458

Episode 458 Now You Can Shine. (2)

'Belinda… … .'

Jiselle taught everyone new mana cultivation methods and techniques, but only gave Belinda a space to practice.

The mana training methods and techniques she used were impeccable.

There was only one thing she lacked.

'I've lived my whole life supporting Elena and me. I haven't even been able to train properly.'

In the past, I didn't have enough time to practice properly because of raising children. Now, as the head of the household in Fenris, I am in charge of taking care of others.

No matter how good the mana concentration was, all I could do was occasionally take the time to practice.

'Still, his skills are on par with Gillian's, who spent his entire life on the battlefield.'

That alone showed how talented Belinda was and how great her writing skills were.

But from a young age, she gave up honing her shining talents in order to take care of Giselle and Elena.

'ha....'

So whenever Giselle saw Belinda, her heart would ache with pity. Because of the sacrifice she had made in devoting her life to raising her two young siblings.

Clearly, she and Elena were like children to her, even if it started as a promise made to her deceased mother.

'So now I want you to live a little more comfortably.'

It was Giselle's honest wish to repay her sacrifice.

'Maybe… … I can help you… … .'

As the battle unfolded, a thought suddenly occurred to her, and Jiselle began to spread the threads of mana everywhere.

I didn't mean to get directly involved in the fight. I just wanted to help her a little bit to get to her realization.

Kaang! Kaang! Kaang!

Sharp energy shot out in all directions. The lights flashed in the darkness like a constellation of stars.

But the light was gradually diminishing. Belinda's body was covered in wounds, and all the daggers had fallen to the floor, leaving only one in her hand.

"Ugh, ugh… … ."

Belinda, covered in blood, was breathing heavily. Melkir, on the other hand, seemed only a little out of breath, but was not seriously injured.

Melkir glanced at Giselle again.

'Are you really not going to interfere?'

We'll have to wait a little longer to find out. Melkir is slowly deciding to take Belinda's life.

'Okay, keep being so cheeky.'

Squat.

Melkir's dagger, which had drawn more mana, extended like a flash. Belinda tried to dodge backwards by kicking the ground.

At the same time, Giselle's voice rang in her ear.

- A little lighter.

grasp!

For a moment, Belinda's body moved back further than she had intended. She felt the intervention of Giselle's power.

'Master… … .'

- The movements are too heavy. Belinda.

'what....'

Belinda couldn't continue her thoughts, because Melkir, having failed to attack, struck again with his dagger.

"Ugh!"

Belinda ducked her waist and dodged the attack once again. This time, an invisible force intervened.

After hearing Giselle's words, she tried to somehow increase her speed a little.

But Giselle's voice stopped him.

- You don't have to just go fast. You have to move more lightly. That's probably right.

No one has ever seen all the techniques Belinda uses, because she has never fought so openly using all of her techniques.

Even if he was Giselle, he couldn't completely grasp the advanced techniques Belinda was using just by looking at them now.

But as I kept looking, I thought I knew what direction the technology was ultimately pursuing.

― Belinda will surely know what to do. Remember, there is no shortage of mana. You absorbed a part of the Dragon Heart, right?

Tsk!

Belinda's cheek was cut once more, and blood spurted out, but she tried to avoid Melkir's dagger while also focusing on Giselle's words.

Because of Giselle's intervention, moving my body became a little easier.

'Not faster than now, but lighter… …? Remember?'

― If Belinda is truly the sole successor to that group… … she must have seen the ultimate form of that technology at least once. Right?

She realized what Giselle meant and searched her memory.

Now was not the time to ponder the Mana training methods and techniques that had been written down in words and pictures, or the teachings that had been passed down only through word of mouth.

She recalled the scene from her childhood that was most vivid in her memory.

'Annette… … .'

A beautiful blonde woman dances. Bright stars swirl around her.

The stars that embroidered the darkness were dancing together, moving here and there according to the blonde woman's hand.

Belinda, still a young girl, gazed in fascination at the trails of the stars.

She also wanted to reach that level. That was her wish.

But I couldn't reach it.

Scratch!

Belinda's arm was cut again, blood spurting out, but she was still moving.

Now, I am looking at that dance with blank eyes, which I can no longer see.

Ah, I remembered something. Something I had completely forgotten while living a busy life.

Annette in my memory said with a smile.

― You see? Someday, you too will be able to do it. Don't forget this feeling.

After absorbing the Dragon Heart, Belinda trained whenever she had time to learn Annette's secret technique.

But even though I invested all the time I had between tasks, I was unable to implement it. Even though I didn't lack mana and there was no problem with the flow of mana rods.

I gave up halfway because I couldn't figure out why. I figured it would just take a little more time and experience.

Jiselle's voice rang out again.

- The feeling of movement is a bit different than before. I'll help you.

grasp!

Belinda's feet hit the ground again and she fell back. She was busy dodging the blows of Melkir's dagger, which struck her repeatedly.

But thanks to Giselle's intervention, he was moving further than he had thought. It was as if his body had become as light as a feather.

'Was I… able to move like this?'

I felt like I could do it. I felt like I knew what it would feel like. It wasn't just a movement focused on speed.

But why haven't I been able to do this until now? What was holding me back?

Again, Giselle's voice rings in my ears.

- Belinda's heart is so heavy.

'It's heavy?'

― Just like our father, he always lives worrying about me and Elena.

