The law of Fiction: Harem in the fiction world
Chapter 182 Ch 180: The Awakening [Pt3]

Yohan had expected the attack and he had seen it coming as well. For what it was worth, Shizue was behaving in an expected pattern to what a curious mechanism did.

The first thing to do when you replace a new entity is to observe it and see what it can do back to you. And that was what Shizue, or well, the central cord was doing while attacking Yohan. The only difference here was that Yohan was having a hard time pressing back.

The conductors were shut offline for everyone which meant that there would be no magi craft usage but that did not hinder Yohan who had magic at his disposal. His arm sizzled in electricity as he attacked Shizue.

Shizue did not look surprised as she narrowly dodged the electric attack but Bernetta had a surprised look in her eyes as she watched Yohan fight.

"Y-You used magi craft without a conductor? That's possible to do?"

Even in such circumstances, Bernetta had enough peace of mind to make such comments. It made Yohan sure that she would be alright in the end.

But the same could not be said about Shizue. The more power she used, the more burden she put on her body. Yohan could see the signs of struggle appear on her fragile human front already.

"It's situational but I don't think I can explain. Besides, I am not the most shocking thing here. I am amazed that Shizue's body is even able to hold on for this long."

Yohan's words did not need an explanation to Bernetta. She was smart enough to figure out that Shizue was struggling and her eyes were filled with remorse. Somehow, Yohan had a feeling that Bernetta was blaming herself for this.

But again, he was not a saint so he did not go and console her. If Bernetta wanted to wallow in self-pity, then she was more than welcome to. Just as long as she pulled her weight, it was going to be alright.

Amazingly, Shizue was not attacking indiscriminately. She was waiting and observing to see what Yohan would do now that he had been provoked. It was such actions of hers that made Yohan curious to see what she would do next.

"Bernetta, I won't lie to you. I have no intention of allowing Shizue to have an easy win. So if you are thinking of helping her - don't."

Yohan issued this warning and he watched Bernetta flinch at his words. So she had been thinking of doing something weird and dangerous after all. And Yohan was also willing to bet that it would not have helped him in the least.

"H-Hey, be merciful. Shizue is still my partner, even if she had been taken over by the central cord."

Bernetta asked for his cooperation but Yohan's blank eyes gave her no hope for that to happen.

On the other side, Shizue decided that she had had enough of being neglected and her attack began in the earnest. Yohan, who watched her get ready, managed to knock Bernetta out of the way before he intercepted her attack.

"Combat data is being updated. Figuring the opponent's power level and adjusting accordingly."

Yohan could feel Shizue's might increasing. She would soon have enough magic to overwhelm him at this rate. What Yohan needed to do was to release his realm key as well if he wanted a fighting chance.

'But that won't be easy. The rules of this world do not favor me.'

And that was the point where Yohan was at a disadvantage. He had a slight chance of winning but only if he put his all into it. But even after that, he would be vulnerable if he failed to make it count.

In essence, it was a last-second gamble he was trying to force here.

"Get out of the way. I will…huff…deal with my partner."

Yohan was startled when his defense was intercepted by Bernetta as she placed herself in front of Yohan and took Shizue's next powerful attack. It caused Bernetta to be knocked back a lot but she still managed to keep her grip.

To say that Yohan was impressed would be an underestimation. It was an incredible feat for a human to pull off.

"Shizue…come back…to your…senses."

Bernetta yelled as she tried to push Shizue's body back. But whatever she expected to happen did not happen. Shizue just pushed Bernetta back and stood up straight.

Her hand was raised high and this would have been the end for Bernetta if Yohan had not decided to press for advantage at this very second.

Many would think that he attacked now to save Bernetta but that was not true at all. It was just that he accessed it as the best opportunity to attack Shizue.

The central cord was pushed back a good few inches before Shizue righted herself. She raised her hand and magic gathered around her body. It seemed as if she had enough of fooling around for now.

"This is enough. Data had been updated. Specimens are no longer needed. Dangerous territory approaching."

This was bad. Yohan had thought that he would have a little more time before the central cord assessed him as a threat and tried to finish him off. But it seemed that he had underestimated his power.

'I need to awaken my realm key.'

There was no longer any option but to meet power with power. His realm key was located in the back of his hand but Yohan could only access a fraction of its power.

Still, he channeled everything he had into it and roots rose to cover his body. They circled his body as well as Bernetta's magic met magic. He was being pushed back even with his mighty defense.

The ground was shaking, not being able to take the burden of two realm keys. It was getting unstable outside as well.

If this continued then the rule holding this realm together would collapse. Yohan did not want to get lost in the space of time.

It felt like centuries before the attack faded from around him but Yohan was still not sure if it was safe or not. He heard footsteps coming his way and Yohan clutched his sword tightly in his hand. He was not going to take any chances.

"It's alright. It's just me coming here to help you out. Don't worry, it's safe out here now."

The unexpected entry was none other than Khole. He sounded calm and his footsteps also felt familiar to Yohan. And he was the only reason Yohan decided to drop his guard.

The burden of the realm key fell off Yohan's shoulder and he all but fell face-first into the ground. He had been drained because of heavy usage of magic and he had not even realized it.

If his inhuman body felt this tried after a small usage of one realm key, he did not want to think how bad Shizue felt after having it control her body. It would be a wonder if she was able to wake up again.

"Shizue, are you alright? Hey, what did you do to my partner?"

Bernetta picked up Shizue's collapsed body in her arms as she glared back at Khole. She seemed ready to kill someone and that someone would likely be Khole.

"Calm down firecracker. Your partner is alive, but just sleeping right now. I have to sedate her with a heavy dose to make sure her nap would not be interrupted by anything."

Khole pointed toward his neck and Bernetta turned Shizue around to see a dart being embedded in her neck. That solved one mystery about how the attack had stopped at least.

Well, that was one disadvantage of being a human. You would be easily knocked out as long as someone knew what they were doing. Honestly, Yohan was surprised that he had not been hit with this idea.

"So, I think we should get out of here before the guards come here. It will not be wise to be stuck in here."

Khole was right. Yohan might be drained but he still had enough brain power to comprehend that it would not be a good idea while being stuck in here when the guards come. He had no energy to go against them.

"Bernetta, can you-"

Yohan did not have to say it for her to pick up Shizue and walk out into the hallway.

"Hurry up and catch up with me slowpokes. I will leave you behind if you did not hurry."

Yohan had to shake his head at Benetta's headstrong attitude. Anyone could see that she was worried and she needed to work out her aggression. But no one tried to say anything to her since she did not look good.

Yohan turned toward Khole, wanting to know why he had come back. As far as he knew, Khole had gone out to block the area.

"Ah, I came back because I had a feeling something like this was about to happen. And I happen to trust my intuition over anything else."

Yohan had no idea why Khole decided to come back but it saved him a big headache in the process. And sometimes, that was all that mattered, in the end, to make someone trust the other person.