Chapter 12: Ch52. The approaching storm (4)
I felt the sound more than heard it, and Yuri’s shriek made my heart sink to my stomach.
Why can’t I protect anyone in this life?
I looked at Nikolai’s body, sprawled on the floor as Yuri raged on against Quintus.
That’s why he didn’t want his son to be a part of his world.
He didn’t want Nikolai to get caught in this kind of crossfire.
And I couldn’t do anything to protect him.
Not in my previous life, not in this one...
"I told you he wasn’t going to make it. That you weren’t going to be able to save him, didn’t I?" Quintus spoke straight to me, while holding Yuri’s head like it was a toy.
And his words hit me like a bomb.
I heard those words before, when I saved Nikolai in the abandoned warehouse at the docks.
Quintus’ hand was growing back as he started to crush Yuri’s head like a fruit, but I wasn’t going to let him do it again.
It didn’t matter how fast and strong he seemed to be, I was faster and stronger.
I had to be.
I threw the other dagger towards my brother’s wrist, and luckily it was able to sever his hand, freeing Yuri from Quintus’ grasp. He took a few steps back, his face bleeding from a few bruises, but overall looking fine.
"DON’T GET NEAR HIM!" I shouted to Yuri, charging against him and taking him out of the way as soon as an enormous mana wave was sent towards where he stood.
"Where the hell did you appear from, kid?" Yuri’s eyes widened at my sight.
"No time to explain, just follow my lead!" And I started to run, feeling the mana trail as it came in huge bursts in our direction.
’System, can I lend...’ I immediately stopped thinking.
If the weapons were left to me by Orkas, and were bound to my soul, it was up to me if I could lend one of my weapons to someone, not the system.
Immediately I summoned [MIDNIGHT BALLAD] and put it in Yuri’s hand.
"Put it to good use, I’m lending you this for this fight, now do as I say and we might win this."
Yuri looked at me a bit confused, but nodded and started moving around again.
Maybe it was his ability, [BLADE PROFICIENCY], but he seemed to be able to wield the sword as well as a master swordsman, running around and following my words when I said that he could get closer and attack.
I joined him, splitting Quintus’ attention between the two of us, which made it harder for him to focus.
Good.
Let’s see how you deal with a few more of myself.
[GHOST STEPS OF A THOUSAND FEET]
I felt my body becoming lighter than a feather and began moving around, and it felt amazing!
Even I was able to see my afterimages, which definitely made Quintus more and more confused.
It looked like I was all around and all over him. Even Yuri looked mesmerized by the sight of my skill.
I was able to strike him four times along with Yuri, but when I was about to strike the sixth time, Quintus’ eyes glowed more brightly in that sick red hue, and a shockwave sent me and Yuri violently flying towards a wall.
It made me see stars, but I tried to get my bearings as I got up, stumbling in my own footsteps.
"You think you can win with just this? Why don’t you just come and let me assimilate you? It would be way easier for you..."
His voice now didn’t sound like my brother’s, it sounded more like the one I got so used to hear after I came back to life...
"So it is you after all... I didn’t want to believe it, but how?"
I felt his hand squeezing my face again but my vision took a while to focus on his face.
"What took you so long to understand?" He smiled, crazy. "You’re just a part of me that went wrong, just come back. I’ll fix you..."
Yuri charged to attack, but he wasn’t fast enough, letting Quintus grab the hand holding [MIDNIGHT BALLAD] and breaking it like a twig.
I felt something inside me breaking, snapping. I didn’t feel the rage I remembered from killing Octavius, but the power of my awakening roared, hotter and hotter.
I still didn’t know what kind of power it was, but it felt like a tidal wave crashing over me.
And Quintus’ hand began to smell burned as he took his hand away from me, releasing me from his grasp.
Yuri on the other hand, wasn’t so lucky.
Quintus took his face with his burned hand, and Yuri began being absorbed, screaming, shrieking in absolute, painful horror.
But I couldn’t move.
I felt tired, falling to my knees, but I still could see Quintus’ body falling down, looking at me while saying his last words.
"You won’t... Be able... To... Save them..."
And when his body fully disintegrated, there was only that red crystal remaining.
I walked towards it, looking at Nikolai, his body completely snapped in impossible angles, and at Yuri, his body nothing but a dried up mummy.
I couldn’t save anyone again, and when I reached towards the crystal, I heard Arias’ voice again.
|Do not take it! Leave it be, you won’t be able to overcome three pieces at once, no matter how you managed to tame the first two fragments.|
"First... Two fragments?"
So it was really this that gave me the system and allowed me to come back to life in this world...?
’But what will happen if I leave it here? Won’t anyone find it and allow more of... It to happen?’
|Sometimes that’s the only thing one can do...|
I huffed, frustration taking over me.
This time, I couldn’t just agree with Arias, so ripped a piece of my shirt and grabbed the crystal from the floor, placing it in my pocket, carefully wrapped.
’Sorry Arias, I know you know better than me, somehow, but I can’t allow more of this to happen. I have to go save Evellyn and the others.’
And I started running towards the school as fast as I could.
