Kaito's mind raced a frantic, agonizing rhythm. The children trapped in the cage, the elder pinned beneath the wreckage, the raging inferno, and the corrupted monster—everything was happening at once, suffocating him under a mountain of impossibility.
"No..." he whispered, his voice trembling before his jaw set hard. His fists clenched so tightly that his nails bit deep into his palms. "No! This isn't right!"
He turned to Sage, his mounting frustration finally spilling over like boiling water. "You're telling me I have to choose between them?!" His desperate voice echoed across the smoky ridge. "How is that leadership? How is a king supposed to sit back and decide who deserves to live and who has to die?"
Silence followed his outburst, punctuated only by the distant, horrifying screams echoing from the heart of Southwatch.
Sage watched him, her expression entirely calm, an island of serenity in the chaos.
"I never said you must choose who deserves to live, Kaito."
Kaito stared at her, his breathing ragged.
"You must choose how to lead," she clarified softly.
He looked back toward the burning village. In the distance, the children cried out in terror inside the swaying, iron cage strapped to the beast, while the elder remained hopelessly trapped beneath the collapsed timbers of the great hall. His chest tightened until it ached.
"I can't..." He shook his head, a fierce, stubborn light igniting behind his glasses. "I will not choose."
Cherry blinked, caught off guard by the sudden shift in his demeanor. "Kaito?"
"I won't do it," he said, taking one determined step forward, then another, his voice gaining a heavy, undeniable authority. "I'm not sacrificing anyone. I couldn't care less if this means I've failed the fourth trial. We are going to rescue everyone tonight!"
He turned sharply toward the seven elf maidens, "Cherry! Rose! Find the remaining children!"
Both of the girls straightened instantly, their eyes locking onto him.
"Right!" Cherry barked, a fierce grin breaking through her worry. "Of course!" Rose echoed.
"Iris! Lily! Orchid!" Kaito continued, pointing toward the burning perimeter. "Protect the fleeing villagers and help evacuate anyone trapped in the surrounding area!" They nodded without a shred of hesitation, instantly sprinting into the smoke.
"River! Sage!" Kaito commanded, turning to his final anchors. "Heal the elder and get her out of that wreckage!
River offered him a warm, steady smile. "You can count on us."
Beside her, Sage's lips curved ever so slightly into a rare, approving expression. "As you command, my king."
For the very first time since falling into this world, Kaito wasn't asking for permission or hiding behind sarcasm. He was leading. Without another word, the elves split apart, moving with absolute purpose. Sage watched Kaito's retreating figure disappear into the burning village, a profound look in her eyes.
"…Interesting," she murmured.
River glanced toward her, pausing briefly. "What is?"
Sage's gaze remained fixed on the smoke where Kaito had vanished. "He believes he has failed the trial already," she said, a faint smile touching her face. "When in truth, him acknowledging he can't do this alone, proves our king has already passed it."
***
The corrupted beast roared, a deafening sound that shook the very earth beneath its massive, thorn-encrusted paws. With every heavy step it took, the iron cage strapped to its back lurched violently. Inside, twenty children screamed in terror, thrown ruthlessly from side to side against the rusted bars. One little boy lost his grip completely, sliding toward the edge before another child frantically caught his sleeve.
Watching from the street, Kaito's heart nearly stopped. "Hold on!" he shouted, sprinting across the ruined debris-strewn pavement. "I'll save you!"
The monster turned at the sound of his voice, its crimson eyes locking onto him with murderous intent. Good. He wanted its attention.
Kaito skidded to a halt, closing his eyes and thrusting his hand forward. "Mind Dominion!"
Nothing happened. The creature merely snarled, snapping its jaws. Kaito's opened his eyes and his stomach dropped into a cold void. "…What?" He focused all his energy, shouting the command again. "Mind Dominion!"
Still, nothing. Magic gathered briefly around his fingertips before dissolving into harmless, mocking wisps of blue light. The monster lowered its head, black energy rippling across the corrupted thorns embedded throughout its flesh. It was too twisted, its mind completely consumed by the dark magic.
Desperate, Kaito shifted tactics. He threw both hands forward, bracing himself as the creature spat a volatile sphere of black energy directly at him. "Magic Reflection!" He cried out. A small barrier flickered into existence—and then shattered like fragile glass under the sheer force of the blast.
