Chapter 59 - How To Train Your Lances

Arthur Leywin

The tip of the glacial cold ice sword extended and passed just a mere centimeter away from my eye, severing a lock of my hair as I stepped to the side. Varay's brown eyes focused on me, twitching in a thinly veiled look of annoyance as she spun her torso and swung her sword downward. The ice sword formed a visible arc, leaving a trail of snowflakes in it's wake as it came crashing down at me. Switching my chest to left, I softly brought Dawn up, blocking her ice sword.

"Your technique is refined. Just needs a little polishing," I spoke, and I could feel her even more annoyed than before. Was it because I wasn't a lance? Well, that would make sense that a person of high stature would not like to be lectured by someone as ordinary and average as me.

Before she could talk, a bolt of lightning came from behind me in a straight trajectory. Bending my back backwards, I kicked Varay in her gut and made some distance between us before backflipping away from the yellow bolt of light. As I landed on the tip of my feet, I saw the attacker's face next to me --- Blonde hair and green eyes --- Bairon Wykes. "You're fast." I spoke as he smirked. A spear made of pure lightning manifested in his hand as he attacked me with it. While its tip seemed more similar like a trident, the general structure of it was like a spear. As the spear came closer to my chest, I kicked his elbow joint. His brows furrowed at the impact as I had augmented my feet with quite a lot of mana. His hold over the spear weakened for a moment. Taking advantage of the moment, I spun and was about deliver a roundhouse a kick to his face, but a vine erupted from the ground, tying around my ankle as it pulled me into the air.

Alea Triscan, I noted.

Her plant magic had gotten significantly stronger than before. Not only was her imagination in using it had improved but the strength of the vines themselves had improved. Using basic fire wasn't going to burn it. And the volume had doubled from the last time I had faced her in Elenoir.

Siphoning a little more mana from my secondary core, I felt the wind whoosh around me. The wind blew, my hair brushing against my face as a blade of wind mana manifested and severed the vine that had been holding me into place. Twisting my body like a cat, I landed on my feet safely and in a near instant dashed towards her, arriving in front of her, I plunged Dawn towards her sternum. The sword pierced her abdomen and her features turned murky before vanishing away in thin mist.

"My, my, look at little Arthur all grown up."

Aya.

Her illusion magic was actually troublesome as if she imbued more mana into her illusions, I will lose track of what is real and what's not. Just as I was trying to search here and there for her, two huge hands made of earth picked me up from the ground. Using mana to augment only the little portion of my body, I looked back. It was a magma knight made by the dwarven lance --- Olfred. Water mana coiled around the magma knight like little, thin swirls of water streams and the temperature started to drop at a rapid rate. Augmenting my arms, I jerked them, and the mediocre knight crumbled to pieces.

Bending lower, I brought my head to my knee level and dodged a shimmering arc of an ice sword from Varay.

"Ridiculous." She mumbled under her breath, and I could see her biting her lip. Pushing the ground beneath my boots and exploding pure mana, I once again arrived in front of her but once again she was saved as Bairon's lightning struck my back while Alea's vine hit where my liver was, making me crash into the wall. The impact was rock hard and I could feel my internal organs all racked up. The place where the vine had struck me thrummed with pain as it swelled up. The wall in which I crashed had huge splinters running across it like a cobweb.

"Ahhh. You got me there." I spoke as I rose up from the rubble. The technique I as testing against the Lances was something I had used before in a single one-on-one duel against the Legacy--- Cecelia, but against multiple opponents, this strategy seemed to have its obvious drawbacks. The technique involved a simple yet effective method. In this technique I had to avoid augmenting my whole body with mana. But instead, only augment the part of body in direct contact during the fight. Using the presence of two mana cores inside my body, I could divide the flow of mana and make it swift. For example, while delivering a punch, I can compact mana into my fist alone instead of the whole arm. This results in an explosive force upon contact, much more potent than conventional augmentation.

The risk of recoil is somewhat worrying but using fast enough control over mana, the areas in potential danger could just be augmented at the last moment. However, when fighting multiple opponents, it was a change scenario. While my body and mind can react to incoming attacks, the speed of my control over mana was slower. Even now I can feel a fractured rib from Alea's attack due to the sheer recoil despite me half-augmenting it. It was a technique I came up with in Euphotus after seeing the Pantheon's minute usage of mana. It was one of the best methods to preserve mana in a dragged-out battle.

"Those reflexes are unreal." Olfred spoke from beyond the mist that suddenly started to creep up.

