Chapter 6: Elvish therapy
The sound of metal echoed through the clearing. Something sliced through the air, followed by sharp cracks and muffled thuds.
Aeris slowly opened her eyes. Her body felt heavy, her head throbbed, and the air reeked of smoke, likely leftovers from the fire Ethan had caused earlier.
The sky was a blend of orange and purple. Night wasn’t far off.
She sat up slowly, glancing around. The clearing was far more destroyed than before, uprooted trees, craters in the ground, and soot scattered everywhere.
That’s when she noticed the sound.
Her gaze shifted. Just a few meters away, Ethan stood with Nexus in the form of a long, black blade, spinning it casually in his hands. He swung it through the air, each slash leaving golden trails behind as if the mana itself vibrated with his movements.
Aeris spent a few seconds just watching. His posture was precise, confident. Not a single movement was wasted. It was a methodical... and at the same time, violent training session. These weren’t the moves of an amateur.
She stood up, adjusting the torn remains of her dress from the earlier battle, and walked toward him.
"Ethan..." she called, a bit hesitant. "What happened...?"
Ethan spun Nexus once more, finishing the motion cleanly. The black blade instantly shifted back into glove form, no wasted movements at all. It looked like he’d been training the transitions too.
He turned toward her with a lopsided smile.