"Harold? What just happened near the academy...?" We both were startled by the sudden flash in the sky.
A massive explosion and indescribable whirlwind seemed to have originated from the academy. Had there been a major battle there?
"Let's hurry...!"
"Yes!" I worried if something had happened to Aris and Arsia, an uneasy feeling creeping over me.
What just happened there? A flash of light followed by swirling dust clouds...
"Arsia... did something just fall there...?" Wondering if she had seen an illusion, Aris also squints through the mist, trying to discern what lay beyond.
"Me too..." In the mother and daughter's perspective, these events happened in a blink of an eye. Amidst the despair, a black figure appeared like a comet, and in a short time, after an explosion, the situation suddenly became quiet.
"That was a good replenishment." A mysterious voice breaks the silence.
"There's someone inside!" A distinct presence is felt through the haze.
"Maybe I overdid it? When I meet Harold, I might need to lean on him a bit." The voice utters lines that make them question their ears.
"Wait, did I just hear a name I shouldn't have? Did I mishear?"
"No... I heard it too." A strange voice and a familiar name, although the true enemy seemed to have vanished, another layer of apprehension forms in their hearts.
"Ah? Now that I think about it, you two are here too, right?" A moment later, an overwhelming presence emerges from the dust. Compared to Tenebris, this presence feels like an entirely different dimension of darkness.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt the fight. I just needed some power." Unlike the serious mother and daughter, the dark-haired girl speaks in a casual tone, offering a light apology.
Looking back, this was their first direct encounter...
"No, actually, thank you. It was a moment of crisis. By the way, did you mention Harold earlier? Sounds like a man's name." Arsia, having received help, asks Mir with as friendly a demeanor as possible. "Hmm? Yes, he's potentially my future husband." This statement caused both their hearts to flutter, and they started to harbor hope. Despite trying to convince themselves it was just someone with the same name, their rationality was slowly slipping away.
"Did he attend here too?" The undeniable statement was the final nail in the coffin of their disbelief. After all, there was only one Harold attending the academy.
Aris's eyes widened at this realization. "You mean Harold Wicker?"
Eager for a definitive answer, Aris's question caused Mir's eyebrows to raise in surprise. "Hmm? How do you know about..."
It was now an established fact; the man both the mother-daughter duo and the dragon were thinking about was indeed the same person.
The atmosphere quickly became tense. Just when they thought they had overcome a great ordeal, another strange twist unfolded.
"Arsia, Aris!" The voice and footsteps of others joining the group broke the tension. It turned out that Arsia's group had arrived.
"Arsia...? Mir, why are you here? And has Harold not arrived yet?" Even a brief moment of peace was interrupted as Abne mentioned his name, chilling the atmosphere further.
A collective gasp echoed as eight girls gathered at this place, turning it into a metaphorical ice rink. They exchanged looks, each recalling their own memories.
Among them, some knew everything, while others had just met or only heard of the others.
In this situation, they intuitively understood... "Hmm... It seems like the situation isn't good, is it?" At this moment, every person present was in love with the same man.
Realizing this truth through mere glances, expressions, and the atmosphere, Yura was the first to break the awkward silence. "I know everyone here because we're all acquainted, but... it seems you all love my brother."
The gathering, though ostensibly pleasant, was overshadowed by this revelation. Among them, there was a girl who had met everyone at least once, standing beside him.
"I've only just met that person..." Erina pointed to Arsia, the principal, continuing Yura's line of thought. But then, a heavy silence descended once more. Each of them, lost in their thoughts, reflected on the man they sincerely desired, feeling both affection and confusion towards a figure they couldn't resent.
In the midst of this silence, the protagonist of their thoughts appeared. "Hey, kids? I'm here...." Harold arrived at the academy with Marika, finding everyone gathered. Was it mere coincidence or something predestined? He couldn't decipher his own thoughts, feeling strange about this unexpected assembly.
And more importantly... "Harold? I knew, but... there seem to be a lot of women around you?" Their faces all seemed to express a desire to confront him.
"Uh, so..." He realized that among them were people he was meeting for the first time. Aris and Aris knew each other, but they hadn't met Eleona yet...
"So many connections?" "It's one thing to be liked, but this is a bit much..." The mood was getting weirder by the minute, and he instinctively started to back away under their intense scrutiny.