"Well, he is my cherished little brother. Of course, he would be good at this," Aya spoke with a sly grin as she licked her lower lip, slowly dissipating behind the translucent veil of her illusions.

"Ridiculous." Varay spoke once again.

I heard you the first time though. Why does she keep repeating the same word over and over again? Maybe her pride as a lance has masked the true reality from her eyes.

"You kno-" Before I could speak, a feeling akin to being hit by a bullet train at its max speed invaded me as I was sent flying into another wall. It was good that I saw the spiked mace from my peripheral vision or else my face would've been punctured. Is she trying to kill me?

"Mica wants to play too!" The petite dwarven lance spoke as she placed the gigantic mace on her shoulders, a toothy grin over her face. She used to talk in third person referring to herself by her name.

"That was close." I replied as her grin vanished. Cracking my neck, I dusted off my clothes and my hair that had pile of dust gathered on it.

"We are not here to play. If you have no intention of taking this seriously, then be prepared for any ramification that would come your way," Varay spoke as the mana swirled around her finger and the hilt of a sword started to appear in her hand. Before it fully came out, I arrived in front of her and placed my hand on her hand which was on the hilt, "I am taking it seriously though. Sorry, if I am not that great."

Her eyes widened as if taken aback by the speed. Ice mana fluttered and the sword of ice materialiased almost instantly in her hand.

Almost.

Taking Dawn out once again, I gripped it, the tether of connection between us strengthening. She bent to my will, changing her shape as she transformed into a death-scythe. Varay's eyes widened as I spun it upwards. She brought her sword up but it was a feint. Before she could react, I pulled the scythe and this time attacked with a upward slash, threatening to cut her face open.

Much to my surprise, she conjured another sword and blocked it from beneath, looking at me with a ferocious intensity in her eyes, her cool and composed mask already breaking away.

"Dual wielding. Interesting." I remarked as she swung her swords from both angles like a scissor. Once again, I spun the scythe and lowered my head, before slipping from beneath her and slashing her. The scythe went right through the sword and shattered them to pieces. Augmenting mana into my heel, I was about to kick her back, but she suddenly jumped and instead of striking her back, my heel was met with her gluteus maximus. A rather effeminate squeal escaped her mouth as she went crashing into the ground face first with her rear pointed towards the ceiling.

'I should probably apologise later,' I thought to myself. Although I can't help but wonder. Despite her ice-cold appearance and the "pretend" indifferent air around her, I wasn't expecting her curves to be this supple. It was almost as if my feet had struck a gooey, half-melted marshmallow. While I haven't had the honour to gauge the suppleness of multiple females, I could still tell that it was pretty HEART warming.

'Ew, gross. What are you even thinking about?' Sylvie asked, disgust laced in her tone as I curled and uncurled my bare feet. 'AND WHAT ARE YOU CURLING YOUR TOES FOR?'

'Oh this? They just happened to curl on their own. Maybe they're just reliving the feeling?'

Sylvie fell into silence, her feeling of... disappointment leaking through our bond.

Did I say something weird?

Before I could talk to her again, the ground around me started to shake and gravity doubled. "Mica wants to play. Don't be an airhead." Mica spoke out of pure joy as she jumped in the air and brought her mace down at me.

I let out a deep breath and bent my back, taking into every single bit of information around me. Realmheart flared to life as mana started to tremble all around me. It was if the air molecules were vibrating, the air around me started to produce a drumming sound and the world started to slow down. It wasn't {Static Void} but another technique where I imbue a lot of electricity inside myself, boosting my neural impulses that increase my information intake and natural reflexes 3-4 times faster than their natural speed.

I call it the...

"Thundering Cognition."

'Blegh. Your naming skills are worse, Oh my grandfather.'

'It fits it tho.'

'Don't name your attacks so literally.' I heard Sylvie almost scream at me.

'Electrosensory Blitz?'

'That is even more edgy I am not even going to lie at this point.'

'Well, names can come later... I guess...'

'Yeppers. Now do something about them.'

My eyes trailed around as I took in every bit of information under the influence of Realmheart. It was an exceedingly difficult situation. If I don't work hard, I might end up with a few broken bones. However, I don't want to.

How troublesome.

How burdensome.

I feel like I would die of...

...

...

boredom.

The ground beneath me was splitting --- Alea's vines trying to break through and blind me. Their strategy was simple and effective...

