The Red Rose and The Black Rose

Rhyldo was the Captain of the Clear Water Scripture, and thus, it was not possible to call him weak. Sure, he might not be on the level of Gazef Stronoff, Fluder Paradyne, or the Strongest Human, but then again, Rhyldno was not weak, having his strength focused on archery and espionage strategy.

It was those reasons that led Rhyldo and half of the Clear Water Scripture to watch over Re-Estize's war against Deorum Regnum a while back…

Rhyldo was not weak. But in the face of a monster as massive and terrifying as that… He simply was not that strong.

He trembled for the 10th time in the last minute as he thought he saw a shadow stretch from the ground to take him into an ocean of fire, when it was only the static shadow of a chair.

His gaze trembled as he huddled against the corner of his containment room, terrified of everything. Of the darkness, of the light, of the wind, of the absence of wind.

He just couldn't stand it.

The Captain of the Black Scripture had to knock him out to stop him from tearing his eyes away at the sight of... That thing.

Fire, fire. Suffering. Sin. Laughter, lots of laughter, evil laughter that delighted in his suffering...

He heard it, saw it, smelled the sulfur and burning flesh even though it wasn't there...

He could still hear it. He could see it every time he closed his eyes. He could smell it even through the flower air freshener.

It was wrong... So wrong... His skin was too sensitive... He wanted to tear it off to avoid suffering from the fire that didn't exist.

He couldn't move his hands, forced to be still in front of him by the magical chains reinforced with a sealing cloth.

He couldn't even afford to take his own life. There were guards outside. And he was afraid that if he died, instead of going to the Realm of the Gods, under Their light… He would fall into the abyss he glimpsed when he saw That Thing.

He was afraid that an eternity of suffering between flames and demonic laughter was what awaited him once he lost his life. He was afraid of dying. He was afraid that dying would not be worth it to free himself from this suffering.

He wanted to have faith. He wanted to depend on the light of the Gods… He wanted to but… There was just nothing. He could not find in his heart even the measly shred of faith in the light of the Gods… It wasn't that he didn't believe in them… It was just… Thinking about the Gods now felt… Empty…

Were they even there…? Did the Gods listen to his prayers…? Did they look at the Theocracy? Did they even remember it…? Or was it just a minor game that they forgot about like a child who changes his interest from one toy to another…?

… Were they even alive…? Were they really Gods…? The Holy Scriptures spoke of the sacrifice of the God Surshana… But… What if instead of returning to His Kingdom in Heaven… He actually died? What if his Gods had been dead for hundreds of years…?

He wanted to cry, but he had no tears to shed.

Even the [Lion's Heart] spell instilled in the prisoner collar around his neck as a way to try and heal him couldn't handle his panic, his fear…

He breathed heavily as he was afraid that he would close his eyes and not find himself in this room when he opened them, but in a world of fire and Demons…

Rhyldo, the Captain of the Clear Water Scripture, was strong. But he was still a human. A being of flesh. A weak being.

And in his weakness, the Star Demon, with just His presence from afar, destroyed His sense of faith, once again proving His authority as the antithesis of the divine.

…

The meeting point of the great leaders and the greatest forces was where it all began.

Previously a desert wasteland of death between the Baharuth Empire, the Draconic Kingdom, the Re-Estize Kingdom and the Slane Theocracy, today, a wasteland where not even the Undead appear. A hell of residual red mist that still persists today.

If before there were the Undead that manifested in the Katze Plains to deal with, now there were the Demons that occasionally manifested from pure demonic energy to deal with.

Likewise, such red mist was, thanks to the combined efforts of the Slane Theocracy and Deorum Regnum, contained as best as possible in a mixture with the previous negative mist of the Katze Plains.

This led to characters like Lady Nyx herself using her bodyguards and guardian, as well as large military deployments from Deorum Regnum to deal with creatures deep within the Katze Plains.

A very powerful Undead, along with a flying ghost ship, or something, with more Undead.

And what, even out of the act, surprised even Dont and Black Abyss. An Undead Demon.

Because of that last bit, Deorum Regnum made every effort to create an impenetrable wall like the former Great Wall of the Holy Kingdom, separating such mist and its monsters from Deorum Regnum, along with a few military outposts that stood between that same mist and the recovering Draconic Kingdom.

