Chapter 47 - An Elemental King is Born

— Nanahoshi Shizuka —

"Leon! Leon, get up!" the redheaded girl screamed, gripping the fallen hand with all her might, trying to keep the dying boy on the mortal plain. "Please get up, Leon… Don't leave me…"

Then there were the two children also making their way towards the body, sobbing as they got closer.

This… left quite a bad taste in my mouth.

"...That was quite harsh," I said to my travelling partner and benefactor.

"It was needed," Orsted answered evenly. "He was always a troublesome one, and he's stronger than he should be at this point. When he lives, he becomes a Water King in the strife zone ten years from now before meeting Ariel… this must be another change too."

I nodded before looking back at the scene playing out in front of me.

Ever since coming to this world, I have seen many people die.

It was one of the reasons I hated this place.

It was cruel and disgusting, but still… I didn't care.

I rationalized that I was not part of this world, thus, I should not interfere nor care.

After all, to me, this was simply a story. 

A bad dream that would end once I figured out a way home, and my state of temporal stasis would finally end.

It was a coping mechanism, my way of thinking. I was smart enough to know that. 

It way to rationalize that the tragedies I had witnessed were nothing but fake. And as sociopathic as that thinking might be… it was something I needed, lest I break from the stress.

But still… seeing the little girls desperately cast healing magic on who I assumed to be their brother, at least from what they were screaming, while the redheaded girl held his head close to her chest, desperately telling him to wake up…

It shook me.

I had seen Orsted dispatch a fair share of people, but it was usually just a passing bandit he didn't feel the need to hold back on. 

Never was it someone this young, and never someone so… loved.

The bitter taste in my mouth got worse as memories came up in my mind.

What was it… four years ago? Two years before I was sent here, right before I entered high school.

My older brother had died. 

The one that was always there for me when my stupid younger self got in a fight with our parents or had trouble with school.

He had left me behind, much like these three were experiencing right now.

It wasn't anything so dramatic, it was simply the disease winning out, but still… when we were gathered on his deathbed… the grief I felt…

Haa… truly, this world was the worst.

"Could you… save him?" I asked.

"Why?" Orsted asked in return.

"It's just… a pity," I said.

Plus, before that insane final attack that burned a line across the road and destroyed that mountain was fired, I did hear the words 'nuclear fission' come from his mouth.

…Aside from how terrifying of a concept that was to appear in this place, was he… from my world? Or was it simply something I misheard?

I was slightly curious, and it was a good excuse to use for this… interference.

"Hitogami's apostles need to be killed, and Leon Rakaz, as he is now, is an unknown variable," Orsted said.

Right… those 'apostles'.

Orsted killed one of those while I was with him too. A knight, if I remember correctly.

I was still unfamiliar with the language at that time.

I didn't really understand, as I only picked up what I knew through what Orsted said, which wasn't much, and to be honest, I didn't really care.

They were… people who worked for this 'Hitogami' or something, which was Orsted's enemy, and Orsted always felt irritated each time he spoke of one.

"You said that these apostles were… annoying to catch, right?" I said.

"Yes, usually," he nodded. "Especially when he changes his usual tactics like this."

Hmm… I did remember him mentioning a limit of these 'apostles' somewhere along our travels too…

"Then… isn't it good to know who one is for sure?" I said. "Plus, compared to you, he's quite weak, right?"

Orsted's eyebrow furrowed as he looked back at the mountain range, the peak of one of them now considerably flatter than the rest.

…Okay, maybe 'weak' wasn't the best term to use, but Orsted was still able to deal with him easily.

"Yes, right now, he is nothing much, but with his current growth rate…" Orsted then looked back at the crying girls and the dying boy. "...He could become an annoyance."

He then raised his hand to massage his neck, which was now healed as if it had never been cut, before shaking his head.

"But… I suppose you're right. An unknown variable may disrupt the usual path, and it's good that one of his pawns will not be hidden," he said. "Besides… this world is already so different from the rest."

…What odd words.

Orsted was a mysterious man like that though, so I ignored them.

He then began walking back over to the four, with me following behind him.

"Ghislaine! Ruijerd! Please! Leon… Leon is!" the redheaded girl cried out to the world as she held the boy close.

