Everyone in earshot snapped to attention. Those sitting on the ground sat up straighter, and the ones who were standing leaned in closer.
"Well, I'd expect nothing less from you," Linda said softly. "Even in your entrance exam, you came up with the perfect plan under a mountain of stress."
Julien nodded politely, even though he didn't know exactly what she was talking about.
I think there's a vague memory somewhere… but that fact is really no surprise. As the heir to a powerful house, he probably had to begin lessons as soon as his Mark manifested.
He took a deep breath, and said, "I have a reason to believe the Draconian is vulnerable to the mana brightness, like us."
From a little way off, he heard Amara gasp softly, as she began to connect the dots.
"Before it teleported us here," he continued, "It argued with the Puppeteer briefly. It said, 'this damn mana brightness is pissing me off.' If it was immune to the light, then it would not have said anything about it at all. But it did--and that might be a weakness for us to exploit."
"So you're suggesting we try to blind it?" Wells asked, looking thoughtful.
"Yes. Whenever I use my fire spells, the firelight gets reflected into the visible mana, and causes an incredibly bright flash that's painful to look at."
Ray stepped next to Julien, nodding vigorously. "Yup, I can confirm. This guy almost blinded me in a fight earlier," he declared loudly, pointing at Julien.
Julien smiled weakly. "Sorry. I had no idea it would be that bright."
Ray grinned and slapped him on the back. "Ah, our ever powerful Ian Mooring. He doesn't know his own strength."
"I see," Jules said, ignoring him. It's a pretty good tactic. But it'll take some timing, otherwise we'll just end up blinding ourselves as well as the Draconian."
"My plan is to use my most powerful spells at once," Julien agreed. "It's a fire-element monster, and I can't damage it in any way. So I'll serve as the distraction--if everyone can close their eyes at the same time, I could set off an explosion while it isn't expecting it. Then, we can go all out while its defense is down."
Haley joined them, gripping her bow tightly in her hand. "Sounds great and all, but we don't know how long it would be incapacitated for. Hell, what if it looks away, too? It's an intelligent monster, I wouldn't be surprised."
"That's fair, but we don't have any other choice, do we?" Ray replied. "I mean, a Draconian's a Draconian. You wouldn't wanna run into one even with a team."
Wells interrupted the two. "This is the best course of action to take. As the organizer of this expedition, I will take responsibility if anything goes wrong. It's always been succeed or die trying in gates, you know that. So we must take the risk."
It's decided, then. We'll try taking it on.
Julien glanced across the haphazard circle they'd formed. The mood was somber, and everyone looked exhausted. He wasn't sure if they were up to it… fighting wildly powerful monsters without the proper gear and preparation took a massive toll on almost everyone.
Being a natural born S-Tier allowed him to push through the fatigue when everyone else was slowing down. The others had probably been fighting all day, barely resting in between. One of the very first things you learned in gate subjugation was to know your limits as a Marked.
It was a common known fact that most people without the potential to rise to S-Tier would hit a wall at some point, fighting those strong enemies. With added unfavorable conditions of Gate Amplification, fighting without a trained and dedicated support mage was difficult, perhaps even worse than a regular high-tier gate.
Even the instructors are a little worse for wear.
Everyone looked like they needed to take a break and recover. Except… one other person.
The only other one with natural resilience like Ian's--Little Julien.
He shifted from one foot to the other, an intense look in his golden eyes. Even the burn Julien had inflicted on him in their fight earlier seemed to be almost gone. He confidently marched up to Wells, sword in hand.
"Sir. You said that the instructors and fifth-years would fight. But please, let me come too!"
The instructor regarded him with surprise, although he looked like he disapproved of that idea. "I can't let you. It's too dangerous for a first-year."
"Please, sir," Little Julien pleaded. "I can help! You were the one who examined me for one of the entrance exams. You said I'm the most talented first-year you'd seen since Ian. I'm strong, remember?"
Older Julien inwardly smiled a little. Always wanting to do something… he's me, alright. I would've said the same thing, if I was in his position.
"And I'm immune to the mana brightness," he went on. "I can see through the haze, and support everyone. You'll need all the fighters you can get!"
