"I asked if you were alright." Shizuma's voice cut through the fog of Kain's mind.
Kain's eyes snapped open. He was lying on the soft grass of the forest floor. He darted his head from side to side, trying to identify his surroundings. The rustling of leaves, the scent of damp earth—it was all too familiar. A memory, far too vivid to be a dream, of a demon, a destroyed guild, and the deaths of all his friends, flooded his mind. "What the hell?" he whispered to himself, a mix of disbelief and panic in his voice.
"What's wrong with you, Kain?" Shizuma asked, his voice laced with concern.
Kain's mind was scrambled, but he had to maintain his composure. He had to keep them safe this time. He took a deep breath. "I'm... fine."
"You sure?"
"Yeah, I'm sure."
Shizuma, his senses far more attuned to the auras of others, felt a weird, faint energy coming from Kain. It was too subtle to be alarming, but it was there, and it was unlike anything he'd ever felt. He chose to ignore it for now. "If you say so," he said, still skeptical.
"We're here!" Rin's cheerful voice announced from ahead.
Coming out of the forest, they were met with the lively sights and sounds of the village. The bustling streets, the people of various races, the shops—it was all exactly as he remembered it. "Finally, other people!" Silas exclaimed, a wide smile on his face.
As Kain looked at the village, he was filled with a sense of dread. That was far too real to be a dream, he thought to himself. Every detail, every sound... it was a memory.
Rin led the way to the guild. On the way, the group was met with people of various races and backgrounds—dwarves, lizardfolk, and the occasional beastkin.
"Hey, look, it's a dog person," Kuren whispered to Silas, a mischievous glint in his eye.
"Don't say those types of things in public," Silas whispered back, giving Kuren a stern look.
"Sorry," Kuren mumbled, a small pout on his face.
As they made their way to the guild, Shizuma noticed that Kain was unusually on guard. He was constantly scanning his surroundings, his body language tense and coiled like a spring. This, paired with the faint aura Shizuma had felt earlier, made him realize that Kain wasn't actually alright.
"Here's the guild. WE'RE COMING IN!" Rin announced as she pushed the doors open.
Everyone greeted Rin warmly as she walked to the front desk. She seemed very popular in the guild, just as Kain remembered. Everything is happening in the exact order of what I had seen, he thought to himself, the reality of his situation setting in.
"Glad to be back! I found these four down in the dungeon and brought them here to register with the guild," Rin explained to the receptionist, Akemi.
"Okay, could you four please form a single-file line for me," Akemi replied.
They lined up starting from Silas to Kuren, Shizuma, and finally Kain.
Akemi passed out the forms. "Alright, if you could fill out this form first."
Silas looked at the form. For place of origin, what should I put? he thought, his brow furrowed in confusion.
"Excuse me, but we actually suffer from memory loss and don't remember much. Is it fine if we leave 'place of origin' blank?" Silas asked Akemi.
"Of course! I'm sorry to hear that you guys lost your memories," Akemi said, her warm smile filled with sympathy.
While the others were filling out the forms, Shizuma took the chance to ask Kain what was actually wrong with him. "Kain, I know you're not alright. Tell me what's wrong," he whispered to Kain.
Kain, who was very on guard, got startled. He leaned in close to Shizuma's ear, his voice barely a whisper. "I think... I know the future."
"What do you mean?" Shizuma whispered back, his eyes narrowing in confusion.
Akemi came out with a dark blue orb that seemed to be lighter in the middle. "Please put your hand on the orb," she said to Silas.
Kain's mind was racing. He knew exactly what was going to happen next. He leaned in and whispered to Shizuma, "Silas is going to put his hand on the ball, but nothing's going to happen. It happens to all of us."
Silas extended his hand and slowly pressed it on the orb. They waited for a second, but nothing happened.
"Uhm, I don't know why it's not working. Sorry, allow me to get another magic ball," Akemi said, her face a mask of confusion.
Silas rested his hand on the second one, but the same result occurred.
"I don't know what's going on. I'm very sorry, sir."
"It's okay, I don't mind starting off at F-Rank," Silas replied, a strange feeling of foreboding in the back of his mind.
Kuren went up next, and the same thing happened. He accepted it but couldn't hide his disappointment. The same thing occurred for Shizuma and Kain.
"Sorry for the inconvenience, but I'm going to have to start you guys at F-Rank," Akemi said, pity in her voice.
Shizuma, now looking at Kain with a mix of shock and dread, realized that everything Kain had told him was coming true. "That's fine," he said to Akemi, still staring at Kain. "Do we also sell magic stones here?"
Akemi's face brightened. "Yes! You can give them to us, and when we analyze them, we will give you appropriate rewards."
Kain stopped for a second. That wasn't right. Silas didn't say that in my memories, he thought. Shizuma did. A cold dread began to settle in his stomach. This wasn't a perfect memory. The future was changing.
