PHASE 7 - MY NEW RIVAL IS A BOY

We finally made it to the Brightmore Town Hotel that looks more like a haunted house. The wooden floor is creaky, the ceiling has some dark gaps which gives you the feeling of being stared at, and there are some creepy things such as severed body parts of a baby doll hanged on its ceiling fans. This place is quite different from all the others since the hotel has electricity due to the solar-paneled roof.

We really have no idea how we missed this place the first time Rikkun and I came here to Brightmore Town. Now we feel more like an idiot.

Rikkun made three knocks on the door that has the Room 69 in it. It was immediately opened by the person who we’re looking for.

Long blonde hair, pink eyes, and a cute petite body! It’s Eliseo Fontaine himself! That person immediately jumped to Rikkun and hugged him tight like a koala, and rubbed his cheeks to the heartthrob.

“Oh! I have a handsome visitor~” His voice is as soft as a kitten.

“Get off me!” Rikkun blocked the blonde’s face with his palms.

Meanwhile, Asumi-nee turned to me and whispered. “Your ‘Rikkun’ sure is popular. Now you have a new rival, Tiara-chan.”

“A-Asumi-nee!” I cried with a blush.

Rikkun becomes more irritated to the blonde as seconds go by. When he’s already full of this guy’s vexation, he made a deadly stare. “I said get off! Fafnir Sma-!!!”

“Wait wait wait!” The blonde immediately released the pissed heartthrob on his grasps. “I’m sorry! I won’t do it again, Lord Freyr!”

“Lord Freyr?” Rikkun calmed down in an instant and tilted his head due to confusion. “H-How-"

“My aunt told me that you guys will be coming here.” The blonde said as he bowed like a butler. “I waited for your arrival, Lord Freyr. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Eliseo Fontaine. I already know your purpose, so you need not to explain. You are direly in need of my assistance in your group.”

<>

It was already nightfall when we settled for dinner in Eliseo's room. Unlike the gloomy corridors, their rooms here in this hotel are good and simple. Eliseo's room looks like my condo unit back in Dradecim.

As my fellow Gate Guardians talk to Eliseo at the dining table, I chomped down the delicious fried chickens he prepared for all of us. I’m multitasking. My two hands are full of chicken legs, but my ears are focused on their words.

“How long have you’ve been here?” Rikkun asked. “Tiara and I visited this place about a few months ago, and we never thought that there’s a Gate Guardian here.”

“Actually, I just transferred here last December due to the orders of my cousin Jeannette. She said that I should scout this town for three months for some weird changes.”

“So Amy assigned you here after we fought Shirayuki…” Rikkun mumbled as he held his chin. “Anyway, you said that you know our purpose. Mrs. Martha von Noctis said that we should have you recruited to the Aether Crusade. Your wits and healing prowess will help the group a lot. Also, I wanted to reserve the right to borrow the Goddess Core of Venus when the time is right.”

“Sadly, I have to reject your requests just yet.” Eliseo said.

“Huh?”

Eliseo’s face became deadly serious.

“I can’t leave the poor people here, not now. I detected strong malicious energy this morning, and it came from the top of the mountain... at the burnt Brightmore Shrine. You won’t notice it from here in the Earth Realm, but if you opened a Gate to Yami, you will see an endless dark tower reaching to the skies. I think that’s responsible for the aggressive behavior of the villagers. I haven’t checked the site yet, but I think there’s a Level 3 Eidolon.”

Somehow, that triggered my inner curiosity. That shrine is where we met Shirayuki: The Celestial Time Fox who gave my generation a curse of doomed destiny and the power to create a new timeline using the . I defeated her with affectionate words, but I wonder if that Eidolon is still active…

“So you can’t leave this town yet because of an Eidolon?”

“Ding ding! You got it right~” Eliseo made a cute wink.

“Then we’ll defeat it!” Asumi-nee jumped to the conversation.

<>

Climbing up to the Brightmore Shrine at night is no longer as creepy as it was. It’s because there’s five of us.

Asumi-nee, Ayano, Eliseo, Rikkun and I are in full gear, ready for anything fate may throw at us. I’m a little bit scared, but the noisy atmosphere between my friends gives courage in my heart.

