As soon as his feet touched the ground Arthur immediately collapsed down.
His hands spread out, his breaths rushed, and his heart a rapid heap of beats. He couldn't help his crimson eyes narrowing slightly as two figures lowly floated down.
"You're not bad." The boy stared down at his face.
"I guess it's a bit better to know the future of the kingdom is in the hands of someone at least 'capable'."
Arthur wasn't too sure if that was a compliment or not. However, another thought had occurred to him...there was still a slight mass of unconscious people. And, thinking, only himself was currently awake amongst the group that actually faced the boss.
Coughing lightly, he forced himself to break away from his resting position and begin in a stand.
"Thank you for your help." He turned towards Magis, and received a nod.
His body moved.
"I would advise you to rest." A voice traced into his ears.
"Your mana needs to replenish."
His vision was a bit dizzy, but he could still see the so called vampire standing before him, her umbrella held in her hand and her ruby eyes looking into his.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, "What do you know?"
"I know you barely have any energy left within you, and as a mage, that is not a wise move."
Arthur scoffed lightly, he had no time to deal with a person that didn't even think to participate in the fight...well, maybe he did have time but he sure as heck didn't want to.
"Are all the royalties of this time so stubborn? Makes me wonder if I was an oddity." She lapsed.
"I do not have time for this." Arthur grimaced.
"Oh? Interesting, what if I told you to sit still?" She asked.
The prince's eyes narrowed. 'The heck is this girl saying?'
"You remind me a bit of Pendridge. Do you by any chance know what the result of her going against me was at the beginning?" She asked.
"First off, who is Pendridge?" Arthur asked, "And second of, why do you care if I push myself or not?"
She was expressionless, yet, a single word escaped her lips, "Remain."
"Wha-"
A force descended onto him...this time, across his entire body.
Within seconds, his actions were entirely locked.
He couldn't move even a step further, his body fully frozen in place as if he was within a time or spatial lock. All in all, he was stuck simply staring at the currently expressionless face of Iu.
'Doesn't she flip too quickly...' Arthur was beyond tired at this point.
Yet, at that moment, a voice drifted over.
"Telekinesis huh? Something that can easily be blocked against using pure mana channeling and control."
"Oh?" Iu turned turned her head, a light smile on her face.
"Then why don't you try my attack?"
Magis narrowed his eyes, before a final sigh escaped his lips.
"Simple, even if I channel my mana into one specific point of my body, it wouldn't be enough to make a difference...after all...going against someone who was once known as the queen of vampires is suicidal at best." He shook his head.
"Oh? You know a bit of history don't you?" Iu smiled.
"If I'm not mistaken in my hearing, you told the boy your name was Magis Imperis did you not?" She asked.
'Don't Think.' Was his first thought.
Yet...was the ability to cut off all thoughts so easy? No, there were very few people within this world that could escape mind reading...
"Magis of the long line of the Imperis family, a child once favored to be the head of one of the few most adept families at the art of magic within the world...."
He narrowed his eyes, "Stop it."
"...however, sadly, with the birth of the 'Mage Guild' in the kingdom, your family was placed under the same banner as the rest...no more so called 'family-head'."
She smiled.
"Time never stands still, changes become apparent."
He frowned.
"Oh? Wanting to drag down Thomas Dawson from his seat of 'Guild Master'?"
'The heck...?' Arthur, still unable to move even a slight bit, was in thinking. Did she just say the boy who had just helped in killing the boss also wanted to go against and or harm his uncle and master?
Magis gritted his teeth, "Stop it."
His eyes shot into glares, "It's not merely a want, it is a need."
"Oh?" Iu tilted her head slightly, "Why so?"
He took a deep breath and calmed himself down.
His eyes narrowed lightly before his figure began to slowly fade back into obscurity.
"Reading my mind, I am sure you have figured it all well already, that power isn't so bad...sadly, I've reached my limit...till we meet again." His voice drifted and lingered before fading just the same as his figure.
She maintained her expression, "Wise choice."
"Now," She turned back towards Arthur.
"I would like to ask a few questions."
He couldn't speak...however
'I do not want to answer those questions of yours if you don't release me first.' His thoughts were still as lively as ever.
And likewise, as thought this, he was in control of his remaining minuscule mana. Revolving it, not outside of his body, but within.
"Oh?" She smiled.
He knew she knew. Afterall, sensing the movement of mana in a person or within the world wasn't a difficulty skill, in fact, it was something anyone could do if they payed even the sliver of attention.
"Who said you had a choic-"
"Hmm?" She crooked her head.
Two crimson eyes, crossing against each other's.
Ashe's right hand was placed upon Iu's shoulder, her forceful grip seeing to want to tear her apart. Her eyes glaring a furocious glare.
[Huh...Ashe...you should not try and contend against her...] Ain's voice echoed within her head.
Yet, Ashe disregarded that advice.
"Release him." Her voice laced with killing intent.
[...]
However...
"Do. Not. Touch. Me." Iu's voice was even colder, frigid to the point that it felt as if the temperature within the area had dropped beyond control.
Ashe's eyes widened for a moment...
Bang
An overbearing force crashed into her figure.
Try as she might to remain standing.
"!"
Ashe found herself forced to kneel.
The ground beneath her crumbling slightly under the pressure placed onto her. Shards of stone hitting against her knees, and a small trickle of blood founded...
Iu swerved around to stare down upon Ashe's kneeling figure.
At that moment, her full attention being placed upon another...
'Even with my mana revolving, I still had to wait until her attention shifted before I could even break free...' Arthur shook his head.
...he could talk.
"You actually didn't lose consciousness?" He looked ahead to the kneeling Ashe and couldn't help but exclaim in wonder.
