Chapter 65: A knight, monster & gunslinger all walk into a forest

Photon could hear the sound of his own breath echoing through his metallic frame; the sound of his heavy armour trudging through the forest floor one he was well familiar with. Branches snapping under foot, the splattering of mud as well as the scuttling of smaller creatures (most of them that existed in the world) moving out the way of his form. It was all something he was used to since he became the one known as the {True Hero} then reaching greater heights as {The Pillar of the Knight}.

That was because that’s who he was, right?

The inflatable existence that represented the world’s hopes that will never falter or fall no matter what crisis he faces. It was his job to stop people from making things worse and getting people killed for pointless things. He was the one person who everyone would rely on to block Violet’s violence, parry Mother’s punishments, shrug off Munzumira’s showboating, stop Sohn-Tochters storms, put sense into the system, see through Chaos’ antics, prevent Pandora’ pandemics and judge Jeeves crimes.

That was who he was after all; he was Photon.

If he didn’t do all that, it wasn’t a matter of who would it was a matter of who could?

Just stand in front of what everyone else is scared of with a smile then deal with it in a confident manner so everybody else can feel nice and safe in relying on you some more. Did he regret becoming the hero? Not one bit as it was a request from Atlas… If there was someone he couldn’t remove it was Atlas. Still, it got tiring for him as he was no fighting manic or someone who particularly enjoyed hunting like the fox.

Lions were known as the king of all terrestrial beasts yet those who knew little about them assumed they were dangerous beasts always on the prowl. That couldn’t be further from the truth as they usually slept more than they were awake. Adult ortals tended to require 6-8 hours however it could be said that’s because they were weak… Lions were decidedly lazier so preferred to sleep in for 16-20 hours per day.

When was the last time he got to do that though?

There was always something going wrong while he had nobody to particularly rely on; there was the always smiling {Sovereign of Storms} who he was partnered with. They had their own responsibilities as {The Heavens} which already lessened the pressure from his shoulders with her battalion of {God-Slayers}. That pressure was still enough that he hoped never to face the {Demon God Leviathan} on the battlefield since he was concerned he would finally find the point where he crumbled…

Ironically the only time anyone seemed to show concern for him (asking if he was okay) was the {Demon God Empress} who was supposed to be the ‘final boss’ for heroes according to mortals.

Still; the thing that perhaps cermented his status as a hero was his least favourite thing to do.

“Make this nice and easy Jeeves; it’ll be the best for both of us hahaha!” <Photon>

Even with the helm on his head with just enemies around he couldn’t show weakness as a single crack would be all it took for the pressure to cause a fissure. What he did do though was slam his large shield into the ground while resting his iconic spear upon his shoulder. He always found it ironic that the shape ’double cross’ of the spear was ‘his’ despite it being the symbol of {The Heavens} instead. In front of him was the demonic visage of the ‘Jeeves’ that was in front of him.

Certainly didn’t look human as it’s aura of decay slowly did it’s job on the surrounding plant life except for the thorns or brambles that seemed to spread out from him. Atop his head was the crown of thorns embedding into the bleeding halo; though considering the crimson blood it seemed obvious this ‘Jeeves’ was a mere imitation. Yet wasn’t that the truth when it came to most of the ‘Jeeves’ that committed problems – the real one was far harder to deal with even if it didn’t have the same durability of the fakes.

A being that never forgot but only had 42 years to create panic would obviously come up with his own ‘solutions’.

That also meant that every 42 years or so Photon had to defeat one of these undead Jeeves while trying to leave it to others to figure out the underlying goal. Of course, sometimes he may delay his rebirth into the world causing it to be more annoying to prepare. As for what he planned to do this time? Current theory was to ‘body swap’ with Photon’s very own ‘little sister’.

As selfish as it may be… Knowing that someone was born, who wasn’t one of those daft humans, to take up the title of hero filled Photon ironically with hope. Not to mention he also had his own son born which was something to feel joyous about. Yet here was the very ghost of the world’s past  as well as the one person he wanted to protect most but could do nothing…

Except to help shoulder the pain & responsibilities of that very man.

“If I were  you I wouldn’t have come here photon, you may end up getting hurt~!” <Jeeves>

The beserk creature dashed forward with a flash while swinging that derelict stone blade to attempt cutting Photon in half. Such a simple move was hardly enough to surprise the knight who didn’t step back to take the blow but charged forward with his shield held in front of him in  the typical {Shield Bash}. A simple shield art that turned defence into a knockback that challenged the opponent to see if they could stand their ground; only one person had ever managed to do that against Photon.

