Daybreak Rondo

by Yuri Kitayama

  “What a nuisance.” Aishia quietly stepped backwards and slashed the spear sideways with all her might. Alphonse’s head immediately went flying.

  “...?” Alphonse was surprised at how the scenery suddenly changed, eyes widening in wonder. But when he spotted his headless body below him, he opened his mouth and spat out his final words. “Kuh... ngaah!”

  ◇　◇　◇

  Meanwhile, as the battle between Aishia and Alphonse began, Rio was in hot pursuit of the fleeing Lucius. By using his wind spirit arts to forcefully accelerate his body, he left the estate in a matter of seconds.

  That man ran with his physical abilities enchanted. There should be traces of magic essence along the route he had taken. While normally such traces would be easily missed, Rio focused his mind and was able to detect those remnants.

  “Found it,” he said, leaping high into the air.

  “...Over there.” Far below his eyes, he spotted Lucius pushing his way forward while carrying Flora. His face wasn’t visible under the hood, but he was running straight along the rooftops. The time was already long past dawn, the rising sun shining blindingly behind the man’s back.

  He’s fast. It must not be a simple physical ability enhancement after all. If he keeps going that way, he’ll hit the outer wall of the city. Is he going to run into the forest to the west?

  At this rate, Lucius was probably under a minute away from leaving the city. Rio estimated the direction that Lucius was headed.

  I’ll catch up to him as soon as he leaves the city. He manipulated his wind spirit arts to accelerate himself as he descended.

  ◇　◇　◇

  Less than a minute later, Rio caught up to Lucius past the wall, exactly as he had predicted. Lucius came to a sudden stop at an open piece of land near the city walls and turned to face Rio.

  “I didn’t expect anyone could catch up to me in that situation. Well, no... I was hopeful, but...” His tone was rather pleased.

  This voice really is... Rio clenched the fist holding his sword. Hearing it up close made it sound all the more familiar.

  “...Hey, what are you all silent for? Say something.” Lucius raised his brows in suspicion at Rio, who stood still and silently.

  “...How about you remove that hood first?” Rio ordered in a low and sharp voice.

  “Uh? Who do you think you’re talking to? Didn’t you come to save this princess?” Lucius purposefully lifted Flora off his shoulder and readjusted his hold on her, showing off his advantage of having a hostage. Being carried backwards meant that Flora was facing the forest.

  “Kya!” She seemed to be conscious, letting out a small shriek at having her position adjusted.

  Is Princess Flora in the way? No... After making his promise to Liselotte, he couldn’t simply abandon Flora like that.

  Better let him think she doesn’t have value as a hostage. Perfect. I’ll keep going with what I want, Rio thought, immediately discarding his hesitation.

  “The one I have business with is you,” he stated quietly.

  “...Huh?” Lucius cocked his head in suspicion.

  “You’re Lucius, aren’t you?”

  “...Oh?” When Rio called out his name, Lucius’ tone changed to one of deep curiosity.

  “Take off your hood,” Rio ordered.

  “Huh, I don’t like that. What would you do if I was the Lucius you think I am, anyway?” Lucius sneered, questioning Rio.

  “I’d kill you,” Rio stated with no hesitation whatsoever.

  “...Ha... Hahaha! That’s a funny thing to say. Hilarious!” Lucius laughed in honest delight.

  He’s young, Lucius thought. This must be the human contracted to that humanoid spirit, right? I don’t recognize him, but if he has a grudge against me, then we must have met somewhere before. He observed Rio’s face closely from under his hood, thinking calmly.

  “Fine, then.” Lucius said, stabbing his jet black sword into the ground. He then slowly proceeded to remove his hood, revealing his appearance. “Well? Am I the person you wanted me to be?” he asked with a wicked grin.

  “...Yeah. I’ve been searching for you all this time,” Rio confirmed in a coolly detached voice.

  “Oh? But you seem to be rather indifferent to that?”

  “No, that’s not true. I most definitely want to kill you,” Rio shook his head quietly. His tone was still as cold and detached as ever.

  “Hah, then you have to lay yourself bare more! You came here to avenge yourself, no?” Lucius said in a somewhat displeased manner.

