I felt Ama’s small hand leave my back.

“I don’t know Poyraz. I have no idea about your condition. Do you remember what I told you when you asked me for advice about Mana Manipulation?”

“I do.”

I answered while struggling to put my shirt on. It was hard since my left arm was still broken. It touched my wounded face and caused me to suffer. I struggled for a solid minute before Ama offered help.

“Do you need help?”

“Yes, please.”

I managed to cover myself with her help. Arslan shot me looks of jealousy. I couldn’t bother to answer his staring. My body ached all over. Even the touch of clothing against skin, once a simple comfort, now became an unwelcome source of torment. The fabric, no matter how soft, seemed to taunt my injured flesh, intensifying the ache with each gentle brush.

“It is rare for someone to use all of their mana. In that case, they would die.”

I repeated what she told me before. She nodded.

“Mana is life. Mana is a manifestation of the inherent energy that sustains life and animates the soul. It is the essence that gives beings their vitality, consciousness, and connection to the metaphysical realm.”

Animates the soul. I remembered what Spark actually was. An outer manifestation of the soul. How they were different? But, wait a second. I narrowed my eyes.

“Don’t the ground and sky also have mana? What about dungeons?”

Ama took a deep breath. If she wore glasses I was sure she would fix them.

“They do have life. Otherwise, how would support us, the life?”

I looked at Lily for help. I didn’t really understand it. He shrugged.

“Think it like old philosophies and beliefs. That’s how this work works.”

“Life breeds life. That’s why it is sacred.”

Ama continued.

“It is hard to fully use all of your mana. Not only mana replenishes very quickly, but it is also hard to push out if there is little.”

“Like shit.”

The entire room turned to Lily, judging him silently.

“Water would be a better example. If there are only drops left, it is hard to fully empty the cup.”

“But it happens.”

Ama nodded.

“Yes, it happens rarely. In that case, that person dies.”

“Except you, you lucky bastard.”

Arslan added. Yeah. How lucky.

“Our world didn’t have mana. Perhaps that’s why.”

I made a shot in the dark.

“I don’t think that’s it Windy-Wi. Our bodies are not the same as before. We also have a status window like them. We can safely say that we mostly obey this world’s laws.”

Surprisingly, Lily made sense.

“Windy-Wi?”

“That’s what you stuck on?”

I asked Arslan.

“My name means cold wind from the northeast.”

I said before he could ask what it meant.

“Let’s say it is thanks to Goddess covering my ass. The problem is my mana hasn’t been increasing since. I can’t even use my armor. My healing also slowed. I know I kept getting injured but I shouldn’t be so much pain right now. During my battle against Blanche, I got worse wounds.”

Ama put her hand on my shoulder sympathetically.

“Is it too bad? Should I gather some herbs to help the pain?”

I waved my hand.

“It is fine. We should focus on our real problem. That man and his giant fuckoff monster army. Morrigan!”

I shouted to get the attention of Morrigan. She was looking at her remaining dagger. She was like that since she woke up. At first, I thought she was somehow affected by what the man did her but both herself and Ama confirmed that she was fine. Well, except she lost her dagger and was wounded.

“I am sorry about losing your dagger.”

She shook her head.

“It is not your fault. I should be thankful to you for saving me.”

“You saved me first so let’s call it even. But now we need to talk about our situation.”

Everyone’s ears perked to discuss our situation. Morrigan, still holding her remaining dagger, listened intently. I could see the determination burning in her eyes.

“Nocturna and I managed to increase the barrier’s range. I am not sure how long we can keep it. We also cast healing magic for injured people though some need more time to be able to move.”

Ama was the first one to speak.

“We have 8 people missing. It is safe to assume they are dead. We also have 11 dead. 3 of them were our warriors.”

Arslan’s voice was colder than usual. I could feel his burning hatred for that man.

“They seemed to back off at least for now. It looks like he didn’t like getting a dagger being planting on his forehead.”

Lily said while checking his nails. I was glad he was at least somewhat focused.

“I don’t think so. It wasn’t the injury that hurt him. It was his mask being damaged.”

Everyone in the tent leaned forward, what I said gathering their interest.

“What do you mean?”

Arslan asked.

“I am not exactly sure. The skin it had under the mask was damaged and pale, like an-“

“Undead. A Revenant to be more specific. A type of undead that is anchored by an item to this world.”

Ama, like always was the most informed one. Lily shuddered.

“That would explain why I felt uncomfortable while facing it.”

“We shouldn’t jump to conclusions. There are items that would damage the user when they are broken or damaged. His mask could be something similar.”

I noted that Morrigan looked uncomfortable, something that everyone in the room have noticed. Despite that, we didn’t say anything.

“Shouldn’t a revenant hide its anchor rather than putting it to his face?”

Arslan also raised a good point.

“Undead are not creatures of logic. When they return, they either return with hunger and greed or an obsession. While Arslan’s point and Morrigan’s speculation are logical, him being a revenant is also logical.”

“So we have nothing.”

I reacted to Ama’s words while touching my chin.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“Except for us knowing aiming for his mask can work.”

