The smoke dissipated, and Zuxe witnessed something unexpected.
The bolt he had unleashed at almost the speed of light was frozen in place. It had pierced through a barrier cast by her, but only halfway.
The transparent barrier struggled under the immense pressure of the attack, faint cracks spider-webbed from the point of impact.
Beyond the barrier stood the Arcane guardian, her expression a mix of strain, fear, and disbelief.
The bolt's lethal energy vibrated ominously, as if threatening to take her life at any given moment.
She spoke in a tone of disbelief, her voice trembling, not with fear, but with the shock of witnessing such power.
"H-how did you... how c-could you summon something this fast... it's not possible."
She glanced at the bolt, still lodged in the barrier, flickering continuously.
"Wait... you... who really are you?"
She looked up at Zuxe, her eyes wide.
'Did I live?... Am I alive?' Zuxe pondered, his eyes staring at the bolt he had just launched and at her simultaneously.
His legs barely held him up, his vision blurred, and the world tilted around him as the weight of his limbs became unbearable.
'Perhaps... I really died at the end.' A sharp ringing filled his ears, drowning out the questions she asked.
His knees buckled, and the ground rushed to meet him, but before he could register the impact, darkness engulfed him.
That one attack, launched by him, had sucked every inch of his Soul essence, the very thing that distinguishes normal humans from Demon hunters.
Despite having low Soul essence, he had still felt it rushing through him.
It was only natural for him to pass out, since Soul essence was like a life source for Demon hunters.
---
Thud.
The boy who had just won against her in an Essence technique clash, with no concept of difficulty, fell unconscious in front of her.
Without wasting a moment, she rushed toward him.
Bending her knees, she sat on the ground, laying his head on her lap.
The boy wore a cloak that had prevented her from seeing his face clearly the entire time.
She wanted to see his face badly...
But she had to kill him.
A mysterious boy who appeared out of nowhere, broke the illusion technique of one of the strongest Arcane guardians in the world, and then won against her in a Soul essence technique clash.
"Just a little peek won't harm," she whispered to herself, grabbing the cloak and slowly removing it to reveal the boy's face.
As the face of the boy registered in her mind, a familiar sensation washed over her.
"Wh-what...?"
"Purple hair... purple eyes... a similar Soul essence core," she mumbled, as if she had seen a ghost, her mind denying the incoming possibilities before they could even register.
"By any chance... is he that boy?" She thought about a certain boy, but no image clicked in her mind, because she had never seen him before, only heard about him.
"N-no, I should at least confirm before jumping to conclusions."
Shaking her head twice, she began circulating her Soul essence in one of her hands. Slowly, the essence took a physical shape—a small white ball.
She flicked her finger, removing any traces of the ball from her hand, which had been present until now.
Looking skyward, the ball began to change shape, converting into thin tendrils, hastily covering the entire clan, forming a transparent dome-like structure.
She closed her eyes, attempting to detect every person in the clan within a minute.
'Ahh... f-found him.' Her search was successful. She confirmed that the boy in front of her was neither Cyrus nor any other sibling or clan member with purple hair and eyes.
The one she had never considered before was the only one left as a suspicion.
"Sigh," she whispered, "But he did say he was a merchant... no ordinary merchant can learn a Soul essence skill this young. No, not even clan heirs are able to learn it until the age of seven, except for a few exceptions."
"His bloodline can't be stronger than the rulers of humanity if he really is a commoner," she continued.
"I have to wake him up... I think he passed out due to Soul essence depletion. He must have used most of it breaking my illusion technique."
Saying so, she turned his back towards her and brought her middle and forefinger together, placing them on his back.
Drawing an imaginary addition sign with her fingers, she withdrew her hand and retrieved a vial containing a purple fluid from her space ring.
Carefully, she twisted open the cap of the vial and drank all of its contents.
The technique she used was Soul essence transportation, as she couldn't transfer her Soul essence directly because Zuxe's Soul core would reject it.
But by creating the imaginary sign, she opened a Soul corridor that acted as a medium to make the raw Soul essence in the vial compatible with Zuxe's Soul core during the transfer.
It was an Ext technique taught to every demon hunter when they reached rank 5.
---
Zuxe blinked slowly, his vision swimming as he struggled to piece together where he was.
A sharp cough erupted from his throat.
"C-cough... Is this the afterlife?"
He gasped for air, his chest heaving as he fought the urge to choke.
"Ugh... it hurts."
"Hey, take it easy," a voice called from the shadows, "You're alive. Just breathe."
"B-breathe?" He coughed again, the sound rough and ragged. "I can't... c-cough-cough."
"Just relax." A feminine figure came into view as the voice reassured him, but he could only focus on the tightness in his chest.
"Just inhale deeply. You'll be fine," she reassured, drawing closer.
Now her face was clear—it was none other than the Arcane guardian.
"W-what... happened to me?" He asked, struggling to steady his breath, assuming that the Arcane guardian had no more intention of killing him.
"Soul essence depletion," she said firmly, bending her knees and crouching in front of him.
"Your body ran out of Soul essence. I used one of my techniques to restore your Soul essence, as your body wasn't absorbing any surrounding Essence."
Placing her left hand on his cheek, she continued, "Now take deep, slow breaths and let the Soul essence diffuse into your blood, circulating through your body."
Zuxe did as she said, and continued until he felt better. "Now I feel better," he replied.
"YOU KNOW WHO I AM, RIGHT?"
Zuxe's breath caught in his throat as he heard those words.
---
Thanks for reading.