[BL] Guardians of Fate
Chapter 82 - 20: The Battle’s End [6]

Chapter 82: Chapter 20: The Battle’s End [6]

Ardyn’s heart dropped the moment he saw Evan’s shield shatter, his body falling to the ground with a painful thud. He instinctively wanted to go over and help, but his feet were rooted to the ground and he had forgotten how to breathe.

His new friend... The man who had warmly welcomed him into this world and who had helped him without expecting anything in return...

That same man was on his knees on the cracked ground, coughing hard. His figure was no longer glowing, the light radiating from his body flickering out like the raindrops extinguishing a burning candle.

The storm hit them unexpectedly, raindrops pattering across the empty streets and echoing in his ears. There was so much going on that he found it difficult to concentrate on any one thing. He didn’t know if he should look to the Guardians for help in dealing with the situation, or keep a watchful eye on the Calamity, or stare at Evan and desperately try to think of a solution.

He could hear the Guardians yelling in response to Evan’s fall, all of them rushing to their Summoner. Ardyn immediately took a step back and swallowed hard.

He couldn’t stay here. No, he shouldn’t be here at all. What if he got in danger again and the others were forced to save him?

No, they had to prioritize Evan, not him!

He glanced down at the shield Voss had given him earlier and tightened his grip on the handle.

I—I can do this, he thought. I’ll just run away. I need to find somewhere to hide. I can’t be a nuisance.

His eyes darted around frantically. His stomach sank at the sight of the twisted spikes that had emerged from the ground, as if they were about to come to life and target him instead.

I can’t take that chance!

It was hard to find a decent place to hide. Coupled with the darkness that seemed like it was evening and the heavy rain that added a layer of darkness to the surroundings, Ardyn could barely see anything clearly. It was probably also because of the panic and fear that were fluctuating in his gut. He felt so much pressure to do something that it made him sick to his stomach.

Okay. Let’s go over there!

He hurried over to a nearby, partially collapsed building a short distance from the waters and took cover behind the debris. He clutched the metal shield and breathed heavily, feeling his heart pounding in his ears.

I should be safe here,

he thought, peeking out of the debris to watch the fight.

The air crackled with intense magical energy as the Guardians surrounded Evan. They huddled closer together in a circle, protecting themselves from the spikes and tendrils that seemed to hover threateningly above them.

He closed his eyes and began to pray to himself.

Please...

I wish the battle would finally end soon.

‏‏‎ ‎

* * *

‏‏‎ ‎

"Evan. Evan!" Gideon’s voice rang in his ears. "We gotta go! Without the Final Spirit, we can’t seal the monster anymore. We should go and wait for reinforcements to arrive!"

Evan shivered uncontrollably as he felt the raindrops fall mercilessly on his body. He could no longer feel the holy energy within him. The Spirits were gone, and so was the Deiridh. It was as if every essence in him had vanished, replaced by an empty vessel that was operating on autopilot.

"No..." he said, voice trembling from the pain. "It’ll come after us if we don’t do something. There’s nothing to restrain it anymore. We’ll get killed if we ever run away. We need... We need to force it to retreat somehow."

Gideon was rendered speechless. "You’re... You’re right, but..." He sent a helpless look at Clay, like he had no idea what to say anymore.

Clay clamped a hand on Evan’s shoulder, gripping it tightly. "Still, we can’t leave you here," he said. "What do we do, then? What’s the strategy?"

Gideon thought about it for a moment. "Right now, we’re low on magic compared to before. Evan, your magic, too..."

Evan tried hard to stabilize his breathing. "...I’m sorry," he whispered.

Clay’s features tightened. "Don’t say something like that. It’s not your fault."

"I... let you guys down."

"No, you didn’t," Clay insisted. "The monster was just too strong, that’s all."

At that moment, something was gently placed in Evan’s hand. Evan raised his head to see Voss gazing at him with a look of trust in his eyes.