But as soon as she noticed the two of us, she stopped her screaming as her face split into a fierce glare, causing a shiver to go up my spine as the girl spread her arms to put the two little girls behind her.

"I-I won't let you hurt them!" she said, trembling. 

Likely both in fear and anger.

Orsted did have that annoying effect on people. 

That must have been the reason for the initial clash.

"I will not hurt anyone, Eris Boreas Greyrat," Orsted said, his eyes gleaming with slight sentimentality as he picked up the boy's severed arm. 

"T-Then…" Eris said, staring at Orsted's seemingly untouched neck. "Heal him! Save Leon! Please! I'll… I'll do anything!"

She finished her words by prostrating herself on the ground, making Orsted widen his eyes in surprise.

"To think you would bow for such a thing… but yes, I will heal him," he said, crouching down as he placed one hand on the boy's gaping chest wound and another between the severed arm and right stump of his shoulder.

As his hands emitted a soft glow, the boy's wounds began to heal. 

"But not all the way. That would be a needless waste of mana," Orsted mumbled under his breath.

…Sorry, 'Leon of Rakaz', or whatever your name was. It seemed that you would be gaining a couple of nasty scars.

But at least you'll live.

As his treatment finished, the boy instantly went into a coughing fit, spitting blood out of his mouth as the girl hastily turned him on his side to expel the rest of the fluid.

Standing up, Orsted watched as the girl wept over the now alive boy, kissing his cheek gently over and over as she played with his golden hair.

"...I have a question," Orsted said, causing Eris to glance at him with a piercing glare. "Do you… truly love him? Not Luke?"

Her glare hardened as she snarled. "I love Leon more than anything! And I don't know or care about this 'Luke'!"

"...I see," Orsted nodded, walking away. "It seems that the mana disaster has changed quite a few fates. But the children of Paul Greyrat crying over Leon of Rakaz… what an amusing coincidence."

Seeing as he didn't call this 'Leon' a Greyrat, there must be something odd going on, seeing as the little girls were calling him their brother earlier.

Well… I did my part, and the bitter taste was gone, so I didn't really care what happened now.

As I followed behind Orsted, he suddenly stopped to look back.

Eris, the redheaded girl, quickly stood up to defend her group, her sword hand not trembling anymore as she faced forward.

"He's an amateur in some aspects, but has the strength equal to his past self's peak already…" Orsted said, ignoring the hostile look aimed at him. "Tell him this when he wakes up, Eris Boreas Greyrat. He can call himself a King with his odd combat style, but next time we fight… he will die."

Eris shakily nodded in response as she continued glaring at him.

And with that, we were back on the road, making our way to the nearest teleportation ruin so I could get some insight from Perugius.

Truly… I wanted to go back to the University as soon as possible.

I really hated travelling in this world, after all.

— Aisha Greyrat —

Watching the man and woman depart, walking down the road before fading into the distance, I felt the previous storm of emotions simmer into a singular, concentrated, ice-cold feeling.

I was angry.

The first time I felt like this was a few months ago when our father, that fool, berated my brother despite not understanding anything about what we and my brother went through.

That was my first taste of the feeling called rage.

And now, more than the rage I felt before, it was growing from a flame into an inferno as I grit my teeth.

I think… I could understand Big Brother a bit more now.

That tempered anger he always kept close, ready to release at any moment… I could understand how he did it.

All he must have done was imagine such a situation as I was in now, with our roles reversed.

I wasn't stupid. And while I was previously naive and inexperienced, I never was.

I knew that Big Brother was easily angered when it came to us, and how he used that anger to command respect in any guild he walked into and protect us before anyone could make a mistake by showing off his power and fury as a stern warning.

A raucous Adventure Guild didn't just quiet down for anyone, after all, and nor did those same adventurers keep their heads down while a group of kids came up to submit a quest.

But Big Brother made that happen.

And if anyone showed even a hint of hurting us… his wrath would reveal itself.

Ruijerd called it childish with a fond smile.

Norn called it comforting with a content expression.

And Eris called it attractive with flushed cheeks.

But me… I just called that Big Brother.

He loved us, some would say he loved us too much, and he would do anything to protect us.

He always did. 

Even back before the teleportation, he would always play with us, buy us things from the city, and do whatever he could to make us happy.

