She didn't rush.
Didn't sprint.
Didn't charge recklessly.
She **walked**.
Each step forward steady, grounded, mana rising around her like a tide answering its master.
The air shifted.
Not violently.
But undeniably.
Then she spoke.
A name.
Soft. Ancient. Carrying weight far beyond a simple call.
"**Nerith.**"
The space beside her rippled.
Water gathered.
Not from the ground.
Not from the air.
From **mana itself.**
It twisted, condensed, took form.
A creature emerged.
Humanoid.
But not.
Its body flowed constantly, like a living current held together by will alone. Limbs formed and reformed with each subtle movement, its surface reflecting faint distortions of the battlefield around it.
No face.
Only depth.
Only motion.
Only **presence.**
The ground beneath it dampened as droplets formed and vanished in the same breath.
"…Lend me your strength," she said calmly.
The creature responded.
Not with words.
But with movement.
It aligned beside her.
And the mana around her deepened.
Ahead, the lizardman's head turned.
Slow. Deliberate.
His slit pupils locked onto her instantly.
Recognition.
Not of her.
But of **threat.**
His stance shifted. Lower. Coiled.
The two tokens in his grasp pulsed faintly, but he didn't look at them.
He looked at **her.**
And for the first time since he'd begun hunting, he stopped moving.
Back with the others, Lucien's breath tightened. "…She's really going…"
Seryna didn't look away. "…Watch closely."
Kaelira's ears leaned forward slightly. "…This is going to be good…"
Then she moved.
No warning.
No signal.
Her foot pressed into the ground, and the space around her **collapsed inward**.
She vanished.
A blur of motion, mana trailing behind her like a comet's tail.
The water entity surged forward with her, expanding, stretching, forming a massive wave-like arm that crashed toward the lizardman's position.
The ground shattered beneath the impact.
**BOOM.**
The lizardman didn't retreat.
Didn't dodge.
He stepped forward, into it.
His arm shot out and met the wave head-on.
**Impact.**
Water exploded outward but didn't disperse.
It **reformed**, wrapped, tried to bind him.
His muscles tensed, scales tightening, and he **tore through it.**
Not escaping. Overpowering.
The water split but immediately surged again from behind, reforming Nerith's body as it struck from a second angle.
At the same time, she appeared.
Right in front of him.
Her hand extended.
Mana condensed.
Sharp. Precise.
A strike aimed straight for his chest.
The lizardman's eyes flashed.
He twisted, barely.
Her attack grazed, but the force behind it still landed.
**THUD.**
His body shifted back half a step.
The ground beneath him cracked.
Silence for half a second.
Then his grin spread.
Wide.
Excited.
Because finally, someone worth killing had stepped forward.
Draven's crimson eyes remained fixed on the clash ahead.
Unblinking.
"…Spirit magic," he said flatly.
The words cut through the group, drawing their attention back to the fight.
Seryna's ears twitched slightly as she watched, her gaze sharp, analytical. "…She's an elf," she replied calmly. "…That much isn't surprising."
A brief pause. "…Forest elves are known for it."
Draven didn't respond. But his eyes shifted slightly.
*Spirit magic…*
A flicker of thought passed through him. Cold. Distant.
*So that's what it was…*
*Hannah…*
The name lingered for only a moment, then vanished.
Because the battlefield demanded attention.
Ahead, Lucien's sister moved with precision.
She didn't rush in again. Didn't overcommit.
She kept her distance. Controlled. Measured.
Her hand lifted, and Nerith responded instantly.
Water surged forward in layered waves.
Not one attack, but many.
Thin, sharp streams cut through the air like blades, while heavier currents followed behind, crashing in delayed succession to trap movement.
A combination.
Pressure. Control. Prediction.
The lizardman moved.
Not wildly. Not desperately.
Precisely.
He stepped between the streams, twisted past the heavier waves, let one pass inches from his face, then countered.
His hand rose.
Mana surged.
Raw. Dense.
But unlike the others, he didn't just release it.
He **shaped it.**
It condensed, compressed, and formed a weapon.
A blade. But not metal.
Something sharper.
Something unstable.
Its edge shimmered with condensed mana, vibrating slightly, like it could tear through more than just flesh.
Lucien's breath hitched. "…He can do that too…?"
Seryna's eyes narrowed. "…Not just raw power…," she said low, focused. "…He's skilled."
Kaelira's tail flicked once. "…Tch… of course he is."
Back in the fight, the lizardman stepped forward. Fast. Faster than before.
His blade cut through the incoming water, and this time it didn't just split it.
It **disrupted it.**
The water scattered, lost cohesion, Nerith's form flickering slightly as the connection was momentarily shaken.
Lucien's sister's eyes sharpened.
*He can interfere with the flow…*
That wasn't just brute strength.
That was understanding. Adaptation.
He closed the distance. Weapon raised.
And for the first time, she was forced back.
The clash didn't slow.
Water surged. Mana cut through it.
Pressure built between them, but something shifted. Subtle. Hidden. Unseen.
Because aside from **Lucien's sister**, no one noticed.
Not Seryna. Not Kaelira. Not even Draven.
Their eyes followed the battle, but what came next was beyond them.
She exhaled softly, then spoke again.
Another name. Quieter, but heavier.
"**Aelion.**"
The air beside her didn't ripple like before.
It **tightened**. Compressed.
Then something appeared.
Not water. Not formless.
This one had shape.
Tall. Refined.
Its form was vaguely humanoid, but composed of faint, translucent currents, like wind given outline, like light bending around something that wasn't entirely there.
Its presence was sharper. Older.
And unlike Nerith, it **looked at her.**
"…You call again," it spoke.
Its voice wasn't loud, but it echoed inside her mind. Clear. Measured. Alive.
Her expression didn't change. "…I need your strength."
Aelion's gaze shifted past her, toward the lizardman, toward the battle. "…You face something interesting."
A pause. "…And dangerous."
Behind her, Nerith surged again, reforming, stabilizing under her control.
The strain showed, just slightly, but she held it. Firm.
"…Will you help?" she asked.
Aelion tilted its head slightly, as if considering. "…For now."
Then it moved.
And though no one else could see it, they **felt it**.
A sudden shift in the air. A pressure. A current that hadn't been there before.
Seryna's brows furrowed slightly. "…Something changed…"
Kaelira's ears twitched. "…Yeah… I feel it…"
Draven's eyes narrowed slightly. Not seeing, but noticing.
Because something had just entered the field.
And ahead, Lucien's sister stepped forward again.
Now, she wasn't alone.