"There it is again, the confidence of a child, something that only disappears after failure." Lyra said with such a delinquent tone. "I will have to reintroduce you to what failure looks like, because any Lesser is a failure, even if you have blood magic, in the end, you will always be a useless fool."
"Wow, that hurt." I spoke sarcastically, and shot myself at the Retainer, holding two blood swords, one in each hand, ready to strike her down. I had no clue what their strategy was, but I was trying to figure it out.
Mana started to form all around her, like a shield of energy, or of sound, but it did not matter, her core was under my control, I decided what she could do, not her. I disrupted it and continued after her.
I swung at her head, she dodged back, I swung at her legs, she stepped back, I released the storm above me that was building up, it was filled with water, fire, and blood magic, and sent it after here.
I stood still, knowing if I got caught up in this spell, it would do damage to me as well, and as the spell was traveling, the Retainer's eyes widened. The spell began to hit the ground leading up to here, and it exploded, creating craters that burned and spit up water as well, something that didn't seem possible.
As it got closer to her, she darted off into the distance as the spell followed her, causing mass chaos as it did, breaking down everything it hit. I quickly followed behind it, dodging and weaving through the damage I caused.
My blade was now close to her throat as I swung at her, appearing next to her as my spell finished, the Retainer went to swat my blade away, so I liquefied it, and allowed it to pass through her arm, not needing to do damage there.
I reformed it in between her arm and neck, and swung with a tremendous force, but the Retainer just ducked just in time, and sent a kick towards my ribs as my momentum took me to the side. I didn't allow her to hit me though, I shot wind out of my feet, launching me up and over her, landed on the ground, and swung both blades at her.
As she went to shoot a spell at me, I disrupted her core, and that's when I felt another presence coming at me from the side. I ignored it, wanting to kill Lyra right her, but that is when I heard Aya's voice. "Veer! Watch out!"
I stopped my attack, listening to the pleading voice, and turned toward the attacked, it was a man, swinging two black misty swords at my chest. I looked at him, confused on this guy's powers, and disrupted his core, causing the two blades to vanish, then drove my one blood sword toward him.
Lyra sent a fist into my side, knocking me backwards, and away from the two of them. I turned towards the two Retainers standing beside one another as Aya launched over to me and stood by my side.
Sylvie flew above us, and the five of us stood still, examining one another. "Retainer Lyra." The man said to her, then turned to me. "So, this is the Lesser who was able to take down Uto."
"Who the fuck are you?" I asked, confused, Aya was seriously injured, and her mana was running low. I could tell she had a couple wounds on her that needed to be cleaned up and healed immediately, so I started to heal her using my blood magic, but it wouldn't help her with her mana.
"Ha, I am Retainer Erie, pleasure to meet you, Lesser." The Retainer's name is Erie, I don't remember anyone's name in the novel being Erie, let alone a Retainer. I guess this is what happens when you change too many things, even though I don't see how my actions could change a Retainer in Alacrya, unless Agrona felt the need to adopt another to take me down since I managed to take down Uto so fast and early.
"Retainer Erie you say." I shook my head. "It doesn't matter, you are going to die here today." I insisted, then turned to Aya. "I think you should leave, Aya, you'll only get in my way, you are injured and low on mana."
She shook her head. "Even you can't take both of them on." I looked up at Sylvie, she had a couple cuts on her, but other than that, she seemed completely fine. It looks like she barely used mana, why was that? "His swords absorb mana and draw it towards them." Aya told me, breathing heavily still. "Your blood swords won't work against them."
His swords can manipulate mana by themselves? "Fascinating." I said out loud, looking at Erie. "I don't need my bloods swords, and I can just make sure his swords are active."
"Arthur's bond said the swords are built off of our mana when he absorbs it, the more power he gets, the stronger the attacks are, but they are limited." Aya was speaking horsely, she couldn't compete this.
I bit my lip, I care a lot about Aya, but if she continues, she will die, no question about it. "Sylvie, come down here." I waved, and the dragon slowly landed behind us. "What I am getting is that he needs mana from us to perform his spells, but he still needs his core and his runes to influence and control the mana, without it, he can't do anything."
"True." Erie spoke up. "But I was selected because of a unique skill of mine." I tilted my head looking at the Retainer, unique skill? A black mist sword formed in his right hand, and I didn't feel him controlling it with his core. "I was selected from a military force to take you down, because I am able to control mana outside of my body, without my core, so disrupting it will do nothing except slow me down a little."
I nodded my head seeing how this was true. "How? If you don't mind telling me? I find that very fascinating." How is that possible? You need a core to manipulate mana, you also need a core to influence runes on you, right?
"My rune is a Regalia, a very rare, well, I guess you don't care." Erie waved off describing the rune procedure, even though I would not have minded it. "It allows me to create mana weapons, and impose traits on to them, which means I can create swords before a battle, and not have to manipulate mana to keep them in tack."
