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He found himself in a dark, cold room. He coughed and gulped air greedily, trying to get as much oxygen into his body as possible. He was still dizzy, and he felt rather than saw the presence of dozens of people who were staring at him with anticipation and concern.
He broke through to one of the evacuation centers.
The thought revived him completely.
Kurgan!
Panicking, he looked around, searching for the silhouette of the giant. There was none. Instead, he saw a boy with golden hair, staring at him with moist, emerald eyes.
Fred?
It was because of him that he had suffered so much lately. If it wasn't for the toddler, Garfiel wouldn't have met his mother. He wouldn't have found out that she was alive and, worse, didn't remember the children of Sanctuary. Reala poured all her love into her current family. Garf would have wanted so much to be a part of it.
Shit, I'm getting wrapped up in painful thoughts again! I can't waste time!
Just then Kurgan rushed into the evacuation point and threw himself at the boy with his fists. In such a moment, a split second could decide everything. The eight-armed man attacked with all his might, and Garfiel was unable to block all the blows. He was too late to react.
He was struck from the side, the next blow Kurgan sent him flying, the next knocked him to the ground. Then he still smacked him in the back of the head. The boy hit the floor with his nose. The water immediately turned red.
- I'll kill me! - he wailed, throwing himself into the attack.
Their fists passed each other in the air. Garfiel dodged the blow by tilting his head and drove his teeth as hard as he could into Kurgan's skin. He tore his forearm from wrist to elbow in a violent motion, then added a clawed cut to his torso. Blood gushed from the War God's chest. a,
Garfiel enjoyed this small success, but the warrior still had seven healthy arms and a lot of strength, plus as a resurrected corpse he felt no pain. The duel did not get any easier. However, the boy was not overwhelmed by this. On the contrary, he felt a strange excitement about the fight.
- Haaaaa!
Come on, come on, don't stop! Reception, push off, now dodge, oh please, now transfer the force of the punch nicely, good, now down, hop, now straight at him!
Garfiel and Kurgan's fists collided, and a shockwave spread around them, stirring up the water. They jumped back with flips, each in their own direction. They watched each other carefully.
Suddenly the blond man straightened up, as if he had come to his senses. The water pouring in through the hole was already up to his knees. People in the shelter didn't even try to stop it, just crowded against the opposite wall, as far away from the fighting as possible.
Garf stomped, and the ground around him trembled. He activated a blessing, with which he caused the floor to crack and rise. Fissures formed, through which the previously accumulated water began to escape.
All that remained was to do something about the hole in the wall. That was what Kurgan took care of. He grabbed a large block that had been blown off the ground by Garfiel's power and threw it. The boy intercepted the projectile and using the rotation, covered the breach with a stone. It wasn't a perfect solution, but it sufficiently restricted the flow of water. Garf turned to face his opponent and assessed his chances. Two silver shields against three Cleavers.
A decisive battle against the legendary warrior from Vollachia, the Eight Arm Kurgan. It's kind of sad, but very exciting at the same time!
For the last two days he had to face his feelings. He couldn't get over Reinhard. He met his mother and it turned out that she would never appear in his life again. When he wanted to take revenge for the suffering of the girl who was wounded by standing up for him, it proved impossible. And in the end he let himself be deceived by the Archbishop and because of that his companions were in danger. He was losing things that were important to him and could do nothing but watch them slip through his fingers. He felt weak. Only the battle with Kurgan gave respite to his tortured soul.
Garfiel was facing a powerful enemy, a walking legend, the hero of a story. He knew this was a very important moment in his life. Any warrior would give his hand for the chance to face such an opponent.
But I don't understand why he didn't just let me drown! Then he would have won. I was almost flying away from lack of oxygen. I'm only alive because he broke through to the evacuation point. Why? Something's changed. He treats me differently.
- He took pity on me at first...
He didn't consider me a real opponent, just some puppy. It's different now. I've changed.
Garfiel stood proud and erect, confident. Kurgan noticed this. He was prepared for a tough skirmish, holding the legendary Demon Cleavers ready for battle. There was no compassion or pity in him.
Now he really wants to fight me. He wants to see which of us is stronger. It's a duel of equals. That's why he didn't let me drown.
- Hey, you... Don't just stand there, run away from here - he threw to the crowded inhabitants.
What will they do if I lose? The War God isn't likely to try to fight civilians, but who knows? They better get out of here.
- Mr. Supertiger...- Fred squeezed the edge of his shirt with tears in his eyes and a flush on his face. He stared at his brother with concern.
- Well? - Garfiel raised an eyebrow.
Their gazes met.
- Mr. Supertaster!
