Point-of-View: Isla Hinger
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"G-Get out of here, Guildmaster Isla...I-I can’t fight anymore, just leave and get away," Uttered Rio shakily, coughing out blood with a sharp gasp.
"Not an option...even if I was willing to do that, I can’t. I’m completely out of Mana," I responded, my knees buckling as I stood in front of her, struggling to catch my breath as I stared down two Greater Demons.
"Ti to die, humans."
"No, not yet...let’s take our ti. That should be lot more fun!"
"Hm...yes, I like that idea. Let’s-..."
Suddenly, both the Greater Demons froze, stunned looks appearing on their faces, their eyes widening in disbelief. The pair exchanged shocked looks, before the space around them suddenly shimred violently.
"N-No, impossible, this cannot be...!"
"It must be so kind of trick, there’s no way that-...!"
In the next instant, the shimring space around them twisted sharply, the two of them vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye.
Huh?
What the...?
What...what just happened?
"Uh, what just happened?" Blurted out Rio in bewildernt.
"No clue...your guess is as good as mine," I responded with a shake of my head.
It’s hard to think straight, I’m exhausted and barely conscious right now, and the pain certainly isn’t helping matters. I’m covered in cuts and gashes, bleeding all over, I have several broken bones, including an absolutely mangled left arm.
Rio’s not doing too much better, her left leg is bent in the wrong direction, her right wrist is shattered, and she’s covered in cuts and bruises too, multiple swollen spots all over her body.
Wait...it’s so quiet.
The sounds of battle were ringing out from every direction, but now...there’s nothing. It’s as quiet as can be. Could...could it be that...?
My train of thought was cut off as my I-Watch suddenly began ringing. It’s the HUC...if they’re contacting now, then...
"Yes, hello?"
"Oh, good, you’re still alive!"
"Chairman Bollinger...what’s going on? The Monsters we were fighting just disappeared and-...," I began, putting the call on speaker as Rio shuffled over curiously.
"Yes! The sa thing happened everywhere, it looks like every single Monster just disappeared all at once! There isn’t so much as a single Monster left in our world!"
"Wait, really?! Does that an we won? The team that went to kill the Demon Lord, they really succeeded?!" Exclaid Rio excitedly, before wincing sharply as she aggravated her injuries.
"That’s why I’m calling. Based on our live satellite imagery, the Final Dungeon seems to steadily be fading away. At least a few mbers of the team may need urgent healing, so we need to get to them ASAP. Isla, teleport there and-..."
"Uh, sorry, but I can’t...I’m completely out of Mana, it’ll be a while since I can cast any Spells, especially Long-Range Teleportation," I inford him apologetically.
"Oh...I see. It looks like you’re the only Teleporter capable of using Long-Range Teleportation who survived this battle, the rest were killed. Alright...we’ll make preparations to deploy a jet to Sanctuary Alpha. In the anti, see if you can find an Enchanter to restore your Mana," He instructed .
Oh, right...an Enchanter, the most obvious solution. That didn’t even cross my mind, I really am struggling to string my thoughts together.
"Understood, Chairman, I’m on it," I nodded in response, before he hung up.
"So...should we just yell for an Enchanter and hope one shows up? Neither of us are in particularly mobile states right now, so searching around blindly probably isn’t the best option," Rio pointed out.
"Yeah, I’ll collapse in a matter of minutes if I try to walk around in my current state. So...," I trailed off, before calling Damien.
I held my breath for a mont, before letting out a sigh of relief as it began ringing. I-Watches automatically shut off if their user dies, so the fact that it’s ringing ans he’s alive.
Co on, pick up, this is no ti to ignore my calls-...
"Hello?"
"No ti to explain! I’m going to send my current location to you, get over here ASAP, got it?"
"Huh? What-...?"
"Just get over here, as quickly as you possibly can! The Monsters are gone, so it’s perfectly safe. Now, co on, hurry!"
"Oh. We actually won? That’s a surprise," He responded, a shuffling sound echoing out.
Okay, good, sounds like he’s on the move.
"Yes, it looks like Kai and the others managed to kill the Demon Lord. We need to go to Sanctuary Alpha and recover them, but I’m out of Mana, so I need your Enchantnt Magic. How far are you?" I asked him.
"Twenty-seven minutes walking, according to GPS."
"That’s too long. Run."
"I suppose I don’t have-...hm? Oh, a bicycle. Perfect."
"Can’t you, like, hotwire a car or motorcycle instead, like in those old movies? That’d be a lot faster," Chid in Rio.
"Sure, because that’s a skill I definitely possess," He responded dryly.
"Also, I don’t think that’s actually possible with modern vehicles, they’re linked to the owner’s I-Watch," I added with a wry smile.
"Oh. Never mind, then," She replied sheepishly.
"How long will it take you now, Damien?"
"Nine-...eight minutes."
Okay, that’s not too bad.
"Do you think everyone in the team deployed to the Final Dungeon survived?" Rio asked .
"Well, I certainly hope so, but-..."
"Realistically, probably not," Chid in Damien bluntly, with an unusual grim and somber tone of voice.
Unfortunately...yeah, it’s hard to imagine that everyone survived.
Frankly, it’s a miracle they won at all. Deep down, a part of was convinced that we were dood from the beginning, that we were fighting a losing battle with little to no hope of victory.
But I just couldn’t bring myself to accept that outco, so I pushed it down and ignored, instead fighting with everything I had.
And now, I’m sincerely glad I did.
"Hey, I’m less than a minute away," Damien suddenly spoke up.
"Alright, get ready to cast your Enchantnts on as soon as you arrive, I’ll head out to Sanctuary Alpha imdiately afterwards," I responded, sitting up and preparing myself.
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