EP.89 25-4. Everyone needs a headache pill.
***
One of the buildings where 2nd graders are mainly located in the academy.
In that place, Nex Aureus took out the purple phoenix and faced off against the Hero Cult,
“Nex, they’re coming again from the front!”
Behind him, the black-haired saintess was back to back with him.
“..They’re garbage bastards as expected.”
Because of the fanatics who pretended to beg for their lives a little while ago and took out their weapons, Charitines had a slight scratch on her cheek.
“Is everyone okay now? Everyone!”
She, who had the characteristics of a vampire, wrapped divinity around her fists and knocked down the approaching opponent, and
“Thank you. Charitines..”
“You’re welcome!”
At the same time, she looked around and healed any classmates who were injured, showing a very busy appearance.
“Nex, I’m okay. So don’t act rashly.”
“I know. Char. I’m trying too.”
He immediately activated Helios Midnight to neutralize magic and weapons and tried to protect the students, but
“There’s Nex Aureus!!”
“Elementalism against elementalism! Get to position quickly!”
“According to prophecy, there’s no way we can lose!!”
As if Nex’s skills had already been revealed, a group of white-clothed people were taking out water-attribute spirits and approaching closer and closer.
“..As expected, the Demon Lord of Omniscience. It doesn’t seem like it’ll work with appropriate methods.”
His purple eyes shone, grasping the strength in front of him. If he activated the Phoenix Cradle, he couldn’t go save other people.
From what Licht’s junior said and what the head of the family did, he had become immobilized. It was the same when he practiced alone.
‘At least the Cradle is forbidden until support comes.’
He didn’t know how much strength was outside. No matter how much it was elementalism used by the descendants of the Ten Greats, it didn’t mean that there were no weaknesses.
The hypothesis that his activating the Cradle here was the number that the opponent was aiming for flashed through his mind.
What if they tie him up by having him use the strongest defense that the current 2nd graders can use and attack elsewhere. A crossroads of choices was placed before Nex.
“Magnolia Swordsmanship. 4th Form. Clear Stream.”
That was when. Like the sea with the tide coming in, the water flowed into the hallway. Blue waves like the waves. It flowed while avoiding the students and swept away half of the enemies at once.
“..Junior Licht!”
Licht, wearing a black knight helmet, appeared from somewhere. Seeing the fanatics attacking the students with magic and weapons,
“The formation has collapsed..! I was about to get Nex to use the Cradle soon!”
“That black knight helmet is what the Demon Lord mentioned….”
He ran quickly and cut down the enemies around Nex and Charitines. Arrows flew straight at him, but Licht deflected the arrows without even taking a breath.
“What, I definitely heard that he was weak against ranged attacks─.”
The apostle with the bow was shocked as he looked at Licht. What was that monster? It was clear that what he had heard was that he wasn’t a person with that level of power.
He had reached a certain level of swordsmanship.
Calling him a sword master was the right expression. When he swung his sword again, none of the academy students were hurt even a single hair. Only the Hero Cultists wearing white clothes fell.
“..Senior Nex. You’re still okay.”
“Still? What does that mean?”
Licht, having knocked down all the enemies, stood before Nex and Charitines. Nex questioned a strange word.
Then, as if expressing discomfort, the brown eyes in the black knight helmet narrowed.
“These guys are probably aiming for you and Mardol.”
“Mardol? Don’t tell me like before..!”
2nd Saintess. Since Charitines knew about Phine Gransia’s past related to Magic Hat, she covered her mouth with both hands and made a sound.
“So that’s why you said still. I was afraid you might have been attacked in advance.”
“Yes, you’ve been taken hostage before.”
“They’re complete assholes. Are they trying to mess with our Char again?”
The purple-haired man bit his lower lip and expressed his resentment. The coldness had disappeared from his grumbling words.
“Senior Nex. Use the Phoenix Cradle to cover this entire building.”
“..Is it okay? Looking at what the Hero Cult was doing earlier, it seems like they’re aiming for me to use the Cradle.”
“I’m here. Fate, prophecy. No matter how much you babble.”
Seeing that, Licht looked at Nex directly and opened his mouth. His determined will was felt by Nex, giving him a sense of relief.
“People can overcome it.”
“Yeah, I have to do what our Hero of Wisdom says.”
As if satisfied with his junior’s attitude, Nex made a fox-like smile on his face and activated the Phoenix Cradle.
“Pieet─!”
The huge purple phoenix flew up once, and then puffed up its body to double its size,
“..I told you I’m not a hero. Senior.”
With its huge wings, it was wrapping around one of the academy’s buildings, creating a completely invincible barrier. Licht said that he wasn’t a hero, but
“Looking at what you’re doing now, junior, you are a hero.”
“...”
“I think a hero is a hero because they do things that fit the name.”
“Is that so….”
Nex patted his junior’s shoulder lightly and sent him support. He hesitated to say something and stopped his mouth.
“Ah, and. Senior Charitines, please help so that Senior Nex doesn’t get tired.”
“Okay. Junior Licht!”
When Licht advised, the saintess, who was black from head to toe, immediately stuck by the purple-haired man and began to heal him.
“It looks good. Seniors.”
“Do you have time to joke in this situation? Junior Licht..?”
