The fire crackled in the darkness of the night, releasing the smoky aroma of burning wood. A trail of smoke lifted into the air while Elizabeth and Kyto sat in front of a campfire after setting up a shelter for tonight.
Kyto sat crisscrossed, eating a squirrel on a stick while Elizabeth munched on berries.
"So, you're telling me, this Siren was working under Merlin's orders? And you managed to put it down?"
Elizabeth crossed her arms, chewing, "Fumu," she snickered, "Yup! It stood no chance against my awesome strength! It was completely outclassed."
Kyto shot open his eyes, a bit surprised by Liz's resolve.
"What did you use to beat them?"
"Martial arts, duh!" Throwing a handful of berries in her mouth, she chowed them down. "You remember my master, Izumi, don't ya?"
Finishing his squirrel, the Cyrodel threw his stick into the fire.
"Yeah, he comes from Monk Mountain, doesn't he?" Kyto crossed his arms, smirking, "He's one of the greatest Martial Artists known across Yggdrasil, you're insanely lucky to even get trained by him, Liz."
She grinned, boastful as ever.
"You can say that again! He was also a Kaizamei, just like the rest of the Monks who spent their time meditating and learning the Soaring Heaven Dragon Martial Arts."
"Soaring Heaven Dragon...?"
Elizabeth nodded.
"Mhm, it's an ancient martial art, passed down by many generations of Kaizamei. By honing your mind, body, soul, and nucleus, you can awaken a level beyond Martial arts, and become a Martial God."
"A Martial God? Sounds like rubbish."
Elizabeth frowned.
"Well, it's not! Nobody has ever managed to reach that level before, but my Sensei, Izumi, always told me that I had the potential to become one from my willpower alone."
"Well, I wouldn't be surprised, knowing you."
Elizabeth widened her eyes, blushing.
"That's if this 'Martial God' thing is even real."
"Grrr..." Her blush immediately faded as she scowled at the Cyrodel. "You always have to ruin the mood!"
"Bwa ha ha! I'm just messing with you!" Kyto couldn't help but tease the Rozenheart. "I believe in you, Elizabeth, and this Martial God concept. You have the potential to reach a level nobody has ever seen before, as long as you put your mind to it."
She smiled at his response, nodding her head.
"Thank you, Kyto, that means a lot coming from you."
"Well of course. We're childhood friends; we even went to the same school together."
Elizabeth chuckled, reminiscing old memories.
"Ah, yeah, Rosethorn Academy. What fun times we had."
Kyto nodded his head.
"Indeed. But there were always a lot of racist people at our school, so I'm glad you always had my back, Liz."
The Kaizamei snickered.
"Well yeah, of course! Who was gonna mess with a Rozenheart who knows Martial Arts?"
He chuckled at her comment.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Kyto gazed toward the ground in thought. "The Ancient War was 20-something years ago when my people were slaves to the Three Witches of Calamity. People always hated me for being a Cyrodel."
"Yeah... you told me about that when Grimhild was around."
Frowning in thought, the Cyrodel gritted his teeth in silence.
"Agnes, Beatrice, and Grimhild; the three witches who sought the destruction of Yggdrasil, for who knows what, were nothing more than incarnates of evil." He balled his fist. "My people served under them by powerful... brainwashing magic! And we fought against Mortalkind, ensuring they wouldn't stand in the witch's way."
Elizabeth widened her eyes before closing them with pity.
"But after King Arthur defeated the Three Witches of Calamity, my people were saved from their brainwashing spell, and we went back to enjoying our lives... but the world hated us." Uncurling his fist, he looked at his palm, watching it bleed from squeezing too hard. "We were seen as monsters for joining the witches, even though we were forced to do their dirty work."
"You were born, witnessing all of this?"
Kyto lifted his head, glancing at Elizabeth.
"Yeah, very long ago, I watched my family being slaughtered before King Arthur could save us." A shaky sigh escaped his lips. "I grew up in the village of Desmoybia with my family, but those times are now over. Not everyone was saved."
"You never told me any of this, Kyto, why did you keep it bottled up inside of you for so long?" Asked Elizabeth, upset.
"It was something I had to carry on my own." Kyto slowly regained rational thought, setting aside his negative ones. "Even though it was the past, I still had to grow up with racism, hatred, and being feared by other people; you were the only friend I ever had."
"It was also the same for me, Kyto, I was bullied for being a Kaizamei all the time, by my friends and family. That's why we're traveling to the mythical valley to get our wish." Elizabeth smiled. "That's the whole point of our journey, remember?"
