The battlefield was a barren white room, devoid of any sign of life. No trees to shield us, no rocks to hide behind, just two combatants facing each other with lethal intent.
I could feel the tension mounting in my chest as I watched my opponent, Bianca, slowly advance toward me. Her spear was held firmly in her hand, poised to strike at any moment. I gripped my fancy sword tightly, clinging to the only weapon I had at the moment. This fricking room didn't allow me to use my power properly, my wounds weren't healing... which meant if that spear hit me I'm finished.
Guess, I should get a little bit serious this time.
Suddenly, a gust of wind swept across the white room, stirring up dust. Before I could react, Bianca darted forward with incredible speed, her spear glinting in the harsh light. With lightning-fast reflexes, she struck out, leaving three deep claw marks on the air that crackled with electrical energy.
"U-ugh!"
I stumbled backward, barely managing to deflect her attack with my sword. My wound opened again, gushing blood slowly. If it wasn't for my sword, that blow would have surely been the end of me. As I regained my balance, I analyzed my enemy again.This much power... without using the Ignition like the other Lector. Imagine how monstrous she could be if she use it.
"What's wrong? I thought you were invincible, Pater? It seems all of your Dogma was a lie after all!" Bianca yelled.
I could see the power building up within her, her mana surging and pulsing like a living thunder. Bianca's eyes narrowed, her grip on her spear tightening even further. I could feel the tension in the air, another attack would come!
Bianca lunged forward with a sudden burst of energy, her spear aimed directly at my heart. I reacted instinctively, dodging to the side and slashing at her with my sword. But Bianca was too quick, her movements fluid as she evaded my attack and struck back with a lightning-fast thrust. She landed a good hit on my right hand, completely disabling it.
I stumbled back, trying to get away from her and regain my composure. Yet suddenly, she disappeared in an instant.
"If only I realized it sooner… I would have protected many more lives!"
Thick bloodlust penetrated my neck. Using pure luck, I swung my sword and timely parried Bianca's strike behind me. The shockwave of the clash repulsed both of us. Then, in a sudden moment of opportunity, I saw my chance.
As Bianca lost her balance, I took advantage of her vulnerability, pummeling her chin with the hilt of my blade and lifting her afloat. With a sudden burst of speed and strength, I lunged toward Bianca. Channeling all the kinetic force, I drove my sword deep into Bianca's chest.
"Raven style 02: Dragon's jaw!!" I shouted.
…! W-What?!
Even as I struck her with all my might, my bones cracked to endure the force. Bianca's body was made of materials harder than steel, resisting my attack with stubborn resilience. I was able to send Bianca flung across the room like a ragdoll, but the price was… the only able hand I had left. How many times left before my hand was completely disabled? Dammit, how could I win this? Think!
As the dust settled and the echoes of our battle faded away, I watched in shock as Bianca rose from the ground, her eyes glazed over with magical energy that I had never seen before. the air crackled with electricity, her body now a conduit for the raw power of the thunderstorm.
As she began to speak, her voice was filled with a strange and disturbing fervor. "Pater is always right," she muttered, her words barely coherent over the sound of the lightning coursing through her body. "Pater is never wrong… It was a lie. You're lying to me, you're lying to all of us!
The world's greatest evil is not The Devil but you!"
I could feel the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. But then, looking at the unstable magical energy she had, I realized that Bianca couldn't control her power properly. The power surging through her was too much for a fairy, even if she channeled it to an artificial body.
But even amid her rage, I could see a glimmer of fear in her eyes. She knew that something was wrong. A cruel chance… But I had to exploit it if I wish to survive.
"When are you going to stop lying? In the first place, you have the choice to reject my order. But you carried it on with your conscious mind, right? You chose to be a murderer, Bianca," I continued to rub salt in her wound, taunting her to be more reckless.
"Don't try to gaslight me, I'm—"
Cutting her words, I shouted, "This is your life, your decision, your sin, and your own failure. Face it, Bianca. The one you should blame is your own self!"
"Ignition Berserker!" With a thunderous roar, Bianca summoned a glowing eye above her head, its pulsating light casting an eerie glow across the barren battlefield. In an instant, a pair of massive machine hands materialized, each clutching a deadly weapon - a sword and a spear. She charged towards me, her eyes shining with an otherworldly intensity.
