CHAPTER 31

Axis watched as Seraf stepped up to defend him, along with the Elves, facing off against the identity thief. Axis wondered why Seraf was helping them, how he knew Vilda, why a Slayer was acting against his own country… He had a lot of questions, is the point. Of course, the first question he decided to ask Seraf directly was more out of spite than curiosity.

“Hey Seraf, that guy calls himself ‘Axis Demkil’ too. So, what do you think?”

“Definitely not.” Seraf answered with so much confidence, Axis was actually taken aback, while the Slayer in question was offended.

Axis happened to catch how strange his reaction was at first, as if he had just been in a daze and his being insulted is what snapped him out of it.

“I am who I say I am! Do you dare to question my identity, while refusing to name yourself?! I am the Hero of Demkil, Axis Demkil, the Slayer who will kill all Monsters! Now, I’ll ask again: who the hell are you?!”

Seraf remained silent, as if he didn’t plan to respond once again. However, Axis could pick up the sound of him grinding his teeth in frustration.

“‘Hero of Demkil…?’” He spoke after clicking his tongue, as if disappointed in the Slayer’s introduction. “‘Kill all Monsters?’ How arrogant.”

“What was that?! Alright, fine… It doesn’t matter how intimidating you are, if you’re choosing to side with those Monsters, then you’ll die along with them!”

“Seraf...!” Vilda called out from behind him while brandishing her weapons, her shoulders subtly moving to betray her weariness as she panted between her words, “we’ll fight too... He’s really strong... And his Magic is...!”

“There’s no need,” Seraf interrupted without turning away from the enemy before him. “I got this.”

Vilda was about to try and persuade him otherwise, but then she felt the heat

emanating from his aura, like that of a bonfire. She was perplexed by how calm he was in spite of facing an enemy, especially one as dangerous as the Slayer calling himself by Axis’s name. She had thought to warn him, but he seemed to already be aware, and yet he was still so calm, which could have only meant...

As soon as the Slayer conjured another magic circle, Seraf charged straight at him, much like an arrow buffed with Magic himself. “Axis” fired his arrow, but Seraf struck it with his sword, somehow cancelling out the spell. The Slayer was taken aback, but because Seraf had not slowed down his charge in the slightest, he had no time to analyze what had just occurred. Producing more spells to turn into arrows, he rapidly fired them at Seraf, but to no avail as Seraf continued to deflect and nullify them.

The distance between them quickly closed, but as Seraf swung his blade aiming at the Slayer’s side, his target suddenly vanished before his eyes. “Axis” had teleported away, preparing to shoot an arrow into the back of Seraf’s neck.

However, Seraf could see the traces of “Axis’s” mana as he travelled and was able to follow his path and predict his moves, adjusting the large sword on his back to protect his neck from the arrow.

“How?!” The Slayer shouted in disbelief as he prepared more arrows to shoot, but unbeknownst to Seraf, these arrows would have indirect effects that his sword wouldn’t be able to cancel out, even if he managed to deflect them.

At least, that should have been the case. As Seraf turned towards “Axis” to charge at him again, the Slayer shot his arrows one at a time, intending on their getting deflected. Instead, Seraf’s aura flared and engulfed the arrows along his path before they could even reach him, negating even the indirect effects.

It seemed hopeless, as if Magic was never meant to harm the knight; rather, Magic was simply ineffective against his blazing aura. Of course, as Seraf once again closed the distance to strike “Axis,” he teleported away once again, this time more desperately. However, Seraf could still track him and chase him down to eventually get his attack to hit successfully, but he didn’t chase after “Axis” this time, and instead turned to him, waiting and watching for his next move while taunting him.

“What’s the matter? Are you scared?”

“Axis” gritted his teeth in vexation, for even as Seraf taunted him, he wasn’t smiling as one usually would while mocking another. His expression was frighteningly serious, akin to a beast baring its fangs at an intruder of its territory, causing “Axis” to hesitate before responding.

