CHAPTER 64

THE MANASTORM AND SUGARDRAIN

  Hans decided to elaborate on his dream to satisfy everyone's curiosity as to what had caused him to faint. Once he had finished describing the scene, Chris couldn't contain his laughter and began to tease him.

"So you fainted just by hearing her shout?" Chris quipped before adding,

So how pretty was she?

  Hans was taken aback by the question and couldn't help but feel his face flush with embarrassment as he remembered the otherworldly beauty of the girl in his dream. He stammered out a response to Chris, "a lot, she was an otherworldly beauty. I have never seen anyone like her."

Vanessa, who was standing nearby, couldn't resist pinching her brother's cheek affectionately and admonishing him playfully.

"It's too early for you to be chasing girls, dear brother," she teased.

  As Delimira overheard their conversation, irritation crept over her. She was confident in her beauty, and the fact that Hans suddenly praised some random girl in his dream was making her angry. Without a second thought, she stormed out of the room while yelling at the two boys,

You're both idiots!

Hans watched her leave and couldn't help but giggle, turning to Chris to say,

That sure pissed her off.

Chris, curious about the reason for Hans's laughter, asked,

Why are you giggling?

Hans pointed towards Delimira's retreating back and replied,

She never lets me have the last say. But now, I've got the perfect weapon to shut her up.

Chris joined in on the giggling, while Vanessa, worried about her brother's future actions, cautioned him,

Do not hurt a lady's pride, Hans. They say 'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned' for a reason.

But Hans didn't take her advice seriously, not knowing that he would soon regret his actions.

WINTER’S HOME

Delimira stormed into the room, her feet stomping with irritation as she asked her mother,

Mother, how much do you know about God's Blood?

Her mother's interest was piqued and she asked back,

Ho... What makes you interested in it?

"Nothing, just cause," Delimira replied.

"If you tell me the reason, I will tell you something you don't know," her mother countered, always looking for a trade.

With a sigh, Delimira revealed,

Shorty saw two of them in his dreams.

Aredhel's eyes widened in surprise,

At the same time?

No, he saw someone way before and one just now.

Aredhel chuckled with a sense of satisfaction as she responded to Delimira's question,

Previously, I thought Hans was not really his son, but now I am sure he has Parvian blood in him.

Delimira looked at her mother with confusion and asked,

What are you talking about, mother?

Aredhel replied,

Nothing. As for my end of the deal, the God's Bloods did exist in the past, but since the Elven gods have forsaken us, we not only lost our long lifespan but also the ability to conceive a 'God's Blood.'

The following day, Sierra called for Hans to visit the Yudwin temple. She wanted to ask Yudwin to bless him because he kept hurting himself. There was no way to turn down Sierra when her goddess was involved, and since Hans was on medical leave, he had plenty of time to follow her wishes.

THE NEXT DAY

  Hans reluctantly accompanied Sierra to the temple where the former high priestess prayed for him. Despite never having faith in Yudwin, Hans always believed that it was Sierra's power that kept him alive.

  He had heard about being a stillborn and Sierra using her divine mana to save his life, but there was no concrete evidence to support this work as Yudwin's doing. Despite his doubts, he couldn't bring himself to argue with his grandmother, who only had his best interests at heart.

  After leaving the temple, Hans made his way to the training field where the day's lecture was taking place. He was running late, but to his relief, Aredhel Winters, the professor in charge, was also running behind schedule. He quietly slipped in next to his friends just as Aredhel made her entrance.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Aredhel greeted the class with a smile,

My apologies for being late, something came up. But before we begin, how about Mr Hans demonstrates his mastery of Mana discharge?

Hans remained calm and collected, knowing that they were outside and there was a possibility of this happening. Whereas Delimira grabbed his wrist and warned him, "you better have something".

Hans shrugged her off and retorted,

Didn't you say a mule can learn mana discharge from a book? I may not be entirely human, but I'm definitely better than a mule.

Proudly, he stepped forward and addressed Aredhel, while casting a glance in Chris's direction,

Is it alright if my friend takes the hit? He was curious about it yesterday.

  Chris was taken aback by the sudden proposition. Although he was indeed curious, he had never expected to become a practice dummy. Aredhel nodded her approval, and Chris reluctantly made his way to the front. His reluctance, however, did not stem from fear, but rather from the hassle of it all.

Aredhel addressed the class, her eyes glinting with excitement.

Today, we have a unique opportunity to witness the simultaneous display of a mage's mana discharge and a knight's defence against it. Pay attention, this will be a valuable lesson.

