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Chapter 394: Crisis (4)

The battlefield was chaos incarnate. Tentacles lashed out with crushing force, shattering platforms and sending waves surging over the makeshift battlefield. The adventurers and knights fought valiantly, rallying under Lucavion's sharp commands as he led them with ruthless precision. His blade burned with the dark energy of [Flame of Equinox], every strike slicing cleanly through the Kraken's monstrous appendages.

Elara stood amidst the fray, her staff glowing faintly with frost magic. Her limbs felt heavy, her breath labored, and yet—somehow—she kept moving, kept casting. She planted her feet firmly on the icy ground, drawing on reserves of mana that shouldn't have been there.

'This isn't right,' she thought, her chest tightening as another spell surged through her.

「Glacial Shard Volley」 (3-star spell)

A flurry of razor-sharp ice shards shot from her staff, piercing through the smaller creatures swarming around Lucavion. The frost crackled as it spread, freezing the water in jagged patterns and slowing the monsters in their tracks.

Elara gasped, her grip tightening on her staff as she swayed slightly. Her core felt like it should be empty, drained after so many high-tier spells, but each time she reached for more power, it was there. Her frost magic responded to her call with an intensity she'd never experienced before.

'Why does it feel like I'm overflowing?' she wondered, her brows furrowing as she steadied herself. The sensation wasn't entirely pleasant—it was as though her mana was surging beyond her control, threatening to consume her.

"Elara, focus!" Cedric's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. He stood near her, his shield raised to block an incoming tentacle swipe. "We can't afford to lose you!"

She nodded, shaking off her unease. "I'm fine," she said, though the words felt hollow. Still, she turned her attention back to the battle.

Lucavion, darting between tentacles with inhuman agility, barked another command. "Mages, concentrate on the tentacle bases! We need to limit its range! Everyone else, cover them!"

Elara didn't hesitate. She raised her staff once more, her frost magic flaring brightly as she cast a powerful area-of-effect spell.

「Frozen Bind」 (3-star spell)

Thick chains of ice erupted from the ground, coiling around the Kraken's nearest appendage and locking it in place. The massive tentacle thrashed violently, struggling against the frost-coated bindings, but they held firm.

Lucavion shot her a sharp glance, his smirk widening. "Good! Keep that up!"

Elara's heart skipped at his words—not from embarrassment, but from the realization that she was keeping pace with him. He was leading the charge, his blade carving through the chaos, and she was right there, supporting him, matching his rhythm.

'How am I doing this?' she thought, her mind racing. Every time she felt like she was reaching her limit, like she would collapse from exhaustion, something pushed her forward. Her core, her frost magic—it didn't falter. Instead, it surged, as though responding to some invisible force.

Another tentacle swung toward Lucavion, its pores glowing ominously. Elara's instincts kicked in, and she raised her staff again.

「Ice Wall」 (2-star spell)

A barrier of frost erupted between Lucavion and the incoming attack, deflecting the poisonous darts that shot from the glowing pores. Lucavion didn't even flinch, his blade slashing upward to sever the tentacle cleanly.

"Nice timing, mage!" he called over his shoulder, his tone laced with genuine praise.

Elara's cheeks flushed slightly, but she forced herself to focus. 'He's depending on me,' she realized. The thought sent a strange warmth through her chest, cutting through the icy magic swirling around her.

As the battle raged on, the two of them fell into an unspoken rhythm. Lucavion moved like a predator, precise and relentless, his blade cutting through the Kraken's appendages with surgical efficiency. Elara followed his lead, her frost magic binding and slowing the creature, creating openings for him to strike.

And then it hit her.

When she stood amidst the chaos, her magic weaving through the battlefield in perfect sync with Lucavion's attacks, a strange sensation began to creep over her. At first, it was subtle—just a faint tremor in the flow of her mana. But it quickly grew, becoming a torrent of pressure that churned within her chest.

'What is this…?' she thought, her breath hitching as she tried to steady herself. Her grip on her staff faltered, and the frost magic she'd been channeling flickered erratically, the crystalline patterns dissolving into faint mist.

