Mistake 6

Afterward Diero's crotch were attacked badly, he finally fainted.

Even as the experienced knights commander, his mentality couldn't hold in with the psychological jet-coaster. Despair, hope, despair, hope and finally more despair.

The strong men or a warrior who's experienced wars can't hold it in if they were played like that as well.

Thereby, Kuro laid down the artifact which he doesn't know of it uses as he… trampled it with fiercely with out sparing a strength.

Expectedly, the artifact broke as it can't withstand Kuro's power—thus, one of valuable treasure of Virturan has disappeared lost it uses.

Writing in the paper, he laid it down next to the broken artifact.

Thus conclude his final attempt to aggro—without wasting a time, Kuro extended his hand toward Laplus making her smile as she took his hand.

They disappeared into the darkness as the black sphere also melted under the light—leaving Diero laying in the ground alone, along with his broken ball and broken soul.

-----

"Huff, huff, the reinforcement has come! Commander, are you sa-!?" With a haggard breath single knights shouted representing the many knights behind him.

Before, someone went insane inside the playground and dared to fire off medium-class fire magic, and the playground alerted in red saying:

[The nuke will be dropped in 1 minute; please prepare for the shockwave]

Which a minute later, the situation turned awkward from everyone being panicked. Because not to mention nuke, even the most basic bomb didn't drop.

They noticed they were tricked and successfully wasted their time on this rubbish game.

Digging up also wasted them a time. And they arrived here, their commander laying down in the ground, with a huge dent in his armor that guarded his crotch.

Next to him, they saw a broken halo-like object and a note.

[Abyss from a certain secret society here; since you guys were so slow, we've found an artifact for you beforehand.]

[We present you this artifact: Angel Beat.]

[Once activated the sound of bell will ring in harmony, healing all your allies within 10 miles.]

[It's effectiveness; although untested, it should easily heal a lost limb in single use—it has 10 days of cooldown time.]

[We don't need your thanks as even if your whole country tried, you can't find us.]

"Piero, we did it! Diero must have stalled his enemy before losing but his plan worked as other reinforcements came in, protecting the artifacts!"

"That's right, Piero! Although his… important place may have been sacrificed, he have protected something more important!"

"With this artifact, it can turn the tide of war upside down! We may be able to finally conquer the Reign Empire!"

"Yes! We may can restore our previous glory when Illan was alive!"

Representing their commander who seemed to faint, he read it out loud making the knights troops felt their adventure to be worthy but they noticed that the artifact in front of them… were broken in half.

Nor was an explanation on how to use the artifact was written—only what would happen if they used it.

"Understood. Everyone! Carry Diero and bring him back to the Riseland, as for the artifact—I the strongest among here will protect it."

They brought it back to identification later in their country and they only found it out later but that will be the story of future.

"Once we return to Riseland, make sure to investigate this paper thoroughly as well."

Piero wasn't as dumb as Diero. Although he was suspicious of this letter, their objectives indeed, has been completed.

And they could do nothing if this artifact was really broken. They can't even chase out that black entity even if they found if he was alive.

He used an strange 'thing' which caused them to move somewhere far away despite they sealed off the spatial energies. If he wanted, he can use the same method to run away.

None of them can chase him because they weren't fast enough.

So, he can only return to Riseland, inform the complete of his objective and hope that this artifact weren't broken, it just looked like this.

-----

"Comrade! That was great work of you! Our first mission made a great success!… uhm… thats…" before cheerfully congratulating him, she suddenly became nervous.

"What are you fidgeting around?" Kuro asked her.

"If it is fine, tell this one your name!… no, if you don't want it's fine to. This one is not forcing you nor this one art curious!"

"Didn't you heard what I acclaimed myself from before?"

"Do you mean: Abyss? Stop lying to this one! No person can possibly have such a cool name!" She had a point.

"Kuro." Ignoring that slightly comedic reasoning of her, he calmly revealed his real name to her which is apparently, rare.

"Umu… Kuro… this one shall remember it! Once again, this one shall introduce myself! This one is Laplus Darkness! This one is a greaaaa~t person but due to a certain circumstances, this one can't use her true power!"