'… … But, Your Majesty, my mission is… … .'

― You must become a noble being alone like the stars in the sky. At least for this moment.

'I am....'

- Don't have any worries, no burdens, no responsibilities.

'master....'

― I'm always sorry and grateful to Belinda. She took care of me and Elena all our lives. Even giving up Belinda's life.

'No, that's what I wanted. I have absolutely no regrets.'

― I know how you feel. But let go of that feeling for a moment. It's holding Belinda back from growing.

widely.

Belinda kicked the ground to dodge the attack. Unlike before, her footsteps were barely audible. There were no footprints left behind.

Her movements began to change, as if she was floating.

'This feeling is… … .'

Thanks to Jiselle's mana, she was able to move with very little strength. Her tense body gradually lost strength.

It felt like someone was lifting her up for her. It felt like she was defying gravity, even if only for a moment. No resistance could hold her back.

'This is… … .'

This was exactly the feeling. The dance she saw of Annette seemed to float freely among the stars without any restraint.

The group she was in was one that had been protecting the Kingdom of Rutania from the darkness for a very long time.

But the secret to that group was to break free from the constraints of having to protect someone and overcome contradictions.

'Ahh… … This is it… … .'

When I got to know that feeling, it seemed like the realm I had been longing for was right before my eyes.

Now, even Jiselle's mana, which had been helping him move, felt uncomfortable.

At that moment, Giselle's mana disappeared. Belinda's body became lighter and began to move faster.

But it's not perfect. We need to go a little further and get to that level completely.

Still, something remained in his heart, blocking the path.

At that moment, Jiselle's calm voice rang in my ears again.

- Belinda.

She lived in hiding, even though she could have shined brighter than anyone else. She suppressed everything she had and lived only for Giselle and Elena.

In this way, he always poured out endless love and devotion behind the two of them.

In that heart, Jiselle couldn't help but feel grateful and sorry.

- Now, relax. Don't worry too much.

It's not easy. For her, who had lost everything, Giselle and Elena were like her whole life.

So how can we just watch them with peace of mind?

As if he knew her feelings, Jiselle smiled and said, her voice more confident and powerful than ever.

- I'm all grown up now, right? So it's really okay.

Belinda smiled. Tears welled up in her eyes.

But they were not tears of sadness, but tears of joy mixed with pride.

Scratch!

Melkir's dagger cut through the darkness again.

Belinda ducked her head and waist, narrowly avoiding it. At the same time, her hand moved slightly.

Ddddddd… … .

As the day wore on, the daggers that had fallen to the ground with their strings snapped began to tremble.

Melkir felt something strange. The flow of mana around him was unusual.

"You bitch! What the hell are you doing all of a sudden!"

Scratch!

Belinda, who had dodged the dagger again, moved her other hand. Her movements gradually became more like dancing.

Ddddddd… … .

The daggers that had been shaking little by little began to slowly rise into the air. Melkir's eyes widened as he saw Belinda's movements.

"You, you, surely… … ."

Melkir drew more mana and swung his dagger at incredible speed. He must have been overdoing it, as black smoke began to pour out of his mouth.

Yet he did not even brush against Belinda's collar.

It was like dealing with a ghost. With each attack, Belinda dodged as lightly as a feather, pushed back by the force.

'This, this movement!'

Melkir realized that Belinda had climbed over the wall, and the movement was exactly like that of Annette, who had once killed him.

At that moment, Belinda's lips moved and a small voice escaped.

"The sound that shakes the starlight."

Wheaaaaaaaaa!

Melkir, who had been pressuring Belinda, turned around and swung his dagger.

Chae-ae-aeng!

A dagger with all its teeth cut out flew towards him, enveloped in a strong blue light. Melkir struck it away, but it did not fall to the ground and continued to push him forward.

"This, this crazy… … ."

Melkir was dumbfounded. He was forced to fight with a dagger floating in the air. What was even more surprising was that.

"Auror… … Blade… … ."

I couldn't believe it. The dagger that had attacked me was wrapped in a short aura blade.

Now Belinda was firing her Aura Blade without even holding the weapon in her hand.

And that wasn't the end of it.

Shhhh!

Daggers wrapped in aura blades shot out from all directions. Their number increased one by one, and eventually, dozens of daggers that had fallen on the ground all rushed towards Melkir.

Kaka kaka kang!

Melkir moved hastily, parrying and dodging the daggers. But there were too many of them.

Although each of their powers was weak enough to be considered master-level, they were all firing Aura Blades. It was a situation similar to dozens of top-tier knights rushing in.

Melkir muttered with a momentary look of fear in his eyes.

"This, this b*tch… … This skill is really… … ."

Countless trajectories of light cut across the entire space. Melkir was trapped in that space against his will.

This is the melody that creates the moment and the joy of infinite space.

The secret technique of Annette, the commander of the Shadow Knights, who was once called the strongest in the kingdom, was perfectly implemented here.

Kagagagagagak!

The daggers moved at incredible speed, taking over the space. The area around Melkir was filled only with the light trails created by the daggers.

"Kkaaaak!"

Melkir, unable to block all the daggers that were coming at him, was cut and torn all over his body.

Belinda's movements stopped. She glared at Melkir with fiery eyes.

Chaang!

The two daggers hidden at her waist were placed in her hands.

Before Belinda's eyes, Annette's face appeared, smiling after finishing her dance.

―Like the stars in the sky, you can shine now.