"That didn't happen," Kain mumbled to himself.
"What?" Shizuma asked, his eyes filled with worry.
As they put their small amount of crystals on the table, Shizuma looked over at Kain, who was visibly shaking, his face pale and clammy. He was in deep distress. "Kain?" he asked, his voice filled with concern.
"Behold, team!" Kuren announced, a mischievous glint in his eyes. A pile of magic stones began to pour from his hand. "I like the surprised looks on people's faces. Go ahead and praise me!"
"So how much will this give us?" Shizuma asked, his mind reeling from everything that had just happened, his concern for Kain pushing aside his usual pragmatism.
"Hold on, there are a lot of good stones in here! Give us a minute while we analyze them," Akemi said.
Shizuma took the opportunity to try and calm Kain down. "Hey, what did you say back there?" he whispered to Kain.
"I said that didn't happen!" Kain replied, his voice a panicked whisper. "I need some air." With that, he left the guild to get some fresh air.
"Hold on guys, I'll go talk to him," Shizuma said, following Kain outside.
Shizuma followed Kain outside of the guild, finding him leaning against the stone wall, his head in his hands, breathing heavily.
"Kain," Shizuma said, his voice quiet. "Silas wasn't the one who said that back there. You did!"
Shizuma's voice was firm. "Are you sure you're alright? How do you know any of this?"
Before Kain could answer, Silas and Kuren came out of the guild, a bag of coins in hand.
"Kain, are you alright?" Silas asked, concern etched on his face.
Kain didn't answer. His eyes darted around anxiously as he looked up into the sky. He knew what was about to happen next. He closed his eyes, clutching his head with both hands. "We're all gonna die," he muttered, his voice a terrified whimper.
"Woah, what happened to you?" Silas asked, confused by Kain's sudden breakdown.
"Maybe we should find an inn and call it a day," Kuren suggested, his usually cheerful demeanor gone.
Just then, Shizuma froze. His senses flared to life, feeling a rush of malevolent energy screaming toward their location. It was the same feeling he had the last time, but now it was a warning he wouldn't ignore. He turned his head toward the sky and saw it—a massive, fiery projectile heading straight for the guild.
"WATCH OUT!" he screamed, grabbing Kain and pulling him down to the ground.
The sky was suddenly torn apart by a streak of crimson light, followed by a sound like a mountain being split in two. The ground buckled, and a wave of superheated air hit the group, making their clothes whip and their eyes water. A blinding explosion of dust and debris erupted into the sky, swallowing the Adventurer's Guild whole. The air filled with the scent of burnt wood and scorched earth, and as the smoke began to clear, all that was left was a smoldering ruin.
"What the hell was that!?" Shizuma shouted, his face covered in soot.
"I don't know," Silas replied, his voice filled with shock.
Kain's voice, however, was quiet and steady, his earlier panic gone, replaced by a cold, dreadful calm. "It's a demon."
Rin, her face streaked with soot and her hair disheveled, ran out of the smoke, her eyes wide with terror. "GUYS!" she screamed, her voice hoarse from yelling.
"Rin, what's going on!?" Silas yelled back, trying to be heard over the sounds of panicked villagers and distant screams coming from inside the destroyed guild.
"A demon fell into the guild! I'm currently evacuating the citizens while the others are trying to stall for time," she yelled, gesturing toward the chaos. "If you guys don't want to fight, I won't blame you..." She trailed off as she looked at Kain.
Kain, seeing the carnage and hearing the screams, began to have a panic attack. The past had replayed, and now the present was happening again, exactly as he remembered it. His breath came in short, panicked gasps, and he began to tremble uncontrollably.
"Get yourself together, Kain!" Shizuma shouted, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him.
Kain's mind was racing, a whirlwind of panicked thoughts. He saw his friends falling again, felt the cold of the demon's blade again. But then, a thought broke through the panic. If I do nothing, we all die. Again. A cold calm settled over him, and his trembling stopped. "I'm alright... I'm alright," he said, taking a deep, shuddering breath.
Silas, watching Kain's sudden change from panic to focus, turned his gaze to the ruined guild. "So, we're going to fight the demon, right?"
"Wait, Silas," Kain said, his voice now a steady, strategic whisper. "We don't have much time."
"What?" Silas asked, his eyes filled with urgency.
"You have an ability that triggers with extreme emotions," Kain explained, his eyes fixed on Silas. "If you don't figure out how to trigger, we will die!"
Silas stared at Kain, confusion etched on his face. He didn't know what Kain was talking about, but he knew his friend wouldn't joke in a situation this serious. "Alright, I'll take your word for it," he said, and with that, the team was united in a new, desperate plan.