However this ‘Jeeves’ was no Violet.

Having the shield meet the bony structure of the undead monster sent it flying backwards before it’s blade could show it’s impressive cutting power – sometimes the best defence was a good offence afterall! The nightmare of death found itself forcedit to slam its heavy blade into the ground just to prevent itself from being sent too far away. Letting its blade upturn the earth into a murky mist to slow down its backwards momentum. Afterall it had learned a long time ago giving Photon more space just played to his advantage.

Bringing his spear off his shoulder Photon took a simple stance as golden holy light filled the large blade on the end, thrusting it forward as sparks rained off the light. It took a mere second for the pillar of purifying light & lightning to penetrate the wall of dirt but the monster wasn’t so easy to damage as it simply batted the attack away with its own weapon. The attack was followed moments later by the holy thunder which was left behind due to the speed of the weapon art.

“The day you manage to hurt me is the day I hang up my shield; then again I doubt a wall which can support my shield exists!” <Photon>

A bellowing laugh carried through the forest as Photon didn’t even bother capitalising on the space between them; slowly walking towards the ‘Jeeves’. Though it looked like this it was fully intentional as he still prioritised spacing. This wasn’t space between him & ‘Jeeves’ though but instead between this battle & the little hero. He wasn’t looking down on the girl; he saw her eyes when walking by her. He was confident she would become someone great however she wasn’t ready yet.

It was his job as her senior to take care of this mess so she could grow up safely!

His body began to glow with the exact same light as his weapon once did – holy lightning sparking from his muscles under the armour – as he leaned forward with his spear reeling back ready for another attack.

“[True Hero – Holy Light Charge]!” <Photon>

With that his entire body entirely broke apart into motes of light that charged forth towards the trouble maker who attempted to swing his blade at the hero’s charge. A heavy *CLANG* made it clear this failed as instead the spear punctured through the ‘Jeeves’ in spite of that the monstrosity wasn’t lucky enough to have it end with the ‘pin prick’. Photon’s heroic charge continued at near light speeds that betrayed his bulky appearance – with ‘Jeeves’ weapon prevented from moving – he sent the evil creature through tree after tree to increase the distance more and more. If Eel were here she may notice this was closer to the forest she fought with the {Giant Green Lizard} than it was to her current location.

Finally finding this distance offering a bit more freedom he decided to finish this up.

“[True Hero – Holy Judgement]!” <Photon>

With that a bright flash occurred as a pillar of light crashed down from above causing the being to let out an inhuman scream. His attack formed a double cross as soon the thunderous sound echoed out except far louder than it was for his previous attack. The monster was heavily damaged but the Hero was sure it wasn’t dead as the attack let up – Photon’s response was to lift up his metal boot to kick the monster off his weapon and onto the floor.

“I’m still feeling pretty healthy Jeeves; what about you?” <Photon>

A laugh comparable to the roar of a beast followed his question. At this point the monster’s blood seeped from its body causing licks of purple flame to rise from its wounds while that iconic executioner’s blade slammed into the ground once more. This time it wasn’t in order to resist the power of Photon but instead the pull of gravity as it’s murderous aura flowed out of his body. This was a sight Photon had felt thousands upon millions maybe upon billions of times already though so such an aura hardly scared the knight; it didn’t even make him tense.

“Feeling peachy jehehe~!” <’Jeeves’>

It appeared after that devastating combo even ‘Jeeves’ was struggling to stand though Photon’s natural affinities did help with this – even as it spoke smoke poured from its internals along with its voice. That voice was far from what should come from a human but this ‘Jeeves’ hardly looked like one in its current form anyway.  Well, after receiving Photon’s beating, it would be hard to look human unless you had outrageous defences like Violet & Mother… Or Photon himself. I wasn’t like this form of Jeeves particularly had low defences but rather this also made it clear that despite what some thought Photon wasn’t just a walking punching bag.

The warrior twirled his spear around before slamming the head into the ground causing the earth to shake, sending Jeeves off balance. Following up the towering knight simply walked up to the monster who appeared to be on its last legs. Suddenly ‘Jeeves’ darted forward to try to get a punch on the Hero but it was hopeless as Photon literally just caught that with his now free hand before quickly leaning forward. From that action came a ringing as their foreheads (one armoured and one decidedly not) impacted with a staggering force that sent the creature stumbling while it’s body seemed to be about to fall once more.

