I.

"The sky is blue and clear, the midday sun is at its zenith, and a gentle breeze ripples the pale grass. It's a beautiful day to die…" A man is standing on the crest of a hill. He has long, shaggy red hair with bangs, pale skin, and kohl-rimmed golden eyes. His outfit consists of a simple golden yukata and a long black scarf wrapped loosely around his neck. A large scroll is strapped to his back as a pair of amber fox ears appear on his head. "Lord Lawrence…," he murmurs, sharp eyes taking in the approaching figure.

This second figure is tall and slender with long dark indigo hair, light brown eyes, and a small scar on his cheek. He is dressed in a white collared shirt under a black vest. Dark pants adorn his legs with the ends stuffed into a pair of worn boots. A long sword and rapier are strapped to his side and he has a small buckler on his right forearm. "Fumio… please stop waxing such depressing poetry."

The man with red hair – now identified as Fumio – grins, sharp canines showing. "You need to lighten up, Milord! It sure is a beautiful day to die!" Fumio languidly raises his arms in a stretch.

Lawrence sighs softly at his companion's words. "… Any sign of Ninghong or Haldor?"

"Nah, haven't seen them yet," Fumio says with a shake of his head, "but they're probably at Byzel right now, I think they said something about a Fighting Party going on…?"

The indigo haired man nods. "Right, it's the Byzel Annual Fight Festival… the strongest fighters from Liones gather to partake in it."

"Well, why didn't you sign up then? Pretty sure you would've won it."

"I don't have time to do something that frivolous, Fumio - I have an important goal to complete."

"Ah right… how much farther till we reach the Capital anyway?"

Lawrence turns and looks out at the surrounding landscape. "If we cut through Byzel – and pick up Ninghong and Haldor along the way – we should reach the Capital within three or four days…"

Fumio nods. "Alright-y then… we'd better get a move on!"

The two men descend the hill and begin walking towards the nearby town of Byzel.

Byzel is a small merchant town popular for two events: their monthly flea market and annual Fight Festival.

As Lawrence and Fumio approach the outskirts of Byzel, a loud earthquake rattles the ground. "Wh-What the heck?!" Fumio exclaims, balancing himself by holding onto Lawrence.

"Interesting… that was no normal earthquake…," Lawrence murmurs before moving hurriedly towards the other side of Byzel, where the Fight Festival is taking place.

"Whoa…," Fumio breathes is shock and awe, "what happened here…?"

The scene before them is one of utter destruction.

Smoldering – and in some cases burning – rocks dot the ground, some in small blackened craters, the others embedded into houses and rubble. Deep gashes are gouged into the very earth and Byzel's infamous giant rock arena is in cracked ruins.

"Lord Lawrence!" A deep voice calls out, drawing the two men's attention.

Approaching Lawrence and Fumio is a beast of a man with dark tanned skin stretched taut over rippling muscles. This giant of a man has long pale-yellow dreadlocks and piercing silver eyes. A long scar spans the length of his face. He is wearing a set of thick, heavy-plated armor and has a large claymore strapped to his back.

Next to the man is a tiny, petite girl who has her long dark hair up into two buns on the side of her head. She has pale skin, dark brown eyes, and is wearing a red sleeveless cheongsam-style stop with gold trimming, a pair of black pants, and flats. Two red ribbons are tied into her hair and a blue pendant rest along her neck.

"Haldor, Ninghong… what happened here?" Lawrence asks, surveying the damage and wreckage.

Before Haldor can answer, Ninghong darts forward – eyes wide and hands moving everywhere. "It was incredible, Lawrence! There we were, participants in the Byzel Fight Festival – which we totally would've won by the way – when all of a sudden, the Seven Deadly Sins show up and scream that they're taking over the town! 'Whoa!' was what I was thinking when all of a sudden these fireballs of death start raining down on the town! Luckily Haldor and this blond kid were there to cut them down or else everyone would've died! Like, seriously! Then all of a sudden these Holy Knights riding these weird… things appeared and started fighting the Seven Deadly Sins! I was all like, 'This is so cool!' but then Haldor said that we should probably get the townsfolk to safety 'cause they were all just standing there watching the fight like a bunch of morons-"

"You were doing the same thing, Ning." Haldor interjects quietly.

