Confusion filled Arthur's mind when he saw the scene before him. He now had an arm. Gala, Dia, and a giant man were restraining him. In front of him was the duke, bloodied, his arms gone, and pale.
His metallic arm, which looked a lot like the arm he summoned before against Ellen, started disintegrating into countless light particles.
"What is..." His throat hurt when he tried to open his mouth. The voice that came out sounded nothing like his own but like rusted gears unable to turn.
"Don't talk, Seika. We need to get you away for now." Gala said as she wiped away the blood trickling down her mouth.
"Did I do this?" His voice was still hoarse, but Arthur gestured with his chin toward the duke. Gala paused and nodded. "Then, let me finish him off." His voice was unwavering, and mana exploded from his body.
The mana made the surrounding air heavier; it was rich and potent. It had the same presence as the power of Seikas, but this felt like a mountain compared to a rock.
"No, Seika." Gala's forehead was full of sweat. Why did he suddenly change? "The duke is using the royal artifact. He won't die. The only one getting hurt will be you."
Arthur turned to the duke as he heard Gala's words. He was a mess, but so was Arthur himself. He could use the mana of creation again, but it was a strong possibility that he'd damage his soul again if he overdid it.
"Let's leave." Arthur nodded at them. He turned to Dia, who was holding him back as well. "I presume you are the Knight of Honesty."
"Yes, Seika." The giant man nodded with an uncomfortable expression. The man in front of him was nothing like he had heard.
"How did the duke find out about our plan?" His words were sharp, descending like a crushing mountain on the Knight.
The Knight of Honesty frowned. He had only felt this way to his majesty, Solomon. The young man in front of him demanded his question be answered, not requested.
"We don't know yet." The Knight answered. "I think there's a traitor amid the royal court."
"I see." Arthur nodded and turned. His empty sleeve fluttered under the spiritual power he radiated. He had yet to control it properly. "Let's go. I think you have a battle yet to win."
"Wait!" Larza's voice came from a distance. She stood up while coughing up mouthfuls of blood. "If you leave this place, I'm going to destroy it!"
She raised her hand, making his arm appear. It was isolated from the world by a powerful barrier, preserving it from rotting.
"I forgot about you." Arthur turned and began walking toward her. "I almost left you alive."
Larza's face grew pale as her body trembled. Suddenly, the duke descended in front of her with his flames burning more vigorously than ever.
"You dare?!" He roared, but Arthur didn't stop walking. The duke panicked and made his flames burn brighter than before. "Stop right there!"
However, Arthur kept walking toward them. The flames turned into a hurricane that surrounded him, burning everything in its path.
"Overconfident fool." The duke spat as he made his flames gather and attack Arthur.
"You are not worthy." Arthur walked out from within the flames without a scratch, his long hair fluttering under their wind. "Stay still." He commanded, and the duke froze like a statue.
"As for you, Larza,"
He stopped in front of her and looked down. He raised his hand and touched her scales. Her slits of irises shook wildly, her body trembling in front of him. She looked at Arthur as if she didn't recognize him.
"I'll let you live," Arthur said. "Not because I can't kill you and not because I want this arm." He smiled devilishly. "It's because I have yet to make you suffer. One day, you'll be in your sleep, and you'll wake up to find me in front of you."
Arthur used his Art, submission, to install fear within Larza's mind. When he finished speaking, she fell to the ground because her knees could no longer support her. A pool of liquid appeared beneath her as her body kept shaking.
Seeing her like that, Arthur turned around and walked away. He couldn't use his powers anymore without hurting his body.
The soldiers of Demis and humans looked on with fear as the One-Armed Seika left with his party, heading toward Freda.
The tales of what happened today will be told for hundreds of years, where the heavens split open to protect a human.
As he was traveling toward the Freda kingdom, rumors will spread about the emergence of the strongest Seika, one who beat the Duke of Fire into a pulp and left. A name for the strongest Seika emerged among every nation, Lorius.
It meant The Calamity.
***
The golden dagger that Solomon has given him floated in front of Arthur. He wasn't using Telekinesis, but the spiritual energy that replaced his arm.
The dagger swept through the air as fast as lightning. He was sitting on a bed in a tent that the Knight gave him. The golden weapon disappeared into his subspace before Gala entered his tent.
"How are you feeling?" Gala asked with a smile. "We are leaving toward the royal court in an hour."
"I'm feeling fine." Arthur nodded. "That's quicker than I expected."
"They expect that Alva or the other kingdoms to attack the princess and you. They wanted to transport you immediately, but the Alvan army wouldn't give them the opportunity."
"Then we can expect an assassination attempt on the way." Arthur laughed. "It seems we go from one assassination to the other."
"You seem too relaxed for someone who split the sky." Gala looked at him with both fear and awe.
"I did?" Arthur was taken aback. "What happened?"
"You..." Gala almost threw up blood as her face flushed. "You don't remember what happened?" Seeing Arthur tilt his head with confusion, she sighed. "Well, no wonder that looked nothing like you."
"What?" Arthur repeated with raised brows. "Did I look something other than human?"
"Well, you did," Gala said. "After the duke struck you, spiritual power emerged from your body." Arthur nodded, remembering starting the soul restructure. "Then, a pair of golden eyes appeared in the sky."
"Golden eyes?" Arthur frowned. He still remembered the child he met on the cliff. It was a child he didn't know, who also had golden eyes. "What else?"
"It said a sentence before the new arm appeared," Gala said. "It said: who hurt my vessel?" She looked at Arthur to see if he had any reactions.
"That is..." Arthur paused as he furrowed his brows. Gala inched closer to hear his answer. "Weird." He scratched his head, making Gala's face red with anger.
"You clueless brat!" She hmphed and stood up. "Prepare to leave. I'll check with the rest!"
Arthur smiled as he watched stomp the ground and leave. He knew that she wasn't prying but only curious about what happened. Sadly, even Arthur had no answers.
"I am you," Arthur repeated as he looked at his remaining arm. "Then who exactly am I?" He clenched his fist as he stood up.
He left the tent and walked out, gathering the gazes of the soldiers. The tent next to his was a smaller one, but guards surrounded it heavily. They blocked Arthur's path as he tried to enter.
"You do know that you guys are useless against her, right?" Arthur smiled at the guards. "If I ask her to, she can easily flatten this camp."
Hearing Arthur's words, the guards' faces paled. They looked at each other before allowing him entry. Arthur walked in to find Dia sitting in a chair with her hands cuffed in front of her.
"These guys are hopeless, cuffs? Really?" Arthur laughed as he walked in. Dia flinched and turned to him, wary. "Relax." He said as he pointed a finger to the chains, and a string of liquid fire destroy them.
"Why didn't you ask me to kill him?" Dia asked out of nowhere as she rubbed her wrist. "Even if you couldn't kill him yourself, you could've ordered me to." She raised her head to meet his eyes.
"I'm not cruel." Arthur smiled at her. "I didn't plant the Order in your core to torture you, only to survive."
"You can survive on your own now," Dia said, referring to his earlier demonstration of power. Arthur looked at her silently.
"Do you want to leave?" He asked her in a relaxed tone.
"What if I do?" Dia didn't answer his question but deflected it. Arthur smiled and gestured toward the tent's entrance.
"I'll let you go. I won't lift the Order just if you try to harm me, but I won't be ordering you anymore. You can do whatever you want as long as it doesn't harm me."
"You'll let me go that easily? What about your deal with Solomon?"
"I never wished to use this method; I was forced to use it." Arthur shook his head. "I have other things to offer to Solomon. If you want to leave, then you can."