The Cyrodel gazed upon the Manaless, smiling.
"Yeah, of course. This is our only chance to change our lives for good, so you won't be an outcast, and so I can see my family again."
"Mm." Elizabeth nodded until a dispirited look plastered her face. "But it would be so much better if we had a team, wouldn't it?"
"Ah…" Kyto stared into the campfire before glancing at the Eagle sleeping next to her. "We have Vedrfolnir, don't we?"
"Hm?" Elizabeth looked at the sleeping Eagle, now smiling. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Vedrfolnir is much stronger than they look."
"Yeah, exactly. So what can go wrong?"
Elizabeth widened her eyes, realizing something.
"Considering Vedrfolnir was made by Grimhild, it must have a lot of mana to spare, so we definitely need its help."
"Eh?" Kyto lifted his brow, skeptical as ever. "You're right, I forgot about that. What should we do?"
"Huh? What do you mean by 'what should we do'? We keep them, obviously!"
"I don't think that's wise… if it's created by one of the Witches, then it could cause a lot of problems."
Liz frowned at his comment, patting the sleeping Eagle.
"We are not getting rid of Vedrfolnir, and that's final!" Softening her expression, Elizabeth huffed a silent sight. "Listen, I understand why you would want to abandon them, but the truth of the matter is that Grimhild protected us from certain death. We wouldn't even be alive right now if it wasn't for her."
"Nnn…" Grunting in annoyance, Kyto averted his gaze. "She's the one who sent us through the Ashen Burial Grounds in the first place, so all of this is her fault."
"Oh c'mon, I told you already: that time spirit came outta nowhere under Merlin's orders! This isn't Grimhild's fault."
Kyto bowed his head, scowling at the thought of Grimhild.
"Don't be so gullible, Elizabeth, how can you trust a monster like her? It's so obvious she's manipulating us to have her way, can't you see that?"
"No, that is not true! Didn't you hear what Jean said before he went off searching for her? He put all his trust in Grimhild. She's changed, Kyto, and it's true!"
"But… she murdered my family!"
Elizabeth widened her eyes.
"Yeah… I know." Averting her gaze, the Rozenheart quivered in her lip. "I know…"
"There is nothing in this world that she could do to earn my trust. Nothing!" Angry at their conversation, the Cyrodel stood up, facing the other way.
"Kyto, where are you going?"
"I'm going to take a breather." Lowering his head, the Cyrodel left their camp, wandering deep into the forest.
"…" Elizabeth was left alone, patting the Eagle beside her. "He's gonna be okay, Vedrfolnir, Kyto is just going through a lot right now."
+
Standing in the middle of Golem Village square, Chroliosa and Grimhild stood twelve meters away from each other, stretching out their palms.
"We will now create a sigil with one another." Said Grimhild.
"This will be the first time creating a sigil… I'm a bit worried."
"It's quite amusing to see a spirit show fear, given your reputation." Proclaimed the smug witch.
"Well, you're the one who made me a temporary human!"
Grimhild grinned, now exuding mana from her palm.
"Let us begin the formation."
Chroliosa nodded.
"Yes, master!"
Both of them released mana from their palms, fusing their information particles together, slowly forming a sigil.
It appeared unbalanced, and wonky, as Chroliosa struggled to maintain its form.
"Focus, Chroliosa. When performing magic, your mind must be clear in order to project your idea into reality, more thoroughly."
"Y-Yes!"
Their sigil started malfunctioning and began to lose its form, but the time spirit took a deep breath, thinking of a clearer image.
Slowly, but surely, the sigil started coming together; formed by Grimhild and Chroliosa's willpower.
"I'm doing it?!"
Grimhild nodded.
"Yes, you are."
Their sigil emanated a bright glow as the golems around the village gasped at their display of power.
"With this sigil, we can now access the Consecrated Dungeon, where I sealed off Obsidia and took her fusion core."
The ground slowly started to open up, forming a massive hole below them.
"Ah!" Chroliosa took a step back, to not fall, as Grimhild hovered in midair.
"Do not be scared." The witch lifted her staff, forming a magic circle on the time spirit body. "Freelota."
"Huh? What did you do?"
"It's a free fall spell. It allows you to gently glide towards the ground without the worry of death."
"I-I see, thank you, master."
Grimhild nodded.
"You aren't used to your body yet, so performing spells is quite difficult for you. I'm surprised you've even managed to make a sigil."
"Ahaha, I suppose I have talent!"
"You do indeed." Grimhild descended into the deep, dark hole.
"Now let us be off."
"Yes, master!"