There were plenty of things Maika wanted to say, but now was not the time or the place. She gave him a meaningful look. Everything made sense, the reason she found the mage and the creatures lost control.

—Watch out! —Aiden shouted.

Having finished its analysis, the angel spread both wings and a dozen feathers shot towards Maika. What was truly strange was what happened halfway through their trajectory, these feathers hardened by a black membrane, reminiscent of metal, as they detached from the body.

Maika released the bow and jumped from the terrace to the street. As she fell, she caressed with an agile movement the brooch on the left side of her chestnut hair. Sparks and electric discharges detached from the object in her head and through her arm to her back and then the wall, creating a magnetic force that considerably slowed her fall. When she made contact with the ground, she rolled as if it were nothing, as if she had jumped from one meter high.

She ran to position herself in the middle of the street and repeated the action with the brooch, recharging the current in her arm, ready to launch a powerful electric discharge.

Another round of knives flew towards her, but were received by a lightning bolt shot by Maika with her magical object. She didn't change to the gun because her enemy this time had projectiles; mobility was a priority.

Aiden also didn't hesitate to go to Maika's side. By the time he came out of the building, the angel and Maika were already fighting. She was dodging the projectiles and, somehow Aiden couldn't quite figure out, she was deflecting some. By constantly moving, Maika had approached the window where Aiden came out to the main street.

—”h#g|ñT1”

The angel, spoke? In an incomprehensible dialect, it seemed to be from another world or from a bad science fiction novel. It was so strange that upon hearing it one could question if it was speaking or just making strange noises, at most it was a screeching sensation that caused a slight headache upon listening to it.

—"R¿!g$SU;;FI#CIñT3eE” —the monster continued, talking?, it almost seemed like it was trying to communicate in reality.

It descended until it was forty meters away from the pair. Waiting for another wave of knives, Maika prepared to intercept them with a bolt of electricity, but it wasn't that simple. An invisible limb came out from under the lower part of the robe, from its feet. The invisible tentacle advanced at a ridiculously fast speed towards Maika.

If it were something that the angel threw, he could evade it, but since it was an invisible 'thing', simply stepping aside wouldn't solve anything. There was no 100% certainty, things like the range and diameter, he had no way of knowing, but Aiden still threw himself into danger to protect the girl in front of him. A centimeter marked the difference, but that didn't matter.

A tremendous noise reached Maika's ears, dust rose everywhere, forcing her to close her eyes for a moment. She didn't know how or when, but a person had covered her with something.

It was no one other than a foolish second-year student from her school. Aiden arrived at the right time to put himself in front and block the attack.

Even with his two hands in front, one holding the other from behind the wrist, he turned his head to see Maika, whom he wanted to see, for whom he threw himself to receive the supernatural attack without hesitation.

—Aid..en…? —she said perplexed.

—I know you said not to come, but I'm sorry. I'm a fool.

For a second, both his heartbeat and reasoning stopped. The next instant, in a semi-euphoric state, Maika exclaimed:

—Of course, you are, it doesn't change anything that you accept it!!! Are you okay!? And how were you able to get here in the first place? This place is protected by a strong magical barrier.

There were many things she didn't understand. Among them was Aiden's feat, which was only possible because he was a spectator, had he been in the center of the action, that would have been his end.

The black smoke that only he could see was what alerted him to how it was gathered around the angel, it suddenly dispersed under his feet and was pushed by the invisible limb. When he received the blow, the tentacle immediately retreated.

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—The important thing is that you're okay, I am too, I guess that's luck. Thank heaven.

In his hands he held an amulet given by his collaborator, what was left of the amulet at least. Maika recognized the pieces that fell to the ground from Aiden's hand.

—You're more stubborn than I thought… That amulet, since when…? Don't tell me, did you rescue it from my suitcase in school? That explains how you could get through my barrier. But more importantly, how did you know it was a protection amulet if I never spoke about it!?

—Ah, yeah? Did it also work that way? —said Aiden, grabbing the back of his head with a confused expression.

Maika felt the surging urge to hit him growing with each passing minute, but held back her desires for the moment.

—It's precisely because of things like this that I'm 100% against you getting involved with this world.

Although it was now too late for that with Aiden here, she couldn't simply escort him out of her barrier, much less send him away alone.

Maika continued scolding Aiden, but despite her act, she felt thrilled when Aiden came to her rescue. Of course, she wouldn't admit it.

«It's true that luck had a lot to do with it, but Maika, I really knew it was going to work. That scientist guy said so, and even though I don't really understand how it works, I just did what he said».

“Just keep it on hand and cross the spell zone while looking at your reflection in the glass. You will probably get disoriented, but you should be fine. I advise you to bite hard on your hand or lip to fully regain your senses.” Was what the lab coat man had said, right before adding, “Oh, and in an extreme emergency, you can use it as a shield. Make sure to not miss, though.”

That's what the person told Aiden and by following all of his instructions, he somehow managed to make it this far. To tell the truth, one of the reasons the wizard didn't kill him before was because of the amulet, but now it was destroyed.

Unable to bear the weight of his own body anymore, his legs gave out, but before he fell, Maika grabbed him and somehow managed to keep him standing.

—Hah… I've never been this tired in my life, by the way, how are you? You don't have any injuries, right?

—Why did you come? —she said, not holding back anymore, striking him lightly in the arm.

His hair was all disheveled and part of it covered his sweaty forehead, from the spaces that weren't covered by his hair, he looked at Maika in the eyes, then took a big sigh.

—Why do you ask? Because there's no way I would leave you alone, that's all.

«This is my answer! This is definitely the protagonist of this story! Being a hero isn't my thing, but leaving a girl to fight a monster alone», Aiden thought, massaging the spot Maika had hit. «Even if I only get in the way, leaving you alone is not an option. Now, how are you going to respond!?

—Seriously… —her voice didn't show it much, it was just a small pinch—. You're an idiot. How can you say that at this moment?

It was a simple sentence, like any other she would have liked to screech at him at that moment, yet her voice cracked just a little every other inflection.

«Eh? What did I say wrong? I must have sounded great. I said it myself, but why am I an idiot again?» Aiden thought.

Deep down, Maika considered Aiden to be the coolest man she had ever met, even after witnessing his awkward state. For Maika, at this moment, he was the greatest of them all.

Even facing the monstrous being called an angel, both young people closed their eyes for a moment and smiled. It was the most honest smile Aiden had ever had; he was sure of it. The moment he closed his eyes was to keep this moment in his memories forever, and the same for her.

But they couldn't remain like this forever, the lurking danger quickly brought them back to reality.

—I'm worried that it hasn't done anything since it received your attack. Is it analyzing new information?

—Maybe it's slow in the head? It's a homunculus, after all.

With an adorable tone of voice, Maika laughed at Aiden's comment.

—Yeah, it could be —the young girl replied jovially.

That made Aiden a little happy.

—Anyway, let's make it that dumb monster's last scene!

Above the angel's head was the celestial halo, it suddenly distorted, like when a television channel goes out of sync for a second. The next moment, the golden, silver, and blue halo returned to normal.

—What the hell was that!? —Aiden exclaimed.

—Whatever happens, don't leave my side —said Maika—. Understood?

Following her words, Maika ran towards the center of the street, pulling Aiden behind her.

—Get ready, monster, I don't see any way I can lose! —Maika's war cry was now filled with the resolution not to fail herself and Aiden.

She could feel herself being filled with a strange force and confidence, all because of Aiden's presence by her side.