With a thin snap, one of the vines is cut in two. The half-melted blade of Elizabeth's former sword slices through it so easily, it's hard to believe.
When the sword had been melted by the second greater monster, it had stopped glowing by our touch. No longer able to transform mana into strength, we had thought it broken and worthless. I had tested it on a few goblins back then, just in case, but the sword couldn't even make a scratch in their skin.
I can't believe it took so long for me to put the pieces together. The only thing on Earth that can glow like that sword is a mana stone. But mana stones are notoriously difficult to work with, hence why they usually stay in a spherical shape.
In other words, that leaves one of two options:
1. There's some unknown technique discovered by some unknown person, who somehow had in-depth knowledge of celestial magic. They then created the most powerful weapon on the planet and promptly disappeared, never to be heard from again.
2. The sword isn't from Earth.
I don't know about you, but considering recent events, one of those sounds a lot more likely than the other.
After another few snaps, the previously impossible-to-cut vines crumble, and the mangled body of Risus falls to the ground. The remaining vines glide away, wriggling back into the sphere around us, like snakes retreating to safety.
Elizabeth moves over to him, the celestial sword still in hand, and begins to cut away the last few vines. A sudden wriggle from one of the vines makes her hand slip and I see her accidentally nick the side of his hand.
"Be. Careful."
A small trickle of some blue liquid flows out of the tiny papercut-size wound. I swallow. Something about this power is weirdly - for lack of a better word - exciting. The power to wound a god. Is there a greater power in the universe?
Elizabeth removes the last vine from around Risus' neck with a careful cut.
"Is he alright?" I ask Elizabeth.
"I don't know," she replies, "he isn't breathing."
That's... not great.
The cracks have spread far across his mask, reaching all the way to his eyes. I wonder if he was dead by the time we got here or if we took too long to get him out.
"What now?" Vol asks, probably thinking out loud.
"Let's start by getting out of-" I start, but I'm suddenly interrupted as Elizabeth jumps back.
On the floor of vines, the previously unmoving body of Risus has begun making cracking sounds as fingers snap back into place. His twisted neck rotates back towards the front in snapping steps, and his knees pop back into place from their splayed position.
Slowly, tentatively, as if unsure of his own movements, Risus pushes himself up; first onto one knee, then carefully up onto both legs.
"SnAWl."
His voice cracks as his neck makes the final push.
"Shawl," he exclaims, his broken mask grinning broadly at me.
"Lae'vie-crostro, it's so very good to see you again! I cannot possibly express my gratitude for this."
"It's fine. Elizabeth did all the cutting. Thank her."
His large flat disk of a head spins around in a graceful arc to face Elizabeth.
"You have my deepest thanks- Oh dear!" he suddenly exclaims, "but why have you brought the sword?!"
His head rotates down to glare at the melted sword, still held firmly in Elizabeth's hand.
He knows it?
"You know it???" Vol and Elizabeth ask in tandem.
Three of a kind, I guess. But he knows it??
"Yes," he says, "but you must go. The sword must not be here."
"Why not?" I ask.
"Later, Shawl. Please, you must go. Now. I will send you back. When you do, I pray that you will do me yet another favor."
"What is it?"
"You must leave the church. The Cyrene knows what you are trying to do. You must finish the spell, Shawl. Do not come back until you succeed. All you need is some different mana."
The dark sphere of vines seems to become even darker. I look out of the corner of my eye to check on Elizabeth, but she isn't there. Everything is fading away.
"Now. Go."
"Wh-"
Why does it feel like all I ever do with the gods is ask questions?
Fine. Time to review all that bullshit.
There's someone called Cyrene. Probably hostile. Maybe the one I know as "Not Gaia."
Risus knows the sword. It is important. Probably a celestial weapon or something. Don't bring it to the realm of the gods.
I need to finish the celestial spell. I need some "different mana." Maybe I need to separate my mana like I did in the past.
Jesus Christ.
Gods are a celestial pain.
I wake up on the cold stone floor of the church. Elizabeth and Vol are next to me, steadily getting into more upright positions.