A layer of fur descended upon her body, she borrowed the prowess of Ain as her lips were forced open by her will...
"Was I so weak as to lose consciousness from a kick?" Ashe asked back, sweat lined and riddled her body.
"Hmm, are you by any chance disregarding my sister?" Arthur cracked his head.
"No." A voice traveled over.
"I am already quite awake."
Arthur looked ahead to see the figure of his sister walking steadily over. Stopping a distance behind the keenling Ashe, a cove of light brought her weapon to hand. Yet, looking, Arthur saw streaks of crimson light hazily sparkling across the silver blade of the Radiant Blade.
'Heck is that?' Was his natural thought.
"If you do not mind, would you please let go of the two?" She gave a light smile, yet her eyes screamed anything but a smile.
Iu raised a brow.
Ashe raised a brow.
Arthur raised a brow.
"Hmm, Maria? You don't sound exactly like yourself..." His voice trailed off.
No, she did sound like herself alright. However, the air she carried was quite strange...it was as if unsurpassed confidence in her actions...as if...
'Like the time in the carriage...'
She smiled, "Arthur is it? I knew I would not be able to fool you for long, after all, you two know the other like the back of your hands."
'Heck is she saying?' Arthur was a bit confused to say the least.
However, Ashe and Iu was as calm as always. One because she knew, and another simply due to her nature.
"However, do not fret..."
"I am indeed Maria."
"Huh?" The Prince.
"When did I say you weren't Maria...?"
Ashe focused her eyes onto Maria's figure.
[Interesting.]
"Now..." She turned to Iu.
"It has been quite a long time since we have met and had the chance to talk face to face, your highness Iu."
"Oh?" Iu turned towards her.
"Interesting."
Mar simply spoke, "I wonder where Deft has gone?"
At that moment, Ashe instantly felt the pressure upon her body lift.
Iu truly turned her full attention onto Mar.
"You, how do you know that name?"
***
She opened her eyes.
She held no belief as to where she was, the entire area was darkened beyond belief. No light source seemed applicable and certainly, she saw nothing no matter which way she looked.
'Where am I...?' Maria asked herself this question.
'Mar?'
Nothing.
Maria scrambled slightly as she felt something strange. She took a moment to check her body, although she couldn't see, she could feel.
A scabbard at her right, she felt. Her body slightly heaved by what seemed like light armor. None of the things she usually wore on her body at all times.
'What is going on here...?'
However, at that moment, a voice entered into her ears...
"Mana is stored within our soul and connected to it tighter than anything else in the universe. In fact, it could be said that mana is simply and extension of our soul. So much so, that pure unhindered mana has no element per say to go with it."
It was definitely male.
"Mana is not an energy simply for the sake of casting magic, no no, mana, when burned down to its elemental-less state, has as much use as magic itself."
She could recognize it.
"Throughout history, there have been many arts derived from pure mana. I will teach you one of those very arts..."
Was it not the voice she heard from that man within despair when the beast had her in sight?
"...Mana Sense."
Maria couldn't understand, and the world did not wait for her to.
She heard it, a sound as if a string was pulled and released.
'Wha-'
Her eyes opened wide.
Her body moved as she saw the flaming arrows illuminating the air in a bid. She could make it a narrow cobblestoned interior before her weapon had already been grasped in hand.
With a speed rank of A...
She swung her blade.
Clank
Light sparks flew as shards of flames fell.
For a moment, her blackened hair was highlighted along with her silver gray eyes gleaming in slight glares.
However...even still...
She couldn't block the mass with a single blade.
She felt some hit against her chest plate.
Yet...
"!"
Maria instantly felt the ruthlessness of three arrows piercing into her.
Her body trembled with a quiver as pain shot through her thighs...
Her sword dug into the earth beneath her as she was forced to take a moment a kneel.
Her breathing rushed for a moment.
Biting her teeth, Maria grasped two of the arrows and yanked them out.
"!"
Having no idea where she was yet, she forced down her pained voice with will. Her body trembling slightly and a headache beginning to corrode her mind.
'
Nothing. No, she felt her mana, but it lacked the element of light...it seemed invisible to say the least, atleast she couldn't see it fully, yet, she could hear the crackle as small sparks like chirping birds rang from time to time...slightly illuminating the area in a crimson glare and allowing her to see the dirt floor...
"What the fu*k?" She cursed for the first time in her life.
Wasn't this basically lightning?...her light healing art would have no use here whatsoever...
She realized she wouldn't be healing anytime soon and gritted her teeth even tighter.
As dizzy as she felt, she grasped the last arrow and forcefully pulled it out in a swift motion.
For a moment, her world almost blackened out as the yelp of her voice leaked out.
"Mana Sense...an essential skill for any person wanting to become a swordsman. After all, for a mage, there is no need to dodge when one can simply place down a barrier..."
"..." Maria was speechless, was this person still ranting on?
She forced herself upwards, her thighs aching with pain, she held her sword forwards.
"The first step is to cut off your mana connection with the world. When mana is first brought out by the user, an automatic connection is made with the world's mana, and an element is derived from that connection."
'How the heck would I even do that...?'
Did she look like someone who could just do something because a voice said so?
"However, we want to break that connection in order to reach pure mana. In fact, pure mana is what most skills use to power themselves."
'...that's nice to know I guess...'
"There are many ways to learn just how to do this, the simplistic way being splitting nature apart. And the fastest way..."
"...encountering a situation where it's either cut off your mana connection or die."
With that last statement, Maria heard that same sound once more...
Like that of a string being pulled then released.
However...this time...
'I can't see them even a bit!!'