Chapter 157 - Mankind Will Never Lose

Ares, the Seraphim of War was gaining the upper hand against the three, she was overpowering them because of the intensity and speed that she was healing her wounds with. Every blow that they landed on her was rendered useless because she just regenerated so quick. "You fight pretty well, as I had expected from someone in the Six Blades." Faust Keisuke paid his respects to Suna's strength. He had not expected her to still be alive at this point in the fight.

"I have been taught well by the Commander and Gavin." Suna replied back with a smirk. "That much is obvious." But the tiresome battle they have been fighting since earlier was making them slow and sluggish. Hector Incendium had been staying silent, only ever talking whenever he needed to and when he told them to work together earlier.

"Mankind will never lose." He said. Suna and Faust looked at him like they had seen a ghost, they never really made him out to be someone who was meant to say stuff like that and just throw it out on the open.. "What makes you so confident about those wretched and baseless words of yours, puny human?" Ares replied while composing herself.

"I am sure because I believe in my own power. I believe in the strength that I have accumulated and worked so hard for during my time as a Slayer so far. I have people who believe in that strength that I possess, as long as we overcome you Seraphims with pure power, freedom is guaranteed to be achieved." Hector Incendium said to the Seraphim of War. 

She just slow clapped in response. "Your resilience and determination are admirable, boy, but those are not enough to save your race from surviving our onslaught." Ares said. "With me, Suna, Faust." Hector was now taking command of their team but their advance was stopped by a voice that Hector was all too familiar with – his mentor, Ignis Silva. "I told you not to hold your axe with that stance, Hector, it will leave you vulnerable against the enemy's wide swing attacks." He said from the side. Ares turned around and was far too occupied to notice that even Umbra's presence and Anima cells were now gone, she could not sense it anymore. "Wretched dogs!" She bit her lower lip as she exclaimed. "We have sent the Shadow Seraphim straight into the depths of hell below, you are going to be the next one to follow him, Seraphim of War." Ignis Silva said to her as he looked her straight dead in the eyes.

"S-Sir Ignis." Hector was surprised to see his mentor and leader in such a bloodied and bruised manner. He knew that these Seraphims would be strong, but the actual scope of their strengths and powers were so much more than he had expected. Even seeing Kai Xin with an injured eye was unsurprising to Hector, given the intensity that the Seraphims fought in. But it is understood that they were already finished dealing with their own respective Seraphims if they were here. 

Ares watched and took a long glance at the backup who just arrived. "So, these Slayers were the ones who exterminated both Hai and Umbra. Tch. If this goes on for much longer, I am going to be the next one who will go down if they all collectively join in and gang up on me." Ares thought to herself as she sensed the immense amount of Anima cells that the others had.

Yin and Fen Kaori as going to jump in and help in the battle against the Seraphim of War, but she stomped on the ground and kicked up a good amount of dust and smoke. They were not expecting her to escape, so that was exactly what she did, her wings emerged from her back as she realized she could not take so many Slayers on her own.

As she was up in the sky, she saw Yin Sohaya. "White hair and red eyes. There is no mistaking it. That boy is the newest System holder, from what I have heard from Hai and Adam. Well, there is always another time for me to feast on all these Slayers, for now, must retreat with Adam Rosa. The Vessel will not be happy if I leave him behind…now where is that putrid human?" She said while trying to squint her eyes and attempting to locate Adam's location. The Slayers below her tried to throw out some fireballs and other spells to bring them down but she was far too up the sky for them to drag back.

"Show me your wounds." Fen said to Suna, Hector, and Faust with the same blank and empty face he had ever since. He applied some advanced healing spells from his grimoire to aid in closing their wounds at least. "Stay put, I am not that good at this stuff yet, I am still getting used to it, if you squirm from the pain, it will all be useless." He warned them before healing.

"I am sorry for not finishing off the Seraphim of War, sir." Hector said as he bowed his head to Ignis Silva. "Nonsense, you and the other Six Blades member did well. You know who should actually be at fault? The guy who was supposed to finish that Seraphim off." Ignis replied back as he gazed at Faust Keisuke. "Are you trying to say something, you sack of shit?" The S Rank Earth Slayer was annoyed by the sudden insult thrown at him by Ignis. "I am saying that you should have done more in this fight, instead of having to rely on two inexperienced Slayers who have yet to crack the S ranks." Ignis' rant was stopped by Kai who shook his head ever so slightly. "I swear your mouth never knows when to shut up, Ignis. No wonder nobody likes you." Faust said as he walked away. "That was a tad bit too harsh, Faust." Ignis replied back in a sarcastic tone.

Meanwhile in the place where the Sword of Alacrity was buried in, both good and awful memories were coming back to the three of them. All the time they had spent with each other as Slayers hit them as their swords clashed.

"Why did you have to do it, Adam?!" Luken shouted as he used so many rapier stabs and combinations that some of them were actually starting to land on the Reaper himself. "We all have dreams, Luken. As uninspired and lazy as you are, I am sure that deep inside, you also have yours as well. These dreams of ours that we possess and chase might not go hand in hand together. It might even result in one of our dreams and aspirations stomping and completely decimating the other's. Some other time, I will tell you two everything, but for now, I must politely ask you to die." 

The extended duration of these fights was now starting to weigh even the three of them down. Adam's moves were not as concise as before, but so were Luken and Art's. Artorias whispered something in Luken's ear. "We have to end this soon. I am pretty gassed up already, and it is obvious that you are as well. But that goes the same for him too." Luken nodded.

The Serpent Summoner sensed a huge concentration of Anima cells being activated and ran towards it, carrying the unconscious Zachary and the Specter leading the way towards it. "These number of cells being activated all at once, and this strong, are we going to make it in time, Vale?" The Serpent Summoner was getting impatient. "Do not worry, we are going to make it, Gavin. We have to." She said.

After a few minutes, they heard swords clanging against each other, which could only mean one thing, they were here. Gavin watched as his mentor was clashing swords with his dear friend, Luken. But every semblance of nostalgia and longing for his mentor vanished when he remembered the sight of what he did.

The bloodied bodies of the two other Six Blades members and Luken's sister was like a punch in his gut. It was going to be one of the few times that Gavin was going to give in to his rage and let loose. He opened his grimoire and summoned the gigantic Serpent once again, the one that gobbled up the Lightning Seraphim earlier. "You stay here and watch over Zachary, I am going to help them." He said. Although Vale wanted them to launch a surprise attack, one that would catch Adam off guard, she could not argue with someone who had the same face and emotions as Gavin was wearing on his face at that time. She nodded as the Serpent Summoner rode his Serpent like a vehicle, zooming through with a knife on his hand. He was going so fast in fact that not even Artorias was noticing his presence.