When The Battle Ends

If I remember right one of the fake royal guards said that he could sense my mana. Is he talking about appraisal? I mean when I use appraisal it just shows a number for the mana and stuff. It almost sounds like he has another form of appraisal.

If so I better learn how to hide my stats. I don't really want to be advertising myself.

"It doesn't look like they're going to cooperate, what do we do?" A third guard behind the other two guards asks."

Though I guess it's already too late.

"Hmm, how to deal with this…" I find myself whispering.

Mara gives me a questionable look after I say that. I mean what should we do here? We can run away, fight, or even maybe talk our way out of this. All but the third I'm confident we can do.

"I suggest we run, no reason to waste our time," Mara whispers to me.

Huh. Mara looks much calmer than she was before. Was it because of how casually I was taking the whole situation? She is right though there's not much we would gain from fighting these guys.

Plus there are probably more important things we should be doing. Alrighty, problem solved. We shall be running away!

"We have come to our decision, Shadow Twin." The blue-haired knight says.

Wha? Before we could even say our ultimatum they made one of their own. What could they be thinking?

"We shall follow the third mandate of the national guard," the blond-haired one says

"And why do this 'mandate' thing instead of beating me up normally? Wait a minute, what's stopping me from just running away right now?" I reasonably question the guards.

"Hah does this guy not know anything," the blue-haired knight says.

Huh?

I look at Mara for some clarification on this whole thing but instead, I just see her looking disappointed at me. The hell?!

Just as I was just getting confused, the universe decided to make it even worse for me. For some reason, the third guard has started chanting something.

The only thing I make out from the chant is 'third mandate'. So is that what the third mandate is? A spell? Guess I'll just have to wait to figure it out.

As the spell continues I see a golden bubble surrounding the four of us. When the spell is complete the two guards and Mara and I are inside it.

Umm ok?

With the spell seemingly not done a light starts to glow off the two guards' weapons. Making it glow the same color as the bubble we are in.

Cool

"Welp guess I'll take the blue-haired guy," I say as I look over at Mara.

Mara is hesitant but gives a nod. Weird.

I start walking up to my opponent anyway. He's already got his sword out and pointed at me. I don't know if it's even fair to say it's a sword. Maybe claymore? Na I think greatsword fits better.

Wish I could do the same. Sadly my trusty old friend was shattered not too long ago. Guess my fists and magic will have to do.

"So you approach me?" The blue-haired guard asks.

"It's kinda hard to beat you up from back there" I lie.

"Your ignorance will be your downfall!" He says as he leaps in the air.

Swiftly I move out of the way of his strike and he ends up hitting the open air. His sword sticks into the ground creating sizable cracks in the ground.

He quickly picks his sword out of the ground and slices at me. I once again nearly dodge the blow. I stand only a few steps in front of him. The blows of his sword are so slow standing so close to him is no issue.

Basically, I'm not really having any issues…

Mara on the other hand. Now that I'm looking at it, is Mara having some trouble? It's really confusing.

I swear these guards aren't that strong even fighting them proves that. No, it's not the guard that's strong. I think that Mara is weaker than normal.

Mara is both fighting and dodging slower than normal. It doesn't even look like she's even using magic. She keeps trying to get close but she isn't able to land a hint.

Even when there's a slow hit she fails to dodge it. What's going on? It's like she just keeps freezing up. Is she concerned about something? I don't get it.

Maybe all she needs is a pep talk. You know what? Ya, let's give her some inspiration!

Dodging one of the many blows from the guard I take the moment to stand on top of the sword that had once again found itself in the ground. Using the extra height I call out to Mara.

"Mara! Why is it that you're having so much trouble with someone like that?!"

Everyone looks at me after I make such a loud statement. Actually, all the eyes on me are kinda making me not want to speak anymore. It was only supposed to be for Mara but I guess everyone is interested in what I have to say… Great.

"I'm sorry it's just…" Mara brings her head down looking at the ground.

Ahh, I can't just stop here! I gotta speak no matter how hard it is.

So covering my embarrassment by pulling my hood down I speak confidently.

"These people are only weaklings compared to you and me. You must show them what true power is like!"

"I know, I know but-"

"You must show them. No! everyone how strong you've truly become! You are no longer the person you were the month prior!"

She stays silent after I say that but I can see her clutching her weapon a bit tighter than before.

Alright, just breathe, just one more.

"You're not the one that holds yourself back! But rather the person you think you are is holding you back. Are you going to feed your despair?! Or are you going to realize who you truly are?!"

Ah, might pass out… Wait… hold on… Nope, I'm still good. Talking has never really been my thing…I guess it was worth it though.

Mara looks at me holding her sword confidently.

"You're right, I apologize for worrying you." She says.

Thank god. I feel like if I did any more talking I would have passed out. The embarrassment of everyone looking at me is just too much. Not to mention the corny lines I spat out.

