Just what the hell are they made of... How can they keep fighting despite these odds!?

That was the sole thought running through Volutia’s head as she cast her whip through the air wildly, attempting to overcome Rosette’s ironclad defenses. While the red-haired knight wasn’t exactly a defensive fighter like Medrauta, even rudimentary techniques were enough for her to parry Volutia’s attacks easily.

As a former noblewoman who only acquired her now-superhuman strength through becoming one of Amelia’s Sworn champions, Volutia’s skill at arms was middling at best, and she was a rather irrelevant threat if not for her seemingly natural talent at witchcraft and the army of Fiknights she had summoned.

Much to her displeasure and surprise, the three Fiknights she had initially summoned were practically wiped out in an instant by the combined efforts of the four knights, all of them no longer holding back a single ounce of energy or strength. After all, they were in front of the finish line at long last, and they were determined to go home victorious or go out in a blaze of glory.

In response, Volutia had summoned a much greater number of the creatures instead, practically filling the room with her witchspawn knights and pushing her enemies back through sheer numbers. Despite her efforts though, Rosette had managed to hold her position using her powerful Chivalric Arts, protecting Estelle as a flurry of rose petals whirled around the two, the floral storm obliterating any Fiknight foolish enough to approach.

“Medrauta!” Viviane shouted. “Slow down! You’re going too fast!”

“I’m not gonna leave Rosette in the middle of that shitstorm, Vivi!” Medrauta shouted back as she wielded her sword furiously, hacking her way through the Fiknights that crowded around her from nearly all angles. The enemy’s superior numbers did nothing to deter her advance, a sentiment that was shared by all the other knights. The war had accustomed them to fighting against such witchspawn tides, after all.

“I’m not telling you to!” Viviane released three arrows in quick succession, rolling to avoid a lance-wielding Fiknight’s attack before quickly dispatching it with a shot to the head. “Lady Rosaline can’t keep up with this pace!”

“Leticia!” Medrauta roared. “Pick up the pace! Lady Rosaline can’t advance if you’re moving slowly!”

“I’m fucking trying, Medrauta!” Leticia grit her teeth, annoyed at Medrauta’s sudden order. She understood the urgency, but she was prioritizing her lady’s safety over all else. With Viviane being the only noblewoman actually capable of fighting the witchspawn, both Eris and Leticia had to focus on their lady before all else.

That said, Eris was definitely doing a better job of advancing through the crowd of Fiknights while also shielding Scarlet from any would-be attackers, but that was no doubt due to her superior speed and the special properties of her dagger which allowed her to take out large swathes of enemies in a single attack.

“Lady Rosaline!” Scarlet spoke in a voice that was neither too loud nor too quiet, but just overbearing enough to carry over the din of battle. “Have you already forgotten what I have taught you? Move together with your knight and wield your Crest with pride!”

“Y-Yes, Lady Scarlet!” Rosaline stammered, her eyes shifting nervously at the enemies around her. 

Although Leticia was eradicating them before they could truly surround her, Rosaline’s place during the civil war and the battles that followed after had only ever been at the very rear aside from a few rare cases. Completely unaccustomed to having so many enemies around her, the noblewoman could barely focus on anything other than maintaining her Crest upon Leticia.

As the knights continued to struggle through the small army of Fiknights Volutia had summoned, her battle against Rosette continued to rage on, albeit not to her advantage.

“Gah! Why won’t you just die!?” Volutia snarled, her whip shooting through the air multiple times in quick succession as she attempted to find an opening in Rosette’s defenses.

Rosette didn’t even bother replying. Instead, she simply continued to press on, forcing Volutia back with each passing second. In another few steps, Volutia would reach the first step of the very staircase she had initially descended from, something that would no doubt be endlessly humiliating to someone as arrogant as her.

Volutia grit her teeth, unwilling to accept this outcome even if it meant allowing one of Rosette’s blows to land directly on her still-untouched body. Despite Rosette’s ironclad defense, her sword gave her little advantage in terms of reach compared to Volutia’s lengthy whip that was capable of extending its range to cover vast distances.

She ceased attacking now, seemingly creating an opening for Rosette to launch a counterattack. The crimson-haired knight took the opportunity almost immediately, lunging forward with her blade leading the attack. A stream of rose petals trailed through the air behind her in a beautiful display, her sword aimed straight at Volutia’s black heart.

Shunk!

