"Don’t be surprised. I will send you to accompany her imminently"

Zeph’s mind went utterly blank, overwhelmed by the sudden rush of events. He couldn’t comprehend what had just transpired, blankly stood with his body leaning sideways.

SCHKLT

Banzihum forcefully withdrew his hands piercing Thalia’s chest, causing her lifeless body to slump forward, falling freely, Her once vibrant emerald eyes now stared blankly, devoid of any color.

"Tch... This tainted my hands with filthy human blood," Banzihum muttered in disdain.

SWISH

Zeph’s eyes turned towards her falling body, "T-Thaliaa!"

Zeph stammered, pushing himself to catch her falling lifeless body, jumping towards her pushing his hands forward to hold that body which seemed to lost all it’s vitality.

Bending on his knees he held her body that started to become cold while blood kept flowing out of her wound, wetting down the ground beneath.

His golden pupils locked with her now hollow emerald eyes, a surge of inexplicable emotions shrouded his mind, looking at those eyes contrast with their original glimmer.

Drop

In that serene moment a small drop of tear like a rain drop fallen on Thalia’s cheeks, blankly looking at her, one of his eyes refused to accept reality while other trickled a tear bead.

"T-thalia, hey, I-i was kidding, I will not leave you, W-wake up"

SILENCE

What he received in response was a haunting silence, accompanied only by the rhythmic beats of his own heart and the sound of an elf cleaning his hands with magic, muttering, "As expected of Humans, their blood is even stubborn."

Zeph paid no heed to the elf’s words; at that moment, his heart pounded painfully, out of sync with his usual rhythm.

His gaze remained fixed on the lifeless body of the woman before him, his eyes dry and vacant, as if something had shattered deep within him.

Throughout his entire life until now, he had understood that no one truly loved another, or if such a connection existed, he had never encountered it until arriving in this world.

She was a girl who spoke her mind freely, treating him as some cute thing when he despised his own physique. She stuck by his side, despite his attempts to push her away for a while year — Just because he had saved her.

What was he now? Wasn’t he also saved by her in return? Should he reciprocate that love now, but how—by loving her lifeless body or cherishing fading memories that would eventually vanish with her?

Feeling a surge of emotions, Zeph hugged her tightly sticking to his chest, as his my fallen into trance.

"Now, it’s your turn," Banzihum asserted, observing the scene: a young man on the ground, embracing a bloodied figure staring blankly at the ground with lifeless eyes that seemed to lost their shine.

"Let’s rid ourselves of this filth first," he declared, moving to discard Thalia’s body, moving his hands forward, As his hand reached for her shoulders, he felt a sudden grip on his wrist, halting his movement.

Banzihum’s eyes narrowed as he met the unwavering gaze of golden eyes fixated on Thalia’s lifeless form, refusing to meet his own, while clenching his wrist tightly.

"No one can take her away," Zeph’s words echoed in the space, firm tone with mixed of determination, his focus locked on Thalia’s blank eyes, as though attempting to etch her image onto his soul.

"Ughh!"

Banzihum’s eyes widened, feeling the immense strength on his hands while thwarting his attempts to pull Thalia’s body away, even with some struggle it was hard to break free from Zeph’s grasp on his wrist.

"Worthy for a prodigy, but not enough, Zephyr Liander!"

WHOOSH

Pure mana surged through Banzihum’s hands, as it shrouded in green mana with dense enough to create haze around the air, before amplifying his strength, finally freeing his wrist from Zeph’s hold.

THUD

Thalia’s body was forcefully pulled and flung onto the ground, rolling lifelessly before coming to a stop several feet away from Zeph, who found himself on all fours, supporting his weight with his hands due to the force of the pull.

Looking down slowly, a shroud of emotions enveloped Zeph’s mind. He redirected his gaze towards Thalia’s body lying in the distance, covered in blood and dust, her blank green eyes still fixed in her direction, the weight of the events left his mind in a outburst of emotions.

He knew everything, could have altered many fates, and just did so too, yet today, he failed to protect someone closest to him, all because of his short-sightedness to not realise — How much this single figure was deeply rooted in his life.

Memories flooded his minds, every moment and words of Thalia echoed in his mind.

//He looks like a real teddy//

//Don’t tell me you like that Hedrian girl//

//Zeph!, Come here, I am here//

//How cute//

//I love you//

"T-thali—"

SMACK

THUD

"Kuughh!"