"This might be acceptable in this world, but isn't this a bit too much?" "Huh?!" The more he retreated, the closer the girls seemed to get.
Just as he was lost in thought... "What's that?!" A pillar of white light pierced the sky from the center of the kingdom. That scene... could it be?
He had never seen it before, but it felt familiar – a sight he had seen several times through a screen. "Wait, it seems you all want to say something to me, but let's talk later! Let's head towards that pillar first!" Realizing there was no time for this now, he spoke urgently, prompting a mixed response from the group.
"We'll definitely talk about this later, right?" "You owe us for betraying our feelings..."
Fortunately, the urgency in his voice seemed to resonate with them, and the current situation was postponed for later. The scene shifts to the center of the kingdom, just moments before the massive pillar of light erupted.
"Harold! Where are you?!" A goddess desperately searched for a man named Harold. It had been a while since she last visited the kingdom, excluding the times of Morioney.
"Harold!" She called his name with the urgency of a mother searching for her lost child, amidst a war where everyone was dying. In this cruel and sad world where gods clashed and friends from yesterday were forced to turn against each other, this goddess, who seemed almost forgotten and without enemies, expanded her vision as far as possible.
"With so many gods rampaging, it's hard to pinpoint his exact location... I know he's in this area, but I can't discern precisely where...." She knew that as long as the god she served did not engage in hostilities, his followers would likely be safe.
"But what if... what if he gets caught up in the fighting...? I don't think he'll be easily defeated, but if something happens to him... What will I do...?" Her heart ached with worry as she paced back and forth.
Could she truly reunite with the man she so longed for? "Uh-oh?!!" Her quest seemed impossible unless she overcame the being that had just appeared before her.
"...?" She noticed a massive flash of light within her sight, followed by an infinite burst of light soaring high into the sky. Within that light...
"I seem to have arrived just in time." A figure wearing a mask and wielding a double-edged sword emerged. Eleona saw this figure for the first time but immediately recognized it as a god, similar yet distinctly different from herself. She had longed for companionship after enduring ages of loneliness, yearning for a presence that would bring her rest.
"Eleona, you must have heard about him from your man. I am Tempus." The being she faced was different. Instead of seeking solace, it seemed to be succumbing to pain and longing for death.
"You must know by now, right?" He spoke as if he knew everything, and Eleona sensed...
At this moment, she understood that this was the entity she had to confront. Though Eleona felt similar pain, her desires were different... Endlessly tormented, she held onto a fervent goal.
"Tempus..." She whispered his name.
Her strength was comparable to his, or perhaps, given his more ancient existence, he might even surpass her.
"Oryeomuna." Eleona muttered under her breath.
Behind the mask, no one knew what kind of eyes lay hidden. Yet, it was clear that he was looking beyond what she could see.
"Haah!" Tempus leaped towards her, throwing a punch.
Ting! But such an attack was ineffective against Eleona. She blocked his strike with her double-edged sword, and though flesh and metal clashed, it resounded like the clash of two metals.
And then...
Koo-koong! Despite blocking it, the sheer overpowering force sent her flying far into the distance.
"Hoo..." Catching her breath, unaware of where her enemy was...
"...?!?!" Suddenly, Tempus appeared behind her, aiming for her neck.
"Uht?!" She narrowly avoided his strike, but his assault was far from over.
As she leaped away, Tempus unleashed a blast of white magic towards her.
"...!!" Instinctively, Eleona knew that such magic could not be blocked or absorbed. It was time magic, the most formidable and cruel kind, unrivaled in history, a magic unique to one being in this world.
"Spear of the Sun!" Quickly, Eleona conjured a spear and launched it to intercept the magic.
Koong! Fortunately, the two forces neutralized each other. Deadly, yes, but the firepower was manageable.
A massive explosion engulfed the center of the kingdom in gray mist.
-!
Cutting through the mist, Tempus lunged at Eleona, his double-edged sword slicing through the air.
Ting! Once again, the sound of metal clashing echoed. This time, Eleona managed to deflect the blow, blocking the only safe attack.
"We will never settle this fight, just the two of us."
"Unless the man you love brings along the other women he's leading..."