However, as the turning point in the whole affair itself with what was once Re-Estize… It was Deorum Regnum who, with funding from the Theocracy and the Council, created a sort of 'international meeting point' where, once upon a time, Titania and Gazef Stronoff had their duel.

At that very location, 4 people entered, with some minimal embarrassment at being the last to arrive.

A beautiful girl with golden hair and blue eyes watched in silence, with a boy with lighter blonde hair and similar blue eyes, but with shiny platinum-like armor, a straight posture, next to a swordsman who was easy to recognize, Brain Unglaus.

On the other side, a draconic armor of metal plates looked with crossed arms towards the same individuals who entered, behind him, to one side, a platinum armor silently, with four different weapons floating around it calmly, with a kind of muscular Orc with a cape made of the skin of a beast, and a bastard sword on his back, next to the platinum armor.

And finally, an unmatched beauty of perfect whiteness was sitting on a marble throne, higher than the rest of the chairs, with a look of superiority, looking indifferently at the people who entered, almost somewhat annoyed... Perhaps because of the delay...

Behind him, a giant, metallic armor floated above the ground, with a roller spear in his hand and a scale in his other hand, with a crystal visor, reminiscent of the legendary Azuth Aindra in a way.

"The meeting should have started 20 minutes ago." The deep voice came from the platinum armor, addressing the 4 newcomers.

A somewhat decrepit old man, but with an almost reverential and authoritative bearing, looked with a stern look at the armor.

"Hm… We apologize for the delay. There were some delays with some inspections by the defensive posts in the area, created by Deorum Regnum." The old man spoke with a voice that was somewhere between fragile, and with authority, showing that, despite his age, he was still a leader, an important and high-ranking figure, practically blaming Deorum Regnum for his delay.

"Hmp. Then they should have left much earlier." The beautiful and proud voice of the woman on the marble throne said with some annoyance, looking with a slight frown at the old man.

These two stared at each other for long moments, and the old man had to give in with a sigh.

"I suppose you are right, Your Majesty, Marble Queen Nitocris Hatshepsut Divinus Deorum." The old man muttered.

"Hmp. Obviously I am. However, it is rude to simply enter a room in front of me and not even have the dignity to introduce yourself." Nitocris snorted, leaning his cheek against one of his hands on the armrest.

The old man narrowed his eyes at the Marble Queen. Another of those present behind him also looked at her questioningly, while the 3rd figure only seemed to want to roll his eyes, and the 4th remained calm and silent.

"Hm. I hope that does not mean that you do not even know who we are, Your Majesty. We would find it rather unfortunate if the queen of a nation did not have such knowledge." The old man indirectly attacked, causing Nitocris to glare at him with hostility for a moment.

"Hm. If I did not know who you are, you would not be here." The woman said in a more serious tone, almost seeming to hold back many words on the matter.

"If you say so, Your Majesty." The old man dismissed. "Still, it is true that it is impolite of us to be late and not introduce ourselves." The man agreed somewhat, before taking a step forward. "These behind me are the Cardinal of Earth, Raymond Zarg Lauransan, and the Cardinal of Light, Yvon Jasna Delacroix. I likewise introduce myself." He paused. "I am the Pontifex Maximus of the Slane Theocracy, Ricarb Baragulius Torrino. Our escort is the Captain of our elite force, the Black Scripture." He finished the introductions, letting everyone know who they were facing.

"Hmp. Fine. Come, don't keep me waiting any longer than necessary and sit down for this meeting to begin. The longer that blasphemy that dares to be called the 'Demonic Empire' exists, the more my stomach turns." She snorted irritably and proudly, dismissing with a gesture the importance that she would have to place on the group.

The Pontifex narrowed his eyes again, but nodded. "I must agree with you, Marble Queen. The existence of such a 'country' is nothing but disgusting." And with that said, more or less, she led her entourage to their section at the round table, with three chairs, one for each cardinal and Ricarb, while the Captain of the Black Scripture, looking attentively and appraisingly at all present, stood behind them.

Once everyone was more or less settled, one of the figures that had been standing silently to the side stepped forward.

"If everyone is here, then it is time to begin the meeting. Your Majesty, would you mind if I begin with the explanation of the situation?" The woman asked towards the Marble Queen, bowing slightly.

"Hmp. Of course." Nitocris nodded, her expression softer, and perhaps a little uneasy for a moment, but it seemed to be just a mirage, as she gave the floor to none other than her Champion. The Paladin of White, Titania.

