a dumbass gets isekai'd: the novella

24. i'm gonna let god fix it, because if i fix it, i'm going to jail

Riddle was unable to keep the magic seal on, so his collar was broken like it was nothing and flung off. Bigger chunks of sand flew around the arena, threatening to deck someone in the face. The people surrounding Leona backed up.

"I've always been loathed ever since I was born. I had no place to call home, nor did I have a future. No matter how hard I work, I will never be acknowledged. This pain, this despair...THERE'S NO WAY YOU'D UNDERSTAND!"

As soon as he yelled those words, the pain in Yuu spiked, causing them to clutch their head so hard they probably tugged a few hairs out. Once again, everything was losing colors, Riddle, who had noticed their distress, shouted something, but all they could hear was white noise.

There it was again, the gem. This time, it was yellow. Ink spilled all over the stone, turning it into a sinister black. Yuu managed to regain their senses. Riddle was still trying to speak to them.

"What!?"

"I asked if you were okay! You look like you're in pain!"

"No, I'm fine! Sand just got in my eye!"

Riddle didn't look all too convinced, but was interrupted by an ear-splitting roar. Like with his own overblot, Leona's appearance had changed. His skin was considerably paler, and he had several ink stains on his face, arms, and feet. He wore a black corset, something around his shoulders that resembled a lions mane, and gold jewelry. His right eye glowed yellow.

"What's that? There's a giant shadow behind Leona!"

Sure enough, a monstrous, quadrupedal creature loomed over them, letting out distorted growls. Ink dripped from its glass head.

Deuce recognized the monster. "That's...the blot manifestation!"

"Did he go into evil villain beserk mode?" Grim asked, ducking to dodge the flying chunks of sand.

While the first years fretted over the overblot, Riddle directed his focus to the safety of the innocent bystanders.

"Anyone who can stand, go and find shelter! Ace, Deuce, take the injured somewhere safe. Lillia, please call the teachers for help!"

"Yes!"

"Understood. I shall pray for your safety."

Ace and Deuce hurried to help the injured and Lillia disappeared into sparkles. Cater shuddered as Leona roared again. "Why do we always have to face something scary!? I'm not built for this, you know!?"

"If you're scared, I wouldn't mind even if you ran away."

"If I left you to save myself, Trey would never let me hear the end of it. Alright, I'll stay with you prefect."

"I dunno what's going on, but Leona will come back to his senses if we beat him up, right?" Jack asked, getting into a defensive stance.

Ruggie got up, not in the best shape but still ready to fight. "I...I'll help you...I'm not gonna let him get away with what he said."

"A hyena like you disobeying me?" Leona boomed. "Hahahaha...what a terrible joke. None of you will see the light of day again!"

Grim nudged Yuu, who was doing their best to hide their writhing. "If we defeat him, we'll be able to join the tournament! Let's do this!"

"That's what you're worried about? Not like, you know...saving people from potential death?"

"Hmm...we could get famous off of that too."

"You fucking clout chaser."

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After fighting tooth and nail, Leona finally collapsed. The monster behind him howled in pain one last time before crumbling away.