Chapter 36,
Beauty and Strength,
Third Person's POV
The crows were cheering and darkness covered half of the arena. On the other side, beautiful sounds the charms all men with lust in their heart was trying to ward off the crows that conveys darkness.
The match has started, yet no one's moving. The two players weren't the only reason for that, but also the the uneasiness from the crows and the charming sounds of the mermaid's cheering.
In this world, mermaids are mostly Mages and great at manipulating the bodies of water. Moreover, they can transform from a mermaid into a human or even transform into fishes, but only a chosen kind for each mermaid.
It was Kimmi and Arriel who was fighting. Arriel was carrying a big vase with a certain design on it. It was a pair of fishes together forming a circle with their bent bodies on each other's direction.
"Oh, deep seas, grant me your power, bestow me with abundant water!" Arriel chanted with her voice fit for a pair for an orchestra. Soon after she chanted, water came gushing out of he vase forming a box, trapping Kimmi inside.
On the other hand, Kimmi replied with another chant, "Darkness, give me your power, Random Luck!"
Everyone stopped along with time, but some are exempted. Those are the ones enough to endure the force of time.
"What happened to the people?" Koshiro asked.
"It's a time spell that came from a spirit that exist in the underworld, " Hoshi answered.
"You know a lot,"Gin stated his compliment.
"Of course. He's a dark magic user, after all," Hiruki brought his compliment down.
Goro, on the side, was in deep thought as if he was also frozen it time. Uneasiness and anxiety is welling up inside him.
Everyone is improving and some other players from Block N are no match compared Block D. They could finish a fight at a fast manner and bring their enemies to their knees, but he's different from them.
He would use his spirit without full master, but it can barely defeat the others who are from the same block D.
In his point of view, red apples are red when ripened, but he's just a plain green apple who doesn't change into a color that everyone would love. The majority still goes to red apples. He stays in the rear not to watch the others move forward, but because he can't.
At first, he would teach and help Koshiro in different ways, even in real life. He would help in studies and sports, but in the end, Koshiro would surpass him. He looked up to him, but envied him at the same time.
Goro stared at nothingness as time passer by. Not a part of his body would move as if he's frozen on his own. Flashbacks flown by and a sense of guilt started to engulf him.
'I shouldn't have went on a journey with them,' he thought.
"The Gnomes are also cool, right, Goro?" Koshiro spoke surprising Goro.
"H-huh?" His thoughts were too deep that he didn't have the chance to understand any of Koshiro's words.
"Nothing. Look, Kimmi has the talent to learn how to control a familiar by just using it for a while," he pointed at Kimmi who's busy fighting Arriel.
Kimmi summoned the Dead Spirit of the Time Demon, Gri. He bears a body with a size and appearance of a kid's and holds a stick about half of his body's size with a small black crystal stuck on top.
Whenever Arriel would use her magic, Kimmi's summoned familiar would block it by freezing its time. Even though Arriel's magic keeps on being blocked, she never stopped attacking.
'It's impossible to not assume she's not plotting anything,' Kimmi thought.
When she's about to make an attack, the frozen blue water started to change its color into green and started to chase Kimmi.
"Caught you," she whispered with a grin plastered on her face.
Kimmi tried to dodge, but the water caught her faster than her movements, restraining her.
"Sea Prison Magic, Sphere Prison!"
The water that slowly devoured Kimmi formed into a sphere. Kimmi's movement weren't restricted, but restrained. She could naturally move in water, but she cannot this time. Kimmi tried to use her Second Voice skill, but it was useless.
[ can't be used for the moment.]
[ can be used in: 3:34:23]
Holding her breath started to feel suffocating and the pain in her chest won't ease. It feels like the the end for her is waving. Only remains of memories cam flashing into her.
*Six Years Ago*
"Mom!" A 9-year old Kimmi called out while running towards a woman's direction.
The women's black hair were long and her smile could melt someone's heart. She bears the eye with the shade of brown and her skin as pale white as porcelain.
"Derria, slow down," she crouched down to accept the incoming hug of the child and ruffled her hair.
