THE RESOLVE TO CONTINUE FIGHTING
.
.
.
‘Fuu.’
Taking a deep breath, I focused on myself, slowly getting into a battle stance. I increased my perception to its limits, relaxing my body while forming a grim determination around my weapon.
‘Fuu, let’s do my best, and I need to actively channel EXIRA, or else I would be fucked without knowing.’
‘Huu.’
Knowing Mom, she would stretch the absolute limits of what I could handle. The task was clear: I had to learn.
Focus, Alex… Focus.
As my emotions and will aligned, the hidden power surged within me. I channeled it throughout my entire body, enhancing my base capabilities.
One big attack, all in.
Kicking off with a strong push, I closed the distance between myself and Mom. As my gaze hardened on her, I mustered all the power of EXIRA to slam down upon her, hoping for at least a few seconds of opportunity as I swung the blade toward her side.
My gaze met hers, and she matched my intensity. Mom simply tanked the EXIRA effect without batting an eye, deflecting my attack with the flat side of her sword. The sheer force of it threw me off balance, and I quickly retreated a few steps to evade her reach, but what followed was a swift counterattack.
She closed in, using the pommel to strike my chest—a blow I barely managed to intercept.
‘Huff.’
Although that hurt, I managed to create some distance between us.
‘Arghhh!’
The attack with the pommel knocked the air out of my lungs. Channeling EXIRA, I suppressed the feeling. As I calmed my breathing and switched to a two-handed grip for better balance, I angled the sword to match her attack.
‘Clang.’
The blades clashed, and sparks flew, my weapon bouncing back under the force. I pushed forward with more strength to continue the assault.
‘Clang.’
‘Clang.’
After just a few exchanges, I could feel my strength waning, my labored breathing becoming evident.
Damn it, huff!
Every attempt to create distance was instantly thwarted by Mom’s relentless attacks, forcing me to match her tempo. Her strength is insane… huff… it’s draining mine just to deflect her blows and regain control quickly enough.
‘Clang.’
‘Huff.’
‘Clang.’
My arms began to tremble more and more, feeling loose and difficult to move.
‘Clang… fu*k!’
It happened so quickly that I barely registered it at first. One moment, I was gripping my sword, the clash of steel ringing in my ears, and the next, an overwhelming pressure locked me down, denying me any action.
Thum, thum.
My head rang like a bell, and I willed my EXIRA to respond, but it only managed to alleviate the headache before snuffing it out completely.
I suppose the match ends… damn… wait… wha…
I thought the match had ended, but I caught sight of Mom’s cold gaze as she moved in with a swing.
‘Slice.’
In the blink of an eye, a flash of pain so sharp it barely registered coursed through me.
‘Thud.’
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Splash
My body staggered back on instinct, locked under Mom’s EXIRA, but it wasn’t until I glanced down that my heart froze.
My hands… they were gone.
I stared in disbelief, blood pouring from the stumps of my wrists. The reality didn’t sink in at first—there was only a surreal numbness as if it were happening to someone else, not me. But then… the pain hit—a burning agony that shot up my arms like fire.
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Argg
My body wanted to collapse, but it stayed frozen. The grunts tore from my throat before I could stop them, barely audible.
Arghhh
I wanted to scream, but all I could manage were ragged gasps, struggling to breathe through the haze of pain and her EXIRA still bearing down on me.
My mind raced, grasping for some way to make sense of it, but all I could think was, How can this be happening?
I tried to move, to do something, but all I could do was cradle the bleeding stumps, feeling the warmth of my own blood gushing down.
Tears blurred my vision, my chest heaving as fear set in. I frantically screamed in my head for Mom to stop, for Aunt Nora to come quickly.
Shuaa
All my thoughts came to a halt as the presence of overwhelming EXIRA intensified, denying me the ability to think.
“You have improved since the last spar. However, your mentality of ending everything in one strike is nothing but a child’s fantasy,” she said coldly. “YOU ARE NOT AN ASSASSIN, ALEXIS.”
“Your fascination with mixing every single technique might work against novices, but any experienced opponent would lop your head off, not just your hands.”
The voice grew colder and appeared closer as the presence of EXIRA became overbearing. I could feel my bones creaking under the pressure.
But what it brought was an unnatural clarity to my mind amidst the overwhelming pain—ridiculous amounts of pain…
“Going all out against an opponent you know far outclasses you could have been a smart move, but—”
“But you threw everything at me from the very start, showing no aces, holding no cards in reserve, no good strategy. Did you honestly expect to overwhelm me?”
