The Forsaken Hero

I looked around helplessly, not quite sure what to do with the sobbing girl in my arms. The remnants of the Firestorm curled around us, concealing us from the rest, but we were still in a fight, right?

Awkwardly, I ran my fingers through the girl’s disheveled hair, mirroring the gesture Soltair had once used to comfort me. ”It’s going to be alright,” I whispered, my voice barely audible over her sobs.

She continued sobbing, and I winced as her hand dug into my shoulder, gripping the flesh on the outskirts of the Sunpurge. I glanced up as a familiar figure cast its shadow over us. Fyren stood nearby, his sword nonchalantly resting on his shoulder.

”What happened?”

I shook my head, still uncertain. ”I’m not sure. She just started screaming and collapsed right after the fire struck, but there don’t seem to be any visible injuries.” My gaze swept across the battlefield. ”Where did the others go?”

”They’re regrouping,” Fyren replied, gesturing toward the far side of the arena. ”It seems they believed the fire had finished us.”

”How did they survive it?” I wondered.

Fyren shrugged. ”Perhaps they had some talisman or preparation for this very situation.”

While we conversed in hushed tones, Elise began to stir, her tearful eyes locking onto mine. Though tears still flowed, her eyes shone with an inner light.

”What is it?” I asked. ”Are you alright?”

”It’s gone,” she breathed, her voice quivering. ”The curse, it’s gone!”

So that’s what it was, why I had felt a connection to her. I quickly scanned her soul with the Eyes of Fate and found the last remnants of a curse disintegrating before Adaptive Resistance. It wasn’t the first time I’d looked at her, so how did I fail to notice it before?

”Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked, continuing to stroke her silken hair.

Elise looked down, tears gathering in her eyes once more, misunderstanding my frustration as anger. ”I’m sorry. I didn’t want to burden you.”

Fyren interrupted, gesturing around as the veil of flames dissipated. ”Let’s keep this discussion for later. Looks like they realized we’re still here.”

He gently lifted Elise from my arms, taking her as though carrying a kitten, and placed her on her feet. I stood, groaning as her fingers left my shoulder, flooding me with relief. Just one of the many reasons I hated personal contact with others.

”I’m impressed,” Eric declared. ”I didn’t think anyone could survive the Firestorm. But it doesn’t matter; your mana must be depleted by now. This fight is over.”

”Couldn’t agree more,” Fyren said. ”Which one of you wants to die first?”

Sorre raised her sword, readying a powerful magical technique. ”I may not have figured out the magic you used before, but it’s undoubtedly worn off. It’s time to settle this.”

Fyren beckoned for Sorre and Kaya to come forward. ”I’ll face both of you. There’s no honor in picking on a young girl.”

I shot Fyren a sharp look. ”But facing two girls is somehow better?”

He grinned and raised his sword. ”Just don’t get too carried away. Those artifacts aren’t his; they belong to the schools.”

I could have ended the fight with a single Dispel Magic. With my current strength, I was confident I could suppress any sixth-level item and destroy anything below third. However, as I glanced at Elise, my heart softened, and I nodded.

”You’re right. This isn’t about me.”

Fyren grinned and prepared for battle. ”Best of luck.” He launched himself into the air, cratering the ground beneath him, drawing the other two Dragon Generals away.

As Elise and I faced Prince Eric, he scowled and began casting a fourth-circle spell, but I had no intention of letting him gain momentum.

”Binding Winds.”

His incantation vanished in a breathless scream, hands clutching at his throat, as I drew a current of air tight around his neck. I beckoned upward, raising him several feet off the ground, and shook him violently until his feet dangled limply, then threw him to the ground.

He lay there, stunned for a few seconds, before his eyes flew open and he sputtering for air. He crawled onto his hands and knees, hacking, and raised his head.

”You bastard!” he shouted, stumbling to his feet. ”I’ll kill you!”

My tail flicked in surprise. Was it so easy to break a prince’s composure? I opened my mouth, about to deride him, when my tongue froze. My hands tightened about my staff and I took a step back, terrified of the sadistic pleasure I felt at seeing the proud and mighty student reduced to a fuming mess. I didn’t want this. I didn’t want to be like them.

”Xiviyah...”

Elise’s worried voice snapped me out of my fear, and I took a deep breath, regaining my clarity. ”I’m alright. I just got carried away. Shall we take him on together?”