From the crater, the massive demon emerged, its body radiating an aura of pure, bloodthirsty power. It held one of the guild members by the throat, a cruel smirk on its face as it toyed with the man's life. "You guys are all weak!" it roared, its voice a taunt that echoed through the now-silent streets. "Is there no one here who can best me in combat!?"
Silas, his expression a mix of fury and resolve, stepped forward. He looked the demon directly in its burning red eyes. "Yeah! The people you speak of are right here!" he shouted, his voice ringing with newfound confidence.
"Well, let me see what you've got!" the demon roared back, its tone a mix of amusement and annoyance.
Unlike the last time, Kain's first move was not a desperate one. He shot a spear of ice, but this time, it was aimed directly at the demon's heart, a tactical decision based on his foreknowledge. The demon easily caught the spear, its smirk unwavering as it killed the guy in its hand.
But that was only the beginning of the plan. Shizuma, his eyes narrowed with a cold resolve, summoned his shadow Licht, but instead of a disorienting attack, he used his summon as a direct combatant. Licht went in to fight the demon, but the demon simply swatted it away.
The demon smirked, but as it did so, a chilling cold began to creep up its back. It moved to block Licht's next attack, but that was all the time it took. Kuren appeared behind the demon and attempted to slash its back with a dagger. The demon, however, was still too fast. It blocked Licht's attack and grabbed Kuren by the throat in the same motion.
Just as it was about to squeeze, Silas, with a burst of speed, came to cut off the arm that held Kuren. The demon, panicking, cast a fireball at him. Silas, with the new knowledge from Kain, had his mind clear. He didn't reflect it with his mark; instead, he reflected it elsewhere, a precise, controlled action. As the fireball flew off into a building behind him, he plunged his short sword into the demon's arm, cutting it off.
"AACK!" the demon cried out, a cry of genuine pain for the first time.
Seizing the opportunity, Shizuma respawned his Licht and, taking his weapon, a scythe made of shadows, went in with Kuren. Together, they pushed the demon on the defensive. The demon, with only one arm, was clearly struggling against their coordinated assault.
"I WILL NOT BE BEATEN HERE!" the demon roared, its voice now filled with a mix of fury and fear. It regenerated its arm in a flash of dark energy and, in a fit of rage, stabbed Shizuma through the chest with its other arm.
Kuren jumped back as a fireball erupted from the demon's regenerated arm and flew straight toward him. It was a direct hit.
Shizuma's seemingly lifeless body fell to the ground. But unlike last time, Kuren simply took the hit, his body absorbing the blast. The demon, still in a rage, focused his attention back on Kain and Silas, but he sensed a immense, ominous energy coming from their direction.
The demon met gazes with Silas, who now had the Demon God's Mark flaring on his right hand. The demon's eyes went wide in terror. It was a primal fear, a recognition of power it had only seen in its own Demon King. "YOU MUST DIE HERE!" it roared, a desperate, final plea.
Silas, now a blur of power, instantly closed the distance between them. The demon, fueled by fear, put everything it had into its defense, but it was no match for Silas's enhanced speed and strength. The demon and Silas exchanged many fierce blows before the demon was sent flying back.
"THIS IS THE END!" the demon roared, sending ten fireballs toward the group in a last, desperate attack.
Kain, his face a mask of calm determination, summoned an ice wall. Silas, landing on it, used it as a springboard, jumping off and breaking the ice wall into a thousand pieces as he closed in on the demon.
The demon was barely holding on as Silas's attacks rained down on him. "THIS WILL NOT BE MY END!" the demon roared, its voice filled with a futile rage.
The demon's perspective switched to first-person as its head flew off into the air. "What..." it thought, its eyes wide with disbelief. As its head turned, it saw Kuren behind it, his dagger covered in black demonic blood.
"How..." the demon thought, its final word an incredulous whisper. Its eyes closed. It was dead.
Silas stared at the demon's decapitated body for a second, his body still tense from the fight.
"Silas, we did it!" Kuren shouted, a wide, triumphant grin on his face.
Silas, not saying a word, collapsed to the ground, his body going limp.
"Silas?" Kain said, rushing to his friend's side. He flipped Silas over, checking for a pulse. "Okay, he's still breathing. Phew."
"Kain, Shizuma's not waking up!" Kuren said, his voice filled with concern.
Kain rushed over to Shizuma's body and began to check him for a pulse. He realized that even though he had been stabbed in the chest, weirdly enough, there was no blood. Just a neat, flesh wound.
"Kuren," Kain whispered, a look of understanding dawning on his face. "Shizuma's summon... it took the wound for him. It's a good thing, otherwise he wouldn't have made it."
Shizuma's eyes seemed to light up again. He jolted up, gasping for air. "Did we beat him?" he asked, his eyes immediately landing on the decapitated demon's corpse.
"Yeah," Kain said, a small, weary smile on his face. "And we're all okay."