His whole body felt sluggish. His eyelids were too heavy to even think about lifting; in fact, he considered letting sleep take him again. Heād spent three days in grueling combat against tens of thousands of foes without food or rest. His body had been pushed beyond its limits.
I donāt want to get up.Ā He wriggled like an oversleeping schoolboy. āFive more minutesā¦ā
Deep sleep chipped away at his fragment of awareness in a sea of emptiness.
Thatās itā¦ Keep goingā¦
His eyelids twitched.
Keep going? For how long?Ā Would he ever wake up if he gave in to the allure of that voice?
Why canāt I wake up?Ā A small light flared in the corner of his awareness.Ā I canāt sleep forever.
Eternal sleep was basically death. What would happen if heĀ didĀ die? He lived his life touching only iron, suffered like a dog, and then died alone in a canyon that didnāt even have a nameāhe never even held a womanās hand before he was 30.
His wouldnāt be the only corpse memorializing this tragedy.
- Here lies the noble knight Cain. -
In my future life, please reincarnate me as a groundbreaking archmageā
āThis frickināā
Cainās eyes snapped open, reddened and watery as they were.
Are you going to accept this?
He managed to gather himself and looked around. The scenery was moving, despite his leaden limbs. Cain was startled to find that he was being dragged along.
Iā¦ Iāve never let anyoneā¦ my bodyāĀ The fact that someone was holding him was more surprising to Cain than the fact that heād survived. He wasnāt pleased about it, either.
Oh, but maybe if itās a woman?
Cain cut that train of thought off immediately. He couldnāt imagine a young lady handling his body.
Iām sure that at the last minuteā¦Ā His forehead wrinkled. The last memory he had before he passed out was of someone clad in all black.
āItās Barbarian.ā
Cainās eyes were firmly shut as they thumped along, rattling his aching head.
āAre we there?ā
A thousand thoughts raced through his fuzzy awareness, particularly his regrets. What a shame that he wouldnāt be able to meet his master again after all heād done. What a shame heād never live happily ever after. Standing at the side of the best man on the continent, meeting a beautiful, kind wife, and having at least five little kiddosā¦
I finally managed to see what bits Icarus had under those clothes.Ā (Not really.)
āDamn it.ā Cain could feel the darkness closing in.
Suddenly, he felt himself stop, and he was lobbed into a corner.
āOh my godāā Cain slammed head-first into the ground with an audible thud. He managed to lift his head.
Masterā¦?Ā The dark silhouette was oddly familiar.Ā No, not the master, Iām afraid.Ā This presence felt grittier and darker, and his physique wasnāt quite right.
āDark Knight of Dennis River!ā
Dark Knight?
āAh-hah.ā Cain grinned with relief.
A few days ago, he became like a ghost to the Pontier family, the trump card of Icarusās hand. The knowledge that Cain was watching over them was a huge boost to their morale.
How oddā¦Ā Cainās vision blurred as his awareness began to wane.
He remembered a monster dripping with black smoke wielding an enormous ax, a strange warrior who soared through the dust.
āSay your goodbyes, my brave soldier!ā
The massive ax thundered in, heralded by the howls of ferocious beasts. He felt a strong jolt, and then nothing.
āArmā¦ rightā¦ā Cainās eyes narrowed. His rescuer had used his left arm to carry Cainābut his right arm wasā¦ gone.
āTo rescue meā¦ā Cain bit his lip and groaned.
His savior was a swordsman of no less than A-Class. Cain knew just how much work it took to reach that level and what it meant to sacrifice his arm.
Cainā¦ are you really so pitiful?Ā He clenched his hands until his nails drew blood from his palms. This man lost his arm to save someone, but here Cain was dreaming about womenā¦Ā I have to step up.Ā His eyes glowed with determination as he gazed at the cloaked manās wide back.
Donāt let yourself become a burden to others, no matter what you do. Cain had made his choice.
He forced his jaw open. āLeave me.ā
Cain didnāt care that his voice sounded like a rusted hinge.
āI donāt know who you areā¦ but I will repay you for saving my life. I donāt know that Iāll make it, though, soā¦ go. Now.ā Cainās eyes were locked on the other manās back, but he didnāt receive a reply.
āā¦Hello?ā Surely this knight, who was apparently stronger than Cain was, would have at least realized that Cain was awake by now.
Am I talking to myself?
He stared at his savior for a moment. It didnāt take Cain long to realize that the knight was emitting some kind of energy that grated on his nerves and burned his muscles.
āIs thatā¦ your arm?ā Now that he was more aware, the manās right arm wasnāt quiteĀ gone.
He thought it was just a distinct flavor of manaābut there was only one thing that felt as sticky and dreary as this.
āMagi?ā
The stump of his right arm dripped with a steady stream of dull smoke.
One month had passed since Marquis Crombell began his attack.
āGreetings to the new king of Reinhardt.ā
āGreetings to the new king of Reinhardt!ā
The audience was quick to follow the commentator.
āAs the victor of the Master Battle, the King may issue a fresh challenge to standing Master. This includes, of course, the great Nine Stars and Twelve Superhumans, a time-honored Master Battle tradition.ā
The crowd roared with ecstatic excitement.
A new power. A new messiah. A new trial.
The new King was young and so handsome that even the legendary elves had to fold.
āOh, my King!ā someone cried, āIgnore the politics, if you can, and choose an opponent!ā
Historically, most Master Battle victors saw the other Masters in their Battle as obstacles. The challenge was an excellent opportunity to cut the enemyās power. If the challenged failed to respond within a month or declined the challenge, they would immediately lose the rank of Master. The same held true even for the Nine Stars and Twelve Superhumans.
āOkay! What happens when a Master defeats another Master? Letās look forward!ā
āWe want Joshua in the Twelve Superhumans! We want Joshua in the Nine Stars!ā
āI donāt even want to get to the Nine Stars this fast, so letās take it slow!ā
Joshua absorbed the crowdās eager shouts and stepped forward.
āIām up for the challenge.ā
The audience erupted into a fresh round of exclamations. Lilith and the six judging Master, who had yet to depart, watched Joshua tensely.
āI speak to the people of the entire continent: my next opponent, as the new king of Reinhardt, isā¦ā
The cheering subsided as the audience swallowed nervously.
āBarbarian of the Twelve Superhumans, and the apex of a million mercenaries. He is my next opponent.1ā