The world seemed to slow around her. The clamor of the battlefield faded into a distant hum, and the sharp movements of the Kraken and the adventurers became sluggish, as though submerged in thick water. Elara's heart pounded in her ears, the rhythm erratic and frantic.

The mana within her core surged wildly, no longer responding to her commands. Frost bloomed uncontrollably from her staff, its tendrils twisting and spiraling outward with chaotic abandon. The magic was no longer hers to control—it was something else entirely, as if a foreign force had taken hold.

Her knees buckled as the pain hit—a searing, wrenching agony that tore through her body like shards of ice. She gasped, her vision blurring as the frost magic erupted from her, spiraling outward in a massive, uncontrolled burst.

"NO!" she cried, but the words were swallowed by the maelstrom of magic.

The frosty energy didn't strike the Kraken as intended. Instead, it veered wildly, arcing across the battlefield in a random, destructive path. It slammed into one of the platforms with a deafening crash, freezing it solid before shattering it into jagged shards that rained into the sea.

Elara collapsed onto her knees, her staff slipping from her trembling hands. Her chest heaved as she struggled to catch her breath, her body trembling from the aftershock of the uncontrollable magic. She felt like she was falling apart, her core raw and aching.

'What… what just happened?' she thought, panic gripping her as she clutched at her chest. The sensation was unlike anything she had ever experienced before—a force beyond her understanding, tearing through her magic as if it had a will of its own.

The battlefield spun around her as she fought to steady her vision. When it cleared, what she saw made her blood run cold.

Massive whirlpools had begun forming across the ocean, their spiraling currents dark and ominous. They churned violently, pulling debris, ships, and smaller monsters into their depths. The Kraken seemed to feed off the chaos, its massive form writhing with renewed energy as the sea itself turned against them.

"Wh-!"

Before Elara could even process the chaos spiraling around her, another deafening crash shook the battlefield. A massive tentacle slammed down onto a nearby platform, sending a shockwave that shattered wood and sent debris flying in all directions.

Her eyes widened as she saw a large chunk of splintered wood hurtling directly toward her. Instinctively, she raised her hand, her mind desperately trying to summon a protective spell. But when she reached for her mana—nothing.

'What's happening?' she thought, panic surging as the frost magic she relied on failed to respond. She clenched her teeth, forcing herself to focus, to try again. She channeled her core, willing the energy to rise, but it felt distant, unreachable.

The splintered wood hurtled closer. She could see every crack and jagged edge as the debris spun toward her. Helplessness gripped her as she realized she wouldn't be able to stop it in time.

SLASH!

A streak of black light flashed before her, cleaving the debris in two. The pieces splintered harmlessly to the sides, clattering into the icy platform. Elara blinked in shock as Lucavion landed in front of her, his blade still humming with dark energy.

"-ra!" he shouted, his voice muffled as if underwater. His words barely registered through the haze of her disoriented senses.

"ELARA!" The second shout pierced through, sharp and commanding. She flinched, her focus snapping back to the present.

Lucavion's dark eyes bored into hers, his expression a mix of frustration and urgency. "Pull yourself together!" he barked. "There's a mana disturbance! You need to accommodate to it!"

Her breath hitched, her mind racing. A mana disturbance? It explained the erratic behavior of her core, the way her magic had spiraled out of control. But how was she supposed to adapt to something like that in the middle of a battlefield?

"I—I don't know how!" she admitted, her voice shaking.

Lucavion gritted his teeth, irritation flashing briefly across his face. "Stop overthinking it! Focus on your core, feel the flow of mana around you. Don't fight it—align yourself with it. You're an Awakened, not a novice!"

Elara's eyes widened at his words, and a flicker of determination cut through her panic. Align with the flow of mana? It was a concept she'd studied but had never been forced to apply. The battlefield, however, was no place for hesitation.

She closed her eyes, her trembling hands gripping her staff tightly as she tried to center herself. The chaos around her—the roar of the Kraken, the shouts of adventurers, the crashing waves—all seemed to fade as she turned her focus inward. Her core felt fractured, the mana within it swirling wildly like a storm. But beneath the chaos, she could sense the disturbance Lucavion had mentioned—a strange, foreign rhythm in the flow of energy around her.

