Chương 15: Weakened Resolve

POV: The Hero, Evelisse Ardentia As we neared Aniaros Forest with Astra and the other horses galloping faster than usual under the speed enchantment, I felt the sigil begin to pulse. Still blue. But there was something in it now, a faint insistence, signaling the Dark Lord wasn't far. He didn't run? It was the scenario I had turned over in my head all night. If Milo had moved, then within a day or two I would be the obvious suspect, the one who had warned him. That could be the end of me.

But if he had not run, then we would have to confront him. Fight him. And I would be expected to… to end him. I did not know which outcome I would have preferred. When we were close enough, Ywain asked Mel and me to slow down. He had questions about our last encounter; how the Cerberus fought, how dangerous the demon girl was, what the Dark Lord himself seemed capable of. I told him what I knew. That the Cerberus was strong, that it could strike from a distance; a concussive roar, beams of energy, gouts of fire.

That the demon girl cast immobilizing magic without incantation, and that she was fast. That the Dark Lord himself was extraordinarily durable; Mel's fireball had not left a mark on him. Ywain listened, filing each detail away, and within moments had assembled a plan of his own.

"First, I'll need your help, Evelisse, to cast a concealment spell to mask our voices and our scent." I did not know how he knew I could cast that. But I supposed the next-in-line for the Hero's title would have learned a great deal about me.

"Then I'll need you to lead. You're the one with the holy sigil; you can pinpoint the Dark Lord's location. A guardian beast tends to stay close to its master's lair, so the Cerberus will be near him." He glanced at me.

"Last time, you and Mel were ambushed most likely because the concealment wasn't up. Understandable, when no one expected a freshly spawned Dark Lord to command a guardian like that." Mel nodded along, her eyes fixed on his face. There was focus in it, and beneath the focus, something softer; her gaze kept drifting from his eyes to his mouth and back, a small, helpless flicker she didn't seem aware of. It was endearing. It also made me want to tell her to stop.

"I don't mean to boast," Ywain went on, "but you should know what you're working with. Ice magic is my specialty, and I've mastered the strongest of it. I can cast Instant-Freeze without incantation."

"Really? That's incredible! You have to teach me some ice magic sometime!" Mel cut in, slipping her own little agenda neatly into the gap. Is this what she meant? Romance shattering everything you believed? The Mel from yesterday would never have dropped a line like that into the middle of a battle plan. Ywain answered her with a smile and a polite laugh, then continued.

"So, I freeze the Cerberus from a distance. It'll likely sense us before we close in, given its eyesight, but Instant-Freeze is fast enough that we should catch it in time. Being Mythical-Class, it'll break free within seconds. Ten at the most. But ten seconds is enough." He turned.

"Mel, can you cast physical buffs?"

"That's the only kind I can cast," she said.

"Perfect. The moment it's frozen, I need that buff on Evelisse within three seconds. Then, Evelisse, you bring the Mooncleaver down on the Cerberus, while I turn my attention to the demon girl. She'll have to choose: immobilize you, or immobilize me. If she takes me, you still finish the beast. If she takes you—" he gave a small, confident shrug, "—I'll force her to dodge a freezing spell, and that buys Mel the moment she needs to free you so you can finish the strike."

He let that settle, then added, "The real unknown is the Dark Lord himself. But from everything you've told me, he shouldn't be capable of much. You're the Hero, Evelisse. With the Cerberus down and the demon girl pinned between Mel and me, your skill alone should be more than enough to end him in his weakened state." The plan was fast, layered, reliable. Given how little we actually knew about the Dark Lord and his minions, it was as sound a strategy as anyone could have built.

Conceal, ambush, divide, and I deliver the final blow. Clean. I would be lying if I said I did not think of him as a capable comrade. He had been more than capable. Perhaps even better than I was. The simple fact that he had been the one to draw all this up shamed me a little. I was the Hero. That was supposed to be my role.

"So. Are we agreed?" Ywain looked between us.

"Any other thoughts?"

"It's a great plan! I'll do my best!" Mel said, beaming.

"No objections here either," I said.

"It's a good plan. Truly."

"Then let's move." He gathered his reins.

"Forgive me for eating up our time. I only wanted us all on the same page." He had probably been waiting for me to take charge of this. And the whole way here, I hadn't done a thing. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Some Hero I am. I nudged Astra closer to him.

"Hey."

"Yeah?" He turned.

"…Thank you." I managed something I hoped passed for a smile.

"Hey. It's all right." He said it gently, as though he could see straight through to whatever I'd been carrying.

"It's hard, being the Hero. Expected to be flawless. Expected to lead, always." Huh.

"I hope you don't think I'm trying to steal the spotlight from you," he added.

"No. Not at all." I shook my head.

"I'm grateful for it. Truly." He smiled.

