CHAPTER 36

THE GENUINE FEELINGS

Hans could feel how true she was to what she had just said. He doubted everyone, so he couldn’t tell if someone was sincere. Her words stirred him. They didn’t hint at any scheme.

“If you feel that strongly, do it in your own way. Why are you putting a label on this relationship?” Hans asked her, but inside he had an idea why she was saying that, the same reason he didn’t say he was the Prince of Parv till it became necessary.

On the other hand, it was evident in her eyes that she really wanted his best. A care that needed nothing in return. “How can an elf like her exist… no, I shouldn’t judge someone by their origin, that only shows how poor my judgement is. But, for real, why is she being so nice to me? Everyone wants something from me while she…she…”

“Words have power.” She answered his question and it was the same Hans was thinking. But it didn’t end there, she continued, “I need a justification to interfere, Kiddo.”

“I’m an imperial..I’m enemy of your… home. What you offering… there must be something more to it.” Even when Hans’s heart was telling him she was genuine, his rational side regularly warn him not to get persuaded.

She let out a forced chuckle, “Oh spare me kiddo. Do you think, if I cared about Clandor, I would have stayed away from that sham war.”

“Sham..” Hans was puzzled, “Elven war? What do you mean sham?” He asked her showing enthusiasm.

“A war where only elites of both nation fought, no army only powerful knights and Mages. Why do you think, your Xandor easily infiltrated Clandor and have that blood festival without much trouble, it was an inside job.” She was confused, she thought Hans was already briefed on this by Parvians. “You didn’t know? It was just a scheme of my little sister, she plays a real dirty politics. War needs justification too. It was to eliminate Council, but that backfired because your father had something else planned for her, not that I blame him, she kicked me out of Clandor heartlessly.”

“Details please. There was a lot to process in those small sentences.” Hans asked, curious.

“Call me mother, and I’ll tell you.”

“Haven’t you heard my reasoning?” Hans frowned.

“I only listen to what I want to listen to, kiddo.”

“Then…” Hans grumbled. “I’m not asking.”

“Alright, let’s bond. I’ll dodge, you attack.” She relaxed, flaws inviting Hans to exploit them, but he wasn’t just a thirteen-year-old but a veteran in mind, honed by Inheritance through sparring with Dietrich. However, a mage was fundamentally different from a knight whom he was surrounded by.

“She is too fast for me to aim, even ManaStorm is slow to activate. I need to restrain her first, but VeganBind is slow too. Only if I had the wind gem, I could photonise and increase my sp— no, she is right, I depend on external factors too much. Come on, Hans, focus, there has to be something.” Hans thought hard, “yeah, there is.”

Crackling his neck, he grinned as he called.

Elderform

He had tested it with Dietrich, this transformation of his had become several times stable and powerful after eating up the day seed. Soon a behemoth, made of entirely of green from the inside while armoured from some kind of organic black material, stood before Hera.

He growled, his voice monstrous, “Stay there.” With this transformation, his control over mana was an entirely in different level. The second effect of VoidZone, was on full swing. The mana particle touching Hera froze in their place.

Hera could instantly feel like she was in some thick liquid which was tightening her every passing second. Her limbs were moving in the slow motion like the time had slowed around her. “You changed the density of mana—”

“How the hell are you moving, you should be rooted.” Hans growled, even Samson as the undead king was stuck for a moment when he used the same on him, and he wasn’t even in perfect transformation like this.

“Oh, Sorry kiddo. You’ll understand, all tricks are just facade in front of pure strength.” She clenched her fist and the intense mana surged out from her nine circles.

“You said, you’ll only dodge.” Hans commented shamelessly.

“Yes, I did.” She stopped her mana surge and remarked, “This is troublesome.” She motioned her hand slowly, enjoying the fluid motion despite Hans’s efforts to restrain her.

“This sure put a dent in my pride.” Hans cried inside and call upon his most devastating move.

ManaCanon

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

It was another improvisation of his. In Elderform, he spiralled mana pivoting around his hand, positioned into a punching stance. Just like he took few steps forward in ManaStorm phase, his hand moved forward in form of steps.

“Incredible.” She had saw him in Elderform during last year’s broadcast so it was understood that he had grow in controlling it more accurately. But the ravaging mana around the punching hand of the monster was carrying immense power and she could feel it through her bones.

She chuckled, excitement evident in her face. “Good, good, let it rip kiddo.” She crossed her hand, taking a defensive form and welcomed the improvised ManaStorm

“Boom!” With the deafening sound, the mana canon was shot. Hera tried to dodge but at the very moment, Hans had put his all in restraining the mana around her.