"So basically useless?" Kuro said while looking at the sky.

"Yes, useles- what did you say!" She puffed hr cheek angrily as she responded to Kuro's harsh word filled with reality.

Suddenly, although it was hidden by the black that covered his entirety, his face made an incredibly pissed expression.

The one he have never made before. Even more than when a mother of his friend(?) were killed for an unknown reason.

Suppressing that anger of his, without saying a word, he moved his palm and matching with his palm movement, the portal which were formed by spatial thread, passed Laplus' tiny body, teleporting her somewhere faraway.

The next instances, his leg lost strength as he fell to the ground. Then… angrily, he smashed it.

'DAMN IT!' The ground resonated with his rage as crack formed after the crater were made.

One more smash made an even deeper crate as the web-like crack spread.

The black coat didn't protect his real body—it only hid him.

It hid him more than what he usually do to himself. It hid his injuries. It hid the bruise. It hid the torment Kuro dealt to himself.

His fist were broken but he continued smashing the ground regardless the pain.

"It… worked…" Kuro cried as his voice trembled while the sound distorted.

"FUCKING RETARD!" Forcefully moving his arm that refused to move, he smashed the ground even hardly.

The dust spreaded as the energy he released broke the ground while converting to sound, heat, etc…

He was so full of himself.

It worked easily. The huge barrier around this town can't block him from using spatial esper to teleport away.

Yet, he assumed that he couldn't use teleportation—if he tried it even once, today's outcome may have turn out differently.

He may have saved Led. Yet, because he was a fucking retarded asshole, he didn't. He never assumed that maybe he can teleport here and never tried it.

Not to mention that, he was even having fun. The thrill from fighting someone caused him to turn as dumb as ostrich.

He enjoyed under this thrill as he treated saving Led as game mission.

That is why he was so angry. Angry of himself. Different move could have saved Led but he didn't choose that different move.

"AAAAAARGHHHHHH" His emotion called rage exploded as the chain which were temporarily suppressing him from feeling emotion were broken.

From then, stress came in as his rage were amplified.

Every time his smashed the ground, the more broken his fist, his arm turned to—the darkness which were covering his entirety flowed onto the air like a mist.

Only when his arm were too broken that his sheer willpower can't forcefully move it, did he stopped smashing the ground.

Only then, did the darkness covering his body fully disappeared, as he looked up to the sky.

The night has descended…

His revealed face lost it expression as it looked like a dead person's—it was empty, cold, lifeless, he looked like a person who completely burned off his energy.

It is unknown whether it's his instinct but the portal teleported him to the Reign Empire as he moved his tired, lifeless body to his residence.

-----

His leg stopped as he faced the door to his house as he can't move his arm.

Fortunately, Ayame who were out, just came back due to the sudden night that came, and found Kuro standing in front of their house door.

"Kuro. Where've you been. Why are you so injured." She rushed off to him as she worriedly called him out.

Once he turned to her, his eyes told everything. That eyes of his lost its usual dark glimmer—it was completely cold, abide of life. He looked like a person who gave up on life.

She waited but silence continued, his mouth refused to open up, it was as if she wasn't even in his eyes.

Both side didn't talk as the atmosphere were filled with eerie air—until she took an action.

She thought hard and as the result, she became really sad as she went closer to Kuro and gently hugged him.

After a while, she released him as she opened the door and gently held him in a way it won't hurt him.

This entire time, Kuro's expression remained unchanged—even when the 3 peoples see him entering the house along with Ayame.

She brought him inside his room, but he refused to lay in his bed as he instinctively sat at the corner of his room where the light reached the farthest.

Every action of his were under the watch of Ayame as she looked Kuro submerge into darkness ignoring his surrounding.

She couldn't hold her tear anymore as her hesitation disappeared. Suddenly, her white hair turned black as she entered into her Kuro form instinctively yet her tears never stopped flowing.

Although this form of her made her calm, it didn't erase her emotion.

With the shivering hand, her arm blended with the darkness as her figure also similarly submerged into darkness…

following him.

To be his support. To repay what he did for her. And finally, to not lose him.

The two silently cried as they fell onto sleep under the embrace of darkness.