"Perhaps some here do not know me, but I am sure that most do. First of all, I want to start by apologizing to the representatives of Re-Estize, even if it has been so long since our war happened… However… The past few months have been too hectic for me to afford to arrange a meeting with Your Highness… Excuse me, Your Majesty, Princess Renner… Gazef… He… Gazef died an honorable death, and I took it upon myself to finish off the one who interrupted the duel and killed our armies." Titania said putting a hand on her chest, as it was the first time she had seen Renner in person since the matter of Komodo's attack on the Re-Estize Capital, but also Climb and Brain after those events. She hadn't had the time to really go and talk about what happened with them, and she hoped they didn't hate her for it.

Climb seemed to clench his fists remembering who was once his teacher, but nodded firmly towards Titania, just as Brain gave her a slight smile full of emotions. They both understood that what had happened was never personal, but a problem between kingdoms that escalated beyond what they could do.

"Still. You will know that even though I managed to kill the Komodo Follower, one of the pillars of the Komodo Demon. This one used… A magic so powerful, I couldn't even imagine it could exist… Such things resulted in the Summoning of a creature beyond this world… Even I couldn't do anything, and as a result, Re-Estize was wiped out by that… Thing, creating countless Demons that ended up forming the Demon Empire." Titania briefly explained the events that had brought everyone here until now. "So, today we are gathered, among the greatest powers around those… Demons… To discuss their extermination, and thus rebuild Re-Estize and our world. Does anyone want to add anything before explaining the plans?" Titania asked looking at those present.

"Not at all." The Pontifex blurted out.

"I don't think I can put it in better words, Lady Titania~" The Princess, or well, temporarily at least, Countess Renner of Deorum Regnum.

"No." On the other hand, the draconic armor blurted out.

Thus, Titania walked over to the table, opening her hand, where a scroll of paper appeared, opening it on the table, showing what was the current map of the area they were in, with Re-Estize centered on it.

"The territory of Re-Estize that the Demons encompass is the same, therefore, there is a large border divided into 4 countries. We know that there is a large natural barrier that separates Re-Estize from Deorum Regnum, making it difficult for us to send troops effectively. But being that we are allies with the Dwarf Kingdom, it will allow us to mobilize troops across the mountains much more easily, surprising the enemy if they have strategy, and I do not doubt that at least Komodo concentrated forces in the small space where E-Rantel once was. Still, it is the longest border of Re-Estize, and we can send our army across the Katze Plains to raid alongside the other large army, though, as I said, there are surely many forces concentrated there. The same with the maritime entrance of the internal sea north of Re-Estize and Deorum Regnum, and north of the coast of Re-Estize that shares the sea with the Argland Council." Titania pointed her finger further down, now looking at the Pontiff. "The Slane Theocracy is a great power, their army is well trained and I recently met their Black Scripture, and I can give credit and recognize them as Elite warriors. Still, even though there is also a mountain range that separates you from Re-Estize, it is smaller, and poses a greater danger to you than to us. Therefore, it is crucial that, for the sake of the people of the Theocracy, we use the best that you have to give. What could you tell me?" She asked the 3 men representing the Theocracy. Princess Renner, of course, having really 0 military power beyond Climb and Brain as elite units so to speak, remained quiet. It's not even like she had refugees from Re-Estize in Deorum Regnum. At most the few merchants from Re-Estize who had been trapped in Deorum Regnum during the war, but nothing more…

On the other hand…

"Hm… Certainly, it would prove difficult to break through such a concentrated line of Demons where E-Rantel once stood, which would be our closest access to Re-Estize…" The Pontifex agreed. "However, that information about the Dwarf Kingdom is quite crucial. And considering the threat that a 'kingdom' of Demons is, the Theocracy is willing to deploy its armies in the name of eliminating such blasphemy." The old man finished.

"The Argland Council thinks the same. While our army is primarily made up of Demi-Humans, and would find it easier to break through the mountainous northern borders of Re-Estize, it would still be difficult to break through a concentration of Demons. However, our elite forces could arrange something to attack the Demon Kingdom from another point. I believe it would be feasible, albeit with regrettable losses, to distract our access through the Dwarf Kingdom by pressing in with the Theocracy army in the south, Deorum Regnum from the northern coast, and the Argland Council from the northern borders and the shores of the open sea. I understand that it would be difficult to force the Holy Kingdom to participate, so I will not even mention an attack by the Holy Kingdom on the southern shores." The Wyrm Dragon Lord explained what he saw as a viable plan, which was really him being instructed on what to say by the white armor behind him, arms crossed as he looked at Titania.

