『Byzan Fortress, (Second Floor)』
As Archibald and Lamperogue reached the second floor, they immediately spotted ten guards down the hallway which led to a gargantuan door.
"We have to take them down now," whispered Lamperogue.
"You're right," replied Archibald as he drew his sword.
『Thunder God Style • Burst of Sound』
Without wasting a moment, he leaned forward before taking a leap at the speed of sound which he used to take down five guards on the left with one precise slash of his sword.
Lamperogue was quick to follow as he used [Lightning Threads of Intersection] to form strings of lightning that extended from his arms which he used to restrict the movements of the five guards on the right.
Instantly, the guards were electrocuted and immediately passed out.
Their attacks were successful.
As they walked down the hallway undetected, they observed numerous doors on both sides that surely belonged to the trusted fighters who served under Vorkalth.
"Xiro must be in one of these rooms." (Lamperogue)
"And also the Magus in red armor." (Archibald)
As they approached the tightly secured iron built wall, they were surprised that the Byzan Army was this prepared to make sure no one would get in.
"(Why the hell is the door so secured, it's the hardware equivalent of my porn collection)" (Archibald)
"So how do we get in?" (Lamperogue)
"This'll only take a sec," said Archibald determinedly.
Assuming a [Sword Saint] stance, with his sword atop his shoulder, he performed one wave of his sword which cleanly cleaved through the numerous hinges on the fortified door.
"We're in," said Lamperogue, dryly.
The door fell to the ground with a loud thud, revealing a room.
As the door crashed to the ground with a deafening thud, they dashed into the room.
"We need to hurry, the guards will be here any minute." (Lamperogue)
A wooden door stood before them, and Lamperogue carved open a path with two sharp slashes using his shortswords.
Undine, the great water spirit, lay before them in chains, looking nothing like her usual fabulous self.
Archibald rushed to her side, cradling her in his arms.
"Undine, are you okay?" he asked.
Undine coughed up blood onto Archibald's clothing, staining it a dark crimson.
"I'm fine now that I've been saved," she breathed, her voice weak.
Lamperogue quickly used his shortswords to destroy the chains that bound her.
Archibald picked her up in his arms, looking at her tattered form.
"We can't stay here, we need to get moving," he said firmly.
Lamperogue suggested, "Our only hope is for Undine to use her powers and end it all here."
"That's not an option," Archibald replied.
Unfortunately.
"Undine is still too weak." (Archibald)
Undine coughed again, struggling to catch her breath.
"I need time to rest before I can use my powers," she managed to say between coughs.
Archibald nodded.
They'd have to keep her safe till then.
"We won't let them get to you again. We'll take you to a safer place where you can recover fully." (Archibald)
Lamperogue inserted his shortswords back into their scabbards.
"Let's go, we need to be quick," he said, leading the way.
They left the room, with Archibald holding Undine tightly, knowing that they needed to make it out of the fortress as fast as they could.
As they ran, a large fireball hurtled towards them.
Lamperogue and Archibald, who was carrying Undine, jumped out of the way just in time.
They rolled on the ground, quickly got back up on one knee and brushed off the dirt.
Suddenly, they heard a loud explosion behind them.
The room they'd just left was destroyed by the fireball.
"Who is that?" Lamperogue asked no one in particular.
"It's most likely the fire magus from before," Archibald replied, looking displeased.
Undine coughed and Archibald rushed to her side, asking how she was doing.
"I can manage," she said weakly.
Just then, the fire magus emerged, his staff in hand.
Behind him were ten soldiers, all armed and dangerous.
Lamperogue whipped out his weapons.
".....Archibald, stay behind and guard Undine while I hold off the fire magus to give us a chance of escaping. The longer we stay here the more likely we'll have more on our plate....." (Lamperogue)
With a stern look, he charged towards the magus, slicing and hacking his way through five soldiers who tried to stop him.
As he got closer to the magus, he felt an immense amount of mana being amassed.
The magus was slowly chanting another spell, and both Lamperogue and Archibald knew it wasn't going to be a normal one.
'I have to stop him before he completes the spell,' Lamperogue thought to himself.