'Don't fight it,' she told herself, her breath steadying. 'Let it guide you.'

She began to adjust, her mind reaching out to the erratic flow of mana. Slowly, painfully, she felt her core start to stabilize, its rhythm syncing with the chaotic energy of the battlefield.

"Good," Lucavion said, his tone still sharp but with a hint of approval. He turned back to the Kraken, his blade gleaming as he prepared for another strike. "Now don't waste it. We're not done yet."

Elara opened her eyes, her frost magic flickering to life around her once more. The mana felt different—heavier, more volatile—but it was there, responding to her will. She pushed herself to her feet, her grip on her staff firm.

Chapter 395: Crisis (5)

The battlefield erupted into chaos once more as the Kraken unleashed its fury. Tentacles smashed into platforms, sending waves crashing and adventurers scrambling to hold their ground. But amidst the chaos, a rhythm began to emerge—a familiar, almost instinctual synergy between Elara and Lucavion.

Elara steadied herself, gripping her staff tightly as frost magic flickered faintly around her. She couldn't afford to push her core too hard, not in her unstable state. But she didn't need overwhelming power—what she needed was precision.

"Keep it simple, Elara!" Lucavion's voice cut through the din, sharp and commanding. He darted past her, his blade slicing cleanly through a smaller tentacle that had lunged toward the group. "Focus on slowing it down and binding the tentacles!"

She nodded, her breath steadying as she channeled her magic.

「Frost Chains」 (2-star spell)

Thick chains of ice erupted from the ground, wrapping tightly around one of the Kraken's thrashing appendages. The tentacle struggled against the binding, its movements slowed enough for nearby adventurers to land decisive strikes.

"Good!" Lucavion shouted, his blade glowing faintly with [Flame of Equinox] as he leaped toward another appendage. He struck with surgical precision, his blade igniting the tentacle with dark fire that seared through its slick, armored surface.

Elara turned her attention to the smaller creatures swarming toward the platform. Though her mana was unsteady, she channeled a burst of frost magic to intercept them.

「Icy Veil」 (1-star spell)

A thin sheet of frost spread across the platform, tripping the monsters and creating openings for the adventurers to dispatch them. But before Elara could cast again, a blur of motion caught her eye—a smaller, serpent-like monster darting toward her from the side.

"Elara, left!" Lucavion's voice barked, and she barely had time to react.

SWISH! SLASH!

Lucavion appeared in an instant, his blade cutting through the monster before it could strike. Blood sprayed across the icy ground as the creature crumpled, and Lucavion spun to face her, his eyes narrowing.

"Pay attention! You're too exposed!" he snapped, his tone harsh but his movements protective.

"I'm trying!" she shot back, frustration mingling with gratitude. She steadied herself, raising her staff again. "Just don't get yourself killed covering me!"

Lucavion smirked faintly, even as he turned back to the Kraken. "Don't worry about me, mage. I've got this."

The two of them moved together, a seamless blend of magic and melee. Lucavion would dart into the fray, his blade carving through tentacles and monsters alike, while Elara provided support from behind. Her frost magic slowed the Kraken's movements, bound its limbs, and created openings for the adventurers to land their attacks. And whenever the chaos grew too close, Lucavion was there, his blade striking down any threat that dared approach her.

"Elara, another chain! Right side!" Lucavion shouted as he deflected a cluster of poisonous darts with a quick slash.

「Frost Chains」

She cast the spell instinctively, the ice forming around a flailing tentacle and holding it in place. Lucavion lunged forward, his blade glowing with dark energy as he delivered a devastating strike to the restrained limb.

"Perfect!" he called, his voice tinged with approval.

The fight continued, their movements and magic complementing each other like a well-rehearsed dance. Elara could feel the strain of the battle, her core still unstable, but she pushed forward, drawing strength from their shared rhythm. Each time she faltered, Lucavion was there, his blade cutting through the chaos to keep her safe.