The spell exploded violently beside him, throwing him across the dirt. He crashed hard into a pile of broken timber, a sharp, white-hot agony screaming through his shoulder. "Gh…!"
He pushed himself back up, coughing through the ash. Why? Why isn't anything working?
Above him, the children cried out again as the cage slammed violently against the monster's spiked back. One little girl hit the bars so hard she let out a pained sob.
Think! Think! Kaito scolded himself. His mind magic wouldn't take root, and his reflection couldn't withstand the raw corruption. If magic failed him, he would have to rely on brute force. He grabbed a heavy, broken beam from the collapsed house beside him and, with a guttural yell, swung it with all his might at one of the cage's thick iron chains.
CRACK!
The wooden beam snapped instantly into splinters. A numbing, vibrating shockwave shot straight through both of his hands, forcing him to drop to one knee as his fingers went entirely dead. The monster hadn't even noticed the blow.
Kaito stared down at his shaking, raw palms. The realization hit him infinitely harder than the physical pain: I'm weak. He had been relying entirely on his cheat-like magic spells, barely training his actual physical body. If this were Earth, he would be just another frightened, useless nineteen-year-old. I need to get stronger… not just with magic, but with my body.
The beast let out a terrifying roar, its massive, spiked body suddenly charging straight at him like a runaway freight train. Kaito's eyes widened behind his glasses. His legs felt like lead, utterly refusing to move. It was too fast, too big—
"HELP!"
The desperate word escaped his throat before he could stop it. He hated how frightened and pathetic he sounded in that moment, but he couldn't lie to himself anymore. In that moment, Kaito was absolutely terrified.
Suddenly, a massive wall of blazing fire burst across the battlefield. Cherry dropped from the sky, landing heavily between him and the charging beast. "Get your ass out of the way, Kaito!"
Rose arrived a heartbeat later, her palms glowing with a brilliant pink light. "We've got you!"
Their magic intertwined seamlessly—crimson flames mixing with elven magic and the combined spell exploded directly against the monster's chest. Smoke billowed over the street. For one hopeful second, Kaito thought they had done it. Then, the smoke parted, and the creature walked straight through the fading embers, completely untouched.
"…Impossible," Cherry whispered, her confidence instantly fracturing.
The monster opened its massive jaws, black corruption erupting outward in a concussive wave.
"Kaito!" Rose screamed.
The blast rushed toward them. Without a single thought for his own safety, Kaito threw his body directly in front of both girls. The explosion hit him like a physical wall. Pure agony flared through him, as his royal coat was shredded to tattered ribbons beneath the impact. The cloth tore away, his shoulder burned, and his back felt as though it had been struck by molten iron.
He cried out, his vision swimming as Cherry caught him before he could collapse into the dirt. "You absolute idiot!" she yelled, her voice cracking with emotion.
Rose's eyes instantly filled with tears as she knelt beside them. "What were you thinking?!"
Kaito forced a weak, blood-stained smile, his breathing shallow. "I couldn't let… my beautiful elf maidens get hurt." Neither of them laughed.
The monster stabilized, preparing to charge again. Cherry looked around the burning village desperately, her lungs expanding as she screamed into the night. "Sage! Iris! Anyone!"
Only the harsh crackling of the burning buildings answered her. The others were too far away, entirely occupied with saving the villagers and digging out the elder.
Kaito slowly pushed himself upright, his muscles screaming in protest. Blood dripped steadily from his torn sleeve, staining the dirt. This is it… we're going to die here. The thought was strangely, terrifyingly calm. Cherry grabbed his arm tightly, her eyes fierce. "Don't you dare think like that, Kaito."
Rose nodded fiercely, wiping her tears away. "Don't give up. We believe in you! Tell us what to do."
Kaito looked between them. Their faces were pale with fright, but neither of them had run away. They were trusting him, even now, when everything was falling apart. His gaze fell to the ground, catching on a small, thick, broken branch. An idea sparked in his mind. It wasn't a good one, but it was all he had left.
His hand shot down, snatching the branch, and with a sudden surge of adrenaline, he hurled it at the beast with everything he had. The stick spun end over end through the smoke before striking the monster directly in its left eye with a wet THUNK.
The beast roared in absolute fury, staggering sideways as it clawed at its blinded eye.
"Now!" Kaito shouted, pushing Cherry and Rose forward. "Keep it distracted!"
Cherry hesitated. "But—"
"GO!"