"I see." So, he can create blades and impose powers on to them, so the sword he is wielding can absorb mana, seems easing enough, I still had some questions, he didn't seem bothered to answer them, and Lyra was standing there silently. "Then why don't you give weapons to others? Wouldn't that help you out?"
Erie shook his head. "Clever thinking, Lesser, but no, the weapons can only be wielding by me, and me alone, if I would hand it over to my companion here, it would just dissolve into nothing."
Aya was struggling still, I couldn't allow her to stay, I was trying to come up with an idea to keep her here, but there are no good ones. "Well, a sword is just a sword, it doesn't matter, I do find your powers to be quite interesting, but I could care less in the long run."
"For a brat, you speak wisely, and calmly." Erie said, and I shrugged.
That's when a thought popped into my head, was this guy a Wraith, I mean it makes sense. He was selected for his powers out of a military force like he said. It didn't matter now, only thing that does is that I kill them.
"Sylvie." I said, looking up at the dragon as she looked down at me. "Take Aya and get out of here." I told her, not needing her to get hurt in this battle. She went to speak, but I stopped her. "Sylvie, I know you are going to say that I should not be alone, but you guys will only hinder me."
"No, Veer." Aya spoke, conjuring a wind blade in her hand. "I can still go; we can take them down together." She couldn't and if something happens to her, I will probably have a mental breakdown, so no, she had to leave.
"Sylvie, please." I insisted. "Tell Arthur to come over here when he is done, you get Aya to safety, I know you can do that." I had the blood swords deform and allowed the blood to circle me. The swords are made out of blood, but they are controlled by mana, so they may be right, if they make contact with his mist swords, they may be absorbed, not as blood, but as mana.
"Veer, I am not leaving." Aya repeated, and I gave her an apologetic look, then disrupted her core.
"Take her." I told Sylvie, dropping Aya to her knees, controlling her blood.
"No! Veer! Don't do this to me! I'm fine." Aya pleaded to stay and help, but that would not work on me.
"Don't die." Sylvie said, picking Aya up as she started to cry looking at me. "There are people who care about you, so make sure to come back, okay?"
"I will."
"Wait, wait, wait." Erie tilted his head. "You think we are going to just let them go, come on, brat." He vanished, I dug into his core, but it was too late, he was swinging his blade at Sylvie's head.
The dragon dropped Aya to the ground, and she landed on her feet as the mana she had left in her system came back to her. Sylvie dodged the attack, and Erie landed on the ground in between Sylvie and Aya. I made my way up to Aya, I would defend her with my life, just like she would do for me. Lyra stood on the other side of us, just staring and taking in the scene.
Arthur should be over her soon, I know he is slightly injured, but I know he will still want to fight.
"Fine." I pulled my elven sword out of my mana ring. "Guess we are doing this the old fashioned way." I reinforced the blade with my mana, getting ready to strike. "Aya, whatever you have left in you, I'm gonna need you to use it."
"Already on it." Her wind sword reformed after I disrupted her core. "And don't you think about making me leave again, I am a Lance, a defender of Dicathen, I have the duty to protect our continent."
I went to speak, but Erie spoke up. "How touching but shut up." Erie faced me, with Sylvie behind him. "You know, brat, this dragon here seems to have a little crush on you." I looked at him confused, no offense to Sylvie, but she was a dragon, kinda hard to have a relationship with one, but I guess she does get a human form, and is only one year younger than me, or around there. "What if I was to take her hostage? Say, if you don't come with me, I'll kill her. What would you do? Would the devil be a real devil, or would he be an angel?"
The thought of him doing that with Sylvie, angered me for some reason, if he would do that with anyone, I don't know what I would do. "Haha, you are joking." Lyra started to laugh, and I felt my blood lust growing, my aura and pressure emitting an even darker feeling than before.
Without even saying a word, I shot myself at Lyra, knowing she was the weakest at this moment, I swung my elven blade, pushing wind mana behind it to make it go faster, and as she went to dodge it, I pulled her toward me, using blood magic.
My blade gashed her once again, leaving another wound on her chest plate, and blood ran down her armor. "Erie!" Lyra shouted, and I spun around before I could finish her off, and the Retainer named Erie was holding two swords coming at me.
So, this was their plan, to get Erie here to take me down, while the others take us out. I deflected his sword with my own, then dodged his other, spun and sent a kick into his ribs, knocking him backwards.
A sound wave began to form in Lyra's core, but I disrupted it before it could take form. Aya shot herself at the Retainer, trying to get her attention off of me. Sylvie joined her, flying up into the air to support Aya.
We were all fighting in the forest next to each other, I parried a blow, sent ice toward Erie, but his blades consumed my attack, and I watched them grow. He wasn't stronger than Cadell, it was just that his powers countered mine slightly. My ability to disrupt cores gave me a huge advantage in one on one battles, but I could not do that with him.