Lily added.

“It probably won’t be easy as first time. Getting to him was already hard and targetting a specific part, a part that we hit before would be nigh-impossible.”

Arslan touched the hilt of his sword to reassure himself.

“I can do it.”

Morrigan threw her dagger into the air and caught it with graceful accuracy. Lily and I looked at each other. Why did they keep thinking they had to fight? Can’t we just divert or somehow avoid fighting?

With how tense the situation was, I couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. Morrigan's determination to face the enemy head-on, coupled with Arslan's readiness to fight, made me wonder if there was another way to approach the situation. I exchanged a glance with Lily, silently communicating our shared concern.

"Wait a moment,"

I interjected, trying to redirect the conversation.

"We have been talking about fighting. Shouldn't we explore alternative options with how little manpower we have and how many civilians there are? Is there any way we can divert or avoid engaging in a direct fight? Or perhaps call for backup?"

Morrigan and Arslan turned their attention toward me, their expressions reflecting a mix of curiosity and skepticism. Ama nodded in agreement, her thoughtful expression mirroring my sentiments. She spoke up, her voice calm and measured.

“Poyraz is right. Fighting should be our last option. Our goal is to get these people to safety. After that, we can gather a force to deal with that man. About back up… I don’t know. I tried to reach Whifur but it didn’t work. Monsters here and the mana they radiate must be affecting long-distance communication.”

Arslan shook his head.

“How we are supposed to get these people to safety without fighting? Their numbers are huge! We have probably 10 times amount monsters and those weretiger things to deal with.”

My eyes met with Lily’s again. A flashbulb appeared on top of my head.

“We can send a group to gather their attention and draw them to the oppo-

“Aww, hell no. Poyraz. No. Please come up with a non-suicidal plan. I beg of you.”

I chuckled despite everyone’s terror-filled faces.

“It is…”

Lily raised his hand.

“No.”

“Only.”

“Poyraz, no.”

Others looked confused.

“Suicidal if we die.”

Lily took his head between his hands.

“He said it. He really said. Nothing goes well when he says that.”

"Don't worry, Lily. I wasn't suggesting a suicide mission. We just need a diversion, something to create a temporary distraction and draw the attention of the monsters away from the civilians."

"And how do you propose we do that? We can't just wave a flag and hope they'll chase after it."

“Stop being dramatic Lily. He talked about the human smell. I would say Lily and me being baits. Lily has the ability to cast illusions. We can stall and draw them to the opposite side. Even if half of them chase after us, it would give you an opportunity to escort others. Then when you can communicate with Wilfur, you come back with backup.”

“That’s stupid.”

Arslan insulted my plan.

“That’s even worse than your other plans.”

Lily joined him.

“We can’t allow you to sacrifice yourself.”

Morrigan added.

“Poyraz. Not only this plan is downright suicidal, but it also relies too heavily on that man chasing you. Can you even trust the word of someone who killed their own race casually while claiming they wanted to free beastkin?”

Ama shot down my plan with cold logic and common sense. I leaned back, feeling tired and weak.

“I know. But do we have anything else? We can’t fight him and his army. We are already wounded and lost our man. We have women and children. Sick and injured. I don’t have mana and I am injured too. A desperate plan for a desperate situation. ”

“Except that desperate plan blows harder than me in bed.”

“It is not a high bar to clear.”

I answered Lily’s words with a joke. Silence enveloped the entire tent for a minute before Arslan meekly suggested something:

“Aren’t you guys Chosen of Gods? Can’t you just pray to them?”

I looked at Lily with confusion on my face.

“Can we do that?”

He shrugged.

“I don’t know. I never prayed to him. I didn’t see him after I came here either, unlike you.”

“Aliera told me to follow you guys. So she must know that we would encounter the masked man. But she also told me there were rules stopping her from interfering too much. So I don’t know if she would answer.”

Lily raised his head upwards and opened his hands.

“Hello, Daddy above. We need help.”

…

“Arslan.”

“Yeah?”

“Give me one of your swords for a second.”

I stretched my hand to grab the sword Arslan extended towards me. However, I had to grab my arm due to how the wind caused my bones to ache.

Wait. Wind? We are inside. Others also noticed it. Our eyes focused on the middle of us. Green energy shone brightly. I was reminded of Lily’s wings when I saw that color. It was exactly the same shade and felt similar too. As the green energy shimmered in the middle of the group, it slowly took the form of a humanoid figure with wings similar to butterfly wings.

Arslan and Morrigan drew their weapons, preparing for the battle.

“Slap my ass and call me Peter Pan. It is Tinker Bell!”

Lily spoke up causing them to relax a little.

She was no taller than 30 centimeters. She was adorned with translucent, gossamer wings that shimmer with iridescent shades of green reminiscent of a delicate butterfly's wings. Her luminous eyes sparkle like the stars, reminding me of Larve’s and telling me she was filled with playfulness and curiosity.

Air shifted around her. We looked at it and she looked back at us. She looked confused.

“Burp!”

She burped.