PHASE 30 - I WANNA BE THE VERY BEST

Mondays came in, and we are back to our daily lives. Actually, two weeks have passed without me knowing. There were no extraordinary incidents like Eidolon attacks or Cursed Guardian assaults. It’s like I’m a normal high school guy again.

When I said normal high school days, I mean hanging with my bros, the Nerd Squad. We would skip some unimportant classes just to play PC games, stay up to 3 AM to participate in a giant bunny boss raid. We also sleep in Macho Steel’s boring history class.

Tiara has been busy with her workshop thanks to her Idol Club, so I can only interact with her during sleepy class hours and lunch breaks. Forget it, she sleeps during class and only chomps her meal on lunch breaks so I cannot totally have a good conversation with her!

Amy was also busy investigating about the Cursed Guardian assault incidents, so most of the time, she’s absent. I thought it was a team effort as the Aether Crusade, but she prefers doing these paper jobs on her own.

“I can focus on the investigation if I’m away from the idiots.” She said to me. That may apply to Helena and Tiara, but... am I considered an idiot too?

That’s so like Amy. Back in junior high, whenever we have to group ourselves for a certain project, she would be the leader and do all the job for us.

She said that she’ll call us if there are some matters she can’t resolve on her own.

And Helena… Well, Helena adopted that homunculus Key to their apartment. At least their house will be a little livelier now that there’s three of them in a house.

That’s what I thought until this night when Helena invited me for a small dinner.

<>

It’s so silent here. I can hear the crickets harmonizing.

Their apartment is so-so. Not so big, not so small either. Not so neat nor chaotic. Nothing worth mentioning except that this bungalow is good for a family of four. The only thing that concerns me is that their house smell like poultry. It didn’t matter much for me since I’m already immune from the smells of the putrid siblings.

There’s a delicious aroma coming from the kitchen that kind of balance the foul smell. They should really learn a thing or two from their food.

Helena is humming as she cooks, and Key is busily playing on her tablet. Heushac is also busy on his laptop.

I was minding my own business on the sofa, reading a web novel titled “The Chingchong System”. It is a cliched online game story that is written by a virgin Kirito wannabe. Seriously, you can find these kinds of works everywhere. I’m about to drop this crap because it’s full of fillers and unnecessary flowery words.

I finally stopped reading when somebody grabbed my attention.

“Ric… Tell me, are you hitting on my sister?” Heushac glared at me as he whispered. It’s more like a threat to me. “I’ve noticed that you are spending more time together. If you are, you have to go over my dead body.”

“I’m not,” I answered coldly. “Your sister is yours and yours alone.”

“I told you, I’m not a siscon!” Heushac yelled softly. “Then what business does she have with you?”

“It’s a confidential matter.” Helena butted in as she raised the frying pan, pointing at her brother. “We have a top-secret job together with your classmates Jeannette and Tiara, so we are often holed up together. It’s not a thing where baby boys can meddle with.”

“Fine, fine.” Heushac relaxed as he laid his back on the sofa. “Stop calling me baby boy, sis.”

<>

Helena’s cooking is simply amazing. She prepared her specialty, a sizzling pork sisig with sunny side up eggs and it was cooked with butter. We already had our stomachs full before we even noticed. If Tiara was here, she would visit this house every day.

After that small dinner, I helped Helena do the dishes while that damned homunculus continues to be silently playing her tablet and Heushac playing Battlefield on his gaming laptop.

“Why did you invite me to this dinner?” I coldly asked.

Helena chuckled as she scratched his head with her foamy hands.

“Ahahaha! Oh, I almost forgot. Jeannette wants us to test Key’s abilities during an Eidolon Hunt. She also wants you to fill the role of a Field Commander during battles. I was told to give a report this night. I’m glad that you made me remember.”

“You’re so carefree,” I commented. “How did you even manage to keep your Gate Guardian secret to your brother?”