The magus' staff slowly blazed a red-hot colour, and Lamperogue knew he had to act fast.
"I call upon the vast power of conflagration, that it may answer my wishes and converge before me as a tyrannical flame that washes all in its path, leaving in its wake but a harvest of chaos! Now strike down my enemies 『Infernal Sphere!!』" (Magus)
A standard Cerulean-ranked fire spell.
The magus released a large wave of flame that exploded on impact.
BOOM!!
The force of the explosion threw Lamperogue across the hallway and into a wall.
If he had time, he would've set up a revamp spell to reinforce his body before taking such an attack at point-blank range.
"Rogue!" (Archibald)
After seeing he was still breathing, he let out a sigh of relief.
However, Lamperogue's attire was burnt, and some parts of his skin were scorched.
"Lamperogue, are you okay?" Archibald asked with Undine still in his arms.
"I'll be fine," Lamperogue replied, though he winced as he stood up.
The staff held by the magus was set ablaze.
The heat it emitted could clearly be felt in the surrounding area.
"...I should've known you insolent cretins were after the great water spirit. You have the skills to become useful tools to the General and yet you choose to waste your talents and be obstacles for the Byzan Army. No matter. Your attempts at victory is futile. I will incinerate you both and fulfill my duty to the General....." (Magus)
He was the Chief Magus of the Byzan Army.
Gran Felbert.
Archibald observed the flickering flames of Gran Felbert's staff.
"That staff's gonna do some serious damage." (Archibald)
Lamperogue's eyes widened a bit, "Any ideas?"
"I'm sorry, I have none," Archibald replied with a shake of his head.
Undine, who was still in Archibald's arms, spoke up through coughing, "Use [Water Magic], and I'll help empower you. I'm not the great water spirit for nothing."
Archibald nodded in agreement.
"(How did she know I could use water magic?)" (Archibald)
He carefully placed Undine against a chunk of rock broken off the destroyed walls.
"I'll do it," he said confidently.
Lamperogue asked, "Can you use [Water Magic]?"
"Yes, I can," Archibald replied, his voice full of pride.
Lamperogue nodded several times, "I expected nothing less from you."
Suddenly, Gran Felbert spoke, "Brace yourselves! It's time to die!"
The two boys assumed a combat stance, ready for whatever was to come.
In that moment, an explosion erupted from outside the Fortress.
The explosion was so intense that it shook the entire Byzan territory, causing everyone to lose their footing and hit the ground.
Gran shouted, "What's going on?"
A soldier from outside screamed, "We're under attack! All men to the ready!"
"Defend the Fortress' perimeter!"
"Form a defensive wall!"
"Make sure none of them get into the Fortress!"
"Deploy the monster riding faction!"
"We must do everything in our power to protect our territory!"
Rolo and his band of selfless heroes, alongside some Rivelune warriors, had come to fight against the Byzan Army.
Gran looked outside, frustrated.
"Damn it! Soldiers, go help the others fight off those pests. I'll handle these two boys and secure the water spirit." (Gran)
But by the time he turned around, he saw that they were already gone.
This left him in shock; he was frustrated and angry at the same time.
"They'll die!" he screamed as he quickly rushed out of the hallway.
...
General Vorkalth sat nervously in a room on the fifth floor.
A mysterious figure sat across from him, shrouded in darkness.
They conversed through a mirror on the wall.
It was an imposing individual, with a sharp gaze that seemed to pierce through Vorkalth's very soul.
"Why haven't you acquired the power of the Aquos Chronicles yet?" the figure questioned with a soft yet menacing voice.
Vorkalth hesitated for a moment, averting his gaze from the shadowy figure.
"It's taking some time to get her to submit," he finally admitted.
He felt a shiver run down his spine.
"If you can't get her to relinquish her powers, then kill her," the figure commanded.
"I can't do that," Vorkalth stuttered. "I don't want to incur the wrath of the Creation god."
"Do I look like I care what happens to you?" the figure exclaimed with a sigh. "Get the job done, or even death will be too merciful for you."
With that, the figure vanished from the mirror's surface, leaving Vorkalth in a rage.
He knew there was no other choice, he had to end it with his own two hands.