Chapter 15
As Roderick crumpled to the ground, coughing blood, the last echoes of Elyra's [Petal Requiem] faded into the air—mana petals dissolving like snow in the wind.
The mountain fell silent.
For a heartbeat.
Then—
Crack.
Ice formed beneath Eleka's boots, frost webbing out in all directions.
He rose shakily to one knee, blood on his lip, but his eyes burned with fury—pale blue, glowing like frozen stars.
"You think you've won?" he spat, mana gathering around him. "You've forgotten who I am."
Cold surged outward in a wave. The wind howled.
Eleka's sword ignited with pale light—ice climbing up its blade like a living thing, forming jagged edges, extending the weapon beyond its natural length.
He slashed the air once.
Mana responded like a beast unleashed.
"[Thorns of the Pale Sovereign]!"
With that cry, the ground fractured. Shards of enchanted frost burst upward—razor-sharp spears of ice forged from sword aura and elemental power. They circled in the air, humming with focused killing intent.
And then—
They shot forward.
Dozens of frozen lances, each guided with precision, curved mid-flight to converge on one target:
Elyra.
But she didn't flinch.
She exhaled slowly, lowering her stance. Violet mana pulsed under her skin, crackling like thunderclouds.
Then she moved.
Her palm slammed into the earth.
"[Void Shell]…"
Dark violet energy erupted from her—spreading into a translucent dome, layered with swirling mana threads. It shimmered like glass, but vibrated with raw force.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The first wave of icy spears struck the barrier—shattering against it like glass on stone. Shards spiraled away, flickering like dying stars.
But then—
Crack—!
A single massive spear, larger than the others, burst through the outer barrier—screaming toward her chest like a guided bullet.
Zzzzp!
Her bracelet lit up. A sharp chime rang out.
[Aegis Loop – Phase II: Redirect]
The mana-infused accessory pulsed with sapphire light. The spear veered off course at the last second—its trajectory twisting unnaturally—before it slammed into the rock behind her and shattered.
The mountain shook.
Dust and ice rained down.
As it cleared, Elyra stood tall, framed by broken mana and fading frost.
Her violet eyes narrowed on Eleka—unshaken.
Her breath was steady.
He stumbled back, clutching his sword, trembling from mana loss. His glare wavered.
But hers only sharpened.
"Done?" she asked coldly.
......….
Elyra pov present
Kael's holding Cederic back. Their blades scream through the air, clashing again and again, raw energy erupting with every strike. I can feel it in the ground beneath my feet—trembling like it's afraid.
Arthur's on the move. I spot the flicker of another short-range blink scroll igniting behind the treeline. Two of Eleka's Rank 4s are still chasing him, but he will manage.
But that man… why hasn't he moved? He just watches. Still. Waiting for something.
She couldn't afford to glance again.
Not now.
Not with Roderick charging from her left and Eleka flanking from the right, their swords gleaming with wind and frost mana.
She ducked low as Roderick's blade screamed through the air—a heavy, spinning arc.
"[Tempest Carve]!"
The gust nearly knocked her off balance, but she parried and slid back, just in time to meet Eleka's sword.
"[Frost Lacerate]!"
His swing carried a chilling edge—ice trailing the strike like a comet tail. She blocked, the shock numbing her arms.
But it wasn't over.
Their voices echoed together, laced with mana.
"[Mind Lance]!"
A dual-cast.
Her thoughts buckled—vision flickering, the world tilting like she was falling into a frozen river.
Damn. They're smart enough to chain spells…
She gritted her teeth, her mana flaring to her mind.
"[Mind Shield]…"
A surge of violet crashed through her skull like thunder, shattering the psychic pressure. Clarity returned—and just in time.
Both swords came at her again.
Eleka's blade lunged, jagged with frost.
Roderick's followed close behind, a wind-charged thrust aimed for her ribs.
She flowed into motion—graceful, cold.
"[Moonfall Crescent]…"
Her blade curved around theirs like silk, intercepting both strikes with a snap of violet mana. Sparks flew. Wind howled. Ice cracked.
But her feet didn't move.
She danced inside their reach.
Then—
She spun.
"[Petal Requiem]…"
Violet petals burst from her mana, sharp and glowing. They scattered like blossoms caught in a storm. Her sword carved through the air with beauty and death.
One petal cut Roderick's cheek.
Another sliced across Eleka's arm.
He cursed, stumbling back.
"You bitch—!"
Roderick shouted and launched a reckless overhead strike, wind curling around his body like a cloak.
Eleka mirrored him—his sword now glowing with a frigid blue edge, preparing something massive.
Mana pooled around them both.
She felt it—desperation.
Roderick roared.
"[Sky Cutter]!"
Eleka followed.
"[Frozen Fang]!"
Their blades descended like judgment.
But Elyra's eyes narrowed. Her mana gathered to her like a storm collapsing in.
This time, she didn't whisper.
She screamed it.
"[Heaven's Descent]!"
The sky flashed.
Violet light burst around her—petals swirling in a storm. But these weren't soft. They fell like razors—cutting through wind, freezing ice, and steel itself.
Roderick's attack shattered midair.
Eleka's frost blade cracked.
Both men were flung back, crashing to the ground—swords flying from their grip.
The petals faded slowly, dissolving into the mountain breeze.
Elyra stood alone in the silence.
Blood dripped from her arm. Her breath came in short bursts. But her stance didn't waver.
She walked toward Eleka as he fumbled for a mana potion.
Her boot landed on his hand.
"No more tricks."
He looked up—eyes full of fear.
