The Third Prince Of Darkness

Emilia's slender sword barely managed to block the jester's attack at the last moment with his dagger. Meanwhile, the jester not only parried Emilia's strikes but also kicked me hard in the stomach, pushing me away from the fight. It was probably a smart move to keep me out since he didn’t want to fight two people at once, but it would be tough to do anything with my injured body.

I leaned against the tree behind me and started watching Emilia’s fight with the jester. If I joined the fight now, I would only be a burden to Emilia. Therefore, I needed to come up with a plan to defeat the jester... But where should I start?

Seeing blood dripping from the top of Emilia's head and seeing her in pain, even though it was hard to notice from a distance... No, Ethan, focus! Control your emotions.

First, I need to understand the jester's abilities. How many magical properties have he used so far? The first ability could be the mist creation. After all, the mist was unnaturally thick only where the jester was. The second... Magical resistance? Yes, he definitely had high magical resistance! Even if the Jester's strength was at Kaizer Stage 5, it was abnormal for him to easily overcome the my spell. 

So he must be at least Kaizer Stage 2, but that doesn’t seem right... From what I’ve observed in his fight with Emilia, I can definitely say he is skilled in dagger techniques. Mastering a weapon has many stages, but the highest level is that of [The Artist]

Even Emilia hasn’t reached that level yet, but the jester had definitely has mastered the [The art of the dagger]. That would make him at least Kaizer Stage 3. However, he must still have some other ability that I haven’t seen yet, or a final trump card. Initially, I thought he was at least Kaizer Stage 5, but now, upon closer inspection, he should be around Kaizer Stage 4...

Seeing that Emilia was still managing to fend off the jester's attacks and even counterattacking, I realized I still had time to think.

Let’s think... My physical capacity is lower than ever, but I still have enough Kaizer power. I can at least cast the [Darkness Fireball] spell twice. However, this spell had no effect when cast from a distance. Maybe if I cast it up close... No, the spell has a tremendously destructive effect, and if I use it at close range, I would certainly get hurt and might not survive.

So what should I do?! Maybe I should just tuck my tail and run away like a coward! Think, Ethan, think... I can still use other elements. Maybe a fire spell at close range could kill him, but I can’t rely solely on that. Wait a second...

I think his biggest weakness is his physical resistance. After all, his constant movement and stealth attacks are likely due to avoiding direct confrontation.

No matter what, right now, in the middle of a forest, it’s just Emilia and me who need to defeat this man. Even if there’s a risk of dying from blood loss... I’ll deal with that later. I need to get up now.

As I quickly stood up, I looked at Emilia, who was hiding in the mist and calmly parrying attacks. My entire body was covered in blood, but the dark element trait I gained at Kaizer Stage 2, which enhances my physical capacity, helped me stand. I moved to Emilia’s right side, taking a step to protect her back.

When Emilia noticed me and glanced at me for a moment, I could see the worried look in her eyes. I probably looked terrible right now. I was covered in blood and my armor had many holes. Wait a second... I didn’t have any head injuries? Looking at Emilia, she didn’t have any head injuries either!

If the jester clearly wanted to kill us both, why didn’t he target our heads at all? That might be another weakness! Maybe I can use that. I quickly pressed my back against Emilia’s and waited for the next attack. Several daggers were thrown, but we quickly deflected them. At that moment, the jester’s laughter echoed from the mist.

“HIHIHAHA! What happened? What’s going on? So, this is how we’re going to play! Let’s see our new game then! Our game!”

Here it was! The jester’s last trump card! As a circle disappeared from the mist, revealing a view on one side, my eyes widened in shock. The jester had a large earth-element ball growing on his hand. It was spinning rapidly and also growing.

“Emilia, retreat!”

I couldn’t run with my injured body... but Emilia could. Will I survive this? I don’t know... wait, why did I give up so quickly? Get yourself together, Ethan! Do you want to die?!

I raised my hand and formed the largest water ball I could. The jester was not too far away, but he wasn’t very close either, so I couldn’t use the [Darkness Firebal] spell. Since his spell was made of earth, I couldn’t use a fire spell either, and since the air element was my least mastered, the best option was to use the water element.

Seeing the earth ball thrown with a loud sound, I released my own water ball, and the two elemental spells collided in mid-air. Fortunately, only a few pieces of stone reached my body. As I successfully blocked his attack, a glimmer of hope rose within me, but... the jester was still laughing? Why? Don’t tell me he has another trick up his!

Emilia dashed towards the jester's previous location in the blink of an eye, but the jester had already vanished. Hearing a sound behind me, I turned and saw the jester repeating his previous attack. He was casting another earth-element ball spell. I aimed my own water ball at him, and... the same result occurred.

The two spells collided in mid-air, neutralizing each other, and only a few stones reached me.

Is this jester an idiot? What is he planning?

Emilia attacked the direction where the jester had been, but once again, he disappeared.

After the jester repeated the same attack several times within a minute, I finally understood. Oh no! The jester was waiting for my Kaizer power to deplete, or rather, my Mana to run out, by continuously attacking. Ultimately, he planned to kill me with one last spell when I could no longer cast any.

"Damn it! Emilia..." When I looked at Emilia, I saw that she had also realized the jester’s plan.

Moreover, to be honest... I could create a water ball at most once more, and now, as the jester launched another attack, Emilia rushed toward me quickly. Despite her smaller frame, she wrapped her arms around my waist and tried to lift me. She was stronger than she appeared.

As she attempted to lift me as quickly as possible, it was in vain. Even if we changed positions, the jester magic would only need to move his hand slightly to reach us.

'Boom!—

The jester’s spell hit Emilia’s back, causing both of us to fall to the ground. Just a second later, as the jester launched another attack, I desperately formed a water ball. The two spells collided again, blocking each other. Without a doubt, I could no longer use magic. As the jester began casting again, my last remaining hope was fading away.

This time, without hesitation, the jester threw the earth ball directly at me. The ball seemed to move in slow motion towards me, but my body felt like it was rebelling. No matter how hard I tried, escaping the earth ball that would hit me in just a second was impossible.

At that moment... I could never have anticipated that I was at a turning point in my life.

The woman I wanted to protect with all my being, my first love in this new life... was standing in front of me, shielding me with her body... with only a smile on her lips. Her eyes seemed to say that even if her sacrifice cost her life, it was worth it. For a moment... her gaze was that of a happy woman, not someone who was about to die.

For me... who am I to deserve such a gift?! I had already been given a second life, but I didn’t take it seriously, and now I deserved to die! Why?! Why are you making me suffer by saving me?! Let me be the hero this time! I... don’t deserve this life! At least let me repay this grace! At least don’t let the woman I love die!

—Suddenly, a sword sliced through the air and cut off the jester’s head... This was what I wanted to see! But no one could do anything... I couldn’t do anything. 

The earth ball struck Emilia's body harshly, knocking her to the ground. When I saw her lying motionless, I felt something break inside me. The pain and anger within me made me abandon everything else. The deepest darkness of my existence flared up inside me! Yet, it didn’t suppress the emotions raging within.

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

“Shame!”

...