In the middle of the massacre, Arthur stood unfazed. With a serious face, he cut down monsters one after another. He pointed two fingers, creating a small star the size of an orange. He flew it through the crowd, melting the goblins flesh.
'Most of the enforcers have died…it should be safe to use this.'
He increases the size of the ball and zoomed it through the monsters. Eventually most of the monsters surrounding were melted down to liquid. The star vanished a more goblins and orcs came his way. He clicked his tongue, gritting his teeth.
'They're endless…'
***
On the other hand, Maple was doing the same, frantically cutting down the monsters. The monsters stood no chance against the grandmaster as she swung her katana with refined mastery. She stopped for a moment, wiping the blood off her face.
'We need to get out of here…but how…?'
She questioned, rushing forward. In the corner of her eye, she saw Arthur fighting, unfazed by the massacre. She changed direction and headed towards him.
'We going to have to work to together if we must survive.'
She knew that not many enforcers were alive at this point. Probably only Nyx, Arthur and Herself would be the last in the direst situation. She hoped that was not the case. As she neared the lieutenant general, the long – haired demon appeared behind her captain. Maple's eyes widened as the demon lifted its stone spear, seemingly planning to attack Arthur.
It swung twice quickly, forming two slashes that headed towards Arthur very quickly. Sensing an attack coming from behind, Arthur spun around. But he would not realize that this action would change him forever. His eyes widened in shock as he saw a white-haired figure in front of him – Maple. She had taken the strike for him. She stumbled and fell back. Arthur caught her in his arms, his heart aching.
"Maple…?" He called out, scanning her body.
The shales covered her entire upper body as blood streamed out of them. She coughed up some blood as her vision began to blur.
"Arthur…?" She replied, groggily.
"Maple! Maple! Can you hear me?"
Maple heard Arthur calling out for her as her ears rang heavily. Her life began flashing before her eyes, a smile tugging at her lips. She saw the first time she had met Arthur at the Stratos academy while they were still in their youth.
'I was a beauty of sorts since I was child…men fawned over me for all my life but…but you were the only one that made my heart flutter like crazy…'
She saw her younger self blushing at Arthur's face when they met at the entrance ceremony. Her heart still ached with love for him to this day.
'You didn't reply to my feelings in any way…was that because of your pride or something else…I wouldn't know…since, I wanted to make you fall for me first anyways…'
Arthur raised his head, shouting for help.
"Hey! Anyone help! Maple is bl-!"
His sentence was cut off as another explosion resounded, killing who knows how many people. Arthur realized the disparity of the situation. He locked his hollow eyes with Maple.
"I'm sorry…" He whispered as tears formed in his eyes.
Maple smiled – he didn't need to apologize. She used the last bit of her strength to lift her hand. She pulled Arthur's head down and parted her lips. Arthur eyes widened, his heart skipping a beat as Maple brought him closer. Their lips touched – a kiss. It was brief but it made both their hearts flutter. Maple savored every bit of it, the feeling of touching Arthur's lips with her made her relish in delight.
Then, she let go as she coughed up more blood. Nearing death, she looked at her captain's shocked face once again with a smile. She had broken her promise of making him fall in love first and yet she didn't regret it all. With a soft smile, her lit once more as she said in a gentle tone.
"I love you…"
Time seemed to slow down for moments as Arthur processed what happened. The sorrow – the hopelessness – the despair – the kiss – the fire in his heart, all of it seemed so alien to him. Then, as Maple utter her final words, her hand fell to the ground. Her body went cold – her smile froze as if she had been frozen alive. Arthur gaged, trying to scream – trying to do something but couldn't.
He lifted his head and opened his mouth. Then, with a choking breath, he let out a primal scream that froze the battlefield for a singular moment.
"MAPLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"
Blood streamed down his eyes as his mind finally broke. He began laughing manically, trying to forget to pain. He activated his attribute, letting out stars condensed into beams of power that cut down every monster. He scorched the ground, melted the ground and cut down every tree. He stood slowly, carrying Maple' dead body and carried it while moving forward.
In the crossfire of his attack, Amelia was cut in half from her hips. Her pupils dilated as she uttered her final words.
"Captain…?"
Arthur glanced at her – feeling nothing. He utter any name nor did he react as if Amelia was stranger to him. Then, as her body touched the grass, he continued to move forward. He placed Maple in a safe as his star beams continued to destroy everything around. He took one last look at Maple before chuckling. He spun around, increasing his output. Blood poured down his nose as the death zone was covered in light. The demons backed off, their flesh being scorched by Arthur.
With each step, his laughed more manically. He wasn't the same Arthur anymore. The one who wanted to save everyone – the one everyone looked up to – the one everyone relied on. No…a new beginning awaited him, far from his current self. He continued to move forward.
"Where are you~?" He said in a sadistic voice.
He searched for the demon that killed Maple. Nyx protected herself from Arthur's attack with her attribute. He darkness barely reflected the power of a pure star.
"What the hell happened to him…?" She questioned, closing an eye.
The demons panicked as Arthur approached.
"If that hits us for too long, we'll die!" The white-robed stated.
"You did this! Deal with it!" The noble demon ordered the naked one.
"Hell no! I'm not going against that!" The naked demon shouted.
But before they could discuss further, Arthur's sinister voice rang out amongst the hail of explosions.
"Found you~"
The lieutenant general looked like a demon himself as he pointed his beams at the demons. The noble demon panicked, creating a barrier around them.
"Where is the prince?!" He screamed, maintaining the barrier.
Just then, his prayers were answered.
An immense aura descended upon the battlefield, stronger than even Nyx's. Arthur stopped attacking – alerted by the aura. Nyx froze – her shadows flickered rapidly as a chill ran down her spine. For the first time in her life, she felt…FEAR.