"Hmp. Deorum Regnum will do everything in its power to eliminate those creatures. And while I could come up with better strategies, I will allow the utilization of a strategy like that." Nitocris muttered with a snort as he referred to Platinum's plan.

"Indeed, the plan that the Wyrm Dragon Lord proposes is quite good. However, such a large pressure at points with such concentrated Demons comes with a high cost of military resources…" Ricarb muttered, dismissing Nitocris' words about her thinking of better strategies… If she did, they would use those.

"Hm, that's no problem. Deorum Regnum is… Willing to provide some military equipment to minimize losses, as well as we will test some new weapons and forces from our kingdom against the Demons." Nitocris dismissed back with a hand, almost somewhat mockingly towards the old man.

"Certainly Deorum Regnum has all the reserves that once belonged to Baharuth, and more thanks to alliances with the Dwarves and improvements in distribution and mining. But not everyone at this table has that… Therefore, we will do as the Dragon Wyrm Lord said, but differently." Titania exclaimed, looking to the left. "Brain Unglaus." Then to the right. "Riku." Then to her left again. "Seraiah Ruvik Isaev." And then putting a hand on her chest. "And I, will assemble elite squads, with the best that each kingdom can provide. They should not be large squads to reduce economic expenditure, but they must be the best of each kingdom. In that way, we will open the battlefronts so that the army of each one of us can enter quickly and safely without having to face the defenses of those Demons. And I assure each of you, the Demon army is very strong, and a common soldier would not survive without the greatest of luck against a single Demon." She looked at Brain then, and at Climb as well. "This would only work if you are ready to give your lives for your kingdoms. Do you think you are?" She asked them.

Brain looked a little surprised for a moment, but smiled, to which he nodded.

Riku just gave a silent nod, while the Captain of the Black Scripture looked at the Cardinals, and the Pontifex himself nodded towards him, making Seraiah give her answer.

"It seems fine to me." He said looking at Titania.

Then, the Holy Paladin of Deorum Regnum raised her hand, removing the crown of thorns and the light cloth that hid her face, showing herself to them. She could almost hear Nitocris' teeth grinding as he saw that Titania was showing her divine beauty to these inferior beings. And she could almost hear a certain Demon Queen charging her weapon with jealousy and possessiveness even though she was miles away.

"Still, since this is an extremely careful operation, I must make sure of one thing… We are putting the best as captains of each group. Therefore, if you allow me, and each representative agrees, I want to check the strength of each of your champions. Brain Unglaus, Riku Aganeia, Seraiah Ruvik Isaev, as well as those not present in this room. Also, if they do not have adequate equipment, we could help them with higher level weapons and armor. What do you think? Of course, that means that you will also know the full extent of my capabilities." The Saint in general asked.

"Hm~ I think it is wise~ Knowing the capabilities of our champions will make us better know how to use them, each of us~" Nitocris said with a smile, looking smiling for the first time in the entire meeting. And she was charming.

Riku remained silent for a long moment, while Brain just sighed.

"Honestly, I don't think I'm any match for Titania and this… Riku? If you two could fight Komodo face to face, then I don't see myself capable of even competing against you two." He said with a slight smile, certainly humble and honest.

"… Once, around 4 years ago, I was fighting a creature of enormous strength, a Jabberwock hatchling. A person much weaker than me, was the one who saved me from dying that day. A hero is a hero no matter their power or condition." Titania exclaimed towards Brain, surprising him to know that, even she once needed to be saved… Sure, no one really knew that was an experience she had in a game, but it was real.

"If you put it that way… Well, I guess it's fine with me." Brain said with a shrug, looking to the side and receiving a smile from Climb and Princess Renner.

"That's good to hear~" Titania said with a smile as well, making Brain scratch his head in embarrassment at all the attention.

"Would it just mean a duel?" Seraiah asked, staring intently at Titania.

