BLACK CLOVER: The Whisperer - Yuno Grinberryall

CHAPTER XXIII. Victory Is Ours

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Heath strode past Asta's aching form along with Inari's limp body. He ignored the angered glower Xierra sent toward him as she gritted his teeth. Even as she screamed Asta and Inari's names, the man cared not.

"Wake up!" she yelled, held back by a pair of arms pinning hers down from going away. Tears brimmed at the ends of her eyes, stinging and blurring her vision with haze. "Wake...! Up...! Inari!!"

"Calm yourself, Xierra!" Rhein struggled to say, grunting when she put more force into her flails in an attempt to free herself. He gritted his teeth, careful not to put too much strength when holding onto her, worried that he'd injure both him and her. "Don't fall for it. They'll be fine, I'm sure of it. They've always been fine before."

He watched her calm down her ragged breathing, creating puffs of white in front of her as she coughed once in a while. He put a hand on her quivering shoulder, sweating. "Don't worry. If you fall too, we'll be down to nothing more than three people to defend."

"Right..." she convinced herself, lowering her head and pinching her cheek lightly. "Right, what am I thinking..."

Taking a deep breath, Xierra pursed her lips and closed her eyes for a short moment, clearing her mind from the fogging clouds. When her eyelids fluttered open, her tears were no more and only a glare stayed behind, persistent. The helplessness she felt wasn't the only thing she despised, but when she saw Inari's body struggling to stand, she bit her lower lip and pushed herself back, opting to stay where she was.

She wanted to run to his side, just like how he ran to her side every time.

She wanted to protect him, just like how he protected her.

Inari had been with her throughout her journey, from the very start. Xierra replayed the moment when his conflicted form didn't evade the attack he could easily shatter. It pulled out questions from the shadows: Why didn't he dodge?

Xierra kept her eyes on Inari and Asta as she reflected, asking the world where it all went wrong. She hesitated when Heath stopped walking, trying to guess his plan of action. Was he going to attack them? Kill them? Take them as hostages?

She tapped her foot, uneasy and anxious.

Noticing this, Rhein held back a sigh. He followed her eyes and looked at Inari. He noticed the guilty expression she wore when she looked at him earlier, and when she looked at Inari now. He knew that Xierra wasn't the best at explaining, but even so, he didn't blame her. There was nothing to blame for.

They watched in silence as the spikes causing Inari and Asta's downfall crumbled into nothing with Heath's simple nod. He kept his expression controlled and closed his eyes. "That spell possesses immense magical power. But, it is only a matter of time."

Noelle gritted her teeth in frustration as one hand flew to a child's head, hugging onto her body for comfort. No matter what they did, what they threw, and what they attacked with, the enemies sprung right back.

Other children ran to their parents, and some to their guardians and friends, older siblings, relatives—anyone to tell them that everything was going to be all right.

Xierra crouched in front of the nearby children who clutched onto the burnt hems of her robe, crying. She lulled a little song, soothing them of their worries and fear. A small smile flashed and words of comfort said, they were brave enough to wipe their tears.

Rhein stared at them with knit brows. "This is awful," he muttered to himself, pondering when it would end. "What did they even do to deserve this...?"

Xierra glanced at him, keeping her hands busy fiddling with the children's smaller fingers in an attempt to distract them. She pushed away her frown and all the negative feelings knocking at her door, shaking her head.