Netori: Stealing The Hero's Party!

Chapter 861: A Battle To Remember – Part 1

Once the right hand of a demon general, now a servant under the dark knight, Markus–Moera, the pale pink-skinned demon with sharp horns, stood before her sister, the spirit, Luciela. Surrounded by the sound of silence, the whispering winds, and the hushed breathing of the audience, the girls were about to fight to kick off today’s event.

Gathered in the extended barracks of the Athenian castle, the soldiers, the trainees, the order most holy, were to witness the battle. Even the king and queen were present in their viewing gallery. Hoping to catch a glimpse of the reformed demon and the spirit showcasing their true abilities.

As for the main event, both Helga and Markus lay in wait for the girls to rouse the audience before they peeled their butts off their seats with their performance. Only a handful knew of their true nature after all, but even so, to see Helga and the dark knight in action against each other was a chance of a lifetime.

“What’s with the sudden rematch, Helga?” Turning his head slowly towards his opponent as they stood alone in a corner of the barracks, Markus curiosity made him ask. “I thought you weren’t interested in fighting or killing me.”

Bobbing her head left and right, the valkyrie smiled for a brief moment before looking up at the knight’s helmeted face.

“Things have changed, Markus. We might yet get a battle where we can die and break this curse, but I’m not lying down and allowing myself to be killed. So why not let loose a little? Stretch a limb and get back in the groove of murdering people?”

The knight’s eyes narrowed to her words, but he tried not to look too deeply into her choice of words. What concerned him more was when she reached into her dimensional pocket and took out the damned fur scarf, which she used to wear as a general long ago.

“A general against a vanguard,” scoffing out loud, he turned his attention to the center stage again. “Talk about an unfair fight.”

With a chuckle, Helga nudged him on the side with her elbow.

“More like a vanguard with an unkillable body and a needlessly glorified woman with scars.” Folding her arms, Helga leaned back against the walls and gave Markus one last look. “Not to mention, you have a greater spirit than I, Markus. A crippled man fighting demons and gods…These days, I almost feel like I would cry when I think about dying before my daughters are ready.”

Smiling bitterly, she brought her attention to the fight. With all things set, Moera and Luceila were both getting in position while the Shepherd of the Sword moved between them to act as the moderator. Once the two were ready and standing on the far ends of the stage, the shepherd raised her chained blade and her slender right leg. Holding them high, she glanced at the contestant and declared.

“If you harm anyone other than the person you’re meant to fight, then do not expect Mother Athenia to treat you as lightly as the hero has!” With the formal warning, she slammed both her leg and the blades against the ground. The clang of mental and the shudder from her stomp marked the start of their battle, and with her gone from sight in just a second, the demon sisters rushed at each other.

“AGHHH!” Leaping forward with an emphasized stomp, Moena swung her large axe at her sister. To her surprise–though predictably so–the weapon went right through the spirit’s body and gave way for Luceila to grab her barbarian sister by the throat. “Grugggh! YOU!!”

Feeling the pressure of her sister’s grip tightening around her throat, Moena opened her mouth and out came slithering and fleshy tentacles along with a spectral skeleton with a sword. Made up of her very soul, the creature sliced through the spirit’s throat. With a yelp, Luciela leaped back, but with her head already rolling on the ground, it was far too late.

With her vision and body split in two, the spirit lived, but her coordination was shattered. She tried to move around and find herself, and yet all she saw was her sister’s hand grabbing her with the extended aura from her soul itself.

“I win~,” she mocked, smirking while looking into Luciela’s eyes.

“Tsk… cheater.” Squinting her translucent brows, the spirit tried to bite Moena’s fingers. Keeping her head floating away from them, however, the demoness simply laughed for a while before setting Luciela’s head back on her shoulders.

The two were equal in ability, but there were still secrets that the girls had kept from each other. The bizarre spectral skeleton was one of them, and had the spirit known about it, perhaps it wouldn’t have caught her as off guard, or she would’ve used a skill of her own to counter it somehow. In the end, however, the element of surprise had won her sister the battle, and with their match’s ending in a rather disappointing amount of time, the crowd was already ready to move on to the main event.

Slapping Markus’ armored arm with the back of her hand, Helga pushed things into motion. Though the moment she walked forward, a familiar hint caught her attention. The hero’s immense dark aura crept up on her like a gust of cold wind hitting the nape of one’s neck. As she turned around, her eyes met his. Standing behind a line of soldiers who hadn’t yet noticed his presence or that of his companions.

Waving her hand with a weak smile, she unintentionally brought everyone’s attention to him before turning back to the front and walking into the open sparring field. Getting themselves ready while everyone else was busy making room for the dark general out of sheer fear and discipline, Markus lifted his right hand and encased the battle ground in an invisible protective magic field.

“Don’t want the kids to get hurt?” Helga teased, her hands reaching into her dimensional pocket.

However, this time it was no mere scarf or any other article of clothing that she took out from within. Instead, it was her favored ice spear gripped within a pair of divine gauntlets. Beaming radiant gold, the gauntlets were yet another piece from heaven’s arsenal–one assigned to and reserved for her by none other than the dead elder god Aphrodite.

Watching the gauntlet’s glowing dimming over time, Markus took a deep breath and looked up into Helga’s eyes.

“Last I saw those beauties, we were still fighting Bellona…”

“I have a feeling we’re gonna meet her soon.”

And with that brief exchange, Markus began his preparations for the battle as well.