"What...?!" Eleona's face contorted in response to such provocation. Eleona, though hating it, had to accept a painful truth. She knew... she could never have him to herself. Of course, if it were only about her own happiness, maybe... but inevitably, she had to come to terms with the fact that other women desired him too.
"Ugh..!!" Angered by Tempus's words, Eleona swung her fist with all her might.
Boom--! Tempus took the blow and fell to the ground. The impact twisted the entire continent's terrain.
"Whoa--!" Shouts of panic echoed from afar. The sudden quake likely toppled many to the ground.
"You almost caused a disaster. If I hadn't been careful, at least the people of this kingdom would have been crushed by the shock," Tempus remarked.
It was strange... If the entire continent was affected, the epicenter should have been obliterated. Yet everyone was strangely unharmed.
"What if he had been caught in that? What would you have done?" he added.
Unable to deny her mistake, especially since it was pointed out by her enemy, Eleona gritted her teeth in frustration.
"Shut up!" She charged towards Tempus, who had effortlessly risen to his feet. But it was a trap set by Tempus.
"Time Erasure."
"?!?" Right in front of Eleona, Tempus cast his spell. In front of her eyes, a flicker of magic threatened to erase an infinite amount of time with just a brush.
"Ugh!" Eleona narrowly dodged, changing her direction at the last moment.
"What?!" As she avoided the spell, her eyes met with the heavy blade of his sword.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! She was struck squarely and sent flying far away.
Thump! Thump! Thump! How many buildings did she crash through?
"Damn..." Annoyed by the stinging blow, she cursed under her breath.
"Ho, so one attempt is not enough, huh?" Tempus mused.
However, Eleona quickly got up and charged at Tempus again.
Fzzzt! This time, she unleashed her magic right in front of him. "It stings a lot." Tempus tried to counter with time magic, but Eleona was faster. His attack was neutralized before reaching her, leaving him in acute pain.
"It's a pity how much this vast land has suffered. It will take a while for this twisted territory to return to its original state," he said, maintaining a relaxed demeanor while attacking Eleona.
Ting-! Their strikes clashed, Eleona's arm and Tempus's double-edged sword vibrating from the struggle. The already ravaged ground cracked even more under their immense force.
"Eleona... as I said before, to kill me, you'll need Harold. This fight won't end without him," Tempus stated, still exuding ease.
Eleona, sickened by his attitude, snapped, "Shut up! You have no right to speak his name!"
Crack! However, despite her words, the broken pieces of Tempus's double-edged sword told a different story.
"L..." Tempus, now realizing the danger too late, found himself caught in Eleona's grasp.
With the mask still on, the god of time was now in her hands. "Let's end this once and for all," Eleona declared, releasing an endless dawn from her fingertips.
Fwaaaahhhh! A light so grand it overshadowed Tempus's pillar of light.
"So it is..." Tempus muttered, seemingly understanding something just as his existence began to fade.
"We've arrived, huh? What?!" We barely made it to the center, only to be greeted by an infinite light. The earlier earthquake and now this... the tension was palpable, scenes that weren't in the game.
But our apprehension was short-lived. Amidst the light, we could barely make out a figure.
"Eleona...?" She was holding Tempus, incinerating his very being.
Gradually, the god of time's form grew fainter and fainter.
"Phew... it's over. It wasn't a long battle, but it was tough." With only his double-edged sword remaining, Eleona had erased Tempus without a trace. "Wait, what?" The final challenge had ended somewhat anticlimactically.
"Hmm? Harold...!!" After finishing the battle with Tempus, Eleona rushed towards me. Her peaceful smile made the uncomfortable reality more bearable.
Is it really over? Although I wasn't sure about the entire situation, it seemed like the others had similar thoughts.
"My man!" Eleona exclaimed, throwing herself into my arms. It appeared she had single-handedly defeated Tempus before I even arrived.
"Eleona? What happened here? Did you take down Tempus?!" Suddenly, Morione burst out with a question, sounding urgent.
"It seems so," Eleona replied nonchalantly.
Her answer confirmed my suspicions. It felt somewhat anticlimactic, but it was clear that the final challenge had indeed ended - Tempus was gone, the rebellion of time ceased.
"Is that so? Well... thank you for your help." I embraced her.
Shhhhk!