OOOoooo!
Cyrene raised a shriek full of anguish from Cystiaâs attack. Bodily fluids in the color of purple gushed out from the deeply pierced spear wound.
ãDrop dead!ã ãNO!! Please stop!ã
Just as Cystia was about to deliver consecutive thrusts, Inglis rushed in, forcing her way through. She rushed her to the nearby wall and pinned her back to it strongly.
ãKghâ¦! Donât get in my way, b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲! I have no intention to fight you now! That gotta be defeated fast before more damage is done!ã ãYou are with the Ironblood Chain Brigade, arenât you?ã ãSo what of itâ¦?ã ãâ¦If only I killed you back then!ã
Should I do it now?1 Thought Inglis, clasping her fist tightly. When suddenly, another voice sounded out from behind her.
ãYouâre wrong, it wouldnât change anything either way. My comrades have Prism Powder with them at all times. Comrade Mimosa had brought her own.ã 2
Since when did he get behind me? She only then realized that there was a black gloved-hand grasping her own fist, as though trying to halt it.
ãâ¦â¦!?ã ãBecause our plan to ambush her by manipulating the ex-Knights had failed, Comrade Mimosa made her move. She didnât even ensure her own safety. I respect her to no end for it.ã ãWho are you!?ã
He was a strange man, sporting a black mask concealing his face, draped in a black outfit, completed with a cloak. Inglis could only tell he was a male from his stature and voice. However, she felt a hint of familiarity from the muffled voice he uttered 3.
ãI am one who leads the Ironblood Chain Brigade. As I have no name, you may call me however you wish. I hastened myself here in order to protect this land.ã
The masked man seemed to have no intention of naming himself 4.
ãEven though youâre the one who made it happen?ã ãPrecisely why. We indeed eliminate the Highlander, but the people of this region bear no sin. We canât have them be injured.ã ãI wonât let anyone get injured, neither the people nor Lady Cyrene.ã ãThere is no way to reverse the transformation. What are you even saying?ã ãâ¦I am thinking up one now. Donât get in my way.ã ãLike hell weâll play by your rules!ã
Cystia made a beeline towards Cyrene.
ãI wonât allow you!ã
Inglis went after her. However, she was stopped in her tracks by the black-masked man.
ãGet away!ã
Without a momentâs delay, Inglis threw her fist at him. It was a blow with Ether Armor activated. The blow packed more than enough power to render even a Hyrule Menace immobile butâ¦
KERCHLAANK!!
The black-masked manâs hand stopped Inglisâ fist, reverberating an earth-shattering noise as a result.
ãWH-!?ã ãKghâ¦! What a heavy punchâ¦!ã
All her punch had managed to do was push his hand back a little. There wasnât a single person who could properly receive Inglisâ punch when her strength was enhanced with Ether Armor, up until now.
The world was vast. There were still people like this. How fantastic. How very interesting. Her warrior instinct yelled at her to fight with this person to her heartâs content⦠But, now, she had to stop Cystia! 5
ãGet away!ã ãIâm sorry, but I canât let you go!ã
Black Mask overpowered Inglisâ fierce consecutive hits by devoting himself in defense. All he needed to do was to distract her. He knew that full well and fought accordingly.
In the meantime, Cystia had made her way closer to Cyrene.
ãGot yâ¦!? Kgh!?ã
Before Cystia could even deliver an attack, she had to quickly dodge out of the way as arrows of light chased after her.
ãI wonât let you do it! Lady Cyrene is our friend!ã
Rafinha had shot repeatedly at the Hyrule Menace. Her arrows of light exploded into numerous smaller arrows in rapid succession so as to hinder Cystia from drawing any closer.
ãThen Iâll start with you!ã
Cystia diverted her attention and focused on Rafinha. 6
It was then whenâ¦
ãL-, lady Cyrenee!ã ãLady Cyrene, are you alright!?ã ãAre you hurtâ¦? Are you in painâ¦?ã
Rino, Mayumi, Chiko. The three endearing girls Cyrene took under her care. So they havenât evacuated!! They seemed to recognize this Magic Stone Beast as Cyrene, as they were getting closer to her out of worry.
Cyrene only thrust her jewel embedded palm at them, and it began to glow.
ãRino, Mayumi, Chiko! Run!ã
Rafinha shrieked.
ãOh noâ¦! Stop it, Cystia!ã ãSir!ã
Even with her full speed, Cystia wouldnât make it in time.
And Cyrene suddenly redirected her palm towards herself right before the ray was shot.
ãAhâ¦!ã
That conduct alone said it all. Faint as it might be, Cyrene still had her some of her own consciousness left. She would put the children before herself, as long as the children were safe, she would even end her own life.
Her choice of action only spoke of the truth; that her desire to be of help to the Midlander was by no means a lie. She thought and spoke too much of an idealism that Inglis even doubted that Cyrene had any hidden side to her.
Precisely because she is this kind of person, I canât let her get killed hereâ¦!
ãEther Pierce!ã 7
A ray of Ether was released from Inglisâ fingertips, hitting Cyreneâs palm and redirecting the heat ray to the sky.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
ãPhewâ¦! Okay!ã ãYouâre great, Glis!ã ãThe hell are you doing, b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲!? That thingâs already choosing death by itself! Noble conduct; yet you didnât let it finish itself!ã
Cystia spoke ill of what Inglis just did. However, even if she ignored what Cystia said, Inglis didnât know any method of saving Cyrene.
She knew, however, that she would definitely regret it had she let Cyrene die just like that. Inglis also worried about how Rafinha would recover from it.
They had replenished their travel fund, they were going to continue their fun trip, feasting on meals all the while. Inglis had been looking forward to visiting the town of Arlman, where the carcass of a Prisma was encased in ice. If she had let Cyrene die just like that, this fun trip would no longer be fun.
Thinking along those lines, one thing popped in her mind.
Thatâs right⦠if I can get her away from here, maybe I can do it!
ãI have a proposal! Just for a little while, please draw Lady Cyreneâs attention without hurting her! Thereâs something I want to try! If that doesnât work, then I wonât bother you people again! What do you think?ã
Inglis said to Black Mask and Cystia.
Eli- Yes. Destroy the bloodline
Mab- Uh⦠this guy from soviet or what? Eli- Better question, why are they carrying an item that is specifically meant to create magic stone beasts? Al- Easy, theyâre all secretly drug addicts! xD
Silva- Familiarity? One of her old aides? Al- Hmmm⦠maybe that Leon?
Al- Ok, I guess itâs not Leon then.
Sil- Well, at least she still knows her priorities. I would be disappointed otherwise. Al- Good to knowâ¦
Sil- â¦
Al- uhh⦠excuse me? Did this become some kind of game where you have to shout your skill name before using it? xD