Chương 59: [BL] 58. Elf and Mana [1]

Being treated like a baby was truly, utterly annoying. She literally couldn't imagine anything worse than this. Before entering her room, Willow saw Becks in his [Royal Guard] armor guarding the entrance. Kroos had placed the room near the battlefield so Willow's party could stay close and gain experience. She had told Becks off, that he didn't need to guard her in her sleep. Having two tier-threes guarding her off-battle was far too much, but the man shot her down.

Even more annoying was that Leynah entered with her. The bloody woman kicked off her shoes and lounged on a sofa in the room's corner with a book.

"Are you two really going to guard my sleep? This is ridiculous," Willow said. She plopped onto her bed and took in the humbly furnished room. Although it was mostly coarse stone, the decoration made it lively. Oil lamps hung, offering a small, warm light. Near a red carpet lay a little fireplace, beside which Leynah relaxed and yawned.

"You bought our soul, Willow, so deal with it."

"I wouldn't go that far."

"Go to sleep. How old are you anyway? Young ones need proper sleep."

"I'm twenty," Willow growled before stopping herself.

"Well, I'm not sure how old Mera's body is."

"Your body," Leynah corrected with a small smile. A small part of her became lighter after that word.

"Thank you. But it did not feel right."

"It never will if your mind refuses to accept this new reality."

"Guess so," Willow murmured.

"Do you want me to tuck you in?" Before Leynah could suggest ridiculous stuff anymore, Willow pulled her blanket and tucked herself in. Leynah stood and lowered the lamp, inviting darkness. In an instant, she went sleepy, but there was still one thing she needed to know.

"How old are you?" Willow asked.

"Go to sleep." When she refused to close her eyes, Leynah sighed.

"I'm twenty-eight. There. Satisfied?" So, just two more years from universal-agreed old age.

"Did you just think of something rude?"

"Goodnight, Leynah," Willow said, tossing the blanket over her face. Leynah's answer was muffled, and darkness surprisingly took Willow really fast. She was so tired.

Over her whole life, the hardest thing Willow had done before being tossed into this world of magic was to figure out how to keep her sports scholarship while keeping up with her studies. She had a chance to go pro; a Serie B team has been eyeing her. But she knew she had to be realistic, so she kept up her studies, and it was torture. So she learnt a cheat: do all her reading first thing in the morning before her practice. The hour before her jog became the most precious time to her.

Hence why, the moment her eyes opened, Willow, out of habit, reached for one of the two books she had prepared on her bedside. She sent the blanket sprawling to the carpet. Leynah had left the room, leaving her alone with her book, which was something she truly missed. With her brain working at full capacity, Willow read. Humans used to be known as Elves, and apparently every creature in the past possessed long ears. Thousands of years ago, there were no Guidance Spirits.

Her eyes perked up at that, and she leaped into focus. The book was written by an [Archmage] named Brandon. The [Archmage] dubbed the past a time of pure magic. Today, the Spirit World, Class, and Runes restrict magic. Back then, he referred to magic as 'Soft magic,' a pure energy called mana that flowed through the air and into every creature's body. The art of cultivation, where one cleans the impurities one's born with by fighting and meditating, was in the past.

Youngsters who attended Magic School learned the art of meditation. They learned how to transform pure mana into multiple elements and myriad variants of endless magic. Everyone could shoot fireballs in the past. Those who pursued the path of martial arts focused on purifying themselves and inviting Mana in to forge it around their bodies, giving them Aura—a Mana-clad reinforcement. A single aura punch could break a capital's wall, it seemed.

People considered long ears a symbol of harmony with Mana, and horns a symbol of Mana impurity. Mana was meant to be cultivated and controlled, but the Horned Ones possess overwhelming self-mana that rejects outside mana, developing a sinister energy that allowed one to achieve the peak of cultivation without the cultivation process. It was found that Horned ones were born by sucking outside mana and not returning it when they released their spells, unlike normal cultivators.

Every spell they conjured, the ambient Mana lessened. Kingdoms then imposed a magic-ban on horned-ones, and it resulted in a century-spanning war. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. No one well documented Mana's departure from the world, but Mana did leave. Brandon confirmed that no one found any documentation of such a horrid time, as it was a time of destruction. They called it a time of dread. Not long after, many beings went mad.

First, Goblins went feral like savage, hungry animals. Then Orcs, Lizardkin, Kobolds, Ogres, Embers, and the list went on.

"They become Riftborn?" Willow mumbled and kept reading. Without magic, and with every being turned against them—the humans' last kingdom down to a mere stronghold. That was when night came. The night when stars streaked like meteors, and outworlders descended with access to magic. They killed what they called 'monsters' and savagely dissected their bodies, which resulted in Class Stone and brought magic that was now trapped in the Spirit World.

Every elf that took this class stone had their ears shortened—proof of Mana purity no longer in them. Willow closed the book. It was a thick book, but she had skimmed through all necessary information already. This Brandon guy sure likes to ramble on. There was a record of Bright Stars unlocking Elf Ears, so it was a relief to know this meant Willow could still search for the record to figure out this access to mana she suddenly had. Should I try it? On one hand, it might not be wise.

