The sea water began to boil and evaporate as Sir Kazuki moved closer, making a path for him as he walked. He was headed straight for the sea serpent. By the time he reached it, a great portion of the water had evaporated, leaving the serpent barely submerged. It flopped around angrily.
He placed a hand on it, and within a few seconds, it had stopped moving completely. Its head dropped to the ground, splashing in the now shallow water. It had been completely desiccated.
Then the knight began to make his way back to the shore. There was so much steam Levi could barely see him anymore, but he could definitely feel him getting closer. He picked up Syd and moved further back so she wouldn't be killed by the heat. Her father, however, didn't have the same opportunity to retreat.
"How dare you?!" Deidrick shrieked. Sir Kazuki remained silent as he walked closer. "You think this is enough to stop us? It doesn't matter how many of you unbelievers there are, or how many times you kill his vessel. I-..."
At this point, his mouth was still open, but no words came out. The knight was already too close, the heat too much. Deidrick's skin had begun to blister and burn; he clutched at his throat.
Sir Kazuki pulled the man into an embrace. Deidrick screamed silently as his skin burnt off, turning red, then black until finally, he crumbled, leaving nothing but a pile of ashes at Kazuki's feet.
Sir Kazuki brushed some lingering ash off his armor, indifferent, then turned to the other dozen cult members. Aldrich had been fighting them, but at some point, they had all stopped to watch the knight.
"The rest of you," Sir Kazuki stared at them coldly. "Leave now. I'd rather hate to have to dirty my robes with any more ashes today."
They scattered. Within a few minutes, the dock was empty, save for the four of them and the knight.
"I'll take my leave now," Kazuki said, addressing Levi. "Please do not forget our deal."
Levi nodded. "Thanks again, Sir Ka-... I mean, Enya!"
The knight gave him a weak smile. "Until we meet again then, Levi. And farewell to you as well, fell dragon."
[Tch.]
With those words, the man took his leave. As soon as he was far away enough, a few drops of water landed on Levi's face. And then it began to rain. A quick and heavy downpour.
Psyche shot up from his position on the ground and then groaned in pain. The rain had woken him up.
He looked around in confusion for a few seconds before he remembered most of what was happening.
"Why is it raining all of a sudden?" He asked, pushing wet hair out of his eye.
Aldrich turned his relic back into its original form. "The knight of Brilliance was just here."
Psyche had not been expecting to hear that. And for a few seconds, he didn't believe it, but Aldrich's straight face told him he wasn't joking.
"Well, why didn't you wake me up?!" Psyche complained. He had only ever seen the knight once, and even then it was from afar. Who knew when he would ever get the chance again.
"You can't fight him anyway, if that's what you want to do." Aldrich sighed.
Psyche shrugged. He could have still tried.
Levi trudged up to them, Syd still in his arms. Her eyes cracked open slowly.
She tapped him lightly. "I- I'm okay. You can put me down now."
"Oh, okay." Levi replied, setting her down.
Her legs shook as she stood up. She wasn't too sure of what had happened after her father stabbed her. She only remembered seeing a dazzling white figure and feeling really hot.
"So... it's all over? He's... he's gone." Syd said out loud. But it felt less like she was talking to them, and more like she was trying to convince herself of the fact.
Aldrich placed a hand on her shoulder. "It is. Your father, he's dead."
Syd let the words sink in. He was dead, gone forever. She should be feeling elated, and yet...
"It's alright to feel sad, you know," Psyche sighed, he hadn't seen much of the fight but he had heard some important things. "He may have been a crazy cult leader, but he was still your father. And a loss is a loss. "
Maybe he was right, Syd thought. The tears suddenly rolling down her cheek seemed to think so. She wiped away at them with her sleeves and turned away so they wouldn't have to see her like that.
"That was... surprisingly insightful of you," Aldrich commented. "Are you feeling all right?"
"I know a thing or two about having to kill your own father. You see, I-..."
Aldrich rolled his eyes. "Of course you do... Hey, Levi! What are you doing?"
The boy had wandered off towards the serpent's carcass, wading through the shallow water. He sniffed at it. It smelled rather... good.
Aldrich jogged up to him, Psyche following a few meters behind him.
"Please don't be thinking what I think you're thinking." Aldrich groaned.
In response, Levi reached out and tore off a portion of the flesh. Then tossed it into his mouth and chewed. It tasted good as well.
Aldrich grimaced while Psyche was curious to try it for himself.
Above them, the rain had slowed down and then come to a stop. The clouds departed, allowing rays of sunshine that illuminated the ground through.
Syd, having regained her composure, joined them. "Thank you, you three, for saving the town. And me."
"Think nothing of it." Levi mumbled, his mouth still full with some meat.
"Please stop eating it." Aldrich begged.
Syd took a deep breath before allowing a smile to creep up on her. It had been a while since she had smiled. "I think it's about time I inform the townspeople that they're safe to leave their homes now. Though they must have seen most of what happened already."
"We'll be right behind you." Aldrich assured her, before turning to Levi to yank him away from the serpent. He had already eaten a huge chunk from it.
Psyche lagged behind the four of them. And with every step, he let out a barely audible yelp of pain.
Levi looked back at him. "I should probably heal him now."
"Maybe later." Aldrich replied, a small smirk on his face.
×
They stayed in Sigovia for a few more days before leaving. In those few days, Levi had managed to sneak away enough times to completely devour what was left of the snake.
There was nothing but bones left now. And even those would soon be covered up once the sea level rose back up to their usual height.
On the day of their departure, Levi prepped his horse while Psyche and Aldrich were saying their goodbyes.
A lone figure approached from the shadows in a black cloak. Similar to the ones the cultists were wearing. The figure rose up their hands when they saw him tense up.
"I am not here to fight," they lowered their hood, revealing a woman's face. "Just to relay one last message from my Lord."
[He just does not know when to quit, Abaddon remarked.]
The cloaked woman took his silence as an answer and continued to speak. "First, to the fell dragon. He wants you to know that you only prevailed because the serpent was only an empty vessel."
If Abaddon had eyes to roll, he was definitely rolling them; Levi could feel it.
"And also, that he is not the only one with their sights set on this land. He also has plans for this realm."
From the way she said it, it seemed this 'He' was not referring to Belphegor but someone else. Abaddon seemed to know who it was.
[Let him come.]
The woman smiled lightly, almost as if she could hear the dragon's voice.
"And for the boy, the 'plans' I just spoke of are already in motion. You and the ones around you are already involved, even if you have not yet realized it. Especially the one closest to you."
After those cryptic last words, the woman took her leave, disappearing into an alley.
"What do you think she meant by all that?" Levi asked the dragon.
[Ah, nevermind all that, Was his nonchalant reply. Let's just get out of this dump already. Never really cared for the sea.]