"I will be going next!" said Anna, and we exclaimed, "EH!?"
Niahl smirked. "From what I see, you are the type of girl who wouldn't say things like going ahead. You are more the type that follow behind"
"So, why have you stepped forward?" he asked.
Can't you be more roundabout with your words? They say that sometimes one's honesty can hurt a lot, you know.
"Well, it is like what you've said, Mister Niahl" mumbled Anna. "Spirits prefer strong people over weak ones. That's why losing at this mock battle would mean our incompetence, right?"
Niahl shrugged with a smile. "That is right" he nodded. "And you would only leave those weak ones, right?" Anna looked down.
"Let me make it clear. It is right that losing this mock battle would mean your incompetence, but that wouldn't mean that I would leave you" Niahl stated
Qhuial spoke, "Father is the kind of guy who will want to see the worth a person have, no matter how weak or strong they are, he believes that they have one"
"Yes, that's why I will end up giving you a position that will suit you, if you would wish" Niahl smiled.
Anna kept on looking down and mumbled, "That would mean that I won't be able to stay with the others"
"Well, yeah. Depending on today's results, those who lost here might be torn apart from the others" Niahl scratched the back of his head.
Gino stepped forward. "Can't you be more kind with your words?" he complained. "You're telling me to lie to her?" asked Niahl, with a stern face.
With his words, Gino stepped back and clenched his fists.
"I-…" Anna stuttered, and we looked at her. "At first, I was thinking that it might be fine if I fight last, but as everyone won their battles, I got scared and…" she mumbled.
You felt like they were all walking away and was leaving you one by one, huh?
The faces of my older siblings came into my mind. Somehow, I can really relate to the feelings of yours, Anna. I clenched my fists.
"They say that you won't need any permission to stay with someone, but with our current situation, you will only end up dragging that someone because you stayed" said Niahl.
Anna cried, "Even so… I want to stay with everyone…"
"Then" Niahl placed his right hand on top of Anna's head. "Let me be the one who'll give you the permission to stay with them" he ruffled her hair.
Tears flowed more from Anna's eyes.
She looked down, and sniffled. "Yes sir!" Anna stood straight, whilst looking up at Niahl with a motivated face.
I scoffed.
She didn't backed off from Niahl, with that pat, eh?
…
"Hmm, it's already Anna's turn?" asked Kirt, as he stood beside me, who was sitting along at the audience seats, because the others were still talking with Anna.
I asked him, "Did you just woke up?" He nodded.
"I thought that it was too quiet, so I went out to check" he sat down beside me. "Hmm…" I looked back at the others.
Kirt looked at the others, as well. "What are the others telling Anna?" asked Kirt. "Tips, they said. For her fight with Niahl, I guess" I answered.
"You're not gonna help her?" Kirt asked. "Don't know what to say, me myself haven't fought against Niahl, yet" I stated.
Kirt remained silent, and looked at Anna and the others.
"Do you think she can win?" Kirt asked. "No" I stated. Kirt looked down, as if he was disappointed with my answer.
"But, I don't think she can lose as well…" I continued. Kirt looked at me, with a surprised face, which he soon changed into a smile.
Just right after our conversation, the others went up to the audience seats.
"You finished giving her tips?" Kirt nonchalantly asked them. "Y-you! Since when did you woke up?!" exclaimed Gino, as he pointed at Kirt.
Kirt answered with a grin, "Just now"
…
I leaned my chin on my right palm, as I looked down the stage whilst having the others talk a bit loud with Kirt, beside me.
"That staff…" I mumbled.
Right, Mond recommended that staff to Anna after she tried her best to ask him on what she should get.
Anna's Element is mainly support, so it wouldn't help her that much when she's at this kind of battle. That's why she always rely on the Lesser Spirits and use craft magic.
According to Mond, when I asked him about it, the stone on it is made from tons of magic stones. So it can boost up any type of craft magic attack, like fire, water, wind and land.
Well, let me explain it like this.
Reina can make a big fireball without chanting, while Anna would need a long chant to make a big fireball like what Reina can do.
But if she used the staff Mond made for her, she can make a big fireball just with a short chant, that kind of thing.
I mumbled to myself, "I respect Mond now…"
Finally, the battle was about to start. Once this finished, Russell's battle is the only one left before mine.
I'm kinda excited.
"Right, Anna-chan! Tell me about your Element" said Niahl.
Anna hugged the staff. "My Element can do a bit of mental and physical interference, just by singing. For example, I can make a person sleepy and I can also heal one's wounds"
"In other words, my Element lets me make the effect of a song and prayer true" continued Anna.
Niahl pressed his chin. "If you can do mental interference, then can you make one remember the memories that they are trying to seal?" he asked.
