Cursed Queen: Battle Against Gods

Zodiac VS. Zodiac

"Her Majesty has brought Hildus to a different location. Meanwhile, we'll go on with the plan," Alwina said.

Flare is going to be fine, right...? She's an amazing woman, so there's no doubt about that. I just hope that we can back her up at once. That woman often acts tough, that's why I want to hurry up and rush to her side.

"Let's change plans right now," I said because things won't go smoothly now, even after what they've done.

"What? Sir Karis, we don't have time!"

"We do," I said as I looked at Aiyana.

She immediately understood what I want to happen and stopped the time, even for Flare. It seems like Flare can move even if the time has stopped, so she used extra magic to stop her as well.

"We're attacking by the front gate. The Zodiacs would notice and come out even if we don't try to draw their attention. That way, we won't have to evacuate the civilians and the spatial magic users can back us up."

My plan made sense, but they had hesitations since we trained so much to infiltrate the city. It's not like it matters now that we're in a pinch. They started to complain, but I just hushed them. I would never take criticism unless I really need it.

I raised my sword, and they subconsciously did the same. "Let's head out now!"

"Oh, wait!" Alwina said.

"What now?"

"Her Majesty gave this to me and told us to make sure that the seven members get a whiff of this. That way, we can easily defeat them and back Her Majesty up."

The squad leaders carried a bottle, so I took the rest to give it to the others who are on our side. As soon as we finished preparing, Aiyana made the time continue again.

"Please help Flare if you can," I told Aiyana who would be staying behind.

She only smiled but did not answer. It seems like she can't do what I said, but I'll trust her because she's really fond of Flare. As much as I want to go there myself, I can't.

When we arrived at the entrance to the city, the ones that are on our side greeted us. Drake has probably been listening to our conversation from earlier. Although, I'm not sure how he was able to do that. Maybe he met with Aiyana when they came here earlier.

"They're probably on their way here," Drake said as he rode one of his dragons.

We've chosen our opponents and I'll take Shan on. He hates me for having a messy fighting style, so it's likely that he would go after me anyway. Matteo's pack was originally going to fight Kath, but she's on our side now. That's why we decided to split the last squad and made them back the squads who would be fighting The Zodiacs. The more people subdue them, the better.

Kath stared at me, so I looked back at her. She snickered and looked away, making me heave another sigh. This kid! She's always loved making fun of me, so I'm not surprised that she's doing it now that we're on the battlefield.

"Focus," I told her.

"I don't need you to tell me that, horndog."

Oh, f**k. She might have heard everything that Flare and I talked about because of the stupid locket. Kath would probably tell everyone later, so I prepared myself. It seems like she already told Sheena and Bren because they were looking at me weirdly.

"Please stop. You can mess with me later as long as you focus now," I said.

"As you wish," Kath replied with a smirk.

"You're no longer our leader. Don't give us orders," Sheena told me.

I pursed my lips and looked away. Sheena probably held a grudge because I left in a bad way. She was like a child to me, so I get that she hated me for what I did. Bren seems to have understood me because he gave me a thumbs up.

"Make sure that they get a whiff of Flare's mana," I reminded them one last time.

I felt their presence, so I got ready as I felt Shan's presence charging towards me. I immediately took my hybrid form to greet him. Shan can fly, so it's quite annoying. But I found a way to be able to walk on air by making a path of the water that I made to use as a foothold.

"You traitor!" Sullivan shouted as soon as he saw us lined up.

Traitor, huh...? If anyone should be branded as a traitor, it's the twelve of us. I smiled bitterly before looking at Shan who was looking at me with a sinister smile plastered on his face.

"Nice to see you, traitor!" he said with a sweet tone.

He's not mad, that's for sure. All he wants is to discipline me and make sure that I finally mature. Too bad for him, I don't think that will happen even after how much he told me to.

"It's been a long time, Shan," I replied.

"This time, I will be taking you down."