"Don't fall behind, mage!" he shouted, his smirk visible even in the chaos.

"I won't!" Elara replied, a determined glint in her eyes as she cast another spell to bind the Kraken's movements. She wasn't just following his lead—she was keeping pace, proving her worth with every spell.

And though the battle raged on, amidst the chaos, Elara felt something she hadn't expected: a strange sense of exhilaration. Fighting alongside Lucavion, matching his tempo, covering his strikes—it was unlike anything she'd experienced before.

'I'm not just surviving,' she thought, her lips curling into a faint smile as she cast another spell. 'I'm fighting.'

Elara's breath came in steady bursts, the crisp air tinged with salt and the acrid scent of scorched monster flesh. Her frost magic shimmered faintly around her, not as sharp or overwhelming as it could be, but steady—controlled. Every spell she cast felt deliberate, purposeful, as though she was carving her place into the chaos of the battlefield.

And it was thrilling.

For so long, she had trained in seclusion, her master's strict regimen shaping her understanding of frost magic in painstaking detail. She had spent countless hours perfecting her craft, researching techniques, and honing her precision. It had been her refuge, her obsession, but it had also been a means to an end. Her purpose had always been clear: vengeance.

But here, amidst the clash of steel and the roar of the Kraken, that singular purpose seemed to blur. The thrill she felt wasn't born of revenge—it was something else entirely. She was fighting, not just to survive, but to push herself, to see the fruits of her training unfold in real time. And she wasn't doing it alone.

Her eyes flicked to Luca, drawn to him as if by instinct. He moved like a shadow, weaving between thrashing tentacles and lunging beasts with an effortless grace that defied the chaos around him. His blade glowed faintly, its edge sharp and relentless as it cleaved through the Kraken's appendages. And through it all, he was smiling.

That smile was what caught her most. It wasn't the sharp smirk he wore when he teased her, nor the smug grin that often accompanied his infuriating remarks. This was different. It was a quiet, unguarded expression—a look of someone who belonged on the battlefield. As though the chaos wasn't chaos at all, but a rhythm he understood better than anyone else.

'Luca,' she thought, her gaze lingering on him. There was something magnetic about the way he fought. It wasn't just skill—it was the ease with which he embraced the danger, the way he seemed to thrive under the weight of the Kraken's fury. His movements were precise, his strikes deliberate, but there was a wildness to him, too, a fearlessness that bordered on reckless.

And yet, he wasn't reckless.

Every step, every swing of his blade, felt calculated. His smile wasn't born of carelessness; it was the smile of someone who knew exactly what he was doing. Someone who had chosen to stand at the edge of chaos and had found his place there.

Elara felt a shiver run down her spine, though not from fear. It was the same thrill she'd felt moments ago, magnified by the sight of him. She wasn't sure if it was admiration, curiosity, or something else entirely, but she couldn't look away.

"Focus, mage!" Luca's voice cut through her thoughts, sharp but not unkind. He glanced over his shoulder at her, his dark eyes gleaming. "You're staring again. Don't tell me you're getting distracted by my good looks."

Elara blinked, her cheeks flushing as she snapped her attention back to the battle. "In your dreams!" she shot back, her voice steady despite the warmth in her face.

Luca chuckled, sidestepping a flailing tentacle as he called out, "Then stop gawking and keep up. We're not done yet."

Her lips twitched into a faint smile despite herself. She adjusted her grip on her staff, her frost magic surging as she cast another binding spell.

"Frost Chains!" she called, the ice forming around another tentacle and locking it in place.

"Good," Luca said, darting past her to deliver a finishing blow. His blade ignited with dark fire, slicing cleanly through the restrained limb. "That's the spirit."

Elara let out a breath, her chest heaving slightly from the strain. But the exhilaration hadn't faded. If anything, it had only grown. Fighting like this—alongside someone who seemed to understand the battlefield as intimately as she did her spells—it was strangely… freeing.

'I'm stronger than I was yesterday,' she thought, her resolve hardening. 'And I'll be even stronger tomorrow.'

But then, as she was thinking about all those, Elara's confident resolve faltered as the ground beneath her began to shift unnaturally.

