Vol 1 Chapter 39 – Allen vs. Helmis【Vol 1: The Beastkin Hero Arc】

Perhaps owing to his good daily deeds, Allen succeeded in calming Null and the others down, and rode his partner, the black dragon Geofried, rushing to the royal capital of Beastroa.

His friend, Beast King Leon, was on the verge of being taken away, so without a second thought, Allen unleashed the Brave Skill of the Second Generation World Knight against the massive battleship floating in the sky.

Using his master’s technique, the battleship was cleanly cleaved in half.

(…Allen, at this rate it’s going to fall straight onto the royal capital!)

That said, the crisis wasn’t over.

Faced with the sight of the battleship’s wreckage plummeting toward Beastroa, Asmodeus, currently in her longsword form, issued a warning.

He had brought her along for the time being. However, given she wasn’t currently in a state of sexual arousal, she functioned as nothing more than a very sharp sword.

“I know. Brave Skill: Knight of Select.”

The power he chose to draw upon was, once again, his disciple’s.

“Star Power Release: Anti-Gravity, Repulsion.”

A section of the sky was enveloped in a golden barrier.

After lightening the mass of the battleship caught within range, he used repulsive force to blow it entirely outside the royal capital. Inside the wreckage, numerous members of the Holy Empire’s Secret Guard were screaming.

Even if they weren’t quite at the level of heroes, each of them was a warrior superior to Branford. Some would likely survive.

Of course, the majority would die, but there was no room for grudges in a war.

(Allen. You don’t honestly think this is over, do you?)

“…Helmis.”

(Indeed. You cannot use my abilities, after all. Not unless you get aroused by my body right here and now.)

Allen cast a half-lidded stare down at the purplish-blue blade of the longsword.

“No, how exactly am I supposed to get turned on by you in your current sword state? I wouldn’t even get aroused by your little girl form in the first place.”

As if telling them to cut the idle chatter, Geofried rumbled in his throat.

“Grrrrrrr.”

“…I know, buddy. It’s a matchup between Dragon Spirit Beasts. We can’t afford to lose.”

Allen narrowed his eyes at the scene unfolding before him.

He had witnessed the exact moment a crimson dragon leapt from the battleship just before it was blown away.

Riding on the back of the red dragon was a young man with hair of the very same color.

High in the heavens, the dragon and its master confronted them.

Amidst the echoing roars of the two dragons, the human World Knights locked eyes.

“Is it truly you, Allen…? To think you were actually alive…! Did you intentionally overlook our movements to let us run free…? Tell me, was it you who schemed to assassinate His Majesty using Leonhardt…!?”

No, you’re wrong. You’re seriously so wrong.

“Well, no matter. His Majesty is immortal anyway.”

“…Immortal? What do you mean by that?”

“More importantly, how did you escape the price of the Thunder Annihilation Sword… No, look at the color of your face. Your lifespan is fading, but you squeezed out the very last of your strength to stand before me. Is that it?”

Helmis was putting the pieces together entirely on his own, but for Allen, the real issue was that his survival had been exposed to Beast King Leon, his children, and, above all, Leonhardt.

He had been forced into a situation where hoping for a slow life was no longer possible, and he was feeling incredibly depressed about it. His poor complexion was probably stemming entirely from that.

“…Hm? Bloodcliff, you want to fight Geofried one-on-one?”

It seemed the red dragon Helmis was riding, Bloodcliff, wanted a one-on-one match with Geofried.

As if to say bring it on, Geofried bared his fangs and let out a joyous, rumbling laugh.

Geofried fundamentally loved fighting. He enjoyed the struggle for survival against strong opponents, but he was also a complete ruffian who loved bullying the weak just as much.

“…Then, for starters, how about the familiars fight the familiars, and the masters fight the masters separately?”

“Very well.”

“Hmph. I’ll strip away that composure of yours soon enough.”

Allen had already received the 【Dragon King’s Winged Mantle】 from Boyo-chan.

The familiar black cloak was a superb piece of armor that protected him from all manner of attacks, but that wasn’t all it did.

By infusing it with mana, he could sprint through the air itself.

