Master!

"Human! You dare intrude upon my sanctum!" The Demon Lord Azazael bellowed. "You are simply courting death!"

The colossal Demon Lord stood up in front of his mountain-like throne and glared venomously at a humanoid figure several yards away from him. The demon gave off an air of sovereignty that encompassed his entire surrounding, and just by exerting it, the entire world felt like it had gone quiet. True to its effect, the land became noiseless and not a single sound could be heard. However, this subtleness was quickly eradicated by the metallic voice of a person.

"Shut the hell up!" Retorted the humanoid figure.

The humanoid figure was, in fact, a Knight who was equipped with a lustrous longsword that was roughly the length of twice an adult male's size. The sword was not only large but it was also extremely dense, and yet it was wielded by the Knight with close to no effort and only by his right arm alone. A sprawling red cape hung over the Knight's back and it was swaying meticulously back and forth giving the Knight a heroic vibe. The Knight swung the massive longsword in the direction of the Demon Lord, causing the tip of the blade to point towards it.

The Demon Lord's rage was piqued by this unruly display and he howled wildly. As he did, numerous flying silhouette of bat-like creatures rose up from behind the massive throne and they all shot towards the Knight.

"Very well!" The Demon Lord bellowed once more. "Then I shall give you the honor of being buried here for all eternity!"

"Hmph! You think you can stop me by just sending all these useless mobs?" The Knight scowled. "You really underestimate me way too much you arrogant demon!"

While maintaining the longsword's position, the Knight steadily poured mana into its hilt, which courses throughout the entirety of the weapon causing the blade of the sword to illuminate brightly with a blue light.

The Knight then pulled the sword backward and with the tip pointing in the opposite direction of the Demon Lord, the Knight went into a combat stance facing directly towards the horde of flying demons. When the creatures were just about to alight onto the land, the Knight heaved the longsword with compelling might and in only a single motion, swung the blade upwards in a crescent-shaped slash.

A powerful surge of magical energy projected out from within the slash, in an arch, and it shot straight through the horde of flying demons, easily annihilating the entirety of the horde's frontier. The Knight continuously swung the sword with incredible speed and might, and with every swing, arch after arch of magical energy tore through the horde, slowly wilting away their numbers.

"Haha!" The Knight snickered. "This doesn't even count as a warm-up! Hey Demon Lord, mind sending out something that is closer to or even somewhere around your level? I'm getting really bored down here!"

"Outrageous!" The Demon Lord cried. "I just have had it with your incompetence! If you really wish to dig your own grave that badly - then, by all means, I shall give it to you!"

The Demon Lord's eyes suddenly turned from violet into a deep crimson, he gestured his arms into the sky for a moment before slamming them back down towards the ground. Afterward, The land below abruptly shook with great intensity, causing a large fissure to open up horizontally between the Knight and the Demon Lord.

The fissure oozes out a red dense mist that enshrouds the space within the sundered land. Occasionally there were electrical discharges within the mist which made it look even more treacherous.

"What the...?" The Knight pondered. "This fissure... and this feeling... I see - Looks like it's time to get serious!"

The Knight's body was no longer as slacked as it was during the battle with the flying demons, the stance was now more firm and defined, and the aura exuded out of the Knight was one of seriousness.

"Hahaha! Scared now fool?" The Demon Lord sneered while laughing maniacally. "Foolish Human! Witness the power of a Demon Lord! Behold - the sleeping monstrosity - The Juggernaut of Apocalypse - awaken!"

As the Demon Lord's words echoed out, the appearance of the world suddenly changed into a deep shade of red. The red mist in the fissure started to gush upwards wildly towards the sky as the land underneath shook violently. As the mist made contact with the clouds, the sound of thunderclaps and crackling electricity reverberate towards the ground which at the same time, caused a large windstorm to stir.

As if answering to the call of the turmoil, an otherworldly, ear-piercing howl bawled out from within the fissure causing it to widen. A colossal, reptile-like arm burst out from within the chasm and settled upon the edge of the fissure, shaking the ground as it made contact. After a moment, a second arm appeared, followed by a colossal head of a bizarre turtle.

The turtle-like creature pushes its forearm downwards, shattering the land beneath its palm, and lifted up the rest of its monstrous body. It steadily crawled out of the chasm through the red mist, exposing its hill shaped back and with a surprisingly nibble speed, charged towards the Knight.

The Knight was caught off-guard by the turtle's movement and was left with no time to dodge.

"Damn!"