“Maybe he’s just an idiot, like me.” Helena stuck out her tongue. “Though I think he had an idea because most of the time I would go home with my bloody broadsword in my hand. I often forget to revert my Weapon Gem back to its gem form.”

She often forgets where she put her brain, apparently.

<>

Right now, we’re in the emo dimension called Yami. Crimson moon, check. Desert land, check. And weak sandstorms, check. We were lucky to spot a Level 1 Eidolon. But we were unlucky that the enemy looks horrible and disgusting.

It was a three-meter tall centaur, except that the lower body is not a horse but of a cockroach. The upper body is a naked macho man holding a spear. And its head is a black bull. I don’t know what to call this creature.

“Get ready!” Helena shouted. She revealed her pendant which contains the Weapon Gem. It glowed, and materialized as a silver broadsword!

“Mmmm...” Key said as she put on her cyberpunk headband. The headband glowed and then the next thing I realized, she was surrounded by two quadcopter drones! That’s a peculiarly cool weapon!

“Key’s Weapon Gem is on her headband, which detects brainwaves in order for her to control the drones,” Helena said. “She will fulfill the role of a support.”

Helena then prepared a centered stance with her silver sword. “I will be our vanguard and main attacker. And you will be our field commander.”

Key and I looked at each other and wordlessly nodded.

“Good!” Helena smirked. Then she slightly tilted her head that made her appear somewhat cute. “Your command please?”

I held my chin and bowed down as I formulate some plan. “Hmmm… Should we attack right now, or-”

“Here I go! Haaaaaah!!!”

Helena shouted with full force as she charged towards the enemy! Helena charged her sword with mystical energy in a shape of blue lightning, and then unleashed an uppercut slash! What a reckless person!

“!!!” Helena shouted. Too bad, the enemy used its spear to block the attack!

“Calculating projectile trajectory,” Key said.

All this time, I thought she was mute! Anyway, her voice is like those AI in smartphones. I also noticed that her drones are flying up away and circling the position of the enemy.

Key’s ability is , which means she is capable of solving nerdy and geeky formulas on her brain. She can also see invisible geometry lines to calculate trajectories, refractions and whatever formulas in physics that can be solved by a major in college.

“Helena, backstep!” I shouted. My saw that there was a strong attack coming from that weird monster!

The cockroach centaur charged its spear with reddish-orange light and make a stabbing attack! But Helena was already outside the enemy’s attack range! Helena might be a reckless attacker, but at least she knows how to listen to her tactician.

The two drones lost its altitude but it continued to swirl around the Eidolon.

“Now!” I shouted. I already know Key’s plan thanks to my future sight!

“!!!” The moment Key shouted the quadcopters released waves of mini electricity from its propellers that connected to the other drones. They formed a net that was made up of live wires!

The Eidolon screamed like a bull when it got slightly toasted by that kid’s dangerous toys. When the lightning waves faded, the cockroach centaur dropped its spear, and all its arms are hanging as if all its muscles are paralyzed!

Helena charged forward and leaped four meters from the ground! “!!!” She shouted. At that moment, her sword was covered with blue lightning as she slammed the enemy’s head with her full force!

There was a stream of lightning that came from the skies and directly hit the enemy! The result of the impact made the pieces of earth pop up!

Boom! Smoke clouded up in the area!

The next thing we knew is that the Eidolon has been completely vaporized by the swordswoman finishing blow. There is a Quintessence floating in the area where that enemy was supposed to be.

“We did it!” Helena jumped with joy. “We make a really good team!”

Being a commander in an Eidolon Hunt feels like a Pokemon battle. It’s more exhausting because I use my precious saliva to shout my commands. But I actually enjoyed it! Being able to boss around during battles is so priceless! I can yell all I want and get credit!

I’m suited to be the Aether Crusade’s Field Commander after all!

<>

Or maybe not.

Because the next revealed that there will be a lot of deaths on my tab.