Volutia smirked as Rosette’s blade sunk into her arm. The impact was jarring as the blade shot straight through her bones and emerged from the other side, causing her excruciating pain. Normally, she would have winced and cried out in despair, but the pleasure and anticipation of what she would do next overrode those feelings of agony.

Rosette frowned as she struggled to free her sword from Volutia’s arm. Crimson blood flowed from the former noblewoman’s limb, indicating that she still possessed some degree of autonomy, but it did little for her. The wild look in Volutia’s eyes told Rosette that the former noblewoman had already entirely devoted herself to Amelia.

“Rosette! Watch out!” Estelle cried. She channeled mana into her Crest, feeling her reserves drop precipitously as she attempted to enhance the defensive properties that it provided as quickly as possible.

“S-Shit!” Rosette tugged again at her sword, but despite her overwhelming strength, it refused to budge even the slightest as Volutia forcefully.

Volutia’s wicked grin only widened as she continued forcefully flexing the muscles in her arm, using her incredible strength to hold Rosette’s blade in place despite the pain it caused her. With her other hand, she rapidly charged a sphere of black mana, causing it to grow denser and denser by the second.

“I told you, didn’t I?” Volutia cackled. “This wasn’t going to go the same as before!”

The sphere launched itself at the center of Rosette’s chest, exploding in an enormous burst of dark energy that swallowed up the nearby witchspawn and the stone floor beneath it, creating nothing more than a crater as the powerful burst expanded outward. 

Rosette roared as she struggled valiantly against the power of the blast, the darkness rapidly eroding the protective aura of Estelle’s Crest. The strength in her limbs waned and her feet slid back with every passing second, her steel boots screeching furiously against the stone surface.

Within the barrier of rose petals, Estelle screamed for her knight, but her words were lost in the chaos of the explosion. Tears formed in her eyes as her mana reserves were depleted completely from the effort of maintaining the defenses around her knight, forcing her to watch helplessly as Rosette was thrown backwards, sailing through the air as sinister black wisps of smoke trailed from the center of her breastplate.

Rosette landed hard on the floor, the force of her descent crushing several Fiknights into nothing but motes of black mana that soon dissipated in the air. Groaning in pain, she attempted to push herself off the ground, but to no avail.

Shit...! Don’t fail me now! Rosette mentally berated herself as she struggled to command her limbs. She stared up at the ceiling as a horde of Fiknights rushed to her position, but she refused to despair, for she knew she would not meet her end here. Not while there were three other highly dependable knights nearby.

Shiiing!

Medrauta’s sword cleaved through the swarm of Fiknights with ease, rushing to Rosette’s position thanks to the blast knocking the crimson-haired knight somewhere nearby. Eris and Leticia struck in tandem with Medrauta, the three of them coordinating their attacks and quickly eliminating the remaining Fiknights who had attempted to crowd Rosette’s prone form.

Just as Rosette had thought, her fellow knights had come to the rescue. A smile spread across her face, though it was immediately replaced by a look of extreme worry as a sudden realization crossed her mind. E-Estelle! She’s still stuck there with Volutia!

“Leticia!” Medrauta shouted, gesturing at Rosette’s chest.

Leticia didn’t need telling twice. She immediately leapt to Rosette’s position, dropping to one knee as she enveloped her fellow knight with a golden light, calling upon the power of the Crest bestowed upon her.

The crimson-haired knight could barely muster the strength to lift her head, making it impossible for her to see, but a large hole dominated the center of her body. The source of her immobility, the only reason why Rosette couldn’t feel the horrific wound was likely due to the copious amounts of adrenaline running through her body and the lingering vestiges of Estelle’s protective Crest that still coursed through her body.

“It looks like their numbers are beginning to dwindle.” Eris said as she cut down the latest group of Fiknights attempting to approach their position.

“Good timing, too.” Medrauta remarked, her voice grim as she focused on the rapidly thinning barrier of rose petals in the distance. “How long on that, Leticia?”

“Give me thirty more seconds!” Leticia said, focusing the brunt of her attention on closing Rosette’s wound. Though Rosaline’s Crest was incredibly powerful, it required a great deal of concentration to use, especially when rewinding time. Already, Rosette’s wound was beginning to knit together rapidly, but it would take a little longer to fully reverse the effects of Volutia’s attack.

“Got it! We’ll push toward Lady Estelle’s position!” Medrauta turned to Eris, beckoning for her to follow. “Vivi, cover us!”

