OLD-WORLD EXTRA

Emir's body pulsed with Aether as his core began to overwork itself.

He used all that extra Aether to supply his shield with even more Aether, strengthening it to the extreme.

Just as he did that, the poison caught up to him, creeping in all around him.

But this time, it didn't leak into his shield, unable to breach it.

He had successfully sealed it out.

Exhaling the last bit of air from his lungs, he steadied himself.

'...Too close.'

Calm washed over him as his inky eyes locked onto the man before him.

Tension was apparent, more so within this field of poison-a deadly threat that demanded vigilance.

This was something Emir had learned firsthand.

It would kill them at first contact.

They couldn't afford to let their guard down for even a second.

Blanc chuckled, Aether visible on his tongue.

"Pity, I almost got you there."

His voice sounded dry and rough, as if he had no water left in his body.

"You thought that I had the same shield ability as you, didn't you?"

Emir didn't reply and touched the door, subtly feeling its strength.

"It's what you get for not hiding your abilities."

Blanc quipped with a smirk that didn't quite reach his eyes.

"I've been waiting for this moment for so long, you don't understand. I studied you and found a way to level the playing field. You're used to speed, but here? You'll have to slow down. You can't just rush through this."

Emir's hand left the door, realizing that he couldn't punch his way out of it.

It was stronger than the last one, a higher level of Aetheric Infusion.

Without showing a reaction to that information, he met Blanc's gaze, unfazed by the threat. "Heh~."

A faint smile touched his lips as he responded, his voice confident:

"I won't deny it, you got me."

There really was no denying that.

He was completely tricked, plain and simple.

If not for his Temporal Perception, something that no one knew except Lyra and his blood family, he would've died.

Blanc had already cast his shield ability, whatever it was called, before Emir even entered the

room.

So when he chanted Aetheric Shield right in front of him, he made Emir believe that his own Aetheric Shield was enough to handle the poison.

They were both Seraphims of the same sub-rank, Champion.

And while his family had failed to stop the Behomoth from awakening, his soul wasn't affected.

That 'failure' was just one of the two paths where the Major Disaster would go.

Their actions would simply change to adjust to that; this was all that was no more, no less.

So since he didn't see it as a failure, his rank wasn't affected, and it wasn't going to be a variable here either.

Though Emir didn't know the ability, he knew that it was of the second rank, for Blanc could handle the poison with no issue.

It was a smart move, and Emir, who now stepped closer to him, wasn't one to hate such tricks, but the opposite; he was a puppeteer for a reason.

"I don't care what you know; I'm not one to hide... not too much at least. And besides, I want to be challenged, not take a stroll in the park. So come, let me learn."

Blanc smirked and looked up at the ceiling.

"Oh, heavenly tree. Aether. My Father. My Mother. Bear witness... as I show you the strength of your creation."

Without another word, the battle began.

Both stepped forward at the same time, the shimmering shields enveloping them in a protective cocoon, pushing the poison away and momentarily clearing the air behind them.

They both knew what they had to do.

Now, their shields were so concentrated that they blocked oxygen from entering.

Their own weapons would still hit, of course, as both their shields allowed the inside to go outside but not the inverse.

But then, did that mean that they had to break the other's shield?

Was it a simple battle of attrition?

No, if they knew Emir as much as he claimed they had, then they would know about his much increased Aether capacity.

They were aiming for something else.

Something more tactical.

And Emir realized that 'something' the moment they stood a foot away from attacking each

other.

The shield had a weakness.

Rain.

Well, not rain itself, but the speed at which it dropped.

It was why Emir used an Aetheric Construct instead of his Aetheric Shield when he visited the

plaza.

They seemed to have picked up on that, and they knew that Emir could do nothing to cover that weakness.

It was an intentional one, done so that the ability could remain as a first-rank.

Aetheric Shield would've been too good otherwise, reaching the second rank.

Like how all abilities defied the laws of physics, this one did the same in that every attack, no matter what speed, would be blocked.

Needless to say, that would be the case only if the user had enough Aether.

The single exception was when the attack moved at a speed of sixteen to twenty-five meters

per second.

This meant that they had to act with the speed of rain, attacking just at the right moments while timing steps to block attacks, turning an endurance match into a game of chess.

It wasn't a common ability, and this was the first time Emir had met someone with anything

similar in battle.

Excited was an understatement for what he was currently feeling.

Normally, this weakness wouldn't be much of an issue, as either Celestial could simply run away from the poison, push the other out of the poison, break the other's shield, play the endurance game, use the environment, bury them, or even just siphon all the Aether out of them till they died by their own poison.

But here, it was the only thing that mattered.

Clang!

Emir's perception speed turned to normal for a moment, as he was done with his thoughts, and his twin swords struck Blanc's.

They locked each other in place, identifying the strength of the other, and once Blanc realized he was weaker than his opponent, he backed off.

Emir didn't chase him and they began to circle each other, their eyes locked, each waiting for

the other to move.

Every twitch, glance, and muscle tension was analyzed, a silent battle of minds as they anticipated their opponent's actions.

The prince had faced similar challenges before, particularly against Arcadia's dolls, but never

in an environment like this.

The poison left no room for error, fractions without his shield, and his life would be over.

Slowly, a smile that he was holding back appeared on his face.

He couldn't help it.

His chaotic nature was taking over... this became the time he felt most alive.

Blanc didn't know of this nature.

The only ones who knew were the students and those rotting somewhere in the wasteland,

fermenting in a monster's stomach or buried six feet under.

Would he be one of them?

Emir couldn't wait to find out.