[Location: Island Of The East: Monster Infested - South Side - Inner-Middle-Section]
The sword was an extension of my body now, the movents flowing as if they'd always been there.
Was it possible [Trickster at Arms] was changing more than just the ability?
Could it make capable of using aura?
Impossible... or was it?
This ability was already rewriting my muscle mory, changing my entire knowledge of swordsmanship in an instant.
It seed all-knowing, creating these elaborate quest... or was it all an elaborate series of coincidences?
If everything was designed, it could have given unlimited power from the start.
Instead, it let keep my knowledge, and my awareness of the story's plot – a sliver of advantage that forced to work for every bit of progress.
And I wanted to work for it.
There was no shortcut to the ending I craved, no way to get ho other than to push myself to the limit.
I had never finished this story's ending... and I'm unsure that If I do reach the end, will it be nothing because it's unfinished?
I didn't dream of the possibility of an unfinished ending having nothing at the end but it was always possible.
I am a character in this story... but I am the author of this story... I am who I was ant to be.
...But could I even go ho?
I woke up in this world, in this body that wasn't mine.
No na, no history... just the tools to survive.
All that I was and should've been was an 'extra'
Just a mob character.
Their emotions, their thoughts... they were all gone, replaced by mine.
All that remained was their body, a weak shell I'd been forced to build upon.
But everything I am now, everything I've achieved... that's all because of my own hard work.
It felt wrong, sotis thinking of this 'person'.
But without them, I wouldn't have been forced to fight, to struggle, to earn my strength.
And that... that was sothing I could respect.
Sothing I was grateful for, even as a strange sadness washed over .
But... there was a part of that still longed for the fight.
The childhood fantasy of being a skilled swordsman, the power, the thrill... sothing I never thought possible in my old life.
Now, thanks to this system, it almost feels like I'm cheating.
And if manifestation works the way I think it does, maybe there's a way to connect with my own soul...
ssss....ssss....ssss
***
Rel tightened his grip on the sword, watching Sergio charge, a blur of motion.
[Ability: Projectile Disarm [Grade 4] Has Been Activated!]
Sergio flung his shield, before launching himself forward.
But Rel was ready.
CRACKLE...CRACKLE...CRACKLE...
His blade pulsed with a dark glow, and sparks of black lightning crackled up from his hand, coating the tal in a shimring colour of black.
Sergio scread at Carlos saying Carlos Do it NOW!
Carlos scread saying "GOT IT!"
zwammmm!!!
Above, Carlos's crimson portal opened, a whirlpool of power aid directly at Rel.
"Hell beam!"
SHAAAAAAAA!
A pillar of fire speared down towards him.
Through it all, Rel remained still, focused.
The attacks synchronized, a deadly ultimatum forcing him to choose which one to block.
His answer was swift and unexpected.
With his sword pointed toward the ground, then in a single, graceful arc, Rel countered, parrying shield and firebeam with impossible precision.
SHINGG!!!!
[Parry Sucessful!]
[Luck has struck!]
[Both attacks have been deflected at 2x speed!]
The parry was flawless.
Fire and shield scattered, redirected back towards the stunned Sergio.
"wait..."
[Clockwork of ti has been activated!]
[Mana percentage: 45%]
Activating clockwork of ti the battle slowed.
Rel watched the fading trail of his Projectile Disarm, the black energy glowing like an afterimage.
Sothing about it triggered a startling realization...
"That energy... it felt like aura." And he could see it, clearly, which shouldn't be possible.
But there was a slight doubt in these few seconds of hesitation.
What had he been using all this ti?
Mana should co after aura in the hierarchy of power...
Because in his head all principles of techniques and elents should've been:
Aura > Special elental attribute > Mana > Normal elental attribute.
If none of his attacks were powered by mana, with no cost to the ability... then all this ti, he'd been wielding an advanced form of aura without knowing it.
This changed everything.
If Projectile Disarm let him tap into aura, could he substitute parries with slashes?
Could he channel that sa energy through an offensive attack?
Aura within his reach... it ant a whole new world of possibilities, techniques from the novel he never thought he could master.
