The divine knowledge, once unknown, flooded into Azure's mind. The understanding of Argus became clear to her.
She squirmed under Laleyn's touch. Her breaths grew shallow.
"You will be fine, my chosen. Relax."
"It hurts!" Azure shouted, her hand grabbing onto Laleyn's wrist.
The pain grew in intensity, and then just as quickly faded.
Her eyes opened and she stared at her palm.
"I have granted you the knowledge, but it is up to you to learn to use it. My blessed daughter."
Laleyn pulled her hand away and took a step back. "Try it on this."
The goddess pointed to her side, and the water churned.
It grew more dense, slowly taking the shape of a small, fox-like humanoid. It had a disfigured face, and its claws were as sharp as any blade.
The water of Laleyn's lake sizzled and quickly evaporated, leaving the crawling monstrosity behind.
At the very moment of its birth, it let out a high-pitched scream. This was a creature known as the 'Screamer'. Rather weak monster if one was prepared, however, in case its sonic attack was unexpected, then even Azure's ears would bleed.
Azure took a step back and covered her ears. Despite its size, the sonic attack was potent.
Laleyn approached the newborn monster and placed her hand on it. "It is fine, little one. You needn't be afraid."
The monster nodded, and its lifeless gaze met Azure's.
It placed its claws onto its chest and kneeled.
Azure blinked, taking another step back. "My Lady?"
"Use your acid on it, worry not, death has no sway in this realm," Laleyn reassured her, appearing behind her blessed child.
Let's see. She focused on the kneeling monster.
In the past, it would take her three hits of her blade to take down a screamer. However, with the newfound power, she had suspected that it would not even take a single serious hit from her fist.
The acid gaze would be sufficient, but I need something else. She searched her mind. Laleyn granted her access to all techniques used by Argus.
"I guess I can try the [Argussian Hand]."
Laleyn nodded and gestured for her to continue.
Azure's fist clenched and in an instant was surrounded by the green glow.
She raised her hand toward the moon.
A second passed, and then, she slammed her palm into the ground.
The acid rushed forward, moving across the divine water like a fish in the water.
The bright green liquid touched the screamer and in an instant, its fur melted, and it let out one final screech.
In the next moment, the only thing remaining of the monster was a small puddle of acid.
The water bubbled, and the acid disappeared, the monster's essence returning to its mother.
Azure exhaled, her eyes locked onto her palm.
"Very easy to use, thank you, my Lady."
The goddess grinned. "Of course, why do you think I beamed all the knowledge straight into your pretty head?"
Azure's face turned slightly red, and she rubbed the back of her head. "Thank you for this. I am proud to be your blessed child, Laleyn."
Laleyn hid her face with her hands. "Go! Thank you for visiting!"
Before Azure could even utter one more word, she found herself in the academy field.
She patted herself down before pulling her blazer, checking her chest area for the growth of the argussian skin.
Just as Laleyn promised, she was pure, yet her power was much grander than it was before.
I need to figure out how to incorporate acid into my fighting style now.
She rubbed her chin and stared toward the sky, then she lifted her hand and stared at the ring.
The dark clouds gathered, ushering in the looming tempest. Azure smiled. "Aqua would just make the storm go away with a flick of her wrist."
Despite not being away from Aqua for long, she still couldn't help but think about her heroine.
She slapped her cheeks and shook her head. "I can't keep fantasizing about her! I need to master Laleyn's techniques."
She grabbed her [Mortal Hope] and drew it from her back, and her eyes glowed an acidic green, melting the very ground beneath her.
***
Aurora looked at her students with pride. She nodded, and her lips stretched into a wide smile. "That is all for today, I will see you tomorrow!"
Sheira rolled her eyes. Despite her bracelet being a great help in combating her drowsiness, it did not mean that she could sit through the endless boredom that was her sister's class.
The classroom emptied, leaving only Aurora and Sheira. Her sister approached slowly and sat next to her. "Is everything alright, Sheira?"
She is worried?! Hah! She suppressed her smug smile before feigning pain by grabbing her chest. "Owwwww, it hurts so much, I am broken and on the verge of death! It's all big sis Aurora's fault!"
The elder princess rolled her eyes. "That tells me everything I need to know. I am just worried that you might blow up the academy."
Sheira let her hands fall to her side. "I should be safe, as long as I have this bracelet," Sheira said, lifting the bracelet in front of her eyes.
"Good, tell me, are you handling the class well? Do you require any supplemental tutoring? We really need to get you to the level where you can govern without your childishness."
Sheira rubbed the back of her head. "I am doing fine, it's just that there are so many things to keep track of and it's kind of boring."
"I see…" Aurora said.
Sheira slowly turned her head toward Aurora. "Aurora, stop acting like that! I am not used to you being worried about me!"
"We are sisters, even if I bullied you through your childhood, it was out of love, nothing else."
Love bullying, huh? Sheira chuckled. "Got it, well, I think you are doing a great job, and I think I should handle the exam without any issues."
Aurora pushed herself up and turned her head over her shoulder. "I am glad, Mom would be proud of your progress. You used to be such a child," Aurora teased.
"Hey!"
Aurora waved her off, leaving Sheira alone with her thoughts.
"Her being nice to me is refreshing, I must admit," Sheira muttered under her breath.
After a moment of silence, she stood up and left the classroom. While the bracelet did wonders at keeping her power under control, it was not an excuse to slack off.
If she truly wanted to grow stronger, she would need to take a risk and practice using her magic with greater control.
Her steps quickened, and she quickly found herself in the courtyard, her eyes drifted from left to right before nodding. "The testing area it is!"
As soon as she arrived, her eyes beheld someone dear to her. A smile widened, and she waved. "Azu!"