A sudden kick to his ribs sent his body flying, leaving him coughing up blood and saliva, his abdomen throbbing in pain. He glanced downward, propping himself up with one hand, as the mixture of blood and saliva dampened the ground.

"Guess, you are getting distracted,"

Banzihum remarked, looking at Zeph’s blank expression, devoid of pleas for mercy, and reveling in his suffering, before he turned towards a certain direction, moving towards Thalia’s lifeless body.

SWISH

Mana enveloped Banzihum’s legs as he prepared to crush her head, erasing distraction binding his plaything, thwarting his fun, Reaching at some distance he lifted his legs.

"Leave her alone!"

"Finally, you got a wakeup call,"

Banzihum retorted, his body shrouded in pure mana, his hands glowing with visible energy before his figure vanished from his position.

WHOOSH

Two light rays scene from above, closing large distance in a blink of moment, before a resounding sound broke through serene atmosphere.

BANG!

Two fists, each representing different things—a culmination of suffering and belated realization, Against another, pure, raw power with pride—collided.

CRACKLE

The ground around them shattered upon impact making hollow beneath their feets, their colossal strength pressing it down with each passing second, as soil elevated into air before shattering into oblivion.

"" AAAAAGGGHHHH! ""

Two voices resonated accompanied by the brute strength pushing each other, filled with determination to overpower the other.

Zeph’s completely crimsoned golden pupils gazed intensely at the obstacle between him and his desperate need—Thalia’s figure had become an imperative to him.

His foresight pushed him hard to secure what was his, and now that he understood what truly mattered, he knew exactly what he needed to do — He will never let her go again.

"Ugh... You bastard, human!"

Veins bulged, blood trickled down Zeph’s nose, his internal organs near rupture as his skin started to melt due to the overwhelming energy exertion against the Pure Mana.

"Come On!"

His eyes turned bloodshot, muscles tearing, transcending the limits of his mortal body, stretching to their limit as tendons started to become visible out of the skin.

His Mana vessel started to shiver at a rapid pace, mana started to overflow due to forced extraction, density started to increase due to outside force shrinking the vessel’s size.

DRIP

In that Moment, a golden drop of an unknown energy trickled into his mana vessel, creating a wave changing the whole blue coloured mana into a golden one, setting off a chain reaction.

His mana veins bloated with a surge of an unknown energy, not able to withstand that strength they started to quiver on verge of breaking.

A golden hue surrounded his body, covering his hands before a sudden force burst out.

BOOM!

THUD

Banzihum’s body was thrown ten meters away, only using his legs, he managed to stop his trajectory,"Haa... haaa...N-nexus "

Banzihum looked downward, his hands supporting his body while two stretching marks inscribed on the ground showed the unparalleled force that threw him away.

He wasn’t a normal Elf harnessing Pure Mana but a Professor at Valeria Academy, a Mid-ranked one at that, placing him among the top hundred strongest individuals across all three realms.

"So, this is the strength of an anomaly," he swiftly turned his gaze towards Zeph before calmly standing and clearing dust off his clothes showing the strength he held as an Elf — Pride was not just due to their appearance but raw Strength.

Zeph stood with hazy eyes, completely bloodied, leaking golden liquid through wounds. His heavy eyes slowly lifted, reflecting the figure of Banzihum.

With a stammering figure, he moved towards him while murmuring with a broken voice.

"D-on’t to-uch h-er"

Seeing Zeph’s figure still holding on after enduring so much, especially wielding that energy reserved only by those beings, proving him being one of those individuals, Banzihum’s anger surged.

WHOOSH

A glowing aura shrouded his hands, forming an aura sword before he coldly looked towards Zeph, his figure blurring.

Zeph stood at the center with his stammering body, attempting to balance himself while walking towards Thalia’s lifeless body.

SWISH

Suddenly, Banzihum’s figure appeared out of nowhere, slicing through Zeph’s neck, only to meet with air, widening Banzihum’s eyes.

Zeph stood at a distance, bloodied, looking towards him.

[Human, Divine energy is supplying at a rapid rate]

[Master, This energy is completely different from mana, but I can control it]

[Stabilizing your mind, decreasing the level of Cortisol, sending the mind into a trance]

Suddenly, several voices rang into his mind one after another, his wounds started to heal, his muscles rejuvenating with a new form of energy, and his mind becoming clearer, removing all suffering and grief he once had.

What’s left is — only RAGE...