"Duel…? More like, a battle to the death." Titania exclaimed, drawing the collective attention. "Sure, no one will die, but if it's not in that sense, I can't know how capable everyone here is. It's not that I doubt their powers, I know that right now I'm surrounded by very strong beings, but my experience and combat has always been based against monsters and evil creatures, and my former comrades are no longer with me… Therefore, knowledge about the power of all of you is what I need, in order to know which battles each of you should be in." Titania explained seriously, hearing Riku shift a little to her right.

"It makes sense and is right. I want that too. I know I can count on Titania if Komodo dares to appear again. But I don't know anything about the others. We are among allies, I know the Theocracy may be upset to reveal information about the power of their champions, but it is what we all need to reduce any danger as much as possible." Riku explained, joining Titania's idea on the matter.

The representatives of the Theocracy looked at each other, coming closer to murmur among themselves.

Titania looked at Superbia, perhaps the pride and superstition of the Theocrats really went beyond the common good… In that case, they should take other plans into account, and they would lose the immediate information of knowing about the power of the strongest of the Theocracy. Or well, their Champion at least.

Titania then saw the elders nod, again towards her.

"Fine. We accept then, but Deorum Regnum must take charge of healing any wounds that put our captain at risk." One of them said, with Seraiah simply crossing his arms.

"There is no need to worry about it, we have the best healers in the north." Nitocris exclaimed, always finding the moment to boast about Deorum Regnum's superiority.

"Now…" Titania exclaimed more seriously, taking out a kind of sphere from a bag on her waist. "This is a very powerful item. It is capable of completely destroying an entire city and reducing a creature to ashes in a single instant." The Paladin exclaimed, squeezing the sphere, which began to release a strong white light, threatening to hear its capacity.

At this, those present, mainly the representatives of the Theocracy, tensed noticeably uneasy by such a glow. Climb almost stood between Renner and Black Abyss. The Captain of the Black Scripture grabbed his spear tightly, the Cardinals rose from their seats, the Wyrm Dragon Lord looked at Titania firmly, as did Riku.

Only Superbia and Renner didn't react, though Brain didn't seem to react either, just raising an eyebrow.

"Even if all of you were to join together to attack me at the same time and with all your might, this would vaporize you in an instant. Even me using my full talent couldn't survive its planet-like power. Now… I need to know if you have anything of this caliber that can be used against the Komodo." Black Abyss said seriously, then looked around, smiling. "Hey~ It's true that this is capable of unparalleled destruction, but you didn't think I was going to use it here~ Right~?" He said with a laugh, as if to throw away the worries of those present.

"..." Riku seemed noticeably wary of the object, watching it like a hawk watching prey, but he didn't move.

"Hm. Titania, stop playing around." Nitocris ordered, hating to order her mistress around, but it was Supreme Dont who told her to stop her if she started doing 'stupid things', which Superbia interpreted as 'overly high displays of her power at times Superbia didn't expect'. "There was no need to show such a blessing from the Goddesses to this rabble. Just go outside, give them each a hit, and come back here immediately. I'm running out of patience." She said with pride, annoyance, and disdain as she fluttered her eyes. It was a way to remind Black Abyss of the overall plan if she got carried away, which Lady Dont told her to do just if 'Black Abyss did something stupid out of excitement'. Though it still seemed strange to her why she should remind the Supreme about the plan.

"It's fine, I'm sorry, my Queen. Still, only these kinds of items are capable of such great power, that they make us win against Komodo… Today there is no longer room for the pride of hiding one's power, if we do not give everything we have for the common good, this world will cease to be ours." Black Abyss said as a reflection, still, Superbia looked at the sphere that disappeared from the Supreme's hand…

It was an Orb of Light, a healing consumable item that shone, it was not a World Item as she made it sound, but… She understood the idea that the Supreme had, if she could get some information from those present about World Items that they might have, it would be a gigantic achievement towards the defense of Titania as a whole.

"If you don't want to say it among all of us, I ask that you tell me in private later. But now~ Shall we fight a little~?" She said with a smile, giving a nice applause.

Sure, no one really reacted with 'joy' to Black Abyss's smile, though at least Climb, Brain, the Wyrm Lord, Seraiah, Ricarb, Yvon, and Raymond had to admit how beautiful Black Abyss's smile was.

…

A lust for blood, bathed in blind rage marched with calm steps as they approached their destination.

Following the order of its origin, of its source, of their Queen, the army of monsters advanced as they waited for the signal.