Shan started charging towards me, so I took the chance and opened the bottle. He quickly backed away after inhaling some of Flare's mana, so I smirked at him. That might count as cheating, which he really hates.

"What was that...?" he asked, but refused to give up.

Flare might have given this to us, thinking that they would break out of the spell with this. She's wrong, though. This might weaken them, yes. But this isn't enough to break the spell. It's her that's needed to break it. Without her, they would remain like this. Perhaps she's not aware that we only react to her presence as our master, not her mana.

"Poison, I guess?" I teased him.

"You've sunken so low, Karis."

"Look who's talking. I don't want to hear such words from someone who is still serving a pretentious king."

He was taken aback by what I said, probably unaware of what Hildus has been doing behind their backs. That flimsy god seems to have been plotting to kill the twelve of us once Flare has been eliminated. Not like we'll let it happen.

"You know nothing," he said as he started to summon a strong wind to turn it into a condensed one.

Shan might be a bit predictable, but that doesn't stop him from winning battles. He probably has a headache now, but he's still fighting like how he normally does. As expected of the ever-sophisticated swan of The Zodiacs.

I smirked and called my sword out, which turned into a trident while casting a spell on the ground. Shan has also summoned his wind sword named Sylph. The way he fights is like that of the wind, itself. So, I have to watch out or I'll end up being ripped to shreds.

"Legacy..." I called the trident.

It quickly reacted to my call and we launched an attack on Shan who just did the same. The herd water deer that I created helped me fend his attacks off while fighting the wind swans that Shan created. Meanwhile, Shan kept dodging every swing that I make.

"Oh? Have you lost your groove now?" he taunted me.

I smirked. "Do you want me to use my full power, then? You won't regret it, will you?"

"Of course not."

Shan seems to have powered up a lot, so I tested him to make sure that I can win. He'll likely use his full power if I use mine. I smirked at him and brought out the maximum of my power. He was surprised, of course, but he did the same.

"Were you threatened?" I asked.

"Why would I be?"

We continued to clash with our swords while casting spells from all over the place. I was right for choosing to fight outside the city. If we did this inside, everything would have been destroyed by now. Especially since I'm here.

"Are you not worried about your subordinates? You made them fight The Zodiacs," he said.

I chuckled. "Should I worry about them while in front of an opponent, then? What did I tell you, Shan?"

Shan didn't answer because he started to create another Sylph! I didn't know that he can do that now. Damn, I might be in trouble. Good thing he didn't notice the magic circle that I've been creating. It seems like the water that it has gathered is enough now. All the creatures that I made which are dead were converted to water that I would use to summon the spirit deer.

"Deity who sought justice for thy fallen companions, heed my call..."

A gigantic water deer emerged from the magic circle, trampling the wind swans that were there and absorbing all the water. It ran towards us to protect me.

"You bastard..." Shan mumbled when he finally understood what I was doing.

I quickly jumped on the top of its head and held onto its huge antlers. Because of what I did, Shan summoned the strongest sylph to ever exist. It wasn't a sword anymore, because it was the real deal. He converted the two swords into a vessel that the spirit of the sylph could use. I braced myself for what was about to happen. No matter how elegant Shan is, he becomes a messy fighter because of me. We might end up trashing the whole place, which startled the others.

"Karis, what have you done?!" Drake shouted from a distance as he threw a fireball at me, which evaporated before it could even hit me.

"Focus on your own fight!" I replied while looking Shan in the eye.

"How can I when you're trying to get us all killed?!"

I didn't answer because Shan raised his hand, preparing to attack me with a whole storm! I raised my trident, so Irish, the water deer, opened her mouth to fire a water cannon. I've barely tested this out when fighting Flare, but I know that I can pull it off.

"Unleash thy wrath..."

Irish unleashed the most powerful roar that it could create. The sylph that Shan summoned did the same. I coated myself with armor as I tried to withstand the recoil of that attack. Luckily, my mana hasn't run out yet.

"You son of a b***h!" Drake shouted as I saw all of them getting out of the way in case the attack gets deflected.

