Theron's body soaked in the water. As though he were a dry patch of land, he greedily sapped up any Water Mana he could get his hands on. Though, there was a strong bottleneck, decided by his cultivation and the quality of his Core.
Water Mancy might not be known for its power, but other than Wind Mancy, it was among the easiest to pull from the environment. Even then, with Wind Mancy, it depended on the conditions. With Water Mancy, so long as there was water, there was hope.
This was something the Metal Mancer had experienced intimately. Despite having earth all around him, Earth Mana didn't have the fluidity of Water and Wind Mana and thus couldn't be drawn from so easily, not without exceptional skill, a powerful cultivation method, or, once again, a bloodline ability.
The moment Theron deduced that the Metal Mancer had been responsible for drawing open the tunnels and forging new paths of entry into the Guild, he knew that he had to be running low on Mana.
[Water Bullet] didn't have much offensive power to begin with. If he was trying to take down a Variant Earth Mancer with it, it would be like throwing an egg against a rock.
So he baited the Metal Mancer, not only forcing him to use more of his Mana, but also doing something completely unexpected in the end.
When the Silver Mancer had been targeting him earlier, in the Veinsong focused state, Theron had felt that he had an opportunity to regain his equilibrium by shifting the fluid in his inner ear. He acted on instinct and used his Water Mancy to control water within his body, something he had never done before.
Theron's knowledge of human anatomy was actually quite extensive, though he naturally knew about a great many things. The entirety of his youth had been spent reading about things that fascinated him.
Pulling on that knowledge, he had been able to do something unprecedented. But… Theron knew that there was nothing natural about this.
The idea of using water in your body as a Water Mancer couldn't be such a novel thought. It was so simple that Theron was certain that many people had had it before.
The reason it wasn't done was because it was too dangerous, and also because the human body was a lot like the earth beneath their feet. The Mana there was inaccessible, sturdy, and rooted in the body. It was there for no other reason to sustain your life.
If running low on Mana led to Deprivation. Trying to extricate Mana from your body itself was like pulling on your thread of Fate.
It was more than dangerous. It was suicidal.
But more importantly, it should be impossible.
And yet, somehow, in Veinsong, Theron had done it without thinking.
Unfortunately, as much as he wanted to consider this matter further, and investigate it with all his being, he knew that he wasn't yet out of danger.
He had been lucky to use his blood to catch the Metal Mancer off guard and take his life, but there were unlikely to be more Mana-depleted, foolish enemies waiting for him to take advantage of.
And as fast as he was recovering his Mana now… the looming presence of the Silver Mancer was still in his mind. It reminded him that even if he managed to recover, it might not mean a single thing if he ran into an enemy that he couldn't deal with.
Then there was the problem of his shoulder—.
'Hm?'
Theron's pupils trembled. It could be said that all this while, dancing through life and death, he had hardly ever reacted so fiercely. But right this moment, feeling his collarbone practically weaving itself back together, he was in complete and utter shock.
'What's going on?'
Water Mana was known for its healing properties, but not only was it inferior to Light Mana in this respect, and even worse in comparison to special Soul Mancer Paths, it definitely shouldn't trigger without a technique backing it.
Theron knew Water Mancer healing methods; they were some of the first techniques he had learned. But they were practically insignificant party tricks, like how he had brought the heat away from his palm the other night in order to stop the burn wounds from growing worse.
They definitely shouldn't be able to heal injuries of this level.
'Something odd is happening to my body…'
He had felt something off the moment he stayed in Veinsong for so long, but he hadn't been able to think about it. It wasn't the first time he had been in Veinsong, but it was the first time he had felt the need to stay in it for so long.
Now that he thought about it, he never truly felt much pressure when using Veinsong. Not only did it come to him easily, but he never felt that it was rushing him to finish.
Theron took a breath, and he realized that as he did so, he had already sunk deeply into the river. How was he breathing?
He hadn't even thought about it. He still had half a foot into Veinsong and his body was practically acting on its own right now.
His hand moved, touching the necklace that always hung around his neck. Right then, he could feel an odd resonance with it as well, as though it was trying to whisper something to him that he couldn't quite hear.
Theron allowed himself to be carried by the waves of the river, so distracted he didn't notice that the senses of the Silver Mancer had completely lost him.
Right that moment, he had become perfect and whole with the water. As it passed over him, their Mana exchanged seamlessly. The flow became so natural that the difference between Theron and the stream couldn't be felt at all.
As Theron sank to the bottom, he didn't notice as his mind drifted away.
He had pushed himself much too far, and in this moment of peace…
He drifted to sleep.