The Unwilling Protagonist

Chapter 18: The General and His Aide: Hierophant and Leone

Hierophant felt the link sever. He felt Chariot disappear after firing its last shot. The battle was going so well for him, but now, he had bigger problems.

Dammit! Leone! Kill those mooks, then get back here; I need you! Hierophant said to his aide.

Hierophant then felt the building start to lean, and then it collapsed with him in it. This unexpected turn of events surprised him so greatly that he accidentally conveyed his shock to his aide.

Leone was executing Hierophant's last order: kill the rest of Rathe's army, then return. However, he received another message from his general, which expressed shock and surprise before he felt the link between him and Hierophant sever.

Conflicted with these two events, he did what any overly loyal servant would do.

Butcher these upstarts, then disengage! Hierophant is in danger! Leone sent the message across the entire army. The rearguard became the new vanguard as the entire army turned around and started running away from the battle and towards Hierophant. Rathe's musketeers and archers were now picking off the retreating troops as they ran without a care. Hierophant's soldiers fell and their numbers were greatly reduced, but they didn't care; they were more concerned about their general than their own lives.

Leone himself led the "charge", if you could call it that...anyone else would've called it a retreat, but Leone would say it was a charge in the other direction, towards Hierophant. He also didn't care about the numerous soldiers dying behind him. He didn't even care about the arrows and musket shots whizzing past him until an arrow hit his leg. He tripped and fell and looked behind him. Rathe's army was moving closer, and Hierophant's army was diminishing. Leone, being the more sensible and sentient individual of the army, materialized a flintlock pistol into his hand and fired back at Rathe's army as he removed the magic-imbued arrow from his leg. He stood back up and continued his dash, firing behind him occasionally.

Opening Theme:

An ethereal shape slithered out of the collapsed building before taking a humanoid form. Hierophant looked around him until his eyes fell on his retreating army being chased by Rathe's army.

Idiots! Guard your flanks! Hierophant said through his re-established link. The rear-most element of the army turned around and held their shields up as they continued moving towards him. Hierophant sighed in frustration; the downside about having soldiers incapable of independent thought was that they didn't even think about themselves, which is why most of Hierophant's army was now composed of just Leone and a single company.

He heard rubble shifting again, and then a pyre of flames shot upwards near him. He saw a hand poke out, and then a head. Hierophant furrowed his brow angrily and materialized his chainblade in his hand...

Y/N pulled himself and the unconscious Kara out of the wreckage of the fallen building. He laid Kara down and looked at her. Still alive... he thought. He was about to relax too until Geralt shouted a warning at him.

"Y/N, behind you!"

Theme of Hierophant:

Y/N turned to see Hierophant running at him with his chainblade held high. Y/N drew his sword and held it up in time as Hierophant's strike landed. Sparks were sent flying as the whirring teeth of Hierophant's chainblade screeched against Y/N's sword. Slowly, but surely, Hierophant's chainblade was cutting through Y/N's weapon. Once it was halfway through, Hierophant deftly swung his chainblade to the side, disarming Y/N, and then kicking him onto his back.