"It's because of you that I died…! It's because of you that my sister died in Larundog, too!" Joel yelled before rushing back in.
As their blades crashed against one another once more, Emilio placed his foot down firmly while pushing back against the silver-haired man's sword, "What're you talking about?! Melisande is alive!"
"Lies!" Joel screamed.
The rage infused in that scream along with the anger fueling the unstable soul was felt through the shaking steel that the silver-haired figure wielded. Emilio was about to push him back again, but this time, Joel instead flipped back before dashing in once more with relentless aggression, wildly swinging his blade with incredible speed.
"--!"
Forced on the defensive, Emilio blocked the incoming strikes with his blade, but quickly found himself being overwhelmed by both the ferocity of Joel's attacks and their precision; it wasn't just that his own sword skills had diminished with the inclusion of his artificial arm, but that Joel himself was skilled in such a way he hadn't realized until then.
With a frontal kick, he knocked Joel away, giving himself some space for a moment.
This is how strong you are, Joel?...It doesn't matter; I won't use magic to beat you. If a sword is what you want, a sword is what you'll get, he thought.
There was no doubt in his mind that he could achieve a swift victory with the usage of magic or his Dragonheart System, however, he felt it was necessary to confront Joel on an equal playing field. Perhaps it was his own internal desire to be reprimanded for allowing him to die amidst the Larundog incident, or perhaps it was some odd sense of pride; either way, he faced his friend with an open heart.
"Melisande is alive, that's not a lie," he said, "but…You're right. I could've done more to prevent you from dying. Still, what's done is done. You need to accept that."
"Nngh…" Joel growled, "Shut up–!"
The physical prowess of Joel was nothing to sneeze at as he sprinted with enough speed to cause the air to vibrate, though it seemed to be a subtle enhancement of wind guiding his agility. Even so, it almost felt calming to be able to face his late friend, even if it was a bitter reunion at the moment.
You're strong, Joel. I can see where Melisande gets it from, he thought.
With nothing but his sword, he clashed against Joel once more, this time attempting to take control of the offense as he struck first, continuing his momentum with a flurry of slashes. While there was no part of him that wanted to inflict harm on his friend, he was able to think rationally–he knew what needed to be done.
Though he initially held the momentum, Joel was able to intercept his repeated assault with his own rapid swings, possessing an innate talent for speedy strikes as the nature of wind naturally blessed his swordplay. It was something he recalled from his initial meeting of Joel, but he could sense it firsthand now.
Breaking through the guard of the silver-haired man, he unleashed a slash against his chest, cutting through the fabric of his tunic and leaving a gash on his torso.
"Ghh…!" Joel winced.
Crimson fluid sprayed out from his chest, falling onto the ground as Joel dropped to a knee, holding his wound as he gasped in pain.
"Are you going to kill me again…?!" Joel said.
He found it harder to act when the friend he lost was instead helpless and wounded rather than attacking him, though he steeled his resolve and gripped the handle of his sword tightly.
"Just this once," he quietly answered.
Driving his sword through the chest of the unstable version of Joel, he drove the chaotic forces out of him, unraveling the vicious soul as emerald light left the silver-haired man's body like evaporating liquid.
Just as he finished the deed, he once more found himself blinded by light before returning to the room he initially came from, no longer holding the emerald book in his hands.
"--"
"'Milio! I was wondering what happened–oh, looks like it worked out?" Blimpo rushed over.
Emilio was left dazed for a moment, looking around as he found his sword was still in its sheath, but instead he found something else now in the library beside him:
"Nngh…"
Quietly groaning, the silver-haired man was kneeling down, holding his head as if he suffered a gnarly headache.
"Joel," he said softly.
He didn't know what to expect, certainly not after the vicious encounter and certainly not after how they had last seen one another–it felt like an eternity ago.
Joel looked up at him, blinking with those emerald eyes that had their sparkle returned to them, "Emilio…? So, that really was you? Man, I barely remember a thing, except…I was really, really mad for some reason. It seems like you helped me out, though."
A hand was extended down from Emilio to Joel, helping the bandana-wearing man to his feet as he smiled. Though Joel was confused about the circumstances of Emilio's presence there, everything was explained, from how he died and to how he was going to be able to escape.
"I see…If that's the case, I'll help you out then," Joel nodded with a smile.
"Really?" He asked.
"Of course! You told me you've been looking after Melisande, right? It's the least I can do to repay you for that–really, that's a priceless thing you've done for me, Emilio," Joel assured him, patting him on the shoulder.
It was as though a gap in his heart had been filled after hearing such words from the friend he felt he failed, only able to nod and smile as he felt tears would leave his eyes if he tried speaking.
"I'm Blimpo, by the way! World's best tinkerer–well, I guess I'm not in Arcadius anymore," Blimpo introduced himself with a chuckle, extending his hand to Joel.
Joel accepted his hand with a firm shake, "Joel–glad to meet you. I can count on one hand the amount of elves I've met, but you're certainly different from the rest–I just mean…There's usually this 'air' to them."
"Pompous?" Blimpo asked.
"I didn't want to say that, but yeah," Joel admitted.
Blimpo laughed, "No, don't worry, I feel ya!"
It was relieving for Emilio to watch the two get along as he led the way through the library again, holding the emerald bookmark between his fingers as he decided on who to search for next.
Both Vandread and Asher will be difficult to beat…There's no doubt about that. Even if Vandread doesn't have his Undying Blood anymore, he's the most skillful person I've met…Which is why I should confront him now, he decided.
Bringing the mystical bookmark close to his lips, he spoke the desired name, "Vandread."
Once more, the object took flight, guiding him to the location of the sought after Soul's Mark as he began following it with a light sprint, prompting the two companions behind him to follow suit.
This time, it was a much longer trail to find the Soul's Mark related to Vandread, having to run for a few minutes, frequently turning corners and even ascending steps that led to a higher portion of bookshelves.
'It's up here?' He thought.
It was remarkable just how large of a place it was, though it made sense considering that it was likely the location all souls came when first passing–it seemed he was the exception, in that case.
"So, I came from one of these books? That's kinda…" Joel said while following behind, looking around at the shelves.
Blimpo chuckled, "Don't feel bad 'bout it, I just learned I came from one, too! Pretty neat stuff, isn't it?"
"Neat, huh…?" Joel wryly chuckled as well.
On the other hand, Emilio was too focused to engage in conversation with the two behind him as his eyes were honed on the flying bookmark, racing across the elevated floor as he followed it to the designated location.
It was a finicky place to run, to say the least; the dark, chipped floorboards felt hollow and croaked with each step as if about to shatter, and to make it worse, the height it stood over the ground floor of the archives made it an unpleasant fall, should it happen.
However, all of these concepts came to a halt as the bookmark finally stopped, hovering directly in front of an emerald book that remained almost lonesome in its placement. It laid on its cover rather than upright, with no other books directly neighboring it.
'...That's got to be his Soul's Mark. Always a lone wolf, huh, Vandread?' He thought.
As he retrieved the emerald bookmark, he stored it before softly picking up the designated book, brushing the light layer of dust off of it.
"Did you find it?" Joel asked, catching up a second later.
He nodded, turning around as he held the book in his hands, "Yeah."
"You said Vandread will be dangerous, right? Need any gadgets to help ya while you're in there?" Blimpo offered, fiddling with his belt of trinkets.
At first, he was going to decline the offer, but after thinking about it for a moment, recalling the sort of fighter he was about to go against, he decided to accept the elf's assistance.
"Sure," he accepted.
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