Chapter 95: Is That So?
Leaves rustle and branches creak as two blurry figures rush towards the location of the explosion they previously felt, all while trying their best to hide their presence so as to not alarm whatever they are going to face once they reach their destination.
’Novus... just where is he getting all these things...’ while the two of them leap from tree to tree, Medea couldn’t help but look at the back of the figure leading in front of her, recalling the previous moments before they began their approach towards the source of the explosion.
"Drink this." he said as he handed out a dark, shadowy liquid that seemed to avoid everything that touched it, causing her to wonder what it was, thinking of what benefit it would bring rather than the possibility of this being something that might be dangerous to her.
As soon as she consumed it, she felt the very same sensation Novus felt when he first consumed this resource, something that he might never be able to get used to, given how odd it feels despite not really being something all too uncomfortable.
Neither warm nor cold, the dark liquid travels down her system as she felt the strange hollowness to it, that odd sensation lingering just a bit longer before she finally feels it disappearing, as if there was nothing more to it than that, no cold, no warmth, nothing at all.
But then, from that nothingness, she couldn’t help but feel a subtle bit of familiarity with the darkness, with the shadows around her as her very shadow stretches ever so slightly before it snaps back to its rightful place.
Then she felt it, her presence, gone as if she was never in the spot she was standing on at all, as if she was nothing but a projection for the vision to see but never for the other senses to pick up and feel.
’Every item from the domain really works just as well for other people...’ picking Medea’s diminished presence the moment he made her consume that dark liquid, Novus concluded to himself as he took a look at the resource he just fed her with, Novus thought to himself, realizing how useful this thing would be to their current predicament.
[Liquid Shadow (586)]
[The condensation of a Shadow Slime’s skills. Consumable.
Consumption grants five minutes of stealth that will be broken once the user attacks or gets attacked. Grants a very small increase in affinity with the dark element when consumed.]
"This is..." as she felt her presence pressed down to a very minimal, near undetectable level, Medea couldn’t help but marvel at the things he had been taking out, only for her excitement to be doused just a little bit as a reminder came from him.
"Remember, Medea, you’re just in stealth right now, and once you attack or get attacked, that stealth will disperse..."
Novus warned her of the sole weakness of this consumable, causing her to turn a bit more serious as her mind arrived at the thought that perhaps it only makes sense, given that entering such an absurd state without any restriction at all could very well be in the realm of the impossible.
With the two of them both consuming Liquid Shadow, they proceed to approach the source of the explosion, bringing them to where they are now, with Novus standing in front prepared to deal with any attack or problem that might come their way and Medea, moving just right behind him, one of her hands on the hilt of her blade, prepared to draw it at moment’s notice.
Eventually, they reached their target location, watching elite mages clash against each other with such intensity that they couldn’t help but marvel at the sight: spells, jet streams of water, pillars of earth, rings of fire, and gusts of wind clashing against each other, showing these mages’ mastery over the basic elements existing in nature.
As the two of them pause on a nearby tree branch, Novus can see a lot of familiar figures amidst the battle, most of them being students who were so hell-bent on making him look like a fool and spreading rumors about him, while the remaining ones he is familiar with, that is, outside of the student body, are standing on the opposite side.
"There you are..." seeing someone casting a layered spell of both water and ice elemental magic, Novus couldn’t help but grit his teeth as anger begins to well up from his being, and yet, he decided to reign it in, knowing full well that there’s another person who is just as full of hatred as him, if not even more, while looking at that familiar triple elemental mage.
"Should we give them a little gift?" as he sensed Medea’s presence now standing right beside him, Novus said with a faint smile on his face, the lady only taking a moment before she finally realized what he wanted to do.
"Suit yourself, just leave me that bitch." Medea spoke with quite the hatred in her tone, yet even then, the calmness never faded, as if she were finally learning how to rein in the wrath that had nearly consumed her previously.
"Hm, that’s interesting." Hearing her reply, Novus remarked with the same smile on his face, that look from him making Medea involuntarily ask.
"What?"
Before he answers, the smile on his face grows wider as mana swiftly forms towards himself, dancing in glee as if they just encountered something, or rather, someone familiar. The flow of mana that disrupts the spells being cast by both parties, alarming them of the arrival of new individuals.
But it was too late, as Novus had already accomplished his goal, mana congregating into a volatile mass infused with the fire elemental aspect, stabilized by the shell of pure mana swirling around it in a containing fashion.
Then, unlike any normal fireball, it wasn’t launched into the air by any magic circle, but rather thrown by its conjurer instead, the ball flying at such speed that his targets didn’t even manage to grab enough time to escape his attack’s range.
A violent explosion that tears through the ground ensues, rendering some of the enemy mages immobile while some are completely incapacitated, such as a simple surprise attack taking down quite a few enemies in its wake.
Taking a sigh of satisfaction after such a ruthless attack, Novus finally turned his attention back to Medea once more, pointing out what it is that he finds interesting.
"A lady of a noble clan swearing like that, what would your parents think of you?" he asked back, that smile on his face making her feel all-too-annoyed, and noticing how fast he was improving when it came to trading words with her just made her all the more frustrated with his words.
"Oh they will be proud, I’m sure~~" still, she replies with bravado and mischievousness to her voice, drawing her blade as she disappears from her previous spot, taking advantage of the attention being pulled completely towards him to encroach upon her target among the academy’s field operatives who had gone rogue.
"Is that so?" he laughs a bit at her words as he leaps down from the tree as well, all while drawing in more mana within his surroundings, pulling attention towards himself even more.