Suddenly the ground under me rises and I find myself in the air.

Whoops forgot I was still on that guy's sword.

I'm able to get back to the ground safely and continue my fight with the guard. The fight only continues where it left off. He tries to hit me and fails. I guess now though it's even easier because of how widely he swings that thing.

I must be annoying the heck out of him. Oh well. Ya should have increased your stamina more.

The thing that is more interesting than my fight is the one happening not too far away. Mara is a far cry from what she was before the pep talk. It must have really worked.

The guard Mara's fighting uses his sword much more precisely than the one I'm fighting but even so, Mara is able to use every one of his swings as a chance to counterattack.

The guard does a series of fast strikes but Mara uses earth magic to create a wall, blocking all of them. Even a basic slash is used immediately to punish the guard since Mara simply parries it and uses her other hand to cast a fireball.

Overall we win.

"There's Magic sir, there's no casting for any of them!" The guard Mara's fighting says before being hit with another spell.

Hey, I taught her that!

The guard I'm fighting tries to reply but can't reply between his heavy gasps.

Hmm, I guess it's almost over.

With a bang, a body flies and gets stopped by the golden circle surrounding us. It was the guard Mara was just fighting. Guess she's done.

After simply walking, not even dodging out of what I think is the slowest attack ever, I give the guard a good punch and he easily falls over.

"Welp guess that's that," I say, clasping my hands together.

After saying that the golden force field surrounding us disintegrates. And before I'm able to do anything else Mara comes up and hugs me.

"Thank you so much Akari, I- I was so scared," Mara says while… Crying?

Is she thanking me for the motivational quotes? I mean those were so basic I thought I was going to roll my own eyes. Also why the heck is she crying?!

"Um, ya anytime…"

"Hah, the fact is, I know you can't do that anytime. That's why I'm so grateful you could do it when it really mattered."

What?

"Ya uh, thanks?"

"You dummy, I should be the one thanking you," She says, staring at me.

We stood there for a moment just hugging and staring at each other. Our faces are so close. Maybe if I moved a little closer maybe we could…

"M-Master!" A girl's voice shouts.

Master? Someone saying something so out of the blue ruins that atmosphere and ruins my outlandish thoughts. Given the circumstances, a kiss will have to wait.

Backing away from Mara she must have also realized how close we were and I see her blush. Their reaction from her tail and ears also visualizes her thoughts.

Now it's time to find the person that ruined the perfect moment and it doesn't take long not too far off the road. It's a girl that seems to be out of breath looking over at us.

What don't tell me she was talking about-

"Master, it's me, I'm here!" she says in my direction.

ME?! I'm not sure if I'll be able to handle this. I wonder if Mara will be able to… Never mind Mara won't be any help. For some reason, she's making a more surprised face than me right now.

Looking closer I try to remember if I recall this girl but no matter how hard I think nothing comes to mind. For some reason, a girl with blue transparent skin doesn't fit in any memory bank.

Ya turns out this girl isn't normal. Her body is some sort of jelly-like substance. Well, at least she has clothes though I'm not sure where she would get such an outfit from. An entirely white dress and a bow on what I think is hair?

Overall 8/10 very cute but the outfit is a bit boring. Sure it fits her aesthetic but come on it feels really basic. The "dress" if you can even call it that looks more like a nightgown. It also doesn't make sense why she's- Why is she coming over here?

Ya for some reason she decided to come over to us. She also seems to be pouting? Very cute once again. The fact that she's walking right toward me and Mara only enforces the fact she was talking to one of us.

I swear this girl is acting like she knows us but I've never seen her before. Can someone please get their lost kid? Wish I could help but my talking energy has been used up. No more from me.

Just then when it all seemed lost Mara came to the rescue. Mara gets… Annoyed? Does Mara know this person? Mara steps forward and confronts the strange girl.

"What do you think you're doing here?" Mara questions the mysterious girl.

"I was tired of waiting! I'm not here to talk to you anyway!" The mysterious girl retorts.

"What, you couldn't wait just a little longer? I thought it was your idea. Instead, you decide to come at the worst time?"

"Well the town was on fire, I was scared!"

"And what about now? You think we can handle it?! Kinda seem like you're underestimating us!"

"Hah! Master is the strongest person in the world but with you holding him back I got scared he might lose his plaything."

"Plaything?!"

It was at this point the two got locked into an intense staring contest. Trust me when I say intense I mean it. For some reason, I have the feeling they're both ready to cast magic at the drop of a hat.

But they don't. It's almost like something or someone is stopping them. I fear that someone is probably me and seeing how important I seem to be in this whole thing it's probably important that I step in and figure out what's going on.

But nope. Right now I'm on break. The fact that I get a free show is even better. Hopefully, they don't care if I just sit back and have a snack, right?

The mysterious girl will have to wait until I'm ready. Truly I have no idea who she is or why Mara knows her or what they're talking about. The only thing for me to figure out what's going on is to ask.

