Chapter 4 - Flowerbed

The purple-haired woman stared Basil silently. In turn, Basil merely quirked an eyebrow and distanced himself by two steps. The purple-haired woman smiled softly at that.

"As far as I'm concerned, there are many other colored Hyacinths. Why do you have to associate me with Purple Hyacinth?" She asked with the same small smile. Basil shut his lips tight. His heart was in turmoil.

He knew that the woman in front of him had long gone. He witnessed it with his eyes. He even buried her body himself.

'But, why? My brain refused to believe it, but my heart keeps screaming it is her!?'

Years of hardships and battles should naturally enough to make one numb with inner turmoil. However, at that moment, all of Basil's mental fortitude was at its lowest point. It wasn't because he purposefully lowered it, it was due to Gorgophone's mysterious Art.

"Why are you hesitating? Can't you even distinguish your master?"

Another silence greeted her. However, she didn't mind. She gazed silently at the eyes of Basil's. The silence felt like eternity. But, at that moment, Basil finally opened his mouth.

"Someone once said, 'Put me on the highest place of your heart. Let not one replace me, for I am the rightful owner of that place!' A very strange thing to say indeed. But, she said something true."

"Oh, my. That was such a long time ago. I'm surprised you still remember it."

"I mean it for you to quit yapping. The woman I know has died. Even if someone alike declared that she was the woman I knew, who had returned from death, I would swing my blade toward her without remorse."

A cold response! Such conviction was unusual. Even if everyone could say it, no one could maintain such righteous expression.

"Fu-fu-fu... you have grown it seems. But, I am not returning from death. I am the same person you know. And I believe you know it too." She paused and opened her hands. "I am the very woman you killed, whose heart is currently beating in your chest!"

"..."

Silence greeted her exclamation. However, this time, the silence was different. If previously the silence was neutral, right then a cold killing intent was permeated from Basil's body.

No longer the furrowed brows, no longer the neutral eyes. His face was as flat as the surface of a deep ocean. In his eyes, a cold rage could be seen. The atmosphere became tense in a matter of second.

"What? Cat got your tongue?" The purple-haired woman taunted. Pointing Vagus at her, he said, "Shut your mouth, bastard!" Cold and detached. It was a voice with no trace of warmth could be found.

!!!

That was the only warning she got before Basil suddenly appeared before her eyes.

Swish!

A close call! In the critical moment she managed to dodge, but the Hyacinths in her hand were cut as the result. Quickly extending her hand, a great sword appeared out of nowhere.

Clank!

The ground beneath her cratered just by blocking his attack. She was shocked! It was an attack without mana after all. A pure physical attack!

"Impossible! What is this power!?" She shouted while swinging her great sword at him.

For the first time in their battle, one of them lost their cool. Basil didn't just merely standing and stayed silent the whole time. He was trying his best to solve the puzzle called Gorgophone's trickery in his head.

Mana. An energy that was produced by the nature that could be used to strengthen one's self. Gorgophone had the ability to figure out someone from Mana. Just as he said, once you absorbed Mana, it became a part of you and vice versa.

Emanating your mana was the same as exposing yourself. Then, how to not exposed yourself? Not using mana was the answer. However, could someone without using Mana fight an abomination like Gorgophone?

Normally, no. But, who was Basil? He was a man who had cleared many Obelisks alone. Normally, to clear an Obelisk two squads of fifteen Mages of fifth circle were needed to clear a middle-ranked Obelisk. But, Basil cleared high-ranked Obelisks by himself.

That was a feat that defied common sense. No one even in Elven race, that was known for their mastery over magic, could do it. It showed just how abnormal Basil was. Once again, it was all possible because his special trait, [Synchronization].

Once he synchronized himself with Vagus, his physical strength and Mana capacity grew to an unimaginable level. However, what made [Synchronization] different with the other Power-up Arts was the fact that even without utilizing Mana, the strength increase remained. Morever...

"You! Aren't you a Mage!?"

Contrary to people's believe, Basil wasn't a battle Mage. He had never been one. Basil was an anomaly between Mage and Knight. He learned magic and the way of Knight at the same time. That wasn't possible normally because of the difference in principal of the two. Not only that, it was taxing to train in both principals.

Nonetheless, he did it anyway. That was why the purple-haired woman, no, Gorgophone was flustered. Turned out, [Synchronization] wasn't a technique born from solely Mana Art. It was a technique that was also born from Aura Mastery that was owned by Knight.

"How is it possible to mix the two principal!?"

Naturally, Mage can use [Synchronization] by inscribing rune on their weapon. However, to be able to do that, one had to reach a certain level in weapon mastery.

As for Knight, to be able to use [Synchronization] they had to nurture their weapon with their aura. The process, of course, took a long time. Not only that, the method of nurturing one's weapon with Aura was unknown either.

In his life, Gorgophone had never encountered someone who could use [Synchronization]. Not even a genius Mage could figure out the correct rune to inscribe on the weapon.

Encountering someone who could use [Synchronization] without Mana meant natural talent. To even do it without someone's teaching implied how much effort was put. Morever, to be able to master both principal was simply astounding.

Clank! Clank! Clank!

Even fiercer than before, Vagus' trajectory was unpredictable. Every swing felt like cutting the very reality. Gorgophone, who was counting on his Mana Reading, was cornered.

"Why don't you drop your 'mask'? It's no use when you can't even peek about her from my Mana anyway," stated Basil calmly while swinging Vagus.

"Hmph! Don't get cocky human!" As if on cue, the appearance of the beautiful woman instantly returned to that of Gorgophone.

Gorgophone was in a pinch, if before he could predict Basil's attack by reading his Mana. Now that Basil no longer used Mana, he couldn't even read Basil's movement. The saving grace was his monstrous Mana.

[Clap]

Basil disappeared and reappeared at an instance, inflicting many wounds on Gorgophone in the process. Everytime he disappeared, he left a sound of a clap before reappearing at Gorgophone's blindspots.

Impatient, Gorgophone slammed the tip of his great word to the ground. His Mana peaked and the surrounding air trembled. Even the space distorted. Basil who saw this, took a distance while preparing his strongest Defense Technique.

"[Great Annihilation]!!!"

Gorgophone's body swelled, his eyes turned white and his skin turned red. A crazy amount of Mana was emanating from his body.

[Aegeas]

Contrary to the shouting Gorgophone, Basil softly uttered his Defense Technique. Golden veins appeared on his whole body and a spinning amethyst orb encapsulated his body. As if on cue, the surrounding lost its color. At that moment, the world was dyed one color. It was white.

Boom!

The explosion was only heard for the first second. Right after that, not even a sound could be heard. The explosion was too mighty that even the space turned vacuum.

Nothing could be heard or seen for fifteen seconds. When the light slowly subsided, a ruin in an open world was seen.

Boom!

The air that was pushed away due to the explosion, returned to fill up the vacuum space, bringing a crazy sound of explosion in the process.

It was an explosion that sound could be heard by an entire continent. The power was so great that it destroyed the Obelisk, revealing a blue sky and a large crater on the ground, along with the trunks of uprooted trees.

There were only two spots that were free from destruction. First, it was the spot where a black haired man was standing. Second, it was the spot where the brown haired man hunched his back.

In one glance, one could see who was in a better shape, no, who was unaffected.