"HA HA HA HA HA! Is that all you've got?!" Rhades cackled confidently. "Mister Captain of the Crimson Lio—"
boomf.
spak.
Suddenly, everything stopped. The projectiles all vanished, and the column around Fuegoleon did too. Heck, even Rhades shut up.
From Fuegoleon's extended finger, a singular line of blazing yellow extended toward Carl, shattering the barrier and piercing his chest.
The poor zombie turned to look down, trying to take a closer look, but—
boomf.
Crack.
FWOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!
A massive inferno burst from within him, engulfing him, charcoal-ifying him completely.
Flame Magic: Sol Linea!
"!!" Rhades turned around slowly, his eyes wide as he stared at his best zombie turning to ashes before him.
"In the instant you attack with your projectiles, for just a moment, the mana of the barrier thins in places. I aimed for just that." Fuegoleon suddenly shouted."Listen well!! Because you are Magic Knights, you will find yourselves constantly pitted against powerful enemies and magic! When it happens, if you gauge their abilities calmly and maintain a bold fighting spirit, you will never lose!!"
"Is that clear?!"
'Heh... That's my big brother for you!!!'
"Yes sir!!"
'He saw the weakness in that one instant... and he even psyched his allies up!!!' Asta gazed at Fuegoleon with admiration.'So that's a Magic Knights Captain!! Man... He's so awesome!!!'
'Holy fuck... I didn't even see that coming!' Ray gasped internally.'Would... I be able to defend against that? Probably not... my Blut wouldn't be able to defend against such a concentrated and heated attack... Dodge it? No... the wind-up time for that is too small. I'd have to predict it... Wait! Predict?! My battle instinct might be able to! But still... since I can't control it, I can't rely on it... so without that... dodging is a very slim chance... Wow... this man... Fuegoleon... He's fire. Literally!!!'
Unknown to Ray at that time, he had finally managed to recreate Asta's star eyes.
"NO!!! NO NO NO NO NO NO!!! This can't be! You're joking! YOU'RE JOKING!!! YOU BASTARD!!! HOW DARE YOU!!!!" Rhades screamed, clutching his forehead and crashing out."HOW DARE YOU BURN MY CARL!!! CARL!!! CARL!!!!!!!!!!"
Just then, another explosion rang out. David, the corpse that had been fighting Leopold and Noelle, exploded, getting torn into smithereens.
"NOOOO!!!! YOU BASTARDS!!! MY PRECIOUS RESOURCES!!!! NOOOO!!!! DAVID!!!!"
Leopold, breathing heavily, pumped his fist into the air."We took advantage of the gaps in the enemy's mana and evaporated it with intense firepower!!"
"That's the spirit! Well done!!" Fuegoleon exclaimed, grinning, without batting an eye at Rhades's outburst."That's what qualifies you to lead this country as royals!!"
"Yessir!!"
"Yes, big bro!!"
"It can't be... That can't be!!!" Rhades screamed, preparing his magic for a desperate counter."I've got just as much magic as a royal!! Watch me! I'll—"
Flame Binding Magic: Leo Palma!!!
"NO!!! LET ME GO!!! YOU PIECE OF—"
"There are many things I want to ask you!" Fuegoleon interrupted as he approached Rhades."Before I do, I'm going to confiscate your grimoire."
"NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! DON'T!!! GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF MY GRIMOIRE!!! NOOO!!!!"
"!" Fuegoleon picked up the grimoire and showed a mild expression of surprise.'What is this?! This grimoire... It has only one page?!'
"DON'T LOOK!!! QUIT LOOKING!!!"
'This guy... can only use one spell?!'
"GIVE IT BACK!!!! I HATE YOU MAGIC KNIGHTS!! YOU WILL NEVER ACKNOWLEDGE ME!!! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!!!"
"Shut up!" Asta yelled, standing unsteadily due to his injuries."You... couldn't you have made people acknowledge you some other way? Even though you've got that awesome magic... Even though you've got so much power... What a waste!!!"
Rhades abruptly shut up, staring at Asta with wide eyes. Fuegoleon smiled.
