"Judy? Are you there?"
I reflexively tapped my ear, even though it was pointless, but I got no answer. It wasn't that surprising though; she was probably busy coordinating with Duncan and Elly at the mont, and didn't have the leeway to connect to . I really wanted to ask for a second opinion again, but she couldn't be at two places at once. Neither could I. At least not officially.
And that brings us back to the problem at hand: should I head to the Orange Zone as Bel, or as myself? There were pros and cons for both. If I went as myself, I could bring Cal and Teeny along, which would've levelled the playing field. That said, whether I chose to engage Percival or to crack down on the Colossi, I would've had to fight seriously, but at least I had a choice.
Acting as Bel gave more freedom to use my Phasing ability though, and I could use my presence to relatively safely draw the attention of the Colossi while letting the others back up Morgana and Arnwald. It would also allow to do the whole 'Phase Percival three hundred ters high into the air without a parachute' thing, if push ca to shove. On the flip side, without a weapon, it was about as far as my offensive capabilities went as Bel, which was a bit of a problem.
The clock was ticking though, and after considering everything, I put my weapons back into the storage enchantnt and shifted over to the Bel outfit. I wasn't sure it was the best choice, but if it didn't work out, I could just disengage and show up as Leonard later, sothing I couldn't do the other way around. I was also a bit afraid that soone would put together a tiline later and bring into question how I got to the other side of the city in just a few seconds, and it was always better to be safe than sorry. Or so my girlfriends always told . I fixed up my mask and was just about to Phase out when I noticed sothing tugging on my trouser.
Pudding-kun was on the floor, and he was doing his best to pinch the fabric with his stubby tentacles, his one big eye staring intently at .
"Do you want to co along?" The tiny eldritch horror nodded enthusiastically, but I had to disappoint it. "Sorry, pal, but I kind of need you here to serve as my anchor. I might have to change my outfits a few more tis today."
The mini-shoggoth let out a disappointed snort, so I crouched down and lightly patted its fleshy back to make it feel better.
Anyhow, once prepared, I took a deep breath and shifted my ntality to the 'Bel of the Abyss' setting. Since I no longer had Cal doing the mana circulation, both my exhaustion and my headache were creeping back into my perception, but I forcefully pushed them aside and Phased over.
"I'm back!" I exclaid as I appeared standing on top of the Colossus Dad-in-law was squaring up against, and then promptly jumped off just before he grabbed the surprised creature and suplexed it. Normally I would've made a big deal out of that, but I was steadily running out of my damns-to-give supply, so I just shrugged and added, "Sorry for being late; there was this other show that was just really, really fascinating and I got sidetracked. What did I miss?"
My nonchalant question was t by a series of roars as the Colossi, including the one still on the floor after getting its ass handed to it by Abram, focused all of their attention on . This pretty much confird my previous theory about how I was their primary target, and it should've given my extended family and friends ample opportunity to strike… yet they seed more worried about my presence than the big statue monsters they were fighting just seconds ago. Priorities, people. Priorities.
"You are…?" Dad-in-law tried to address , but before he could finish his sentence, he was nearly knocked aside by two Colossi rushing in from the side. Based on the burn marks, these were the ones Sebastian had been toying with, which was perfect.
This ant that, with the old butler freed up, he could back up the struggling senior Knights. Or at least that's how it should've been.
"Stand back. I'll be his opponent." Sebastian declared out of the blue and started nacingly walking towards while cracking his knuckles. "Clear the way. I'm afraid I'll have to get serious."
Staring blankly at him, I Phased out of the way of the Colossi charging at and behind him.
"Wait? Why weren't you fighting those things seriously?"
My question was so genuine I nearly broke character, and so I hastily pointed a pair of irreverent finger guns at the disoriented statue creatures, but he brushed off with a soft scoff.
"I had to preserve my stamina, knowing that you would return." He fully turned to and assud a boxing stance. "Don't think I forgot about how you stole my property!"
"Is this seriously—?" My danger sense blared, so I repeatedly Phased back to avoid his sudden rush and his straight jabs aid at my head. "— still about—?" This ti, he closed the distance and tried to sweep my legs before following it up with a short Dragon Fire burst. Of course, by the ti it ca, I was already elsewhere. "— that stupid spear?"
