Sync of Summer

“Sachi… Wait…”

Teri heaved as he crawled through the screen of burnt glitter and smoke.

They took a gamble.

They lost.

Teri gritted his teeth. Great. Tears welled in his eyes. Fuck. He said to himself that he would fight. He said that he would protect whatever this was. He said that it would be different. But what was the plan anyway? Why did he think that it would be a good idea for them to rush into the room, ignore the boss, get Yayoi’s sister, and get out? Why did he think that it would work?

Why was he compelled to do that?

A pained laugh escaped from his gritted, bloodstained teeth.

That didn’t matter.

Teri was weak.

It was all the same.

Teri couldn’t do it.

But still.

“Yayoi…” Teri mumbled. “Let’s go… It’s fine—”

A stab to his lower back.

Whatever breath he had left escaped.

A Gray Knight. From his left side. One found him.

Teri coughed. He wondered where the other Gray Knights were. He kept crawling forward. This was it. He was going to die. He was bleeding out.

“Yayoi… Get… get the fuck out…”

If that was the case, then the fucking Gray Knight that chose not to kill him had made a big mistake

“YAYOI!” Teri screamed, his voice strained from the pain of his breaking body. “TAKU… EVERYONE, GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HERE! SAVE YOURSELF—”

Another stab.

The dumbass stabbed his back, barely missing his spine.

So there was one more.

Teri chuckled.

One Gray Knight on his side. One Gray Knight in front of him.

Like a sad, deflating balloon… Teri slowly closed his eyes, burning the sight of the Gray Knights’ shadow into his brain as everything went dark.

Two Gray Knights.

That meant… Yayoi only had to worry about two others. If she followed her sister toward the northwestern door, then she would live. Taku was somewhat near the entrance, which meant he could escape too.

It was a shame.

Teri didn’t get a good look at their faces.

Teri didn’t even look.

“REJOICE, KIDDO!”

A man’s hearty laugh resounded—so large and booming the air shivered. Teri opened his eyes. He lifted his face. For a moment, he feared for the safety of the Gray Knights around him. A cheerful shadow with red, glowing eyes emerged from the wall of smoke with his right fist clenched. He punched the knight in front of Teri so hard that it conjured an x-ray snapshot of the monster’s skull breaking upon the force of its impact.

The blow rang out in a trumpet of metal crushing metal, followed by the thud of the knight crashing and bouncing across the floor.

The shadow was a bald old man with a joyful gray beard.

But what about the other Gray Knight? Teri turned his head to the other side.

There was a man in a butler uniform. He had a pair of bangs; it was so long and so straight that it looked like curtains covering his eyes on both sides of his face. The bangs didn’t even flap in the wind. They were pinned against his face, held in place by what was likely an ungodly amount of hair wax and the glimmering frame of his glasses.

“Knight-san, it’s time to go to bed…” he declared elegantly, hushed and romantic, and smashed a rock against the monster’s head. He was using Taku’s weapon, a rock tied to the end of a rope. He attacked the Gray Knight again to keep it down until the bald old man crushed its head with his foot.

The old man knew how to use Zone.

“Do the impossible… See the invisible… Row… Row… Fuck… This room… too big!” Taku caught his breath. He placed his hand over Teri’s head to cast a healing spell. “Anyway… I’m here. I gotchu… I gotchu—”

“It’s like seeing the face of an angel…”

Teri mumbled with a weak smile, tears running down his cheek not only because of the thought of Taku coming to save him but also from the painful process of his broken bones piercing themselves back together inside his skin. He wanted to scream. He was forced to cough out some blood, but he felt a little better after.

Soon enough, the feeling in his legs came back.

“Yeeeeeaaah, I’m amazing… You don’t have to tell me twice,” Taku said as he helped him up, a bright smile masking his worry. The bald old man and the butler were on standby, waiting for the smoke to completely disappear. “I may need a wingman letter, so… you better thank me by telling me how to introduce myself to girls. I mean, I’m great… and I’m not telling you to glaze my ass to high heaven… buuuuuut… You feel me?”

“That’s a pretty fucked up thing to say to a person you just healed.” Teri smiled, both confused and at peace at the sight of his friend. “But fine…”

“You know we can hear you both, right?” The butler said, his words oozing with elegance, which made Teri want to scream. “But… you did save us. I guess we can turn a blind eye… for now. Who are we to deny young men and women from their… budding… passionate… puppy… love? Isn’t that right… old man?”

The bald old man barked a hearty laugh, grabbing his right shoulder and rolling it back. “ANYONE WHO HEALED MY BACK IS A FRIEND OF MINE. FOR NOW, THE MAGIC MAN IS A FRIEND, AN ALLY UNTIL THIS SHIT IS DONE. IF HE BECOMES WEIRD, THEN WE’LL BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF HIM!” He laughed once again to the point of shedding some tears, his tone was more cheerful and scarier than the last. “FOR NOW—”

“Where’s Yayoi?” Teri asked. He looked around, wiping the blood from his face and squinting in hopes his vision would let him wade through the circling dust and glitter around them.

“I’m here…” Yayoi muttered, her voice weak and almost a whisper.

The smoke itself parted to let Teri see Yayoi in full view. She eyed Teri up and down, grimacing at the patches of blood, the burns, and the dirt on his clothes.

“You look like shit…” Yayoi joked, averting her pained eyes from them—from Teri in particular. In her hand was a Gray Knight’s head. “I was keeping the smoke going… The other knight probably went to the Witch already. I think they’re waiting for us to make a move—”

“You okay?” Teri asked, looking straight at her.

“Yeah.” Yayoi didn’t even look his way. She nodded to herself, keeping her smile tight. Her lips trembled. “I’m good.”

Taku clapped Yayoi’s shoulder and healed her. “There’s only one Gray Knight left…” He wiped the blood dripping from his nose as he turned and faced the others. “Other than that… the Witch already cast two big spells. I’m not against the idea of running… but assuming that there’s a limit, this is looking pretty winnable.”

“You… saw how the knights chased that girl outside, right? I don’t think they would willingly let us go.” Yayoi crossed her arms. “If they do follow us… where do we take them? I say we fight.”

“What about them?” Teri asked. “Are they in?”

“AS LONG AS I GET TO PUNCH THAT BITCH IN THE FACE,” the bald old man replied, his thundering voice sounding a bit more excited. “BUT I'M IN WITH THE MAGIC MAN REGARDLESS… THE ALLIANCE ENDS WHEN WE’RE ALL SAFE.”

“I am also forced to settle my debt… for that is… my way…” the butler added, his voice hushed and heavy—almost sounding like a moan. “I will be with Taku… until I deem my favor to be repaid… and so you know it would be quite… big.”

“So…” Yayoi combed her hair. She was looking at Taku. “What’s the plan then?”

Taku gazed back at Yayoi and then looked at Teri, beaming and still as innocent as ever. Teri could only guess that it was his cue.

“Sachi…” Teri shook his head. “It’s best to assume that the people that took Sachi belonged to the group we’re worried about. I’m sure they’ll come back, knowing that there’s less Gray Knights to fight. It’s better for us to get the key from this room… It’s better for us to be one step closer to clearing this floor… this dungeon.”

Teri chose not to pick up his shield. He switched his magic ring from his right hand to his left. He raised his head. They were looking at him—well, except one. But none of them were afraid.

It dawned on him.

What was the plan? Why did he think it would be a good idea? Why was he compelled to do what he did to the point of facing the same monster that nearly killed him again?

Why wasn’t he running?

Teri grinned. “We’re taking them on. Right here. Right now.”

It was because this view wasn’t half bad.