Strong and the weak [1]

[Sophie's Pov]

"I am fixing this world, Sophie."

"What the fuck are you talking about?! Look around you! Look at what you have done, James! How in the world is this fixing anything?!"

On the stage, Sarah was still holding on to Peter's dead boy, wholly paralyzed in shock and fear while down on the floor, in one of the corners, Bradley was weeping silently while cradling his twin brother's headless corpse.

So the fact that he spouted such insane words with a smile could only mean that he had finally lost his mind, and at this point, I wasn't sure if I could ever bring him back. And... I wasn't sure if I wanted to anymore.

Yet, when I saw the heavenly-blue eyes perfectly framed by the illustrious white hair that flowed down his back, I couldn't help but tremble a bit. As if the one I was looking at was no longer a person of this world, no longer human.

Still wearing an eerie smile, James spoke with a hint of anger in his voice, just enough anger that most people who didn't know him wouldn't be able to sense it.

"Do you still not understand, Sophie? The truth behind this world?"

Before I could retort to his words, my old friend just shook his head as a surge of mist escaped his body, thinly spreading out around the room.

"Forget it, it doesn't matter anyway. What does matter, however, is that I sadly cannot allow you to leave this place. Please do forgive me."

His body suddenly blurred, disappearing from my sight.

"Sophie, move!"

*Tang!*

Without me being able to react, the sound of clashing metal resonated behind me. Turning around, Arthur had somehow been able to not only react to the sudden movement of our enemy but also block it with his sword.

Seemingly a bit surprised to see Arthur able to predict his movement, James' mouth opened up for a second, before quickly turning into a bright, but incredibly scary smile.

"Hahaha! I like it! Yes, this is how it should be! However, can you block this?"

Before my love could push him back, the mist that was spread around us hurriedly found its place around the black scythe and...

*BOOM!*

"Arthur!"

Seeing my man fly through the room because of the powerful explosion, our enemy didn't give me any time to check on his condition.

"What makes you think you can look away, Sophie?"

'Shit!'

Spinning around, the black weapon was once again on the move, once again eager to tear my body apart, and because of my second of hesitation due to Arthur getting blown away, I wasn't able to react in time to get my claws out.

"Get away from her!"

"..."

Yet, just as he was about to claim my life, James brought out a pair of black and white wings, taking to the air as he stopped his attack. Seeing the elongated sharp spear in front of me, I finally realized what had happened. "

"Sebastian..."

"Stop dawdling around!"

Releasing his ability, and making his spear return to its normal size, the purple-haired man walked forward, showing that he was done sitting on the sidelines. What happened next was almost enough to bring out the tears that I was struggling to keep away.

"You shouldn't think that you are alone in this."

"Yeah! We are also here, you know!"

All of my classmates now got to my side, some with a smile, some with a frown, and one with cheeks still wet from grieving. Even Arthur stood up again, and despite his uniform being completely tattered, he still gave me a smile.

Even now, after seeing all the things that James had done, I had still been unable to accept that I would have to fight him with our lives on the line, standing around like an idiot. But no more.

"You guys..."

Turning my gaze back to the man now floating above our heads, his white and black wing proudly flared out as a symbol of his supremacy, I knew that ultimately, this was the difference between us. He had always been alone, and although there was a time when he had been so painfully close to finding real comrades, true friends that he could trust, the world had other plans for him.

As for me, I was the opposite.

'I am not alone...'

'-No, you are not, my dear. And true strength can only come from having people at your side.'

*Fwoosh!*

When I transformed my body this time, I could sense that something was different. Even though I couldn't dragonize any parts other than my hands, legs, and the wings on my back, I still felt my body surge with power that I had never felt before.

A power that was meant to protect.

And for some reason, seeing my love now shining with a golden light, I could sense that he was the same. We were now about to fight for the same reason, and for the first time since I came here, I had finally accepted the truth.

For that reason, I didn't care to wipe the one tear that emerged from my eyes, letting it stay on my cheek as to remind me of what I had to do. No, what we had to do.

With that, I jumped forward, brandishing my claws as I neared the man who was no longer the man I once knew.

"Are you done?"

"Huh?"

However, just as my fist was about to reach his face, I felt my back grow cold as he spoke with undeniable indifference.

*BAM!*

"Gah!"

I wasn't even able to see what happened, completely unable to react to whatever he did that made my body fly away at a terrifying speed, only to crash into the wall.

As my body sank to the floor, I looked up at him, desperately trying to understand what had just happened. Yet, he was still just floating in the air, with his scythe hanging in his hand.

"[Arc of Light - Strengthed]!"

Still keeping his head in the game, Arthur swung his sword, sending out a large golden arc of pure power, launching it at the man standing in the air. This time, however, I could see the mist around the room instantly transform in front of him, becoming some sort of misty shield.

*BOM!*

As Arthur's attack closed in on him, the misty shield intercepted it, and just as they connected, it detonated itself, completely dispersing the golden arc.

'That's... the skill he used as Zero...'

"He..hehe...Hahahaha!"

Covering his face with his hand, James suddenly bent backward as he laughed his heart out.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah..."

At the same time, Bellatrix had come to my side, putting her bow on her back so that she could help me up from the floor. However, even while doing this, she was still keeping her eyes on the man in the air, still acting like a complete madman.

Then... he stopped. And as he stopped, a murderous aura was sent out from his body, instantly making sweat start to accumulate on my back. Almost like a rabbit standing in front of a wolf that had now decided to stop playing with it, everyone now knew that he was about to stop going easy on us.

"Weak... you are all so weak..."

The mist that was spread around the room started to move, all of it returning to its master's side, creating a huge number of misty orbs around his body as he kept on talking with ice permeating his words.

"How can you all choose to live in this kind of world where the strong rules the weak when you are all so weak? How is it that none of you understand that you are all part of the problem?"

The misty orbs around slowly started to vibrate, and although it was usually hard to sense his mana, right now everyone could feel the massive amount of energy above us, conglomerating into those balls of mist.

"I thought that I had shown you, Arthur, Sebastian... I thought that I had already shown you how pathetic you truly are. But I guess that was not enough. Then, so be it."

At this point, all of us stared with pale faces up toward the ceiling, unable to take our eyes off the absurdity that was now happening in front of our eyes.

Small streams of water had begun to connect all of the orbs, the vibrant blue contrasting the grim gray of the mist. And as we all remembered what he had been able to do as Zero, no one dared to make a move.

'What is happening...'

Even by itself, it was a spectacle that I was having a hard time believing, almost looking like some kind of interstellar constellation that shouldn't be a part of the mortal realm. Seeing the miniature planets of mist connected by streams of water that defied gravity, even Arthur's face got deathly pale.

"Please witness the difference between someone strong and the weak."

And then, the slaughter commenced, as the hoard of laser-like water came down like the heavenly rain that the Bible had described, wiping out all of the sinful humans below.