Ieza moves his leg slowly, step by step.
Dragging his legs through the flames and wreckage.
His vision is blurry, clouded by his bloods and smokes.
He keeps hearing the children cries, echoing through the sky.
The mothers are shouting for help, some of them yelling for her child's name.
Suddenly, he hears a familiar, yet fainted female voice, echoing through his ear.
"Ieza, oh...Ieza."
He turns his neck, gazing around the flames. He finds no one.
He turns himself on his back, gazing around the trees and the wreckage behind. Still, he finds no one around there.
He returned his gaze to the front. He sees a familiar female figure, wearing a maid dress. His eyes shaking, as if he's not believing what he is seeing right now.
"Shaeri? Is it you?"
The figure is standing behind the dancing flames.
She is grinning, giving him eerie aura, followed by the strong blows of the wind, causing the flames raging around, burning some of untouched buildings and trees.
"Who are you?" Ieza yells toward her.
While readying his magic, the blood starts to leak from his severed left arm. It starts to envelopes Ieza in a cocoon shape.
Ieza feel something weird about his body. He can't sense anything from it. The legs, the arms. He feels nothing attached. His world around him spinning uncontrollably, before turned into the complete darkness.
"This is just an illusion." Ieza murmurs to himself.
He closes his eyes for a long period of time.
Slowly, but surely, the noises around him absorbed into complete silence.
"Does it matter?"
Ieza reminded of his dream back then. He takes a deep breath, and slowly exhales.
"Yes."
"Why?" The woman replies.
Ieza slowly opens his eyes. He gazes on multiple female figures, standing still.
The figure of Shaeri, Gerrard, Hesse, Felicia and young Naruwa appeared in front of him. They have similar facial expressions. Emotionless as if they are staring his soul.
"Because..." Ieza replies while stares back at them. "The truth of this world is distorted, while nobody is willing to fix it. I have so many precious friends and places to protect."
"This world doesn't need fixing. Especially from you, weak boy." The figure of Gerrard replies, while he throws his ice magic at Ieza.
Ieza tries to deflect it. Instead, he takes the hit and knocked backwards. He tries to wake up again but to no avail. He notices his right arm frozen.
"Everything runs on its course naturally. Look at you, you can't even protect yourself." The figure of Hesse further adds Gerrard's word. She casts
"You can't even save this village." The figure of Felicia replies. She throws her water magic at Ieza.
Ieza, still unable to move, takes the hit again. His body rolled several times before lying face down.
The figure of Shaeri and young Naruwa are holding hand, walking to approach downed Ieza.
"You only look me down every time you talk with me. You only care about the power and yourself."
Ieza turned his face, gazing at both of them. They cast both fire and wind magic toward Ieza. The magic explodes upon contact with him, causes himself tumbles away from his spot.
Despite the damages he took, he is able to land on his feet.
"You probably right." He replies while trying to stand up. "No. Actually, you're right. I do need power. All my days spent trying to improve myself, getting better and even better on my magic, for a long time."
Ieza gazes on the figures of Naruwa after he said that.
"I will tell you what you don't know. I'm abandoning my youth, not because what our parents told me! Even I never asked to be born, but the truth is, I'm still grateful with The Goddess of Serenia that grants me a life, something so precious for only one lifetime. This time magic even gave us second chance to redeem ourselves to be wiser and wiser every day."
His eyes become glazed. He walks slowly, one step at a time, despite how trembling his body right now.
The tear dropped from his distorted left eye, crashed on the ground.
The scenery surrounding him changed to white.
His severed arm shines bright, forming a shape of complete arm of light. Almost as if he regrew his arm.
Ieza slowly feels the agonizing pain disappear, giving the sense of relieve. He is pondering in wonder. He lifts his new arm and slowly swings it around.
"Very well, my child. You have proven your oath in this journey. Take my gift, and come forth. Let me witness your worth onward."
All figure in the realm slowly disappeared into the air. They were smiling and waving their hand in the end.
---
Meanwhile in another wreckage area in Kartika Village, Naruwa and Herga are contesting their magic skills toward each other.
Wind magic against the speed of waving axes.
Lightning thunder magic battling each other with the blazing fire that is emanating through Herga's body and his weapon.
Multiple explosions created as a result from their battle.
Herga relentlessly slashes both of his axes toward Naruwa, yet he successfully deflected all of his attacks thanks to his wind magic that keeps interfering the oncoming swings trajectory.
But Naruwa soon realizes his weakness, as he starts to feel tired, his magic output become decreased bit by bit.
"Hehehe. Oh boy, if this keeps up, you know...things surely get ugly. Especially for you, Naruwa." Herga said this while maniacally swinging his axes and laughing at him at the same time. "Now, take this!"
Herga combine his axes into one giant axe, and rotates it in very high speed. The giant axe is rotating so fast, it starts collecting the flames around him, creating a form of gigantic, spinning fire blade. This move causes constant strong blows, knocking burning huts, trees, crops and everything around him.
"For the man that almost died in the past, now join your brother in the afterlife and meet all of your family members there!"
Naruwa senses massive energy, emanating from Herga's channeling spell. He casts multiple wind barriers and chants the lightning spear. He is attempting to break Herga's ultimate move.
Both Naruwa and Herga throw their spells at each other.
Both spells hitting each other, causing a blinding light, followed by the largest explosion with deafening sound.
Chapter 10 - End