BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Mighty explosions constantly rang throughout the room. No one would even believe it was produced from a clash between two swords.

Basil and Gorgophone had long since exited the narrow room they had been in. They were currently fighting inside the secret chamber, the one that had previously belonged to Goliath.

Each time they stepped their foot on the ground, a crater was formed; each time they parried each other's swing, a trench decorated the ground.

The damage their fight caused was so heavy, even some parts of the extremely sturdy floor had turned to dust. This happened even though none of them used their Arts yet.

A mighty show of brute force!

"Amazing! To think a human can reach this degree of mastery ... You're something else, Basil," praised Gorgophone. He had said nothing wrong; respect should be given to where it's due.

Different from Spell, Art was a method of Mana manipulation that enabled one to do something unimaginable: producing lightning from one's finger, controlling the weather, and any other heaven defying things.

Having a large amount of mana meant nothing without the utilization of Art. It was as if having hands and stone, but without the knowledge of how to throw it.

Therefore, the monstrous power Basil had displayed even without the utilization of Art was praiseworthy.

"Not only your mana capacity increased, but your control over it has also improved ... I don't think that's normal," Grogophone said offhandedly.

"Normal and abnormal; it's just a matter of perspective. People have their own standard," was Basil's response.

Gorgophone sighed, and readied his great sword once again. "Since you're very adamant about it, let's do it. I have figured it out anyway," said Gorgophone ambiguously.

Gone were his playful smile, and lax posture. A serious expression that he never showed was plastered on his face.

Basil's heart tightened upon the scene. Since he had activated [Synchronization], he could somehow gauge the extent of Gorgophone's power. Vast was an understatement; it was simply monstrous!

Gorgophone was no longer exuding his Mana—to be exact, Basil couldn't feel his mana anymore.

There were two possible explanations for this phenomenon. First, Gorgophone's Mana was well hidden. Second, his mana was so monstrous, Basil's sense had simply mistaken it as Natural Mana. Sadly, this phenomenon was caused by the latter.

Still, Basil remained unfazed. Faced with an event that may cause his doom, he felt neither fear nor nervousness; he felt excitement!

Who was Basil? The last Ninth Circle Mage alive? No!

He was the man who had been struck down many times, yet always gone back up again; he was a man, before a mage. He had dignity to maintain.

A man shall never bow to anyone!

[Art of Vagus: Haywire]

Dashing toward Gorgophone, heactivated the hidden ability of Vagus.

Clank!

The great sword was struck down, leaving Gorgophone's upper body exposed. Seeing the opening, Basil quickly swung Vagus upward. However, Gorgophone could dodge it by bending his body to the point where it almost touched the ground.

Gorgophone, who saw that Basil's lower body was exposed, quickly swung his great sword upward. Unfortunately for him, Basil had disappeared even before he managed to.

[Blink]

Of course, Basil had already expected that.

Gorgophone's face became even more stoic than before. Although it wasn't apparent, he was flustered at the change occuring to his body.

"To think a mere Grand Duke could have this fearsome weapon..." He muttered to himself.

Clank!

Basil didn't give Gorgophone the time to muse, as Vagus had nearly cut Gorgophone's head in two. Vagus shone briefly once, then Gorgophone's stance faltered.

Taking the opportunity, Basil swiftly swung his claymore to Gorgophone's right foot ... At least, that was how it seemed.

Spurt!

Blood was gushing out of the wound Basil had inflicted on Gorgophone's chest. Bewildered, Gorgophone couldn't even think properly to parry Basil's attack.

One swing, his cheek was grazed. Two swings, his forearm bled. Four swings, his left thigh was cut deeply; his thighbone was visible. Eight swings, his palm was cut open, and Vagus was held firmly.

Looking at Basil in confusion, he asked, "You... What is that? Slash my foot, my chest bleeds. Slash my head, my thigh bleeds. Hypnosis? I doubt it will be that." He questioned and answered his own question.

"Tell me!" He shouted impatiently.

Basil merely smirked. "Why should I tell you?"

Pouring his mana into Vagus, he swung it upward while concurrently utilizing [Blink] to distance himself. In result, the hand that was firmly holding Vagus lost four of its fingers.historical

Gorgophone remained unperturbed as he merely looked at his hand in disinterest, as if losing a finger wasn't a big deal.

He had the right to do so; just a second after the cut fingers had touched the ground, new fingers grew. The wounds on his body were healing rapidly, and even his tattered clothes were repaired.

Basil quirked an eyebrow. "You have an amazing healing factor." He was impressed, and slightly dumbfounded at the same time.

His Art didn't only stop at merely empowering his attack, but it also allowed him to leave his Mana in the injuries he had managed to inflict. The Mana he had left would then destroy the cells or, at the very least, stop the regeneration entirely.

