Crucible Aeternum: Ascending through Skill Trees

On one side, Galeon stood calmly. Although he wanted to hurry and take Sairen back to Melchior, he knew that he could not run away from Verglas fast enough. He did not know how, but Verglas was able to strengthen his body with his ability, allowing him to move faster than he normally would and even jump higher. This was something he had never shown Galeon before.

On the other side, Verglas was panting. The grimace on his face was evidence of the pain he suffered from taking the full brunt of Galeon's light. He never knew that Galeon could use light. For as long as they knew each other, Verglas thought Galeon did not have an ability as he never used one. Worse yet was the fact that his light was so intense that its heat managed to penetrate the armour of Prismana that he created around himself using his ability.

"Weltsritter, is that the organisation you joined?"

Galeon asked as he truly did not believe it was a coincidence that another secret organisation was revealed to him so soon after the last. Worse yet, this one seemed to have been able to infiltrate the Guild without anyone knowing. He had a feeling this would not be the last time he encountered them.

"No. I was born into the Weltsritter just like my father and mother before me."

Verglas took the bait. He had to. The injuries he received from Galeon were shockingly great that he needed time to recover. He shook his head in self-deprecation, understanding that there was now a huge gap between them. It seemed that while he himself grown a lot since last they met, Galeon had been running at full sprint.

"I'll let you in on something, Galeon. The Weltsritter is not an evil organisation as you might've thought. This case is just a matter of misunderstanding. The Weltsritter is an order of knights sworn to protect Corrin and humanity. Sairen is the daughter of our leader. She left a long time ago because she didn't want to become a knight. Her ability isn't exactly suited to it either."

"Sworn to protect Corrin and humanity? From what? Beasts?"

"No. The beasts were never the greatest calamity of Corrin. They're as much of a victim as us. Galeon, there's something in this world that had turned Corrin into this cancerous grave! It corrupted everything including the bodies and minds of us humans!"

"You mean Prisma? How do you protect the world against that? In case you haven't noticed, practically everywhere and everything is filled with Prisma now, even you."

"I know that all too well, Galeon. But Prisma is just a tool. It's not the calamity of Corrin. It's someone else. This is... an invasion."

Galeon fell silent as digested Verglas' words. He did not know how much of it was true, but judging from the man's expression and tone, he at least believed that his own words were true. Verglas had managed to recover a bit, but he still did not move. This conversation with Galeon gave him hope for something, and he wanted to try before they ultimately fell out.

"Galeon, join us. You're a man of action. You're trustworthy and have great sense of responsibility. I know you understand our oath. Become a knight and protect the world."

Galeon shook his head lightly. Although he did not think that the Weltsritter were a suspicious bunch unlike the Concord, he still did not want to be tied to them without knowing what they truly are. Protecting the world is all well and good, but that could just be propaganda. And Galeon was not exactly a bleeding heart like Verglas believed him to be. He valued his freedom a lot.

"I'll get serious now, Verglas. If you don't want to die, I suggest you back off now."

Verglas' eyes widened in surprise for a brief moment before returning to normal. He should have expected this. Galeon was not the kind of person to be easily swayed. He knew what he wanted and he stuck to it to the very end. It was something that Verglas could respect.

Galeon moved his right foot forward. The light step seemed to send out a wave of silence to the surroundings as his perception of the world grew sharper, even giving an illusion of slowed time. But in this state of mind, he could hear it. A distant rush of something reminiscent of water, the growls and grunts of beasts trying to find a safe place to hide, the swaying of the leaves all around them, the rhythm of Verglas' breaths and the steady beating of his own heart.

"First Step: Origin"

Galeon flashed forward at an incredible speed. Again, Verglas saw it, but he could not avoid it. He strengthened his defense while moving to take the shield on his back, but the two swords were already swinging down from one side.

The swords were glowing wit ha fierce light that seemed to grow brighter and more intense with every passing second. Verglas bent his body backward to reduce the area that would be hit. It worked, but the searing heat from the swords were worse than the burns he suffered from their earlier clash.

Galeon did not give him time to recover as he let his body spin around through his swing. His wings had already spread in a deadly net behind him, all glowing with brilliant light. Their sharpness cutting through the air as Verglas barely managed to finally block with his shield, but his stance was unstable. And even with the enhancement of his ability, his shield seemed to have been greatly damaged.

Galeon's wings suddenly flapped downward, the sudden intense force from it propelled him upward. He used the momentum to spin around, facing Verglas on the ground as he began falling from the air upside down. The he erupted with another burst of speed.

He was getting more and more used to finer and more delicate movements with his wings. It was not enough to grant him omnidirectional movement in the air, but it was enough for quick surprise attacks that changes the rhythm of battle. And this was what he did.

With a flap of his wings, he sped downward. Verglas raised his sword, wanting to meet him head on and kill him with the help of his own speed, but Galeon had more tricks to play. He burst out with an intense bright light as soon as he sped downward. Even though he had been seeing a lot of bright lights throughout this battle, Verglas' eyes still have not fully adjusted to them. And this was the brightest one yet. He was instantly momentarily blinded.

Verglas raised his shield up while swinging his sword to keep Galeon away, but the suited man had already dropped to the ground a few feet away from him after changing the trajectory of his descent. It took quite a lot of energy and strained his body, but it was all part of the plan. With Verglas still blinded, Galeon charged forward to cut him down for good. But that was when...

A flash gold streaked down from the dark sky, crashing onto the ground between the two with a clap of thunder. It sent Verglas flying and rolling before stopping as he hit a tree. Galeon just skidded back, but the injuries he received while resisting being thrown off was great. Fortunately, his body was regenerating swiftly.

When the dust settled, he saw a giant white lance stuck to the ground. The surrounding air near it seemed supercharged with electricity. He instantly made some distance as his gaze turned to the sky. There, in pristine white armour, was a knight with a pair of golden-feathered wings. Her gaze was sharp as she stared at Galeon with intensity.

The silence was stifling even as Verglas recovered and noted the changes. He was glad he was still alive as he swore he felt the cold hands of death eagerly caressing his neck just a moment ago. He did not know what happened, but he recognised the knight in the sky. They may not be from the same order, but there were few knights remaining in the world. They were bound to know each other. And this was only further proven when the winged knight spoke.

"Stay your hand, Dancing Blade. I cannot allow you to kill this man. Your commission is complete. I have sent my men to escort Lady Sairen back to Melchior."

Galeon recognised her as well. There were very few prominent people in the Eastern Region that was already filled with so many warriors and wanderers. This meant that anyone who managed to truly make a name for themselves here were the cream of the crop. And this female winged knight was perhaps the best of them. She was the Divine Lance of Radiance of the Lux Holy Land.

However, Galeon only spared her a brief glance as his brows soon furrowed. His heart was beating with trepidation as he jumped to the sky, his wings beating against the wind with maddened fervour. He flew higher than the Divine Lance who followed him. And when they reached a high enough vantage, Galeon's silence only became a lot more obvious.

There was a reason he wanted to kill Verglas in that one last attack. He really needed to end the battle quickly. This was because the moment he used the first step of his technique, shifting his state of mind into something that attuned greatly to his surroundings, the first thing he heard was not the beating of his heart or the rustling leaves of the forest. The first thing he heard was a distant sound reminiscent of rushing water. It gripped his heart at that moment as he realised what it was.

"It's here."

A beast tide.