A Rising Star of the City

Ch.24: Heart of Aspiration

Roland: This doesn't get less creepy.

The Grade 9 Fixer sighed as he watched the scene presenting itself to him. At first, the unknown world that greeted him looked almost like the previous one he visited, Bloodbath's. However, upon closer inspection, some details that were not there during his first battle caught his attention.

Standing next to him, Angela's assistant was holding his blade, his eyes locked on the opponents they were about to face.

Then, finally, Roland's helper joined, holding a face of discomfort as she faced the creatures that took the appearance of a massive heart and moving lungs. The grotesque sight gave her shivers, causing a shadow to form over her eyes out of disgust.

In contrast, the remaining duo assisting were much calmer and refrained from displaying their inner thoughts.

Y/N: A pool of blood and now a living heart...

Roland: Hm? Is there something wrong?

His question was left hanging in the air, forgotten by the trio as soon as they prepared themselves for the battle that would soon begin.

With not much to work with, especially considering they were facing an Abnormality that once acted as a mere helpful tool for the agents, the librarians readied their weapons and charged ahead after a little bit of planning.

It was nothing too important, just a simple "try to eliminate one of the opponents if you can". After making sure that none of them were aiming for the same enemy, the clashes occured in sync, creating a spark of cacophony in the dark tunnel of... flesh & silence they were standing in.

Both assistants aimed at the lungs while the Grade 9 Fixer took the duty of bringing the sentient heart down. However, unlike the gloomy girl and the unwilling doll, his opening attack was met with a retaliation that sent him backward. His blade was only able to bounce off the horrid arms attached to the Abnormality.

He gritted his teeth and firmly slammed his foot down to catch himself. The last thing he needed was for his foe to use this gap to fight back. Fortunately, nothing followed after this, the entity called the Heart of Aspiration by many prefered to stay on the defensive.

While this was unfolding, Angela's captive swung his blade in an attempt to counter the barrage of piercing charges aimed in his direction. The quick motion of the weapon cleanly cut the air separating him from his attacker apart before leaving a trail of sparks behind, leading to the creation of a flaming afterimage.

In any normal circumstances, someone witnessing an event like this would definitely raise an eyebrow at said phenomenon but in a life or death situation, questioning something as benign as a few floating embers was at the bottom of the priority list.

Going from left to right & right to left, the cold metal of his sword moved along with his arms, forcing the moving pair of lungs to step back in order to protect itself from further damage.

This was enough for the one going on the offensive to go back to safety and recover his focus and breath. His heart, ironically enough, was beating fast enough to overwhelm his senses and block out any disturbance around him, even the pulsating noises of the massive organ they were confronting.

Soon enough, both Roland and Morgan slipped out of their respective clashes to recuperate, bringing back their own commentary as a bonus.

Roland: That thing is tougher than it looks.

Morgan: ...I hate this, I hate everything about this, why did I have to come back?

The girl with long hair mumbled her dissatisfaction. Her hands were trembling while her legs were a complete opposite of her upper body. She was perfectly frozen in place, not out of fear but sheer revulsion.