Eleka fumbles for a mana potion with trembling fingers.
I'm already there.
My foot crushes the vial under his hand. Roderick groans, crawling for his own—same result. I kneel between them, bruised, heaving.
I drink my own potion.
"Sorry," I mutter. "But I still need you breathing."
I pull out a binding scroll and slap it onto Eleka's chest. A second unfurls around Roderick, glowing lines wrapping around their limbs.
They stop moving.
Just the rise and fall of their breath.
I look up—toward the woods where Arthur disappeared.
"Please… be safe."
...…
Arthur Pov
The chains bit into my wrists with every step, the clink of the metal louder than the breath in my lungs. I could still feel the remnants of suppression coiled around my mana veins—tight, smothering. But not for long.
I kept my head low, moving through the undergrowth as fast as I could without drawing attention. Behind me, I heard them—the knights. Rank Ones mostly. Sloppy with their footing. Loud in their pursuit. Hunting like they knew the forest better than I did.
They didn't.
I ducked under a thick branch, slid between the roots of a fallen tree, and dropped to a crouch. Waited.
One knight broke from the group—eager, careless.
I moved like a whisper.
My fingers curled around the hilt of the small blade I'd tucked into my boot—poison-coated, silent as the night. He didn't see me until it was too late.
A soft grunt. A body hitting the ground.
One.
I didn't stop to admire the work.
Mana flared behind me—stronger this time. The Rank Twos had joined the chase. They were faster, more focused. I didn't have time to play cat and mouse with them.
My fingers brushed the blink scroll in my pocket.
Now.
The moment their presence closed in, I triggered it.
In a breath of light, I was gone—vanishing into a pulse of mana and reappearing deeper in the woods. Branches tore at my clothes. My boots slammed into wet dirt. I staggered, caught myself, and kept moving.
The chains still buzzed faintly on my wrists—residual suppression. But not for long.
I ducked behind a thick trunk and reached into my inner coat pocket. The scroll glowed faintly—a gift from Master Rael. A single-use mana fracture scroll, specifically tuned to disrupt suppression enchantments.
I whispered the trigger word.
Crack.
The chains shattered—mana exploding outward in a pulse of violet light, raw and furious. My mana surged to life again, unshackled. Every nerve in my body lit up like lightning had kissed my spine.
The world came into focus.
I exhaled slowly.
Time to clean up.
The Rank Ones caught up first. Poor bastards didn't know what hit them. I melted into the trees, my footsteps quiet, my blade quick. One by one, they dropped. I didn't make a sound. Not a single scream escaped the forest tonight.
And then the scroll's mana flickered.
Last blink used.
The real threats stepped into the clearing.
Two Rank Fours. The ones Elyra had weakened during the earlier scuffle. They looked ragged—blood on their armor, their steps slower—but they were still dangerous. One drank from a vial as we locked eyes, his posture straightening.
I took a step back.
They sneered.
"No more running now," one of them growled. "You're done."
I didn't answer. No witty remark. No smirk. I just stood there, breathing. My hand twitched toward the scroll tucked in my belt—that scroll.
The mind attack hit before I could move.
My vision blurred. A thousand whispers screamed in my ears. Memories and false visions surged like a tidal wave, drowning me. I staggered. Dropped to a knee.
Damn it.
My fingers gripped the emergency scroll.
"Just in case," his master Alex had said. "If you ever think you're about to die—use it. Thirty percent of my power. It'll be enough."
I didn't hesitate.
I triggered it.
The world exploded.
A roaring wave of blue mana tore through the forest like a divine storm. The knights—every single one of them—collapsed to the ground. Even the Rank Fours screamed as the force of the strike knocked them unconscious.
The mind attack shattered like glass.
I dropped back, gasping.
Sweat ran down my face. My lungs burned. My shoulder was bleeding—must've taken a graze earlier. My mana veins ached from the strain.
I reached for my belt, grabbed a healing potion, and drank it in one gulp. Then another—the mind-calming vial this time.
I breathed again.
And looked up.
The sky above the trees shimmered.
Dozens—no, hundreds—of spectral swords glowed with blue mana. Hanging like judgment.
They fell.
Mana blades rained down like divine wrath, impaling everything in the clearing with terrifying precision.
When the storm passed…
Silence.
No knights stood.
I was alone.
Still breathing.
Barely.
I leaned against the tree, letting the cool bark press into my back. My hand clutched my side, sticky with blood.
I pushed off the tree and started walking again—deeper into the woods.
I barely managed to take another step before I heard it—the unmistakable clash of steel, the shouts of combat, and the sickening thud of bodies hitting the ground.
The faint hum of magic reached my ears, a low, throbbing pulse in the distance. I turned my head, and there, across the clearing, I saw him—Cederic. His dark blade glinted in the dim moonlight as he stepped forward, his eyes locked onto Kael.
Kael's stance was unyielding, the air around him rippling with power. His gaze was cold, calculating—ready.
"You really think you can beat me, Cederic?" Kael's voice cut through the air, low and dangerous.
Cederic didn't reply. He just raised his sword, a flicker of dark flame twisting around its edge. The energy between them was palpable—charged, electric.
In the distance, I could feel the tension building, the calm before the storm. There was no turning back now. This fight was inevitable, and it was about to explode.
I felt my heart race, the final remnants of adrenaline coursing through me. I couldn't stop it.
I wasn't sure who would come out on top. But I knew one thing for sure—this would be a battle for the ages.
I glanced back once more. With the battle still raging and my own wounds throbbing, I gritted my teeth.
This wasn't over. Not by a long shot.