In the anti, I tried to get a better look at the state of the Colossi. The ones Rinne and Naoren fought were in the worst shape. One was missing a leg, still in the process of growing a new one, while the other had its armour and helt completely pumlled out of shape, with even a few fist-sized holes here and there, and barely being able to move. The one Snowy and Ese kited wasn't in much better shape either, and it was practically nailed in place, its back studded with so many ice-spikes it looked like a porcupine, while Dad-in-law's one was currently trapped in a choke-hold.
By the looks of it, these things had the sa kind of tunnel vision as the first Chira I t, and they were so focused on , that it left them wide open to the combined attacks of my Draconian associates. As for Mountain Girl, I used the montary lull in the hostilities (read: the mont between two of Sebastian's combos) to gesture at her, and for once, she was quick on the uptake. With so Japanese words I couldn't hear properly, she lunged at the two Colossi previously engaged with the butler and thodically hamstrung them while they were still focused on .
Once again, I sincerely doubted that it would've done more than temporarily hinder these alabaster eyesores, but I was still busy with Sebastian, so getting them off my back for the mont was still nice. But speaking of which…
"Are you seriously doing this?" I hissed at the incognito dragon with undisguised indignation after Phasing away to the other side of the warehouse. "If you're really that hung up on that spear, why aren't you taking it up with—?"
It was at this point that I belatedly realized that I lost track of Sir Percival, and I glanced up at the roof, only for my danger sense to scream at again. This ti, I didn't need to dodge. I reflexively made a slapping motion with my right hand, closely mimicked by my phantom limbs, and then my vision was tinted red from a sudden burst of Dragon Fire enveloping the spot where I stood.
A blink of an eye later, before my sight even had ti to clear up, I got another warning, and this ti I Phased away just in ti to avoid a tail strike. In the split-second, Sebastian partially transford. Unlike my in-laws, he didn't get taller or buffer, but he grew large wings, a long, tapered tail, and six or eight pairs of twisted horns on his head. It was hard to make out the details, but from what I could see, besides his face, his entire body was now covered in shiny, obsidian-black scales. Even more impressively, his fingers now ended in talons that made the ones Elly had in her Draconian form look cute in comparison, and when he swept at , the resulting wind blades coming off their tips positively shredded the tal gate of the warehouse, along with part of the walls.
"How the heck is this building still standing?"
The nonchalant question slipped out of my mouth before I knew it, and it made Sebastian literally growl at .
"Don't you dare look away! I'm your opponent!"
"You're really not though," I tried to point out the obvious, only to get another burst of Dragon Fire in my face for my trouble.
"Hold on, elder! We'll support you!" Naoren suddenly yelled from the side, followed by a confused, "But what about the empyrean monsters?" from Mountain Girl and a groan coming right from the bottom of my soul.
"Ti out!" I yelled and put my hands in the internationally recognized T-position before snappily pointing at the Feilong patriarch. "You stay right there, mister! You can get your dessert once you are finished with your al! Understood?"
"… What?"
Ignoring his baffled response, I turned to Sebastian again. The old man was apparently still raring to go, so before he could get moving, I made a cross with my forearms in front of my chest.
"Stop! You're wasting everyone's ti, and I won't stand for this!"
I would've continued, but my speech was rudely interrupted by the sound of an explosion coming from the roof, followed by a panicked, "Morgana! No!"
Once again, my body was moving ahead of my brain, and before I knew it, I was already Phasing into the air, where a certain Knight was currently in a free-fall. To my surprise, it turned out my famous girl-catching reflexes applied just as well to adult won, and once I grabbed her, I imdiately Phased to the ground, before either of us could build too much montum. I wasn't fast enough though, and with Morgana in my arms, I could absolutely feel the impact in my knees.
"Bloody hell! At this rate, I'll develop arthritis by the end of the day…"
My hissed exclamation made the normally cool and collected woman look at funny for a mont, only to then get startled by the beams and other corrugated roof elents crashing down around us. Then, just as things finally grew quiet, our Sir Eagle yelled at us for good asure.
"Let her go, you fiend!"
Looking up, I found him on the roof, looking through the sa hole she fell through, and…
"Holy hell, another hole? Seriously, how is this building still standing?" Shaking my head, I loudly declared, "They really knew how to build them in the past, didn't they?"
"Look out! He has a hostage!" Sebastian shouted, and this was the point where my patience reached its absolute theoretical limit.
"Your… I an… What are you—?" Morgana tried to ask, uncertain about how to address , but before she could finish, I already Phased over to Lord Barnabas's side and unceremoniously put her down next to Raven Boy.
