Shortly after exiting the temple and entering the forest, it began to cave in on itself, causing us to stop and turn around as we gazed upon the falling temple, concerned about Cooper's safety. "B-Big bro will be fine, right? A temple falling on him is probably just a normal Sunday." Nervously gulping, I glanced at Gray, hoping he'd agree with me, though he didn't disagree with me. "I'm more concerned about him being trapped underneath with Deliora." Said Gray solemnly while I bit my lip before shifting my gaze to where the temple previously was.
However, luckily for us, we didn't have to wait long to learn how Cooper was doing as the ground faintly shook, followed by a massive explosion occurring where the temple previously stood, only for us to see a tall, muscular man soaring through the sky while his long white hair dangled behind him. 'D-Dammit, now isn't the time to be mesmerized, Lucy!' Slapping my cheeks, Gray and I watched Cooper land on the ground while Deliora's arm emerged from the hole, followed by the rest of his body.
"I may be seeing things wrong since we're far away, but is big bro… Smiling?" I had to rub my eyes to ensure I wasn't seeing things wrong, but I simply couldn't fathom that someone would be smiling when facing such a terrifying demon. "Ah, you haven't been with us for a long time, so it's not surprising you don't know about it, but big bro, he really enjoys a good fight." Said Gray lightly as he glanced at me, causing me to lightly nod before furrowing my brows. "So he's a battle junkie?" Gray tilted his head to the side before nodding in agreement, causing me to look at Cooper in a new light while feeling a bit happier that he wasn't as perfect as I initially believed.
"Anyway, we've got to continue, we're still too close, Lucy." Grabbing my hand, Gray led me deeper into the forest away from Deliora and Cooper, just in time to, as the two violently clashed, causing the ground to aggressively shake while a powerful gust of wind lifted us off the ground. 'A-At least we're getting further away!' Holding Gray's arm, we flew like leaves through the wind before eventually hitting a tree and stopping. "Ugh, m-my back." Hissing in pain, I quickly stood up and followed Gray, wanting to get as far away as possible before I got caught up in their attack again.
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Cooper POV
Landing on the ground, I aggressively shook my head and brushed my hair before glancing at Deliora, whose figure was obscured by thick smoke. "Alright, it's been about three minutes; Gray and Lucy should be far enough away by now." Licking my fangs, I cracked my neck and clenched my fists as I enhanced my body to my current limit, causing my hair to sway from the sheer strength I commanded.
Releasing a mighty breath, dispelling the smoke that surrounded Deliora, his demonic eyes locked onto my figure, followed by him roaring before punching me, causing me to grin as I flexed my legs and leaped toward him. Reeling my arm back, I met his fist with my own, creating a small explosion from our clash that forced us back. 'Heh, now this is more like it!' Landing on the ground, Deliora regained his bearings and opened his mouth, quickly firing a beam of energy while I crossed my arms, blocking his attack, only to be engulfed in explosions.
Once the explosions subsided, I emerged from the smoke cloud and powerfully slammed my fist into Deliora's chest, knocking him off his feet as he fell backwards, yet he managed to keep himself upright with his tail while swatting me out of the air. Slamming into the ground, I darted right back to him and kicked his thigh, tilting him onto his side while I landed right beside the tip of his tail, which I gripped. "Hehe, let's see how far I can throw you!" Gripping the ground with my nails, I lifted Deliora's tail above my head, twirling his colossal body.
"ROOOAAARRR!" "Hehe, you want to fly? Got it!" Listening to Deliora, I threw him high into the air, causing him to cast the whole area in a shadow as he blocked the moonlight, only for him to slowly fall back down. Grinning, I leaped into the air after him while he opened his mouth, firing another beam onto me, though despite its destructive strength, I powered through it, sustaining even more injuries before slamming into his head. Digging my nails into his skull, I jumped off his body, pushing him upside-down as he dug face-first into the ground while I landed beside him.