"-so we spent the last good… twenty minutes or so getting everyone away so no one would die… I think we did a pretty good job don't you, Haldor?"

The man with dark skin shrugs. "Still, it will take a while for everyone to rebuild…"

"You said the Seven Deadly Sins were here… where did they go?" Lawrence asks - a serious expression on his face.

Ninghong shrugs. "Dunno, they all split up to fight the Holy Knights… they're probably long gone by now."

The indigo-haired man sighed sharply, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Great… just when I was so close too…"

Suddenly a large explosion rocks the air and the group turns to look at a plume of smoke and fire rising in the distance.

"Oooh~! Looks like something's going on over there! Let's go check it out!" Ninghong says before sprinting towards the source of the explosion.

"Aw man… running…" Fumio mutters dejectedly before following the after the petite girl, Haldor and Lawrence not too far behind.

The group of four arrives at a devastating scene.

Two women clad in armor – "Most likely Holy Knights," Haldor notes softly – are being held in a floating orb on one side of the clearing. On the other side of the field, a… pig (?) and two figures – a dark-haired man and a silver-haired woman – are kneeling beside another – badly bloodied – person.

"L…Lady Veronica!" the man screams, falling to his knees.

Lawrence starts and runs towards the trio, ignoring the cries of his companions. "Elizabeth! Griamor! Veronica!"

The silver-haired woman and dark-haired man both look up.

"B…Brother?!" The woman gasps.

Lawrence falls to his knees next to them and curses at the extent of Veronica's wounds. "Fumio, we need your magic! NOW!"

The red-haired man jumps at the intensity of Lawrence's voice and hurries towards them. "Hold on… hold on…," he mutters grabbing the scroll strapped to his back and hurriedly unraveling it. "Here it is…!" Fumio places a hand on the scroll and – in a puff of smoke – a small jar of clear liquid appears; he grabs the jar and murmurs a rushed incantation causing the liquid to glow slightly. "Quickly, slather this on her wounds! Focus on the lower legs!"

Lawrence snatches the jar from Fumio, uncaps it, and begins pouring the glowing liquid on Veronica's burnt and bloodied legs. "D-Don't use it all, Lawrence! Do you know how long it took me to get all the ingredients to make that?!"

Lawrence pins Fumio with a glare. "This is my sister we're trying to save," he hisses through clenched teeth. The other man clenches his jaw before nodding tersely.

A few seconds after applying the liquid, the group of four watches in awe – well Elizabeth, Lawrence, and Griamor watch in awe, Fumio just watches – as the charred skin on Veronica's legs and lower body begin to glow and miraculously stitch itself back together.

"I…Incredible…!" Griamor whispers in wonder.

A heartbeat after the glow dies down; Veronica stirs before blinking her eyes blearily.

"L-Lady Veronica!"

"Veronica!"

"…Sister…!"

Veronica turns her head. "L…Lawrence…?" she murmurs weakly.

Lawrence places a hand on his sister's head. "Rest, Veronica, you need to recover your strength."

"I… we thought you were… still…"

"Rest, Sister. We'll talk later, I promise." Lawrence voice and gaze holds no room for arguments and Veronica lapses back into unconsciousness. The indigo-haired man stands. "…Griamor, release your Wall, I want to speak to those Holy Knights."

"B-But Lord Lawrence, th-those two are dangerous," Griamor protests.

Lawrence strides forward. "They won't harm me." He states confidently. "You are Guila and Jericho, are you not?" he asks the two women after they've been released.

"We are, Prince Lawrence." Guila responds with a tilt of her head. "I must say, your presence here is certainly… unexpected."

"I've heard rumors that my father is indisposed and that the Holy Knights have taken over leadership of the Kingdom… as Crown Prince, Heir to the Kingdom of Liones, and the only child of age to take the throne, I deemed it necessary to return to my people and Kingdom." Lawrence's words are curt and brusque. "Tell me, Guila, Jericho... what is going on here?"

Guila and Jericho shivered at the cold aura emitting from the Heir of Liones.