It was a long, silver staff with a spherical crystal at the top. When he gripped the shaft, it felt cool and smooth to the touch. He could feel Voss’ essence pouring out of the weapon, and it was a reassuring sensation compared to the pain that was constantly wracking inside of his body.

"Thank you," Evan said weakly. It was getting hard to speak at this point.

Voss seemed to sense this and only nodded in response.

"Are you all right?" Evan asked in concern, sucking in the air through his teeth. "You’ve been summoning weapons from left to right since the start. You must be exhausted."

"Not as exhausted as you," Voss said softly, looking even more worried at seeing his Summoner in pain. "Evan, you must be feeling terrible right now. I should be the one asking you if you’re okay."

"I... I’m fine..." Evan lifted his eyes to see Mathias, Elyana, and Blade defending them from the tendrils.

A mixture of fire, crystals, and giant hands appeared in his vision, but everything was starting to blur. No matter how hard he squinted to clear his vision, it was difficult to see the details. Not only were the raindrops distracting him, but his body was also shutting down. At this rate, it would be hard for him to contribute anything to the battle.

But he couldn’t let his Guardians down. No, he needed to do something...

The thought hit him in an instant.

I... could use that...

But as quickly as the thought had appeared, the roar of Calamity pierced the air, overwhelming even the sound of the heavy storm.

Suddenly, Gideon rushed over and cast an earthen barrier from the broken ground, blocking the barrage of tendrils coming straight at them. Elyana reacted quickly as well, jumping in front of him and layering the barrier with thick slabs of crystal to reinforce it.

Mathias took a step back, grunting as he held back the numerous tendrils that tried to get around the barrier with a giant hand. Clay, on the other hand, had turned into a bear and ripped off the vines that tried to get close to Evan. Blade and Voss stood a bit farther away, with Blade shooting fireballs from his hands and Voss hacking off the roots using his two swords.

It was clear that everyone was nearing their limit at this point.

Evan breathed heavily and forced himself to stand, clutching the staff in his hand.

I should... do that spell...

But at that moment, the Calamity, now energized and no longer restrained by the holy chains or the Final Spirit, reared its head and gathered dark energy in its mouth.

It all happened so quickly that the Guardians had no time to react.

The blast hit the barrier instantly, and the force of it threw them backwards, the earthen barrier holding against the onslaught for a moment before shattering like fragile glass. Gideon and Elyana were flung to the side, and Mathias, Clay, Blade, and Voss were also knocked away, the impact sending shockwaves everywhere. Even the tendrils got incinerated by the beam.

The impact also sent Evan flying backwards, causing him to choke out blood from his lungs.

E... Everyone...!

He couldn’t believe that this was happening. It was like everything was going downhill from here, and he was helpless to stop it from happening. He coughed harder this time, the smoke and the rain hitting his senses and overwhelming him.

Gods... What happened to Mathias? To Ely? To Clay and Gideon?

I hope they’re okay. I haven’t felt anything alarming so far...

It means that they’re still alive.

Evan groaned and lifted his head, and his heart dropped in an instant.

A few tendrils came straight at him now that the barrier was destroyed, and it was as if his mind went blank for a brief moment.

As if he knew this was the end.

Evan closed his eyes.

I should’ve done more.

I should’ve...

And then something hot sprayed across his face. Like there was warm liquid flowing down his skin. The scent of iron drifted into his nostrils, making him feel nauseated.

He knew without even looking that it was blood.

But it was strange. Why was it that he couldn’t feel any pain? Why couldn’t he feel the tendrils piercing through his skin?

Why did it feel like... nothing happened to him?

Evan opened his eyes the moment he heard a pained grunt coming nearby, so close that it seemed to whisper in his ears.

What happened...?

And he wished he never had.

Ansel stood in front of him, gripping the tendrils so tightly that his knuckles turned white. The roots had pierced through his chest, blood soaking the front of his shirt.

He stared at Evan with that soft smile on his face despite the blood slowly dripping from his mouth.

The sight of it shocked Evan to the core that he instantly froze in place, unable to believe his eyes.

Ansel’s lips moved as if in slow-motion.

"Run..."

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