"That was..." Vol starts, but then quickly trails off.
"I think we owe you an apology," Elizabeth says.
As we left the church, Vol still holding me up, I felt a sense of relief. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that they believe my story following an experience like that.
"Man, Seb- I mean, Shawl- I can barely believe you're older than me," Vol tells me on the way out.
"Sebastian is fine. How old are you, anyway?"
"Hm, 1432 years."
God damn you're old.
Wait, I'm 1600. Shit.
"You look good for 1400," Elizabeth says to Vol in what I assume is a joking manner.
"Ha! I look good? Look at Seb!"
"It's kind of surprising how relaxed you are about all this," I tell them.
"Well, we thought - you know - that you hurt your head. It's just kind of a relief to know that you were okay all along," Vol explains.
But just as Vol begins to suggest that I go back to the hospital to heal up, we turn a corner and are faced with a strange sight.
There's a large crowd of people gathered all along the main street. Not the "I'm just going shopping" kind of crowd, but the "look, there's a show" kind of crowd. I don't usually mind those crowds, but the "show" here is one that I wasn't expecting to see again.
"Woah, sis!"
A man with blonde hair tied in a ponytail waves brightly to us from the middle of the crowd, the sunlight glistening off his golden armor. I'm surprised the people around him aren't being blinded.
The man is Jonas, Elizabeth's practically-a-twin brother.
"It's been a while!" he exclaims, hurrying over to us.
Indeed it has. Last time I saw him must have been way back in Elsvaert. I got him and his party to hunt down a greater monster with me and then had them take the credit. I haven't heard anything about them in a while.
"What are you doing here?" I ask him.
"Sebsastian?? Is that you?"
"Yes. What are you doing here? Where's your group?"
They always struck me as a little more competent than him, so it's a bit concerning to see him without them.
"Oh, they're out celebrating. I was just on my way there, but I couldn't help but greet a few fans on the way!"
He turns and waves at a couple of women, a broad smile on his face. They giggle and wave shily back at him before heading off. Their clothes are suspiciously, shall we say, "brothel-like." I'll do him the favor of not mentioning that.
"So," I say, getting tired of repeating myself, "What are you doing here?"
"Oh! Why not come drink with us?" he asks, grinning at the three of us.
This dude needs some medication. Come on. Focus.
"Jonas, what are you doing in Tayde?" Elizabeth asks.
Somehow, that got his attention.
"Right, I haven't said yet, have I?"
"No," we say as one.
"We just received our A-rank adventurer cards!!"
Huh, would you look at that.
"Actually," he says, leaning in, "I guess we've got you to thank for that."
He winks at me.
"Sure."
"So come join us for a drink!" he exclaims, leaning back out.
"I'm sorry," Vol cuts in, "but he really isn't in a fit state right now."
It's only then that Jonas seems to actually take in my appearance properly. He glances over at Elizabeth. I wonder how this must look to the people on the street. A half burnt teenager being dragged around by an elf in researcher robes and bodyguarded by identical twins. Sounds like a tourist attraction.
"Greater monster," she says, simply.
"Ah," Jonas says, probably thinking that my injuries were the monster's fault.
Nice partial truth, Elizabeth.
"Well," he says, "Kyrah - that's our mage - just learned a high-level healing spell. She's so good, I bet she could cast it drunk."
"I'm sure your mage is great, but a healing spell won't do any good here," Vol tells him.
"Huh? Why not? They're burns, right?"
"They're mana burns. Healing spells will just make them flare up again."
I guess it's good that I have Vol here because I wasn't aware of that. I suppose there's a reason why they call him the greatest magical researcher.
Once we manage to pry ourselves away from Jonas, we return to the hospital. I don't like hospitals much, but as Vol says, "Magic can't heal mana burns."
He tells me that I need to rest, at minimum, until I can walk without using him as a support.
"Fine. If I can't move, then I need you to do me a favor."
"Alright?"
"I had an idea for some changes to the manacaster."
"Seb, didn't I tell you that the manacaster melted?"
"No problem. It needed a complete revamp anyway."
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