But even though the mana had dispersed, it had existed and stayed as he wanted.
"I held it," Arthur whispered, more to himself than anyone else.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
As he straightened.
"Let’s see how long I can keep it steady if I try it this way."
He shifted his approach.
Instead of gathering mana broadly, he narrowed it.
He didn’t keep it wide, or thick. Instead he kept it thin like drawing out a filant.
He imagined pulling a wire between his fingers.
Taut, focused, and precise.
And the mana responded that way as It stretched thinner than before.
It was even more condensed, but unstable.
The mont he tried to hold it in place, it vibrated violently.
His teeth clenched and his wrist trembled.
Then the strand snapped.
The backlash hit harder than the previous one.
Arthur stumbled back a step, barely catching himself.
A sharp ache blood across his chest as he coughed once.
"Too thin," he said hoarsely.
He inhaled, then exhaled as he reset.
No frustration, or self pity as he adjusted even more.
Again.
He gathered mana, and then he narrowed it, and he held it.
But it vibrated one again before it snapped.
Again.
Snap.
Again.
Snap.
So attempts failed imdiately, so lasted half a second, while so collapsed the mont he tried to place them in space.
Sweat dripped steadily from his chin.
And his breathing grew heavier.
Yet Arthur’s eyes stayed locked forward.
Focused and unblinking.
He drank another mouthful from his mana potion and tossed the vial aside.
As he thought only about his progress.
Again.
Gather.
Stretch.
Hold.
This ti, sothing changed.
The strand did not snap imdiately.
It quivered violently.
But it held.
Arthur froze.
Every muscle fibre of his being poured into maintaining it.
He whispered to himself to stay focused
"Do not force".
"Do not push".
"Just maintain".
Soon, A moving dummy rolled forward on its track.
As It reached the space where the strand existed.
There was no explosion or clash.
The dummy simply jerked and then stopped.
Like sothing invisible had interrupted its montum.
Arthur’s breath caught.
The strand collapsed a mont later and pain flared.
But Arthur was already smiling.
"It worked," he whispered.
It was not perfect, or the effect strong even.
But it felt real this ti.
His legs felt weak, and his arms trembled.
But excitent surged through his exhaustion like fresh blood.
He was not guessing anymore, he was creating now.
Arthur did not sit.
He did not rest as he went again.
This ti he tried forming two strands.
One failed instantly.
But the second wobbled and snapped.
Backlash burned across his nerves, as he gritted his teeth.
"Too greedy," he said quietly.
He adjusted.
Less mana, but both failed.
More mana, and both vibrated violently and collapsed.
He tried again.
And again.
And again.
Sotis he overfed.
The strands grew thick but unstable and exploded.
Sotis he underfed and nothing ford.
Each mistake taught him sothing.
How fast mana destabilized.
How pressure felt right before collapse.
How his intent wavered when his breathing broke rhythm.
Arthur unconsciously began controlling his breathing.
Slow inhale.
Slow exhale.
Form. Hold. Release.
His world shrank.
No hall, no people, no noise.
Only himself.
Mana.
Intent.
Space.
Ti blurred.
He did not know how long he had been standing there.
Minutes, or maybe hours.
His body scread fatigue.
His muscles burned, and head throbbed.
Yet his mind felt strangely sharp, and clear.
On another attempt, sothing clicked.
A feeling.
As he adjusted the distribution slightly.
Not equal.
One strand slightly thicker, the other slightly thinner.
Both ford.
Both trembled.
Arthur locked his jaw.
The moving dummy rolled forward once more as It entered the space between the two strands.
Its forward motion stuttered.
Then slowed.
Then stopped.
Arthur exhaled sharply.
He could not hold them long as the strands collapsed almost imdiately.
Pain washed through him.
But he did not care as he laughed softly.
Just a breathy sound of disbelief.
"I get it now," he murmured.
Not fully, or perfectly.
But enough.
He had reached the mont of understanding.
And that was always the hardest part.
Arthur’s legs finally gave in.
He lowered himself and sat heavily on the stone floor.
His back hit the wall.
His head tilted backward.
Sweat ran down his temples.
His chest rose and fell rapidly. His arms felt like they weighed twice as much as before.
But his eyes were alive.
Bright and satisfied. Tired, but happy.
As he sat there, sothing stirred inside of him.
A familiar sensation.
He knew.
The system had responded.
A slow smile spread across his face as he closed his eyes.
"About ti," he whispered.
Then he let himself rest.
Arthur stayed where he was, back against the wall and legs stretched out, breathing slowly as the dull ache in his body settled into sothing manageable. His muscles still trembled when he moved, and his core felt hollow, but his mind was clear in a way it rarely was after pushing himself this far.
Then the familiar glow slid into his vision..
Soft lines of light unfolded before his eyes, steady and calm, as if acknowledging the work he had just done. Arthur read it once, then again, and a tired and satisfied smile crept onto his face before he could stop it.
✦══════════════════════════════════════✦
❂ SOVEREIGN INTENT SYSTEM ❂
✦══════════════════════════════════════✦
⟦ Skill Manifestation Confird ⟧
⟬ Authority Structuring Detected ⟭
→ Spatial intent stabilization achieved
→ Battlefield influence expanded
━━━ ACTIVE SKILL ACQUIRED ━━━
✦ Na: Intent Weave
✦ Type: Battlefield Control / Intent Projection
✦ Rank: F
✦ Status: ACTIVE
⟬ Skill Description ⟭
The user structures sovereign intent into spatial threads, forming a localized interference field that resists hostile movent and disrupts kinetic flow.
━━━ PRIMARY EFFECTS ━━━
• Disrupts enemy montum within the affected area
• Slows charges, leaps, and rapid assault vectors
• Destabilizes coordinated enemy formations
━━━ SECONDARY EFFECT ━━━
• Targets passing through the field experience increased structural strain, raising vulnerability to follow-up attacks
⟬ System Assessnt ⟭
→ Battlefield control authority established
✦══════════════════════════════════════✦
A/N:
There we have it😌🔥.. It’s effect would be better understood in future battles.. Can’t wait!😁
But there’s a quick test run in the next Chapter🫴🏽
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