The vaguely reddish mist only strengthened them further, made them more powerful. Not that much, but it was better than nothing.

Their destiny was not to slaughter everyone, they would try, but they were not expected to succeed.

Their destiny was to show the latent threat. The raging fire of hatred over all that exists of their Queen.

White, gold and red shields advanced, along with monster horses that licked fire, with mischievous and malicious laughter crawling between the feet of enormous armored beasts.

A red army of teeth, swords, armor and horns marched, carrying out the will of Her Majesty.

…

In the middle of a rather large arena, delimited by nothing more than a few tiles placed in each corner of it along with white chalk lines to mark what counted as arena, Black Abyss, currently Titania, stood up.

She turned around and looked at some small stands, seeing Superbia and the other rulers there, before looking to the other side, seeing the others, who she needed to check.

"Before we start anything. Do you want to apply any rules~? For me, a battle to the death will bring out the best in everyone, although I will refrain from mortally harming any of you~" Black Abyss said towards them, with Brain sighing, as if wondering how he had ended up there.

"... I would prefer if lethal hits could be void. If they hit, a penalty will be applied to the nation that said attacking combatant belongs to." Seraiah muttered seriously as she stared at Riku.

"It seems optimal to me if the power difference is very high, even so, I personally prefer that they attack me with the full intention of killing me~" Black Abyss said smiling to the group, causing a droplet to fall from Seraiah's forehead.

"... I accept such terms." Riku nodded.

"Alright~ Although I don't think I can deliver a lethal blow to anyone here~" Brain sighed with a somewhat nervous smile.

"Pfu~ You are stronger than most people in the world, don't be so humble~" Titania said covering her smile, before looking at Riku. "Aganeia~ How about we start~?"

"... I would prefer not to." Riku said with a harsh tone, as distant as ever.

"Come on~ I notice that everyone here lacks a bit of optimism and hype~ What do you say~?" Titania exclaimed.

"... With all due respect, Miss Titania. We are not in need of optimism. We are in need of action to end this threat that plagues humanity... And the rest of the world." The Captain of the Black Scripture interrupted with a firm, military and professional tone, as if reproaching Black Abyss.

Titania lost her smile for a moment, before colliding her two fists with almost all her strength, making the ground and the air tremble, before her own smile began to shine, and suddenly a pile of fire violently covered her, ascending furiously upwards.

"… Is there no need for optimism…? Optimism is what people in danger need the most. Going into battle without it is to have lost from the start." Titania said seriously, before the fire suddenly went out.

Seraiah looked at Titania in silence, tightening his grip on his spear, before seeming to resign himself.

"I see. I am sorry that I was unable to understand your intention, Miss Titania. My apologies." He muttered in an unreadable tone, not giving away whether his words were genuine or not.

"It is fine. I just want to stress to you that all of you are pillars for your Kingdoms. If you do not show initiative, if you do not show that everything will be fine. Then, what is left for the common people? Despair. You, like me, were born with gifts that no one else has, and humanity depends on it." She said seriously.

"Haha~" A laugh interrupted Titania's inspirational speech, which unfortunately didn't seem to touch Seraiah that much, and much less Riku, although little could be said considering that one showed no emotions, and the other had his face covered.

The attention of the 3 turned to Brain, who was almost laughing out loud.

"I'm sorry~ I'm sorry~ It's just that… Those words of yours, Miss Titania… They reminded me a lot of Gazef~ Although without the part about exploding in light and threatening like that." He said the last with some mischief, as if giving his own reproach but not really being a reproach to Titania for being so violent.

"... Gazef respected you a lot, Brain. And it is one of my regrets that I was unable to prevent Komodo's interruption in our fight, which caused his death. How about, in honor of Stronoff, we begin these tests?" She asked somewhat seriously, but with a smile.

The blue-haired guy just laughed again, and nodded in amusement, although he seemed resigned to any chance he had, he did not show that he would hold back against anyone.

He walked forward, until he was less than two meters away from Titania.

She approached him three steps closer, causing him to be surprised.

"I am in your range~" She said, to which suddenly her armor disappeared, leaving her with beautiful white fabrics covering her, and her sword in hand. "You do not come with armor, it would be dishonorable if I fought with one~" The Saint of Deorum Regnum explained, squeezing the handle of her sword.

Brain looked at Titania in silence for a few moments, and let out a low laugh, while he seemed resigned again.