And then, the teleportation incident happened, and I got a taste of just how far he was willing to go for us.

As I got older and smarter, especially when I began going into town with Big Brother, Eris, or Ruijerd to secure supplies, I learned just how amazing my brother was compared to the rest of the world, as well as how much he sacrificed for us.

He was, without a doubt, the best brother that a little sister could ask for.

So for me to see him have his arm cut off… have his body run through with that disgusting hand… and to see the light fade from his eyes as I gripped his bloodied shirt…

It was terrifying.

I was already trembling as soon as Orsted, that monster, made his appearance, but now… I was frightened to the core.

Not by the one known as the Dragon God, nor his seemingly unrivalled power, but rather… I was afraid of the concept of losing Big Brother.

A concept I had never thought possible before today.

Desperately clutching his sleeveless leather jacket, I pressed myself closer to him to feel his warmth, not minding the blood stains I was getting on me as I did so.

And, placing my head on his chest, as I focused and closed my tear-filled eyes, I was able to hear the most calming sound in the world.

The very sound that lulled me to sleep so many times, even during the most stressful of times.

Thump. Thump.

The sound of my dear brother's heartbeat.

"A-Alright… you two…" Eris said.

I looked over to the one I called Big Sis, who would very likely be my actual big sister soon, considering her and my brother's new romantic relationship.

She wiped off the tears that had poured down her face, but her reddened eyes still showed traces of them. 

Nevertheless, she stood up as resolutely as always.

No… that wasn't quite right.

She wasn't 'like always'.

From how her knees were trembling slightly, and how her gaze never left Leon's face, it was obvious that she was still shaken up from the experience.

"We'll… move the carriage towards the woods and I'll set up the tent," she said, sniffing at the end of her words. "You two… just… watch him. I'll… take care of everything."

Things moved slowly but surely after that, with Eris setting up the tent as she had promised, and Norn stripping our brother of his clothes, passing them to me to wash as she scrubbed the dried blood off his skin.

Ah… and she never stopped crying… I wanted to tell her to quit it, but I would be lying if I didn't understand.

I simply just… knew it was useless.

Maybe I should calm her down if she doesn't do so by herself.

How did Big Brother do it again? Lullabies and stroking her hair, right?

Luckily, she was eventually able to overcome her emotions and stop her sobbing, only sniffling every so often, breaking up the melancholic silence that had descended on our temporary campsite.

Dinner was a sombre affair, with the three of us each taking a position close to my sleeping brother, ensuring that we could feel his warmth as the sun slowly set.

We all sat silently in front of the crackling fireplace, watching the dancing flames, only interrupted by the few carriages that passed us by, pausing to glance at our group with intrigue.

Whether they were thinking of peddling, offering aid, or hoping to steal from what looked like a vulnerable group of kids, we never got the chance to know as Eris scared them off with her bloodlust, causing their horses to dart away in instinctual fear.

After such a long, stressful, and terrifying day, I soon found myself having to fight to keep my eyes open, and looking to my side, I noticed that Norn had lost to such urges, already fast asleep, cuddled up to Big Brother's side as she snored softly.

"You can sleep, Aisha," Eris said, patting my head. "It's getting late, after all."

With her sitting against the tent's walls, with my brother's head laid in her lap, she pulled me closer to her, letting me rest my head on her thigh next to Big Brother's shoulder.

"I'll be sure to keep watch, okay?"

Nodding, I closed my eyes, slowing my breathing to match with my sleeping brother's.

But as I closed my eyes, shutting out the world… it was then that the visions appeared.

Or rather, the memories.

Seeing his arm fly through the air… his body slump to the ground… the growing coldness of his skin as his pulse slowed and breathing stopped…

This day… that moment… it was, without a doubt, the scariest moment of my life.

And despite the terrifying circumstances I had found myself in for the past two years, nothing else came close.

And that… was all because Big Brother was there. 

Saving me. Loving me. Keeping me safe and happy. 

Keeping all of us safe and happy.

But if he wasn't…

A shiver of fear went down my spine, making me wrap my arms tighter around my brother's torso, holding him close.

…But he was safe now.

It was all… okay.

And like that, I fell asleep, covered up with a blanket next to my dear brother and sisters, hoping that this nightmarish day would become but a distant memory in the future.