CRACK!

The icy platform groaned and splintered, cracks spreading outwards like veins in the glass. A chilling pull gripped her body, and the world seemed to tilt.

Her vision blurred, colors and shapes bleeding together into a surreal haze. Time slowed as her balance wavered, her legs trembling beneath her. The air felt heavy, oppressive, and for a moment, the sounds of the battle faded into a muffled void.

"Huh?" The word barely escaped her lips as she glanced down, her breath hitching.

Beneath her, the ice fractured entirely, and a swirling vortex formed, black and violent, spinning with an intensity that defied nature. It wasn't just water—it was something else, something alive, something wrong. It churned with a malevolent energy, its pull growing stronger with every heartbeat.

'No.'

That same vortex, it was now pulling her.

Chapter 396: Crisis (6)

The vortex's pull was relentless, a dark force of nature that defied logic or reason. Elara's frost-coated platform shattered beneath her feet, leaving her teetering on the edge of an abyss that seemed alive with malevolence. She tried to steady herself, her hands gripping her staff as if it were the only thing anchoring her to reality.

Her body trembled, her core screaming in protest from overexertion. The magic that had flowed so freely moments ago now felt sluggish, unresponsive. She tried to summon her strength, to resist the pull, but her limbs felt like lead, and her breathing grew shallow and strained.

Her gaze darted upward, to where Luca was in midair, his blade arcing down to sever another thrashing tentacle. His dark coat billowed behind him, and his expression, usually so composed and smug, was now focused and fierce. Elara opened her mouth to call out to him, to warn him, but no sound escaped her lips.

She couldn't breathe.

The vortex's pull grew stronger, the oppressive weight of its energy crushing her chest. She felt herself slipping, her feet losing purchase on the splintered ice. Panic surged, but so did regret—a bitter, twisting feeling that stabbed at her heart.

'No… not like this,' she thought, her vision blurring. 'I still… I still have so much I want to do. So much to prove…'

But even as her thoughts raced, the truth pressed down on her like the crushing tide of the vortex itself: she was too weak. Her resolve hadn't been enough. She hadn't been enough.

As she felt herself being dragged toward the churning abyss, a distant voice cut through the roar of the vortex. "Elara!"

At the same time, she felt something pushing her away. A force right at the moment of the voice.

Her head jerked toward the sound, her heart leaping at the familiarity of it. Cedric. His voice rang out from the platform, his figure barely visible through the chaos. He was shouting something—her name again, maybe—but the words were swallowed by the noise.

But if Cedric was there, too far to reach her, then—

'Who…?'

A sudden, forceful push sent her stumbling forward, away from the vortex's edge. Her body lurched, and she hit the ground hard, gasping as air flooded her lungs. She turned her head instinctively, her breath catching in her throat.

It was Luca.

His hand was outstretched, the faint glow of his blade flickering at his side. His leg was already caught in the vortex, the dark, swirling energy wrapping around him like a predator closing in on its prey.

"Luca!" she screamed, her voice raw with panic.

He turned his head slightly, his smirk faint but still there, as though even now he refused to show fear. "You're welcome," he said, his voice calm despite the chaos surrounding him.

"No!" Elara scrambled to her feet, her legs shaking as she reached out for him. "Don't—don't let it take you!"

He didn't answer. Instead, his gaze locked onto hers, his dark eyes steady, as though silently telling her to stay back. His hand gripped the edge of the shattered ice, but the vortex's pull was unyielding, dragging him further in.

Elara's mind raced, her heart pounding in her chest. She couldn't let this happen. Not to him. Not like this. But what could she do? Her core was unstable, her magic drained. And yet, she couldn't just stand there and watch.

"Hold on!" she shouted, her voice breaking as she lunged forward, her hands glowing faintly with frost magic.

But before she could reach him, the ice beneath her feet groaned, cracking ominously. Luca's smirk widened ever so slightly, a flicker of something almost resigned in his eyes.

"Don't be stupid, mage," he said, his tone lighter than it should have been. "You're not ready to play hero just yet."

