SPELLCRAFT: Reincarnation Of A Magic Scholar

The silence that followed Serah's words was deafening. 

The blizzard had long been banished thanks to Legris, and it showed no sign of returning. The frost remained, however, but none of the two parties seemed to notice.

They only stared at each other in this newfound decorum.

"Is that so…?"

The smirk on Legris' face as he asked this was distant, almost distracted. At this point, there was no emotion or emphasis left for him to show.

His tired eyes only had one thing left to give.

"I guess I'll just have to destroy yo—"

~WHOOOSSSHH!!!~

Before Legris concluded his words, Serah swiftly appeared before him, almost like an apparition of sheer horror.

Her breathtaking speed overwhelmed him, much so that he could not even change his expression in time for her first strike to connect with his body.

~BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!~

With a powerful blow reverberating throughout the silent world, Serah sent the entire body of Legris bursting with so much pressure and force that it instantly perished, both internally and externally.

The heat consumed him whole, while his entire body shattered from the inside out.

… All in a single moment.

"About time." Serah grinned widely, her arm completely coated in immensely dense Aether.

'Ah… what's this? Something is eating through my energy…?' Serah swiftly cut off the energy that had been corrupted, preserving the remaining parts, as well as her limb from inevitable corruption.

'Is that his power? That black stuff around him? I'll have to be careful about how and when I hit him, then…'

Even though Serah had just finished Legris off, her instincts screamed at her that the battle was far from over. As a result, she took a defensive stance and readied herself for Legris' reappearance.

There was no way she would be cut off guard.

"As expected, your battle instincts are still impressive." Legris' voice suddenly echoed in the vast expanse.

"But… I wonder…"

"Would that be enough for you this tim…?"

Serah's brows twitched as her eyes slowly widened as the voices around her began to echo. The smile tugging at her lips widened, but it wasn't a positive response in the slightest.

She could feel it… the immense pressure closing in on her.

A bead of sweat trickled down her face as she finally began to notice dark blots appearing in the sky. They resembled murky black spheres, but upon closer look, these multiple clusters were birthing people.

And these people all had the same appearance.

"Oi… you've got to be kidding me." Serah's grin intensified, and she felt her heart racing uncontrollably.

Right before her eyes, she saw multiple versions of Legris manifesting.

They all donned the same thing—the dark trenchcoat, with their brown hair flailing around, and the darkness sticking close to their outfits.

They numbered at least fifteen, and their numbers seemed to be growing even more.

'They're now nineteen. What in the world…?' Serah had never heard of Legris being able to bring forth multiple versions of himself.

Not from Neron, or anyone else for that matter.

Seeing such a huge number surround her from above caused her racing heart to pick up the pace. The situation had just gotten much deadlier than she had anticipated.

"I thought about it for a while, and decided…" Legris' voice traveled to Serah's ears as the horde prepared their assault.

"… I won't be going easy on you."

"I won't play with you."

"There's no point."

"It's better I just end this… and you… as quickly as I can."

Serah found herself chuckling, even while knowing how dangerous her current position was.

"Oh? Why? What's with the special treatment?" She responded, also preparing herself for whatever would follow Legris' response.

"…" For a moment, Legris did not say anything.

All the versions of him simply looked down on Serah with the same empty eyes.

And then…

"Who knows? Maybe because you belong to Neron now."

"Again with Neron. Why are you so obsessed with my husband?" Serah heaved a heavy sigh, one of her brows raised as nonchalantly as possible.

It almost felt like she wasn't even taking the situation seriously.

"C-could it be that you… like Neron… that wa—?"

"WHAT? W-what are you even talking about? When have I ever given that impression?" Legris swiftly burst out.

Even though he tried to hide it, his pale face exposed the light hues of red that appeared on his cheeks.

"Pfft! Come on, you don't have to hide it."

"No! You've got it all wrong. I'm not in love with Neron, or anyone in fact." Legris made his protest, swiftly returning his face to normal. 

"I mean, I can't blame you. Neron is quite the charmer, so I can see why even you might…"

"I told you, you are mistaken!"

"Still… you have to move on. Neron is mine, and you are mine to kill… at least right now."

"…" 

At this point, Legris said nothing at all. He simply covered his face with his palm, as if completely dumbfounded by Serah's assertion.

"You never change, huh? Well… I suppose it is indeed meant to be this way." His whisper leaked out, causing Serah's face to warp slightly in confusion.

"It is better this way too…" 

All of Legris' variants removed their palms from their faces, their gaze returning to the same stoic kind that he preferred to have.

"Killing you will hurt Neron. So… I will."

Wide smiles formed on their faces, and the darkness around them intensified in power. Despite the facade, it was clear that he was being absolutely serious.

Serah knew this as well, so she gathered all the Aether she could muster and prepared for combat.

"[Original Magic: Invincible]"

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[A/N]

Can Legris get past these Gay Allegations? Haha...

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