A Barely Satisfying Ending
Ugh… Why me?
Even though Mia was used to Kuolan’s sneezes by this point, they still made her feel bad every time.
W-Well, he did help me in a lot of ways… I guess I can’t complain. Abel is also here to save me, now that I think about it. I need to cheer him on.
She took a quick look at Bel, who was pumping her little fists in the air with excitement.
I would have liked to have done it in a more presentable way, though. This was supposed to be the big moment. The most important part of the story is when the knight comes to save the princess. If only the princess wasn’t drenched and covered in slime, it wouldn’t be so bad…
She felt sorry for herself for a while, but then she decided to think more positively.
No, I’m not doing this right. I’m still the heroine in this story, no matter what, so I need to get my act together!
She smacked her cheeks to wake them up and raised her voice.
“Show them what you’ve got! I’m rooting for both of you!”
With the self-proclaimed heroine cheering him on, Abel went on the attack.
“Take this!”
Again, he used his signature move, which was an overhead stance. The motion was the same as before. The man in the mask almost rolled his eyes at the same old thing.
“Fool…”
He huffed disdainfully and got ready to take a side step to avoid the vertical hit. Predictability was the bane of a swordsman, especially against an exceptionally skilled opponent.
Abel knew this very well, of course. Even so, he was set on the overhead swing.
Was it just being stubborn?
Of course not. He did it because he knew his swings were deadly.
“Fool?” The word made Abel smile. “We’ll find out who’s stupid.”
His enemy had thought he was a fool, which gave him a chance.
The next second, the man in the mask’s eyes grew twice as big.
“How—”
The sword of Abel became a blur. It fell much harder and much faster than before.
The man didn’t get hurt because he sidestepped, but half of his mask flew off in the wind.
It was Abel’s most powerful swing ever, much stronger than his last one. It was a pure offensive move, with no way to defend or move on if the opponent dodged. It left him wide open and unable to defend himself against an attack from his enemy. No smart fighter would do something like that without a good reason.
Abel had a good reason to do it.
“It kind of leaves you hanging, doesn’t it, Abel? Not the smartest thing to do, in my opinion.”
Sion stepped in to fill the fatal hole left by the attack.
The man in the mask, who was already moving to fight back, tsked and backed away.
“No. Not if you’re not here, Sion,” Abel said with a quick smile. “Which means I’ll go all out the whole way.”
People could take what he said as a sign that he trusts his friend. If he left himself open, he knew that Sion would cover for him.
But it also meant something more than that. He also had faith that Sion would take his place if he fell.
Before, Abel’s death would have meant that Mia would also die.
Now, no longer. Now that Sion was there, Abel could try for more.
If the man in the mask got away, he could try to kill Mia again. It would be better to stop the threat here, even if he had to risk going too far. After all, even if he died…
“No, you won’t,” he said. Sion stopped him. “Abel, if you think you can beat this guy at the cost of your own life, then you should back off.”
He didn’t sound joking at all.
“…That’s strange,” Mia said in a low voice.
Both princes were fighting at the same time. They fought together and put their lives at risk to protect her. That was something to look forward to. Which she did, thinking silly things like…
Mmm… It’s nice to know that they’re fighting for me.
Abel’s face showed that he was very focused. Even that was a sight to see.
But even Sion did everything he could to protect her. She felt like the main character in a love story. It all seemed like a dream, and that made her forget that her life was still very much in danger.
She started to feel at ease with what was going on. In fact, it was a little too cosy.
“There’s something wrong…”
She frowned and tried to figure out what was making her feel strange. Almost like she didn’t like she didn’t fit in. She kept her eyes on the two princes.
“It kind of leaves you hanging, doesn’t it, Abel? Not the smartest thing to do, in my opinion.”
“No. Not if you’re not here, Sion.”
Friendship was on full display in front of her, and it was a beautiful sight. Two handsome princes fought side by side, trusting each other and joking with each other. She watched, interested in what was going on, until she had an idea.
Wait! Wait! Wasn’t I supposed to be the heroine in this story.
They were fighting for her. She was meant to be the star of the show. So why did she feel like she didn’t fit in? Until just now, everything in the story pointed to the two knights in shining armour riding in to save the princess as the story’s climax.
Which had taken place.
Kind of.
The knights came on horseback, but the princess left the stage. Now, everyone was looking at how well the two of them got along, and no one was paying any attention to her.
Wh-Why do I feel like I’ve been in this situation before? When did it happen last? Hmm… Oh, I remember! When we were making sandwiches at the time..
Memories of her marginalisation in the culinary taskforce resurfaced. She vowed to get back to being the heroine of the moment so she wouldn’t have to go through that demoralising experience again.
Then, remembering her present appearance, she promptly rescinded her oath and hung her head.
Well, yeah, I almost forgot. How can I be the heroine when I look like this?
She looked at the snot and mud on her clothes with a sad face.
“Abel, if you think you can beat this guy at the cost of your own life, then you should back off.” said Sion as he pressed his sword into the foe’s.
He pushed hard and got the wolfmaster to leave the other prince alone.
Abel asked, “What do you mean by that?”
He straightened up and was ready to join the attack as soon as a chance came up. But Sion didn’t give him that chance.
“Don’t lose sight of the goal. We aren’t here to beat up on this guy. The goal is to get everyone back to Saint-Noel alive.”
“However, this man is—”
“Look at her! Do you see the expression on her face?”
It took Abel a moment to figure out what he meant, but once he did, he turned quickly towards Mia. He didn’t notice she had fallen silent.