"Good. That's all I'm here for, to share the weight you've been carrying these past three years. Most people couldn't understand it. But I grew up in the same Candidate Pool you did. I know exactly what it costs, holding the hopes of all Lycora on your shoulders." That… did something to me. Something I wasn't prepared for. My throat tightened.

"Especially you, Evelisse." His voice softened further.

"You put down the last Dark Lord, and barely months later, another one rises. I heard the Hero before you had two whole years of peace before the next appeared." He shook his head.

"It's unfair. Isn't it?" Unfair. The word landed somewhere deep, in a place I had spent three years pretending didn't exist.

"So I think I understand how hard this has been for you. Honestly?" A faint, rueful smile.

"If I were in your place, I think I'd have gone to the High Priest long ago and begged him to give the title to someone else." Again. It struck something, closer to the center this time. My mouth opened before I had decided to speak.

"…I'm just doing the right thing."

"I know. And that's the hardest thing of all." He held my gaze.

"You're strong, Evelisse. Stronger than people realize. And it's because I know how hard it is, and how you keep choosing it anyway, that I don't want you to shoulder everything yourself. You can lean on me and Mel more." I did not know how he did it, but he read me like an open page.

"So, it's all right. Just do your best when the moment comes. We'll cover you." He faced forward again.

"And after this is over, you can finally have the rest you've earned."

"… Yeah." I couldn't meet his eyes for the rest of the ride. Once we reached the edge of the forest, I glanced at the sigil on my elbow. A faint shade of purple had bled into the blue. There was no doubt left now. Milo had not run away. Why? Because he could not physically move the hut? Because he was confident he could fend off whatever came? Or was it to… keep me from being named a traitor? I dismissed the last one almost as soon as it surfaced. Milo barely knew me. To him I was a stranger he had spoken to once.

Why would anyone risk his life for someone he was not even close to?

"Evelisse." Ywain's voice pulled me back. Being lost in thought was something that had been happening far too often lately.

"What's wrong? Are you feeling sick?" I looked at him. His brow was faintly drawn, his eyes searching mine; the concern in it seemed real.

"N-no. I'm fine. I'll lead the way." I turned my gaze from him, swung down from Astra, and walked to the front, into the trees. At the threshold of the forest, I cast the concealment spell. The sounds around us and our scent both fell away, swallowed into silence. I moved deeper, Ywain and Mel close behind, until the sigil had gone almost fully purple. He's near. And he hasn't moved. Was he waiting? I had warned him this would come. There was every chance he had laid a trap and was simply letting us walk into it.

Before long, the clearing came into view. The same sight as before; the Cerberus stationed before the hut, the spent firewood from yesterday, a few food baskets still scattered in the grass. I remembered the sweetness of yesterday's apple. Ywain tapped Mel's shoulder. Understanding it was her cue, she raised her staff and cast the physical buff over us—faint green light bloomed across our bodies and vanished just as fast. At once, my steps felt lighter, my limbs charged. Then Ywain stepped close.

He laid a hand on my shoulder and met my eyes. I made myself meet his. He nodded. I nodded back. He dashed into the clearing. I followed as fast as I could. The Cerberus's heads snapped up, a growl building as it coiled to lunge—but before it could, Ywain threw out his arm. A blue magic circle flared across his palm, and a beam of pale light washed over the beast. Frozen. Solid. I didn't break stride. I drew the Mooncleaver and poured my will into it — strike the beast down. Ten seconds of ice.

I could close the distance in three. And then Milo appeared from the side of the hut. Still in that robe. I stopped. I did not know why. I just… stopped. Our eyes met. He looked tired. The same tired I saw in the mirror every morning. Five seconds left. Faint cracks were already spidering across the ice. Ywain surged past me, rapier leveled, driving toward Milo. There was no demon-girl, so Ywain aimed to rush towards the Dark Lord instead.

I tightened my grip on the Mooncleaver and brought it down toward the frozen Cerberus. I missed. My arm veered sideways at the last instant, the blade swinging wide as though it had a will of its own. I raised it again, and again it tilted away, refusing the strike, sliding off its target like two magnets turned the wrong way. A debuff? The cracks along the Cerberus widened. Two seconds, and it tore free. Thawed, furious, it reared back and roared.

A wall of sound slammed into me and Mel and hurled us both backward. Across the clearing, Ywain used another spell — a smaller burst of ice — and caught Milo, freezing him from the neck down. He leveled the rapier at the exposed forehead and thrust. The blade struck and rebounded, ringing off Milo's skin as if it had hit a wall of forged steel. Ywain leapt clear of his failed strike. Milo shook the last of the ice from his shoulders. The battlefield had reset. I pushed myself up.

Mel was already doing the same, staff trained on the Cerberus. Ywain had landed some distance from me; Milo stood a few paces beyond him. The plan was in pieces. And it might have been my fault.