"Auntie? Are you all right?"
I didn't hear her answer, because by that point I already Phased next to Sebastian. The context-insensitive old man probably thought I was finally going on the offensive, as he braced himself, only to look completely flabbergasted when I Phased him up to the roof, right next to the equally startled Arnwald.
It was only when I got there that I finally realized why I hadn't been seeing Snowy in a while now; during the ti the Draconians (and Rinne), were playing whack-a-mole with the battered Colossi to keep them down and out of the fight, and Sebastian was pinpoint-focused on over an old grudge, she had been up here and helping the senior Knights suppressing Percival. Speaking of which…
"Co down, little missy! Isn't fighting like this unfair?" Percival exclaid with an odd mixture of annoyance and excitent as he swept a couple of icicles out of the air with his spear, with the rest of them embedding themselves into the thick corrugated tal of the roof around him.
"You don't care about fairness, so neither do I," Snowy responded with a snarl and made a couple of gestures, causing the ice spears around him to explode into a cold mist.
The old man imdiately jumped back, but he still got parts of his armour covered in a thin layer of frost. It only lasted for a second though, as his gear let out a high-pitched noise, and all the ri flaked off him. All in all, he didn't seem to receive any damage, but Snowy being able to keep him busy like that was still impressive.
"What are you doing here—?!" Arnwald started as he reached for his bow, but by then I already wrapped a phantom limb around him, and we appeared next to the increasingly more baffled arch-mage and the two Knights. "… fiend?"
"Yes, yes. Much evil, such wow," I said whatever ca to my exhausted mind, and lazily wriggled my fingers at him.
Sufficiently bamboozled, I left Arnwald behind and returned to the rooftop. As things stood, this arrangent should've been sufficient to take down the old man. As powerful as his gear was, between Snowy, and a serious Sebastian, I doubted he could've done much, but just to be safe, I Phased over to announce my departure, lest the old dragon would start wasting ti looking for again.
"This should do it!" I exclaid with all the faux enthusiasm I could squeeze out of . "A Black Knight with Celestial technology against a Black Draconian backed by Abyssal magic! This should be fun!"
"Was this your goal all along?"
Sebastian was still on guard against , but before I could respond, my sister landed next to him.
"M-Mister von Fraenir? Shouldn't we focus on Sir Percival first?"
"He might be only waiting for us to exhaust ourselves so that he could steal the spear again."
Oh, for the love of…! Why was this stubborn old man so obsessed with the bloody dragon-slaying spear?! It was seriously getting on my nerves.
"No, you…!"
I was just about to chew him out, telling him I didn't want the spear at all, but the words were stuck in my throat.
Why?
Why did I suddenly feel like I was overlooking sothing? That I was about to make one of those stupid mistakes for which I'd curse hindsight after-the-fact? It was on the tip of my tongue; sothing obvious, that I couldn't grasp… until I laid my eyes on the glowing spear in Percival's hands.
… What the hell? How did I miss this until now?
Sure, it wasn't the original dragon-slaying spear, but outside of the anti-draconic curse on it, I reproduced all the other enchantnts in order to fool Sebastian. He treated it as the real deal, Percival treated it as the real deal, and infinitely more importantly, the Narrative treated it as the real deal. The original was even a plot device, aning it was always ant to play a pivotal role in the plot.
Now, what role was a freaking dragon-slaying weapon best suited for? Slaying dragons, of course. Oh, and what a coincidence! We had an actual, genuine dragon right over here; one of the only two known ones in existence! And this is an extrely dramatic, dare I say, climactic mont, with high stakes and everything. Sure, my intervention had already caused it to go waaay off the rails, but I could still see the fundantal scaffolding in place.
Raise the stakes with the Colossi to have Sebastian co out, let him have a big, dramatic fight to show off his power, and then let Percival give him the stabby-stab, establishing himself as a genuine threat. It's pretty much 'How to build up your villains 101'; have him take down one of the strongest allies of the good guys, to show that they an business, and light the fire under the protagonist(s) asses to get stronger. Classic shounen battle formula, a veritable tiless trope if there ever was one… and I would sooner jump off a bridge than be on the receiving end of it.
"You know what? Hold that thought," I spoke softly, slipping back into my usual Bel mannerism as I raised a finger in the direction of Sebastian. "Stay put please while I check sothing. I'll be right back."