"W-We were simply following orders to retrieve the Princess Elizabeth, Prince Lawrence." Guila begins. "While you were on your academic tour, she foolishly decided to run away and got captured by the Seven Deadly Sins. We tried numerous times before to bring her back to the safety of the Capital, but, she has refused and outright attacked us in retaliation. Even before your arrival, Princess Veronica was going to escort Princess Elizabeth back to the Capital, but, Princess Elizabeth refused and tried to run once more. Princess Veronica chased after her and the two accidentally ran into the minefield I placed for defensive purposes. You should know, Prince Lawrence that I did offer mine and Jericho's services in order to safely retrieve Princess Elizabeth, but, Griamor denied my offer, and the result of that was what you happened upon."

"Th-That's not true, Brother!" Elizabeth yelled. "Sir Meliodas and the others have not kidnapped me or anything! They're the ones who have been protecting me from the dangerous Holy Knights! E-Even Gilthunder has attacked us!"

"Please, don't listen to what Princess Elizabeth has to say, Prince Lawrence. We believe that Elizabeth has been brainwashed by the Seven Deadly Sins and that they are using her as a hostage and bargaining chip."

Lawrence tilts his head. "Oh? And what would they possibly wish to gain from having my sister as a hostage?"

"They most likely want a pardon for their heinous crimes ten years ago or they are probably looking to take over the throne and Kingdom of Liones. They are notorious and dangerous criminals, after all."

Lawrence holds Gulia's gaze for a moment before letting out a sigh. "So much has happened while I was gone…," he turns slightly before stopping, "By the way… why has the King been taken down as ruler of Liones?"

Before Guila can answer, Elizabeth cries out, "The Holy Knights have done a coup d'état and locked Father away! Th-They want to start a war and are even conscripting people to join the Order! Those that refuse are brutally massacred!"

"Is this true?" Lawrence asks.

"Of course not, Prince Lawrence; your father – the King of Liones – has prophesized a Holy War that we, the Holy Knights, believe is a war against the Seven Deadly Sins. The kidnapping and subsequent brainwashing of Princess Elizabeth is probably the catalyst for this upcoming War."

"And the alleged conscripting and murder of innocent people?"

"In times of need, people need something to believe in. By having people join the ranks of the Holy Knights, we are giving them the opportunity to learn and protect the ones they love. As for those that oppose joining us, we unfortunately don't get to those people in time to save them."

"Save them from what, exactly?"

Guila shrugs. "Bandits. Monsters. Barbarians. The Seven Deadly Sins in some cases, which reminds me, we should all return to the Capital now. I'm sure the people will be thrilled at your return, Prince Lawrence."

"D-Don't go with her, Prince Lawrence!" Griamor exclaims. "Only moments ago, they said that 'the Royal Family is a thing of the past' meaning you won't have any power or leverage in the Capital!"

"E-Earlier they also tried to attack Veronica and I, b-but Griamor stopped them!" Elizabeth added.

"… Attacking members of the Royal Family is a serious crime, care to explain that, Guila?"

Guila's smile took on a worried edge. "…I'd rather not." She quickly thrust her lance forward and sent an explosion flying at the Prince.

"B-Brother!" Elizabeth cried out as smoke and fire engulfed the indigo-haired man.

As the air cleared, Guila was shocked to see Haldor standing in front of the Prince with not a single scratch. "Yo-You're the Great Holy Knight, Haldor the Berserker!"

"Retired Great Holy Knight to be exact," Haldor replied, brushing off some dust from where the explosion impacted his armor. "You should be aware that all members of the Royal Family have a Holy Knight assigned to them. Prince Lawrence has me, Princess Margaret has Gilthunder, and Princess Veronica has Griamor… unfortunately for you, Princess Elizabeth," he turned to face the youngest member of the Royal Family, "we didn't find anyone suitable to be your protector. Perhaps if we had tried and looked harder you wouldn't have been injured as much. I am sorry."

"I-It's alright… Sir Meliodas and the other have been protecting me all this time!"

Haldor smiled softly. "That's good to know… Where is that brat anyway?"

"Veronica sealed him away in this Goddess Amber," Elizabeth said, holding up a chain with an amber colored pendant on in. "We don't know how to get him out though."