...yet it was something that could prove disastrous for them once someone catches up to it. The strategy was straightforward. Alea would block my view with her vines while Aya sets up her illusions. The illusions would mask the secondary attackers like Bairon who prefers to stay away and launch bolts of lightning and Olfred who uses Magma magic to create golems and also to entrap me in a Magma Prison. Varay and Mica were already positioning themselves in opposite direction of mine. The gravity around Mica's mace was getting lower which would allow her higher mobility while she can increase it when she is striking me. However, she was also using Gravity magic to form a sort of singularity into space.

Her mastery over earth element was commendable.

But...

I have to go play with Ellie. I can't stay here any longer. I had promised Virion and Aldir that I would help the Lances to train as a team and for today it seems like they've started collaborating together. I should end it soon.

"Dawn. Scythe Form. Again." I mumbled as a shimmering purple light encased its form and she transformed into a Death Scythe. The hilt remained the same while the teal blade turned as dark as darkest night while it's structure started to change. It possessed a sleek, curved form, reminiscent of the crescent moon at its peak. Its pitch-black surface seemed to be forged from an alloy of obsidian and shadowsteel, glistening with an ominous luster, as if it was drawing power from the very depths of some abyss. The blade had a single infusion of a rune, carefully etched into its surface. The rune, written in an arcane language, pulsed with a faint, eerie glow, hinting at something similar yet so unknow.

"Dawn, what is this rune?" I asked but got no response from her. I could feel her emotions. I wouldn't be too sure but since I was used to Sylvie I knew that she was feeling emotions. But what was happening to her? She seemed to be functioning well. Guess I will figure it out after this battle.

'Well, let's deal with the vines and mist first.' I spoke to myself, as I raised the scythe high, its blade gleaming with flickering embers and ribbons of wind. With a swift, deliberate motion, I brought the scythe down, causing a surge of wind to whip around them, stoking the fires of the spell.

I guess I will test all forms here.

"Ruin's Blade; First form - Inferno Cyclone." A powerful gust of wind infused with scorching flames was unleashed, creating a spiraling cyclone of fire and wind. The cyclone roared forward, engulfing the vines that had just splintered the floor beneath in its searing embrace, dealing both slashing and burning damage. The vines sure had a thicc volume, but the flames turned blue suddenly and more wind blew, augmenting the flames even further.

"Huh? What was that?" Alea exclaimed as she her green eyes met mine. Her eyes widened as she took a step back, "Retreat everyone. That form... it is bad news."

As perceptive as ever. There was a reason she was called the best sensory mage in Dicathen. While she didn't know the full extent of my plan, the premonition feeling, and her natural intuition had already warned her about the situation.

Her brows furrowed in concentration as she started to conjure more and more vines but they were getting burnt faster than they could regenerate and be conjured.

"Aya!"

"NOT YET!"

"Don't make such a big deal out of it. He might be strong, but we are the strongest mages in Dicathen." Varay spoke as a chill ran down my spine. "I am still in testing phase of this spell but I guess I will show you my ultimate spell." She declared and despite the presence of a raging burning inferno tornado, the temperature started to drop.

She was strong.

Maybe I'd lose.

...maybe.

'You'll lose to her or you'll let her win? There is a difference you know.' Sylvie snickered.

'I am not as strong as you think I am. I am just as strong as any White Core would.'

'Yeah. Yeah. Whatever helps you to blend in.'

'Rude. We need to talk after this.'

A wave of intangible shiver ran down her spine as I felt it too, followed by a dead calm silence.

'I was just about to tell her to be a little considerate of me though. She won't even do that?'

Looking back up, I saw Varay being encased in an armour of ice that made her seem like an ice ninja. Snowflakes started to fall on the ground as I picked one of them midair.

"What are you doing?" Varay asked with an annoyed tone.

"Oh? I just wanted to see how ice made from magic tasted."

Bairon and Olfred stifled their laughter despite the same annoyed look from before. As I looked at Varay her face was red, steam rising from her head despite being an ice mage and she seemed like she would explode any moment like an active volcano.

"You're making fun of me, aren't you?" She said as i took a step back.

"Uh, no. I was really trying to-" Before I knew it, her blade was near my neck, ready to behead me.

"Compound Magic - Ruin's Blade; Second Form - Scorching Sand."

A series of visible wind in the form of a hurricane started to storm from behind me. However, it wasn't just any wind. The wind had sand mixed in it which was heated to the maximum level of heat. Her armour was protecting her, so she won't be hurt too badly. A shield of ice formed in front of her as she blocked the sand attack.

"You seem to forget me every time, little Arthur," a seductive voice spoke in my ear, the warm breath in my ear making my body shudder.

"I never forget you, Aya." I spoke and attacked her illusion with the handle of Dawn before swinging the scythe in a 360 degrees over my head.