“Well, if I don’t make jokes like this, it’ll be sad.”
Licht spoke briefly, looking at the purple-haired man whose neck and cheeks were red due to physical contact. Blood was caked on his hand and helmet.
“Junior Licht, are you going to save our Mardol?”
“You got me. How did you know?”
“..If that wasn’t the case, there’s no way you would have made our Nex use the Cradle.”
Her red iris shone slightly, showing the characteristics of a vampire. Struck by the truth, he lowered his head as if he had no choice.
“I said it before, but please take care of our Mardol.”
“...”
The black knight raised his head again. A look that had matured somehow, unlike the past, was revealed.
“I’ll definitely protect her even if you don’t say that.”
Charitines, who heard Licht’s answer, made a sound of oh my, and couldn’t hide her surprise, but unlike before, he didn’t show a negative attitude.
***
After ending that short meeting, I was teleported back to the place where Mardol was with Dennis.
“..Licht?”
“Mardol, you’re safe…. That’s a relief.”
As soon as I saw the heavily armored glass knight, I let out a sigh of relief. Kainel and Ariel are also around.
It seemed like I hadn’t met the Demon Lord of Omniscience yet. But what is this place anyway.
“..The stadium?”
In the stadium of Grand Hearts Academia, a huge glass wall like a dome was set up, and dozens of magic circles were drawn on the floor inside, taking the form of a bunker.
“Tada, I drew all of this! Helmet-ssi!”
As I fixed my gaze on the floor and showed a suspicious attitude, the magician with red pigtails fluttered and came to me and spoke.
“Hehe, I copied what I saw at the swordsmanship training ground! They can’t come in with this!”
“Ariel.. You’re too excited. We haven’t defeated the Hero Cult yet.”
Kainel looked at her and said something from the side. Our tactless mutt and tsundere cat seemed to be fine too. If they had met the Demon Lord, I thought they would run away somewhere.
“Kainel.”
“Why, Licht?”
“..Honestly, I thought you’d run away. I’m sorry I didn’t trust you.”
I apologized to the blond-haired hero. If the hero who could oppose the Demon Lord ran away like in the sequel, it would be a very disadvantageous situation.
I didn’t trust my friends too much. I didn’t have a fraudulent item or the highest level party members made up of numerous Ten Greats right now, but
“Licht. You’re really tactless. Do you think this ‘Hero of Light Kainel’ would run away somewhere?”
“I don’t like hearing that from you….”
“So trust people a little more. Licht.”
I had the experience I’ve done so far, and the actions I’ve taken.
I was hit in reverse by the words I had said before. Kainel was gradually becoming sly like Ariel.
“Licht, blood.”
As we were talking, I heard a buzzing voice from the side.
“I’m okay. Mardol. I’m not really hurt.”
Originally it wasn’t my blood. She was expressing her concern to me while looking at the traces of the Hero Cultist’s blood on the helmet and hand.
“..That’s right. That’s really a relief. Licht.”
Mardol was such a warm person. It also seemed like she was deep inside.
I couldn’t allow her to be played by the Demon Lord’s hands like this.
‘She was even trying to care for me because I was scared of fire.’
I wanted to say something to her, who was looking at me and touching my body several times, but I left it alone. If it was the past me, I would have been surprised and ran away because I misunderstood her for the Crown Prince.
‘You’ve changed a lot. Lee Soo-hyun.’
I really made friends in the game now. I met the characters beyond the screen and shared friendship with them.
I also built relationships with Dennis and Drake, and the hero and magician couple Kainel and Ariel.
“Licht, I was surprised because you disappeared suddenly.”
“I’m sorry. I was late because I had to protect Senior Charitines and Senior Nex.”
“..As expected. You’re always the same, Licht.”
And I became friends with Mardol Gransia. What kind of life would this person have lived if I wasn’t here. She probably wouldn’t have interacted with the hero couple either.
She was a person like sharp glass that was lonely and cold, not allowing others to approach.
That’s how all friendships are said to be. Now I don’t even know how we became friends.
“Mardol. I told you I’m okay. Stop touching me now.”
“It’s revenge from before. You pervert Licht.”
“...”
I was a little dissatisfied that our Nameless Saintess wasn’t here, but I wondered if I was happy even if it was like this. At that moment.
‘What is that..?’
I saw something strange in my vision.
“..The Apostle of Gluttony?”
A toad-like man appeared in the distance and sprayed black smoke. The outside was becoming dark, the opposite of when I used Shadow Fang.
─Tang.
As the world turned black to the point where the external situation couldn’t be confirmed, the third gunshot rang out immediately, and the glass wall shattered into pieces, and
The smoke sprayed by the toad man was trying to swallow the stadium. The smoke should be slow, but the speed was abnormally fast.
“Everyone hold your breath!!”
I tried to counter the apostle’s attack by creating wind with Vacuum Slash, but it was a futile hand gesture. The wind pressure couldn’t push back the transparent black smoke.
‘A passing phantom. As expected this feeling is….’
An apostle with the ability to recreate people’s trauma and strengthen himself by eating the fear that arises from it. It’s not possible unless it’s Mettus of Gluttony.
Similar to when it was Cerber of Lust, I passed out and collapsed on the rough sandy floor.