Chapter 115: A Voice

Chapter 115: A Voice



Kaelan's thoughts raced as he assumed a battle-ready stance, leaning forward, his hand tightening around the hilt of his greatsword.

'Grip the earth... Lean forward, circulate your mana...'

Cracks rippled beneath his feet as the claws on his toes dug into the ground, anchoring him tightly.

'And leap forward.'

In that instant, Kaelan sprang forward, his body streaking across the earth as purple lightning crackled around him.

The ground beneath him buckled from the force of his leap, sending shards of stone flying as he moved.

Arriving right before Alexei, he paused momentarily to swing his sword.

Alexei barely had time to react; from his perspective, Kaelan closed the distance in the blink of an eye.

Instinctively, he swung his own sword in a wide, vertical downward arc, aiming to intercept Kaelan's strike.

But Kaelan's speed was too much. Instead of meeting Kaelan's blade head-on, Alexei's sword seemed to cut through empty space, or rather an afterimage.

His eyes widened in shock, 'What? Where did he go?' his thoughts racing as he scanned his surroundings in those split seconds.

"You're wide open." A deep voice said behind him, though it was clearly close by, because at the speed they were traveling, it would take a couple more seconds before any sound would reach his ears.

He instantly knew it was Kaelan. Alexei looked behind him, where the voice came from, his eyes landing on Kaelan who had already leaned back, ready to attack.

Alexei wanted to counter, but the momentum of his earlier swing caused him to overextend slightly.T/his chapter is updat/ed by nov(ê(l)biin.c/o/m

Kaelan stood over him, his greatsword raised high, its blade gleaming in the light. Alexei looked up, his face a look of pain, fear, and anger. He tried to summon the strength to move, to fight back, but his body refused to obey. The battle had drained him, and Kaelan's relentless attacks had left him on the brink of collapse.

Kaelan, breathing heavily but still composed, slowly lowered his sword until the tip hovered just above Alexei's chest. His purple eyes, glowing with the remnants of his lightning surge, locked onto Alexei's.

"It's over, Alexei," Kaelan said, raising his sword, about to thrust it down and end his life. But then he felt a strange sensation in his chest as it suddenly tightened, causing him to pause and

grip it tightly.

'W-what is this pain?' Kaelan wondered. Out of nowhere, he heard a voice echoing in his head,

definitely not belonging to the system.

~'It's not his fault, he's only a child.'~

~ 'He blames me for everything because he's still not ready to face the truth of what happened; the pain would be too much for him to bear.'~

~'He may hate me for what he believes is the truth, but I won't hate him; that's what a big brother would do.'~

The voice belonged to Kaelan, the original owner of the body Alister's mind now inhabited. The words didn't seem like they were directed at him, but rather as if they were Kaelan's own

thoughts.

For the first time since Alister's time as Kaelan, the body and mouth moved without his will.

"I could end this now," Kaelan said. "But I won't. This ends with you defeated, not dead.

Learn from this, Alexei. Learn the difference between pride and arrogance."

"My lord will unite us all under his protective barrier, and we won't have anything to worry about. Not even the darkness."

With that, Kaelan stepped back, withdrawing his sword and allowing Alexei to slump to the ground, clutching his wounded leg. The battle was over.