  “I am laying myself bare. As long as I kill you, that’s all I need.” Rio replied solemnly.

  “Heh, is that so? Well, damn. You must be one boring bastard. But still... I’ll make sure to have my fun!” Lucius sighed in exasperation before grabbing his sword and attacking Rio while still carrying Flora. Rio responded immediately, evading Lucius’ attack. He attempted to land a counterattack on Lucius with his blade, but Lucius used Flora as a shield.

  “Guh...” Rio reflexively halted his sword in midair.

  “Ha! Nice reflex! Shall we go further?” Lucius said, this time swinging his sword at Rio. An exchange of blows began between the two of them; it was Rio’s first experience fighting in a battle with a hostage being held.

  This is difficult.

  It was a tougher fight than he imagined it would be. By carrying Flora, Lucius’ movements were restricted, but he had been similarly been able to restrict Rio’s attacks by using her as a shield.

  However, the same applied for Lucius. He wasn’t able to land any attacks on Rio because of how he was carrying Flora, causing them to end up in a complete stalemate.

  “Hahaha, is this princess important to you? Or do you just want to avoid getting innocent people involved in your revenge? Either way, you’re one naive bastard!” Lucius sneered as he crossed swords. Contrary to the cold way he was observing Rio, his emotions were beginning to fire up with excitement.

  There’ll be no end to this at this rate. I’ve pretty much figured out our difference in ability, but he’s a weird one. I wouldn’t have forgotten someone this strong. Lucius looked back on his memory, trying to identify the person before him. But no matter how much he looked at Rio’s face, he couldn’t remember.

  ...No good, not happening. I can’t remember at all. Or rather, I don’t have any memory of meeting a guy like this... Which means I must have met him while he was still a bratty kid. Lucius clicked his tongue and thought about what would be the most interesting approach if that were the case.

  After a moment, Lucius backed away from Rio temporarily, lowering his sword. “Stop — I’m done with this. Fighting like this is no fun at all.”

  “...” Rio himself considered how Flora was currently in the way and lowered his sword.

  “It’s about time you told me your secret. Unfortunately, I’ve incurred a lot of enmity over my life, so I don’t bother remembering each and every face I deal with. But I’ve got an interest in you. Having you know me, while I have no idea who you are, isn’t fun at all,” Lucius said.

  “If you don’t remember, then it just means I wasn’t that important to you,” Rio replied, not bothering to answer properly.

  “Cut the bullshit. A sword hand like yours would definitely leave an impression in my memory,” Lucius provoked.

  “Ah, is that so?” But Rio still didn’t answer. He had no intention of earnestly giving away the information being sought while Flora was still a hostage. There was the fear that the moment he told him, Flora’s use as a hostage would be maximized.

  “...Tch, I hate stuck-up brats like you. How would you feel if I added this princess to the list of casualties?” Lucius clicked his tongue in annoyance and held his sword against the legs of Flora, who he was carrying.

  “Anh...” Flora’s body shook with a flinch.

  “I can’t imagine you’d harm her after going through all the trouble of abducting her,” Rio said unwaveringly to Lucius’ threat.

 
; “...Hah, you sure have guts. She is valuable negotiation material, after all. Well, whatever. If I have no recognition of you right now, that means I met you when you were still a brat, right?” Lucius could tell his threat had no effect and immediately changed his approach.

  “...”

  “There you go with your silence again. But I’ll take your silence as agreement, yeah? I get a strange feeling when I look at your face, but I just can’t place it. You’re not from the kingdoms around here, right?”

  “...” Rio didn’t answer.

  Lucius frowned in annoyance. “Tch, you’re really getting on my nerves now. All right, let’s make a bargain. I’ll release this princess for now. In return, you tell me your identity, then have a one-on-one match with me. I’ll turn the tables on the avenger.” It was a rather advantageous condition for Rio, which Lucius had confidence in.

  As long as she’s within sight, I can still use her as a hostage without the hindrance. Which way it plays out comes after I confirm this guy’s origin. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be fun. Lucius had confidence. Even if he had a serious match with Rio, he wouldn’t be the one to lose. His mouth was turned up in a fearless grin.

