"Klein! Incoming attack on our right!"

Elric quickly saw one of the Onyx Wolves break from the group that they faced and circled back to launch a surprise attack on their left flank.

Fortunately, Klein responded quickly and managed to defend themself from the attack with what can only be described as a small shield of stone sticking out at the front of his forearms.

He took the brunt of the attack and even managed to bash the rushing wolf's head. Sending it into a whimper and down on the ground.

"That's one!" Klein shouted as soon as he incapacitated one of the feral wolves.

"Go back to formation quickly Klein! They're coming!" Elric yelled out commands to Klein to move back into their strategic formation.

"You have to take those attacks Klein or else Alice can't do her job." Elric reminded Klein.

"Leave it to me!" Klein once again charged forward with both hands sticking out a semi-circle of stone on each one. It was still rough but it was thick and sturdy.

*GROWL!*

*SNARL!*

Two of the remaining three wolves began to lunge forward showing their fangs to intimidate their opponent but Klein was unshaken as he let out a cry and met the two beasts, to face them head-on.

"AAAAHHHH!!!" Klein screamed as he got down on one knee and instantaneously buried his two hands in the earth to give support to his shields as the wolves impacted his stone barrier.

Klein groaned from the force of the impact while Alice came rushing from behind him and used Klein's back as a stepping stone and leaped into the air, with her hands also coated with stone but was pointed just like Elric's but much shorter, resembling a dagger without the sharp sides.

As she landed from her jump, she descended on the disoriented wolves and stabbed them both at their snouts, piercing through their jaws, disabling them from retaliating with a bite.

Amidst the seemingly flawless execution of their plan, an agonizing scream of pain was heard that echoed throughout the forest.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!" Alice's voice was heard.

Elric quickly came rushing forward to see what had happened as his view was blocked by Klein's shield.

Immediately after hearing the wails of the young Alice, Klein pulled out his hands from the ground and retracted his shield.

He quickly tackled the remaining wolf to the ground and off the bleeding Alice.

Elric rushed to the blood-soaked Alice who had blood spewing out of her neck, bleeding to her death.

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"KLEIN!!! HELP ME!!! WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING!"

He screamed for Klein who was still pounding on the dead animal that had given his friend a fatal wound.

He had lost his senses and sent him berserk from seeing another horrific and bloody sight.

Elric cried out as he held the convulsing Alice in his hands who was still bleeding out.

"No! Please no!!! I'm so sorry Alice! I don't know what to do!!!" Elric could not think of anything as he panicked.

"What are we going to do ELRIC!!! She's going to die!" Klein shouted as he panicked.

Only coming to his senses after exhausting his anger on the lifeless animal, the cause of his friend's injury.

However, at this point, Elric could no longer hear his wailing friend.

Reminded of the horrors of that night, Elric cleared his mind by punching his face and snapping him back into thinking.

"I'm not going to lose you!!! Stay with me Alice!" He screamed at the top of his lungs to keep the injured Alice awake as he held her head and gently placed it down on the ground.

"I'm going to do something about this, so please just stay with me, okay!?" He reassured as her face turned pale while also placing his hands and putting pressure on the wound that was bleeding out.

'Please work! I beg you! Please, WORK!!!' He concentrated as hard as he could and placed his bet on an idea that might work.

He remembered what happened to him on the night he was struck by lightning and woke up with no wounds.

'If I was the one that caused the explosion by absorbing and expelling that powerful lightning, then the reason why I didn't have any injuries when I woke up was...'

The hands that he placed on Alice's wound started to glow light with a green hue.

[New Skill Learned]

[Caster]

[Mend]

Enliven started to rise from Elric's shoulders and was quickly diverted into his hands that was restoring the torn flesh and muscle from Alice's neck.

Massive amounts of his energy were needed to heal Alice's fatal wound.

'I don't care. I'm not going to lose you, so take everything... I don't care.' He thought as he saw the life returning in her eyes colour to her cheeks.

Elric was relieved once the glowing had stopped.

Slowly releasing his hands on her neck revealing the area that was bitten but it seemed like a devastating wound was never there in the first place.

Alice smiled at him and slowly shut her eyes.

She held on and tried as hard as she could to stay conscious for him but as soon as the healing had stopped and finished, she could not hold back from losing her consciousness and drifted into a slumber.

He leaned back to catch his breath.

He stood up and walked towards the crouched up Klein, who was sobbing with his hands covering his ears and eyes closed shut.

Elric grabbed Klein with anger flaring in his mind. He lifted him by his shirt and slammed him against a tree.

"WHAT WERE YOU DOING!?

You were supposed to protect her! You were supposed to be her shield! Our shield!!!" He was blinded by his rage and started to blame his friend who could not say a word.

"I-I'm sorry Elric! I didn't see her and... Elric!? Elric!?" Klein could not finish his words as his friends' grip began to loosen quickly as Elric fainted unto Klein who caught him and quickly laid him on the ground.

Elric was slowly woken from his slumber by the flickering fire accompanied by Klein's voice who was wide awake, staring blankly into the glowing light.

"Do you know why I'm friends with you, Elric?" Klein had asked with a soft voice, without turning to face his friend, and was still gazing into the fire.

Elric was taken aback by the unusual question his friend had asked.

They were friends for as long as he could remember but were unaware of the reason why he and Alice chose to be friends with him.

A person who was avoided even among the Classless villagers.

He stayed quiet, unable to answer.

"When we first played when we were very young, I wanted to impress my Father. He used to tell me that even if other people looked down on others that are weaker than them, I should never judge someone without living his life." He confessed.

"So when I first saw you... I pitied your life and felt sorry for you. I'm sure Alice did the same too at first but as we spent more time together, I slowly began to respect you and eventually turned into admiration. You just seemed so bright and happy despite the environment that we lived in. Learning so many skills that the people had deemed useless." He continued as his voice started to crack from all the emotions that he felt.

"When I saw your eyes earlier... the eyes of someone who I admire. It breaks me to disappoint you and for that, I'm truly sorry, Elric." He apologized with watery eyes that still gazed into the fire.

Elric remembered the time Klein had described.

Two blonde young children playing with him and not caring no matter how much the other kids teased them.

He lifted himself and leaned back to sit and spoke.

"I apologize for screaming at you. I was just in the heat of the moment and I said words that I never meant. It was my fault for not thinking of the formations' blind spots. I was the one in charge of support. I'm not worthy of admiration." He answered his friend.

Alice who was already awake chose to stay quiet and listen to their words.

"You are no longer friends to me." Klein said.

"You both are my family now and I will give everything I have to protect us and be the strongest shield I could be." He continued.

"And I swear to be the sharpest sword to strike down the enemies who dare to lay their hands on this family." Alice spoke and startled the two.

"I promise to be the strongest to guide us well so that we do not have to worry about losing anyone ever again." Elric swore with his fist to his chest.

They laughed from the embarrassment of their heart-warming promises they had made.

"Now let's talk about how I'm still alive."