“You’re really handsome up close, A-la-ric~” Eliseo clung to Rikkun’s arm. “I heard from Jeannette that you really hate girls… Well surprise surprise, you will like me… Because I’m a boy~”

“Get off me! I don’t swing that way!” Rikkun tried to shrug him off, but Eliseo is clinging hard like a python!

Meanwhile...

“Ohoho!” Ayano pressed her lips near my left ear. “Aren’t you jealous?”

“You better confess your feelings for Alaric if you don’t want him to be stolen again…” Asumi-nee whispered.

“D-D-Don’t speak too loud, it’s so embarrassing.” I murmured with a blush. “Besides... I’m quite sure that Rikkun is straight and will not take a liking to fellow guys… P-Probably...”

“Shut up, all of you.” Rikkun said in an annoyed dense tone. “We’re here.”

Standing in front of us is the half-burnt shrine. Nothing really changed from the time we last came here. The right wing is still full of charred debris and the left wing is still clean and intact. Unlike before, there were no flame-lit lamps. It’s completely dark.

But there’s an ominous aura revolving around us. A chill went down to our spines.

“You guys are ready?” Rikkun asked. All four of us nodded.

Then he opened a Gate.

<>

The Brightmore Shrine is no more.

Instead, here in Yami, it is a gigantic dark tower that reaches the stratosphere. No, it’s not a pillar. It’s a living giant tentacle with rotten flesh reforming and molding on its skin. It has thousands of crimson eyes glaring at us.

“It’s an Eidolon!” Asumi-nee proclaimed. When we all heard that, we immediately deployed our weapons!

But then, a spread-out arm prevented us from attacking the gigantic monster. It was Eliseo.

“I’ll handle this. It’s time for me to showcase my power!”

Eliseo prayed as he held the Weapon Gem on his necklace. A pair of ice-skating boots materialized on his feet!

Blades unfolded on his heels as he began sliding and waltzing towards the thousand-meter-long tentacle! He’s so fabulous and graceful in a feminine way!

“!!!”

Eliseo spun like a ballerina as he made a swift kick! He sliced the tentacle’s skin clean! But the tentacle is slowly regenerating, swallowing up the wound it sustained.

“!!!”

The blonde beauty jumped up high. He spun in the thin air as wind energy revolves on his bladed boots! He drilled all her way to the Eidolon’s flesh until half of his body is burrowed.

But there is a problem! He’s stuck, and he's being swallowed!

“H-Help me! Alaric!” Eliseo cried like a princess in distress.

Rikkun turned to Asumi and asked a question in a casual manner. “If a Gate Guardian dies, what happens to the Goddess Core?”

“It will disappear. Like poof.” Asumi answered with a poker face.

“You only needed me for my Goddess Core, aren’t you!?” Eliseo cried as the gigantic pillar started to swallow his shoulders.

Mrs. Noctis said that Eliseo’s Goddess Core is Venus, the goddess of beauty, fertility, and sex. Aside from taunting males, his Goddess Core is not particularly good in Eidolon battles. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t activated it yet.

But anyway, we still have to save him!

“I’ll rescue you, Mister Eliseo… Or Miss… Which one would you prefer?” I asked.

“Save me first!”

I immediately grabbed his long hair and started to pull it like in a tug-of-war. “Ooooooooooorrrryaaaaaaaa!!!”

“Ow! Ow! Ow! My scaaaaalp!!!” Eliseo cried.

I managed to pull Eliseo out with ease. I also overestimated my force, so I ended up smashing the poor boy to the soil!

Bam!

Realizing my mistake in relying on brute force, I immediately went to his side and used on his injured face.

“I-I’m so soooorryy!!!” I bowed.

“I...I swear to God… You guys…. really wanted me dead… If it’s not for my Goddess Core…” Eliseo curled down and cried.

“W-We’re not!” I answered back.

Asumi-nee ignored our crying boy as she went in front and made an announcement. “Listen. It looks like melee attacks won’t work, so we have to do THAT!”

“That?” Rikkun titled his head.

“Yes, that! The ultimate spell of the Kozukata Shrine Maidens!” Asumi-nee’s smile was so wide and bright. “Ayano, Tiara, will you lend me your strength to hold the banner of the shrine up high!?”

“You can count on us!” Ayano and I pumped our fists.

“Then let’s do this!” Asumi-nee cried.

I heard Rikkun’s sigh as he mumbled under his breath: “Here we go again.”