- What do you want, kid?
- Mr. Supertiger! - repeated the boy in a trembling voice, as if he could not tell what he meant.
"Supertiger." He's my own invented hero. A mighty warrior, a beast who fears nothing. Why does the little guy insist on this? What's he trying to tell me?
Hot tears ran down the boy's cheeks. Everyone at the evacuation point heard him shout those two words. They were all impressed by the strong emotions that shook him. The boy was so agitated that he could not explain anything.
- I told you, you have to a runaway...
- Mr. Supertiger! - shouted the golden-haired girl, who ran up to Fred and hugged him tightly. Her eyes sparkled with emotion, her lips trembled.
- Win for us! - shouted a man unknown to Garfiel.
- Well, he's okay now, but he's running away...
- You can do it! You can do it!
- Good luck!
- Fight for us!
Astonished, Garfiel shook his eyes.
They don't listen to me at all! And they won't let me say anything!
Fred had infected everyone crowded into the cramped space with his faith in Garfiel. They were so excited that they thought nothing of escaping, and yet they could have been killed.
- Oh, Chief... That speech of yours worked too well... - whispered in a hoarse voice.
He lifted these people's spirits so much until they really began to believe that all would end well. And here are the results.
The spark of hope that Subaru had kindled in their hearts was just waiting for an opportunity, a gust, to ignite with a strong, bright flame. That opportunity had just arrived. The shouts of support did not stop,
- Supertiger! - shouted Fred again.
I am looked at by the people who took my mother in. My siblings are looking at me.
Garf turned to the Kurgan, who was standing motionless, and began a theatrical speech, hoping to distract the enemy and calm the crowd down a bit.
- This is where my decisive duel will take place? It's a little crowded! Shit, I'm really sorry... I totally screwed up at the beginning, and now Fred's shouting some bullshit. I'll preach to him later.
The eight-armed man twitched. The blond man laughed out loud, flashing his fangs. He clenched his fists and forcefully clashed the two shields on his forearms together.
- I am Garfiel Tinsel known as the Shield of Sanctuary... Hm. No. Called the Supertiger!
Kurgan silently rubbed one cleaver against the other as if sharpening them.
- Haaaaaaa! - Garfiel threw himself forward with momentum. Where he bounced off the ground, new cracks formed on the floor.
Kurgan also moved to fight. They clashed in the middle of the shelter.
Facing an opponent who had so many arms was like taking a swing at the sun, but Garf knew that if he did nothing, he would never spread his wings. Therefore, he initiated the clash himself. He put everything on the line.
With each blow, he felt he might die.
The first hand held the Cleaver. Kurgan swung, aiming for Garfiel's torso. The blond man jumped up and knocked the blade out with a kick, then nailed it to the floor with his foot.
At exactly the same time, the Eight-Handed Man unleashed his second Cleaver, a curving cut from his left shoulder. Fortunately, the boy caught the swish of the blade cutting through the air and managed to shield himself with his shield. He did it literally at the last moment. The shock was so strong that his eyes went dark and his right arm broke at the elbow, the bones of his shoulder and wrist also cracked. Garfiel clenched his teeth so hard that they crumbled, but he managed.
He managed to shield himself from the fists of the third and fourth hand. One missed his stomach by a hair, the other, aimed at his head, he countered with the shield of his right, broken arm. After this attack, his arm hung pitifully and the shield fell to the floor with a clang.
I'm out of this hand! There are four more to go. The difference between us is absurd... It's just ridiculous...
He clenched his broken fangs.
- Haaaaaa!
Kurgan was now attacking with arms that sprouted from his left side - one from his shoulder blade, the other from his armpit. Normally the blond would defend himself with his right arm, but that arm was now completely useless.
The left won't make it. Right leg, then.
He stomped, splashing water, Kurgan wobbled as the floor beneath his feet bulged. He regained his balance in a flash, but it was enough for Garfiel. With the help of a blessing, he managed to position himself so that neither his fifth nor sixth hand could reach him. He dashed between the fists, safe as if in the eye of a cyclone.
He couldn't tell how he managed to avoid all those blows. He was acting so fast that he had no time to analyze. His brain and heart were on fire, He felt he was alive.
Instinct hinted that the decisive moment was approaching. Kurgan reached for the last Cleaver placed on his back. His right hand, the one that grew from his shoulder, grasped the handle. The fingers of the last one - also right, but emerging from the shoulder blade - grabbed the blunt part of the blade to push it AND make the cut even more powerful. Garfiel could neither dodge it nor counterattack, He was left with only one option. To defend himself.
It all happened in fractions of a second, but he was constantly aware of his brother and sister shouting, of the residents cheering him on.