Photon wasn’t finished though.

Before ‘Jeeves’ could fall to the floor he tugged that fist he held before extending his arm out and swinging it to connect ‘Jeeves’’ face with his own upper arm. This time Photon gave ‘Jeeves’ the mercy to fall to the floor. Standing over the monstrous figure he just silently looked on as smoke rose from his smoten body while the unsettling aura still spread out from him.

Despite the domination that was happening Photon wasn’t pleased but only more cautious as this was unnaturally easy. Even if these were technically fakes that fought far differently than the proper body they were practically undying – something he could counter – but they also had far more abilities than just swordsmanship (if you can call it that). Where were the thorn filled vines, the mad screeches that caused paralysis or the outrageous stealth. Sure, Photon had caught him unprepared, but Jeeves was no idiot. Then again he also let these bodies ‘die’ countless times for benefits Photon couldn’t fully understand so was sacrificing it a way to gain his attention?

When that was going through his head he heard the soft sound of heavy duty military style boots stepping through the forest. The sound of leather straps adjusting to the soft breathing of the being that wore them and the crisp, ever so slight, crackling of a cigar burning. It would appear that someone had been waiting for him to finish up…

“I did try to warn you jehehehe~!” <’Jeeves’>

Nobody responded to the battered villain’s exclamation as Photon focused on the figure that walked out from behind one of the many trees behind Jeeves’ tattered body. It was almost as if the figure had already known exactly where their fight would end… Then upon seeing their appearance he was sure of it. A figure he hadn’t seen since the birth of the place they now know as the {Demon Realm} as well as the ‘inventor’ of the system itself. A figure who just so happened to be very very intimate with the grand schemer herself even if they weren’t completely loyal like the {Birds of Prey}.

Yet someone he knew little about making it hard to judge how a fight would go.

“Kaiser…” <Photon>

A gentle wind blew causing the new individual’s clothing as well as Photon’s own cloak to rustle in the wind to fill the otherwise silence. They wore a black jacket reminiscent of the military from a more modern world – draping it over their shoulders in a fashion that should be casual yet felt anything but. Perhaps it was the lapels that were ironed out or the epaulette that stood proudly on each of her shoulders. Maybe it was the series of medallions hung off the breast that marked their various accomplishments in their previous life.

Or it could simply be the terrifying aura that was far more piercing than Jeeves’?

If comparing the two villains it was like this ‘Jeeves’ hated everyone or everything and let it known by taking it out of everything around them. In other words a tried and true berserker who knew only violence. This new person on the other hand felt more like a sniper was pointed directly at Photon’s forehead – which made sense as Photon saw what he assumed were two rifles upon the figures’ back poking out from their jacket.

Their steps – with the same boots you’d imagine as well as smart trousers of an officer – were weighted and steady. The sound in evenly spread intervals as their left hand gently adjusted their belt which had two Tian style blades sheathed on either side. The other hand held a violet shaded cigar between their perfectly shaped lips which were supported by a perfectly shaped jawline and below a perfectly formed nose… That wasn’t the most obvious detail of their perfectly ‘ikeman’ face though.

Instead it was the large circular glasses with bubblegum pink lenses and a graphite grey frame.

As far as lenses go these couldn’t possibly be more tinted which made it impossible to see the figures eyes behind them; Photon wouldn’t be surprised if they ended up being one sided glass since it wasn’t a hard thing to make for the genius artefactor in front of him. They didn’t seem the least bit intimidated in contrast as Kaiser just slowly took a deep breath of their cigar. Letting the dark smoke fill their lungs as they slowly lowered their right only for the left to rise from their belt.

They let out a long puff of smoke as they readjusted their military style cap which had the logo for their own force clearly imprinted above the brim in the typical fashion. The symbol itself was a simple triangle with two sickle shapes on either side – very abstract but it still held the key identifiers of a mantis nonetheless. Although the top of their head was obscured by the cap Photon was able to peek at their shaved sides which strangely were pink in colour which he felt really didn’t suit the rest of their appearance as it wasn’t as intimidating as the glasses for sure.

Paying attention to every detail of the far smaller (than himself) figure allowed him to note that their hot pink shirt and suspenders over the top which came from their trousers held what was likely the support for the back weapons. Leather straps came from under their currently hidden armpits as they tightly clung across Kaiser’s fit chest. If it wasn’t from prior knowledge that this monster gave birth to Chaos J Faust he may assume it was a man… Somewhat fitting actually for the being that gave birth to the renowned crossdresser. Not that this made the figures inclusion into events any less disconcerting.