"Hmm… anything dealing with the Goddess Clan or Goddess Magic is extremely complex and difficult to understand," Lawrence murmured, placing a hand to his chin, "You wouldn't happen to know anything about Goddess Magic would you, Fumio?"

The fox-eared man shook his head. "Like all the other Great Clans, the Goddess Clan was separated into smaller sub-clans, each that specialized in different types of magic. The Goddess Magic I'm familiar with is probably different from the Goddess Magic used in that Goddess Amber."

"How unfortunate…"

"Don't even bother trying to 'release' him," Jericho suddenly cut in, "It's impossible for anyone to do that now."

"Yes," Guila agreed, readying her lance once more, "that and we have orders to keep Meliodas in that Goddess Amber until we reach the Capital. We also have orders to capture Princess Elizabeth dead or alive and to eliminate all obstacles in our way. Forgive us, Prince Lawrence."

With that said, Guila and Jericho darted forward, weapons drawn. As the two women started fighting Haldor and Lawrence, Fumio tugged on Elizabeth's sleeve. "Quickly, let's get out of here; we'll just be in the way! Ning!" He turned and waved over the dark-haired girl. "Watch our backs for us, okay?"

"Aw man… I really wanted to fight a Holy Knight…" Ninghong said with a sigh.

"You can spar with Haldor after we've made it out of here, okay?!" Fumio hissed herding the, mostly injured, group away from the fighting.

"I'm sorry but you aren't going anywhere." A new voice cut in.

The retreating group looked up and saw and old man with an eye-patch and armor floating above them. "H-Holy Knight Helbram!" Griamor exclaimed, moving to the front of the group.

"Ah, good to see you're still alive Griamor… will you hand over Princess Elizabeth and the Goddess Amber, please?" Helbram smiled and extended a hand.

"N-Never!" Griamor yelled. "I don't know what you or Hendricksen are up to… but attacking the Royal Family is treason! I'll see you court mart-!"

A sword was now piercing his chest.

"My, my, don't you talk a lot, Griamor," Helbram said, withdrawing his weapon causing the dark-haired knight to fall forward.

"G-Griamor!" Elizabeth screamed, kneeling beside the injured man. "H-How could you?!"

"Now, now, please calm down, Princess Elizabeth. Let's just take you back to the Capital, okay?"

"Hm… nope not gonna happen, Eye Patch." Ninghong declared, putting her hands on her hips. "You seem strong; I wanna see how I compare to a Holy Knight!" She crouched down before jumping up and connecting a kick to Helbram's chest plate.

"…What was that? I hardly felt a thing." Helbram grabbed Ninghong by the leg and threw her to the side. "Now that the nuisance is out of the way, shall we get going, Princess Elizabeth?"

A red blur suddenly shot out from the nearby trees before knocking Helbram to the ground. "'That' was just a warm-up~" Ninghong smiled, a glowing aura now surrounding her body.

"Oh? You have some pretty interesting techniques, Little Girl. I almost felt that hit just now."

Ninghong grinned sharply. "Then you're definitely gonna feel this, Eye Patch." She brought up her leg and swung it around rapidly, sending out a shockwave of air towards her opponent. As soon as it connected, she was on Helbram – her hands and feet swinging in a constant blur.

After a few moments of her unyielding barrage, Helbram asked, "Is that all?" A swift chop to her side threw the young girl to the ground.

Ninghong scrambled to her feet unsteadily, clutching her side. "You…!"

"Hmph, I thought you had some potential but I guess you aren't anything." Helbram quickly swung his sword and drew a deep gash on Ninghong, who then hit the ground with a sickening thud.

"N-Ninghong!" Fumio cried out, torn between rushing to his friend's side and having to stay to protect Lawrence's sister. 'Goddamnit…! I'm not a fighter!' he thought before squaring his shoulders. "I-I won't let you past me!" he declared only to get punched to the side by the Holy Knight.

"How foolish… now, I'm getting tired of all this, Princess Elizabeth, we're leaving now." Helbram grabbed Elizabeth by the arm and pulled her up.

"N-No! Let me go! M-Meliodas!"

