Richard's POV
Fuck. We need to get out of here. I looked over at Alice who was crouched over by the vending machine.
Should we just use her as a distraction and try to escape?
No. Beatrice won't like that. Wait. Since when do I care about Beatrice or her emotions.
Fuck. Deal with that later.
Tapping Beatrice's shoulder, I whispered to her. "I have a plan."
She nods her head. "What is it?"
I point over to Alice. "What if you try your best to buy time, while Alice awakens me."
"Huuh? What the hell are you talking about? How is Alice going to awaken you?" Beatrice asked, shock in her tone.
"I'm not 100% confident but, if she runs her mana through me, it should stimulate the mana inside my own body, enough to form my mana core." I replied to her.
She simply blinked and tilted her head confused.
"Just bring her here. And try to keep that guy off us. You've casted magic, so you should have a feel of mana now right?" I said.
She nodded. "Yeah. I can feel it. In my body..." she then glanced around, "...and in the surroundings."
"Good. Then if possible, try to integrate your own mana onto your surroundings or better still, channel them into your eyes. It'll allow you to keep up with his speed." I said to her.
She nodded, and with the parchment in hand ran towards the man's direction.
As for me, I ran toward the vending machine Alice was at.
She had found a piece of cloth to tie her wounded arm. Though the bleeding hasn't stopped much.
"Alice," I whispered to her.
"Kya!". She exclaimed in shock. "Oh... Richard. Where's Beatrice?"
"She needs our help and... I know how we can." I replied her question.
"How...?" She asked her eyebrow raised.
"Well... you're gonna have to get a feel for your mana and then channel said mana through me so I can awaken my core."
"Huh? How am I supposed to help you..." she spoke but I interrupted her.
"Doesn't matter. What matters is this is the only way to save Beatrice."
She looked at me hesitant at first, now resolved. Resolve to save her friend. Her mother. Her town.
The look in her eye made me smile slightly.
I then sat down in front of her in a cross-legged position. "Put both your hands on my back." I instructed her calmly.
She did as I said. As soon as her hand touched my back, I closed my eyes and told her to try and feel her mana.
She closed her eyes for a bit as the sheer effort she was using was showing on her face.
And then, a soft glow. "This is it?" She asked, eyes still closed. "This is mana?"
"Yes." I replied curtly. "Now try pushing some of that mana into my body." I instructed her.
"Ok." She responded.
With my eyes closed, I tried feeling the mana around me, but it was no use. I couldn't sense it.
Just then...
A warm energy flowed through me. This feeling. This sensation. I recognized it. It was mana.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Sounds of explosions were heard around. Shit. Beatrice.
Hope you survive long enough for me to awaken.
**********
The car door crumpled beneath her weight as Beatrice crashed into it, her ribs screaming in protest.
Blood dripped from her lips as she spat to the side, breathing hard. Her vision blurred slightly, but she forced herself to stay upright, leaning against the car.
The man walked toward her–slow, deliberate, like he was strolling through a park. His scarred face remained calm, the jagged line running from his left eye to his jaw making him look even more menacing under the flickering streetlights.
His fiery red hair swayed slightly in the night breeze, illuminated by the faint glow of fires burning nearby.
"Gotta say," Beatrice muttered, wiping blood from her mouth, "that hair makes you look like a discount anime protagonist. And the scar? Try hard much."
He didn't even blink.
"Tch. Tough crowd huh."
He surged forward without warning, faster than her eyes could track. She barely raised her hand in time.
"Ignis mihi poenas dare concede!" She cried.
"Vincula ignis!"
Chains made of searing fire burst from the ground, wrapping toward the man like serpents.
He twisted his body, narrowly dodging them, then snapped one with his bare hand. The flames fizzled against his skin as if they were nothing more than candlelight.
He dashed in again.
"Ignis, hostes meos sagittis obside!"
"Sagittae ignis!"
A barrage of flaming arrows rained down from the sky toward him. He darted through them like a dancer, barely slowing, his footballs creating small craters in the asphalt.
She threw her hand forward again.
"Ignis, globum exure mortis!"
"Globus ignis!"
A massive ball of flame hurtled toward him, lighting up the sky like a small sun. It collided with a building behind him when he dodged again.
BOOM!
The explosion ripped through the block, sending civilians screaming and scattering in every direction.
Glass shattered. A lamp-post crashed to the ground. A fire hydrant exploded, water erupting into the air like a geyser.
Beatrice panted, her chest heaving. Her vision was swimming and her mana reserves were quickly draining.
The man appeared through the smoke, not a scratch on him.
His expression was utterly dispassionate as he grabbed her by the collar and slammed her through a parked van.
Metal crumpled. She coughed blood, struggling to lift her hand for another spell.
But he was too fast.
A red blur–then crack–his boot connected with her stomach. She flew, tumbling across the asphalt, leaving a smear of blood in her wake.
No more incantations. She couldn't breathe let alone speak.
He approached slowly, footsteps echoing through the ruined street.
Behind him, flames danced across abandoned cars. Civilians cried out in the distance. One of her spells had crashed half an entire diner.
"Damn it..." she whispered. Her eyes fluttered. "Sorry... everyone."
He stood over her now, a shadow looming above.
He raised his hand–mana surging, flames gathering.
And then–
Clang!
A flash of light intercepted the blow.
The air split with a high-pitched ring as a blade made of pure radiant energy blocked the man's strike.
A girl stood between them.
It was Alice.