Chapter 363
Devilborn (6)
There was a moment of silence and shock, thoughts racing through many heads, including IAM's.
This had… this had to be the most unique method he had seen so far, without a doubt.
Its power was nothing to scoff at at all. He could now imagine it—your very existence weighing you down. Your experiences and life in general betraying you, as the more impact or intensity those experiences had on you, the more weight you had to endure.
It was already so effective on the likes of the students here… but imagine it against other ascenders who had lived for centuries. All that life, all those experiences compressed within them… the results would be nothing short of catastrophic.
This was a method that completely flipped common norms. Instead of the usual—where the weaker and less experienced the enemy, the more effective a path method was—this was the opposite. The stronger and more experienced the enemy was, the more devastating it became.
It was like a cheat code, something that allowed ascenders to close the gap against ancient and powerful beings.
It would be incredibly useful.
And everyone who had just witnessed it knew that.
After this…
Zara would be incredibly sought after.
Yes, there were quite a few geniuses never seen before that had been revealed during this trial, but none of them could top the importance and uniqueness of Zara's path. This was a method that could benefit any group—any organisation.
'We have to befriend her… we need to cater to her.'
That was what many thoughts had boiled down to.
Zara had to be treated with the utmost care.
It was then that Zara finally moved.
She turned around slowly—and delivered yet another surprise.
It was the colour of her eyes.
And the manner in which they glowed.
They were a blend of pink and purple—not quite pink, yet not quite purple either. The colours bled into each other seamlessly, forming a soft, shifting gradient that seemed almost alive. Anyone who looked into them felt an immediate pull, as if their gaze was being drawn inward, unable to fully settle on any single point.
They weren't static.
Instead, the colours moved—slowly at first, then with a faint, hypnotic rhythm—twirling and drifting within her irises like threads of coloured mist suspended in liquid. The pink would coil into the purple, only for the purple to unravel and seep back through, constantly exchanging dominance without ever fully overtaking the other.
At times, it looked like fog being stirred by an unseen current.
At others, like ink dispersing through water, forming delicate, ever-changing patterns that never repeated themselves.
There was no fixed centre.
Only a continuous, quiet motion that made it impossible to look away, as if the eyes themselves were reflecting something far deeper than simple colour—something abstract, something vast.
It was unknown for certain, but some ascenders naturally had more unique colours and designs when their eyes shone while using their path methods.
Another example of unique eyes were Natsuki's, which only ever partially glowed—and with different colours too.
Unlike others whose eyes flared fully when activating their methods, hers remained restrained, as if only a portion of their true nature was ever revealed.
She would be considered another with unique eyes, alongside Zara.
Some theorised that the more unique a concept an ascender embodied, the more complicated or unusual their eyes would become.
Some said they were descendants with thicker lineage to the seven heroes, inheriting fragments of their characteristics.
Others claimed it meant they were chosen—beings of great importance to the world itself.
But none of it had ever been proven.
Or disproven.
That was why some warned others to avoid battles with those who possessed such eyes.
Because you just might regret it forever.
This phenomenon in her eyes was taken in for only a few seconds before they faded back to dark brown, and alongside it, so did the apathetic expression on her face.
Her eyes darted, quickly finding Natsuki, and they brightened instantly. Without hesitation, she ran straight toward her with open arms before jumping onto her once more, forcing Natsuki's knees to buckle slightly under the sudden weight once again.
"W-wait—drop your hammer."
"Oooohhh, sorry!" she giggled, letting go of it as it fell with a heavy thud before she immediately began fishing for praise. "Wasn't I so cool? Did I make you fall in love? Gosh, I'm so cool! Can you feel it… the weight of your existence? Gaaaah! So cool! Right!? Right!?"
"Yes… you are the coolest," Natsuki replied with a faint smile before it disappeared just as quickly as she raised her voice.
"What are you guys doing? We have cleared most of the creatures! Take care of the rest quickly!"
At her words, life seemed to return to the group as they realised there were still enemies left to deal with. But seeing how little remained, they also came to understand something else—
Her method had range.
A wide one.
That realisation alone elevated its value several tiers higher in their minds as they moved to clean up the remaining creatures.
Zara, who had been speaking at a hundred miles per second, suddenly stopped mid-sentence and slumped fully into Natsuki's embrace.
"Uhhh… I'm so tired… My head hurts and my core is aching… I think I have less than ten percent mana left…"
Natsuki's expression changed slightly, concern surfacing as she spoke.
"That's because you went too far. You didn't need to expand your range to the maximum. Come, you need to rest. It's dangerous when you push yourself like this."
Zara only grumbled weak complaints as Natsuki adjusted her onto her back, lifting her with care before beginning to walk toward the general direction of the tree where IAM was.
Zara's oversized hammer dragged along behind them, its weight forcing Natsuki to pull it with noticeable effort.
IAM dropped down from the tree and walked toward them.
Unlike the others, there was no awe in his expression.
Instead, the words that left his mouth were sharp.
"Are you guys stupid?"
Natsuki paused, tilting her head slightly at him.
"Not only did you use such a wide-range method without warning—or even telling anyone, including me—it almost took out your own teammates. You should know her method doesn't separate allies from foes, so why would you use it in the middle of the battlefield without any warning? If this were a real battle, there would have been a much bigger price to pay."
"… "
Natsuki stared at him with an aloof expression, so still it almost seemed like she hadn't heard him at all.
She held his gaze for a moment.
Then turned her face away slightly, just enough to hide part of it.
IAM tilted his head as she spoke.
"I apologise… I'm not—we are not used to fighting in a group, so we didn't think of the consequences for the others… It won't happen again."
Before IAM could respond, she walked past him, continuing forward while dragging Zara's hammer behind her with effort.
…
Later, after the battle was over and everyone had settled once more, mentally and physically preparing for the confrontation with the devilborn, Yohan found himself staring at Zara, who seemed to have recovered somewhat. She was energetically conversing with Natsuki a short distance away from the main group, her usual liveliness fully returned.
As he watched her, he couldn't help but wonder…
Between this energetic, silly girl—and that apathetic, calm one—
Which was the real her?