34 – Bodyguard (1)
Chyaaah…!
The circular sickle in the man’s hand moved in a peculiar angle, descending towards Lian.
But even faster than that, Lian continued his leap.
Tadadadada!
Leaping consecutively without regard for the ceiling or walls.
With each landing, skillfully twisting his ankle to maintain control and prevent his body from plummeting.
An impossible feat without complete control over his physical body.
But Lian wasn’t satisfied with just that. He struck his legs with mana, further accelerating his movements.
In an instant, Lian took control of the rear and launched his strike.
“Indeed… he’s quite fast!”
However, as if the man had been waiting for that moment, they clashed their original blades. At that instant, water spiraled and fiercely collided with the aura created by Lian at the edge of the blade.
‘…What is this?’
A strange energy, unfamiliar to him. Lian hastily tried to withdraw his hand, but his fist was already caught by the thick vines that had appeared on the wall.
Lian furrowed his brow and opened his mouth.
“An Elemental Mage?”
Lian recalled the information he had read in a book a few days ago.
Elemental Mages, individuals who draw out the elements existing in nature to aid in combat.
Among them, the elements available to the man seemed to be water and grass.
‘He must be hiding at least one more.’
There was no other way to exploit the gap.
Wood creak…!
Lian observed the tree roots attempting to twist and break his arm with caution.
A creepy pressure could be felt even through the gauntlet.
If he were an ordinary person, his arm would have been torn off long ago.
“Seems more relaxed than it looks, is it because of the implant?”
The man faintly smiled while stroking the original blade.
“If you were expecting reinforcements, give it up. They might find it challenging to save their own lives.”
As he spoke, just as he was about to tear Lian’s right hand off.
A chilling sensation at the edge of his neck.
Sah-ahk!
“……!!”
Something that couldn’t be seen with the naked eye but was undeniably felt beyond the skin.
The man quickly made a decision. The moment he realized something was attempting to wrap around his neck, he instinctively stepped back without a hint of hesitation.
Slash!
“Agh!”
The sound of flesh being sliced through.
With his hand firmly grasping the bleeding neck, the man spoke.
“…You almost got me there. Woman.”
Not a fatal wound, but enough to instill caution. Yet, on the man’s face, a trace of laughter remained.
“Sorry for being late. Lady Lianne.”
“It’s okay.”
Thunk…!
Instead of expressing gratitude, Lianne, grabbing the gauntlet, forcefully tore away the vine trying to entangle Amila.
“You came just in time when it was needed.”
Saying so, Lianne infused magic into the gauntlet.
‘Her movements are tough. Closer to a warrior than an assassin.’
Moreover, if she could detect Amila’s magic, her magic perception would likely be exceptional.
‘If all members of the guard have this level of skill… it wouldn’t be strange for others to fall.’
Therefore, all the more reason to finish him off right here.
If these skilled individuals join forces with Joltan Pashur, even the already slim chance of victory will disappear.
“Amila, please convey to the other team members to fight in a way that buys us as much time as possible.”
“….”
Instead of asking, Amila nodded silently.
She instantly grasped Lian’s intention.
The plan was to swiftly defeat the enemies in front of them and then jointly attack Joltan Pashur. Although there was a significant risk of being surrounded at any moment, there was no other way to overcome the current situation.
The man who had been observing Amila transmitting on the radio let out a small sigh and wiped the blood clinging to his neck.
“Phew… Seems like I underestimated this quite a bit.”
Along with the man’s words, the circular scythe in his hands doubled in length.
Zzzt…!
Before adapting to this sudden change, a blue current enveloped the man’s weapon.
“Kuh… hehehehe…!”
Despite both arms being jolted by dozens of currents, he spat out laughter with a mad gleam in his eyes.
Rather than doing it intentionally to induce fear, it would be more accurate to understand that controlling the substance known as brain electricity was difficult.
“Kraaah!!”
The man, trembling all over, rushed towards Lian with the enlarged circular blade in hand. Amila quickly blocked the path as a magic user, but it was effortlessly cut through.
