Koji stared at the approaching cuts and the spheres hovering around him, protecting him. He spoke slowly, struggling to form the words.
— "Spherea, I just want you to help me... Can you do that?"
— "Why so much panic? The spheres repel the vortices, just let them protect you," Spherea replied calmly, as always, sounding almost indifferent.
Even though the numerous vortices were being repelled by the spheres, maintaining Koji's protection, he said:
— "I can't just stand here in the middle of this trap. If I don't move, it's going to crush me somehow."
— "Then do what I say," Spherea interrupted, more serious this time. "Say 'Externalize!' and name a low percentage, 5% or 10%. That'll reactivate your external energy without overloading your body."
At first, Koji hesitated, glancing between Spherea and the vortices around him. **I don't have other options... It's this or hoping the spheres save me forever,** he thought.
Taking a deep breath, he finally said, "Externalize! 10%!"
His external energy reignited, flaring from his feet up through the rest of his body. Desperate and with a hint of recklessness, Koji sprinted toward the only visible gap between the vortices—though it no longer truly existed—and threw himself at the vortices with all his strength.
— "What are you doing?" Spherea was genuinely surprised. "What the hell are you trying to accomplish? This doesn't look like a good suicide attempt."
— "He threw himself into the vortices again?" Even Alaric couldn't believe what he was seeing. Koji had thrown himself into the vortex of cutting fragments. Despite the rapid defense by the spheres, it was still an enormous risk.
The cutting fragments from the vortices clashed with the spheres protecting Koji, but every time one vortex was repelled, another would quickly materialize in its place, appearing with frightening speed. Koji kept pushing himself, straining his energy, trying to find an escape route.
At that moment, something clicked in Alaric's mind, and his expression shifted from shock to excitement.
— "There's no point asking for help from that demon shadow that follows you or relying on those spheres," Alaric said with a smirk. "Watch what I'm about to do—you'll be impressed."
Koji turned his head just enough to glance at Spherea. — "What's he going to do?" — he asked. Spherea answered casually, "How would I know? I can read your mind, but not his."
Suddenly, Alaric shouted.
"Directed External Energy!"
Koji frowned, confused.
— "Directed? What the hell is that?" — he didn't recognize the term.
Spherea, as calm as ever, replied.
— "You'd better move."
— "Why?"
Alaric extended his right hand toward the spheres. In a flash, Koji realized he was in danger.
— "Shit! I need to get out of here!"
In the blink of an eye, all the spheres around Koji were thrown far from the battlefield.
Koji looked around, bewildered.
— "What just happened?" — he was stunned, seeing the spheres that had been protecting him gone.
Alaric let out a triumphant shout.
— "YOU THOUGHT I WOULDN'T FIGURE OUT THE SPHERES' TRICK? THEY MIGHT NOT CHANGE IN COMPOSITION, BUT THEY CAN BE MOVED! THAT'S DIRECTED EXTERNAL ENERGY!"
Driven by survival instinct, Koji took a few steps back, trying to distance himself from the vortices.
— "Spherea! What did he do?" — Koji shouted, his voice tinged with impatience and worry.
Spherea, serene as ever, floated closer and replied.
— "He used Directed External Energy to move your spheres. Alaric realized that as long as they stayed near you, you'd have an advantage, so he removed them from the field."
— "But what is this external energy? Is it different from mine? What is it?"
— "The name is self-explanatory... but fine, I'll explain. Basically, Directed External Energy allows the user to focus their external energy on specific areas or targets, making movements and attacks more efficient. It's a more specialized form of control. Alaric used it on the spheres and sent them flying away at high speed."
— "That's way beyond what I can do… I can't counter that."
— "I'll admit, I'm surprised. He's far more than I imagined," Spherea said, glancing briefly at Alaric and noticing something.
Alaric's writing had changed, more advanced now. Saik had previously noticed that Alaric's mark indicated he was of the Fourth Class, but Spherea observed an evolution.
— "Koji, if you stay here, you're going to die."
— "You think I don't know that?!" — Koji snapped back, angry.
— "I'm serious. The mark on his arm has evolved... He used to be a Fourth-Class bearer, and that already severely lowered your chances. Now, he's a Third-Class bearer. Things are about to get worse."
Alaric raised both hands to the ground and shouted.
"Expansive Ground Fragmentation!"
The ground beneath Koji gave way, disintegrating into sharp particles. He tried to grab hold of something, but everything around him was falling apart, leaving him with nothing to hold onto. In seconds, he was falling.
The drop was long, about ten meters deep, landing him in a flooded underground cavern. The cold water engulfed his body as he struggled to breathe, but the vortices followed, descending rapidly toward him.
Koji felt his external energy hadn't dissipated, which was a good sign. Then, almost by reflex, enhanced by his external energy, he managed to dodge the vortices, though with great difficulty.
Above ground, Spherea glanced at Alaric with a sarcastic smile.
— "Is this fun for you?" — Spherea asked, mocking him lightly.
— "Of course it is... Just look at what I'm doing!" — Alaric replied, prideful, his smile twisted with arrogance.
Spherea, indifferent and calm, said with an air of superiority.
— "I don't care much about a bearer's death, even if it's my bearer. Koji isn't important to me... but he's going to be involved in many events I'll enjoy witnessing. I don't think it's his time to die just yet, so I'm giving you two options. Remember, I'm a demon in shadow form. I'm intangible. Either leave this city without complaints, or stay and try to kill Koji, and I'll kill you effortlessly..."