And with that, the vortex surged, its dark tendrils pulling him under. His figure vanished in an instant, swallowed by the churning abyss, leaving only the fractured ice and the sound of Elara's desperate, echoing cry.

"Luca!"

Elara fell to her knees, the jagged ice beneath her biting into her skin, but she didn't feel it. Her staff clattered to the ground beside her, forgotten as her trembling hands pressed against the cracked surface. The world seemed to tilt, the chaos of the battlefield around her muffled to a distant hum.

"Luca…" she whispered, her voice barely audible, as though speaking his name would bring him back.

"ELARA!" Cedric's voice broke through the haze, sharp and panicked. She felt his hands on her shoulders, shaking her, trying to snap her out of it. But it was no use.

-RING!

A sharp, piercing sound echoed in her mind, drowning out everything else. The battlefield faded from her senses, the sounds of battle replaced by that relentless ringing. Her vision blurred, the edges of her world fracturing and distorting as if she were looking through cracked glass.

She couldn't stop seeing it—the vortex swallowing him, the faint smirk on Luca's face as he vanished, his final words echoing in her mind.

"You're not ready to play hero just yet."

Again and again, the scene played in her head like a broken record. His smile—calm, resigned, as though he'd already accepted what was to come. The look in his eyes, fleeting but filled with something she hadn't fully understood until now: care. A quiet, unspoken care, hidden beneath his teasing exterior.

Her chest tightened, the air around her growing suffocating. And then, suddenly, the scene shifted.

The ice gave way to cold, unyielding marble. The swirling chaos of the battlefield was replaced by the suffocating stillness of the duke's chamber.

"No…" Elara whispered, her breath hitching.

She stood in the center of the vast room, her knees buckling under the weight of countless eyes staring down at her. Cold, unfeeling eyes. Among them, the sharpest gaze belonged to her father, his expression a mask of stern indifference.

'Right…' she thought bitterly, her heart aching as the memories surged forward. 'This is… the day.'

Her banishment.

The memory slammed into her like a tidal wave. She remembered the harsh words spoken, the accusations, the judgment. She remembered standing there, pleading for understanding, for some semblance of warmth from the man who had once cradled her in his arms. But there was none. Only the cold, detached gaze of a duke addressing someone who no longer held any value to him.

"By my decree," her father's voice echoed in her mind, as clear and sharp as it had been on that fateful day, "You are to be exiled from this family, Elara. You will leave this estate and never return. From this moment on, you are no longer a Valoria."

Her legs had faltered then, just as they were faltering now. She had felt the world slipping away, the faces of the nobles and knights in the chamber growing distant, blurred by tears she refused to let fall. No one had spoken up for her. No one had moved to stop it.

And as they turned their backs on her, one by one, the last image she had seen was her father, watching her leave with those cold, emotionless eyes.

"Why…?" she whispered, her voice trembling as the memory merged with the present. Her hands gripped the fractured ice beneath her, her knuckles white. She couldn't tell where the past ended and the present began. "Why does it… feel the same?"

"Elara!" Cedric's voice snapped her back, faint and distant, like a rope pulling her from the depths of the abyss. His hands were shaking her shoulders, his face pale with worry. "Snap out of it! Elara, we have to move!"

But the memory lingered, the echoes of the past bleeding into the present. She could still feel the weight of those cold stares, the suffocating finality of being cast aside.

And yet, in the vortex's aftermath, Luca's face lingered in her mind—his smile, his smirk, his gaze. Unlike her father's, it wasn't cold. It wasn't uncaring.

It was warm. Even in that final moment.

And it broke something in her.

Tears pricked her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Not here. Not now. She took a shaky breath, her fingers curling into fists against the ground.

"I…" she whispered, her voice barely audible as she began to rise, her legs trembling beneath her weight. "I won't let it happen again."

"Elara, what are you talking about?!" Cedric demanded, his voice tight with frustration and concern.

She turned her gaze to the vortex, now calm and silent, as though mocking her. Her resolve hardened, her trembling hands steadying as she gripped her staff.

This wasn't over. Not yet.