Chapter 71
Lyana looked at Azek.
A large circle was starting to appear in front of him.
She turned her gaze and gathered the embers inside her.
Her heartbeat was getting faster.
Her instincts warned her that she would not be able to hold out long.
But she gathered mana anyway.
A fire blade started appearing beside her.
Her hands started trembling while her arms convulsed, but she raised them.
The stone platform was picking up speed.
Lyana closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, her trembling had stopped, and she steadily grabbed the fire sword.
Azek was taking the shortest path, which meant monsters would appear out of thin air if they were unlucky.
And as far as Lyana knew, she never relied on luck to take a path. She always made a way herself with her own hands, whether luck was on her side or not.
And the same was true now.
She knew that she had to become the impenetrable defense herself. Otherwise, even luck wouldn't come her way.
A mid-grade monster appeared.
A large bear-like figure with multiple limbs.
It lifted its front limbs and tried to attack the stone platform.
Booooom.
Lyana shot out from the platform and leaped into the air.
She lifted her hands and made a horizontal sword slash.
The sword got stuck in the monster's skin and couldn't move forward beyond a few inches.
But she didn't stop.
She immediately altered its path as soon as she sensed resistance and instead converted it into a vertical slash with a superficial impact, cutting open the skin.
The monster shrieked as fire burned through its flesh.
Lyana didn't stop.
Another shift to her legs, and she pivoted on her left foot and attacked again.
She continued injuring the monster without giving it a chance to attack.
It opened its mouth and tried to attack her physically, but the sword directly cut off its tongue, slicing through its maw.
The monster went into a frenzy and tried to attack her violently.
Lyana focused.
She didn't have enough power to outdo it in a single attack.
Neither were her attacks enough to make it die in a short time.
The stone platform was drifting further and further away, becoming a dot.
She closed her eyes.
And suddenly felt something underneath her feet.
The monster's attack landed, but it missed its mark.
Lyana was lifted off the ground.
A small piece of flat boulder was supporting her.
She smiled and gathered herself together.
Fire started getting concentrated into the blade.
She took a defensive stance while doing it.
Her attacks started penetrating deeper and deeper.
The fire completely went out, and her blade changed color.
It became a shade of red.
Boom. Boom.
Her heartbeat was getting faster and faster.
Her circle was completely exhausted.
But she didn't pay attention and continued gathering mana.
The sword changed color again.
It now became a grey-black shade.
She exhaled.
Smoke came out of her mouth, but she didn't notice.
"Let's see."
Crack.
The monster's limb was penetrated.
Azek said that mana should be in an excited state.
She parried another attack.
How should I excite it?
He said something about rotational movement and using energy inside.
"Hmm…"
Booom.
Another clash.
Her sword started emitting smoke.
What if I make it move in different directions?
She felt the mana in her sword and started commanding it.
Mana started moving.
But it wasn't typical movement.
Instead, mana particles started moving around each other in different directions.
"Hmm…"
A dance, Lyana concluded.
Yes, it looked like particles were dancing.
Booooom.
A limb was completely cut off.
He said that it had to move fast.
Particles started gathering faster.
Her heartbeat was now resounding in her ears, and her blood was rushing throughout her body.
Drip… drip…
She started bleeding from her mouth.
But she didn't stop.
Particles danced faster and faster.
The sword started glowing.
A shade of blazing red.
Jarrrrrrrrakkkkkkk.
A horizontal slash again.
The monster's head went flying.
A vertical slash.
The mana core was cut through, burning black mana completely.
Excited mana moved and burned through the whole carcass.
Pffffff.
She hunched over, and a mouthful of blood came out.
She spat, removed the remaining taste, and wiped her lips with her sleeve.
A mana thread shot into the stone platform.
It started moving slowly.
And suddenly picked up pace.
The stone platform, which had disappeared, came into view again.
Genevieve was trying to hold off low-grade monsters hording the rear end.
The boulder instantly shot into the platform, and Lyana landed.
A slash cut through.
Monster bodies fell off.
Lyana's hands trembled.
But she shook them and grabbed the sword steadily again.
This time, she had found her path.
And now it would be too much of a waste if she gave up.
A fiery passion burned through her eyes.
Genevieve, who had gotten a breather, looked at her.
Her body was ridden with monster attacks, and her lips and sleeves were blood-stained.
His heart shook, and he looked at his hands.
He wasn't able to cast aside from simple healing spells.
And that was because he had some healing-type mana inside him.
His family was excited when they found out and immediately sent him to the church, mistaking it for holy power.
But soon, the truth came out.
As he practiced, he could only cast simple healing spells meant for minor wounds.
He wouldn't progress further.
Although it was disappointing, he had developed Grade-1 aptitude for mana affinity and started working on wind spells, eventually getting into the Royal Academy.
But now he needed more than just a simple healing spell.
The Princess had shared Azek's lecture with him and even taught him the concept in simple words.
Although she herself was still learning, he shamelessly asked her when he found out about Azek's private class.
She didn't seem to mind and taught him.
Mana excitation.
That was a concept foreign to him.
But right now, he needed to understand it better than anybody else.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to protect the people he was supposed to protect.
Boooooom.
Another monster fell off the platform.
Genevieve looked at the Princess again.
Her sword was glowing, her body was in stance, and the wounds on her body were starting to bleed.
He held out his hands.
The mana inside him was drawn out.
"Please listen to me…"
And he started making a plea to the wind gathered beside them.
"Please… I beg you… help me…"
He closed his eyes.
Mana was gathering in front of him.