Reborn As Noble

Garius sat firmly atop Giddie, the golden Pekko's powerful strides thundering across the ground. Francesca's arms were wrapped around his waist, her cheek resting lightly against his back.

To his left, Hesbeirn urged his own Pekko forward, the bird's legs moving in sharp, rapid bursts.

On the right, Alf rode with his usual precision. Straight-backed, eyes scanning the horizon.

While Erinnette leaned forward slightly on her mount, her expression one of calm readiness.

Garius tilted his head back, catching sight of the sky. A dense formation of battle drones loomed overhead, their mana cores glowing like a constellation of small, unblinking stars.

They moved in perfect formation, shadowing the group's every motion.

"This Javier invention is… really annoying," Garius muttered, exhaling slowly.

"Feels like being stalked by my own son."

Hesbeirn glanced over his shoulder, eyes widening slightly.

"Whoa… that knight unit is keeping up way too fast. Damn!" he said with a short chuckle, watching as the fifty Special White Ore Units seemed to almost glide across the ground, their movements so sharp and fluid it was as if they were flying.

Alf and Erinnette let out quiet sighs at the sight.

Garius dragged a hand down his face. "Once this is over, I'm going to scold that youngest son of mine. He didn't need to command his troops like this. We're not weak."

Francesca's soft laugh carried on the wind. "Well… he's just worried about you."

"Still," Garius muttered, eyes narrowing slightly, "he doesn't have to keep it this tight."

"Giddie, fast," Garius ordered, his tone leaving no room for hesitation.

"Cuquawked!!" Giddie let out a sharp, commanding cry before surging forward, the world around them blurring as his powerful legs pounded against the ground.

"We have to reach Javier," Garius said, his voice low but edged with steel. "I'm not going to let Edmund lay a hand on my son."

Francesca's smile was calm, almost serene, as she leaned closer. "Don't worry~ if he does… then this will be his end."

Garius' eyes sharpened, his grip on Giddie tightening. "No… no matter what happens, this is the end for Edmund. Either by Javier… or by me."

Meanwhile, in the battlefield.

Edmund's lips curled into a smirk.

"Oi, brat! You dead yet?" His voice carried over the chaos, laced with mockery. His Celestial's laughter echoed with a twisted delight, the sound unnerving in its raw malice.

Far behind him, his soldiers were locked in a desperate defense. Shields locked, barriers flaring, they struggled to withstand the relentless barrage from Javier's special operation units.

Mana shots tore through the air in precise, unending streams, forcing the soldiers to dig in under the withering fire.

Edmund's eyes narrowed when he spotted movement ahead.

"Well now… I didn't think you'd be that weak," he said with a dark growl, gaze locking onto Javier.

The young Armand heir was forcing himself upright, a thin trail of blood running down from his forehead. Dust clung to his clothes, his breathing heavy but steady.

"Oho~ so you really are that weak, brat!?"

Edmund let out a harsh laugh, shaking his head in mock disbelief.

"Talk big for a snotty little noble like you… Well, I'll give you one thing, credit for still breathing after all that."

His grin widened, eyes glinting with cruel satisfaction.

"And just so you know… those attacks? That wasn't even five percent of my power."

Javier's lips curved into a slow, taunting smile.

He shifted his stance, feet grounding firmly on the battered earth.

With a deliberate motion, he raised his palm toward Edmund.

Fingers loose, body relaxed.

His gesture a silent, wordless provocation.

Come on… show me what you've got.

Edmund's smirk deepened, the challenge igniting a glint of bloodlust in his eyes.

"You'll regret that, brat…"

He lifted his own palm, dark mana gathering in a dense, roiling mass before bursting outward. Wave after wave of shadow-infused magic hurtled toward Javier, each blast screaming through the air with crushing force.

But Javier didn't move. Not a step.

His mana flared, brilliant and unyielding, flooding the space around him with radiant pressure. Light magic surged along his arm, coiling around his palm.

As the first wave of dark spells reached him, his hand snapped forward.

Smack!

One by one, each of Edmund's attacks was swatted aside.

Slapped into the air, redirected into the ground, or shattered mid-flight. The explosions of darkness fizzled against the blinding force of his light, leaving only drifting sparks and fading echoes in their wake.

Javier didn't even blink. His smile only widened.

Edmund's grin stretched wide, his voice dripping with mockery.

"Ohhh! Look at that, still standing! Still trying to fight us!" he barked out, his tone laced with cruel amusement as he addressed the celestial within him.

"A damn brat who doesn't even know his own limits!"

The air trembled as Edmund's aura surged.

"Let's show this kid the real power we hold!"

In unison, Edmund and his celestial unleashed their might. A suffocating pressure exploded outward, rippling through the battlefield like a crushing tidal wave. The ground cracked, trees in the distance shuddered, and the very air seemed to groan under the weight.

Javier's body was forced down slightly by the sheer force, his clothes rippling from the pressure. But his face… still carried that infuriating smile.

Edmund's voice roared over the oppressive atmosphere.

"Kid!!! Just surrender and die by our hands!!! You are nothing but weak!!"

Javier drew in a slow breath, then let it out in a calm, measured exhale.

"Old man," he said evenly, his smile returning. "You want to play with gravity?"

The celestial's laughter rang out, harsh and mocking.

"Hah!? What's this kid babbling about? He can't even move from where he's standing!"

Edmund's grin widened, confident and cruel.

"Just die, brat. You're nothing but an eyesore!"

Javier's smile sharpened. "Yeah… eye… sore…"

The instant the last word left his lips, the air shifted.

The crushing force around them suddenly spiked.

Heavier, denser, far beyond Edmund's oppressive aura. The ground beneath their feet cracked like brittle glass, dirt and stone splintering as if the very earth was bowing under the pressure.

Edmund's expression faltered, his knees flexing slightly against the sudden weight.

"This…" Javier tilted his head, his voice calm but laced with quiet dominance.

"…is how you should play with gravity, old man."

( End Of Chapter )