Chapter 48: Standing His Ground
"Diooooon!"
Rene screamed, his face turning bright red as the veins on his forehead bulged and his jaw clenched tight. Yanking himself free from Gred and Evelyn’s grip, he charged straight at Dion with his sword raised high.
Clang!
Rene brought his blade down in a heavy vertical strike, but Dion caught it cleanly with his armored gauntlet. With a single flick of his arm, Dion swatted him away.
"Whoa!"
Rene went flying backward once more, tumbling through the dirt before coming to a stop right between the feet of Gred and Evelyn. Both of them stood completely frozen, their faces pale as they stared at Dion.
"Leave, and don’t ever step foot in this territory again, or..."
"Critical Slash!"
Dion swung his greatsword toward the east with one hand. The arc unleashed a massive, horizontal crescent wave of black energy wrapped in red lightning.
Sraaaak!
The eastern forest vanished in an instant, sliced apart by the beam. The sheer size of the crescent wave gouged into the earth, carving a deep trench across the landscape as it traveled.
Blam!
A thunderous explosion echoed from the distance. Moments later "crack!" a far-off cliff face crumbled and collapsed. Where the forest once stood, a brand-new road now stretched toward the fallen cliff, marked by a massive trench running straight down the middle.
Gred and Evelyn swallowed hard, and every last soldier trembled in fear. Sitting in the dirt between the two commanders, Rene gasped, staring in absolute disbelief at what had just happened.
Dion rested his greatsword back over his shoulder, his red eyes shifting to look down at Gred, Evelyn, and the pale-faced Rene sitting between them. Heavy footsteps echoed behind Dion as Luna, Sheila, Mei, Aria, and Cleo stepped through the barrier, weapons drawn as they formed a line behind him.
Gasp!
The barbarian warriors took a step back and lowered their weapons, while the mounted knights of Thetor sheathed their swords. Seeing that their troops had completely lost the will to fight, Gred and Evelyn let their leadership instincts take over.
"Leave," Dion commanded, his voice deep and heavy.
Gred and Evelyn looked back up at Dion, but their eyes quickly drifted past him.
Flap... flap...
Boom!
A massive black dragon landed right behind Dion, Luna, Cleo, Sheila, Mei, and Aria.
"Groaaaaar!"
Gina let out a deafening roar straight at the soldiers. The shockwave blew over the ranks, sending the barbarian warriors, Thetor knights, Gred, Evelyn, and Rene staggering back as if hit by a gale-force wind. Several knights were thrown from their saddles as their horses panicked and bolted.
Silence fell over the field once more, though the atmosphere had shifted completely. Gred, his face completely drained of color, raised his hands.
"Alright... alright... we’re leaving," Gred said. He immediately turned to his troops. "Retreat! Back to the kingdom!" he ordered.
Without a word, the barbarian forces turned around and marched in formation, though the loud clanking of their armor gave away just how violently they were shaking.
Evelyn remained standing where she was, exchanging a sharp, lingering glare with Aria. Finally, she turned and walked over to her horse, mounting it swiftly.
"Back to Thetor! Fall back!" Evelyn shouted.
Just like the barbarians, the knights turned their horses in solemn silence, doubling up on mounts where necessary as they began their retreat.
Soon, the only one left standing in front of them was Rene, his face still twisted in shock as he stared at the line of defenders and the massive dragon.
"The evil dragon Gemmeth... so that’s how it is... you were a demon lord all along... fine... just wait until I come back. I will wipe you out," Rene spat, slowly picking himself up with a cunning smirk fixed on Dion.
"Yeah, yeah... just go already and don’t come back. You’ve always been impossible to talk to. If you keep acting like this and never change, how do you expect to grow? Next time, please just come in peace. We’re old friends, after all," Dion said casually.
"I’m not your friend! I only hung around you because Luna brought you along! Don’t you dare act like we’re friends!" Rene shouted back, visibly riled up.
"Yeah, yeah... whatever you say. Just get out of here before I change my mind," Dion said easily, waving his hand as if shooing away a stray cat.
Rene glared at Dion, then let his eyes drift over Cleo, Sheila, Aria, Luna, and finally Mei.
