"To think, a mere beast truly believes it can defeat us!"
The Wooden Ravager roared in response and charged at them.
Redrich gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, concentrating. He pointed his broadsword downwards, and then as he opened his eyes again, he swiftly jutted his sword upwards, creating a brief afterimage and slashing through the air, tearing through the roots of the Wooden Ravager.
It staggered, though the beast was not completely downed, and then Harlock also got ready, marching towards the beast before he swung his massive fists with such strength that he managed to create large fractures in its wooden skin.
These fractures served as Redrich's second opportunity, and he leapt onto Harlock's shoulders before plunging his sword into the monster's chest. The Ravager roared in pain and struck down with its fists, and started pummelling the ground on which Harlock stood.
Fortunately, however, Harlock leapt back, unscathed.
"It seems your experiences have hardened both your mind and your body to such a degree. Though I can easily bridge that advantage with my weapon mastery." Redrich said.
He pierced the beast's chest several more times, and eventually, a large enough crack formed.
"Hmph!"
The Wooden Ravager wailed, and, despite the cracks in its body, it swung its arms irately, very nearly catching both of them off guard in its final attack.
It managed to hit Harlock square in the chest, and even though he managed to block the hit, the powerful blow sent him flying away.
"This beast doesn't discriminate, I see, daring to punch even the elderly!"
Redrich, who took the chance to mock Harlock, prepared for an extravagant finisher, while Harlock groaned and bared his teeth, feeling revived for the first time in a long time.
But, before he could do that, the "Thunder Mystic" had finally awakened from his trance, revealed by the red gleam of his pupils gradually fading.
He stood up quickly and glanced at the giant beast, and he unleashed something incredible just by instinct.
He performed a strange stance, and with the sudden bright glow of lightning emanating from his body, he lunged forward at the Wooden Ravager, exerting a powerful red energy so strong that it caused smoke to emerge out of the small cavern's entrance.
Then, as the dust cleared away, Redrich, who was mostly unharmed, similarly to Harlock, stared at the young man who derived a powerful aura.
"…I've been awake this whole time. But finally, my training's completed, when I thought it never would have." He said, smiling with a mature voice.
He had never seen these two men before in his life, but they seemed friendly, for the most part. And they inadvertently helped him escape his trance.
"What can I do to thank you two? I'll do anything to repay this favour."
"…You make it sound as if you've been aware of the entire time you've been in this cave. Have you?"
"…Well… for the most part, I have."
"But… I've only been training and doing nothing else. During this time, I felt my body evolve in ways I'm not so sure others have. And all for the sake of fighting those monsters, that killed everyone that I ever knew."
"…I see."
Harlock approached Hara slowly, and Hara could see a small tear well in his eye.
"…Don't you remember me?"
Hara looked confused for a moment.
"Remember…?"
But then, he slowly began to recognise the familiarity of the forty-something-year-old man in front of him. He had something about him that came from the depths of Hara's soul.
"…You were young, so I understand if you cannot remember, but I… I've remembered you for a long, long time. You were just like the other kids in that town, who admired the hero, Hash Brown, right?"
Harlock then held up the mystic arts book in his hands and gave it to Hara.
And then, at that moment, Hara's eyes widened. He suddenly remembered certain things, and then, slowly but surely, memories came flooding back.
This man, apart from himself, was the sole survivor who survived the massacre. Hara immediately hugged him, and tears streamed from his face. The reunion of the sole two survivors was bittersweet and short-lasting, but stung for both of them all the same.
'…Interesting. It seems this "Harlock" is truly someone worth keeping by his side. I don't think I'll need to worry about him anyway. But, what I do need to worry about is the prying eyes that will be watching us, and him, more specifically.' Redrich thought.
But, first of all, what's burdening me the most right now is the first clear objective we must consider, for me, for him, and the future. According to "her", we must root out the diseases poisoning the nearest cities. Only then will we get the freedom we must obtain before we can enter the Badlands in the [Outer Areas] of the Grassfield Wilds. Those dangerous deserts.'
"It looks like I'm going to be busy figuring out a way for us to enter the nearby city."
Meanwhile, as Redrich discussed the future with himself, from a nearby tree branch up high above the ground, a winged figure peered into the small cavern. Someone wearing white robes, adorned with golden garments that honoured an unknown deity, with a small sacrificial sword.
"The [Golden Guardian Assembly] is ongoing currently. This means, all Wayfarers and high-tier Agents are unavailable. The "Steel Brander" Hirashi would be a great pain to the holy order otherwise."
"But thankfully, he is not here to stop me, stop us from furthering the plan."
"Once the plan is set in motion, everything shall fall, and be reborn. This is the only way for humanity to regain its former glory. What will be caused by this will make way for a new "perfect" world order, just like in the old times."
"And then, we will be the victors in the end, with our solidified positions as the foot soldiers of the [Most Glorious]."
The winged figure suddenly stepped down from the tree branch and imitated the sound of a bird. Moments after, a flock of birds came at their call.
"The New World shall fall, and with it, so shall the Abyss, daring to usher in the age of humanity's destruction. And then, we shall all live in "harmony". An equal society, balanced by strife and conflict. One future does sound better than the other, doesn't it?"
The birds cawed in response. Then, the winged figure fed a strange, greenish substance in the form of bird seeds to them, before these crows immediately began to morph.
The newborn creatures screeched horribly, awaiting the three of them down below to emerge back above ground.
"This is merely the first step towards glory!"