Chapter 41: The Monsterous Seth 2
Raiden’s feet were glued to the floor as he watched Freya slowly get to her feet, her body covered in flames, yet not a single burn marked her black suit. Leo dragged himself across the floor toward Free, his severed body robbing him of any chance for a final breath. Still, Leo managed to pull him out of the way.
Seth’s brief stuttering expression suddenly vanished, his calm yet cold demeanor returning as if he wasn’t the same person who’d been threatened by Freya’s unique usage of mana moments ago.
A brief scare shot through Raiden as he swallowed nervously, while Seth just stared at the floor, not sparing Freya a glance.
However, Freya didn’t seem to care much about Seth’s reaction. She took a bold step forward and hesitated. The confusion on Leo’s face said it all—they were both expecting something. Raiden remained curious, his heart racing as he waited for her to do something.
Just as Raiden’s mind wandered, before he could even link a thought together, Seth appeared before Freya. He didn’t last a second—Freya struck him, sending him crashing through the fountain behind him and collapsing it entirely as water erupted across the distance.
Still, she didn’t give him a chance to get back up. The moment he landed with his clothes drenched, Freya dashed after him and struck his torso, her fire beginning to burn his shirt from within.
Raiden’s eyes lit up with relief and hope, but he knew better than to let this brief victory fool him. Despite Freya’s devastating strikes, all she had to show for it was Seth’s burnt shirt—clearly, he had yet to fight back. His eyes darted around in confusion. What could he do?
He remained still, hands trembling as Freya delivered strike after strike at Seth. Then it hit him—while Freya held Seth off, he could use this moment to refine his mana. Maybe he could do it after all.
He didn’t think it through; it was the only thing that sounded logical in the heat of the moment. Sitting cross-legged on the floor, despite the life-or-death battle raging around him, he turned his focus inward to his mana core. It was only the size of an apple—despite growing denser, it had barely increased in size.