Glancing at the blood red curtain of light floating in front of him, Alnea finally let out a sigh of relief. Although he would not have lost much if he was disqualified, just imagining the smug look on Cecilia’s face and the amused look on Yuri’s face was enough to make him feel uncomfortable. Refusing their help, only to end up going back to ask for their help once again… Thankfully, his guess was right.
“The concept of Aspects…” Alnea said, replaying the fight in his mind all over again. “The key to the Aspect Trials is adapting to the concepts of our Aspects, right?”
“…You can say that,” Yuri said, not showing any disappointment in her voice. “Did you break any records?”
“…I was just confirming my guess this time,” Alnea said, trying not to show any embarrassment in his voice. “Besides, are these records really something that can be broken?”
“I did it.”
“…I guess I could have broken the record for time. But then, I would not have confirmed my guess.”
“Cecilia broke the records too.”
“About that… How exactly did she do it? How did she defeat the two Blood Shadows without using her own Aspects?”
“Just like how we defeated them in the Martial Style Trials.”
“But these Blood Shadows are different.”
“Just because they are using their Aspects?”
“Isn’t that enough?”
“…You should not underestimate Cecilia. The fact that you have not overtaken her, despite the advantages of special Roots, is a testament to how hard she has been working.”
“…I have been working hard too,” Alnea mumbled, before returning to his usual voice. “This time, I will definitely break some records.”
“…Be careful.”
“I will,” Alnea added, before shifting his focus back to the blood red curtain of light floating in front of him and choosing to begin the third level of the Trial.
“Defeat three third level Initial Stage Blood Shadows.”
“Powers outside of the path of Warriors are forbidden.”
“Usage of Martial Styles is forbidden.”
“Usage of weapons, other than those formed by your Aspects, is forbidden.”
“You can use only one Aspect.”
“Using more than one Aspect will disqualify you from the trial.”
“Perfect clearance condition: Defeating the Blood Shadows without getting injured.”
“Record one: Defeating the Blood Shadows in five seconds.”
“Record two: Defeating the Blood Shadows in two moves.”
“Record three: Defeating the Blood Shadows without using any Aspects.”
…Those records looked much more achievable.
“Your Trial will begin at the count of sixty.”
At least the record for defeating the Blood Shadows in the least moves possible was something he could achieve.
“…Three.”
It would be hard, and tiring, asking him to put in almost superhuman amount of effort.
“Two.”
But that was the last thing that he was afraid of. Working hard.
“One.”
Exhaling a heavy breath, Alnea suppressed his thoughts to the bottom of his Heart, as he shifted his focus to the world around him. To the darkness, that was soon filled with a bright white light, and to the Blood Shadows forming in front of him. Three, as promised by the Trial Space, all bearing their own Aspects. One carrying a blood red sword, one covering its fist in a black light, and one overing its leg in a purple light. One focussing on lethality, one focussing on power, and one focussing on speed.
On their own, the Blood Shadows were easy to deal with. When grouped together though… They had a way of cooperating with each other that only Wanderers who had trained together for years, experiencing countless life and death trials, could hope to achieve. Though they might be just third level Initial Stage Blood Shadows, even Intermediate Stage False Wanderers would have a hard time dealing with them.
Unless they gave up on breaking the records, of course, focussing solely on taking down Blood Shadows with all their strength. Even then, whether or not they could clear the trial perfectly would depend solely on Ilea’s mood. But that was the case with other Wanderers.
For Alnea, the Blood Shadows were just a bit more challenging. And he was never one to be afraid of challenges. Or be careless. A habit that he had learned after experiencing the breath of death. So, even if the Blood Shadows looked weak, and vulnerable, he did not rush in towards them. Rather, he kept maintaining his distance from them, matching them for every step they took, while trying to figure out their attack patterns.
