Ailord's body trembled violently in pain, he truly could no longer think of anything, only able to keep holding on to avoid losing consciousness. Seeing Elder Leynar and Teena trying hard to help him gave Ailord extra energy to keep fighting the darkness that was trying to take over. The darkness could already be seen around his vision, making it increasingly difficult to see what was happening around them, only able to feel strong vibrations accompanied by screams and shouts.
Elder Leynar coughed as his magic began to flicker, a sign that his mana was reaching its limit. He knew slowing the spread of Death's Touch wouldn't be easy, but he hadn't expected it to be this severe. Even at the level of Red Core, he was almost out of mana. He noticed Teena, who was also drenched in sweat and breathing heavily, realizing that the two of them were not enough.
"Teena," Elder Leynar's voice sounded weaker than before.
"Yes, elder?" she asked, trying to steady her breath.
"Do you know 'Soul save'?"
Teena's eyes widened at this. "Y-you want to..."
Elder Leynar nodded. "We have no choice, it's the only way to save this child."
"But your soul!"
A heavy sigh escaped from his mouth. "Teena, in a situation like this, we have to be willing to give everything, including our lives. If not, Veyrain and possibly every race will be destroyed. We don't want that to happen, do we?" he explained bitterly, then gave a warm smile. "It's okay, Soul Save won't endanger my life as long as it's not used to the fullest."
"But still, we don't know how severe Death's Touch is. What if it requires more of your soul? You could die, and the elf race still needs you to protect it," Teena replied, then exerted more mana so that Elder Leynar wouldn't need to use the skill.
However, he touched her hand, stopping Teena. "I understand what you're saying. But right now, he is the only one who can stop them. If Copperhaven's reinforcements have arrived, it means there are still some Constructs out there, and among all of us, he is the only one who can face them. Even if there aren't any, he is the only one who can fight Zayn. None of us here can match that knight."
Teena didn't know how to respond. Elder Leynar's words were not wrong, but at the same time, she didn't want to see someone else lose their life. Too many lives had been wasted this morning, a morning that was supposed to be a happy day for every race, where they could talk to each other with laughter, not filled with bloodshed and sorrow.
She looked around, her heart constricted as she observed the ongoing battle. In an instant, a day full of wonder had turned into a battlefield. The longer this went on, the more lives would be lost today, and one of those lives could be her friends'.
Teena's hands clenched tightly, realizing there was no other way but to rely on Ailord. Though she hated to admit they were much weaker than she had thought, right now, he was their only way out.
"I'll do it."
Hearing that, Elder Leynar's smile widened. He hurriedly chanted a spell, causing a magic circle to appear right in front of his heart, glowing a bright green. The magic circle spun slowly as the spell was recited, his palm also starting to emit the same light. As the flow of mana began to leave his body and move towards the back of his hand, Elder Leynar was surprised by an unfamiliar sensation, like something being sucked out of his body. But he endured, continuing to chant the spell even as his body gradually weakened.
A stream of white light emerged simultaneously through the center of the magic circle, moving slowly like white smoke, entering the back of his hand, then exiting through his palm and spreading across Ailord's body, enveloping him in a transparent green light accompanied by beautiful particles of light.
The elders could sense something happening behind them, glancing back and stunned to find Elder Leynar using Soul Save, one of the high-level elf skills that allows the user to heal any wound at the cost of their soul. The more severe the wound, the more of your soul is taken. It was not uncommon for the user to lose their life as a result. They hoped that Ailord's wounds were not too severe, or they would lose someone so important to the elf race.
Teena helped channel mana into Elder Leynar's body, providing additional magic to stabilize the use of the high-level skill. Without stabilization, Soul Save could spiral out of control and end up claiming both their lives. This also eased Elder Leynar's suffering.
Gradually, Ailord could feel his body, no longer experiencing the excruciating pain. His vision began to return to normal, and he curiously observed his body now enveloped in a beautiful green light. If not for the sounds of explosions and someone's screams, he might have continued to close his eyes. This feeling was so comforting after the harrowing experience, as if he had been tortured in hell.
"W-what happened?" he asked weakly, confused to see Teena beginning to tear up.
Teena steadied herself and shook her head. "No, nothing," she replied with a choked voice, trying hard to hold back tears, not when everything still in chaos.
Ailord didn't press further and then looked at his exposed skin. It no longer looked the same, entirely transformed as if charred. He didn't understand what had happened, but he knew it was the work of the previous knight and perhaps that was why Teena was sad.
Not far ahead, the elders and the mixed forces struggled to fight the Copperhaven knight. Ailord was shocked to see flying motorcycles dodging attacks while retaliating. Some laser-like shots appeared, successfully downing the motorcycles, making him close his eyes to avoid witnessing the brutality unfolding ahead.
He winced again, feeling the burning sensation. Although not as severe as before, it persisted and continued to spread throughout his body. Ailord looked at the two people near him, who were trying hard, feeling warmth in his chest, realizing he was not alone here. Even though he was a stranger, these people still cared for him and did not leave him alone.
Once finished, Elder Leynar immediately collapsed forward, lying weakly on Ailord's body, breathing heavily. Teena, too, struggled to resist the exhaustion now threatening to overwhelm her because, although their task here was done, Copperhaven was still in the kingdom.
"Thank you," Ailord said.
Elder Leynar looked at him through his hair, saying, "If you really want to thank us, help us drive them out of here. Only then will we accept your gratitude."
Ailord smiled and nodded in agreement. "Of course."
He stood up, helping Elder Leynar and Teena. They then looked towards the elders and the mixed forces, feeling the weight on their shoulders grow heavier, prompting simultaneous sighs from both Teena and Elder Leynar.
"It's not... over... yet," Teena muttered, clearly unable to join the battle. She looked like a fragile twig about to snap in a strong wind. Her body could no longer find balance, swaying left and right. The only thing keeping her standing was her sheer will to keep fighting.
Elder Leynar was not much better. He couldn't stand upright without holding onto Ailord's arm. His vision was blurry, and a sense of discomfort lingered in his chest, as if he had lost something precious, leaving him feeling like an empty shell.
"You two rest. I'll take over from here."
Elder Leynar understood that he wouldn't be of any help in his current condition and nodded. "We will rest for a bit and then join you."
Ailord nodded in return, eyeing the flying motorcycles and promising himself never to open his helmet in the middle of a battle again. Because of his mistake, Elder Leynar and Teena had ended up in their current state. He pushed thoughts of the girl aside and focused on Copperhaven.
He prepared himself, and with a powerful leap that left Elder Leynar and Teena stunned by his strength, he appeared in front of one of the Homa and delivered a crushing blow, shattering it to pieces. Two Copperhaven knights fell to the ground, landing hard and feeling several bones break from the impact. Just as they were about to stand, they were pushed down again by dozens of sharp weapons piercing their bodies. It didn't take long for them to leave this life.
Ailord grabbed the wreckage of the motorcycle and leaped towards the Homa, now focusing their attacks on him. He used the motorcycle wreckage as a shield to prevent their magic from hitting his head, then wielded it as a weapon, swinging it powerfully and smashing two more knights to the ground. He quickly grabbed control of the motorcycle, sitting on it, only to find that it couldn't support the heavy weight of the Walker, causing it to fall.
Ailord clicked his tongue in frustration and used it as a platform to knock two other knights out of their vehicles.
Zayn saw this and was about to head over to stop him again but was immediately met with a sole of a shoe to his face. The knight was thrown forward, slamming into the ground several times before regaining his balance and standing, glaring sharply at the figure of Glok, who was grinning broadly.
"You think I'll let you hurt him again? Not while I can still breathe!"