Chapter 30

I launched off toward Yukino with blistering speed. I felt the flames all throughout my body. I was stronger, faster, and more powerful than I ever was before. I felt my rage consume me and my actions. And I welcomed it. Yukino was now my prime target, and I wanted nothing more than to steal the life from her soul. I dodged every spell she fired at me, returning fire with my gun manifestation, wounding her further. She again threw her manifestation at me and I easily deflected it with my replica of it. As I got closer to her, I could see the panic replacing the maniacal bloodlust she had in her eyes. She threw her hands into the air and let out a hellish roar as the white halo-like sigil behind her illuminated brightly. She then threw her hands down, and the crest erupted with a thunderous explosion. A white beam of pure magical energy shot out directly at me. I crossed my flaming wings in front of me and shielded myself from the attack, blocking it. I dug my heels into the ground, bracing myself against the beam. The force of it started to slowly push me back, my feet sliding backward and tearing up the ground. I let out frustrated grunts and the flaming wings roared and increased intensity. Yukino screamed again as the intensity of the beam increased, until, with a whimper, Yukino’s energy faded, and the beam ceased.

I slowly uncrossed my wings and stared at Yukino. Her chest was heaving, her hair was drenched in sweat, and her eyes were a mix of panic and bloodlust. She lazily tossed out spells; fire balls, ice arrows, light orbs, everything she could muster up after using most of her power in that large beam attack. I easily blocked or dodged each weak attack as I approached Yukino. The halo-crest behind her slowly faded away, vanishing into the air behind her as she collapsed to her knees.

“What the hell are you, Ryuki? When did...” Yukino slammed her fist into the ground. “You weren’t this strong before! Akito said you’d be easy prey; I thought you’d be a push over!”

I conjured the naginata manifestation, the clone of Yukino's, and threw it at her, impaling her shoulder. I said nothing as I stood in front of her, merely meters away, and raised my hand. I had it in my mind how I wanted to kill her; how I wanted her to experience my revenge. It was something I only recently learned of; something I was shown by Ichiro. It nearly killed me before, but I knew that with the power I wielded now, I could use it without any negatives. I started to chant the spell I used once before.

“Void, eclipse this world.” I started the spell and Yukino’s eyes went wide. She must have been told about the mall incident before coming to hunt us down. “Take back what you hath given, take back what we have stole.”

“No... you can’t seriously be using that on me! Like hell I’ll let that hap-”

Before she could finish or even attempt to run away, I brought my other hand and caused roots to erupt from the ground and wrap around her legs and bind her face, covering her mouth. She let out muffled screams of defiance as she struggled against the roots. I continued chanting the Abyss spell as she struggled.

“Remove from here the essence of your world, obliterate those who seek to abuse you.” I felt none of the side effects I had before. I felt powerful, as if the spell was natural. “Drain and purge this land.” The flames surrounding me started to darken to an unnatural, otherworldly black. The visage around me was nothing short of demonic. “Reclaim your powerful gift of mana.”

Yukino was screaming behind the roots wrapped around her mouth and writhed against the roots trapping her legs. She attempted to cast some more weak spells, but I conjured more roots to shoot out and wrap her arms, forcing her to kneel before me. The black flames around my eyes intensified as I neared the end of the spell. My voice started to fill with anger as the fiery dragon attached to me roared with the abyssal inferno.

“Prithee reclaim it...”

My outstretched hand was swarmed in a black mist, the black orb forming in my hand much larger than before. I saw the fear in Yukino’s eyes. This was the moment I had been waiting for these last two years. The moment I strived for and lived for. It was finally here; the chance to kill Yukino Kurosawa, the person responsible for my family's death and their attempted erasure. My muscles flexed and I put weight into the final word, ready to have her removed from existence.

“Aby-”

But then I felt something hit the side of my head, interrupting me. I looked down at the ground and saw the remains of a bullet, one that was crushed and flattened from hitting my mana shield. Even though it was flattened, I could tell it was a bullet from an anti-material rifle. I turned my head to the left and saw a glint of a scope aimed at me, then a burst of fire and another bullet hit my head, directly in my forehead, before disintegrating in the black flames. I saw Marie get up from a prone position behind the rifle and give me a slight wave. I dispersed the flame-dragon around me and canceled the Abyss spell. I looked down at Yukino, still wrapped in roots, and she looked up at me with confusion and relief in her eyes. I let out a deep sigh as I resigned myself to let her live.

***

Yukino was bound in roots, earth, vines, and multiple other forms of bindings, as Tsuki made sure that she wouldn’t move. We were sitting in a back alley some ways away from the dilapidated train station and country roads we were fighting on. I was sitting on a concrete step with my head resting against a metal door as I stared blankly in the air. Marie was standing in front of me with her arms crossed under her chest as she glared at me. Ichiro was leaning against the wall, his eyes darting back and forth from me and Yukino. Tsuki, meanwhile, was crouched next to Yukino, staring daggers into her and raising her hand at any slight movement Yukino made.

“Do you have anything to say?” Marie finally said.

I looked at her, before moving my eyes back to the sky. “I could have killed her. Finally killed her.”

“What happened to running? Why did you fight?”

“Because I thought I could kill them. Kill her.”

“That cut across your chest says otherwise. You could have died.”

“I killed the guy that did this.” I sat up and looked at Marie. “And I could have killed her. I should have. I failed last time, and this time I was going to. My vengeance would be complete.”

“We need a Bishop alive. And you killed the other one. So, we need her alive. I thought you would understand that.”

“I do. But I just saw it. I saw the potential to remove this burden on my conscience that I’ve had for two years.” I slammed my head back on the metal door, ringing out with a thud. I closed my eyes and let out a deep sigh.

Marie sat down next to me and put her hand on my thigh. “I get it. We just need her alive for whatever the agency needs. But after that, I doubt we’ll need her anymore.” She then rested her head on my shoulder. “I’m not upset that you almost killed her. I’m upset you sent me away then tried to fight.”

I opened my eyes and looked over at her. “I didn’t plan on fighting. But it felt like something... awoke in me. Like I had to fight her, then and there.”

“Speaking of awakening something, can you explain that? I felt an immense amount of magical talent from you. In fact, it’s why we came to you guys.” Ichiro said, hunched over unnaturally close to me.

My head shot back in surprise, and it bashed off the metal door again. I shook my head as I stared at Ichiro who was staring into my eyes unblinkingly. He said nothing more and just tilted his head, as if waiting for a response. I glanced over at Marie, who was also now staring at me with questioning eyes. I then heard a dragging noise, and I looked over to see Tsuki dragging Yukino by the hair as she crouched next to Ichiro and was also staring at me with questioning eyes. I let out another sigh.