"You were able to overcome adversity, but what you lacked... was just a heart!" Fuegoleon said."Now, you pay for your crimes!"
Rhades grit his teeth, rage boiling over.
'Pay for my crimes? Who?! Me!? NEVER!!! NEVER NEVER NEVER!!! NOT UNTIL I RAZE THIS KINGDOM TO THE GROUND!!!'
Suddenly, a voice rang out.
"You're satisfied now, I trust..." it said.
"As I thought... defeating a captain was too much to ask of your power alone. Sometimes you can't win, even with enormous magic. Catherine was careless and lost as well."
"Huh? A voice...?" Asta muttered as the clearing fell silent.
Fuegoleon was on high alert. Ray frowned and stepped forward, closer to Fuegoleon.
"My magic is also very near its limit. There will be no more arbitrary actions. Starting now, we'll move according to the plan. For the master's sake..." the voice said, trailing off.
Fuegoleon's alertness peaked, and he turned back toward Rhades.
"You're not alone?! Tell me, what is your plan! What is your objective! Who's behind all this?!" he demanded.
"Our real objective is..." Rhades smiled again, glaring up at Fuegoleon."YOU!!! FUEGOLEON VERMILLION!!!"
crumble...
WHOOSH!
A shadow expanded outward from his feet, rising fast and engulfing Fuegoleon, who watched in disbelief as he couldn't react.
"As for the mastermind...? Why don't you go and meet him yourself?! HA HA HA HA HA!!!" Rhades cackled.
Ray lunged forward, grabbing Fuegoleon's cloak just as the shadows engulfed him completely, and the two were whisked away together.
"BIG BROTHER!!!"
"Mister Fuegoleon! Ray!!"
Asta and Leopold's voices rang out as the last of the shadows disappeared.
___Unknown Location___
Fuegoleon and Ray now stood in a bright place with multiple concentric circles floating in mid-air, all of them made up of elaborate runes.
"What is this place...?!" Fuegoleon muttered before turning to Ray."Black Bulls brat! What you did was highly unsafe! I am a Magic Knights Captain—do you think I wouldn't be able to defend myself!?"
Ray didn't sugarcoat his words as he recalled Fuegoleon's coma and one-armed state from the manga. He wasn't going to let that happen again. Not if he could help it. Although his interference would make the Eye of the Midnight Sun aware of Ray and change the storyline, there was no way he was going to let one of his favorites get hurt like that.
"Yes. You wouldn't be able to." Ray said without hesitation.
Fuegoleon, who was about to continue, stopped at that. He could tell Ray knew something about this place.
At the same time, someone stepped forward—a man clad in white robes.
The man wore white robes with golden runes lining the edges of his oversized sleeves and hood, which was pulled low over his head. He held a tree branch in his hands, twirling it leisurely, glowing eyes staring from the darkness of the hood at Ray and Fuegoleon.
"You're...!" Fuegoleon muttered in surprise."William?!"
The figure laughed haughtily, not responding.
Ray frowned as his Reishi spread outward, helping him analyze the runes floating in the air.
"Mister Fuegoleon, these runes... they reduce the effectiveness of all magic cast within them by half. Only the creator of this rune barrier can use his magic at 100% power." He reported quickly as he drew his Heilig Bogen.
Hearing this, Fuegoleon's frown deepened, adding to his confusion about the man's identity.
Just then, the man abruptly stopped laughing.
"Good observation, boy. You've got a keen eye." He spoke as something began forming behind him."What the boy says is true, Mister Magic Knights Captain. Though, I must apologize to you, as I am not William. Perhaps, after I kill you, I can send him to you and let you meet each other. Would that suffice?"
Multiple light swords formed behind him.
Seeing this, Fuegoleon's trembling heart settled.
At first, he was startled to see someone holding William Vangeance's World Tree branch. No one could keep a branch made of magic permanently unless it was William himself—or he had grown a full-sized World Tree. The latter was impossible; he would have heard news of it.
So there was only one possibility left.
And yet, the light magic swords floating behind the man shattered that conclusion.