"Heh, you're powerful, Deliora… My attacks are hardly affecting you." gently patting Deliora's large chest, which had a faint imprint of my fist, I smirked before further enhancing myself, flooding myself with too much magic power and causing my skin to shimmer gold. "Urgh, yeah, that hurts." Feeling pain from all over, I clicked my tongue, though I didn't reverse the effects, I could easily handle this little bit of pain to avenge Gray's youth. Clenching my fist, I took a deep breath before punching Deliora's chest, causing small cracks while inadvertently freeing him from the ground.
Now lying on the ground, Deliora slowly stood up, roared, and swiped his tail at me, prompting me to kick his tail, stopping his attack while I leaped toward him; narrowly sliding through his fingers as he missed me, I ran across his arm, though when I saw him attack with his other arm, I punched upwards, forcing his hand to a halt. Leaping at his chest, I punched the exact spot where I attacked before, causing the cracks to grow, though Deliora slapped me out of the air, yet just as I landed on the ground, I was punted through the sky.
'Tsk, I'm not a football!' Since I had no way to stop myself, I was forced to fly through the air before eventually crashing into the forest and gouging a path through it with my body. "I can't tell if the pain is from myself or because of Deliora's attacks." Spitting blood, I stood up and dusted myself off, only to see a bright green beam head right for me, causing me to cross my arms as I blocked the initial attack while explosions engulfed me once more. Using the smoke clouds as cover, I closed the distance between Deliora and I, though the Demon must've been able to see me as he fired yet another beam upon me, searing my skin.
Digging my nails into the ground, I stood firmly in place and resisted the third energy beam attack before powering through the explosions as I leaped through the air, clashing my fist against Deliora's. "Hehe."
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Zalty POV
Standing on a tree branch, I watched from a distance as Cooper fought against Deliora, trading blows evenly while injuring each other, a sight that was more than just impressive, but it wasn't something good. 'On the off chance he manages to kill Deliora, the plan to control the Demon will have failed!' I wanted to assist Deliora somehow, but my magic wouldn't affect either the Demon or Cooper, which still confused me. Not to mention, getting close would be dangerous even with my strength; there wasn't much technique occurring within this battle, it was pure raw power being exchanged.
'I understand Deliora, but how can such a simple mage like Cooper live to reach such a level of strength?' Clicking my tongue, I used my lacrima to record the battle; no matter what happened, it would be a waste not to learn more about someone as powerful as Cooper. 'If he manages to survive, he may one day become our enemies… Well, I hope Deliora kills him.'
Although I hoped such a case occurred, given how equally the two fought for minutes on end, I couldn't tell who would win or when.
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Cooper POV
Skidding across the ground for the umpteenth time, I quickly pushed myself onto my feet and gazed at Deliora while blood dripped down my body; as for the Demon, his chest was littered with cracks, and he was just moments away from dying. Gasping for breath, I growled and dashed towards Deliora while he fired his green energy beam at me for the umpteenth time, prompting me to raise my hand as I blocked whatever little bit I could.
Explosions erupted behind me and atop my body, further injuring my already wounded body, though I pushed through the pain and grinned as I leaped to Deliora, leaving a trail of explosions behind me. Emerging from Deliora's continuous beam of energy, I slammed into his chest, punching it with all my might, causing my fist and whole arm to dig deep into it.
At first, nothing happened, yet after a few moments, Deliora's chest began to crumble upon itself as the Demon fell, its lifeless body slamming upon the ground. Although exhausted and injured, I crawled onto my feet and looked into the sky before taking a deep breath. "ROOOAAR!" With every ounce of strength, I roared with all my heart, letting the world know of my triumphant victory over the Demon previously known as Deliora.
"Heh, next time, don't attack my family!" Glancing at Deliora, I spat a clump of blood onto its body before plopping on my butt, thoroughly exhausted and injured from the battle as it took everything I had and then some.