Chapter 24: Awakening
Clara thought to herself,
"They say I’m wasting a gift. That someone with this much mana should be an Archmage, but what they don’t understand is—this mana is wasted. It’s in my blood. A direct descendant from Raven the Champion, or known as the strongest hero of all time"
"But I can’t cast a magic, not a single spell. The mana swells inside me like a storm with no sky to break into. And so, I chose the sword. Not because I’m good at it—but because I don’t have a choice."
"I know I’m not the best. My strikes are clumsy. My stance is flawed. But every time I fall, I rise again. Because I have something no one else does, it’s my endurance. I can fight longer, push harder, survive what others can’t. Not because I’m skilled, but because I refuse to give up."
"I don’t know how much time has passed. I’ve been fighting alone in this dry creek bed, surrounded by goblins. I’ve lost count of how many I’ve killed. Maybe a hundred? Curse them all."
"I’m supposed to defeat them to pass the trial for Robert’s Magic Academy. Just to earn the right to get accepted in a prestigious magic academy and to learn magic. But in my current state... it feels impossible."
"Gabby... your sacrifice led to nothing. Why am I even thinking about that weak fool who died because he couldn’t keep up?"
Clara, bleeding from her head, drops to one knee. She uses her sword as a cane to stay upright. The night is dark, and the goblins keep coming, their numbers seemingly endless.
She screamed, "It’s dark. Curse the impossible. I’ll kill every last one of you."
Even though she’s battered and barely standing, Clara rises again. She charges into the horde with reckless fury.
She thought to herself, "I can’t think straight... I’m so tired..."