NOVEL NEXT chapter 21
21 – Different Ways of Thinking (4)
“A conversation? With me?”
Nam Bora wasn’t one to avoid provocation easily.
Especially if it was a provocation from someone she considered inferior.
So, she twisted the corners of her mouth and smiled with all her might.
It was a laughter mixed with mockery and anger.
“Yes. I want to give you some advice because you act too childishly.”
“What? Childish?”
Thud! The word “childish” seemed to have humiliated Nam Bora.
The sound was so strong and sinister.
“You talk without knowing the subject?”
“Oh yeah? Then can you teach me what my subject is?”
“…Fine. Let me kill you once.”
Even while Nam Bora stared at her as if she was going to kill her, Mari remained calm.
She leisurely drew the sword as if showing off, exerting strength in her shoulders.
“Aren’t you going to use a weapon?”
“What…! Do I have to use a weapon against a girl like you?”
They say that laughter often comes out when you’re angry. Nam Bora had exactly that reaction.
“Did you start this?”
Thud. When Nam Bora unexpectedly kicked the floor with her foot, black waves surged.
It wasn’t strong enough to cover the whole room, just enough to cover the ankles.
But still, it was a wave.
“Nam Bora uses shadows. Be careful.”
After giving a brief warning, I immediately retreated towards the door.
It was to avoid getting involved or making a fuss in their fight.
However, I did think about intervening if I felt that someone was seriously in danger.
“Thank you.”
Mari expressed her gratitude lightly, then immediately ignited a bluish light on her sword.
It was an aura referred to as “aura” that knights or warriors reach when they accumulate mana.
As the black waves approached Mari, her figure instantly grew in size.
The shadow covered her whole body and it was clear that the intention was to suffocate her in the end.
“Swoosh…”
Mari swung her sword sharply as she took a deep breath.
The wave of aura drew a blue line in the air.
Normally, the black wave touched by the blue aura wouldn’t disappear just by drawing a sword, but it was different this time.
Just like the black waves, mana was stored, and it couldn’t be ignored.
The sight of the waves, like blades, settling there, was the evidence of that.
“When will the awakening ability come? You seem quite confident…”
The awakening ability, Oru, was a trait passed down through generations in the European school of swordsmanship.
At least that’s what the world knew.
Furthermore, Oru itself wasn’t all that unusual since it also involved enhancing one’s physical abilities.
The only difference was in the origin of Oru – one drawn by Mari and the other drawn by the awakened.
Mari was not an awakened but a knight who had trained with mana and a sword from the ground up.
Nambora didn’t know any of this, so she just drew her shadow with a snicker.
This time, it was not waves but a shadow that twisted like a snake.
Several thorny tendrils scattered like they were racing the ground, attacking Mari from multiple directions.
Some tendrils emerged diagonally from the ground, aiming for her torso, while others rose up to pierce her feet from below.
Even in such a dire situation, Mari calmly surveyed her surroundings and propelled herself off the ground.
She leaped so high that her head touched the ceiling.
As a result, the thorny tendrils that had tried to impale Mari ended up piercing empty air.
“This woman…!”
Nambora resolutely prepared a new shadow.
The wriggling shape beneath her feet resembled someone looking at slime.
The tangled thorns that had been so complicated had long since melted into thin air.
In the meantime, Mari demonstrated a skillful flip in mid-air and kicked the ceiling diagonally towards Nambora.
With her sword in hand, Mari soared upside down, hurtling towards Nambora like a fierce arrow.
Her descent was so rapid that a collision was imminent.
“Die!”
Nambora, despite her astonishment, summoned her shadow like a hedgehog’s thorns.
Her calm and composed response in the midst of the situation was striking.
However, even in the midst of it all, Mari’s eyes twinkled with a smile.
Her experience facing demons might give Nambora an advantage, but Mari had the upper hand when it came to facing humans.
It was a smile that exuded confidence.
A blue line traced a diagonal trajectory, and numerous thorns were cut down.
The thorns silently turned into smoke before they hit the ground.
“Ugh…!”
Nam Bora hastily moved to the side in a state of shock.
With no space to retreat, she had no choice but to dodge, or else her throat would have been sliced by the approaching blade.
“Annoying!”
Nam Bora’s irritation brought forth a fierce new shadow of thorns rising menacingly from the ground.
It appeared to combine defense and offense, making it very challenging to deal with.
Fortunately, while Nam Bora dodged, Mari had her feet on the ground, so she pulled back and swung her sword.
As a result, all the thorns Nam Bora had unleashed were cut to shreds.
“It’s quite remarkable. I’ve never seen such an attack before.”
Mari took a step back and wore a genuinely surprised expression.
“Can a person really scratch that well?”
Nam Bora did not hide her discomfort at whether the compliment was meant sarcastically.
“I didn’t mean ‘scratch.’ It’s a compliment. I’ve never seen someone fight like this before. Thanks to you, I can gain some valuable experience. So, thank you.”