Not too long ago, she was cheering for them. Now, her eyes were sad, and she looked like she was about to cry.
“Can’t you see how sad she is?” Sion asked, “Why do you think she feels that way? Because you don’t care about your life!”
The words cut Abel’s heart more deeply and sharply than any sword ever could. Mia would never do or want something like trying to get an advantage at the cost of life. She hated the waste of life more than anything else.
“Man, think! Consider how she wants you to fight. Then, if you think you are able to do it… If you can give her joy instead of sorrow, then, come and fight by my side.”
Sion jumped away from the masked man, as if to give himself a break, but then he ran right back in. His unpredictable style and quick movements made it hard for his opponent to keep track of him.
But just for a second.
The masked man was ready for the feint and hit, and he hit back with his own blow.
The night was filled with the sound of steel on steel.
I see. I… I almost broke Mia’s heart…
Abel looked at Mia, who smiled at him in a way that showed she liked him.
I let my anger take over, and then I couldn’t see anything else. Luckily, Sion was here. I owe him one.
He took a deep breath, then slowly let it out. Then he raised his voice.
“I am Abel Remno, and I fight to protect those I hold dear!”
At this point, it’s hardly worth mentioning that Mia hadn’t all of a sudden become a master of martial arts as well.
The way Abel was fighting made it clear that she couldn’t figure out what was on his mind. Frankly, all his sword swings were just blurs to her eyes and therefore looked the same, no matter the motivation behind them.
Sad to say, no one had the time to point out that Sion’s reasoning was wrong in this obvious way. A missed opportunity, truly.
The princes fought as a team because they had spent so much time training together. They knew each other’s habits because they had practised together. The fact that their sword styles went well together helped them even more.
Abel’s blows were strong and well-planned. Their power was huge, but they couldn’t do many different things. He didn’t try to figure out how to beat his opponents. Instead, he just used a lot more force than they could handle. He had a simple style.
Yes, his enemies were able to guess what he would do, but so were his allies.
And on his side was Sion Sol Sunkland, a swordsman who was known for how many different ways he could use his skills. It was easy for him to change his style to match Abel’s.
Abel’s crushing blows could break the opponent’s guard, and then Sion’s shifting blows would take advantage of the opening.
Their combined attack was perfect, never-ending, and very effective.
“Formidable…”
The wolfmaster muttered a grudging acknowledgment. He wasn’t really losing the fight. Neither prince was truly his equal in skill, and every two or three exchanges, his blade would draw blood. The wounds he gave them did not stop them from attacking, though. They only added red mists in the shape of crescents to everything they did. If they kept fighting like this, he would definitely kill them both at some point. The problem was that it would take time. He wanted to call his wolves back, but Sion’s servant was keeping them occupied.
“…The situation has changed.”
He looked up at the night sky and made a clicking sound with his tongue. The light of the morning just barely changed the colour of its starry canvas.
He had kept his ears open even when he was in the middle of a battle. And he’d heard the brief exchange between Sion and his attendant.
If they’re stalling for time…then backup must be on the way.
It was hard to imagine there wouldn’t be. This was an assassination attempt at the Tearmoon Princess. They would definitely respond with force.
He was skilled, but it would be nothing but folly to challenge a furious retinue of imperial pursuers in direct combat. He couldn’t afford to waste any more time here and risk capture.
“…Time to go.”
He shouted a command at his wolves, prompting Abel to slash at him again.
He met the blow with a heavy clang. As their swords clashed, the prince glared at him.
“Do you think we’ll just let you go like that?”
The wolfmaster let out a snort.
“I am leaving. You may attempt to stop me, Second Prince of Remno, but know that it will cost you a limb or two.”
He kicked the boy in the stomach and used the force of the kickback to move away from him.
Swiveling, he leapt fluidly onto a shadowy form—his trusty steed—that had appeared out of the dawning blue.
No one tried to pursue him as he rode away.
No one went after him, because no one could. Abel and Sion watched as the wolfmaster got farther away.
When the man’s shape disappeared into the shadows around him, they fell to the ground.
“Scorching sun… He finally left… Ugh, it hurts everywhere.”
Sion took a deep breath out. His body let go of all the stress. As soon as it was empty, a wave of pain came and filled the space.
He grimaced.
“What a wild thing… Don’t you think that man could give Sir Dion a run for his money?” Abel asked with a wince. “By the way, are there really more people coming?”
“None at all.”
They gave each other knowing looks.
“It was a bluff, of course,” said Sion with a shrug. “There wasn’t time. In fact, we need to head back to Saint-Noel soon so I can put together a pursuing party.”
“Are you two okay?!”
Just then, he heard Mia’s voice and then the sound of her feet moving quickly towards him.
When he turned around, he saw Bel following her on a horse with Anne and Tiona. Thankfully, Bel wasn’t able to take her. Behind them, a bow-carrying Liora was running towards them as well.
He looked at the girls coming towards him for a second. Abel also did.
Eventually, they shared a wry laugh.
Keithwood, who was also in a lot of pain, joked, “Did the pain make you crazy, milord, or is there something funny about this situation that I’m missing?”
The teeth and claws had done damage to both flesh and fabric. He was just as much of a bloody mess as the princes.
“I promise you, Keithwood, my head is fine. And so is your sense of humour. I was just wondering how we fared in the eyes of our good princess with regard to the way in which we resolved this incident. I do think we’ve done well enough to at least get a passing grade. Right, Abel?”
The two princes shared another laugh.
This time it was far removed from the danger and bloodshed of the world.
