, I''ll deck you, so just shut up!¡± She starts rubbing her forehead. ¡°Look, Grey. Let''s say you did ''get strong enough to fight for both of us''. Let''s say I did just let you protect me. Okay, then... How would I be able to protect you, then?¡± ¡°What? That''s...¡± ¡°Grey, you can''t just play the lone hero. It doesn''t work that way. Like I said, we''re a team. You''ve got powers that I don''t. I understand that. Still, that doesn''t mean you''re immortal. If you died protecting me and I could do nothing, do you really think I''d be okay with that?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°See? You, me, Fl¨¨che... we all can die, so we all need to protect each other. Besides, I still have a favor to ask of you.¡± She smiles at me. ¡°I can''t tell you what it is if I''m dead, can I?¡± Ah yes, that''s right. How could I not have seen it that way? ¡°Alright, I get it.¡± I reach out for a handshake. ¡°Until I can keep our promise, I won''t die, but don''t you go dying either, got it?¡± Instead of taking my hand, L¨¢ng embraces me again. It''s just like that day four years ago... ¡°Don''t worry, Grey. I won''t die.¡± She eventually lets go. ¡°Well, my house is right here, so I''ll see you tomorrow.¡± Not knowing what else to say, I just nod. ¡°...and Grey..." ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± With that, she walks into her house. I start heading home, myself. ...L¨¢ng, I''m sorry for doubting you. For forgetting, even if only just for a second, what kind of person you are. I won''t let that happen again, though. I should know, by now, that the three of us are strongest together, so whatever load we have to carry, we''ll carry it together. Thanks for reminding me, L¨¢ng... I will go on believing in you. Some Thoughts There ya go. Another one finished. So, what did you think? Good? Bad? Somewhere in-between? Fl¨¨chewhile they were still alive? Personally, I ended up enjoying writing about Grey the most. Unfortunately, I wasn''t able to giveFl¨¨che much to say or do... hopefully that''ll change when I revisit this time period and this cast, and yes, I intend to eventually! Anyway,L¨¢ng was a new character that the audience doesn''t know yet. Well, technically not, anyway. You can see how similar to Trace she is, can''t you? In fact, I kind of worry that I may have made her a little toosimilar. Aaaah, my audience has probably figured out one of later the plot developments already...! *sweatdrop* This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.