"Even Mei is here... hahahah... you really are just a bunch of traitors," Rene chuckled bitterly.
"Are you going to leave, or do you want to come inside? We can have some tea and chat," Dion offered.
Rene stared at Dion one last time, his face twisting into a scowl of suppressed rage. He bent down, picked up his sword, and shoved it back into its sheath. Turning around, he began to walk away without another word.
"Hey, Rene!"
Rene heard Luna call out to him. He glanced back and saw her standing beside Dion, her hand tightly holding Dion’s.
"Don’t ever come back! And don’t forget, I don’t love you... Take care out there, there are plenty of S-rank monsters ahead, so try not to die. Bye!" Luna called out cheerfully.
"Grrr... miserable woman," Rene thought to himself in a fit of rage. "Remember, Dion, this isn’t over!" he shouted as a parting shot.
He turned back around, quickened his pace into the forest, and disappeared into the trees.
A moment later, Dion looked over at Luna.
"What was that about?" Dion asked.
"Well... just making sure he knows I didn’t betray him. A guy like him needs things spelled out over and over," Luna replied casually, letting go of Dion’s hand.
"You’re not making the situation any better, you know," Dion said, shaking his head.
Clang!
Cleo’s staff landed hard against Dion’s helmet with a loud metallic ring. Dion pulled off his helmet, rubbing his head as he turned to face Cleo.
"What was that for?!" Dion winced, shouting over his shoulder.
Cleo didn’t answer. She simply pointed toward the east. Dion turned to look. A brand-new road now cut through the forest, connecting his territory directly to the highway leading toward the Eredor Kingdom.
"Oh," Dion mumbled, realization finally hitting him.
Thump!
Cleo whacked Dion over the head again, hard enough to make him crouch down and clutch his skull, this time without a helmet to protect him.
"That hurt, you know!" Dion groaned, tears welling up in his eyes as he looked up.
"Why do you always love terraforming our world?! Look what you did! Now there’s an open highway straight from our territory to Eredor!" Cleo yelled.
"Give me a break. Here we are, trying to figure out our territory’s defenses," Sheila sighed, shaking her head and rubbing her temples.
"Well... at least we can use it to go shopping in Eredor. Look on the bright side," Mei offered optimistically.
"Don’t forget, the first group to show up in our territory was Eredor’s Shadow Hand," Aria pointed out dryly, crossing her arms.
"Ah... good point," Mei conceded, feeling the jab.
"This is exactly why I didn’t want you using your power, and why we told you not to act on your own," Luna added, crossing her arms as well.
"What was I supposed to do? Rene is strong, he was breaking through the barrier," Dion defended himself.
"Ha! You think my barrier is that weak?!" Cleo snapped angrily.
"Okay... okay... I’m sorry," Dion said, deactivating his persona.
"It’s the same thing every single time... From now on, if you’re going to do something, talk to us first," Luna scolded.
"Right. Stop running off and acting on your own," Cleo added.
"We’ll need to build another watchtower near that new road. Though at least the range on our current one should still cover the far end of it," Aria mused, mentally measuring the distance.
"Not just there, but in every corner of our territory. After this, we’re definitely going to be seen as a threat to the world," Cleo added, glaring at Dion.
"Come on, no more delaying! Right now, we need to get straight to work reinforcing our territory. Let’s get to work! Stay sharp and don’t stop even if you get tired!" Sheila rallied them with high spirits.
"Yeah, what’s done is done and we can’t undo it... So... is there anything you’d like to say, Dion?" Mei asked.
"Well? We’re all waiting," Luna added.
Dion looked up, clutching his head with both hands, only to find all five girls surrounding him. "Sigh," he let out a heavy breath.
"Yeah... yeah... I’m sorry. How about we head inside first?" Dion asked meekly.
"Sigh... fine, let’s go inside," Luna agreed.
"Yeah," Cleo chimed in.
They all turned and headed back inside. Dion walked at the very back, slumping his shoulders in defeat while Gina, back to her tiny size, perched on his shoulder, resting her little paw on his head as if silently trying to comfort him.