William was a World Tree user, not a light magic user.
As for how the man was holding a World Tree branch? Well, only one way to find out.
Beat him up.
With Ray drawing his Heilig Bogen, Fuegoleon followed, preparing his own magic. As he did so, he realized that what Ray had said was correct. His magic effectiveness and power were cut in half! In other words, he needed to be incredibly careful with his own attacks—and watch out for the enemy's.
Meanwhile, the figure just kept smiling at them from underneath the hood, as if waiting for them to finish.
"Go ahead, get ready. I'll wait for you." The man said with an amused smile.
Fuegoleon grit his teeth, frustrated by the fact that he really needed this time. He was at a loss as to how to stop the swords floating behind the man. Light is the fastest element. There was no way to burn it. And any defense he made would just be shredded apart by the sheer speed of the attacks—especially now that his magic's effectiveness was halved.
Ray, meanwhile, kept piling move upon move onto his notched arrow, casting silently.
The area was silent the entire time. No one spoke. Ray and Fuegoleon, after finishing, exchanged a look before stepping forward.
The man smiled at this."Finally~! I was getting bored just waiting~ Well, let's see how you hold up, shall we?" he said as his grin grew and he swiped his hand before him.
Immediately, all the light swords floating behind him launched forward at extreme speeds, shattering the sound barrier.
Fuegoleon activated his magic, focusing entirely on dodging as he exploded flames underneath his feet. Although it wasn't as fast as the swords themselves, it was faster than dodging with just his body.
As Fuegoleon narrowly avoided the group of swords aimed at him, Ray released the notched arrow.
Heilig Pfeil: Volley + Focused Shot + Voltz + Explosion Shot + Lock On + Wave Shot!
The moment the arrow left the bow, it split into thousands of arrows, all of them breaking the sound barrier as Focused Shot and Voltz increased their speed immensely. With Lock On, they followed the nearest light sword and, once within range, detonated.
The result was devastating. All of the swords created by the figure were blasted to smithereens. The remaining arrows fell to the ground, forming a Minenfeld.
The figure's grin finally fell, replaced with shock.
"Impossible!"
Fuegoleon capitalized on the man's momentary shock and struck.
Flame Magic: Sol Linea!
The bright, scalding white line of fire shot forward toward the man, who reacted in the nick of time, jumping high and dodging the attack with impressive prediction skills and reflexes.
However, it wasn't over.
Ray had snuck up on him using Hirenkyaku's air step, his Seele Schneider already transformed into its Dragon Slayer mode.
Seele Schneider: Dragon Slayer + Overpowering Slash!
The massive greatsword came slashing downward toward the man. He responded by twisting his body forcefully in mid-air and creating a light sword to block.
The result was as expected.
The light sword shattered under the force of the swing, leaving a deep wound and sending the man crashing to the ground.
However, the combo was still not over—because the area he landed in was—
The minefield.
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!
A series of explosions rang out as all the arrows in the area detonated, creating a catastrophic scene.
The explosions, in fact, rattled the runic barrier in place. Fuegoleon could feel his magic power growing stronger every time a runic circle in the air shattered. However, at the same time, the light that seemed to be coming from all around them kept dimming with each shattered rune, and the shadows at the far end of the space grew larger.
Thud!
Ray landed next to Fuegoleon, breathing a little fast as they both stared at the continuing explosions.
"You handled that well, kid." Fuegoleon said."I didn't even do much. You handled it well. Yami really has a good eye..." he added, sighing helplessly.
Ray shook his head."If not for your attack, the man wouldn't have dodged, making it harder for me to land my own attacks."
Fuegoleon opened his mouth to say something—but suddenly felt a bad premonition.
Reacting instantly, he shoved Ray out of the way just as a light ray shot out from the smoking minefield and pierced Fuegoleon's arm, severing it completely.
"Run! The shadows brought us here—they might take us back!" he shouted as he grabbed Ray's collar with his remaining hand and detonated flames beneath his legs, propelling them forward.
Sure enough, the moment they hit the shadows, they were absorbed into them, getting teleported out of whatever place they had been in.