He took a crouching position while breathing deeply.

A few more seconds passed where Brain seemed to meditate. And then…

"[Grand Field]" He muttered. His senses sharpened as he could feel how everything within 5 meters around him was perfectly sensitive to him. He could even feel the wind with a terrifying precision that tickled his brain.

However, he had practiced so much with this upgraded version of his already impressive [Field], that he was starting to be able to deal with this sort of thing better.

He closed his eyes, and focused on Titania's figure. He gripped the handle of his new sword again, given as a gift by Lady Nyx, though it seemed more like a condolence gift than anything at the time.

One of the first rune weapons of Deorum Regnum.

He took a deep breath again… And…

"[A Man That Cuts Through Demons]!" Brain roared with all his might as he channeled his hard training in Deorum Regnum.

Brain's sword, a katana like the one he used before, only even stronger and more agile thanks to the rune power in it, came out like a hand from a silk glove from the sheath on Brain's belt.

A flash of reddish light surrounded the sword, like energy being supercharged and concentrated on the blade.

The weapon, with a speed sufficient to be considered nothing less than supersonic, swung with millimetric precision towards Titania's neck.

Or well, it would if Brain actually sought to kill her, which he doubted he could do anyway. Instead, the sword was to cut off a lock of her hair. A small, precious lock that was located in front of her shoulder. Cutting it off would not pose a disadvantage to Titania, where she would have to look to heal herself or repair damaged equipment. At most cosmetic damage, but so small and insignificant, that he hoped Titania would not mind.

However, actually cutting off even a single lock of hair from the Paladin who fought one on one against Komodo, someone who defeated Gazef Stronoff without a single injury despite taking full advantage of his strongest martial art, was an achievement in itself. At least for Brain.

However, both to Brain's surprise, and to Brain's expectation, all of his attacks were deflected with equal speed by Black Abyss's single hand, without even really grazing her.

Brain then saw the Paladin's weapon ignite into flames, as she launched a stab straight towards his face… The speed and power behind the attack were undoubtedly abysmal, something he clearly expected… It was almost like seeing death set ablaze in front of him…

Still, he didn't know how he had that strength, but he managed to move his face, only having a few strands of his hair cut off, while behind him, a cutting line ignited into vivid flames.

He gasped as he looked to his right, seeing that he had actually managed to accurately dodge that attack… Sweating at the pressure he felt upon seeing that deadly attack…

"You see, Unglaus~? That's why Gazef had you on such a high pedestal~" Titania exclaimed, slowly withdrawing her sword from Brain's vicinity. "Both he, and now you, can stand fearlessly in front of enemies that outnumber you, because that is the value of humanity~" The Angel exclaimed, putting her sword away. "You have proven your capabilities and your bravery to me, you passed the test with flying colors, Brain~"

"… Ha…" Brain let out a light laugh, as he almost fell backwards, staggering a little as he used his sword to stay standing, shaking like a newborn deer. After all, both the stress and strain of using so many powerful martial arts, as well as the feeling of death from before, left him quite tired… And he believed that using all that strength and martial arts broke some of his muscles. "Yeah… I guess you're right…~ Still… I didn't expect anything less, Titania~" He laughed as he seemed to simply accept his defeat as something that was going to happen, but that he was okay with it.

He then looked back, seeing the Black Scripture captain and Riku, who weren't particularly interested in what had just happened. Although they were a little interested in Brain himself.

"Ha…~ Well…~ If you'll excuse me…~ I'm going to rest a bit…~" He gasped as he moved a little to the side and let himself fall on the sand, sitting down while holding his sword.

Suddenly a light covered him, and he was surprised to see himself floating out of nowhere, being carried backwards, when he turned around, he saw Climb and Renner, along with the other rulers, although Nitocris didn't even look at him.

Titania smiled seeing Climb giving her a potion to recover, before turning to the others, seeing Riku, and then Seraiah.

She gave a cute clap along with a bright smile.

"Alright~ Let's continue~" He exclaimed waiting for the next one.

Riku remained in his place, while Seraiah looked at him in silence, sighing.

"Well, in that case-"

However, interrupting the Black Scripture Captain, Riku waved his hand, and the huge sword floating around him shot backwards.

The weapon took quite a while to reach its destination, the horizon of a hill.

However, when it did, something rose up on the hill, which the sword struck at that very instant.

