I understood hating your enemy. I couldn't truly sympathise, but I did understand. I did not, however, understand the highly charged nature of her accusation. This was a war. Each of the heroic spirits summoned towards that purpose came from an era significantly dangerous than mine. Some were heroes. Some were villains. All of them should have been used to war and strife.
Mine was an honest-to-god manic warmonger.
That was to say, I expected a heroic spirit to be jaded. They knew the nature of their summoning.
But, looking at the Witch of Colchis and her hateful expression, I was forced to re-examine that understanding.
The Thaumaturgy I stripped from her during our clash was a long-dead one. Following the footsteps of Touko Aozaki, I'd be able to achieve the rank of Grand upon my return to the Clock Tower. Hers was, as a magus, perhaps the single-most significant contribution to my arsenal.
A system that, in my own hands, was capable of reproducing Mystery from the Age of Gods. Divine Magecraft that blurred the line between magecraft and true magic. Maybe reaching the Root of all Creation all of us sought wasn't out of reach if her casting was brought into the equation… not that I was really interested.
That was why I was indeed grateful to her.
From her, I'd received something incredible, beyond modern means. I was thankful to every single servant participating in the war and every master responsible for their summoning.
Those were my earnest thoughts as the small space between us divided infinitely, courtesy of mystery simply… obeying. Lightning struck and fizzled out. The winds died at my foot. I waved a hand. The beams of light were cast aside as though they were a mere reflection off a mirror. They hit the walls beside us, tore through them. The ground exploded. A cacophony of mana-fueled explosions lit up the dark night and drove away the rain.
What was left behind was charred and smoking earth, glowing red.
It looked like there had been a bombing run conducted just next to us.
"You! What have you ever done to deserve all the Gods give you? What great deed have you performed? What have you suffered?"
She bit her lip, readying herself to fire again, until she had exhausted all she had. Her eyes glazed over. I realized she was looking my way but she wasn't seeing… me.
"Nothing." I answered calmly. "I'm just built different."
Frustration was all that remained on her face then. She clenched her fists, and fired again.
Or, she was about to.
With a snap of my fingers, I cut off the connection between her and the earth. No, I seized control of the mana from leylines, along with all the mana she was absorbing from the mystery-rich land. Again, I used the same methods she had to gain control in the first place, just… better.
She noticed immediately.
"Riddle me this," I raised a hand to my chin. "You're acting like a victim here but we both know you're masterless. How exactly did you replenish your mana reserves enough to get here? What happened to the people that lived here?"
Atrum's workshop was on the other side of Fuyuki. By his own admission, he only ever gave her enough mana to barely sustain herself as a precaution against betrayal. Although, it seemed that hadn't been enough to stop her from doing just that.
She didn't answer.
I didn't need her to.
At the end of the day, she was a magus too. A proper one, considering her name, and the nature of her tale.
"Did you kill them like-…"
I stopped myself. That was unlike me. It was unbecoming.
"You know," I started again, "You could still surrender."
Nobunaga choked on her whiskey at my words. I turned to find her hitting her chest with a fist, coughing, but still sat where she was before. Despite the conflict, she'd not budged an inch, content to drink and watch on.
"I won't. I knew I'd never last in this war, but I've already decided that I'll live for as long as I can."
Medea's words drew my gaze back to her.
"So, kill me if you want to." She breathed deeply, then resolved herself. "I'll go down fighting."
That was oddly admirable. She was in a corner, deprived of mana, with spells I could already dismantle before they even finished forming, despite their speed. But, she was going to struggle. I considered letting her go for that alone.
No. That wasn't happening.
Still, unable to help myself, I ended up asking, "Why?"
"Because I've a reason of my own to live this time. For as long as possible, I want to be by his side."
Huh.
Behind me, I heard Nobunaga snicker.
Before I could inquire any further, the 'reason' made himself known. A lean man in a dark green suit, eyes framed by a pair of thick glasses. His dark hair was cut short. His face was too serious. No, that was wrong. He betrayed no emotion whatsoever.
Medea's breath hitched.
"Kuzuki-"
Kuzuki, eh?
"-You… You can't be here-"
He stared at her for a silent moment before giving an imperceptible nod and… stepping past her. Step-by-step, he moved forward until he stood right between us. Nobunaga guffawed when she noticed. I ignored the trigger-happy idiot.
"You'll fight me to protect her?"
"Yes." He answered, simply.
The rain grew loud.
Shamefully enough, those words made me hesitate. For a minute now, this had not felt like an easy fight against some two-bit villain born to be a mere stepping stone. I understood why that was now. Medea had fought with all she had to protect this man, despite being hopelessly weaker. That was why she never fled.