"Ruin's Blade - Third Form; Flame Blade Slash."

The blade turned bright red and got caught on blue fire. Wind mana augmented it again and this time the flames started to materialise as an extension of the scythe's curved blade, sending scorching crescents of flames everywhere.

"What is that form? So much mana and there seems no end to it. Does he an unlimited pool of mana?" Olfred spoke as he closed in.

Bairon stayed silent but I could feel a morbid anxiety build up inside him. It was going as I had planned. The main reason was to make them work together. I had suggested this method to council because if every retainer was as strong as Uto, the Lances do not stand a chance. So they need to fight together and be dispatched as a unit instead of alone. If a Scythe appeared... I could always sac Arisu.

'How cruel. But don't you like her?' Sylvie spoke out of the blue... again.

Do I like her? I haven't felt genuine infatuation... other than for my current family. I do not want Arisu to die but that is because of many other reasons. And none of them have anything to do with feelings.

Varay boxed in and side stepped, her sword reaching for my chest. Swinging the scythe, I repelled her attack and followed by repetitive attacks of my own as she started to block one strike after another.

"You won't last long, Varay. Your spell is draining you core too quickly."

"It's 'General' Varay and I haven't forgotten what you just... did to me." She spoke.

"Oh that. I am sorry about that. It wasn't intentional. I can swear on the cakes my mom just made."

Her brows twitched even further, "Why don't you take it seriously?"

"I am. You're the one getting fixated on a kick when it wasn't with the intention to mean any kind of disrespect."

However, even after me saying it she didn't stop and continued her barrage of attacks.

"Looks fun. Mica will join too."

Well. Screw everyone. I can't be late and disappoint my sister.

Mana exploded from inside me, pushing everyone away.

"Wher-"

"Wha-"

"Ho-"

Alea, Bairon and Olfred fell to the ground with muted thuds as I knocked them out with a jab to the back of their heads. "Sorry, but we'll play later." I spoke to Mica before arriving in front of her. Placing my hand over her face, I crashed her face on the floor, making the ground beneath her crack as she fell into a meteor sized crater.

"Varay's eyes were on me. But before she could move her arm to swing her blade, I placed my hand on her hilt, "I am a bit tight on time. Next time." Saying that knocked her unconcious before looking at Aya.

"Come on. What are you waiting for. Knock me out too." She said with a smile, biting her lip.

"Don't want to give you the satisfaction. And besides, this isn't you. You haven't been here this whole time."

"As sharp as ever."

"Can you report this to Virion? I have to meet someone."

"I won't be doing your work for you without a price."

Sighing, I looked at her, "What is it?"

""Take the princess on a date."

"Ok."

She looked at me for a moment, utterly confused, "Come again?"

"You heard it the first time. I am going now." I replied and left immediately.

(Blaine Glayder)

Only one word came to mind as I entered the room where Virion had told me the lances would be training together.

What kind of monstrosity has taken birth in this continent?

My Lances. Varay --- the strongest of them was laying on the floor unconscious along with other 4 lances. Only the elven lance, Aya Grephin was standing, unscathed as she bowed in her direction.

Virion sighed from behind me, "I told him to hold back."

Hold back? Why did he tell that boy to hold back? He might be trained by asuras but to do this to all lances?

"He did." Aya spoke as I felt a shiver of fear run down my spine. "However, he had an appointment with his sister. He has missed a lot of time with his family so that seems to be his first priority."

"His first priority should be our orde-"

Virion waved his hand, "Let him be. We can't do much about it anyways." He said with a tired sigh before looking at Aya, "have the lances transferred to their quarters. This is enough for today."

Arthur Leywin.

Kathyln had mentioned his name before.

Maybe I should get her married with him. Who needs two lances when I can get a single one who can single handedly take out everyone. That way, after this war, I can have the whole continent in my hands.

Arthur Leywin. You love your family don't you? I will make sure you bend down to me.

As Virion was about to leave he stopped and placed his hand over my shoulder, "For your own and this continent's sake. Don't play any games with that boy," he spoke as I saw dread in his eyes, "as long as his own safety is assured, he won't mind reducing the whole continent to ashes if he deemed it the better thing to do. So, stay away."

(*****)

Holy shit, I am beat. Took some time to write it, but it turned out alright-ish. Lemme know how was it. Wrote a long fight scene after quite some time and I feel i've lost the touch so leave review over it.

Leave a stone or a review if you actually liked it since it makes me feel good and boosts my WN ego. Anyways, that is it for today.

See ya all next week. Sayonara.