“It’s no use! My arrows can’t hit you, but that blade won’t hit me either! We’ll just waste each other’s energy at this point! Because of this stalemate, I’ll offer a proposition: step aside and allow me to kill Nexus, and you’re free to leave along with those Elves.”

“‘Kill Nexus?’” Seraf responded skeptically. “How could you?”

“I am the only one capable of doing so!”

“So you say…”

“Just listen! I’m assuming you’re here to protect the Elves, because there’s no way that you’re stupid enough to side with the Storm of Destruction. However, those Elves wish to use its power against Demkil, and as a Slayer, I am dutybound to prevent that from happening. Even if you are a traitor, you certainly don’t wish for Demkil’s destruction, do you? Don’t you still have loved ones living here along with us?”

Seraf didn’t respond, pausing as if he was seriously considering the Slayer’s words. “Axis” saw it as such anyway, and continued to press his apparent advantage.

“Though, if you can convince them to abandon their scheme, I will allow their escape this one time. Otherwise, I will use everything I have to defeat you all here, consequences be damned! This is the best offer you’re going to get, so I suggest you take it.”

Silence hung in the air once again, as everyone awaited Seraf’s response. It seemed as though he was taking his time to think over the Slayer’s proposal. Of course, his answer had already been determined, and he was actually taking the time to figure out how to best express it. In the end, however…

“I refuse.”

His answer was that simple.

“What?!” The Slayer reacted in disbelief, believing that his deal was irrefutable.

Yet, Seraf wasn’t done bewildering not only “Axis,” but Axis and the Elves as well.

“Here’s my counteroffer: you can flee. Leave us be, and you’re free. Otherwise…”

Seraf then glanced at the sword he held, the one that “Axis” stated wouldn’t hit him, before returning it to its sheath at his hip, reaching for the larger sword at his back, the one he used to destroy the meteoric arrow.

“I’ll use this. Beware, it will hit.”

With that, all the attention was back on “Axis Demkil,” who was trembling due to a mixture of anger and fear. Yes, he was afraid of Seraf; the true reason why he, a Slayer that wished to kill all of the Monsters, was willing to let a couple of Elves go for the sake of a target with higher priority, was actually because he feared the man opposing him. After reflecting on it, he felt ashamed for making such an offer to begin with.

“How foolish of me… Neither Monsters nor traitors should be allowed mercy. I tried to make things easier for myself, when I should have just done this from the very start!”

Then, the Slayer conjured another magic circle, but it was clearly different from the previous ones; even Axis and Seraf, who knew very little about Magic, could tell that there was something seriously wrong with the spell he was casting. The energy that was getting absorbed into the circle felt far too intrusive, like oil being poured down into a well meant for water.

“What is that?!” Vilda shouted, confirming their suspicions. “That’s not mana he’s gathering for that spell!”

“Axis” once again twisted the circle into an arrow to be shot from his bow, with the unknown energy still emanating from it, moving around almost as if it were alive in some way. His eyes through the visor of his helmet were focused and sharp as he pulled the arrow against his bowstring, staring right at Seraf, but also had his other targets within his scope.

“Surely, you won’t be able to escape this…!”

Then, Seraf’s own aura flared as he held his sword above his shoulder, as if preparing an overhead strike. If his aura was like wildfire when he struck down the meteoric arrow, then it was on the verge of becoming a raging inferno while challenging the Slayer’s unknown energy.

“I’m not ‘Shirley.’”

“... What?”

However, just before the arrow was released and the blade was swung, a spear suddenly struck the ground between them, interrupting their clash.

Perhaps it was only a coincidence, but “Axis” cancelled his spell and the arrow dissipated at the same time Seraf lowered his sword and quelled his aura. From behind the Slayer, Demkil’s search party approached, with the Head Captain in the lead, of course.

“Well, fuck…” Axis muttered under his breath.