Come on, let's go! You say, you got it!
- Block!
The moment the blade flashed towards him, the blond man was completely cut off from the world. Sounds disappeared, colors faded, everything superfluous ceased to exist. In absolute concentration, he saw only Kurgan.
The cleaver was approaching unnaturally slowly. Garfiel was also moving strangely sluggishly. The world slowed down, and the boy suddenly had Subaru before his eyes. Then Ram and Mimi, Frederica, Ryuzu. Emilia, Otto, even that scumbag Roswaal. Beatrice and Petra, the residents of the Sanctuary. And then Reala, his mother, along with his half siblings.
Through the fight for Sanctuary, he realized how weak he was. He realized that the world was big, and that there were many others much stronger than him. Over the past year, he had become more and more aware of this, and his encounter with Reinhard proved to him that he was completely unfit for anything.
Maybe the more close people someone has, the weaker they become? E, that's impossible. If it were, life would have no meaning. After all, the best motivation is the desire to protect those we respect, like and love.
He felt a great weight fall from his chest.
- Ha... That's better.
A powerful jolt went through his body. It was Cleaver's blade that met the shield of his left hand. He managed to raise his arm in time to take the blow, but the steel of the shield could not hold and cracked. Garfiel felt a horrible pain. His eyes went black. He cried out like a slaughtered animal. He lost his entire forearm up to the elbow, but it was not enough for Kurgan. The giant guided the blade further, aiming for his head.
What was the War God thinking about at that moment? Did he feel pity for the warrior whose life he had just taken? Doubtful.
Heroes who fall in battle are not to be pitied.
Garfiel, however, twisted and made a dodge. At first he did not understand how it was possible, how he had gained an extra fraction of a second. As he looked at Kurgan, he realized that the giant, oblivious to the pain and acting like a puppet, had attacked him with a wounded hand that could not withstand the strain. All the bone from the wrist to the elbow was visible through the torn flesh.
Kurgan's face remained impassive, not even a trace of surprise on it.
He made a mistake. He should have used another hand, a healthy one... Now what?
The opponent had six capable hands, Garfiel none.
There must be something I can do. There has to be. Anything. Hands aren't everything. Think! I can't use my fists or my claws. What will I be able to regenerate in no time? I GOT IT!
- Haaaaaaa!
With a loud roar, Garfiel fetched magic from the ground, then leapt and drove his repaired teeth into the War God's neck, which was not protected by the thick blue skin. The blond man instantly sank his teeth into the flesh, reached all the way to the artery, and jerked.
With no hands to support himself, he fell inertly to the ground. He spat out his opponent's body. He looked like seven misfortunes.
The legendary Vollachian warrior, before whose strength countless trembled, stood like a stone statue. Finally, he slowly turned to Garfiel and intertwined his arms, gazing calmly at his opponent.
- Glorious," he said in a booming voice, quite self-consciously.
Garfiel was in such shock that he didn't reply.
Suddenly, Kurgan's body crumbled into dust. It crumbled like a sand castle.
- That's not... how a warrior should end - choked out the blond with regret. He sighed heavily. His head dropped to the stone floor. - Ah, shit... I need to heal.
He felt he had lost too much blood. If not for the power of the earth, he would have died long ago. He fought the drowsiness, for instinct told him that if he drifted off now, he would never wake up again.
- Mr. Supertiger!
Garfiel saw through the fog that people were converging on him, heard the loud splashing of water. The silhouettes of his siblings flashed before him.
Oh, my, they're snotty. I can't blame them. They probably think I'm dying. They don't know that I'm about to get better because the earth can heal me.
Garfiel had chafed against death, but that fight had made him feel like a true warrior. Only now, as he looked at Fred and Rafiel, he felt most of all... a brother.
- Don't... don't cry...
He smiled at the children, who, after all, did not know who he was to them. The boy sobbed convulsively and the girl turned red in the face.
- Fool! Idiot! I'm not crying! Stop talking, lie down nicely! Wait... we'll call someone... to cure you...
- Wait... In his pocket... - Garfiel tried to reach for his belt, but his arms were numb. Little Fred helped him.
- Is this what you're looking for? - The boy pulled out a magic mirror.
- I have to... tell them... - Garfiel choked out with difficulty.
I have to tell them Lust is coming to them!
- We will help you! - announced the girl, snatching the mirror from her brother's hands. The activated object flashed with a pale light. - What should I tell them?
- Move it... I myself...
The girl tentatively slid the glowing object under Garfiel's face. The blond man looked at the screen, waiting for someone to appear and praying in his spirit that those on the other side were okay.
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