"Oh?" Percival let out an impressed sound, slightly distorted by his armour's voice modulator (why it even needed sothing like that, I had no idea), but he still assud a defensive stance. As he shifted his posture, the tal roofing panels under his feet groaned, but remained stable, which once again made think that whoever originally built this warehouse had overengineered the heck out of it. More importantly, the old bastard pointed the spear at , and asked, "Have you finally decided to co at ? Good. I just ward up."
"Shut up, snake. You no longer interest ," I told him in a level voice and Phased right next to him.
I grabbed onto the spear, but considering the levels of our physical enhancents, I had a bat's chance in hell trying to wrestle it out of his gasp. Fortunately, I didn't have to do that; while Phasing items out of other people's hands was tricky, I could do it if I used all of my phantom limbs. I did just that, but then my sixth sense scread at about danger. It told to let go and Phase away, but I wasn't ready yet, and a second later, I felt an enormous impact on my abdon.
Fortunately, I managed to anchor the spear to myself just in ti, and as I Phased back, stumbling a little due to the hit I tanked, I still had the weapon in my hands, while Percival obviously didn't anymore. On closer look, he must've kicked just then, and the impact was strong enough to break half of the wards of my Leoforr. Still, the gamble was worth it, and ignoring the sore spot on my belly, I straightened my back and looked at the spear in my hand.
"Hmm…? Yes, this certainly looks like the spear in question, but we better make sure," I spoke softly, ignoring the armoured man frozen mid-motion, still grasping at thin air where his weapon used to be. "Fool once, sha on . Fool twice…!"
Without further ado, I activated a different set of enchantnts on my Bel suit. It was a legacy feature I never bothered to remove, and one that I specifically developed and installed onto it back during the tournant arc. Back then, if not for the fully transford Xiao's true Dragon Fire serving as a convenient tool in-the-mont, this was the slightly less dramatic, but just as effective way I devised to get rid of the stupid spear. I never thought I would have the opportunity to use it, but for once, I was thankful for the occasional procrastination streak that stopped from removing the feature.
As such, I flourished the weapon over my head with a bit of a theatrical flair before grabbing it with both hands, and then brought it down on my knee. The impact triggered the enchantnt, and with a blinding flash of light, the fake Ascalon was cleaved in half, shorting out the arrays on it and returning it to its original, unadorned form.
"No!"
Funnily enough, the one letting out a soul-crushing cry wasn't the man who lost the ans by which to defend himself, but Sebastian. He looked like I just killed his lover or sothing. He was really attached to this bloody spear, wasn't he? Anyhow, it was ti to deliver the coup-de-grace, so I raised the two halves of the spear and let out a thoughtful hum.
"Huh. Sha on again, I suppose? I think I might've put a bit too much force into it." I paused for effect and then casually flung the two pieces over my shoulders and down to the warehouse floor. "Oh well, at least now we know it was the original. We all learned sothing from this. That's how science progresses, or so I've been told."
With that potential threat resolved, I dusted my palms and got ready to vacate the area, before Sebastian would fully transform and start chasing around while crying bloody vengeance, or sothing. As such, I gave a cocky wave and a wink before promptly disappearing from the Orange Zone, and then reappearing in the reception room of the underground base. Since Judy's communication artifact had an one-way connection, I couldn't contact her on my own, so this was the quickest way to ask for an update, and maybe so advice on how to proceed.
"Ah, Chief. I was just about to call you," my lovely girlfriend told in her categorically not-so-lovely star-shaped party glasses, but before she could get into it, I raised a palm and flopped down onto one of the benches.
"Please give five seconds to catch my breath."
She nodded, and after exactly five seconds, she asked, "Can I start?"
I was just about to remove my mask, so I used the hand I already raised to make a vague gesture, and she tapped the communication artifact on her nose.
"There's a big developnt at Site B. Angeline broke out of the Restricted Space, and there may already be casualties."
"Casualties," I flatly repeated after her, and she nodded. "… I hate this climax. It's literally the worst."
"Hang in there."
Tried as I might, I couldn't muster a snappy response, so I just stood up, and then imdiately Phased away, unaware that I was just about to trigger the biggest change ever; not only in our lives, or in the plot, but in the Simulacrum as a whole. Also…
"Bel of the Tenebrous Flas!"
Oh shit… I forgot to switch outfits, didn't I?
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