Boom! Boom! Boom!
Mighty explosions constantly rang throughout the room. No one could imagine it was a merely an aftermath of a clash between swords.
Basil and Gorgophone had long since exited the narrow room they had been in. They were currently fighting inside the secret chamber. Each time they stepped their foot on the ground, it would make a crater. Each time they parried each other's swing, the ground would split.
No longer only craters were made in the ground, but also deep trenches. Even some parts of the ground was turned to dust. A mighty show of brute force! Even though none of them used their Arts yet.
"Amazing! To think that a human can reach this degree of mastery.. you're something else," praised Gorgophone while distancing himself. He said nothing wrong, respect should be given to where it's due. Art was a technique of mana manipulation to do something unimaginable.
Producing lightning from one's finger, controlling the weather, and everything that was related to something a normal human couldn't do, could be possible with Art. Having a large amount of mana meant nothing without Art to utilize them.
It was as if having hands and stone but you didn't know how to throw. Therefore, the monstrous power that was displayed by Basil even without Art was praiseworthy.
"Not only your mana capacity increased, but also your control over it improved. I don't think it's normal."
"Normal and abnormal. It's just a matter of perspective. People have their own standard."
A quick exchange of words were made between the two of them. Both of them were calm. There were no proofs of their battle aside from the messed up environment.
At the response of Basil, Gorgophone merely sighed and readied his great sword.
"Since you're so adamant about it. Let's do this. I have figured it out anyway," said Gorgophone. Gone were the playful smile, gone were the lax posture. Currently, his face was adorned with a serious expression.
Basil's heart tightened upon this. Since he activated [Synchronization], he could somehow gouge the extent of Gorgophone's power. Vast was an understatement, it was simply monstrous.
Gorgophone no longer exuding his mana. No, to be exact, Basil couldn't feel his mana anymore. There were two answers for this phenomenon. First, the mana was well hidden. Second, the mana was so monstrous that he simply mistaken it as the nature's Mana. Sadly, the answer belonged to the latter.
However, who was Basil? The last ninth circled mage alive? No. He was the man who had been struck down many times, yet always gone back up again. He was a man, before a mage. Man shouldn't ever bow to anyone. He had dignity to maintain!
In front of the face of doom, he felt neither fear nor nervousness. He felt excited!
[Art of Vagus: Haywire]
Immediately, he moved himself toward Gorgophone and activated the hidden ability of Vagus.
Clank!
The great sword was struck down, leaving Gorgophone's upper body exposed. Basil quickly swung Vagus upward. Surprisingly, Gorgophone bent his body to an unimaginable extent.
Now that Basil's lower body exposed, Gorgophone quickly brought his great sword upward.
[Blink]
Alas, Basil had already expected that. Gorgophone's face was even more stoic than before. He was flustered for sure.
"To think a mere Grand Duke could have this fearsome weapon." Gorgophone took a pondering posture.
Clank!
Of course, Basil wouldn't let him think. Vagus shone once and the stance of Gorgophone faltered. Basil swiftly swung his claymore to Gorgophone's right foot.
Gush!
Blood was flowing from Gorgophone's chest. Bewildered, Gorgophone couldn't even think to properly parry Basil's attack. One swing, his cheek was grazed. Two swings, his forearm was bleeding. Four swings, his left thigh was deeply injured. Eight swings, his palm was bleeding. However, this time, in his palm, Vagus was stopped firmly.
"You.. what is that? Slash my foot, my chest bleed. Slash my head, my thigh bleed. Hypnosis? I doubt it will be that," he questioned and answered his own question.
"Tell me!"
"Why should I tell you?"
Pouring his mana to Vagus, Basil swung it upward and used [Blink] to distance himself. The hand that was firmly holding Vagus lost four of its fingers. Gorgophone remained unperturbed as if losing fingers was nothing.
Naturally, he had the right to do so. Just a second after the cut finger touched the ground, new fingers grew. Not only that, the wounds on his body closed themselves. Even the tattered clothes were repaired.
Basil quirked an eyebrow and said, "You have an amazing healing factor." He was impressed and dumbfounded at the same time. The attacks he inflicted upon Gorgophone was imbued with destructive mana after all.