Rose grabbed Cherry's hand, her expression resolute. "We need to trust him! Come on!" The two elves sprinted away, unleashing an aggressive barrage of spells to draw the flailing monster's attention.
Kaito turned and ran straight toward the creature's flank. His lungs burned and his legs screamed, but he pushed through the agony, leaping into the air. His fingers barely caught the rusted iron frame of the cage. His boots slipping on the hide. At the last possible moment, he wrapped his hand securely around one of the heavy chains and pulled himself towards the cage.
The children inside gasped in unison. He reached for the cage door, pulling on the heavy iron latch. It was locked tight. He yanked it again with all his might, but it refused to budge. "Damn it!"
Suddenly, a little girl reached into her tangled hair and pulled out a tiny, silver hairpin, thrusting it through the bars. "Excuse me, Mister...Will this help?"
Kaito blinked, astonished. "…You're a genius."
He snatched the pin, his trembling hands working desperately inside the rusted lock mechanism. Below him, the monster bucked violently in its blind rage. The cage lurched through the air, and Kaito lost his footing entirely. His grip failed, and his body dropped toward the trampling paws below. He cried out helplessly.
"KAAAAITO!" Seven voices screamed together from across the battlefield.
His body plunged—then abruptly stopped. A tiny hand had shot through the iron bars, grabbing his leg with both hands. Other children immediately grabbed her waist, and more children grabbed them, creating a human chain of sheer survival inside the cage.
Kaito swung helplessly beneath the thrashing beast, his heart pounding a frantic rhythm. For one terrifying heartbeat, he thought he was dead. Then, the children pulled with all their collective might. It was just enough. He caught the iron bars again, dragging himself back up to the lock, breathing heavily.
"…Thank you so much," he gasped out.
The little girl smiled through her tears. "We're not gonna let you get hurt."
Kaito's eyes stung with sudden warmth. Click. The internal tumblers finally gave way, and the heavy cage door swung free. "Yes! It worked! Now go, get out of there!"
One by one, Kaito carefully lifted every single child out of the cage and onto the flat roof of a nearby, unburned house, where Cherry and Rose were waiting to safely guide them down to the ground. Twenty frightened children. Twenty innocent lives. Saved.
With a metallic screech, the empty, broken cage finally tore completely free from the monster's back, crashing heavily into the dirt street. Kaito climbed off the beast carefully and it stopped its flailing. Slowly, deliberately, it turned its massive head toward Kaito, its single remaining crimson eye burning with an unadulterated, demonic hatred.
Kaito stood completely alone before it in the middle of the street. His body screamed in agony, his clothes hung in tattered, blood-soaked rags, and his breathing was shallow. He gently closed his eyes, letting his arms drop to his sides. Everything around him began to fade away—the roaring fire, the distant screams, the suffocating fear. Control your mind. Master yourself. Ignore everything else.
Watching from the rooftop, Cherry's breath hitched. "…What is he doing?"
Rose watched him without moving an inch. "He's concentrating."
cherry panicked, preparing to leap down. "The monster's almost on top of him!"
"I know."
"We have to do something, Rose!"
"Like I said, we must trust him, Cherry."
The beast lowered its massive, corrupted horn, digging its claws into the dirt before charging with frightening speed. However, Kaito remained perfectly still, a strange, absolute silence enveloping him. The distance between them vanished in a heartbeat. Twenty meters. Ten. Five.
"Kaito!" Cherry screamed, her instincts completely overriding her reason. "I'm not losing you!"
She threw herself off the roof, landing directly in front of him as a shimmering wall of defensive fire erupted from her hands. But it was too late. The monster's massive horn pierced straight through the flames and directly into her side.
Time stopped completely. Cherry's eyes widened in profound shock, a heavy spray of crimson staining the burning stone street. "Kgh…!"
Kaito's eyes snapped open, the world around him slowing to an agonizing crawl. "…Cherry?"
The monster jerked its head violently, ripping its horn free. Cherry's limp body was thrown ruthlessly through the air, crashing hard across the shattered, dusty stones a few yards away.
An absolute, suffocating silence fell over the village. Even the rescued children stopped crying. Rose stared down from the roof, her face draining of all color. "…No…"
Kaito felt a cold, monstrous fury erupting from the depths of his soul as his voice broke into a raw, agonizing scream.
"CHERRYYYY!"