Wells still seemed uncertain. "I… You're barely fifteen. Everyone else is fully trained and have fought strong enemies before. You don't have the experience."
"Just let him," Linda said quietly. "The boy's right. We need all the help we can get."
Julien decided to vouch for him too. I don't want him to go through what I did in my past life, but I can't just keep him away from danger. Besides, he wasn't exactly weak when we fought. He was being controlled, I'll admit it, but I don't believe the Puppeteer buffed him or anything. It was his own strength.
"I agree," he said, gently putting his unburned hand on Little Julien's shoulder. "He'll be a big help, I'm sure."
Little Julien looked up at him, eyes brimming with pride and delight. "See?? Even Ian says so."
"Alright, then." Wells nodded. "You can come."
"Thank you! I won't let you down!"
I should go prepare, Julien thought, watching as the group resumed discussions. It's time to try something new.
"I'm just going to check something quickly," he said. "I'll be back." The others looked at him questioningly, but he left before they could stop him.
He stepped past the first-years all around the gate, and walked for a few minutes, eventually finding a deserted, but untouched clearing. He stood, examining the brightness all around him, flexing his fingers.
Alright, let's do this. He reached into Ian's memories, going through the element combination one. In it, Ian had tried to use the similarities between the two elements, and put them together.
But Ian couldn't do it. He didn't know what it was really like--the shine bouncing off a battlefield, lighting up his surroundings. Sure, fire was close. It could cast a nice glow in dark areas, but the two elements weren't the same.
Even being someone who wasn't welcomed by the light anymore, Julien could remember everything in perfect detail. And after dealing with fire for the entire week, using it as though it was truly his, he had come to understand the finer details of it.
To a person without a Mark, light might appear as just a brighter version of fire. But the difference was, the only thing fire truly aimed to do was burn. Light wanted to cut through the darkness, damaging monsters with its purity.
He knew how to bend it to his will. He could reflect rainbows, shine spotlights on enemies, direct rays in perfect arcs. And now, he had learned how to create roaring flames, how to bring heat to life.
But then there's the second problem. In his past life, he hadn't been a light mage. He didn't have to use light to cast spells. His skills had really done most of the hardest mana-shaping for him. It had come naturally, without really having to think hard.
Now, though, there was no skill that could guide him.
He took a deep breath, summoning a blossom of fire into the palm of his hand. It was familiar now--the weight of Ian's mana, ready to burn. But he always had a sense of caution while using the powers. At the edge of his mind, a faint memory stirred, one where the full potential of unchecked fire surged. He wasn't sure if it was his or Ian's--but it was a good warning nonetheless.
He studied the flames for a long while, considering the feeling he got from it. It felt almost hungry, like it wanted more. More fuel, whether that be mana or physical matter.
Now, light.
Ian had once read a theory on combination. It proposed that all elements were all shaped and connected by the mana used to bring them to life.
Raw mana can be thought of as the ability to communicate. Powerful, but meaningless without a language to shape it.
Most Marked mages believe their element is the limit to their spellcasting, as though it is the only language they will ever be fluent in. They may catch a few words or ideas from another element, but without firsthand experience to guide them, it would be impossible to ever fully learn.
Take Rainish, for example. A native of our kingdom's language, when paired with someone who only spoke the continent's common tongue of Meralinian, may succeed in getting a few names or ideas across, but would never be able to convey the full depth of meaning.
If elements were languages, then Julien was bilingual.
That's right… I can think of it as remembering the words. How to form a sentence. Grammar.
He reached deep into his mind, envisioning the mana coming to him naturally. Some began to bubble up to the surface--and though it didn't come as easily as the fire did, a thread of soft golden light spooled into existence in his other hand.
Julien slowly brought it and the fire together. The instant they touched, the fire hissed and turned pale yellow, then flickered out.
Hmm, too fast. I need to just coax them into balance.
He tried again, even slower this time. He put the two elements together carefully. The light trickled into the fire gradually, and the fire's color shifted unevenly. It wasn't perfect, but it had to be a sign--he was getting closer.
I'm almost there. One more try.