Lu Bu's spear slowly began to descend. Leonidas slowly began to approach Lu Bu.
"TAOIKONG YING!!!!!"
"GREEK, ARKK!!!"
Their attacks met each other, creating an immense boom and tremor.
BOOM!!!
Lu Bu's spear and Leonidas's sword clashed. No one knew who would endure. Lu Bu screamed extremely loudly and pushed his spear down with all his might.
Leonidas refused to lose. He pushed his body and stance so his sword could pierce Lu Bu's spear.
The ground began to shake violently. Chunks of rock around them flew and shattered into pieces. The air, which was initially cold due to the storm, suddenly became hot, enveloped by emptiness. The tall clouds above their heads slowly split apart and disappeared.
– –
Point of view: Nico (Lu Bu)
"I can't lose here… not yet. There are still many things I want to do with them."
Since childhood, I was always feared because of my illogical strength. People around me shunned me out of fear; they saw me as someone frightening and cruel.
I don't know what they thought of me. Back in middle school, I was once belittled by my own teacher in front of the students for not being able to do anything. I was even bullied for liking plants—especially flowers.
"Am I really weird?"
When I started asking my parents, they just told me to shut up. They said I had no talent, that I was a useless child. In the end, they left me and handed custody over to my grandmother.
My father and mother left me for over 7 years. When I graduated from high school, my grandmother passed away; that was the heaviest blow in my life. My grandmother always supported me. Behind her house, there was a garden she provided for me. Grandma knew what I liked, Grandma understood me—more than my own parents.
However, when my grandmother passed away, my parents disappeared instead; they didn't come to my grandmother's funeral. They disappeared. They abandoned me because I was useless.
Because of that blow, I tried to train my body so that all negative thoughts would leave my mind. I started exercising, building my muscle mass, and tending to the garden my grandmother left for me. Until finally—that night—it changed my life completely.
I got a job as a gardener at a private high school. Even though the place was quite far from my home, at least I could meet my daily needs. And I could also use this distance to train my leg muscles.
On a quiet night, a full moon hung beautifully above the horizon. I walked home alone, feeling a bit busy today because I was assigned to prepare for the opening event at my workplace. It was now summer, which also meant new students would be filling the school tomorrow.
"Help!!!!" Someone shouted.
From a distance, I heard someone screaming for help. Spontaneously, I started running and approached the direction of the scream.
I saw a woman who had collapsed weakly on the side of the sidewalk.
"What's wrong? Are you alright?" I asked, helping her stand up.
"Someone stole my bag. Please! Help me get it back!"
She was in trouble, and I couldn't let her experience the same trouble I had, so I hurried and ran after the robber. The robber looked back and was suddenly surprised by my running speed.
I managed to catch him. He tried to fight me by pulling out a knife that suddenly appeared from behind his hand. He aimed the knife at me and grazed my face slightly.
"Haha, what's wrong, old man? Are you scared? Don't be a hero here!"
The robber ran towards me and tried to stab me with his small knife. I swiftly caught him and slammed him to the ground.
Crash!
"Damn it!!!"
"Hmph, how naive of you to try and fight me."
I had caught the robber, but then the woman suddenly ran towards me and called out to me. My gaze was immediately diverted, and the robber pulled a pistol from his pocket.
Bang!
The bullet pierced right through my heart, and the robber fled. The woman I had helped also left me alone.
I lay weak and couldn't feel anything. My vision slowly darkened, and my whole body gradually grew cold.
At that moment, he suddenly appeared before me. A magnificent man wearing a reddish-silver robe stood tall before me—staring intently with a proud smile.
I was a little confused. Who was he? Where was I? That's when he started to speak. The man introduced himself—his name was Lu Bu. He was a holy spirit who had chosen me as his vessel and wanted to make me a Saint. I wanted to speak, but I couldn't.
He explained everything. Essentially, he liked me because he saw me willing to sacrifice myself for someone in need. I wanted to respond, but I couldn't move my body.
"You are now a Saint, and we will be partners!"
The man who called himself Lu Bu slowly approached me and suddenly merged with me. It felt like a warmth was embracing my body. A feeling I hadn't felt in a very long time.
I woke up on the side of the sidewalk, my clothes drenched in blood.
Hadn't I just died? Why was I alive again? Was that just a dream? No! It was truly real.
With a sense of utter confusion, I tried to stand up and walk home.
I stood still like a statue. Staring with complete astonishment.
What the hell is this mark?
On my left arm, there was a symbol of a horse. I didn't remember ever putting this tattoo on before. It was clear that this tattoo looked as if it had just been made instantly.
I tried to touch it, but it felt like touching my own skin. I tried rubbing it with soap, but the tattoo still wouldn't disappear. In the end, I gave up and looked in the mirror again.
"What a tiring day."
Whoosh!
Suddenly, my whole body was surrounded by hot wind. When I realized it, my body was suddenly covered in reddish-silver armor. There was an antenna on top of my head. A turban-like cloth was tied around my waist. I was startled and accidentally fell.
With a feeling of confusion, I tried to bravely look in the mirror again. Clothes that were very similar to what the person in my dream wore.