His Art didn't stop at merely empowering his attack. In each wound his attack managed to inflict, there would be his mana. It would destroy the cells, or stopped the regeneration entirely.
However, it didn't work on Gorgophone. "Humph! A simple trick couldn't deceive me," snorted Gorgophone coldly. "It's time for you to get down from your saddle." Without waiting for response he charged at Basil.
Clank!
A firm attack! His step didn't falter. His swing was powerful. Basil was slightly taken aback as it could be seen by his furrowed eyebrows.
"Surprised? I have already grasped your trick! You disrupt my mana flow and mess my senses," declared Gorgophone valiantly. "It is an ultimate weapon against human indeed. But, I am not human!"
Clank!
Boom!
Basil was thrown across the room. He had to channel his Mana through his feet to forcefully stop his body, resulting in explosion. Thick dust of the crushed floor was enveloping him. Despite so, he could see in front of him clearly.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
He had been hit. His abdomen was opened. Just like his [Art of Vagus: Haywire], Gorgophone used the same trick to land a hit on him.
"Kuhahaha... surprised? Information is the most dangerous weapon. In my case, I can get information from mana. Once mana entered your body, it becomes one with you. Therefore, it became a part of you."
The dust cleared, and Basil, with his glowing right hand on top of his wound, could be seen.
"Once it becomes a part of you, a part of you will also become a part of it. Everytime you are exuding mana from your body, you are exposing yourself slowly."
Basil's heart tightened. His face was stiff. Suddenly, all the puzzlement was solved and it left understanding.
"Yes, that's how I know your full name. I can see your information from your mana, Basil! That's also how I can figure out your so-called Art. An amazing Art indeed. Unfortunately, that's just how far it can go."
Stopping the flow of mana through his right hand, it stopped glowing. He stopped trying to heal it. Although the mana infecting his wound wasn't destroying his body cells, it completely stopped his regeneration.
"That's not even the best part! I can see your past. Your whole life! And... I can do this!"
His black long hair was replaced with long silky purple hair. His androgynous face turned more feminine. Small luscious lips adorned his face. Sharp nose and sharp red eyes. A perfect figure for a woman, and a beautiful face to complement it. Dressed like a man her tight fit accentuated her figure even more.
[Transfiguration]!
A high leveled Art that was yearned by many alchemists. If [Transformation] was merely a way to deceive the eyes. [Transfiguration] was the real deal. You could really turn into the thing you saw.
"What are you doing?" A cold voice was resounded from Basil's mouth. He was angered so badly that a feeling of coldness washed over him.
"Hmm... you've already forgotten me, it seems. I'm hurt, Sil," replied Gorgophone who had turned into a woman.
"You are not her. Stop imposing!" An exclamation that was heard as if an assurance to oneself. He couldn't help but do so. The aura, voice, demeanor, and the way her mana flowed really resembled the person he knew.
"I heard that you managed to clear the 36th Obelisk, congratulations! Since you're hurt, I bring you some flower to look at."
"What is this flower?"
"It's called Hyacinth."
"Is it naturally purple? What about the other colors?"
"Yes, it's naturally purple. There are also the other colors, but I love purple!"
A memory in the past. A young man with smiling face and a bright expression was talking with the purple-haired woman. They didn't put any thought to their surrounding, as if the world belonged to them.
The young man talked excitedly about his endeavor, and the woman listened to it while smiling softly. However, suddenly the young man stopped his talking. He asked the woman, "What does the flower symbolize?"
Smiling softly to herself, she said, "It symbolizes..."
The scene changed. A battlefield littered with corpses of monsters and human alike. Black smoke rose through the air ceaselessly. Fire was raging causing many corpses charred. In the middle of it, a young man was kneeling with a purple-haired woman's body in his hand.
"...regrets. I have many regrets. Live your life to the fullest. Make your decision carefully. Don't have any regrets!" Her hand that was cupping his cheek fell down limply. The light in her eyes gone as the young man cried sorrowfully.
Basil stood silently with Vagus in his hand. The purple haired woman was already in front front him. In her hands, there were three stacks of Purple Hyacinths.