Hans flashed a sly grin at Chris and taunted him,

Relax, my friend. You have nothing to worry about. This is all ELEMENTARY.

  But Chris knew better than to let his guard down. He swung his blade a few times, loosening up his muscles and mentally preparing for the challenge ahead. He had learned that nothing was ever straightforward when it came to Hans, and he was determined not to be caught off guard.

  Hans felt a surge of excitement as Chris covered himself with a veil of aura, his body shining a faint shade of purple. Hans had learned from his previous encounter with Rudolf that even his sole physical defence wouldn't be enough to counter his mana discharge. And Chris was no warlord, but he was prepared to defend against anything, turning his aura defence to the maximum.

  Hans was impressed to see him giving his all It would have been disrespectful not to reciprocate with equal fervour. With a sly grin on his face, Hans closed his eyes and began to concentrate. He had already given a name to his mana discharge and he called upon it with all his might.

~ ManaStorm ~

As he said those words, the mana in the area reciprocated his conviction. Swirling around him, it grew denser and heavier, bearing down on him with increasing intensity. The flow of mana invisible to the naked eye was now starting to leave traces in the dusty field.

  This was far different from the mana discharge that other mages used. Chris understood the gravity of the situation and increased the aura around him. He was prepared to use Aura Burst, a technique that releases a shockwave of aura in all directions, similar to mana discharge.

With a wicked smile, Hans called out to Chris,

Get ready.

  With a single step, Hans advanced forward, and the spiralled mana stretched out, shooting towards Chris like a catapult. The dense rotation of mana hit Chris with such force that he was sent flying several meters away, his Aura Burst completely negated. The sheer power of Hans' "ManaStorm" was unlike anything Chris had ever seen before.

  Chris was in shock as he saw his blunt sword shattered even with aura conducting in it. This was the second time he had faced Hans and once again, he was completely overwhelmed by him. However, Hans was not in a good condition either. He was gasping for air, leaning forward and holding onto his knees for support.

Despite this, Aredhel clapped for the marvellous performance. She was impressed by Hans's display of power, but she also knew that it was not enough. She commented,

It's useless if you can't finish off your opponent after doing this much damage to him. The recoil is pretty bad in your case.

  Hans gritted his teeth as he tried to catch his breath. Aredhel's words stung him, but he knew she was right. He couldn't afford to waste his energy like this in a real battle. Suddenly, a cunning idea struck him. He pointed his finger at Chris and shouted,

~ SugarDrain ~

A parasitic vine, which he had recently acquired from the Man-Eating forest, sprung out from the ground and coiled around Chris's legs. the grip was not strong enough to be noticed after the deafening blast. And it immediately started to drain Chris's energy and supply it back to Hans.

  Noticing his condition of quickening lethargy, Chris started tearing the thin vines but with every touch, he felt his strength draining. He looked at Hans who was getting better with significant speed. Hans released a deep breath, this spell was a help in transferring the energy(stamina) from his target to him.

Frustrated, Chris yelled at Hans,

You darn mosquito, stop it!

With a wide grin that stretched almost to his ears, Hans dispelled the energy-draining spell and turned to Chris.

"I could finish him now, professor," he declared confidently, addressing Aredhel.

  Acknowledging Hans, Aredhel replied, "Indeed, Mr Hans. Now, take your exhausted friend back to your spot." She emphasised the importance of today's practical lecture on perfecting everyone's mana storm, while Hans and Chris rested under the shade.

Eager to tease his friend, Hans turned to Chris and said,

Oh, come on! You wanted to see me using it.

But Chris was not amused. In fact, he was quite annoyed and shouted,

"It doesn't mean you can suck me dry", feeling awkward from his own words he added "you mosquito!"

Hans let out a weary sigh and replied,

Glad that you added the mosquito part, you sounded...

Chris rolled his eyes and shouted,

Oh, shut up.

  As Chris lay on the bench with a damp towel covering his face, Hans observed the other students practising their mana discharge techniques. He had been hoping to see how Delimira would perform, but he had missed her turn while chatting with Chris.

After regaining some of his energy, Chris sat up and turned to Hans.

"Hey, do you remember the black-haired fairy from your dreams?" he asked.

Hans's eyes lit up with excitement.

"How could I forget her?" he exclaimed.

Confidently, Chris replied,

Then let's see her.

Hans looked surprised.

"How?" he asked.

Chris pointed at Delimira and said,

Everything is possible if you have a Winters around you.

Little did they know, their casual conversation was about to set fire to their otherwise calm lives.

***