  “...” Rio stared fixedly at Lucius, doubt in his eyes.

  “Hey, hey. Aren’t you a bit too scared? Fine. How about this: if you accept my terms, I’ll let the princess go first,” Lucius offered, yet another beneficial condition to Rio.

  Rio hesitated for a moment, but soon nodded quietly. “...All right.”

  “Then it’s a done deal. Here ya go!” Lucius threw Flora roughly against the ground.

  “Ugh...” Flora let out a soft groan.

  “Yo, princess. Make sure you stand in the middle, where I can see you, yeah? Otherwise, more monsters might appear near you. Same goes for you. Don’t even think about approaching the princess.” Lucius gave a blunt warning to Flora before doing the same to Rio.

  “Auh...” Flora was wholly afraid. And yet, when she finally spotted Haruto, she was filled with surprise. She twisted her face tearfully.

  “Stand back a little more,” Rio said to Flora a little uncomfortably.

  “O-Okay.” Flora nodded earnestly, staggering away from the two of them. From that moment onward, Rio and Lucius’ relationship completely changed from that of a hostage rescue to an avenger and his target.

  “I stuck to my conditions. Now speak,” Lucius ordered sharply.

  “...It was over ten years ago. I lived in the capital of Beltrum Kingdom,” Rio said slowly. Telling him the answer could possibly reveal his past to Flora, but this was a once in a lifetime opportunity he couldn’t pass up. Rio had lived his whole life for this moment.

  He yearned for it.

  Even if it was an illogical act, he wanted to settle his feelings of his past by getting his revenge on the man before him. In order to do that, he had to make sure Lucius was aware of who he was before he killed him.

  “...Oh?” Lucius hummed with deep interest. That one sentence revealed a lot of information. Meanwhile, Flora’s eyes widened when she heard Rio had lived in the same land as her.

  “At that time, you had your eyes set on a certain parent and child,” Rio continued solemnly. His words finally made something dawn on Lucius.

  “Ha. Haha! Ha! I see, so your face was from Yagumo! Your hair color was so different, I couldn’t recall at all! Isn’t that right?!” Lucius laughed loudly, his expression exhilarated.

  “...” The flames of Rio’s quiet revenge burned within him as he watched Lucius silently.

  “Ha, no need to look at me so angrily. But I see, I see. So you’re alive. No, you stayed alive for me. That snotty, powerless brat.” Lucius quirked his lips in a sadistic grin.

  “It seems you remember now.”

  “Yeah, clear as day I do. I wanted to see you again too. After all, I spared the brat back then because I desired a moment like this.”

  “...” He really was an awful man, Rio thought, but he didn’t let that thought show on his face. The feelings Rio had for Lucius were no longer in the realms of hatred or disgust.

  That’s why all he had was a keen, detached desire to kill. He wasn’t pursuing a sense of satisfaction or accomplishment through his revenge. He didn’t need any other feelings to carry out his personal act of revenge.

  The moment he sought revenge, Rio’s sense of reason overwhelmed him and scolded him for lowering himself to the same level as the man before him. He didn’t want to live the same way as the person he condemned.

  That was the answer Rio had reached before his parents’ graves when he visited Yagumo. Rio had decided to move forward — to accept reality while reaching for the ideal. To try and remain pure while sometimes exposing the ugly side of himself. Even if such contradictory ideas made him a hypocrite, Rio would proceed down that path.

  That’s why it wasn’t logical. It wasn’t something like logic that drove Rio to kill Lucius... He just wanted to face his ugly self.

  “I’m glad to see you grew up exactly as I wanted. If that’s the case, then I’m finally getting excited too. This ain’t bad.” Lucius chuckled in delight.

  “...I’m also glad to see you were still the person I remember you as,” Rio stated quietly.

  “Hah, should I have reflected a little? Or maybe shown some regret?” Lucius questioned him in a provocative tone.

  “I’m not seeking any repentance or remorse from you at all.” Rio replied, not rising to Lucius’ bait.

  Tch, that’s no fun at all. He could show a little less composure.