"GOOOAOAAAAAAAHHHHH!" The furious roar was heard as the Infernal Protector was struck by the sword on his shield, shattering the object into a thousand pieces and sending the Demon flying backwards.

The roar caught the attention of the group, who looked towards the horizon.

Riku rose upwards as his sword returned with him.

Seraiah frowned as she spun her spear and got into a combat stance.

Brain sighed with a slight growl as he forced himself to stand up, unsheathing his sword alongside Climb.

The Cardinals clicked their tongues as they rose from their seats.

The Dragon Wyrm Lord stood up, and pulled out his sword from its sheath, also a kind of katana, similar to Brain's, but made of a different metal, followed by the Orc behind him, who growled menacingly and took a defensive stance as he unsheathed his own weapon.

Renner could only stay behind Climb, feigning surprise and fear.

Superbia didn't react, only yawning.

And Black Abyss frowned in false confusion, taking a surprised and cautious stance, as if she had ultimately never expected that an army of Demons would curiously intervene in the fight, forcing certain two entities to show at least part of their potential without risking the Paladin.

"Well, it seems that a certain 'someone' wants to join us." The Supreme sighed with an irritated growl, before staring in that direction.

She looked at Climb then.

"Climb." She called out to him, throwing her sword at him.

Of course, Black Abyss barely had a new Dwarven rune weapon in hand, as she wasn't going to throw one of her strongest swords at him. Not only because she would be giving such a valuable item to such a weak human, but because the weight of the weapon would crush Climb into mush… But mainly because Dont made her promise that if she was going to give him weapons, they would only be rune weapons made in Deorum Regnum…

He caught the sword himself, confused.

"Use it to take care of the princess. It's yours now. I'm not very good with swords anyway~" The Paladin exclaimed with a spear now appearing in her hand, preparing for anything.

The blonde boy froze, confused as he examined the sword, only to see Titania look hesitant for a few moments… But then, he shook his head, and nodded firmly, and gratefully, towards the Paladin.

"I am very grateful, Lady Titania." The boy said, grabbing the claymore as he quickly approached the princess.

Titania walked towards Aganeia and Seraiah, looking out towards the horizon, seeing the silhouettes increasing in number.

"What do you think?" He asked the pair, stepping in between them. "If it is just an army, I would rather stay and look after my Queen." He added.

"… I can tell that there are at least a few hundred of them." Riku muttered, not looking at Titania. "But I don't sense anyone strong." He informed, not mentioning that by 'no one strong', he meant beings that are strong under his terms.

Titania wanted to sweat a little, as she knew that, from Brain or Climb's perspective, the level 50 Devils that should be there were brutally strong.

What's more, Stronnof, who was known as one of the strongest humans alive, didn't even come close to level 50… So, it was possible that Riku really was level 100…

"If that's like that~ You two will be enough~ I'll take care of my Queen, the Wyrm Lord, and the Theocrats, so don't worry about it~" Titania said with a smile, giving them both a pat on the back.

Seraiah sweatdropped as a ball of annoyance seemed to float above her head, sighing as she looked at the army that began to run down the hill with fury and violence, ready to tear them all apart.

Riku didn't say anything, but he seemed to want to sigh, looking at the Scripture Captain for a moment, and nodding slightly and vaguely, as if reluctantly agreeing to fight him.

The duo of Champions of their respective nations, for once in their lives, prepared to fight back to back, even if it was for a silly thing like this, which was nothing really serious to them.

Still, Seraiah wouldn't underestimate the Demons.

He had already fought one like the Infernal Protectors before, and had gotten badly injured for some reason. Although it was mainly due to him having to hold back for the rest of the Black Scripture.

However, now he could show his full power against these Demons.

He gripped his spear firmly, and with a powerful leap, he closed the distance with the first Demon quickly.

Riku grabbed the bastard sword with one hand, and flew towards the army as well, with the rest of his weapons following him.

Black Abyss and Superbia watched from their places with great attention at the duo, while the Paladin, along with Brain and a little Climb, dealt with the Demons that were escaping from Riku and Seraiah.

Ultimately, the attack orchestrated by Dont and Black Abyss on the meeting, despite the many Demon losses, served in many ways, strengthening the ties between nations and respective nations' Champions… And giving Titania Palace valuable information about said Champions.

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Name: Brain Unglaus

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