I don't even have the time to laugh because the two deities were still going at it, trying to overpower each other. Suddenly, Irish started draining my mana to make it stronger! The sylph finally lost, which made the both of them stop. I tried to stop the attack before it could hit Shan because his mana has been completely dried out, but I couldn't do it.

"Drake!" I shouted.

A fire dragon suddenly appeared in front of Shan, taking the hit. I chuckled as I fell down, amazed that Drake still helped even though he was mad at me for being too reckless. Suddenly, I felt my mana being restored.

"Thank you," I told Alwina.

She sighed. "Please don't do that anymore, Sir Karis. We almost had a heart attack, afraid that we could have been hit by such a powerful attack. At least choose the time and place," she lectured me.

"I wouldn't have been able to defeat Shan if I didn't do that," I replied.

Shan seems to have fainted, so we took the chance and made him sniff Flare's mana. She seems to have been placing these in containers for a while now, so Alwina took them here. That woman! How could I not have noticed that she was doing such a thing?

Shan started coughing and he looked like he was in pain, so the healers who were supposed to heal me used their recovery magic on him instead. Due to exhaustion, he passed out. The pain might have been too much to bear, but he was slowly breaking out of the spell. 

I smiled and ruffled his hair. "You will be free now, comrade."

Drake just finished fighting Sullivan, so he brought him to where we placed Shan. He glared at me, so I pursed my lips and looked away. Now that I see it, Drake is more fit to be the leader. I may be stronger, but he's the most competent among us.

"You are stubborn as a mule. I swear I'll have a heart attack because of you," he said as he shook his head in dismay.

"Sorry."

"Stop saying sorry. You'll do it again, anyway."

I pursed my lips and stood up to help the squads who seem to be having a hard time. Alice seems to have been greatly weakened, so I can say that they're going to be fine even if I don't help them. Matteo's pack can still go, so I left Felix with them.

"Ah, Delvian has gone on a rampage," I said.

"Don't talk like you didn't just almost eradicate us, Karis," Drake replied with a grim expression.

I looked away and cleared my throat. Sheena and Ruby seem to be finished fighting. I alerted the recovery team immediately because both of them seems to be injured. Sheena had minor injuries, but Ruby seems to have suffered a lot.

"Are they...on bad terms?" I asked as Alwina helped me restore my mana.

"Yes. You know Sheena, she can hold grudges well. Ruby must have done something that got her all pissed. Sheena was really mad the other day," Drake replied.

I nodded and started stretching. "I'll go and help them."

Drake sighed. "You can handle Delvian, right?"

I nodded and cracked my knuckles as I summoned my sword once again. Delvian noticed that I was fast approaching, so he immediately turned to me as he made the wind dolphins attack me. I chuckled and placed a shield up as I deflected some of his attacks.

"What set you off this time?" I asked.

"Shut up, traitor!" he shouted.

I sighed and shook my head in dismay. "We're all traitors here, Delvian."

"Shut up!"

He was panting so hard, so I can see that this squad was successful in weakening him. I summoned my trident again and created a water tornado as I ran in his direction. Ruby seems to have snapped out of it and started backing me up even though she was feeling sick.

I couldn't help but grin when I felt my mana surging up. Delvian seems to have been taken aback that Ruby is on our side now, but he didn't back down. When the water tornado was complete, I spun the trident and whipped it towards Delvian's direction. He quickly put a shield up, which immediately broke. However, he was able to put an armor on just on time.

"Is that all, Delvian?" I shouted.

Well, the squad has been fighting him with all their might, so it's not a surprise that he can barely cast a spell now. After getting provoked, his power shot up and went on a rampage once again. The wind dolphins kept tackling me as I kept whipping him with the water tornado.

"Attack with me so this can end quickly!" I said.

"Yes, Sir Karis!"

They started to cast their spells that were pointed towards Delvian, who also created a tornado. Sheena came and placed a shield up for them, which is the least she can do now. The two were still injured, but they rushed to my side to help me. I'll have to give them a proper apology. But I'll save it for later!

