'Who the fuck is behind all this? And what the fuck do they want?'
A pervasive sense that unforeseen equations were at play, forces unbeknownst to him, gripped Saisha.
The prospect of taking action without comprehending the machinations underlying the tumultuous events surrounding him seemed perilous. The capable commander of Layos' army screamed in his head as he witnessed Arthur getting manhandled by Sirius. He found himself ensnared in a perplexing predicament.
While Arthur and Saisha were entangled in a quagmire of indecision, Sirius, unlike his adversaries, pursued a clear and ruthless objective.
Each moment of the protracted battle felt like an eternity to those embroiled in it. Arthur reached an inescapable conclusion: his spear was futile against the physical might of Sirius. He begrudgingly acknowledged his inferiority in terms of close and mid-range combat prowess.
Arthur's sole advantage lay in unleashing potent elemental attacks from a secure distance. With a quick decision, Arthur retracted his weapon in a bid to create space between him and Sirius.
However, this was precisely what Sirius desired. The moment Arthur sought to bolster his agility, Sirius harnessed his bloodline energy to amplify his reflexes and speed. Bursting forth with newfound power, he swiftly closed the gap between himself and Arthur.
Arthur locked eyes with Sirius as the formidable foe drew dangerously near. Reacting on pure instinct, he swathed himself in his Elemental Attainments, conjuring a tempestuous maelstrom of fire and wind-infused mana that roiled fiercely around him.
Sirius, undeterred by the tempest's fury, howled a defiant cry and thrust his arms into the whirling vortex. The savage elemental forces tore at his skin, searing his flesh as he seized Arthur by the throat and shoulder, his grip unyielding.
Intimidation emanated from Sirius' savage eyes, his ferocity palpable. Arthur, attempting to sound resolute, started to issue a warning. "What the hell are you planning to—" His words were abruptly silenced as Sirius hoisted him into the air and launched skyward. The earth beneath them quaked as Sirius ascended hundreds of meters above the ground, paying no heed to the elemental onslaught Arthur desperately hurled his way.
Sirius had a specific target in mind, his cruel eyes gleaming with malevolent intent as he expertly navigated the skies with a pseudo-flight. They descended like meteors locked in a cataclysmic clash, homing in on a particular individual who had been a solitary A-Rank witness to the tumultuous duel unfolding between them.
Panic swept over Saisha as he beheld the two descending juggernauts, Arthur and Sirius, hurtling toward him like celestial titans on a collision course. He swiftly moved to alter his position, intending to evade their impending clash.
Yet, Sirius had anticipated this maneuver. He invoked his Elemental Fusion, a dense surge of mana that fused both wind and water elements, forming a tangible barrier around Saisha. The towering wall, resembling a swirling amalgam of air and water, enveloped him in a confined space roughly 50 meters in height, rendering escape impossible.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it all!"
Saisha's cuss filled the air as he found himself forcibly immobilized. With no escape in sight, he gripped his sword with unyielding resolve, infusing it with his mana, and enveloping the blade in his unique Elemental Fusion.
Meanwhile, Arthur had inflicted grave injuries upon Sirius due to the half-blood's audacious gambit. However, he soon realized there was more to Sirius's attack than met the eye. Before him, a dire tableau unfolded, leading Arthur to assume an alliance between Sirius and Saisha, aimed at killing him.
"Saishaaaaaa! I am not going down without a fight."
Arthur's realization was punctuated by a scream as he forwent his battle with Sirius, focusing instead on his impending groundward descent. With a trump card to play, Arthur activated inscrutable runes etched upon his spear, enhancing its lethality to an extent that even Saisha would be unable to parry.
This desperate move came at a great cost to Arthur, sapping a significant portion of his life essence. He would not have resorted to such a maneuver if his back weren't against the wall.
In the blink of an eye, three Grandmasters unleashed their cataclysmic assaults. They each used their Trump Cards to land a decisive blow upon each other.
Saisha and Sirius bore down upon Arthur, while Arthur aimed his spear at Saisha's heart in a lethal thrust. A surge of mana, each bearing distinct signatures, shrouded these three formidable A-Rankers as their attacks collided.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The unthinkable transpired. Mere moments ago, Arthur and Saisha had contemplated withdrawal, never anticipating a mortal clash between them. But the arrival of Sirius had irreversibly altered the equation.
Saisha's sword breached Arthur's Mana Defense Layer, delivering a grievous wound from his waist to shoulder, nearly bisecting him. Only Arthur's shoulder bone obstructed the blade from completely cleaving him in two, drenching the earth with his Grandmaster blood.
Simultaneously, Arthur's spear bore through Saisha's chest, creating a gaping cavity. Saisha's organs sizzled within from the searing impact due to the Foreign Mana Invasion, preventing immediate bloodshed. Though Arthur's assault did not directly pierce Saisha's heart, his stationary posture had afforded him enough control to deflect Arthur's blow sufficiently to avert immediate death.
Sirius fared marginally better among the trio, yet Arthur's relentless onslaught had exacted its toll. His beastly fur lay in tatters, his bones and inner muscles exposed in various places. He would have been a done deal like Arthur as well if he was not a half-blood.
"Saisha… Despite us being enemies… I… I didn't expect this from someone like you. You've used a hired hand to end me. The Duke of Edinburgh. Do… Do you feel proud?"
Arthur chuckled with a cruel smile as he clutched his impaled heart. Facing impending demise, the Duke of Edinburgh chose to embrace it, rather than flee. In that fateful moment, Arthur decided to decisively trigger the detonation of his mana core, intending to ensnare Saisha within its deadly radius.
Yet, just as Arthur stood poised to trigger a cataclysmic detonation of his A-Rank mana core, a fierce kick abruptly assailed his back. The sheer physical force behind this assault tore through Arthur's flesh, baring his pelvic bone and spine. The force behind this jarring kick could only belong to Sirius.
Sent hurtling back toward Saisha by the momentum of the kick, Arthur's near-instantaneous approach compelled Saisha to instinctively execute another strike. It mirrored his previous attack - same stance, same slash.
This time, Saisha's blade managed to cleave Arthur asunder, severing his life before the malevolent energies of his mana core could unleash their destructive fury upon the world.
At this moment, Arthur Renar, the Duke of Edinburgh, met his end. The reality of this momentous event was so surreal that even his killer found it difficult to fathom that he had, indeed, dispatched the enemy commander in such an unusual turn of events.
Spoiler Chapter title: Arthur's End
AN: Can be skipped.
Arthur Renar, a prominent figure in the VEH universe from Volume 2 until this point, now takes his leave from our narrative. I really wanted Arthur and Eren to engage in one final conversation before his death. There were countless topics to explore, as Arthur's actions, whether direct or indirect, have played a significant role in advancing the storyline of VEH.
However, the way I've crafted Eren's character doesn't permit him to willingly reveal himself to Arthur. Arthur's passing occurred without him ever discovering the puppeteer who had been orchestrating events from the shadows for years, leaving him completely unaware.
From a world-building perspective, this outcome makes sense. Still, as an author, I can't help but feel a twinge of regret over the missed opportunities for revelations, surprises, and those satisfying "gotcha" moments.
It could have been a very entertaining reading experience to witness Eren divulge his schemes to Arthur. Nevertheless, for better or worse, I'm committed to maintaining the integrity of Eren's character and adhering to the stringent rules of VEH's world setting. So yeah. That's about it. Goodbye, Arthur. ;)