Now, this man-… Kuzuki, was prepared to do the same, with not a trace of fear in his eyes.
I was reminded of Adra Castle, and how I moved to protect my Luvia much the same way.
So, yes, I hesitated because I knew I could have been the one on the receiving end, and behave much the same way.
I… didn't feel as good anymore.
When I 'stumbled', Nobunaga finally shifted. The strips of gold chained together around her cloak clambered faintly. Her heavy boots thudded with each step towards us until they did not. The Demon King of the Sixth Heaven pressed a hand against my back.
"Do not falter-"
When I looked back, I saw no trace of her usual silly expression. Her gaze burned and blurred.
"-to do so, is to insult your ambition, and my own. This is a battle. We fight a war. Do not insult the resolve of your enemy with pity. To let others lick their wounds so you may set them against one another is fine. Falling for beguilement is not."
"I don't think this is beguilement-"
"They are not impressive, not useful, and be sure she will turn her blade against us."
"I-I won't!" Medea suddenly interjected. "W… We'll disappear, until the war ends. I won't fight you, so please, at least let Kuzuki go-"
"Silence."
The air burned. Water sizzled. Dozens of rifles took shape amongst the flames, surrounding Caster and Kuzuki.
"A Geis. I'll enter a Geis. If I break it, you'll know."
A Geis… a magical contract, that turned into a curse if the terms were breached in any situation. I was familiar with the concept, thanks to my lessons in Mystile.
I scratched the back of my head, not at all intimidated by Nobunaga's display. She wanted me to stop being wishy-washy at critical junctures, and be more decisive with what I wanted. If that was what she wanted, then fine.
"Alright. Set it up."
Nobunaga bared her fangs, her rifles flicked to me instead, "You deny me?"
"No, I'm making a decision, like you want, not stumbling around like a drunk." I matched her grin, a hand in my pocket, "Even if you don't like it."
She stared at me long and hard.
Then, a sigh.
A flick of her wrist and the rifles were gone.
"I would have been rather incensed if you bent under me." She patted my shoulder.
I snorted, "You'd never have shot me."
The Demon King did not answer. She merely huffed and sat down on the stairs, retrieving her bottle of whiskey.
"I expected something cuter like-… O-Of course I couldn't hurt my adorable master~"
"I resent that!" She shouted at me. "That would never happen!"
"So you don't care about me? I'm hurt~"
"I will shoot you, master."
I pulled off her hat and tossed it in the air before she could even protest, then even ruined her hair-do. The Demon King grumbled quietly, placated for a while. Although, I mentally prepared myself for her revenge… hopefully, I wouldn't wake up floating in the sea.
"So, Medea, the Geis."
Medea suddenly snapped out of some sort of stupor. She raised a hand, and I saw the contract form between us.
"I will not take part in the war."
"You will leave the city immediately. Until you do, I can track you."
She lowered her head in acceptance. Kuzuki stared at me a long while.
"He doesn't speak much, does he?"
"Thank you." He said, startling me.
"He just made things weird. Why did he have to make things weird?"
Medea… giggled, without any malice for the first time. She looked happy. Huh.
"But, if you break it, I'm going to hunt you down."
"I-" She trembled, "I won't. The residents of the temple are… inside, unconscious but, unharmed."
Soon after, the two left. I sat beside Nobunaga, and watched them depart. When they were finally gone, I rose to my feet. The self-acclaimed Demon King stood up with me, arms crossed, one eye closed.
"I should be more annoyed, but I have been moved by such tales myself in life. Say, Master, do you want to be my vassal?"
"You're the servant here."
Her lips twitched.
I teleported away, appearing on my porch. Caren awaited me. Without a word, the priestess led me to the dining hall where… for once, dinner was not instant-noodles or junk food. Instead, there was soup, soup made with onions, garlic, tomatoes and eggs. No doubt it had some unholy name I could never pronounce due to the cook being raised in France.
"Did… you make this?"
She didn't answer, but her chest swelled with pride. A faint smile danced on the edge of her lips.
It tasted… better than I'd expect. There was no hair or weird juices in it which had been a distinct possibility considering Caren.
However, I never got to compliment her. The moment I turned to do so, I felt the Geis between me and Caster shatter.
"…Bitch."
I was going to erase her.
Maybe listening to my servant had been the better option.
"I'll be back in a jiffy."
Pursing my lips, I teleported again, tracing her last location.
Oh when I found her-
"What the…"
-
Hope you enjoyed.
Please do comment. Also, since I was a bit tired, there's a decent chance I messed up somewhere. If such is the case, point it out with no hesitation.
You can find 7 big ahh chapters ahead on patre0n.com/Bleap