With no other options available, the Knight braced for impact as the incoming monster bellowed loudly. The Knight quickly channeled some magic into the longsword, causing a barrier-like shield to manifest out of the blade. The two figures then collided heavily, sending shock waves to reverberate throughout the land.

BOOM!!

"Fuahhh!" The Knight cried while being sent hurtling backward with ferocious speed.

The Knight's body crashed through into several hills before coming into a halt. As the Knight landed onto the ground, bits and pieces of shattered armor were sent flying like shrapnel across the place of landing and the red cape was torn off the armor's back. The Knight's body was disfigured from the waist to bottom and the massive longsword was in a state of disheveled.

Suddenly, for some strange reason, the bottom-half of the Knight starts to twist around slowly, turning back into its original position. However, it was clear that the Knight was putting in a lot of effort to perform the action.

Although the Knight was clearly in no condition to fight, the monster, however, was not satisfied with the results and it glared deeply in the Knight's direction. It gaped its jaws widely while taking in a deep heavy breath.

Like a massive vacuum, the turtle monster absorbed all the air around it causing a vortex-like silhouette to take shape in between its jaws. The monster kept the vortex charging for several seconds until it becomes thrice its initial size, it then snapped its jaw shut causing white and blue flames to foam out of it.

"Hahaha! Human!" The Demon Lord cried. "You've brought this upon yourself from the moment you set foot here! Hahaha! You amused me far enough - Now then... begone!"

Heeding the Demon Lord's signal, the turtle monster thrust its head forward with its jaws wide open and as it did, a dazzling beam of blue and white flames hurtled towards the Knight. The Knight could do nothing but lie and stare at the upcoming danger, however, the Knight did not falter, in fact, there were even sounds of light chuckles coming from within the helmet.

"Hehehe - " The Knight chuckled. "I've really had underestimated you and played around too much..."

The Knight's head jerked to the left, at an open space in the air. Out of nowhere, a strange silhouette of a person manifested. It quickly becomes more defined and clear until eventually, a person in a white dress appeared in its place.

The person was an elegant female in her twenties with a voluptuous figure, she sported a long and silky white hair which fluttered about her back, under her wide and pointed hat. Her face was paled and jade-like, which, coupled with her voluptuous stature made her beauty, incredibly unfathomable.

Equipped on her right hand was a staff made of pure gold and embroidered with gems of various colors. The neck of the staff was not very long, it was probably only about an arm's length or perhaps, even slightly shorter. At the end of the staff was a complicated design of metallic ornament and interlocking gold chains, which in turn, made the staff appeared larger than it would be.

The woman gazed back at the Knight, then immediately look back towards the incoming beam. She lifted her staff up and without showing any signs of even utilizing any mana, she cast a spell with her staff.

"HEAVENLY BARRIER!" She cried.

Suddenly, a golden protective layer manifested around the Knight and it effortlessly dispersed the full might of the beam as it made contact with the barrier. The Demon Lord bellowed aggressively after seeing this.

"Arggh! Who dares!?" He scowled.

The woman ignored the demon and turned back to tend to the Knight.

"Roland are you alright?" The woman in white asked, scanning the Knight up and down.

"Somewhat, master..." The Knight replied as it struggles to get up. "Just a tiny scratch here and there that's all..."

In an attempt to defy reality, the Knight haughtily puts on an act of being completely fine by walking towards the woman as steadily as possible, however, the Knight would occasionally stumble once or twice on the way there to her.

"..." The woman gasped at the scene and slowly turned around. "I understand... since you're fine I'll just leave you be then."

The woman didn't seem to be taking the joke very well and this caused the Knight to panic greatly.

"Ah... Ma-Master I was only joking!" The Knight cried out. "Please heal this lowly servant back to health!"

"You should have said so earlier ~ " The woman chuckled as she immediately turned back to face the Knight. "Bestow Healing!"

After she cast the spell, a golden magical circle appeared directly above the Knight and a ray of golden light illuminated out of it, bathing the Knight underneath. The Knight's armor was immediately repaired to its initial glorious state and the red cape reappeared behind the armor. At the same time, the Knight's body was brimming with vigor as strength surged within it.

"Bestow Weapon!"

The woman yet again cast another spell, and this time another magical circle appeared on the palm of the Knight which transmogrify into a lustrous Longsword, similar to the shattered one before. The Knight chuckled as it faced towards the direction of the turtle monster. The Demon Lord noticed this turn of events and bellowed loudly once again.

"Annihilate them Juggernaut!" He ordered, pointing towards the two figures several yards away from him.

