Infori's body was suddenly pushed from the right side, causing him to lean to the left. This was caused by a man deliberately crashing into him quickly to avoid the energy that was about to hit him.
"?!"
Causing the energy to explode upon impact.
BOOM!
They both fell and rolled on the ground, lying there feeling no pain. Immediately afterward, the mysterious man got up and questioned Infori in an irritated tone.
"Hey! Why didn't you dodge?" he asked, his blue eyes filled with astonishment.
Infori was confused; he had never met the man before. In her mind, he was probably just a stranger trying to save his life.
The man had black hair with a few blue strands in the front, was wearing a white shirt with a tie hanging down, and he was also wearing a black jacket, long black pants, and shoes Infori had never seen before.
(Who is this man...?)
"You...?"
He then extended his right hand to Infori, who understood and took it. Then, the man pulled Infori back to his feet.
"Uh, thank you. Um…" Infori said to him, but he didn't know his name. The mysterious man understood what Infori meant, and then introduced himself.
"Oh, Nathankato Isurugi."
Hearing his name so complicated, Infori had trouble figuring out his real name. The mysterious man pronounced his own name in an accent he had never heard before.
Except for the "Nathan" part, it was a common one.
"Nathanketo… Irurugi? Huh?"
The mysterious man was a little surprised to hear the man in front of him mispronounce his name. "…?!" However, that also made him realize something, and he simply gave the abbreviation. "Oh… My name sounds complicated, huh? um… You can call me Nathan."
"Oh, okay," Infori understood, and thanked him again. "Thank you, Mr. Nathan."
"That's polite, isn't it?" the man whispered.
Then, the man named Nathan walked toward the road where he had pushed Infori to save him from death. "Hey, you're from here, right? Can you explain what happened here?"
"Honestly... I have no idea."
Infori didn't know the man who helped him at all, so even though his life was saved, he still didn't fully trust the stranger he'd met for the first time.
"..."
However, the man named Nathan was quite shocked when he saw this.
"...?!" he said in surprise. "...You should see this."
"...?"
Seeing the man's shock made Infori curious, and he finally walked toward him to see what was happening. And that's when he was shocked—very shocked to see the once-intact Storm of Road.
"!?"
—Now shattered into a funnel-shaped depression still filled with boiling rocks.
"I've never seen anything like this before... Maybe this is the first time," the man said, frowning, his eyes never leaving the scene before him.
Meanwhile, Infori was silent, watching with a clearly confused expression. "..." However, his surprise faded when he saw a flash of light appear in the center of the small crater.
"?!"
"What is that...?" asked a man named Nathan, who also saw the same thing.
The flash of light grew louder and louder, emitting a loud 'bzzt' sound. Finally, the flash of light seemed to create a crystal that glowed red.
"Crystal Zone?!" Infori exclaimed.
Instantly, the crystal emitted a wave that spread throughout the area. The man could only stare in amazement at this. From his eyes, he saw a horizontal red line spreading across the area.
It even spread to the center of the plaza, leaving everyone there in awe.
The man, on the other hand, was confused about what was about to happen.
"...?"
DANGER ZONE
"Damn it! Why did a danger zone have to appear here!" Infori exclaimed.
"What do you mean? Is something bad going to happen?" the man asked.
"Yes. When the Danger Zone appears, monsters like Morak can appear anytime, anywhere!"
"WHAT?!" the man exclaimed, reflexively stepping back with a gasp.
Infori wondered to himself. (Damn it...! Is this what happens if I choose the wrong path...? I didn't bring any of my equipment, except...) His eyes glanced down, not at the road, but at his tool belt. (...Maybe I can fight the Morak that will appear with just the artifacts I have, unless I try to return to the central plaza or try to destroy the Zone crystal to stop this...)
However, Infori thought again. (But... Destroying the Zone crystal isn't easy. I need Flynn's help... if possible.)
"Hey!" the man shouted at Infori, causing Infori to turn his head. "I don't know much about this world, but I know you can use some kind of magic!"
"Huh...?"
The man looked back and saw a large number of Morak monsters emerging from this dangerous zone.
"!? Come on! I knew you could use some kind of magic; they're already here to devour us! Or, you should be able to destroy the crystal with your magic!"
"Even if I could use an artifact, destroying the Zone crystal isn't as easy as you think!"
"Really?!" the man exclaimed. "So you're saying we're going to die a stupid death here?!"
"I didn't say that…" Infori then turned to the Morak and raised his left hand so that his palm faced the Morak. On his wrist was a bracelet-shaped artifact.
Energy traveled from his wrist to his palm, a pale yellow light gathering, accompanied by flashes of electricity. Then, the light exploded, sending a bolt of electricity from his palm toward one of the Morak, causing it to vanish like burning paper.
The man was stunned.
"?! I knew it…" he whispered.
However, the other Morak were also shocked to see their comrade vanish so suddenly. It probably fueled their anger to kill their enemy.
"I think they'll be angry," Nathan said.
"Definitely."
The Morak then rushed toward them without hesitation, while Infori and the man named Nathan had to defend themselves.
⟨⟩ ⟨⟩ ⟨⟩
One Morak vanished instantly like burning paper after being slashed by Flynn's large sword. "How are they in the safe zone?" One of the Morak tried to attack him, but Flynn easily cut him down.
He was now in the middle of a plaza, where people were trying to escape by entering buildings, aided by the knights guarding the area.
The knights were also helping Flynn defeat the monsters that had emerged from the danger zone. They wielded their weapons, defeating the enemies, but some were also hit by their attacks.
Flynn was confused as to where Infori had gone. (I don't see Infori at all...! Where is he now...?)
He slashed one Morak in half and chose to protect the people first. (...But, I have to protect the people first. That's the duty of the Knightley Queen.)
The Morak surrounded him, but Flynn wasn't afraid at all. He steadied himself before finally charging forward, swinging his Exceed the Storm sword.
(I hope you survive, Infori!)