Don’t block it. Lian quickly assessed and twisted his body to the side. Crunch! The thick marble split apart, scattering fragments in all directions.
Lightning element. True to its name, the movement of the current was unpredictable. While Lian’s magical perception was undoubtedly exceptional, detecting and avoiding currents flying from all directions posed a different level of challenge.
Zzzt…!
Electricity surged through the flesh. It was quite painful, but not unbearable. Lian immediately corrected his posture.
“hehehehe! How long do you plan on just avoiding me?”
The man shouted and waved his arms. The relentless onslaught of sword strikes. But Lian did not retreat. With his eyes wide open, he read the path of the attacks. There was no way to avoid being burned by the electricity. So, he could only make the best choice.
‘…!’
Just before the attack was launched, at the precise moment, he punched and forcibly diverted the path. It could be dismissed as a coincidence once or twice, but within a short period, Lian had dodged dozens of attacks. It was clear what that meant.
He was completely overwhelmed in close combat.
“What…!”
The battle couldn’t go on like this. According to calculations, Lian’s body should have been sent flying long ago. After all, he was an elemental mage, so he could endure like this. If he were a human without resistance to lightning elements, his nervous system would be completely destroyed the moment he came into contact with the elements.
“Were you also from the Braken clan?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Braken. Wasn’t it a desert region located in the southern part of the continent?
Muttering like that, Lian focused his magic power into his gauntlet.
Crackle! Sizzle! It felt like electricity was swirling in front of Lian’s fist. No, it wasn’t just a feeling. He had been deceived by the bastard’s appearance and had missed the most important fact. The man clenched his teeth and pulled the electricity towards himself.
“Now… now you’re not even pretending to hide…!!”
“That’s why I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Swoosh…
In sync with his breath, the ambient magic power was drawn into Lian’s body. The elements summoned by the man were no exception. From the moment they were drawn into Lian’s body, the elements no longer obeyed the man’s control.
“What is this again-“
The man couldn’t finish his sentence. The electricity that had been swirling around the circular sickle suddenly rushed towards Lian all at once.
Swoooooosh!
“……!!”
The man, forgetting that he was in the midst of battle, stared at Lian with a dazed expression.
The currents that should have been tearing at the flesh of their owner, going wild as if possessed, were now wrapped around Lian’s gauntlets like gentle lambs.
“This… this is absurd…!!”
The situation had suddenly flipped. And it wasn’t just the man who was astonished.
“I can’t… intervene.”
Amira looked towards the direction where Lian was with trembling eyes. The ambient mana and elements were raging and running wild. No matter how skilled she was as a manipulation-type mage, using magic in such a storm was a completely different problem.
She could use magic, but it was clear that she would lose control and go haywire in an instant.
But Lian was different.
In the midst of the chaotic and irregular flow of mana, she calmly prepared for her next attack.
Talent… no, could one even call that a talent? Amira had met countless geniuses in the Tower, but there wasn’t a single person who could compare to Lian.
Beyond simply being superior to others, she was at a level where she created new rules.
-Gulp.
Amira swallowed dryly as she watched Lian’s back.
“aaah!”
The man shouted as he swung his circular scythe. He had realized that he had to intervene somehow before Lian’s attack was completed.
Without panicking, Lian extended her gauntlet towards the circular scythe.
She grabbed it with her hand.
“Let’s finish this.”
And with that, she swung her other fist. Crack! A concentrated discharge of electricity pierced through the man’s body. A pungent smell spread in all directions.
“Hmm, hhhng……”
An empty abdomen. The man who had been clutching his charred upper body slumped in that spot.
However, even in that moment of death, his gaze did not stray from the gauntlet on Rian’s hand.
“……”
Rian silently observed his state.
In just a single breath, a talent that could catch up with the achievements of someone’s entire lifetime.
[I’m just curious how high you can rise in that world of yours.]
From Noble mtl dot com
Did the man he encountered back then know that it would come to this?
Exhaling a shallow breath, Rian immediately moved on.
The mission was not over yet.
*****