Chapter 92 - Loss

Blades were heard clanging across the battlefield as the fighting went on.

Neither side had it in them to back down and surrender. It was shaping up to be an all-out brawl against the Wingless Angels and the Operation Phoenix Slayers.

Luken Regalia continued to dance around the battlefield with his rapier, decimating every foe that was foolish enough to stand against him.

Ignis Silva showed his proficiency in hand to hand combat, as his playing cards were all out, he resorted to fighting using the old fashioned way.

The operation's leader enchanted his fists and feet with flames as he clobbered the Wingless Angels and burnt them the same way he did with their hives – to ashes.

This fight did not last long, after about ten minutes of intense fighting, the Slayers had emerged victorious.

"Why do these creatures not have wings? I mean they look the part of a typical Angel, it is just the absence of the wings that irks me off."

Faust asked Gavin.

"I am as clueless as you are, Faust. But there is one thing that we do in fact know, it is that these Wingless Angels will prove to be a difficult opponent for Slayers who are not ranked S and above." His eyes darted around and focused on Hector Incendium. "Except for anomalies and prodigies, I guess."

"Aren't you a prodigy yourself, sir Gavin?"

Faust pressed on.

"Well, you get the point already, do you not?"

The Serpent Summoner ended it at that.

Ignis walked up to a hill, adamant to be in a place which he is able to see the Slayers and make not of who fell in the battle.

"Did we lose anyone?"

His soft voice asked with a clear sense of urgency to it.

A Slayer in the huddle raised his arm up.

"Y-Yes, sir. I believe we lost this one." He said as he carried a Slayer's body up on his shoulders. It was a female, and a young one at that.

Her body was mangled and spliced up.

Wounds that were clearly inflicted by blades were dripping with red sanguine blood.

Ignis Silva clicked his tongue.

"Tch. Shit. That is unfortunate. It really is."

The Inferno Garden leader was not shy in showing his disappointment at the loss, even if it was only a single person.

He walked towards the Slayer carrying the body and covered the fallen Slayer's face and her whole body with his own black coat.

"I will carry her."

He said.

The Slayer nodded.

"Y-Yes, sir!"

Ignis Silva held the lady on his back.

"Sir Ignis, if I may? I would like to point out that I am not encumbered or burdened by anything else, I will do that."

Hector said with the same emotionless delivery he always exhibited ever since he was introduced to everyone in the Grand Castle.

"No. Hector. It is fine. This loss is on me. This young Slayer's death is on my hands, that is just how it is."

The dark haired man continued to march onwards.

"The Outer Gates are only a couple of ways away from here, I believe you all can sense that already. Get up and get going, let us honor her to the fullest by doing our duties as Slayers. Get up."

The Slayers resting from the exhausting battle were now slowly getting up.

Faust Keisuke had recognized this Slayer, the one who had met her demise.

It was the Slayer he had interacted with from earlier, the one who was shaking on the way to the hives.

He bit his lower lip in anger until it bled hard.

The S Rank Earth Slayer remembered how the young Slayer was fearful and optimistic about the outcome of the mission.

For her to die this way, for her to meet her demise just as when they were about to get back to home, it was someone that unnerved Faust Keisuke deeply.

This unnerved sense of dread made him quite emotional and mad. Faust had known long ago already that death was a part of being a Slayer. Nobody was untouchable by death's cold fingertips. He knew this already, but still, the reality of it every single time always hit him hard.

The mood and atmosphere of victory and triumph against an unknown type and breed of monsters were hastily culled short.

What replaced it was the grim reminder that even though they were S Rank Slayers, one of the best that the Slayer Corps ever had, they were still walking on the fine line of life and death.

They got up and walked.

Ignis Silva was still carrying the Slayer's lifeless body.

"I thought Ignis did not care about casualties."

Gavin remarked.

"He tries his best to pretend that he does not, Gavin. He has always been that way ever since. But deep down, he does care for his subordinates. He just has to maintain that repugnant attitude in front of many people because of how an 'Inferno Garden' leader is supposed to be."

Luken responded.

Niflheim was close, the Slayers could sense the Anima concentration brought upon by the Red Barriers of the Outer Gates.

Whenever a group went out for deployment or an expedition, the feeling of the Outer Gates' aura has always been a good sign, specially if they are coming back from a successful mission or are on a full on retreat.

It is not like the Red Barrier does not have its flaws, though.

The conjured up barrier is only focused on keeping high level monsters such as Angels and the likes of the Seraphims at bay, lower level monsters like goblins and such could crawl from underneath the ground and set up camp at Niflheim's burrows.

That was where Yin was sent by Luken to fend off for himself against the Goblins.

"I am sorry."

He said to the dead Slayer's lifeless body behind him slowly.

Hector heard this but did not comment on it.

This was the first time he had ever seen his leader show such an attitude towards the fallen.

He knew that it would be out of place for him to point it out to Ignis. So, he kept his mouth shut and walked onwards.

Ignis Silva's mind had been racing around various memories and emotions.

Trying to make sense out of whatever it is this plane of existence has in store for him.

Ever since he was little, all he could ever want was to be the top Slayer. The number one ranked Slayer in the leaderboards. That was Ignis Silva's lifelong goal.

His father, his grandfather, all the other Slayers before him who ultimately lead the Inferno Garden were already at one point the strongest Slayers there were during their times.

And Ignis was adamant about living up to his bloodline's renowned name.

"Every mile I walk in the Silva name's feet, I stand atop a mountain of bodies. Bodies of my comrades, my fellow Slayers. And the one I am carrying was of no exception. Her life has been cut short not directly due to my lack of leadership or incompetency, no, it just happened as the mission went on."

Ignis Silva thought to himself.

The SS Rank Inferno Garden leader knew that her death was not because of him and his poor choice of action.

What other outcome was there for that situation?

There was none.

Nothing else was going to happen.

A fight was inevitable.

Humans and monsters were never going to peacefully coincide and coexist with one another in this wretched world.

Both sides knew of nothing but to place damnation on the other. If you do not kill, you shall be killed. That was just how it was.

The walk back to Niflheim was soon ending.

But there was no doubt, the end portion of the mission was painted with grief and sadness with the loss of one of their own.

"You know, Faust…"

Luken interrupted the painful silence.

"I can never ever get used to this."

Luken said, referring to the dead Slayer.

"It should never be said that it is a good thing that only one died out of the twenty of us here today." Gavin added. He sighed deeply, indicating his exhaustion from everything. "The fact of the matter is that a group of S Rank Slayers managed to let one of their own die. I cannot speak for myself out of hypocrisy, as I did not even see the chance to help her earlier in the fight. My eyes never even saw her in peril. Which meant she never called for help."

The Serpent Summoner said.

"What are you trying to say, Gavin?"

Luken asked him.

"Nothing. I just said some stuff that popped up in my mind just now. Do not mind me."

The skies were colored dark with freezing temperatures.

Snow had been ravaging the Operation Phoenix squadrons heavily ever since they left Niflheim.

But their efforts were worth it, as they have finally managed to beat the Angels without even fighting them, well, the winged ones, at least.