Chronicles of Legends

Volume 3 Chapter 15 - Power of Aether

As I revealed my quadra-elemental abilities to the world for the first time, I heard a collective gasp from the audience. But I couldn't afford to let their shock distract me; I needed to focus on the battle at hand.

I had seen three swordsmanship styles from Gary already, but now he adopted a completely different stance, his thumb loosely gripping the hilt of his black blade. I summoned my mana, four elements swirling around me, and met his attack with my teal blade.

[Gravar Style]

But his strength overwhelmed me, and I stumbled back, stunned by the force of his strike. The surprise among the audience grew, and I couldn't blame them. After all, there were no tri-elementals that existed, and now they were seeing two quadra-elementals battle it out.

But I couldn't let their awe distract me. I gathered my wits and prepared to face Gary once more, determined to prove my worth as a Paladin.

"You thought you were the only quadra-elemental?" Gary asked in a slightly mocking tone, before his stance changed once again.

I braced myself for his next move, but I was not prepared for what came next.

[Second movement of the Keiki Style: Horizon Splitting Slash] 

With a powerful swing of his midnight-black sword, he seemed to slice through space itself, cleaving the air in two.

I reacted quickly, countering his attack with my own sword, but even so, Gary still managed to cut me across the chest. A trail of scarlet blood dripped down my skin, but the wound was quickly healed from my assimilated body.

I could sense a slight change in Gary's expression as I countered his attack, but just as quickly, it returned to its stoic state.

"Don't hold back," he warned me, his voice low and dangerous. "You won't last long without using Realmheart."

I knew he was right. Gary's sword technique was far superior to mine, and he was two core stages above me. His mana manipulation was also on another level altogether.

I took a deep breath, steeling myself for what was to come. I knew that even with Realmheart, I would not be able to defeat him if he resorted to using his aetheric core. He had demonstrated his ability to disturb my aether flow during a slumber party as a prank, and the memory still left me feeling disturbed.

As Sylvia's beast within me stirred, I could feel the deep rumbling of its power within my yellow core.

Golden runes spread across my skin, their intricate designs weaving together to form a shimmering shield. My auburn hair transformed into a radiant wheat-blonde, and my irises glinted like pure gold.

The ambient mana in the air around us seemed to bend to my will, as if they were bowing to a king. It was an intoxicating feeling, one that I craved more and more.

I focused on tapping into Sylvia's influence, drawing on the power of Realmheart to activate even more of my abilities. The golden runes on my skin grew brighter, their light pulsating with each beat of my heart.

In that moment, I felt like a king of my own world, wielding the true power of the divine at my fingertips. All my worries, all my fears, were instantly doused like flames quenched by a cold blanket.

For a brief moment, I basked in the glory of my power, feeling unstoppable and ready to take on anything. But that feeling of invincibility shattered as soon as I met Gary's eyes.

In that moment, I saw an absolute void, a darkness that threatened to swallow me whole. His lips curled into a smile, and his aetheric core ignited with power, stealing away my control over the space around us.