"HAHAHA! I suppose you're right!" the girl exclaimed with a big smile while doing her typical pose with her arms akimbo. "You can count on me, Alu! We'll definitely save Ruth!"
Alioth's eyebrow curved as he gave her a skeptical look.
"Alu? Who's that?" the boy asked.
Nora tilted her head, as if she didn't understand why Alioth hadn't understood that.
"Well, you. Isn't it obvious? It's like when you call someone named Alexander Alex," she explained calmly.
Alioth rolled his eyes.
"A nickname basically?"
Nora nodded.
"Yes, that's it!" she responded happily.
"And when did I give you permission to talk to me like that? Besides, wouldn't the nickname for Alioth be Ali?" the boy asked with a raised eyebrow.
Nora simply shrugged, dismissing it.
"Yeah, whatever. We're friends, right?" she said calmly. "Besides, Ali sounds like a girl," she added.
Alioth lowered his gaze. Wind and light spirits tinged the air with golden and jade lights.
Friends?
It had been a long time since he'd heard about that.
In his former life he had come to have friends, or so he thought.
He didn't remember any of them going to visit him when he was in a coma.
Maybe he wasn't always conscious. Maybe they came without him knowing.
But Alioth only had the certainty that his brother had visited him.
"Pyun?" a voice then said.
A small gelatinous sphere of sky-blue color looked at Alioth with concern.
As if it knew he wasn't well.
That brought a smile to the white-haired boy.
It was true. He did have a friend.
"Yes, I suppose we are," he finally said.
He couldn't let himself be affected by things from the past. Besides, he didn't want to start an argument with Nora or anything like that.
"By the way, what's that cute little thing?" the blonde then said, noticing Abzu.
The small sphere vibrated and jumped on Alioth's head with a cheerful attitude.
"Pyun Kyun!" the spirit exclaimed cheerfully while vibrating with enthusiasm.
"His name is Abzu. He's my companion," Alioth explained calmly.
Nora's eyes filled with stars.
"He's so cool! Now that I think about it, the serpent from before was also cool. Who was it?" the blonde asked with excitement.
The white-haired boy just shrugged.
"It was Aida. You already knew her," the boy clarified without giving much importance to the matter.
However, that seemed to surprise Nora even more.
"Really!? That doll turned into something so strong!? How cool!" she exclaimed.
Alioth raised an eyebrow, wondering if there was anything that didn't seem cool to Nora.
"Stay still!" a trembling voice then said.
It was Eirian. He was pointing his bow at them, seeking to threaten them.
"And this one? I thought the brats had been knocked out by Aida's attack," Alioth mentioned carelessly. He was aware that Abzu was capable of blocking Eirian's attacks, so he wasn't a real threat.
However, Nora saw it with different eyes, though not as a threat either.
She perceived something else.
"I don't know who he is, but he doesn't seem like a bad person," Nora affirmed with a relaxed look.
Eirian kept pointing at them. His hands trembled and his gaze was full of doubt.
He didn't really want this. That girl had only come to rescue her friend, someone important to her.
Eirian knew very well what it was to lose someone who matters, a loved one.
He couldn't blame Nora for having come here.
But even with those emotions, he couldn't be weak.
The boy took a deep breath as his gaze hardened.
"I'm not joking. Shut up and don't move," Eirian repeated, this time with a firmer voice.
Alioth raised an eyebrow.
"Well, he doesn't seem like a very pleasant person to me. We should take care of him and force him to tell us where Ruth is," Alioth said while preparing to command Abzu.
However, Nora shook her head and took a step forward.
"It won't be necessary. I believe if we ask him please, he'll cooperate," Nora insisted calmly.
There was no malice in Eirian's eyes. It was as if he was forcing himself to do something he didn't want to do.
Upon seeing Nora take a step forward, he took one back.
"I told you not to move! I'm serious," Eirian repeated, though his voice had become insecure again.
Alioth let out a sigh.
"Are you really going to let him talk to you like that? Where's the Nora who hit me just because she saw me as suspicious?" Alioth complained.
Nora turned around, startled, with some embarrassment on her face.
"Aren't heroes supposed to learn from their mistakes!?" Nora replied, agitated.
Alioth crossed his arms dramatically.
"So using my own spells against me, Nora?" Alioth replied seriously, though deep down he was amused by the situation.
Then, Nora's eyes went wide open. Like a stalking animal.
Alioth raised an eyebrow, confused. Why was she looking at him like that suddenly?
Had he offended her?
Then, before he could react, Nora lunged at an unsuspecting Alioth.
"But wha—"
The boy couldn't finish his sentence. Nora grabbed him by the waist and propelled herself forcefully away from where they had been seconds ago.
Before he could wonder what was happening, a thunderous sound traveled through the air.
Alioth saw it clearly, how three whirlwinds pierced through the air, spinning multiple purple objects in them, hitting the ground with overwhelming force, destroying the ground.
"Looks like they managed to dodge it," Ronald said, somewhat annoyed.
They had combined their Devastra.
Joining the power to create whirlwinds, reinforcing it with Rat's power, and adding octagonal structures to the mix to make it more lethal.
There was no trace left of the abandoned house, only an opening in the ground with stairs leading down.
Most likely the secret hideout.
"Looks like we'll have to deal with certain nuisances," Alioth commented, as Nora set him on the ground.
The girl nodded, with a confident smile on her face.
"I guess it's time to kick some butts," she affirmed, cracking her knuckles.
Alioth sighed.
The real battle was about to begin.