Elise hesitated. ”But you’re doing fine, aren’t you? Besides, I’ll only get in the way. He’s too strong, and I’m...”

”Elise, I won’t abandon you,” I assured her. ”Just do what you can, and I’ll cover the rest.”

She took a long, shuddering breath. As she raised her head, her eyes shone with conviction. ”I’ll do my best.”

The winds rose as she seized her mana, stirring the long, golden curls about her shoulders. Her eyes flashed with golden ribbons of light as she lifted her staff and began to chant. Three magic circles materialized behind her, woven simply yet with such skill my eyes shone in admiration.

”Holy Rays!”.

Strands of sunlight shot from the magic circles, intertwining to form a powerful lance. Eric, with a condescending smile, raised a shimmering wall with a protective spell.

”Pathetic,” he taunted. ”Even first-years can do better than this. Is this all the great Golden Princ-”

”Dispel Magic.”

His eyes widened as the partially constructed wall disintegrated, torn asunder in an instant by the discordant power of my spell. His body shook as the backlash of mana ravaged his soul, but he had no time to recover as Elise’s spell appeared before him.

He dove to the side, narrowly avoiding a hit to the vitals, and the lance merely grazed his side. His robe’s magic activated, shielding him from the worst of it, but he hit the ground, hard. I wrinkled my nose as the stench of scorched flesh wafted through the ash. The prince staggered to his feet, clutching his side, where the remnants of his robe hung loosely. The Holy Rays had etched a blackened, inch-deep groove through his flesh along his ribs.

Shocked gasps echoed through the arena as the audience discovered our exchange. Eric’s head whipped around, observing the cascade of whispers and rumors, and turned his glare on his. His eyes smoldered with pure, unadulterated rage, yet also held a tinge of fear.

”You’ll pay for that!” he cried, starting another chant.

Scarcely had the first words left his mouth then he bent over, hacking up a mouthful of blood. Distracted by the pain of his wound, he’d forgotten the spell that had placed him in this position to begin with. Dispel Magic’s entropy lingered longer the greater the difference between mages. Given the sheer strength disparity between our souls, he’d be unable to cast for half a minute, at the very least.

”Again, Elise,” I instructed, keeping my gaze on the wounded Dragon General.

She hesitated, plucking at her sleeve nervously. ”But he’s already, um, you know...”

”If we let things end here, what’s going to happen to you when I’m gone?” I asked slowly. ”Won’t it all go back to the way things were before? If you want something, you have to fight for it. Even if it’s hard, this is your chance to make a change. Don’t let the title ’Golden Princess’ continue to be a badge of shame.”

Scarcely had the final words left my tongue than I flushed red, clapping a hand to my mouth. The words had just appeared in my mind and flowed without thought. How did I say something so cringeworthy and embarrassing? Surely-wait, was she crying again?

”Thank you,” Elise murmured, wiping a tear from her cheek. ”I don’t know why I hesitated.”

I watched, astounded, as she cast another spell, then another, blasting the Prince again and again. Eric tried dodging, diving, and running, but Elise’s spells chased him relentlessly. Soon, his screams filled the arena. At first, the audience was dead silent, staring at the spectacle in disbelief. But, as the humiliation continued, scattered cheers rose, until the air trembled with jubilation. The Dragon House was silent of course, but the other students relished the chance to see the mighty arrogance of the Rank 1’s brought low.

Several times, Sorre and Kaya attempted to rejoin Eric and support him, but Fyren was always before them, forcing them back with calculated strokes of his sword. I stood back, occasionally stepping in whenever Eric’s mana recovered and scattering whatever spell or measure he took.

After five, torturous minutes, he finally collapsed, covered from head to toe in severe burns and injuries. Lord Fithsban waved his hand and the prince disappeared, appearing in the infirmary and declared defeated.

Without waiting another second, Fyren broke his fast from magical techniques and consumed the remaining two Dragon Generals in a titanic burst of fire. Elise dropped to her knees, disbelief clouding her face.

”We won,” she gasped, ”We actually won!”

”Of course,” Fyren said, jogging over to us. ”Shall we get going?”

I followed his pointing finger to the wall, where the door had reappeared. ”Yeah. I’ve got some studying to catch up on.”