As Medrauta and Eris both dashed toward the dome of rose petals, silver arrows sailed above her from behind. Viviane’s hands and fingers moved in a blur, pumping volley after volley into the remaining Fiknights and destroying as many as she could before the knights engaged them once again.

A whirlwind of silver and gold, Medrauta and Eris descended into the fray without hesitation, the sheer force of their attacks blowing away the Fiknights with ease. Though they attempted to parry with their own weapons, they were no match for Medrauta and Eris’ superior techniques and overwhelming strength that they had cultivated over the course of the war.

In mere moments, the last Fiknights were annihilated by the two knights, the witchspawn falling just in time as Volutia’s latest attack crashed against the barrier of rose petals, dispersing it at last.

“Die!” Volutia screamed triumphantly, raising her whip before unleashing it against the now-vulnerable Estelle. The violet-haired noblewoman flinched as the crimson whip flew toward her, but she refused to cower even when it was seconds away from striking her.

Clang!

Medrauta and Eris’ blades met forcefully, pinching the whip in between and stopping it from reaching Estelle mere inches away from her face. Had they attempted to block or deflect the attack, Volutia likely would have caused the weapon to wrap around their weapons, making this the only surefire way of stopping her strike.

The still-wriggling tail of the crimson whip quickly confirmed the knights’ theory, causing them to advance toward Volutia without releasing her weapon from between their blades.

The former noblewoman’s face twisted into an expression of pure rage as she glared at the approaching knights, forcefully tearing her whip free from their weapons and causing it to snap. She tossed it to the ground, discarding the useless tool.

“...Why!? Why must you always stand in my way, Scarlet!?” Volutia snarled, clearly hysteric. “It’s always you! You or your knight!”

“You’re wrong,” Rosette said. Now fully healed, she rejoined her companions at her lady’s side. Close behind her was Leticia and her lady, Rosaline.

“...What?”

“You’re wrong.” Rosette repeated. “All this time, you were the only one who stood against yourself.”

“You dare speak as if you know me!? You who did not even attend the Imperial Academy... You who do not even know half of my struggles!? You struck me down so casually at the shield tower, and now you even dare to—”

“It’s because I do know, Volutia. I know all too well how it feels to love someone, but have that emotion totally and utterly unreciprocated. I know how it feels to be left out of that person’s life entirely. To be cut off and deemed as unworthy even as a friend.”

“...So what? You say you’ve gone through the same struggles, yet here you are preaching to me... Don’t you feel pain? Aren’t you hurt!?”

“I am. But I won’t let my pain stand in my way, Volutia. I won’t use my pain as an excuse to hurt others. That’s the difference between us.”

“...You... Are you looking down on me?”

“I am.” Rosette replied immediately and unflinchingly.

“Y-You...! What gives you the right!? W-Who the hell do you think you are!?”

“I am someone who refused to fall into the depths of despair like you. I am someone who continued to persevere. To chase my unrequited love and to chase hope.” Rosette stepped in front of Volutia, raising her sword in preparation to deliver the final blow. “As someone who never strayed from the light, I have every right to look down on a creature of darkness like you, Volutia.”

Volutia screamed, a shrill and screeching sound that encapsulated all the rage, hate, desperation, and despair she had felt thus far. “I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you, I’ll kill you, I’ll kill you, I’llkillyouI’llkillyouI’llkillyoui’llkillyoui’llkillyouillkillyoukillyoukillyoukillyoukillyoukillyoukillyo—”

Splurch.

Rosette’s blade buried itself in Volutia’s neck, but the former noblewoman’s mutterings still did not stop.

“...killyoukillyoukillyou...” Volutia’s eyes glazed over as blood poured incessantly from the wound Rosette had opened. “...No. I won’t... This isn’t...”

“Farewell, Volutia.”

“NO!” Volutia screeched, expending the last vestiges of her life for one final bid for her deluded revenge. “Amelia! I give you my soul! Take it!”

“Gladly.” Amelia’s voice echoed throughout the chamber, the sinister and smooth tone causing a chill to run down Medrauta’s spine. That certainly wasn’t how she remembered Amelia’s voice to sound like.

As Amelia’s voice faded away like shadows in the wake of dawn, a pillar of black flame burst forth from Volutia’s position, enveloping her entire body and forcing Rosette to withdraw her weapon.

“Everyone!” Scarlet shouted. “Get back!”