NOVEL NEXT Chapter 206: Refused to be left out
Everyone went silent and just watched the Beast on the ground. No one dared to jinx this by asking aloud if it was all finally over.
Still, they got their answer when, with a deep growl, the Bullcroc returned to its feet, shaking off whatever pain it still felt from Aurelius's spell.
The exercise was not yet over and things seemed back on track but Lea Gilligan frowned.
This was not a development she hoped for or wanted. And as talented as she had heard Aurelius to be, this was not what she had expected him to be able to achieve.
What if he had more of those kinds of spells in his arsenal?
Lea believed strongly in her picking the Bullcroc and its defences should still remain far from what anyone in the class could break past but she couldn't help but be (for want of a better word) nervous.
The Bullcroc nailed its eyes on Aurelius ready to return the favor for the pain it had endured. It opened its massive maw and let out a roar that sent ripples through the air and smacked into Aurelius's face, causing his hair to blow back. His body was gripped at that moment and he found himself temporarily immobile.
And then the Beast charged at him. It moved faster than it ever had thus far. Basically leaping right from the start. And as quick a spell caster as Aurelius was, he found his mind a bit too sluggish. And when he finally managed to form the required seals, he transitioned into a defensive spell instead.
But just as ~Mandala~ began to shimmer into appearance, something darted past him. Aurelius only caught the barest glances of it out of the corner of his eyes and then he heard the sound of impact…
*BAM!*
… and saw Caius's arm in the position of someone who had just completed a punch. Even more, the Bullcroc's head was turned to the side as though the punch had had an effect.
The eyes of everyone went wide but upon further investigation, they saw the beastly outlines of superimposed limbs composed of Mana on Caius's arms and legs.
Noticing the Limbs of Mana didn't exactly explain what had happened and their looks of confusion remained when Caius delivered two blows to the Bullcroc in quick succession. Sparks flew from where the claws of the supper-imposed limbs of Mana made contact with the Beast's scales but Caius's fists were the ones responsible for the sounds of punching impact that rang all over their location in the forest.
*BAM!*
*BAM!*
*BAM!*
With every strike, the Bullcroc moved its head in reaction and its wicked eyes looked even more confused than Caius's classmates did. It could actually sense the Beastly Aura that was granting Caius the ability to be so physically capable at the moment.
The Bullcroc felt the aura of a Wyvern, a beast that was above it in the hierarchy of Magical Beasts but found itself confused when Aura was all there was to it. The power here was nothing compared to that of a Wyvern and while that should have put it at ease, it just confused it, allowing Caius to get in many strikes.
As for Caius, he was essentially running an experiment.
By his calculations, the amount of Trait Acquisition potion he had drunk would afford him about Ten Minutes of this boost in strength but he only had an estimation from when he took a sip and hadn't exerted himself.
The moment he was actually making a physical effort to make use of the boost, he could feel it draining faster. In other words, he would have to reevaluate the timer.
Because of that, he saw this moment as even more of an opportunity.
The exercise was never meant to kill the Beast and now that he knew how this should end (I.e through Eloise's singing talent), he ordinarily didn't need to invest the precious potion he had only managed to make after hours of stressful, Vapor-choked hours. But what good would a product be without a testing phase?
He had a reason for actively creating the Potion and it would be such a shame if he was blindsided by anything when that moment actually came.
Which was why, when the Bullcroc shook off its confusion and refused to be moved by his punches, Caius didn't feel dismayed. When he got struck in the chest and felt his sternum crack from the impact, and he—for the second time that day—tasted his blood in his mouth, he smiled.
He went tumbling back and then rolled to his knees but the force of the strike from the Four-star beast had been so great that, even then, he still slid back a couple of feet.
But then, he let the swiftness of the Wyvern Trait envelope him and went charging forward. He arrived within a foot of the Bullcroc before its brain could even register the speed and leaped to throw out a spin-kick at its scaly head.
As he did, Caius had a seal prepared and infused Mana into it causing a red spell circle to appear around his ankle as he cast his best/only Third Circle movement spell.
~Hellsong Dash~
Fire blazed from his legs, infusing even more force into an already power-packed kick right before it connected to the Bullcroc's head and sent it sliding one foot away.
Before Caius even landed back on the ground, he heard Delia's yell from above.
"OUT OF THE WAY!!!"
There was a powerful cracking of lightning and the sound of a chaotic wave all backed by a forceful gust of wind that all combined into the perfect chaotic storm of the Kragsten Family's unique element.
Delia's grey eyes sparked with lightning and from her body, mana rushed out in a chaotic swarm that would have wreaked havoc in any other human's body but with Delia, she seemed just right. Like only in this state was her Mana being 'normal'.
For a moment, even as she came crashing down, enveloped in all that storm she had conjured up, Caius expected that she was simply going to toss it.
But she landed with it. Her fist was clenched so hard that veins popped out from the back of her beautiful bronze skin as she struck a blow against the Bullcroc's head. Making it clear that the storm wasn't really a spell. It was just her element in its most raw state being used to increase the effect of her punch.
*KRAKA-BANG!!!*
*WHHHHUUUUUUUUMMMMM!!!*
*WHOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSHHHHHH!!!
Sounds of all three elements that came together to create the stormy magic could be heard but they melded together. If there was any moment for someone who didn't understand storm magic to get a better understanding of it and what made it work; This might be it.
The three sounds were powerful in their own right and their individual chaos should not have become one. But they did. They found a balance and their chaotic sounds came together to create one unified beauty.
Delia had a wide grin on her face. She was on one knee atop the Bullcrock's head, her fist still clenched and still placed right where she had delivered her punch to.
She looked at Caius, eyeing him all over. She focused a lot on the superimposed Mana-limbs that showed off the artificial boost he was making use of and it was so clear by the look she gave him, that she burst out this move because of what Aurelius and Caius had done recently.
Aurelius with the one spell that had caused the Bullcroc to cry out in pain and Caius with the punches that actually moved it. She refused to be left out of that equation. She refused to just watch while those two—who she still wanted to beat up by the way—went on to do best in this exercise.
And then, Delia felt the Beast beneath her move and was reminded that this was far from over. She looked down at her fist and raised it, disappointed that all that power she had mustered had had as much effect as any other—far weaker in comparison—attacking attempts she had made before this.
Her eyes sparked with chaotic lightning once again and she made to re-attempt that attack of hers when the Bullcroc rose. It seemed to be standing on its hind legs but was actually a lot more supported by its tail.
Delia pushed off its head, casting a wind spell to lift her away and keep her suspended so she was in a proper position to deliver her punch but the Bullcroc, balanced on its tail, whipped around and swathed her with one of its front limbs, smacking her to the ground.
"Ah!" Delia cried as she hit the ground with a *Thud*.
Caius let the strength of the Wyvern Trait be concentrated especially in his legs and he dashed and then leaped up, connecting a kick to where the Beast's throat would be.
The Bullcrock cried out in pain. It had been struck on its fleshy underside and while it was sturdy enough to endure attacks at the Third circle, physical and magical, Caius's kick was, for all intents and purposes, of the Four-Star threat level. Essentially equivalent to the Fourth Circle.
It hurt like a bitch and the Bullcroc choked as it staggered backward just as Eloise finally stopped being so engrossed in watching the fight, most especially Caius's surprising physical capabilities, as she delicately cleared her throat and began to sing.