Kimmi's hair were short and soft and her eyes have the iris with the shade of pure black. Her traits is definitely different than her mother. The only thing they have alike is their beauty and kindness.
She raised her head and displayed her teary eyes to her mother. "What's the matter?"
"Mom, can I be beautiful and strong as you?" She pushed her face into her mother's white beautiful dress.
"You don't have to. Beauty has its own form, and strength also have one. You can be strong and beautiful at the same time by not giving up. Don't you think dying as a pessimist without trying your best look ugly and pathetic?" Her mother's words felt like she hit a certain note that woke Kimmi back to her senses.
*Back to Present*
When she's about to lose consciousness, Gri glowed purple and screamed as of he was in pain. His voice cracked all glasses in the arena and the players have to cover their ears for protection. Because of the sound waves, the magic prison became unstable and was blown apart.
"It's time for counterattack," Kimmi whispered.
"Gri lend me your power, Time Binding," she chanted.
Arriel's time suddenly stopped. On the other hand, Kimmi started to attack her physically until she was bruised and wounded all over her body before lifting the spell.
"W-winner, Kimmi!"
Kimmi fell down her knees. Her body is exhausted and her breathing is still unstable. Hoshi came onstage and helped her get off of there and Arriel was transported to the medic room for healing.
Hiruki approached the two and handed three broken mirrors with its fragments to Kimmi, "This is yours. Your tamed spirits is still barely alive and they can still be saved if I use a certain spell on it. Sorry about this,"
Hiruki took Kimmi's hand and made it bleed for a few seconds and took three droplets of blood in each mirror, "Dead Spirit Revival."
After chanting the spell, the fragments of the broken mirrors went back into place and black smoke cam out of it and somehow entered Kimmi.
"Thank you," she replied.
Hiruki just smiled back and went back to his seat. Little did he knew, he caught the attention of some blockmates and other masters, especially by someone with a black ragged cloak.
"Are you okay, Koshiro?" Gin looked worried as he held into Koshiro's shoulder.
"I'm fine. It's just that it feels like someone's calling me," he sighed.
"Aeris?" Goro asked.
"No, it's the dragon," Koshiro held into his head as if he couldn't take it anymore, "take care of my body," he added before losing consciousness.
Koshiro woke up and saw a man in front of him talking with another, Aeris. The other man was taller compared to the kid-like Aeris in Koshiro's form.
"You're. . ." Koshiro was speechless.
"I'm one of the eight dragons. My name is Drago, the Fire. Nice to meet you," he greeted.
"One? Can you tell me what's happening?" Koshiro is really baffled.
"Each head contains different powers which are fire, wind, water, earth, ice, lightning, light and darkness. We can separate into eight different dragons and even turn into our human forms. Our number is divided by two creating only four heads," Drago explained as simple as he could.
"One more. You have four necks and another two. What's the reason behind that?"
He nodded and answered, "It means our powers are combined. Fire is equal to water in a battle, so I am partnered with the wind since I'm weak when it gets to that magic. Water combines great with ice, so they are partnered. Earth for defence and lightning for long-range offence, which makes a great team. Light and darkness doesn't do much since that are in a development stage, but I think they don't match up well."
"Last one," Aeris almost spilled the cup of coffee he's about to drink, "Why am I here?"
The two's expression gradually changed into a serious one. They looked at each other before Aeris spoke, "Take a seat," he pointed at the table where he is sitting at.
The table's color is white while the chairs aren't. Koshiro's chair is colored jade, vermillion for Drago, and orange for Aeris. The place is like a plain field with green grasses and hills with red flowers from everywhere.
Aeris cleared his throat before speaking, "My sister sent me a message. She said that a week from now, a battle will emerge. All Knights from all ranks will be called including masters. We will join forces with the Witch's Land to support us. I don't know if other Spirits are informed, but we have to prepare before the battle. That's all."
Aeris ended his sentence right away and pushed Koshiro until he fell into complete darkness, and waking up. The only thing on Koshiro's mind is worry. A battle. A war. Blood will flood another battlefield.
***