Chapter : 188
Chapter : 188
Naomi, Laxmi, Sayma, Zinia, Ira, and Elma all gathered around to watch. None of them believed Ken had actually invented a useful combat spell. They all fully expected him to shoot another tiny, pathetic blue spark that would bounce harmlessly off a target.
Elma watched him closely, her cheeks still slightly pink. She crossed her arms, trying to look unimpressed. "This is going to be incredibly silly," she muttered under her breath, though she couldn't take her eyes off his messy hair.
"Alright, Luna," Ken said, stepping a few feet to the side. He dropped into his goofy, highly ridiculous fighting stance. He bent his knees, stuck his tongue out of the corner of his mouth, and pointed his right index finger directly at Luna like a tiny toy gun. "Whenever you are ready. Shoot the dummy."
Luna raised her hand. Yellow electricity began to crackle and pop around her fingers. She opened her sleepy eyes a little wider, focusing on the wooden target across the courtyard.
She pulled her arm back, preparing to launch a blazing, destructive bolt of lightning.
"Pew!" Ken yelled loudly.
Ken fired his new spell. A small, totally bright cyan-colored mana bullet shot out of his fingertip. It didn't look scary. It didn't look powerful. It just zipped through the air like a tiny, glowing paintball.
The cyan bullet flew across the gap and hit Luna directly on her left shoulder right as she was about to throw her lightning.
What happened next made everyone in the courtyard completely lose their minds.
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When the cyan bullet hit Luna's shoulder, there was no loud explosion. There was no flash of fire, and there was absolutely no physical impact sound. It did not hurt her at all.
But the sheer, bizarre kinetic force of the spell took effect instantly.
Luna did not stumble backward. She did not fall over. Instead, in the absolute blink of an eye, her entire body was violently shifted exactly three meters to the left. It was as if she had suddenly slid across an invisible sheet of ice at the speed of sound.
Because her physical position was so abruptly and perfectly moved, her aim was completely thrown off.
"Whoa!" Luna yelped in total surprise.
The bright yellow lightning bolt blasted out of her hand, but it didn't go anywhere near the wooden practice dummy. Because she was now standing three meters to the left, the lightning shot entirely wide. It zoomed across the courtyard and smashed loudly into a solid stone wall, leaving a smoking, charred mark on the bricks.
Luna stood in her new spot, blinking her tired eyes in pure confusion. She looked down at her feet, and then looked back at the spot where she had been standing just a second ago.
"Did I just... trip?" Luna asked, totally bewildered. "I didn't even feel my feet move."
The rest of the girls stood frozen in absolute shock.
Laxmi’s jaw dropped wide open. She stared at the smoking stone wall, and then she stared at Ken. "What... what was that?! You didn't even push her! She just glided across the floor!"
Ken stood up straight, blowing invisible smoke off the tip of his finger. He gave them a massive, totally proud smile.
"That is the Knockback Ability!" Ken announced happily. "It moves people! It is completely harmless, but it totally ruins your aim! Imagine if the bad guys are trying to shoot a fireball at us, and I just pop them to the side! They will end up hitting their own teammates!"
Naomi stared at him, her green eyes wide with amazement. She couldn't believe what she had just seen. She stepped forward, shaking her head. "Ken, do that again. That was incredible. Laxmi, you try it."
Laxmi grinned, her competitive spirit instantly firing up. "Oh, you are on! Try to shift me, farm boy! I am not going to miss the dummy!"
Laxmi ran to the center of the courtyard. She slammed her fists together, summoning a massive, roaring ball of orange fire. She locked her eyes onto the wooden dummy, planting her boots firmly on the ground so she wouldn't be moved easily.
She threw the fireball with all her strength.
"Pew!" Ken yelled, pointing his finger again.
Another tiny cyan bullet zipped through the air and tapped Laxmi on the hip.
Once again, with zero physical pain and zero warning, Laxmi’s entire body was violently shifted three meters to the right. Her boots didn't even scrape the dirt. She just popped into a new location.
The massive fireball sailed through the empty air, completely missing the dummy and exploding harmlessly against a far pillar.
"No way!" Laxmi shouted, looking at her own hands in total disbelief. "I was totally braced for an impact! I didn't feel anything hit me! I was just suddenly standing somewhere else!"
Elma watched the entire thing with wide, stunned blue eyes. She could not believe the messy slacker had actually invented something so completely flawless.
"Let me try," Elma said quickly. She wanted to test him herself. She drew her twin silver swords and stepped up. Her face was still a little pink, but she tried to look very tough and serious. "You cannot do that to a moving target. If I am dashing forward, your silly little push will not work."
"Alright, blonde lady, give it a shot!" Ken laughed, wiggling his fingers.
Elma glared at the nickname, but she dashed forward. She moved incredibly fast, running straight toward the wooden dummy. She jumped into the air, bringing her swords down for a perfect, powerful slash.
"Pew!"
The cyan bullet tapped Elma's back while she was in mid-air.
Elma gasped. She didn't fall. She just smoothly, impossibly shifted three meters to the left while still flying through the air. She landed gracefully on her feet, swinging her swords with massive force—but she sliced through totally empty air. The dummy was nowhere near her.
Elma stood up, her face turning totally, vibrantly red. She wasn't just embarrassed that she missed the target; she was extremely flustered because Ken had completely outsmarted her. She quickly sheathed her swords and looked away, trying to hide her blushing face.
"Stop doing that!" Elma stammered, crossing her arms defensively. "It is incredibly annoying! You completely ruined my form!"
Ken just chuckled lazily, shoving his hands into his pockets. "That is the whole point! It is the ultimate annoying tactic! I am going to be the most frustrating person in the entire arena tomorrow."
Naomi walked over, looking at Ken with genuine, undeniable pride. She lightly punched his arm, offering a big, warm smile. "Ken, this is actually brilliant. It is not an attack, but it completely breaks the enemy's rhythm. How does it even work? Is it a blast of wind? I didn't feel any air moving."
Before Ken could come up with a silly excuse, Ira stepped forward.
The quiet, highly analytical water magic user had been watching the entire demonstration from the sidelines. Her face was completely flat and emotionless, as always. She walked right up to the spot where Luna had been standing, looking down at the dirt.