“Kage?

You haven’t stopped staring,

Are you sure you’re alright?’

Dum, dum-dum, dum-dum♪

“I don’t know Karina,

Is he really dead?”

“Who cares, not our problem,” Pinoki interjects,

“In light of all these circumstances, happening here,

What do you say we take a temporary leave of absence?” I feel a slight nudge as something slips into my quiver,

“Put that back!” I whisper harshly,

“Don’t overreact Kage, it’s just a map”

“The requiem map,

We can’t steal that”

“Shh stop being an Apollo”

“…..”

“Should we go back to Soterra for a while then?” Karina giving us both a look,

(she obviously heard)

“Nah, too soon…...”

………

“Now I am going to have to find a way to announce this to the public” Ozymandias and Giichi are talking,

“I won’t lie to them of course, though I will have to omit everything about requiems being used,

But I don’t see how we can explain how Ginobelucci’s body got like that,”

“Get Dexter to deal with it,” Giichi proposes carelessly,

“No one knows much about the order after all, they would just assume it was something secretive,”

“What about those two boss?” Claude intervenes, gesturing at an injured Adrik and Marisha,

“Amelia, can you heal them?” Ozymandias turns to the girl who had been using her magic to assist with the healing of several guild members,

“Adrik Maybe, but I don’t think my magic is enough to repair her broken back yet,” the girl shakes her head

“Why should we even help them?” Lyra says looking at the bodies in disgust,

“They already killed many of your guild members,”

“That is true,” Giichi acknowledges,

“But, if we stoop to their level, then what does that say about us?”

“…..”

“Lyra, I don’t mean to be intrusive, but I have to ask,

Where is your father right now?” Ozymandias puts in inquiringly

“Huh?

He is dead, why?”

“Well, Ginobelucci did say you looked like a certain someone who came here ten years ago, and I don’t think he would lie about that randomly,”

“It was a probably my brother then, “ Lyra replies awkwardly,

“Do you know where he is now?”

“No, I didn’t even know he visited this city at all, till you just mentioned it,”

“Mr. mayor,” Apollo noticing Lyra’s uncomfortable expression,

“Can you tell me what your interest in him is?”

“….

Well I’m sure you’ve heard mentions of my son, err, ‘ravaging’ the city ten years ago,

The reason that is, because he met someone, I wish I’d seen, I wish I’d met, someone that changed his behavior.

My son, Dante was his name, was infatuated by this person he met, I don’t know who he was, but somehow he managed to convince my son to, ‘free himself’ by committing mass murder.

They left the city after that, without me ever seeing his face, I only have to go off peoples descriptions,

It was after that I decided to set up a system in which I could personally view all battles,”

…..

Lyra remains quiet having nothing to comment on the mayor’s story,

She instead whispers something to Apollo, who in turn gives her a soft hug,

“I already told, just because you share blood doesn’t mean you’re the same, Lyra”

…

(Maybe I shouldn’t be listening to this)

Dum, dum-dum, dum-dum♪

(What is that sound?)

Vibrative beats keep sounding off like the strums of a deep bass guitar…

(Maybe I’m hearing things again)

“Alright everyone out,” Giichi orders going near the ‘throne’

“I have the unfortunate job of cleaning this mess up and I—

—URK!”

Stab!

As soon as the old man had gotten close to the throne, two of its thorns immediately struck out, piercing the old man’s shoulders

“Sir!” The twins shout attempting run towards him

“No, stay back,” Giichi drawls,

“Tttttttt,” Ginobelucci’s voice sounds, though his body remains motionless on the throne,

“Did you take me for a fool boss?

Why would I stupidly sit on chair of spikes without knowing properly the effects?

I did not form the hunter coalition just to inconvenience you Giichi sir, I did my research…”

“Where is that voice coming from?” Yannick looks around frightenedly,

“The throne,” Karina points out,

“He has become one with it,”

“Correct♪” Lucci sings

“But still wrong,

See this isn’t a throne—

…….

Uraag!”

As he speaks a hellish blackish red, leathery, thorny skull emerges from the throne,

“—This is merely a vessel in which the dragons can be reborn again from,

Through me”

“Buddha —”

Crunch!

“Ah, ah, ah, Giichi no requiem for you,” Ginobelucci snaps forward munching off both the old man’s arms,

“Why do think I played possum here?

You might have been the only person here in Furlheim, that would be able to kill me as I am now,

See the transformation process may take months, and with you out of the way I will for the first time in history,

Declare Furlheim as an unwelcoming city, closing it off,

I cannot have any other Bakufu warriors, such as yourself, coming over here to kill me”

………

“I think we ought to leave right now” Pinoki suggests,

“We ca-”Apollo starts

But even he realizes there may be nothing we can do here,

“Black flame punch!”

Claude rushes in for the attack,

“NO!” Giichi bellows, his face gone pale form the endless blood gushing from his severed limbs

“I SAID DON’T COME NEAR!”