"RAAUUUAARRGHHH!" The monster howled while readying another barrage of blue and white flame.

This time, instead of charging for a long period of time, the monster instead, sent quick successions of blasts towards the woman and Knight with incredible precision.

"Hmmph! Don't get cocky!" The Knight sneered while rushing towards the monster. "Master!"

"I understand! Bestow Agility!" The woman cried. "Bestow Strength!"

Two magical circles appeared beside the Knight and illuminated brightly. The Knight's movement was boosted drastically as the speed covered by every step was now dozens of times faster! The Knight kept speeding towards the monster while pouring a large amount of mana into the longsword.

In the blink of an eye, the Knight was now right below the Juggernaut throat as it was preparing to fire more barrage of beams. With incredible strength, the Knight thrust the longsword upwards, sending a sharp magical shockwave towards the monster's throat.

"Hmmph! Like I will let you!" The Demon Lord croaked, his arm extending forward causing a purple fabric-like barrier to encompass the turtle's neck.

Although the slash managed to graze the turtle's neck and deeply wound it, the barrier was able to absorb most of the attack which prevented the beast from perishing. The Demon Lord then clenched his fingers together which caused the Juggernaut to retreat back into the fissure, as well as the red mist. Once the monster was no longer in sight, the fissure linked back together and disappeared as it was never there.

"Enough is enough!" The Demon Lord howled. "I'll personally see to both of your demised!"

After announcing that, the Demon Lord conjured out a humongous, diabolic sword which he grabbed with his right hand. On the other hand, a ball of red flames hovered on his palm and tiny electrical sparks could be seen circulating around it. The Demon Lord then dissipate from where he was standing and reappeared several yards away from his initial position, rapidly closing the distance between him and the duo.

"We'll see about that!" The woman retorted as she once again prepared to cast another spell. "Roland! Let's get this over with once and for all!"

"Yes, master!" The Knight answered.

The both of them got their stance and position ready as they prepared to brace for battle. The Knight majestically lifted the longsword up high into the sky, while channeling a large amount of mana into the blade. The woman started to cast a series of spells on the Knight which would bolster his physique, as well as, conjuring a large barrier around them for protection.

Both the duo and the Demon Lord consecutively exchanged attacks and unique magic against one another, with neither side backing down. Although, however, the Knight and the woman seems to be on the winning end at the moment.

"Dammit...!" The Demon Lord mumbled.

He quickly backed off and once again, his eyes turned red as he thrust his arm into the sky but this time, instead of the smashing the ground being torn asunder, he struck the sky.

The clouds above quickly changed into the color of blood and a huge rift was rendered in the sky. Like before, red mist surged out from within the rift and a colossal monster appeared airtight after.

"Come forth! The Avian of Apocalypse!" The Demon Lord cried.

The monster was a large three-eyed bird with black feathers and it had eight extensive wings. The bird squawked loudly towards the duo below and made a beeline in their direction.

Hey Roland..." The woman mumbled while her eyes remained fixed at the beast.

"Yes, master?" The Knight replied, looking towards her.

"Once we get back, I want you to cook me all of my favorite dishes, in compensation of helping you this much!" She continued.

"Yes... master.." The Knight replied again, feeling somewhat dejected.

"What was that!?" She glared at the Knight.

"Nothing master! I mean... Yes, master! Understood master! Without a doubt master!" The Knight earnestly replied while the woman chuckled playfully.

However, for some reason, the voice of the Knight and the laughter of the woman began to waver slowly until eventually, they were nothing more than a faint echo, repeating one thing over and over again.

"Master! Master! Master! Master... master..."

...

...

...

...

"Master... Master... Master!"

My mind felt hazy as the sound of something mechanical buzzed into my ears. I hastily grabbed the spare pillow underneath my cover and clamped it over the other side of my head in an attempt to nullify the sound. Although it didn't serve much as a barrier against the noise, it did lessen the headache I was experiencing a little.

"Master! I believe it is almost time before school initiates - 23 minutes left to be precise." Said the sound. "It is to be advised that waking up now - "

Before the sound could finish speaking, I jolted up out of my bed in a panic.

"23 minutes!?" I cried. "No way! I'm going to be late, argh stupid alarm clock! I'd probably forgot to set it up last night! No, wait... I did... this thing is just junk!"

"No master..." The sound spoke again. "The alarm clock in which you speak of had in fact, already give off thrice in total, before it was haphazardly chugged away by master himself, at the corner over there - "

Suddenly, an outline of a golden arm streak past my vision as it pointed towards the direction of a corner of my room. Lying on that corner was a tragically disheveled alarm clock with all of its gears and springs scattered all over the floor.