'Could it be… it wasn't a dream?'
I shook my head and tried to return to my original body. With great effort and various attempts, I finally managed to return to my original body.
Lu Bu…
I looked at the tattoo again with full conviction and a warm smile. Perhaps my life would slowly begin to change.
– –
Lu Bu's spear and Leonidas's sword were still clashing against each other. The battle continued. Lu Bu could no longer feel his hands. Leonidas could no longer push his legs harder. Both were at their limits.
"CHARGE!!" they both shouted simultaneously.
BOOOOOOOM!!!
Lu Bu's spear slashed downwards—Leonidas charged forward with a war cry!
Their bodies collided violently, the ground split, and an explosion of energy spread to the farthest hills.
Silence…
The wind stopped blowing. Smoke covered the area around them. Earth and rocks were still falling.
From behind the mist… one figure stood tall. He stood facing upwards, full of hope.
The mist around him slowly disappeared. The one figure still standing was Lu Bu. With both his hands no longer able to move, Lu Bu stared up at the horizon. His whole body was covered in flowing blood. His pupils were pure white as if he were already dead.
Below him lay Leonidas, weak on the ground. He had fallen face forward. On his back was a shield emblem that was slowly disappearing.
Lu Bu's spear fell and shattered from his grip. Lu Bu knelt before Leonidas, who was still lying unconscious.
He looked down—towards Leonidas's back. Leonidas's body slowly became filled with glimmers of light that eventually flew upwards.
A shield-shaped emblem on Leonidas's back also slowly faded. The end of this battle was clear! Lu Bu longed to hold Leonidas; he had never felt a battle like this after so long.
When the blood from Lu Bu's face dripped onto Leonidas, he didn't react. That was the only way they could interact with each other now.
"What an… incredible fight. My friend, I hope you can lead your army to true justice," Lu Bu said in a low tone before finally collapsing.
– –
"I told you! I don't know how. I didn't create that illusionary world!" Empedocles shrieked hysterically.
Adam gripped Empedocles' head so tightly that he felt pain. Sasaki Kojiro simply lay down and pondered on the asphalt road.
"Listen! If you don't tell me how, I'll kill you here," Adam threatened.
"Hmph… try if you dare!"
With a sneer, Adam tied a rope around Empedocles' head, then spun his head very hard.
Empedocles screamed hysterically and felt dizzy. But Adam simply ignored his screams.
Sasaki Kojiro woke from his sleep and spontaneously stood up. Seeing this, Adam was surprised and asked what was happening to him.
"What's wrong?"
"I feel something approaching us."
"Huh!?" Adam and Empedocles shouted simultaneously.
Sasaki Kojiro looked up at the sky and observed carefully. He suddenly realized that up there, someone was slowly descending towards them.
Adam was curious about what Sasaki Kojiro saw. So he also looked up at the sky—Empedocles did the same.
As Adam began to observe, he saw a figure slowly descending towards the two of them.
"Is that… Nico?"
Adam suddenly realized it was Nico. He immediately threw Empedocles' head, which he had been holding. And jumped with full force.
Sasaki Kojiro, slightly startled, drew his two katanas to be prepared in case it was a trap.
With Adam's jump, he managed to get close to Nico. It was really Nico! From any angle, it was him. But then he started to feel something strange. The armor covering his body was gone, and both his hands looked severely injured.
Adam swiftly caught Nico, and they both landed safely.
Sasaki Kojiro picked up Empedocles' head, which Adam had previously thrown, and approached Adam and Nico.
Adam was shocked to see Nico's current condition. Both his hands were severely injured, his whole body had scratches—like sword slashes, and blood also flowed profusely, covering his face.
"What the hell is this…" Adam muttered, turning his face away.
"What's wrong, Adam?"
Sasaki Kojiro and Empedocles slowly approached. Both were shocked to see Nico unconscious.
"Truly, this is beyond my expectation. Sorry, Adam! I should have warned you earlier."
"Hahaha!!! Feel that, you're dead! That's what you get for fighting us!" Empedocles shouted, provoking them.
Adam stood up and snatched Empedocles' head from Sasaki Kojiro's hand.
"Damn it!!! What have you done to my friend!!!" he yelled.
Empedocles was a little surprised and scared, but he still tried to remain calm and began to provoke their anger.
"W-what! I told you. Feel it! This is what you get for fighting us—"
Crack!
A hard punch landed on Empedocles' face. Empedocles was thrown back, and his head hit a scattered rock on the road.
"Oi Adam, calm down!"
As Sasaki Kojiro tried to calm Adam, he saw Adam's face was beyond saving. Emotions overflowed within him.
With a slight feeling of fear, Sasaki Kojiro moved his hand away from Adam.
Adam slowly began to walk towards Empedocles and picked up his head again. He yelled at Empedocles and forced him to bring Jeanne d'Arc back to her original world.
"I-it's useless! Threatening me like that won't yield anything! I told you, that world is a dream world created by Mona Lisa."
As Adam was about to land a punch on Empedocles' face, Sasaki Kojiro swiftly stopped him and told him to remain calm.
"Sasaki? What are you doing, let go! I have to teach this skull a lesson!"