Maybe, one day, he could even stand on equal ground with Jan.
But that was too far ahead, too ambitious.
Right now, he needed to focus on the basics.
How could aura be released through a slash? How could he turn defence into offense?
Projectile Disarm was a counter-attack, It required contact to work.
So, what if he skipped the contact part, and used the ability itself as the weapon?
Absurd. Maybe even impossible.
But there was a reckless part of him willing to try.
Now wasn't the ti for hesitation, just action.
[Clockwork of ti has been deactivated!]
[Current Mana Percentage: 27%]
huuu...haaah...
Rel sucked in a sharp breath. Sergio was still charging, but the distance between them bought precious seconds.
He had no choice...
[Projectile Disarm [Grade 4] Has Been Activated!]
CRACKLE...CRACKLE...CRACKLE...
The familiar feeling of aura erupted from his palm pulsing with an inner light...
Rel's aura reached the hilt of his sword, consuming the blade in absolute darkness.
Lightning danced wildly around his blade once more fully coating itself in black.
Then, unexpectedly, the system window flashed to life.
FWANG!
[Reached Complete Understanding Of The Following Ability: Projectile Disarm [Grade 3] - The full contents of the ability will now be revealed...]
[Projectile Projection is an ability that allows the user to reflectively activate their aura, enhancing their defensive capabilities. When activated, the user coats their hand in aura, which can parry incoming attacks. The effectiveness of the parry is determined by the grading of the ability, with higher grades allowing for more precise and powerful parries.
The ability works by sensing the contact point of an incoming attack. If the contact point falls within a specific range, typically between -0.5, 1, or 0.5, the attack is parried. This range can vary depending on the user's skill and the grade of the ability.
In addition to parrying attacks, Projectile Projection can also deflect projectiles, such as arrows, bullets, magic imbued attacks and now considers swung weapons as 'projectiles,' allowing the user to disarm opponents by deflecting their weapon swings.]
"Yes... he figured that out a few seconds ago," he muttered, but a grin spread across his face.
Luck had never been his strong suit, but monts like this... they were worth a lifeti of bad breaks.
[Special Passive: Sixth Sense [Grade 9] Has Been Activated!]
He turned towards Sergio, tightening his grip on the blade.
Then, in a move that felt both automatic and utterly foreign, he charged.
Not with a practised strike, but with a wave of instinct, as if fate itself guided his sword.
only-found-at-MVLeMpYr
The shocked look on Sergio's face, as Rel closed the distance, was almost comical.
Archer? Swordsman? He didn't have ti to decide.
And then the word, ca out of Rel's mouth as he scread... a weight that carried a will of absolute conviction.
"Divine Severance!"
In one fluid motion, he swung the blade, one-handed.
"...!"
Rel watched, almost in disbelief, as a blinding black slash, erupted from his blade.
It solidified into a jagged slash of aura, laced with black lightning, that ripped out towards Sergio.
SLASH!!!!!
...A second later, Sergio, still frozen in disbelief, was thrown backward. His body slamd into trees, shattering branches as he flew through the air like a discarded toy.
"FUCK THIS IS WHY I HATE ARCHERS!"
...
...
...
All this ti Rel thought projectile disarm was an ability that only goes away, after you parry an attack.
But he was wrong in every way.
Projectile disarm in itself was aura... and as long as you don't parry a projectile, the ability would remain until then.
He looked down at the blade, still crackling and coated with his black aura.
His theory had been right, and the importance... of this ability ant that he too had potential.
_____________
Authors Notes:
- Aura Principle 4#: If you cannot see aura, you cannot use aura, you cannot detect aura... this explains why Sergio and Carlos can't see Rel's blade changing into a dark colour.
- There are different levels of aura: basic aura, advanced aura.
- When Rel used clockwork of ti only 6 seconds had passed during his thought process.
- Aura is the superior technique and it is the only technique that can counter the other 3 techniques that are mainly used: Special elental attributes, Mana, and Normal elental attributes.
- There are sub-variations for aura.
- Trickster at arms only last for 5 minutes and once that ti is up Rel's muscle mory of the sword disappears.
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