It didn't work on Gorgophone, and he had the right to be dumbfounded.

"Humph! A simple trick couldn't deceive me." Gorgophone snorted coldly. "It's time for you to get down from your saddle, human!"

Without waiting for Basil's response, he charged at him.

Clank!

A firm attack!

Unlike before, Gorgophone's step didn't falter, and his swing was powerful. Basil furrowed his eyebrows upon receiving the attack; he was slightly taken aback.

"Surprised? I have already grasped your trick." Gorgophone smirked. "You disrupted my mana flow, and messed with my motor sense! It is an ultimate weapon against human ... However, I am not a human!"

Clank!

A powerful swing was sent toward Basil, and he was thrown across the room.

Boom!

The ground exploded as he was forced to channel his Mana into his feet to plant his feet on the ground, so his body could stop moving.

A thick dust produced by the crushed floor quickly enveloped him, and despite so, he could see his front clearly.

Drip. Drip.

He had been hit; his abdomen was cut opened. Just like his [Art of Vagus: Haywire], Gorgophone had used the same trick to land a hit on him.

"Hahaha... Surprised?" Gorgophone asked playfully. "Information is the most dangerous weapon, don't you think? That's why people desperately sought for information." He smirked.

"In my case, I can get informations from the Mana people are exuding. You might not know it, but once Mana enters your body, it becomes one with you: it becomes a part of you."

The dust cleared up, and Basil could be seen having his glowing right hand on top of his wound.

"Once it becomes a part of you, a part of you will also become a part of it. That means, everytime you are exuding mana from your body, you are exposing yourself slowly."

Basil's heart tightened, and his face stiffened; his puzzlement was solved, leaving behind an understanding.

"Yes, that's how I know your full name—I can see your information from your mana, Basil! That's also how I can figure out your so-called Art!" Gorgophone exclaimed enthusiastically.

Shaking his head regrettably, he said, "An amazing Art indeed, but that's how far it can go."

Basil stopped channeling his Mana to his right hand, and it immediately stopped glowing; he had given up trying to heal it.

Although the destructive Mana injected in his wound wasn't destroying his cells, it had completely stopped his regeneration.

"That's not even the best part yet! I can see your past—your whole life! And ... I can even do this," Gorgophone grinned.

[Transfiguration]!

In the next moment, Gorgophone's appearance started changing.

[Transfiguration]; A high leveled Art that was yearned by many Alchemists. If [Transformation] was merely a way to deceive the eyes, [Transfiguration] was the real deal. One could really turn into the thing one saw with it.

Gorgophone's long, black hair was replaced with long, silky, purple hair. His androgynous face turned more feminine: sharp, red eyes; beautiful, pointy nose; and small, luscious lips adorned his face.

His body also changed to that of a perfect figure for a woman. Dressed like a man, the tight fit accentuated the feminine figure even more.

Gorgophone had turned himself into woman. And not just any woman; it was someone Basil knew.

"What are you doing?" A cold voice came out of Basil's mouth naturally. He was angered so badly, a feeling of coldness washed over him.

"Hmm... you've already forgotten about me, it seems. I'm hurt, Sil," replied the woman.

"You are not her. Stop tainting her image by impersonating her!" It was an exclamation, but it was heard as if a reassurance to himself.

Basil couldn't help it; the aura, the voice, the demeanor, and the way her mana flowed really resembled the person he knew.

His mind couldn't help but recall a memory of the past.

...

"I heard you managed to clear the 29th Obelisk. Congratulations! Since you're hurt, I brought you some flower to look at."

"What is this flower?"

"It's called Hyacinth."

"Is it naturally purple? What about the other colors?"

"Yes, it's naturally purple. There are also the other colors, but I love purple!"

A young man with a smiling face, and a bright expression was talking with a purple-haired woman. They didn't put any thought to their surrounding, as if the world solely belonged to them.

The young man was talking excitedly about his endeavor, and the woman listened to it while smiling softly. As he remembered something, the young man stopped talking.

"What does the flower symbolize?"

Smiling softly, she said, "It symbolizes..."

The scene suddenly changed even before the woman managed to finish her sentence.

It was a battlefield that was littered with corpses of Monster and human alike. Black smoke rose through the air ceaselessly; fire was raging madly, burning many of the corpses.

In the middle of the chaotic scene, a young man was kneeling with a purple-haired woman in his embrace.

"...regrets. I have many regrets," she said laboriously. "Live your life to the fullest. Make your decision carefully—don't have any regrets!"

Her hand that was cupping the young man's cheek fell down limply, and the light in her eyes were gone as the young man cried sorrowfully.

...

The recollection ended, and Basil was back to the present. Standing silently with Vagus in his hands, he looked at the person approaching him incomprehensibly.

When the purple haired woman had already arrived in front of him, she presented him three stacks of Purple Hyacinths.