Helbram snorted. "He can't hear you, Princess. He can't save you anymore."

"Y-You're wrong! I believe in him! Meliodas!" Elizabeth closed her eyes and screamed: a hope and a prayer.

Suddenly the Goddess Amber began glowing brightly before turning pitch black and shattering, expending a plume of dark smoke. Helbram jumped back from the smoke with a cough. "What's going on…?" He muttered, watching the smoke clear and revealing Meliodas standing there – a black tattoo-like substance covering part of his face and body. "That appearance… You're…?"

Before Helbram could finish his words, Meliodas twisted his body and sent a powerful punch at the Holy Knight.

Trees and slabs of earth were sent flying from the force of the impact, but, when the dust cleared, Helbram had successfully caught Meliodas' arm. Before the Holy Knight could react, Meliodas leapt up and punched the old man's chin before flipping over slamming hard into his stomach. Meliodas then – easily – picked Helbram off the ground and threw the man into the air before jumping after him and sending a barrage of punches at the Knight.

"Enough of this!" Helbram swung an arm out and knocked Meliodas to the ground. The old man let out a sigh before floating to the ground. "Well, it looks like you're fundamentally different than Guila or Jericho… what a fortunate miscalculation this turned out to be! You… were mixed from the start, right? Your level of power is completely different from anyone else! It's no wonder the Goddess Amulet couldn't contain you!" Helbram smirked at Meliodas. "Can you even understand what I'm saying? Or do you understand nothing? Perhaps you do understand but feel no need to answer? Well," Helbram withdrew his sword, "it doesn't matter, let's test you some more, shall we?"

Meliodas simply raised his arm in response and the black substance on his body transformed into an axe-like shape. The blond deftly leapt into the air and delivered five quick slashes, all which gouged deep trenches into the very earth. However, Helbram stood in the center of the attack – unharmed.

"What marvelous killing intent! Though it's about time for me to get serious too…" The Holy Knight disappeared and reappeared behind Meliodas before bringing his sword down on the blond, sending him deep into the ground. "Uh-oh! I accidentally cut him in half," Helbram exclaimed only to spot an uninjured Meliodas standing perfectly fine. "Wonderful! That black substance moved to block my attack? Impressive! Let's see what else you can do!"

The black substance turned into two giant claws on the end of Meliodas' hands and the blond begins attack Helbram once more.

"Hmph, you can attack me all you want, but as long as my Link is active, you won't even scratch me." Helbram knocked Meliodas to the ground once more. "It's almost like your friend Ban's ability, though not as 'dirty'. My allies lend me their power and strength, can you really defeat twenty Holy-?!"

Suddenly Meliodas was in front of him and clawed out a portion of Helbram's armor. Before Helbram could respond, Meliodas hit Helbram in the face. The Holy Knight jumped back, coughing up blood, as he stared at the blond before him. "I-Impossible! Don't tell me he's not at full strength yet?!"

"Fine then, I'll lend you a bit of my own power."

A surge of power filled Helbram and with a single swing of his sword, managed to knock Meliodas unconscious. "I-Incredible! To be able to defeat the raging Meliodas in one hit… he power of a Great Holy Knight is not to be underestimated…," Helbram stood and sheathed his weapon, "Now then, now that the Seven Deadly Sins has been defeated, all that's left is to bring Meliodas, his sword, and Princess Elizabeth back to the Capital."

"That's not going to happen, Helbram." Haldor cut in as he began to approach the other Holy Knight.

"Haldor… it's been a while since I've last saw you."

"True… it looks like you've gotten slow in your old age."

Helbram let out a bark of laughter. "Always the comedian, Haldor! … Do you honestly think you can be me? I have the power of twenty Holy Knights and a Great Holy Knight within me; you won't be able to touch me."

"Hmm? Oh, I won't be the one to stop you – she will." Haldor leapt away as a giant war hammer fell onto Helbram.

"Woah! Looks like you were still alive, the Serpent Sin of Envy, Diane," Helbram said after dodging the incoming blow.

"You… You did this to the Captain! I won't forgive you!" Diane brought up Gideon and swung it down.

The earth shattered.