  For Lucius, there was no greater pleasure than turning the tables on a would-be avenger. It was precisely because the other party acted on their emotions and instincts that he found joy in shutting them down with his own. The more intense his opponent’s feelings, the spicier his life was.

  ...Which was why Lucius brought up the topic of Rio’s parents. “...Is that so? Come to think of it, I’d heard from Zen before. That Ayame was originally a princess from some kingdom.”

  “Eh?” Flora was being completely ignored, but she was listening to Rio’s conversation and understood the flow of the story. However, she was confused at the mention of royalty.

  “Ayame was a good woman. A good meal indeed. She kept trying to protect you right up until she died. Please don’t kill Rio, I beg you, she cried,” Lucius said, sneering with terrible cynicism.

  “...” Even Rio faintly furrowed his brow at that, tightening his grip on his sword.

  “E-Eh...?” Flora had no idea what was going on anymore. The man Haruto had called Lucius had brought up the name Rio. Yes, he had used the word “you” to refer to Haruto, then said Rio with certainty... Which meant the similarities Flora saw between Haruto and Rio weren’t just a figment of her imagination after all. But Haruto’s hair was grey, the woman who was apparently his mother was royalty, and had gone through something so terrible...

  Everything that was said had been so shocking, Flora’s mind had nearly gone blank. But the situation was changing with every moment, leaving Flora even further behind.

  “Hah! You’ve got a better look on your face now.” Lucius chuckled in satisfaction.

  “...Is that all you have to say, then?” Rio asked quietly. Speaking anymore than this would just ruin his mood more. He’d already confirmed the necessary information, which meant there was only one thing left to do.

  “Yeah, it’s been roughly ten years, after all. I’ll play with you again. Come at me.” Lucius’ mood was at its peak. He held his black sword ready in his right hand, pointing it at Rio provocatively. The signal for the start of the battle.

  Without the shackles of Flora, Rio could release all of his power now.

  “...Huh?” Rio disappeared from Lucius’ view, making him freeze momentarily. At the same time, he was aware of his own body feeling off balance. His left half was lighter, to be precise. Something was flying through the air.

  Rio was standing behind Lucius before he knew it, flicking his sword through
the end of his swing. One beat later, something fell on the ground with a thump.

  “Eh!” Lucius became aware of the fact that that something was his own left arm. “Play by yourself,” Rio’s chilling voice echoed.

  ◇　◇　◇

  “W-What?” Lucius watched his own left arm roll across the floor and widened his eyes in shock. At the same time, his many years of combat experience made him reflexively turn to swing his sword at Rio behind him.

  However, his slashing attack couldn’t reach Rio’s body; it sliced through the air in vain. Rio stepped back to increase the distance between them, watching Lucius with cold eyes.

  Impossible. I couldn’t react? Me, of all people...? Lucius forced down his shaken state and glared at Rio dangerously. He had definitely not lowered his guard and had made himself ready to respond to battle at any moment.

  And yet, he had been taken by surprise. If he hadn’t been holding his sword in front of him, it wouldn’t have been a wonder if his head had been flying instead. At the taste of death, which was something he hadn’t experienced in so long, Lucius felt an indescribable irritation run through him.

  “Kuh!”

  But at the same time, his head was thinking calmly for the reason as to why he lost sight of Rio.

  “Tch?!” Rio closed in on him once more from head-on. This time, he was slower than before. He was still fast, but he was slow enough to respond to.

  Still, Lucius was forced to react with a missing left arm. He blocked the sword Rio held in both hands with his sword only in his right hand.

  “Guh...” Lucius sensed the overwhelming difference in physical strength and promptly took a step back to fend off the force. However, Rio reacted immediately and launched a counterattack.

  So fast! Just how much essence does he have?! And what is that ridiculous strength enhancement?! Lucius was shaken quite a bit by the fountain of magic essence he felt flowing from Rio’s body strengthening enhancement.

  “Gah?!” Rio’s leg stretched up like a sharp spear and struck Lucius precisely in the pit of his stomach. Lucius tried to jump back on the spur of the moment to weaken the force, but the abnormal amount of force sent him flying away.