With Ruby's enhancement, I was able to make the tornado stronger, which broke Delvian's armor. I heaved a sigh of relief when we finally took him down. The squad that fought him was also very injured, so Ruby healed them while doing the same for yourself.

I bowed before the two women that I once treated as kids. "Forgive me for leaving without saying anything," I said with utmost sincerity.

"It doesn't matter now," Sheena replied coldly.

Ruby was also mad and didn't want to speak to me anymore, but Drake explained what actually happened. I smiled at her, so she started crying. The poor bunny was guilty of turning to Bythos, her real family. Shan and Sullivan just snapped out of it, so we also explained everything to them.

Meanwhile, Alwina was making the others sniff Flare's mana out. It was a little weird, but I allowed it since it was necessary. My body was on the verge of giving up even after getting my mana restored, so I sat down and rested for a while.

"Are you okay? I can heal you if you want," Ruby asked when she noticed.

Drake also saw what was happening and tried to kick me. "Don't go lying around or I'll kill you," he said while glaring at me.

I cleared my throat and stood up. "Let's help them," I said as I pointed at the others who were still fighting.

"Aren't you asking Ruby to heal you?" Drake asked with his back on me.

I laughed at how he still worried about me even after threatening to kill me. "Won't you kill me if I keep lying around?"

He turned to me with a glare. But then I realized that Flare could be having a hard time right now, so I stopped and became serious again. I sighed and asked Ruby to heal me even if it was just a little.

"What? Thinking of Her Majesty?" Drake asked, but I didn't answer. "She's probably okay, so stop sulking. I'm sure she'd dropkick you if she saw this."

I snickered. "I can see that happening."

I turned my back on him and started rushing towards Matteo's pack who was fighting Felix. He seems to still have a lot of mana on his pedestal, so it's quite bad for the pack since Felix can recover on his own. Alice has been taken down, so they're being healed now. It seems like they're still injured, so they can't rush to Flare's side yet.

When will this be over? I want to go to the greenfields with Flare already. I promised that we'd go to that kind of place once this is over, and I want to keep it. I sighed and summoned my sword once again.

"Do you need help?" I asked Matteo who was about to lose his s**t.

"No," he replied stubbornly and proceeded to attack Felix who didn't even budge.

Felix has a weak spot. Even if he can keep healing himself, it will stop once the real lynx from the ones that are spread all over the place is killed, so I aimed for it while Matteo's pack kept on distracting him. Felix almost went crazy when I killed the lynx because the others started to disappear. Matteo was finally able to take him down, so I rested for a while. My whole body hurts because I summoned Irish, which I wasn't supposed to do yet.

When all of us has finished fighting, Ruby used an item to make all of us recover in an instant. Alwina opened a portal for us so we can reach Flare immediately. I was the first to cross because I badly want to see her now. The portal couldn't reach the actual place where Flare and Hildus are fighting because of the overwhelming mana. Alwina tried, but the portal quickly disappeared.

Flare, please be alright...

"Karis..."

My eyes widened when I heard Flare's voice. She called for me! But, why? I swallowed the lump on my throat as I ran as fast as I could. When I saw what was going on, I felt my heart breaking in two. Flare was in tears as she kept calling for me, so I ran as fast as I could.

"Flare!" I shouted as loud as I can. "Please wait for me..."

However, she disappeared before I can reach her. I fell on my knees as I failed to save her. She called for me, and I heard it. But I didn't arrive on time! What a useless servant I am...

"Karis, stand up..."

I looked up at Bythos, who looked the same as he always has. However, I couldn't look him in the eye after driving him out of the castle just because I was being controlled. First, I betrayed my master and now that I vowed to do everything for my queen, I wasn't able to save her.

"Karis..." Bythos called again.

"What should I do?" I asked while covering my face with my hands.

"I have sealed Flare and Chaos in Wrecce for the time being. We need to defeat Chaos to save her. Now stand up. Let's go back to the castle," he said sternly.