"As you can see, master..." The sound continued.

"Ah..." I gasped, quickly turning my attention back to the sound - to the figure behind me. "It's you..."

Standing there behind me, or should I say floating there behind me was the Golden Knight. For some reason, the Knight looked strangely familiar, although I knew I've encountered it many times in the past, it was like a sense of Deja Vu, like I've just recently seen it somewhere but I just can't seem to remember.

"Um...Mr. Knight?" I called out to it.

"Please call me Roland, master." The Golden Knight interrupted, startingly me.

"Um... Sure... Uh - Roland..." I muttered, however, I seemed to recall something once again. "Wait, Roland...?"

Again, the same feeling of Deja Vu struck me, yet I just couldn't recall where I've remembered it from. All of this thinking made me frustrated so I choose to ignore it for now.

"Yes, master?" Pondered Roland.

"Oh - yeah..." I snapped back into reality. "Why are you out here?"

"To guard you against dangers of course." Replied Roland.

"Do you always have to be out?" I asked another question.

"Yes." It replied again.

"Will you always be following me?" I asked again.

"Yes."

"To everywhere I go?"

"Yes."

"Anywhere...?"

"Yes."

"..." I shuddered with that last answer. "Are you male or female?"

"Male... Obviously." Replied Roland with a questioning tone.

It was only a joking question and I was expecting him to say something like 'I have no specific gender' or some sort, but I never would have thought he would be so specific about it, let alone serious.

"Ah..." I murmured. "So... will you be coming with me to school as well?"

"Yes."

"..." I paused, pondering on what to say next. "Hmm? Can I order you not to come with me?"

"Yes." Answered Roland almost immediately.

"Then...!" I said.

"However, I'm afraid I have to ignore that order master." Said Roland.

I was dumbstruck by the reply.

"Hey..." I murmured. "What the heck is this... wasn't I suppose to be your master...?"

"Yes."

"Oh stop that!" I cried. "Then why are you not following my orders?"

"Putting things into consideration..." The Knight replied. "Your safety is prioritized over everything else, including orders, master."

"Well - what... then... do you have any method of concealment or something? It would be really problematic if everyone at school were to see you!"

"Yes."

"Damn it! I told you to stop saying the word yes - eh?" I paused. "Wait... Did you just said yes?"

"Yes."

"... Well - alright then show me your concealment ability..." I ordered.

"Yes, master." Replied Roland while raising his right index onto his forehead. "It is done."

"Um..." I gasped.

"Is there something wrong master?" He asked.

"Oh yeah - how should I put this... you're kinda like - still here..." I answered. "Did it fail or something?"

"Impossible." Replied Roland. "I assume you'd misunderstood my ability master, the concealment ability will, in no doubt, conceal me from the views of anyone below the level of Wizard King or Queen, but will be visible to you at all times."

"Ah, I see..." I nodded understandingly, yet was still confused about one more thing. "Wait - Wizard King, Wizard Queen? What stage is that?"

"I believe anymore question must be saved for later master..." Roland interrupted. "If I am not mistaken, master only have roughly 15 more minutes before school begins... and according to my calculations, the amount of time it takes for master to freshen up, change into the school uniform, have breakfast and traveling, would make master approximately 20 minutes late for - "

"Ah! That's right!" I shrilled. "School!"

Without wasting any more time, I hurriedly dash into the bathroom and rinse myself with cold water.

"Crap! Uncle's gonna kill me!"

"Hey! What's taking you so long!?" Shouted a man from below. "Quit talking to yourself and get down here! You're gonna be late - aiya you already are... I swear what happened to you before being bedridden in the hospital..."

"Be there in a sec!" I replied, after washing up I peeked back towards Roland who was right beside me. "Hey quick question, will others be able to hear you speak as well?"

"Yes - however if you like, master... I will avoid speaking in public and only communicate with you when we are alone." Answered Roland.

"Oh - yeah sure..." I muttered while hurrying to change into my school uniform. "Also can people touch you as well?"

"Yes, but not to worry - I will avoid physical contact with anything at all cost." He replied once again.

"Good to know." I smiled, at the same time pulling up my pants.

"Hey! Did you hear me just now!?" The man called out again.

"Yeah, I'm coming!"

After zipping up my pants and collecting my bag, I made a beeline for the door and rushed downstairs. Roland hovered just right behind me as we made our to the kitchen room for breakfast.