"Ah, well. I kinda do that to myself at times" Anna nodded. "Eh? For what reason?" asked Niahl.
Anna flinched. "Well, so that I can never forget the happy things and sad things that happened to me, I guess" she answered.
"Hmm…" Niahl looked down, before looking up at us, who were in the audience seat.
As he looked back at Anna, a smirk came to his face. "Shall we start our fight, then?" Niahl stated, and Anna nodded.
What was with that face?
…
Surely, it was out of consideration for Anna, that's why Niahl took the lead and went sprinting to her strike zone.
Anna panicked a bit, but she tried to regain her composure by taking a deep breath.
There was a distance between the two of them, plus there is snow on the ground, so it would surely take Niahl long to reach Anna.
"Upon your wanted place is the great blessing of fire. Here I am asking thee grant me your power, Fire Spirit. I call here…" Anna chanted.
Somehow, I noticed that Niahl was kinda purposely slowing himself down.
"Fire Ball!" Anna shouted, as she used the staff and fired off a fireball to Niahl. But he managed to jump away from the place where the fire went to.
Anna panicked and started chanting, "I am asking thee grant me your power, Water Spirit. I call here, Flood!" she shouted, as water went out of the staff and flood to Niahl.
Even though, the water is surely heavy, Niahl kept on running whilst wiping the water that nearly went inside his eyes.
Soon he reached where Anna was, just right in time as the flood disappeared.
He raised his and was about to hit Anna's head with a weak karate chop, but "Ey!" Anna managed to move first and had hit his head with the staff.
Crack, I heard a crack sound coming from both the stone of the staff and from Niahl's head.
Down the ground, Niahl fell down. "M-mister Niahl!" shouted Anna, as she quickly crouched down and shook Niahl to wake him up.
I sighed.
Good thing the staff's stone didn't broke. No, wait! That's not where I am supposed to worry here.
We all went down from the audience seat, to the stage.
"I'm gonna heal you right away!" said Anna, as she placed the staff beside her and placed her hands on top of Niahl's stomach.
She started singing, and slowly light appeared from her hands.
Niahl opened his eyes up. "Y-you…" he mumbled. "Don't tell me you forgot everything?!" Anna panicked.
Because of that sole hit? I doubt that. Plus, I'm sure that what you're expecting him to say is different from what he really was going to say.
"Ah, no I-..!" Niahl was about to deny what Anna said.
Still, Anna quickly placed her hands on top of Niahl's head, which seemed to hurt a bit for Niahl and made him quiet.
Again, she started singing.
I kinda recognized the song she was singing. After all, it was the same as the one she was singing during that night and that night.
The song that always made me cry, everytime.
I see… Tears fell down my eyes. This song… It was the song she was singing to make herself remember things, that's why I-I always cried to it, because I remembered things, as well.
"There, finished" Anna sighed, before gasping after seeing Niahl cry, "Mister Niahl?!"
Niahl sat up, and patted her head. "I was going to tell you that I am fine, yet you sang out of a sudden. And now I am crying because you made me remember things…" mumbled Niahl.
"Ah, sorry" Anna stated. "Next time, listen to someone's words properly, before you panic, okay?" Niahl pinched her cheeks. "Yews seyr…" she mumbled.
Anna rubbed her cheeks, after getting pinched by Niahl. "Why did we remember things, as well? When Niahl was the one the magic was for…" asked Gino.
"Ah, that is because I can properly control my magic to only act to one person, so it ends up acting like this…" laughed Anna.
Russell smiled, as Forth tilted his glasses and looked away from him. "Well, it was a good song, so all's right!" Kirt stated.
"You're right!" smiled Reina.
Gino looked at me, and he patted my back. "Are you fine Ed?" he asked, and the others noticed, as well.
It hurts…
"I won't be going to die, I will be going to save her" said a black haired boy with his face a bit blurred.
I grabbed my head, as I groaned. "Hey, Ed. Are you fine?" Reina stood, as she went near me and Gino.
It feels empty…
"I will be leaving him to your hands..." said a blonde haired girl, who called me by a name that I couldn't hear.
I took my hands off my head. "Ed?" Russell and Forth looked at me, as they fidgeted. "Hey, Ed" Kirt called.
I'm being trapped in again, trapped inside a dark, dark never ending cage…
"What's wrong, Ed-kun?" asked Niahl. "Are you alright, Ed-kun?" Anna stood up, and looked at me with a worried face.
"I hate this…I hate everything! Damn! Damn it all..!" This thought passed my mind, while I closed my eyes shut.
If memories would hurt me this much… give me this much depression, then… then I wish I didn't remember it at all.