Chapter 47: Fairy King v. Lord of Chaotic Water I

Green mana surged from his right eye and into the atmosphere.

At first, it resembled little more than a violent storm gathering around him. But as the currents started to compress, they began taking shape.

A crescent crown formed behind his head. It was not made from metal, nor did it physically touch him. Curved segments spread outward from it, forming several halo-like discs.

Then, two sets of glorious green wings unfurled from his back, one from his shoulder blades while the other sprouted from his lower back.

They possessed no feathers. Instead, their frames were formed from interlocking channels of green mana, drawing in the surrounding air before releasing it as concentrated currents.

Finally, a long stream of green mana descended from the bottom set of wings like a royal mantle, fading into particles before they could touch the ground.

Rian’s body remained unchanged from the transformation, still broken and bleeding. Yet it was the winds that held everything together, wrapping around his limbs, reinforcing his joints, and allowing him to fly.

’This feeling...’

He could sense everything.

The drops of water falling into the lake, the faint vibrations passing through the cavern walls, the minute disturbance created by the water surrounding Felix...

It was as though the entire cavern had become an extension of his right eye. Then Sylph’s voice spoke directly inside his head.

’Don’t try to control all of it at once.’

’Sylph?’

’I’m in your eye, remember?’

"You really weren’t lying about your powers," Rian grinned softly. "Lord Sylpheed, was it? I give my regards to—"

’Don’t call me that now, it’s awkward!’

Across the cavern, Felix had stopped moving.

Dark water crawled over the final traces of exposed skin, sealing him in the exoskeleton. Both eyes had become featureless pools of dark blue, and the manic expression that used to belong to Felix had disappeared entirely.

When he spoke again, there was no trace of Rian’s brother left in his voice. Only the deep, guttural growl remained.

"Sylpheed."

Rian narrowed his eyes.

"You finally decided to stop pretending to be my brother?"

"That vessel was already hollow. I merely filled what remained."

Dark water surged behind him, rising until the shape of a colossal serpent loomed across the cavern wall. It curled around Felix, just itching to strike.

"You have made an equally foolish choice, Sacred Wind. That human body cannot contain you."

’He’s right,’ Sylph warned. ’Your single Circle can only withstand a fraction of my authority. If too much passes through your eye—’

’I rupture and implode. I remember.’

’This isn’t the time to joke!’

Rian looked at the timer beside him.

[Estimated Lifespan: 23 hours, 59 minutes.]

"Well, no pressure."

Leviathan raised one of Felix’s hands, causing the lake behind him to erupt. Hundreds, if not thousands, of smaller serpents emerged, each formed entirely from water.

"No matter," Leviathan said. "I can subdue Undyne..."

"I see no reason I cannot do the same to you."

With a flick of his fingers, all of the serpents launched toward Rian at once. It was like a tidal wave, meant to completely bury Rian under their sheer mass.

Perhaps the sight should have frightened him.

It would have, if he were still the same Rian as before.

But he wasn’t.

Rian raised his hand, causing wind throughout the cavern to converge around him. Compressed by Sylph’s mana, pale-green shapes appeared one after another until they took the forms of various blades.

First four, then eight, then twelve...

More continued forming until an entire arsenal hovered behind Rian like an army of his own. Some were longer than his body while others were small enough to resemble daggers. Each possessed a translucent green blade, its edge formed from air compressed enough to shear through steel.

Every sword turned toward the miniature serpents.

〈Fae Regalia — Sovereign’s Arsenal〉

"Go."

The two armies collided.

Streaks of compressed wind tore into serpents of dark water, throwing the cavern into absolute chaos.

A sword immediately split the first serpent in half. Its watery body would have begun reforming had a second blade not passed through it a moment later.

The rest of the wind blades surged in every possible direction.

Some pierced directly through serpents’ heads while others curved around their bodies, cutting through several targets before returning for another pass.

The smallest blades moved the fastest, ricocheting between the water constructs until they had been sliced into several pieces.

Rian didn’t need to command them individually.

Through his right eye, he perceived every current and disturbance within the air. Sylpheed handled the countless calculations required to control the weapons, while Rian supplied a single intent:

Destroy them all.

Leviathan’s serpents attempted to engulf the swords, only for the compressed blades to tear through their bodies from within. Several joined together into larger creatures, but Rian’s weapons responded in kind.

Three swords aligned at once, before...

SLASH—!

A massive green arc of pressurized wind swept across the cavern, sharp enough to sever an entire row of serpents at once.

The scattered water abruptly changed direction, forming dozens of spears and icicles that tried to ambush Rian from every side.

But with a single flap of his wing, he was gone.

The spears collided where he had been floating, shattering one another into mist. Before Leviathan could locate him, Rian appeared above the serpent-shaped shadow looming across the wall.

One of the wind swords had repositioned itself there beforehand. The current surrounding it had pulled him across the cavern faster than Felix’s eyes could follow.

’So that’s how it works...’

Anywhere his swords traveled...so could he.

When Leviathan managed to look upward, it was too late. Rian descended with one sword held in his hand and six more behind him.

SHLK—!

The blade tore through the colossal serpent’s head while the others crossed through its neck from different directions, shredding the entire construct into a violent splash.

Felix dropped down onto one knee, breathing heavily. For a second, Rian thought he had managed to break the connection temporarily.

But his assumption was wrong.

Water slowly wrapped around him once more, as Felix’s entire body began lifting into the air.

"I’m done playing around with you."