However, she forgot the basics, she forgot her deadly and precise attack, and she forgot everything about warfare. Her attack turned so simplistic and predictable. With ease, I dodged and weaved, waiting for the right moment to strike. Until she let go of her defenses recklessly, giving me a chance to land a strong hit in her stomach and slammed her to the wall.
But again, Bianca stood the strike, coughing blood, " I was blind and foolish... thinking that by following your Order... I could finally feel true happiness.
But the truth is... I was nothing but a disposable tool for you, right Pater? Just like the children you entrusted to me... In the end, when my usefulness is gone, you will kill me just like what you did to Abigail." she said, trying so hard to maintain her power,
"I am not going to let you harm those children again!" she continued with strong conviction that The Seed of Hero almost consumed her eyes.
This is bad...! If she became a true hero, the gods would overwrite her mind with their will. She would lose herself and turn into a monster that harm people that she wished to protect!
Suddenly, a static voice came abruptly into my head,
--"Stop resisting and let your emotion becomes a wave that guides your blade. When your intention and emotion aligned, the red line of life becomes your way, Cellia."--
... He's right. I took a deep breath and focused all of my energy on the task at hand. With a fierce determination, I charged forward, my sword held high. I could hear the sound of metal scraping against metal as I clashed with Bianca's machine hands. Sparks flew as we clashed again and again, each strike bringing us closer to our limit.
"Why can't you just die, Pater?!"
She cried with anguish until blood came out from her eyes and nose. Her rage had caused her to lose control over her power. With the last thrust to the ground, she staggered with painful lightning striking all over her body. Light came from her right eye, forming a crest that shape like the sword that blasted the Earth. The Hero Curse was completed and the Will of Gods began to overthrow her mind. Bianca had almost turned into The Hero.
"Why… why now? I… I almost—" Bianca replied, resisting the curse.
...
As I approached Bianca, my heart was heavy with the weight of what I was about to do. But killing her now was the only way to stop her from causing harm to herself and others. With my blade at the ready, I slowly closed the distance between us, determined to end this once and for all.
"Forgive me, Bianca. I was too late to save you," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "But I won't let you hurt anyone else."
Suddenly, a static voice whispered in my head,
--"Is your way of the sword to shed people's tears, or it was to prevent it?"--
I froze, my sword inches away from Bianca's Magicore. The air crackled with intense energy, and her body writhed in agony as her Ignition flickered on and off uncontrollably. The thundering pulse on her back disappeared entirely, and I could sense her magic circuit glowing a bright, burning red, searing her skin and causing her unimaginable pain.
In a desperate moment, she reached out to me, her eyes wide with fear, "I... I can't die yet... My children... They need me..."
...!
Without hesitation, I moved to her side, biting my lip as I held back the searing pain in my left hand. I gently took hold of her head and whispered, "Forgive me," And then, with a sudden motion, I kissed Bianca, releasing a small amount of my own blood into her mouth.
… Awaken, Binge Eater!
In an instant, my cells surged into her body, overrunning her own and causing them to compete over the body. As I struggled to maintain control, I could feel my cells multiplying rapidly, expanding beyond their limits and devouring everything in their path. It was as if I had unleashed a beast within her, one that could consume all forms of magic indiscriminately and siphoned it back to me, causing searing flames to engulf my body.
"Let us see who would die first? Your raging magic or my body?" I chuckled, trying to endure the pain.
As I struggled to maintain control, I could feel my cells multiplying rapidly, expanding beyond their limits and devouring everything in their path. The flames engulfing me grew stronger, and I could feel my body beginning to break down under the strain. But I refused to give up! Not now, not when I was so close to saving her!
As the pain became unbearable, I closed my eyes and focused all my energy on holding the beast within her at bay. But then, I could vaguely see a figure in my head. He smiled when he offered his hand to me, saying,
--"You're wrong. You are not the monster you believe to be, but the kindest witch I ever met. Follow me, and we'll save the world together... Cellia Vanadis."--
Slowly, but surely, the flames began to die down, and the pain began to subside. His word became clearer as I opened my eyes, looking at a feeble fairy that clung tightly to her necklace.
A necklace with pictures of the children.
Looking at the feeble fairy, I took her in my hand and whispered,
"… Cellia Vanadis... So... that's my name... The kindest witch."
Countless years imprisoned in the Obsidian Theater with no one knowing about me, hearing someone whispered my name again... It's as if a chain inside my heart finally lifted. Yet, it left me with a question...
Who are you actually?