“Haa… Samson junior is trying to kill me.” She chuckled again, and called on.- Venyx

"Shack!" Hans, confused by the sudden change in a flash, saw nine furry tails behind Hera. She vanished as his ravaging canon shot passed through the empty air. “Aww man! This is ridiculous.!” He complained as his size shrunk, the green matter, branches and leaves all regressed back into his pores. He was staring at her, sulking.

“Oh, look at you, acting cute—”

“That ain’t fair. You summoned your spirit. I don’t have anything like this.”

“You can turn into a classless beast, a master of a behemoth and still complains not having spirit. You really are greedy, child.”

“When you put it at that way…it feels…ya. But still you said you can only dodge—”

"I dodged," Hera remarked, pointing to where she had stood before. The impact had created a deep, elongated crater, revealing sharp walls underground as if something had carved them. Hera realised the danger if a weaker person had faced this attack head-on.

"You're becoming more impressive by the minute, son," Hera exclaimed, clenching her fist. "Show me more—“

“S..son.. — whatever. That was my best. I give up,” A sigh left from him, readily admitting defeat.

“Thats odd. I thought you were competitive.” Hera teased.

“Being competitive and being an idiot are very different thing, Nodemaster. Sometime you need to step back to plan your next move—”

“That is a weak mindset kiddo. You must never entertain such thoughts. Retreat should never be an option for you; that's how you gain overwhelming power,” Hera advised, smiling warm as she gently caressed his head.

“Easy for you to say. I don't have that kind of explosive power. Each of my attacks requires time and precision to succeed, while you can simply blast through anything.” Hans thought to himself but refrained from saying it aloud as it might sound childish. Instead, he chose his words carefully.

“I've heard that mages approach combat differently,” he said. “A mage should prepare meticulously before engaging, always planning several moves ahead of the opponent and utilising every advantage to gain the upper hand.”

“Thats norm, but you are not normal are you?” She stressed, “Focus on your own fighting style. Let the instinct guide you not your head. Time is crucial in battle; the more you think, the more your enemy has time to plan against you.”

"It's easy for you to say.” Hans remarked, “I've never seen anyone with that much mana in my life.”

“I was born talented?” Hera smirked.

Hans got irritated instantly, “So thats how people feel when I talk arrogantly. I should tone it down. Its not a good feeling.” He was convincing himself to be less egoistical. But Hera added, “And you do too.

“What?”

“Mana and other weird things.” Her hand finally left his head, “So, stop copying others. As I’ve said, you are different and that is good. You just have to find your own path. And when you do, attacking me once, heck, defeating me will also be possible.”

Hans didn’t had any words to say to her. She was more experienced than him and her words carried weight, heavy enough to convince him that his thinking before executing was flawed. “So that’s why Ancestor made me come here, she is different from others, personally and professionally both.”

She didn’t know what Hans was thinking inside, she just leaned forward slightly, bringing their eyes to the same level, and gently tapped his forehead. “Won't you show me your sanctuary? I thought it was your strongest move.”

“It's not ready yet,” Hans replied, rolling his eyes to the side. She was too close, and he was starting to feel flustered.

“Come on, son, show me.” She pushed him gently.

“Fine, fine, and stop calling me that.” Hans said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, running it over his lips.

With sun hung high, Hans started to absorb the solar energy, it started slow but now both Kai and Hera could see the pulsating golden energy which was coursing to the ground through the glowing Hans.

SunField Sanctuary.

Hans finally spoke, and a pulse spread across a radius of several meters. It was as if the entire training ground had been illuminated with mana. However, for Kai and Hera, this energy was all too familiar

“Gosh, he is producing the sunstone energy. Isn’t this too over the top.” Hera commented.

"Master, isn't this too risky? We're in Node; our crystals could be affected—“

"No, no, I want to see the full extent of it,” Hera dismissed Kal's concerns, she was a mage too and curiosity was just occupational hazard. She darted her eyes at the golden boy in front and soon Hans finished setting up his sanctuary.

"It's so hot," Kai remarked, wiping sweat from his brow. “It feels like I'm in the desert, master.”

“Yeah, I'm sweating buckets. It's ridiculous—"

“No, master, you're evaporating,” Kai pointed out as visible fumes rose from Hera.

However, Hera was focused on something else. She had protective barriers around herself and Kal, making it bearable, but outside of their protection, the wooden structures that housed weapons were charred black, as if they had been in an oven. Metals were losing their solid forms, melting like candle wax.

“Stop it, kiddo. I think even the castle walls will melt if you keep this up,” Hera shouted, and Hans opened his eyes. He had never experienced this spell like this before; it was usually much harder to achieve such results. "Maybe it's because the sunstone energy is so abundant here," he mused, chuckling as he looked at Hera and Kai's drenched faces.

“This whole barrier empowers me, Haan!” Another idea was fostering in his mind, the one he would use so much that even calling him the 'king in the barrier’ would be subpar of his feats.

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