‘Splurt… splurt’
Blood kept gushing out of my wounds, a grim reminder of all that had transpired. I could almost see my face pale as life drained from me, yet, screaming internally, I forced my head against the pressure to meet Mom’s gaze, knowing full well she wouldn’t let me go.
“Alexis.”
‘Shuaa’
The EXIRA was even more intense now. If before it was pure physical pressure, now it was downright terrifying, filled with the killing intent of my mother… no, the Ruler and Matriarch of House Drakeseir.
“There will be unknown variables in a real battle, variables far beyond your control but manipulating them will make you come out victorious. There will be pain; I guarantee it will be much more intense than what you are experiencing now. If this much makes you lose your reason, your will to stand, then…”
‘Splurt…’
‘Grr’
Damn… she… wants an answer?… fu*k, ahh!
Gritting my teeth, I summoned whatever remained of my EXIRA and matched her gaze.
“Y….YES!... MoTHEr!”
Two sets of eyes met—one cold blue, calm and carrying absolute authority, and the other pale blue, holding back chaos and absolute resolve.
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“Artoria!”
A mature voice cut through the tension as Aunt Nora rushed in.
“Noralyne.”
Lady Drakesier met her gaze as her EXIRA erupted, forcing Nora to stop.
‘Huuuf’
“You have taught Alexis well enough, but none of us will be there to fight his battles for him, will we?”
Her voice was cold and commanding.
“But… Artoria… He is…”
“I will not repeat myself, Nora. He knows what to do; let him.”
Locking my gaze with Mom’s, horror dawned upon me as I realized what she wanted me to do.
‘Fuu’
‘Sniff’
‘Fuu’
I took a deep breath and mustered EXIRA to channel throughout me, letting it seep deep within. Gazing down, I used EXIRA to manifest a wave to clean and stop the bleeding.
‘Huu’
It’s so… hard to focus…
I felt my consciousness waver under the pain and nausea.
‘Fuuuu’
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Okay… arfg… one… step
At… a ti…me
I moved towards the severed hands slowly, fighting back the bile rising in my throat and the nausea. Kneeling near them, I prepared to pick them up.
Wait… Pick… them… up?
Looking at my stumps and then at the fallen hands, I turned back to my stumps.
Fu*k…
Seeing my hands and the stumps triggered another wave of nausea and pain.
‘Huffg’
I willed EXIRA to grab hold of my hands and bring them near me. My vision blurred, and I realized I could only maintain the effects of EXIRA to stay conscious or to bring my hands to me.
‘Fu*k Ahhhhhh!’
Raising EXIRA as my will hardened, the world slowly lost its color, dying in a greyish hue. All unnecessary thoughts disappeared. Only pain remained—immense pain—but it tethered my consciousness.
‘Fuu’
“Artoria! We should” Aunt Nora began, stepping forward, but Mom silenced her with a raised hand.
“Let him,” Artoria said, her voice cold and steady, revealing no hint of emotion.
Yet Nora’s keen eyes caught what others overlooked the white knuckles of Artoria’s hand, her grip on the hilt of her sword so tight that the handle cracked under the pressure, betraying her internal struggle. Blood seeped down from her palms as her nails dug into flesh.
Nora's gaze hardened as it shifted to Alexis, understanding that, even if the world didn’t, her dear friend, the ruler of a nation, was suffering just as much as her son.
Sigh... This family…
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F**k this...
Clenching my teeth, I knelt and grasped my right hand with my mouth.
Muff...
The taste of dirt and iron filled my mouth, nearly making me gag, but the EXIRA surged within me, pushing all other thoughts away. The world faded to grey, and I was grateful for this newfound aspect.
Muffgh...
I managed to bring my mouth closer to the right stump.
Gush... splurt...
Blood flowed freely, painting the grey world with crimson as the iron taste intensified. EXIRA, sensing my singular desire, moved almost autonomously. It surged forth, overlapping and stitching my flesh together, connecting arteries and nerves crudely as the severed parts melded.
Slowly, I released the hand from my mouth. Though it remained unresponsive, I could feel warmth beginning to seep in. With bloodshot eyes, I shifted my focus to the other hand, crawling toward it to connect it in the same arduous manner as my consciousness began to fade.
And then, darkness enveloped me.
All I felt was a soft, warm embrace, cradling me in its depths.
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