Hunter Academy’s Battle God

Lorelei’s platform collapsed, and she began to fall.

Sway!

Although the golden wave surrounded her body, it couldn't fully absorb the impact. She was surprised that her zone had been destroyed, so she'd made a mistake in controlling her mana.

BOOM-!

She could feel a tingling pain in her ankle after impact with the ground.

"Ugh…"

Lorelei’s eyes closed at the pain, but Chronoa calmly said,

- Mana Resonance… He got you. You're using my power, but the medium used is your mana.

Her mistake was that she'd used a zone of influence against YuSung. A zone of influence was like a machine made of mana. Even a tiny problem was enough to make it break.

"Still, Mana Resonance is…"

Mana Resonance didn't happen naturally inside a zone as big as hers. She'd used her skills and the true name of the fragment to create it, after all.

On top of that, she'd used 10 days of her life.

She didn't care about spending those if it were to win the International Competition, but those aspirations were destroyed due to Mana Resonance.

- It isn't luck. It was on purpose, but…

Chronoa whispered in Lorelei's ears.

- But you can win if you use my authority and divine power.

Lorelei frowned and moved her arms. The golden wave moved toward YuSung, but he easily brushed it off with the palms of his hands.

"It doesn't work…" Lorelei mumbled in desperation. She'd used too much mana to make the zone.

Still, Lorelei did her best to defeat YuSung.

"Heavenly Wings!"

Flap!

Twelve golden wings appeared on Lorelei's back.

FWOOSH!

She flapped her wings, and the golden feathers shot like bullets at YuSung. Each of the feathers could do critical damage.

—Shadowed Moon Steps.

But…

Sway.

YuSung left an afterimage and disappeared. There was no way an attack Lorelei shot in fear would work against YuSung.

- Lorelei, I'm going to say it again, but if you use my authority and divine Power, you can win. Divine power can't be countered with Mana Resonance.

Using divine power couldn't be compared to borrowing the necessary ability to make the zone. She would be using her life as payment to bring the power of Goddess Chronoa into the modern world.

"Then… th-the price…" Lorelei asked in a trembling voice.

Goddess Chronoa kindly whispered,

- From 50 to 60 years. The choice is yours, Lorelei. I'm not going to force you.

Lorelei bit her lips, and strength surged inside of her. The golden light filled her surroundings and rushed toward YuSung.

"I…"

She really wanted to win.

Her emotions weren't fake.

It was a victory that her master, Aris, wanted. All of the English people had high hopes for her, and everyone that had supported her until that moment was watching her.

In order to make it happen, she had to offer 60 years for the victory.

The weight of it was different from the 10 days she'd just offered.

"I don't want to lose…"

Lorelei used the light to create weapons that she shot at YuSung.

What was she worth if she wasn’t strong?

Lorelei had many nicknames:

The Witch's Disciple…

UK's Hope…

The Clock Tower's Oracle…

She tried to imagine herself having betrayed everyone's trust and belief.

As expected, she couldn’t imagine such a thing.

* * *

https://discord.gg/MaRegMFhRb

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All the nicknames she'd received were proof of the path she'd walked until that point. They were her goal and reason; they were everything she had.

- I'll say it again. If that's really everything you have, if you cannot let it go, grab my hands.

- 50 years. That's all it takes for you to win.

Why couldn't she let go of what she was holding?

- I'm not going to force you.

Time stopped.

Chronoa whispered to Lorelei in a black-and-white world.

- Lorelei… Don’t you have things you want to achieve, just like me?

She wanted to win.

She wanted to make her master happy, she wanted to be recognized by her, she wanted to be praised by her, and she wanted to answer everyone's hopes.

Lorelei's goal was an innocent goal that was to be expected from a 17-year-old girl.

- I know there's a reason you became obsessed with time. After all, you inherited my fragment.

- You're very similar to me.

Chronoa said they were similar.

- Just like I was able to leave everything behind for that person. I'm sure, Lorelei, you're also going to be able to…

The goddess's sweet words continued.

- Do the same…

As if it was time to choose, time began flowing again. If she wanted to win, she'd have to pay the price.

[If I were to have a disciple… As expected, I want it to be you.]

Words passed through Lorelei's head.

[Already rank 6?! Lorelei, you're impressive!]

Everyone had high hopes for her.

[As the Clock Tower Academy headmaster, I can't wait to see what you do. Once this International Competition is over, the entire world will look at England differently.]

"I… can't do it…" Lorelei mumbled in a trembling voice.

With Lorelei's last words…

Pang! Crash!

Her barrier broke like glass.

[The barrier has been destroyed.]

[0% barrier remaining!]

[The match has ended.]

A gust of wind blew through Lorelei's hair.

[Winning Team…]

The holographic message announced the winner, but Lorelei didn't read it.

"Although I'm Aris's disciple, I lost… Everyone believed in me, yet I…"

YuSung calmly looked at Lorelei. He remembered all the years he'd spent on Martial Spirits' Mountain with the Fist King. He knew that answering his master's expectations felt good, but if that were your only goal, you'd end up being hurt.

After all, that was someone else's goal.

"You're strong, Lorelei." YuSung was being honest.

If he hadn't been able to enter the Hidden Stage, if he hadn't been able to learn how to use Mana Resonance, he wasn't sure who would've won.

What determined the winner was a small difference.

"Still, I lost… I'm sure everyone will be disappointed," Lorelei mumbled while tearing up.

YuSung's eyes met Lorelei's. "Still, you've done your best."

The weight was too much for someone to carry alone. Would anyone besides Lorelei be able to carry such a burden? Lorelei had managed to beat the Trial and be recognized by Chronoa thanks to her own merit.

At the young age of five, YuSung had been cast aside by his family because of his Trait rank.

That's why he couldn't judge someone based only on the result.

"If I were cheering for you…"

Since he had gone through similar pain, he could cheer for the opponent with sincerity.

"You'd still be my pride."

YuSung smiled at Lorelei. As expected, he truly was the prince Lorelei had been fantasizing about.

He had a kind heart, and his words alone were enough to know how much of a person he was.

More than anything else, YuSung was…

'He's truly…'

Instead of crying, Lorelei was smiling when she saw his beautiful grin.

'Good looking…'

The virtual world turned white and shattered. Her body turned into a hologram and flickered away, but Lorelei didn't lose her smile.

https://discord.gg/MaRegMFhRb