Allen dismounted Geofried and simply remained suspended in the sky.

Helmis did the same.

Beside the black and red dragons violently clashing, the two heroes, hovering stationary in mid-air, readied their swords.

“…The ability allowing you to float is the power of the 【Boots of Sleipnir】. Is that the power of your cloak?”

“…Yeah.”

“I see. Judging by appearances, our equipment is evenly matched. The only thing that will determine victory or defeat is our respective strength. To fulfill His Majesty’s dearest wish, I will absolutely defeat you.”

Despite having no ground to push off of, Helmis rapidly accelerated. Allen moved to intercept him.

“”Battle Skill: Adamantine Muscle!””

Both men activated the exact same Battle Skill, their voices echoing in unison.

The purplish-blue and crimson sword flashes overlapped, scattering sparks into the air.

Allen parried the raging, fiery assault—an attack best described as a storm of slashes—as fluidly as flowing water.

Occasionally, he countered. Parrying a strike that threw Helmis off balance, Allen swung Asmodeus down from a high stance, aiming right for Helmis’s shoulder.

However, with astonishing agility, Helmis bent his body backward to evade, stopping the downward swing by stepping precisely on the tip of Allen’s blade.

“In pure swordplay, the victory is mine.”

He launched a thrust from that very position, but—

“I wouldn’t be so sure.”

Asmodeus dispersed into particles of light and reconstructed herself instantly within his hand, allowing Allen to seamlessly slash upward and deflect Helmis’s sword.

Finding an opening, Allen immediately launched a return thrust, but Helmis kicked off the empty air, escaping higher into the sky. Allen pursued him, closing in near the clouds.

They clashed countless times after that, but both lacked the decisive strike to finish the other.

The shockwaves generated by their clashing swords uprooted the clouds and blew them entirely away.

Moonlight poured down upon the two heroes.

“…Evenly matched, are we? As expected of my rival, I must praise you. It wouldn’t be interesting otherwise.”

“…”

“That’s enough. It seems they won’t be settling their match anytime soon, either.”

The red dragon Bloodcliff and the black dragon Geofried were also repeatedly clashing with black and crimson flames, utilizing their claws and fangs to tear into one another. They must have been going at it incredibly hard, as blood was dripping profusely from their scale-covered bodies.

However, for them, that level of injury was nothing more than a few surface scratches.

“Allen. From here on out, I will use my Brave Skill. No matter what ability you possess, we will not lose.”

“…We?”

Helmis smiled fearlessly.

“Brave Skill: Spirit Fusion!”

“Gurooooooooaaaahhh!!”

Letting out a massive roar, Bloodcliff transformed into a streak of crimson light that coiled entirely around Helmis’s body.

In that instant, he emitted a blinding red glow, causing Allen to instinctively narrow his eyes and put some distance between them.

“—This is where the real battle begins.”

What was revealed was the figure of a single knight clad in a crimson cape and armor of the same color.

His helmet was adorned with dragon horns and fangs as decorations. The armor itself had a somewhat spiked, aggressive design.

The pressure he exuded was on a completely different level than before.

However, the corners of Allen’s mouth lifted. It was a good ability.

“…Sorry, but I’ll be taking that power—”

“What…?”

Allen also activated his own Brave Skill.

“Brave Skill: Knight of Select.”

The power he chose to draw upon this time was the power of the man standing right in front of him.

“Spirit Knight: Helmis Glengaia.”

Immediately after, Allen exchanged a glance with Geofried, who had come to his side.

Geofried’s vertical golden pupils intertwined with Allen’s beautiful amethyst eyes.

“Spirit Fusion.”

The jet-black dragon transformed into a sphere of pure darkness, enveloping Allen’s body completely.

“…You mimicked my Brave Skill…!?”

Helmis was violently shaken.

Allen received the torrent of black power and dominated it entirely.

The sphere burst open, revealing what lay inside.

Bathed in the moonlight, a knight clad entirely in jet-black full plate armor modeled after a dragon pointed the Thunder Annihilation Sword directly at the crimson dragon knight confronting him.