They weren’t meant to exist yet, afterall.

“Nun, wie ist das? Ich habe the feeling that while ich bin sehr happy to see you, mein schwager, the feelings are not gegenseitig.” <Kaiser>

(Well, how is this? I have the feeling that while I am very happy to see you, my brother-in-law, the feelings are not mutual.) <Kaiser>

A smile crept onto the mantis’ face which only allowed one to glimpse into their cruelty; funnily enough it made her seem closer related to his own sister than he was. Their words appeared truthful even if anyone could detect lies (a fairly common ability honestly) but that was because they would miss the true context behind it. Of course the hero wouldn’t be happy meeting the known mercenary appearing like this while Kaiser would obviously be pleased to meet their target.

“While I wish to see you beende das dummkopf he has his uses so how about we take care of things quickly und simply?” <Kaiser>

With that Kaiser took another puff from their cigar while their left hand moved up to under their jacket (specifically armpit) while widening their stance. Lowering their right hand so their open palm was in front of their neck – parallel to the floor though still holding that smoking cigar between their fingers. Both of them held their breath while neither noticed ‘Jeeves’ had long vanished now that its goal had been accomplished. A silence was formed between the two powerful figures – Photon was not quite sure what Kaiser was up to and acted with caution while Kaiser was as patient as a mantis should be.

This stalemate had to come to an end where Kaiser blew out the smoke from their lips; Photon trying to take advantage of her lack of sight to reach for his spear that was currently located behind him. An action which caused the spear to pull itself from the floor and fly into his hand so he could hopefully deal with the villain. Of course, he brought the shield in front of hi-

Before the hero could complete his action Kaiser gripped something under their jacket only to quickly whip it out under her prior placed right palm.

This was unsurprisingly a revolver; one of Kaiser’s very own modified Korth’s made relic named [Kaiser Korths – Bandits Gambit].

*BANG**BANG*

Sliding her palm over it twice to fan the hammer, causing two enhanced bullets (each infused with the special ability of the [Bandits Gambit] thus allowing her to sacrifice other bullets to enhance the next) to pass through the knees of the hero. Being the veteran he was, he quickly moved his right hand back in front of him to quickly pull the shield in front of himself. Slamming it into the ground it not only protected him but allowed him to support himself from falling due to his wounds.

Still it prevented him from moving for now yet Kaiser didn’t seem to care as she merely took another deep breath of that cigar while her left hand let go of the handle of the Korth. Her finger still remained inside the weapon as with a flick of her wrist she began to spin the weapon before expertly guiding it back into its holster. The mercenary then simply began to walk past the hero without so much as turning to look at him.

“You know I’m right handed?” <Kaiser>

The warlord stopped once again beside the gigantic spear that was actually taller than they were as that cheshire grin appeared upon their lips once more. Tilting their head back they looked at that sturdy back many had hidden behind – Photon tightly clenching his firsts on his massive shield while growling behind his helm. Kaiser was hardly intimidated by the lion though.

“You are lucky she simply wanted you out of the picture since she just wanted all the possible ‘risks’ out of the way for now… But I think it’s funny. The boundary may be unmovable yet here I am crossing it. Hab ein schönes Leben.” <Kaiser>

With that they simply walked on without turning back anymore.

Noticing their destination Photon took a deep breath before letting his qi enter a ring on his right hand while adjusting how he rested against the shield. He felt the energy in his body slowly growing weaker and weaker which he honestly didn’t find surprising; the gunslinger wasn’t exactly the honourable type. Before he was unable to use it anymore a jade slip with a figure of eight engraved upon it appeared in his hand – sending his energy into it he spoke.

“Elizabeth, mission failed. Jeeves got away; {The Warlord} returned to incapacitate me… I forgot that a mantis is feared not for their attack or defence but their counter…Heh. The hatchling is in your care now.” <Photon>

After that he returned the jade back to his ring before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath while slowly working his body. He couldn’t help but frown as he felt his flesh seemingly harden into a metallic compound as the powerful poison tried to spread through his body. Although he managed to stop it that was only because it was two bullets worth; the fact so little poison could affect him was proof enough of its effect. This did lead him to be confused as it didn’t seem to be on the level of pandora’s stuff yet wasn’t too far behind. He couldn’t think of any such being from his knowledge that could produce such a thing…