But there were times in battle where she felt a surge of Mana running through her, especially through her Six-fold Wings when she needed speed badly.

"Let's do it," Willow decided. She tapped into her [Auric Huntress] class, donned its outfit, and opened her palm to shoot five strings of Sun Thread right at Leynah's sofa chair. The thread each lanced through the wooden arm, foot, and splat.

"Okay, now what?" Willow closed her eyes, focusing on both of her ears. They twitched immediately, and it felt so wiggly and weird. Through their tips, energy gathered, like a cold point being formed. Her Runes, which had not recovered since she hadn't taken a bath in Kroos' runic pool, plummeted by twenty. She immediately let go of her string, only to find the sofa was burning and cut as if thin, hot knives were running through it. The carpet below also suffered the same fate against the coarse stone flooring.

Willow let go of her class and pulled her legs to think for a bit. She smothered the flames by walking up and stomping on them, then kicking the rest of the wood into the weak firewood.

"That needs to be controlled," Willow mumbled. While it was absolutely a strong Enhancer, it might be too volatile. This Elf Ear might be a curse in disguise. If Willow didn't have her other two classes to fall back on, then she would absolutely regret this class because of this Elf Ear alone. Moving to her bedside table, she picked the other book. This one was still thick, but smaller. She wanted to try meditation next, but… I should really recover my Mana and get a new party too. After all…

[Hunt Party 20/20] [Level limit: 25] [Auric Huntress—Level 25] [Olympya Executioner—Level 25] [Olympya Archer—Level 25] [Veteran—Level 23] [Veteran—Level 23] [Veteran—Level 22] [Veteran—Level 22] [Veteran—Level 22] [Veteran—Level 22] [Veteran—Level 22] [Veteran—Level 21] [Veteran—Level 21] [Veteran—Level 21] [Veteran—Level 20] [Veteran—Level 20] [Veteran—Level 20] [Veteran—Level 20] [Storm Warden—Level 20] [Squire—Level 17] [Grimoire Wizard—Level 15] Krywen and Evan hadn't levelled up yet, but clearly the operation was a tremendous success.

Just like that, fourteen tier-twos emerged. Also… Erick ascended! A Storm Warden—that sounded like an ascendant class. With the book tucked between her armpit, Willow made her way out of the room and into the corridor. She leaned on the open railing to see soldiers still busy, running through formations. Judging by how well her party levelled up, it looked like there had been at least a skirmish with the Devil yesterday.

She made her way down, slinking between shadows because she was sick of those stares someone had just given her as she crossed to the courtyard. A legionary openly pointed at her. She blushed and weaved between buildings into small alleys in between housing complexes that somehow multiplied. When Willow saw Josha brushing what looked like a Griffin inside a barn, she wanted to run and ask him to let her pet it, but too many people were watching.

Also, there was a group of new [Rider]s—the Class Stone they got from some dead Griffins. It looked like Josha was being assigned as some sort of mentor. That was good; now he did not have to ride to the sky alone. With her Swift Step and Silent Step, Willow rushed ahead, circling Kroos' main castle and proceeding toward its back door. Inside, kitchen staff carried heavy pots and bustled outside, hauling the soldiers' rations. Willow slipped into the kitchen, casually walking the chef's lines.

Her hands twitched at the sight of freshly baked bread. She almost reached for it, but it would be too rude to whoever baked it. Still though, it just looked too delicious and inviting for her to just skip—"Hungry, Bright Lady?" Willow let out a yelp as she twisted; her elbow hit a pot, and it clanked against another whatever kitchen appliance. Everyone in the kitchen looked at her, and she wanted to slink into the shadows. Actually, did her Ravenous Anatomist have an ability like that? Oh!

She could turn into crows and… and what? Being a freak that turned into birds for nothing? She blushed; with a weak hand, she pointed to the bread. The kindly woman picked it and put it on her palm.

"Uh, thank you."

"You're carrying a book. Are you looking to soak in the Runic Pool, my lady? We will have a bath drawn for you then so you can read and bathe in peace."

"That… wouldn't be necessary; besides, I also need to handle the party—""Please, Bright one, do not worry about that. We will draw your bath, and have handpicked legionaries ready for your party after you take your bath." The woman gripped her shoulders and started pushing. Willow's legs scurried as the woman led her upward the spiralling stairs and walked down a hallway into a small room where a wooden tub lay.

Before Willow could protest, the woman helped her take off her clothes, then she stepped outside and clapped loudly. Before long, lines of maids entered carrying buckets. They smiled at her and filled the tub with runic water. Willow just stared until they curtsied and excused themselves. She sighed. What am I doing? She dipped her toe into the bath, relaxing her body in it. She submerged her face and tossed her hair around.

Willow tipped her head up and reached for her book atop a small table where her bread and some kind of orange drink lay. I can get used to this.