So I guess I'll never know, how sad.

"Sorry to ruin the reunion but this shenanigan is over." A new voice pops up from the group of guards that were also watching this whole thing go down. Even the two guys we beat up.

One man appears from the group. His appearance resembles something like a mage. Something off about that though. His robes don't look like one of the guard's mages, the few there that is.

He also looks much sterner then and more serious than anyone else. I was actually amused when the guards started watching the whole thing but it seems like this guy didn't really care about it.

The man pulls out a staff that I'm surprised I didn't see earlier. Oh cool, I haven't seen staff or wands yell but it looks like they are a thing here that's cool.

I then watch as he points the staff at Mara… uhh you know what… I should probably go help actually…

Before anyone notices, I disappear from my relaxed spot and arrive in front of Mara.

Casting a spell that quickly meets the one the old man casts. The impact caused a small explosion as they clashed. The shock on everyone's faces makes me feel a half of adrenaline and anxiety.

"Yo," I say, trying to make conversation.

"I do not have time for you." The mystery guy declared.

Huh? What's this guy's problem? I'm not the one that started casting magic first.

Once again I hear the guy prepare another spell. Hah well, maybe I'll scare him. I already had my fair share of fights today. This guy just needs a reality check.

Preparing I activate my cheat skills mana consumption and manipulation for easy mana. Then right behind me a cast a wall of different spells. Sure it's not very original but if it worked once it'll work again.

And it seems to have worked as I watch the man stop casting halfway thru and glare at the wall of spells behind me. Hah, it's that easy.

"Wow as expected of you master," the girl behind me says.

There she goes with the 'master this, master that' thing. Whatever, I should focus on the dumb opponent.

Hmm? My expectation was that the man was going to have a more scared look but instead he just seems more agitated…

"This is just a waste, I will deal with you later!" The mystery man yells.

He then starts chanting again. Uhh is this guy crazy? Is really thinking of combating me even after seeing what I can do?

"You can do it master I know you can," The girl behind me says.

"Would you stop calling me that, who are you anyway?" I ask without turning to look at her.

"Oh right I thought might not recognize me in this form"

In this form? What is she talking about? I turn around to face her.

"It's me, your slime buddy Kira here to assist you!"

Kira? But is Kiras a slime? Is she trying to say that Kira transformed into… Hold on, why am I..?

One by one the magic spells that had been floating above me disappear and so does my cheat skill. For some reason, I'm feeling… Tired? What the…

"< Timer Reached User interaction required>"

Wha? Didn't I set a timer on that..?

…

…

…

I run through the main street with a magic bottle of water, throwing large drops while running past crumbling buildings.

I just got done with the evacuation so that's great but those two idiots are still holding off the brute force of the kingdom.

I turn the corner to the very end of the village where I left the others to stumble upon a puzzling site.

Akari, on the floor, presumably knocked out, what other business would he have on the ground? A blue gelatin-looking girl with a plain white dress kneels beside Akari yelling at Mara, who is fighting while bickering at the girl.

Close combat with magic involved? No thanks, I know when to stop myself.

Instead, I decided to hide behind crumpled buildings watching the battle gripping onto my spell book. I may not have a lot of mana but I can form a quick healing spell if needed. I really don't want to though...

I keep my eyes on the fight and holy shit I never got to appreciate the fighting techniques for what they are but god it's so cool. Of course, I can do better but during battles, you're not really worried whether or not you look good.

Though Mara's fighting is frantic, a bit faster-paced, and desperate? Mara drops her weapon after she gets the last guard and a guy in a robe is left. She mutters something quick and closes her eyes.

A flash of a gold ring is sent around her illuminating her but then launching it out. Affectionally hitting the wizard guy. A loud ear-splitting sound is sent out. Fuck is that a part of that stupid spell?

I take my hands off of my ringing ears and listen in on the conversation between the girl and Mara.

"Is he alright?" Mara asks the girl and she nodded slightly looking at Akari.

"I think the master might be waking up as well.." she gives the girl a glare before a scream interrupts Mara. the guy in the robe, he must have sent out a wave of some kind of magic because a thin glowing green stripe is headed straight for Mara. shit.

I try to get up and get over there but that blast from Mara must have affected me because I can't move my legs. Fuck!

I look back up to see the girl and now awake Akari stares at Mara. The green glowing object was inserted right into her chest. No!

I force my legs up, they're shaky but I can walk. I stagger over to the slumped-over Mara, Akari at her side as well. Murmuring and pushing her slightly trying to wake her up. God, it looks really pitiful.

I fall into place next to Akari and check her wrist, nothing. Neck, nothing. Finally, I put my ear to her chest.

Nothing.

I lift my head and look at Akari, he looks at me expectantly.

"Akari, I'm sorry, she's not waking up again.." I watched the color drain from his face.

I think I'm going to be sick.