The Foolhardies 70 Reasons to Kill

"No real Starlight City politician would have the guts to come to the Fayne themselves. I've learned that they send their relatives instead..."

I wasn't just blowing smoke out of my ass when I said this. The experiences of the McCord twins were still clear in my mind. I recalled how their grandfather, Starlight's very own mayor, had sent them down here to fulfill his family's duties to their fairy overlords.

Jimmy shook his head. "Well, that's a very negative view you have on us, Dean…"

He held firm on his position despite my push. His shadowblade pressed hard on mine. Sparks continued to fly as the vibration of my sword clashed against his.

"But it's true," he insisted. "I've been a Councilman for two terms. Most of which I spent here during nights."

"Seriously… you're a Councilman?" I clarified. "What district?"

"Third District," Jimmy huffed proudly. Then he increased the pressure he put on his glaive and pushed me back an inch. Then more. Until the resistance from my own shadowblade disappeared completely.

No, I didn't fly away like a child who'd been tossed around by his overly aggressive uncle like last time. It was simply a calculation on my part to only appear like I'd lost the tug-of-war. The next step was crucial. Literally.

I stepped back and allowed myself to get pulled away from Jimmy long enough for him to overstep and compromise his stance while he continued to apply force on his glaive. He hadn't noticed that the lack of resistance from my end was so I could disengage from locking blades with him. Quick as I could, I dropped to below his line of sight.

The problem with being a big guy, you sometimes don't notice the smaller things. Not that I was calling myself small. That will never happen. Not in a million years! In Jimmy's case, his physique was so heavy that he wasn't able to switch his line of sight quick enough before I struck.

My sword arm swung to the left and my falchion bit deep into the unprotected space between his hauberk and his knee guard. With the same motion, I dashed to the left and removed myself from my enemy's range.

Jimmy bit back the yelp that began to escape out of his throat. He gritted his teeth and sent a steely-eyed glare below him but I wasn't there anymore. He jerked his head back at the same time as his glaive came slashing at air.

He was wrong. I hadn't been hiding behind him preparing another attack. I knew better than that. His reflexes were too good to allow for consecutive hits. Instead, I was standing a good distance away from him thinking how finally hit him. It was the first solid contact I made in our fight and I felt thrilled.

There were too many stories about soldiers experiencing an evolution in the heat of battle. I never believed that though. In those moments where death came hurtling at you via sharp-edged swords, who had the time to learn? Apparently, I did. This was more obvious to me now because I'd already deactivated Fool's Insight and I was doing even better than when I had it turned on.

Wait, why did I do something as dumb as to sheathe my greatest skill? Because the stinging of my eyes was killing me, and I knew better than to overuse the power and leave myself vulnerable with blurry vision while a huge battle continued around me.

Regardless, I was doing pretty well without arcane assistance. The fight had gone long enough that I was finally adapting to my opponent's unique battle quirk. From his insane physical strength to his cat-like reflexes. Even the way he used his glaive to set up unarmed strikes aimed to disorient me. The guy was good, but I was catching up. In the heat of battle, I was gaining experience and, to coin a gamer term, leveling up.

Jimmy noticed the smile forming on my face and pointed it out. "Are you one of those bastards who enjoy the pain of others?"

"O-of course not!" I answered heatedly. "And that's rich coming from a councilman from uptown!"

Jimmy looked confused. "What's wrong with uptown?"

"N-nothing!" I shook my head. There was no way I could explain to Jimmy that, like the rivalry between Midtown and Southside, Uptown Prep and Midtown High were also at war with each other. At least the kids were. Obviously, this was out of an adult's ability to fathom. "That wound looks rough. Might want to just give out now."

I pointed the tip of my sword at his left thigh.

Jimmy spared a glance down at his wound. He shook his head once before his eyes met mine again.

"Would you?" he asked in a serious tone.

"Muds! Why would he do that! He's got the upper hand now!" Qwipps yelled from somewhere in the crowd surrounding us.

"Kick his ass, Commander!" Varda piped in. "For Donar!"