The Blood Shadow shining in a purple light was obviously the fastest of the three Blood Shadows. Naturally, it was also serving as their vanguard, constantly advancing towards him in an aggressive and menacing manner. Yet, no matter how fast it was, it made sure to never leave its companions too far behind, preferring to give up the chance to take down its enemy rather than breaking their formation.
The Blood Shadow covering its fist in a black light, on the other hand, was serving as the back up of the first Blood Shadow, advancing towards its companion rather than towards its enemy, ready to provide cover for both of its companions whenever they needed it. Even when Alnea passed by its side, with barely three hands distance between them, the Blood Shadow still chose to remain in its formation rather than chasing after him.
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Only the third Blood Shadow, the one with a blood red sword, was a little different. It too stayed in their formation, but instead of supporting its companions, it preferred advancing towards its enemy. Rather, from a certain perspective, it looked as if the actions of the other two Blood Shadows were to create opportunities for the third Blood Shadow to launch its finishing moves…
It was all just his speculation though. So, to be sure, Alnea stopped retreating, and advanced towards the Blood Shadows instead. In a controlled manner, of course, taking the steps and actions of the Blood Shadows into account. Ducking down to dodge a kick towards his head, he rolled forwards, only to push on the ground, and jump towards his right to avoid a punch aiming for the gap between him and the first Blood Shadow.
Coincidentally, the direction he jumped in was also the direction that the last Blood Shadow was rushing in from, slashing its sword to cut down his head. Thankfully, the Blood Shadow was not gifted physically, and was not using its Aspects to enhance its speed either, allowing Alnea to tilt his body backwards to escape the sword passing right in front of his eyes.
The Blood Shadow was not a one trick pony though. Having failed in its first attack, it was bound to follow up with another attack. And Alnea was not willing to gamble whether he could dodge another attack while being so close to the Blood Shadow. Not to mention the fact that the other two Blood Shadows had almost caught up with him. Besides, he had already confirmed their attack pattern.
Different from the Blood Shadows in the Martial Style Trials, these Blood Shadows were all unique in their own ways, each playing their own part in the formation, making it more aggressive, and dangerous. Yet, at the same time, the rigidity in their formation also made it easier for him to break through their attacks.
Calculating the risks and gains involved in his actions, Alnea gritted his teeth, and chose to shift his step towards second Blood Shadow, trapping himself in between the three Blood Shadows. A strange move, which would have made any Wanderer think if there was something wrong with his head. But his enemies were not other Wanderers. They were Blood Shadows.
As entities created by the Trial Space, the Blood Shadows could not understand his actions. They did not need to understand his actions. They had only one job, to complete their role in the formation. And they did their job perfectly. Their vanguard, the one with its leg wrapped in purple light, rushed towards him, sending kick towards his chest. Probably to push him towards the sword aiming for his back.
Similarly, the second Blood Shadow, the one with its fist wrapped in a black light, punched towards his face, cutting off another path of escape. At the same time, the space between the Blood Shadows was not enough for him to dodge their moves. Coupled with the sword coming at his back… he truly had nowhere left to move.
In the situation that he was in, there was no way for him to break the records. And if he did not block the attacks coming for him, his chances of clearing the trial perfectly were going to vanish as well. Understanding the folly of his moves, Alnea gave up moving altogether. He just stood there, looking at the Blood Shadows in a daze. He, Alnea Oathkeeper, was going to fail once again—
The sword, shining in a blood red light, passed through Alnea’s chest as if it was just water—
No, it was not just the sword. Even the kick and the punch—Rather, the three Blood Shadows, rushing in with all their strength, all passed through ‘Alnea’, and collided with each other. As did their Aspects. Blood red, black, and purple lights, shining along with the Blood Shadows, burst with all their strength, dyeing everything around them in their colour. Everything, except a small anomaly just two feet away from them.