"Calm down! If you face all of this with such overflowing emotion, you won't be able to solve anything!"
"Only this way will he speak. If necessary, I'll kill him now."
"Don't act on your own accord!!!" Sasaki shouted loudly.
"This isn't the purpose of your alliance, is it?"
Adam seemed to snap back to reality. Sasaki Kojiro continued, "I've heard everything from Nico, both about you two and the alliance. You want to return all Servants to the cosmos and save each of the Saints used as vessels, right?"
Adam slowly lowered his hand—along with Empedocles. Adam pondered a bit and felt guilty, for a moment he began to think that indeed, such anger could not solve anything.
"I've checked him; although his condition is critical, he's still alive."
"Really?"
Sasaki Kojiro nodded slowly, "Yes, we need to give him further treatment. The scratches he sustained are causing quite a heavy bleed. He could lose a lot of blood; we need to be quick."
"Even so, you can't do anything, hahaha!!!" Empedocles sneered.
"What? What do you mean?"
"Don't you realize? We're still in a different dimension. It's useless; you won't be able to get out of this dimension!"
Adam wanted to punch Empedocles until he couldn't speak, but he was also aware of the safety of the Saint who was Empedocles' vessel. Like it or not, Adam had to control his emotions.
"You'll watch your friend die here, HAHAHAH!!! Feel that! That's what you get for fighting us!"
With great annoyance, Sasaki Kojiro delivered a slash towards Empedocles.
Whoosh!
The slash split the area behind Adam and Empedocles. As a result of that threatening slash, smoke began to fill the place where they stood.
Silence…
Empedocles swallowed, "Haha!! What a pathetic attack—"
A sharp glare came from Sasaki Kojiro's eyes. A very strong killing aura emanated, making Empedocles tremble with fear.
'He's the one who told me to stay calm. But still, in the end, he also got emotional because of this skull. Maybe I should wrap his mouth.'
Adam took a cloth and wrapped it around Empedocles' mouth. Now he couldn't speak again.
"This is better," Adam said.
Empedocles tried to shout, but he couldn't. His mouth was gagged with cloth.
Sasaki Kojiro put his two katanas back and approached Nico. Adam followed him from behind. They checked Nico's severely injured condition.
"Can't you do something?" Adam asked.
Sasaki Kojiro shook his head, "I have no talent in medicine."
Adam began to despair. His hand held Nico's hand. Adam closed his eyes and held Nico's hand tightly.
'Please, hold on, Nico…'
Suddenly, a golden-yellow light filled Nico's entire body. Sasaki Kojiro was slightly surprised, but then he also smiled. It seemed he already knew the true Stark Adam.
The light illuminating Nico's body slowly grew larger and shone brighter. Adam didn't notice the light's presence. Empedocles even looked shocked in disbelief as he witnessed the light.
Slowly, the light began to dim. Nico slowly opened his eyes. He saw Adam with his eyes closed and Sasaki Kojiro smiling warmly at him.
"What are you doing?" Nico asked Adam.
"Nico? How can you…"
"How? I don't know either. I thought I was going to die, but then suddenly a very comfortable warmth began to envelop my body, and I felt my body rejuvenated as before."
"What? That's impossible—"
Adam was suddenly shocked when he saw Nico's entire body, which was originally covered in wounds, was now completely healed. Witnessing this, Sasaki Kojiro just laughed freely.
"W-what happened? Nico! How could your body heal completely like that? And also, your hands! Weren't they severely injured earlier?"
Nico tried to get up from his sleep, "Yes, you're right. I don't know what happened either… and also, how long are you going to hold my hand?"
"Ah, sorry," Adam said, moving his hand away.
"Hahaha! Interesting! I think I definitely know about your Stark."
"Huh? Really? How come?"
"Your Stark is part of your imagination, Adam!"
Hearing that, Adam and Nico were surprised. Empedocles was also surprised, but he couldn't say anything because of the gag on his mouth.
"Last time, you tried to deflect that skull's fireball, right?"
Adam nodded.
"At that time, I observed every piece of ground you stepped on. When your foot landed, the ground seemed to throw you back up."
"Ah, like a trampoline?" Nico interjected.
"Exactly! And remember when you shot out a light from your hand?"
Adam nodded once again.
"That's also part of your imagination."
"Ah, that's right! Now that I think about it, I had thought about that before releasing the light towards him."
"What light?" Nico asked, confused.
"In short, he can do anything according to what he imagines," Sasaki Kojiro explained.
"What! That's amazing! How can you have such an incredible Stark?"
Adam was a little overjoyed when Nico was surprised by the explanation of his Stark.
'Thinking about it, it's a bit embarrassing. How can others realize it while I don't?' Adam thought.
"Let's continue our conversation later; there's still one person missing, isn't there?" Sasaki Kojiro said, standing up.
"Ah, that's right! Jeanne. She's still in that illusionary world."
Adam glared at Empedocles. Empedocles was startled and tried to run away. But Nico stopped him.
"What's with this skull? Why is only his head left?"
"A lot has happened, but either way, we need to find a way to bring your comrade back here."
Adam took a step forward, "Yes, wait for us, Jeanne!"