"Slay this fool of a boy, and the rest of his forces we shall thoroughly destroy!" One of Jimmy's soldiers yelled. Most likely a rhyming hobgoblin.

More cheering and jeering ensued. It seemed the crowd was enjoying the show.

"Looks like neither of us will get to back out now, huh, Dean," Jimmy raised his glaive to his side with both hands like a batter readying to swat at an incoming baseball. "I want you to know, your death won't be in vain."

In response to Jimmy's new battle stance, I held my falchion in both hands and extended the tip of the shadowblade forward as if intending to thrust at him. "How do you figure that?"

"Because I'll use the momentum of defeating such a capable young officer as fuel for defeating Roger Thors. After which, the renown I earn from this battle and the backing of a victorious Magesong clan will provide me with enough clout to enact policies that will prove favorable to our city, he explained.

"What kind of policies?" I pressed.

Jimmy's eyes scrutinized me for a few seconds before he responded. "The kind that can help kids like you from winding up in a place like the Fayne…"

His words struck home. I hadn't forgotten the months of anguish my family underwent after Luca's disappearance. I hadn't forgotten my frustrations at the local police force, at the system itself for failing us in our time of need. If he had a plan to make that scenario less likely to happen then wasn't it my obligation as once of Starlight's citizens to help him?

I shook my head repeatedly.

No. That line of thinking suggested my own path was a mistake. But I couldn't believe the sacrifices we'd made so far were all in vain.

"Is that really how it works? You do a lot of bad so you can do a little good?" I asked, my voice lowering to almost a whisper.

Jimmy sighed. "It shouldn't be… but you've seen how much fairies influence human lives… It is only with their cooperation can we achieve more for ourselves and others."

"What if the opposite were true?" I raised my eyes to his. "What if humans could influence fairies enough to stop them from taking advantage of Mudgard?"

Jimmy's brow furrowed. "That's impossible. Humans are a resource to the Fay. They wouldn't give us up unless—"

"—unless someone with a high enough authority made it so," I reasoned.

I saw the light appear in the back of Jimmy's eyes, and I could swear a lightbulb had turned on inside his head. After an agonizing moment of contemplation, Jimmy laughed.

"So, you want to play kingmaker?" he clarified.

I nodded. "It's the only real way to save humans from the abuses of the Fayne."

In my mind, I wondered how long it's been since I thought of saving more than just Luca. Although he was still the priority, my many interactions with the many humans like Ashley Johnson and Connor McCord have led me to think that I wanted to help them too.

"It's a good dream… Sadly, that's all it is." Jimmy shook his head. "How many people do you think have attempted it? Hell, how many hundreds of years have passed since there was a monarch on the empty throne? No… it is impossible."

"It's not. Not if we get the right fairy on the throne," I insisted.

"That's just it. There isn't anyone right for the throne," Jimmy countered. "there aren't any good fairies, Dean. Don't be fooled. They're all selfish creatures who are just taking advantage of us. Why shouldn't we do the same?"

I glanced toward Aura who was at the front of the encirclement on my left. The encouraging smile she sent back at me and the promise that bound us together was all I needed to disprove Jimmy's words. Not all fairies were evil.

Jimmy saw the exchange between me and Aura, and he knew I disagreed with him.

"You fool," he whispered. Then his voice turned grave. "Very well. Defeat me and earn enough glory in this battle to start you on your path to kingmaking... or I kill you and earn political points to create a better life for the citizens of Starlight."

Jimmy's eyes narrowed. His muscles tensed. He gripped tighter on the polearm of his glaive. It was obvious that he was about to strike.

"I wonder, which of us has the right of it. Even more, I wonder which of us will have the chance to continue on our chosen path," he said with a tone that suggested the conversation was over. Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.

However, being the rebellious kid that I was, I insisted on having the final word, "Let's find out."

I mustered my resolve. Then I gripped tightly on my falchion.

In the next instant, we both charged. We both knew it was time to draw the curtains on this duel.

Chapter end