Whether it was the colour of the Aspects dyeing the trial space, or the shockwave of the explosion released from the collision of the Aspects, when they reached some two feet away from the Blood Shadows, they were met with cover of another Aspect shielding its master, creating ripples over its surface. After all, no matter how strong the explosion of three Aspects getting out of control was, when scattered in all direction, its might was not enough to destroy the cover of another Aspect perfectly in synchronisation with its master.
Still, the shockwaves were enough to reveal presence of the cover. And destroy the Blood Shadows. Even before the aftermaths of the explosion could subside, the Blood Shadows had already begun disintegrating into tiny shards. No matter how he saw it, the trial was as good as over. As such, Alnea finally stopped hiding, and urged his Aspect to release its illusion.
Illusion… He had already shown his talent in illusions with his Arcanas, so he was not surprised when he tamed an Aspect with the concept of illusion the week before. On the contrary, he was surprised that he had never came across such an Aspect before. Except the naughty Aspect which had tricked him with its lies, of course. But that Aspect was focussed more on lies and disguise, rather than illusions.
The Aspect he was using at the moment was focussed more on creating illusions. Not the psychological or auditory illusions, like his Arcanas, but illusions based on what others could see and feel. Illusions based on ‘Light’ and ‘Action’. Unfortunately, the illusions that the Aspect could create were not too powerful. At best, they could only be used for hiding himself. After all, what better way there could be for protecting other than hiding?
Creating a shield, while also creating an illusion, apparently, Alnea noted with a chuckle. His Aspects… they were all unique and weird in their own ways. Fortunately, they were also very reliable. At least they had not disappointed him yet. It was his first time using the Aspect he had tamed nearly a week ago, so he was not sure how well it would be able to protect him. After all, it was a little different from his other Aspects. But it looked like he had been thinking too much.
An Aspect carrying the concept of ‘Action’, even if only partly, was not an Aspect that could be looked down upon. Especially in his hands. The resonance of his Roots and his Aspect was enough to boost the performance of his Aspect by at least one to two tenths of its normal effectiveness. Even if it the shield it formed was not comparable to his other defensive Aspects, it was enough to protect him against the shockwaves produced by collision of enemies a whole stage lower than him.
Praising the Aspect for its performance, and promising to play with later in the day, Alnea urged his Aspect to return back to its Aspect Well, just as the final aftermath of the collision faded away, revealing the last shards of the Blood Shadows dissipating back into the Trial Space. Moments later, the bright white light of the Trial Space also faded away, leaving just Alnea, and a blood red curtain of light floating in darkness.
“Congratulations, Blood Soldier N 06 08499, for passing the third level of the Initial Stage Aspect Trial.”
“You have cleared the Trial perfectly.”
“Time taken to defeat your opponent: Ninety seven seconds.”
“Moves made to defeat your opponent: None.”
“Detecting error in the records of the Warrior Hall.”
“Defeating Blood Shadows without making any moves is deemed impossible.”
“Disengaging from normal review of the trial.”
“Activating special review of the records of the Warrior Hall.”
“Please wait while the Warrior Hall reviews your record.”
“Review has been completed.”
“Review has passed.”
“Determining rewards for the special situation.”
“Rewards have been determined.”
“Records have been filed in the database for future reference.”
“Congratulations, Blood Soldier N 06 08499, for creating an unbreakable record, and leaving behind your mark in the annals of the Lost City.”
“Resuming normal review of the trial.”
“You have cleared the Trial perfectly.”
“Time taken to defeat your opponents: Ninety seven seconds.”
“Moves made to defeat your opponent: None.”
“Aspects used: One.”
“Records broken: One.”
“Perfect clearance of Trials: Three.”
“Blood Soldier N 06 08499, you have been rewarded with one hundred Blood Coins and two Martial Style Medals.”
“Do you wish to continue with the Trials, or do you wish to leave the Trial Space?”
“Reminder: Regardless of how many Trials you challenge, you will have to pay ten Blood Coins every time you enter the Initial Stage Trial Space.”