Mari praised Nam Bora openly, but it also sounded like a provocation, suggesting that she was more of an experience to gain rather than a significant threat.
So, perhaps that’s why Nam Bora’s cheeks seemed to turn red.
“Stop your insolent talk and… just die! Die!”
Nam Bora continued to shout harsh words driven by anger.
The thorns continued to sprout from the ground towards Mari.
If not for the narrow space of only two people’s width, the entire room would have been overwhelmed.
“Why did people become so twisted…”
Seemingly unable to bear Nam Bora’s resentment, Mari’s pupils flashed with a very cold light.
It seemed like Mari was just as captivated by the idea of wanting to kill Nam Bora.
When the thorns came very close, Mari swiftly threw herself towards the wall.
It was as if she was gliding smoothly and quickly above the ground.
Even as Mari rushed towards the wall, she didn’t slow down, but instead started running along the wall.
Her movement on the wall was both fascinating and menacing.
Meanwhile, the shadowy thorns followed a hook-like trajectory, pursuing Mari’s backside.
“For the love of… just die already!”
When Mari was getting close, Nam Bora gave a malicious look with bloodshot eyes.
The shadow that scattered thorns paused for a moment, then pulled out a large and thick thorn.
It could be called a pinnacle if it were exaggerated.
Pulling out such a large shadow would also overwhelm Nam Bora.
Because she had attacked so much with a strong offense compared to Mari who only maintained her aura.
If it was a normal situation, Nam Bora wouldn’t have attacked so randomly like this.
It seemed that her reaction was completely flipped in response to Mari’s provocation.
In the end, she had to face the result of receiving a blade tainted with aura on her neck.
As Mari pushed against the wall and flew, avoiding the thorns, she aimed her sword at Nam Bora’s neck, resulting in this.
“It’s over. So please stop doing useless things.”
With her sword aimed, Mari warned while glancing at the wriggling shadow under Nam Bora’s feet.
No matter how much Nam Bora struggled, the blade would cut her neck much faster.
Nam Bora knew that too, so she reluctantly withdrew her shadow.
She was sweating profusely, as mana consumption was severe.
“You… aren’t you a B-class? How can you fight like this, you damn B-class girl!”
“If you saw my personal information, you would know. That I came from the north.”
When Nam Bora once again resisted, Mari replied as if it was no big deal.
“Don’t bullsh*t! What do you know just by catching demons…!”
“Just demons? Do you really think there are only demons in the north?”
Provoking as if she couldn’t stand it, Mari exerted force on the hand holding the sword handle.
The blade trembled slightly and lightly grazed Nam Bora’s neck.
A very thin red line was drawn on Nam Bora’s neck.
“In the north, there are not only demons but also people. And in extreme situations, people are even more dangerous.”
Mari lied without batting an eye, and her persuasion was very convincing.
She had such strong persuasive power that one could easily be deceived.
Swoosh. After aiming at Nam Bora’s neck, Mari put away the sword in its sheath.
The aura had long since disappeared.
“Anyway, thank you. Thank you, but please don’t approach Shifu anymore. You know why, don’t you?”
Turning her back to Nam Bora, Mari walked towards me.
Her sweaty smile was incredibly charming.
“…What do you think you’re doing? Who do you think you are to teach me!”
The moment Marie approached me, Nam Bora shot a menacing shadow.
It was the same spiky silhouette from a while ago, only now it seemed even larger.
The words “crazy woman” involuntarily crossed my mind.
She was always hot-tempered, but this was beyond her usual behavior.
Seo Haneul and I Yeoreum were at least making efforts to improve their relationships, albeit belatedly.
I clenched the dart in my hand and, in reverse, flicked the tip of the dart against Nam Bora’s thorn.
Thud. The vibrating dart clashed with the shadow thorn, and the shadow thorn disintegrated into dust.
Normally, shadows couldn’t be touched or given a definite form, but shadows created by awakened abilities were different.
They had forms and could be touched.
Like piercing through a demon’s throat or body.
“Uh, uh…”
The black cone vanished without a trace, and Nam Bora’s bewildered expression became apparent.
Marie, who was beside me, stared at me in astonishment.
I glared at Nam Bora and warned in a cold voice.
“Nam Bora. Don’t ever come near me again. If you do this again, I’ll officially complain to the NoYang side. And if that doesn’t work…”
For a moment, I wondered if I should really say this.
I couldn’t just overlook Nam Bora’s harassment, but I didn’t want to become the same kind of person.
But, in the end, I resolved to express my anger and warning towards Nam Bora.
“I can really kill you. So just live quietly. Stop bothering me.”
Thunk. Nam Bora’s trembling body froze as if it were a lie.
She wore a dazed expression, as if the world had collapsed.
She seemed like someone trying to escape, even while doubting if this situation was real.