“But sir, I can’t leave you like this,” Claude close to tears

“My, how touching that you want to save him,” Belucci chuckles,

“But your boss is already dead”

Chomp!

Stab!

A thorn unexpectedly springs forward, piercing Ozymandias in the leg restraining him, while Ginobelucci’s draconic skull viciously mauls off Giichi’s head,

“Giichi sir!” The twins bawl,

Amelia already shedding buckets of tears,

“AHhhhhh!” Ozymandias cries painfully as the spike buries into his leg

“Ahhhhhh!

Get it out, get it out!”

“Mmmmm~” Ginobelucci munches

The disgusting sound of the old man’s bones being eaten makes me want to vomit,

“Human meat isn’t that bad, I am surprised,”

Chomp!

He chomps off the torso

(I can’t watch this)

……….

(I need to—)

Maybe I was thinking smartly at that moment,

“Alright, after that meal I would like to get things going now…...”

Maybe I was being a coward,

Or maybe it was my body’s natural reaction,

I turned, and stared running,

Ran and ran and ran,

Ran straight out the institute,

Thought the streets of Sweepstake,

Across the plains

Thought the backwoods,

Thought the bush groves,

All the way to Soterra

But still I kept Running

Ran and ran and ran

To the rocky trails below Soterra,

Past the little river

Even through the desert itself, I ran

Until I came to Lyfia town once more

But I dint stop there

I couldn’t stop,

I kept running

Ran and ran and ran

Through the haunted forest below the village

Dodging beasts and poisonous plants

I finally reached it

The house I first woke up in,

Still burnt to crisp, how I left it,

Diving down into the ashes I bury myself there,

(Take me back

Take me back from where I came from!

Take me—)

……..

“Kage, move!” Karina shoves me out the way from an incoming tentacle-like spike,

“What!?”

“You spaced out!

Ginobelucci is trying to keep us away from leaving”

“Haa!” Apollo chops at a spike,

“He doesn’t want anyone leaving here,

Weren’t you listening!?”

“…..”

“Everyone, get near me!” Ozymandias calls his legs nailed to the floor

“I may not be able to move but I can warp you out of the city,

You heard what Belucci said,

Go to Bakufu Giichi’s home nation,

Get help there!”

“Not without my permission,” Lucci growls

“Urghh!”

A thorn stabs the mayor in his back,

“This-is-my-

Requiem.”

As Ozymandias’ hand drops limp, a portal-like swirl opens up in the room,

“Everybody out there now!” Apollo orders pushing Lyra through first,

“Get up you two!” he grabs on to Amelia and Claude who both lay foaming at the mouth, tossing them in,

(What the hell happened to them)

Stab!

“Agh!”

“I said no leaving!” Ginobelucci stabs me in the leg

The spike slowly dragging me towards the ‘throne’

“Kage!”

“Aghh!” I reach for an arrow trying to shoot back at the dragons head, but the pain is too much, I can’t focus properly

Slice!

Karina cuts the thorn dragging me

“Come one Ka—

Stab!

A spike penetrates her leg in turn,

“Its closing already!” Pinoki shouts,

“Apollo get Karina and go!” I order,

“Let me…...”

(What is with that loud buzzing!)

“I’ll get you both out!” Apollo picks Karina up

(No, you won’t)

Vwoosh!

I fire a wind arrow, knocking Apollo forward through the portal with Karina,

(You all have goals and dreams to achieve,

I don’t,

If anyone’s life is the most disposable here,

It’s me)

……….

Draagg!

Draagg!

(Huh?)

“Pinoki?” I look up to see the little man still here struggling to drag me out

“Why haven’t you left yet?”

“Don’t think too much of it Kage, I gave you the map remember, I can’t very well leave it here,”

“But you could have-”

“No buts Kage, I am man of adventurer,”

“Hhhhh!” Ginobelucci sighs heavily,

“I wasn’t planning on killing any of you now, but since you will not obey me,

Rauugh!”

His head outstretches from the throne snaping at us

“Ha” Pinoki throws a dagger,

“You’re too late fiend,

We are already-”

Chomp!

His teeth grips onto to the littles man leg, right as we near the edge of the rapidly closing portal,

“Pinoki!” now it’s my turn to carry him, pulling tightly on to his right arm I limp my way to the light,

“Come on!

Come—"

…..

A cold breeze brushes past my face and I feel myself being sucked into the swirl my hand still firmly holding onto Pinoki’s

(I think,

I think we made it)

Flash!

The portal spits me out onto a bushy hillside,

“Kage!?” I hear Lyra’s voice exclaim before her tone then abruptly sinks

“We’re fine,

We made is safely,” I assure

“Kage….

What do you mean, we?” Apollo asks solemnly

“I mean me and Pi-”

I turn to the hand I’d been clasping on to this whole time,

And that’s just it,

It’s only just his arm.