Chapter 43: A Human's Strength

Razier lifts his scepter high into the air as the lower tip moulds into a sharp point. He thrust is down as it penetrates Saiba's flesh and enters into his stomach. Razier mutters,

"Do you understand now?.. The weakness of humans..."

Saiba sits there, his consciousness slowly fading, ready to give up as he thinks,

"Is this really where I die?.. Ever since I got to this world, I've already been in two near-death situations, with the big wolf and the golem in the cave... I managed to survive those times, but is this where my luck runs out?... Against a human who threw away his humanity..."

He suddenly gets a rush of determination as he thinks,

"No! This isn't where it ends! I'm not giving up to someone like this or anyone else for that matter! I'm gonna show this guy a human's strength! I still have to save this kingdom and become a great hero!"

Clenching his jaw, Saiba grabs the bony scepter and begins to pull it out of his body. He takes it out as the hole leaks with his blood. Saiba mutters,

"You know, we were pretty similar... I was weak back then... I got completely beaten by the slime boss... I didn't even stand a chance... But you know what sets us apart..."

Razier is a little suprised by this display as Saiba shouts,

"I chose to believe in my humanity! I chose to grow stronger as a human and gain power as a human! You've been talking about a human's weakness all this time, so let me show you my strength! A human's strength!"

Saiba pushes himself off of the ground, grabs Razier by the skull, and headbutts him directly on the forehead. This causes Razier's helmet to shatter and return to dust, revealing his bare skull and the small portion of his humanity peeking out.

Saiba continues by pulling Razier's skull down and kneeing him in the jaw. The skull disappears which completely reveals the human head hiding within. Razier notices as he moves his hands to his face and covers it. He screeches,

"Ahh! What is this!? My skin! I can feel the cold wind blow against it! My eyes! The light is flowing into them! I hate it! I hate it! I hate it!"

He scratches at his face, the only sign of his human nature.

Razier tries to make another helmet to cover his face, but the remaining dust is too weak and just falls back to the ground without solidifying.

He screams in frustration as his form suddenly changes. Skeletal spikes sprout from his back and lodge themselves in the wall.

His previously distressed expression changes into a distasteful grin. A name appears above his head that reads,

[Razier the Great Skeleton King]

Saiba notices the text and thinks,

"Oh yeah, he didn't have a name above his head before... That should've been a big giveaway that he wasn't a monster... He has one now though... What could that mean?.."

Razier slowly chuckles, awkwardly. An inhuman aura is coming off of him as Saiba can tell that he's surpassed what can be called, 'human'.

From above, Lily arrives with Uma and the wagon. Peeking out of the wagon, Marco shouts,

"Big brother, what happened to you!?"

Saiba looks back and shouts,

"Oh! I'm glad you guys are ok-"

He gets cut off as Razier shouts,

"Shut up! You human scum!"

He points his hand out as it extends into a bony blade that shoots straight towards Marco. It flies past Saiba's head, too fast for him to react as he is left speechless.

It speeds directly at a vital point on Marco's body. Before it makes contact, Lily sends out a beam of light while shouting,

"Blinding Ray!"

The bone stops growing as it shatters, mere inches away from Marco. Razier gets annoyed as he grits his teeth. Saiba shouts,

"Leave them out of this! I don't think we ever finished our duel, did we? Let's settle it right now!"

Razier confidently lets out an unsettling chuckles while saying,

"You're an interesting human... However, you're still just another weak human!"

Saiba picks his weapon up, which he previously dropped on the ground, and clutches it tightly. He squats down, gathering power into his legs.

On the other hand, Razier continues chuckling as pillar-like bones sprout out from the wall behind him and await commands.

Using all of his might, Saiba leaps into the air and prepares his first attack.

The duel between Saiba Okumura, the Legendary Hero of Estrelia, and Razier, the Great Skeleton King, seems to be nearing its finale.