The two duelists faced each other in silence, just as they had at the start of their match. However this time, there was only one Summon in their midst. The Seraphim hovered over the ravaged battlefield. Now that it faced a man instead of another Summon, the being looked even more mind-boggling.
“Master Ardan Eldyck of the Sekuheim school: this is your end,” Ferran announced. The victorious challenger no longer wore his smug expression but suddenly had an oddly respectful air about him.
“I thank you for your bravery. You came into this match a coward but you shall leave this world as a true Summoner. Fighting to the end is the most glorious thing one can do and I will make sure that Sekuheim remembers you the same as it remembers the legendary Summoners of old.”
Ardan still only stared as his opponent. The highly respected Master looked as if he had aged a decade. He had expended all his Essence; his cheeks had sunken in and the bags under his eyes resembled bruised fruit.
“Is there something you wish to say?” Ferran asked next as the Seraphim slowly approached his opponent.
Elem felt as if he’d been trapped inside some horrid nightmare. This should have been the week he started training with his father and his brand new Summon but instead he was about to witness his father’s death.
This wasn’t how their lives were supposed to play out. Elem squished his fists so hard that his nails drew blood from his palms. This wasn’t a fate he could accept.
“Do you want to leave?” Aja whispered. Her words sounded more like a suggestion than a genuine question.
Elem shook his head. He didn’t want to run. He couldn’t leave his father behind. Without thinking he got up to his feet and, overrun by some primal instinct to protect his family, walked up the battlefield.
The hall was a complete mess. The floor was still wet and covered with shards of broken tiles and chunks of earth. While it had already looked damaged before the duel, it now resembled an apocalyptic hellscape.
“You’ve won,” Elem told Ferran. “You can just step away now. There’s no need to kill him.”
“Elem… Don’t…” his father interrupted before Ferran could respond. The Master’s voice was hoarse, he hadn’t spoken since losing the match and speaking clearly seemed to hurt him.
Elem ignored his father. His eyes were fixed on Ferran, the man threatening everything that he loved. He was too focused on his anger to notice anything else, including the tears streaming from his cheeks.
“I said step away!” Elem screamed.
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Something stirred inside him. Deep inside his soul, Elem could feel the Kappa trying to crawl to the surface. The Summon seemed attracted by his heavy emotions.
Elem didn’t try to fight the Kappa from coming out, instead he called the creature with everything that he had. And before he could even rationalize what he was doing, he felt his consciousness merge with that of the Summon.
“I Summon the Kappa, a Water Summon; mysterious protector of rivers!”
As Elem’s eyes glowed blue, the Kappa splashed into the great hall through a spontaneously formed liquid vortex. The Water Summon instantly turned towards the Seraphim, hunching down and spewing out short, aggravated breaths.
“What is this?” Ferran demanded.
While he seemed to sympathize with Elem’s situation before, he was now growing visibly annoyed with the young Summoner’s conduct.
“Don’t disgrace your father like this, child. Your father agreed to this match. You shouldn’t damage his honor with your foolishness.“
Elem could faintly hear Aja scream in the background, she may even have physically tried to pull him out of his trance. It was no use; Elem was no longer thinking clearly. He was inexperienced as a Summoner, and merging with the Kappa had sent his mind swimming. He perceived barely anything else than the Kappa’s Essence crashing through his body like a raging river.
“Attack that thing!” he commanded, prompting the Kappa to instantly rush forward.
The Summon ran up the battlefield’s debris and leaped into the air. Elem was surprised by how quickly the Kappa could move. Maybe he had a shot after all.
But before the Kappa could even land a single strike on Ferran’s Void Summon, the Seraphim smacked the creature out of its way with one of its wings. A single, effortless strike for the Seraphim, was more than enough to slam the Kappa across the room and against the wall.
Elem lost his balance and fell down. He was rapidly feeling sick. Ferran’s power was truly overwhelming: the Kappa had rushed at the man’s Summons with all his might and the Seraphim had simply swatted him away as if he were a fly.
Elem screamed, trying to pour more Essence into the Kappa. The Water Summon struggled to get back to its feet, only to fall back down seconds later. As the Kappa hit the floor, Elem felt the Summon fading back to its own dimension.
“No,” he screamed at the creature. “Stay here!”
He focused on his Essence, trying his best to stay composed and garner enough strength to keep the Kappa from disappearing. But his efforts were fruitless; the Kappa vanished, slipping out of his mind like a slippery fish escaping from a fisherman’s grasp. Snapping out of his trance, Elem immediately felt like a fool. Who did he think he was trying to attack a master Summoner?
Having dealt with the minor nuisance, Ferran shifted back to Ardan. His Seraphim was closing in on the defeated Master. Ardan stared right at the Divine Class Summon. He whispered something to himself and then closed his eyes. The Master wouldn’t run or scream, he would accept the Seraphim’s attack with dignity and pride.
Blue light filled the great hall, followed by the sound of the Seraphim’s beam. In any other context, the attack would have been a display of beauty but right now Elem considered it the most cruel and terrible thing that he’d ever seen.
Elem cried out but no sound came from his mouth. He was simply too exhausted; too tired to move and unable to look away from his father disintegrating. As he cried, nausea crept up his throat and seconds later, he vomited.