*
"Good work today. It was good that you noticed the overhead swing without directly seeing it." (Arin)
"Mhmm!" (Lastia)
As mentioned, they had defeated the gorilla like Trace that could phase through things at will. However its power wasn't selective, if it were in its corporeal state then it had to phase through everything. Likewise if it were in its material state, it can't pass through anything. In order to attack it had to stay material, giving an opening to Sariel who was on standby. Arin on the other hand was pressuring it with her volleys of magic bullets, in either state she was there to give cover fire. In the end she was the one to finish it off.
"..." (Sariel)
Sariel's gaze lingered on their backs, before entering their classroom. Her thoughts lay deep within a well, untouched by the light. In a flash, the lessons went by and they got ready to head home.
"... I'll be going on ahead, I have some stuff to do." (Sariel)
"Alright, be safe." (Arin)
There were around a million homes, the massive size of residential zones warranted the use of railways to travel. However, within the zone most people travel by foot. With students getting priority to live particularly near the school. Their homes were in different directions, but Sariel had to use a different gate of the school to get closer to her's.
As they were now alone and approaching the gate, Lastia spoke up. Her words shifting in tone, as if unsure if it was okay to speak.
"Does... Does she always go home this way?" (Lastia)
Her words were uncertain but firmly enunciated, knowing both of their personalities in detail, Arin raised her lips to explain. She place her right palm on the open gate, feeling its cool metallic surface as she took another step.
"Her house is in a different direction, it's not uncommon for her to go ahead early if she had some errands to fulfill." (Arin)
"After we beat that humongous Trace she was particularly quiet. Is that how she's normally like?" (Lastia)
Perhaps she was just excited to give Lastia tips on fighting Traces, she was only chatty then. Lastia had noticed her silence immediately after their battle.
"... Yeah. She doesn't talk much about herself. This is just about how she usually is. Are... You worried?" (Arin)
"I suppose so. If you guys feel reserved around me, I would be the first to notice. I don't want you guys walking on eggshells around me, that's why I'm more sensitive." (Lastia)
Maybe, she was worried about nothing after all. They eventually part ways, it only felt like moments prior when she could feel Arin's presence next to her. Her friends certainly do exude a sense of reliability that had a calming effect on her heart. Now that she was alone, she felt the steady rhythm of her heart once more, focusing on it with unnatural clarity.
She felt her chest with her hand, warming the area where she could feel her the pulse within her chest. Letting out a deep breath, she glossed over what she experienced today.
"Was something going on with Sariel? Apparently this was how she usually is like..." (Lastia)
She couldn't get it out of her mind. If her friend needed help and she willingly ignored it, it would tear her insides up.
"Right, there's still this...
I'm leaving it up to you. " (Lastia)
***
1st September Monday, 11508 of the new era calendar
The wall shatters apart like toy blocks, sending a figure flying through the gap. Adjusting to the backwards momentum, she slides on the ground and slows herself down to a stop. Her fist began to radiate a dark scarlet light.
Sariel couldn't help but lost count of how much she has seen that light. Every fight, Lastia seemed to resort to it. There's no concept of training for her, she loses her memories the very next day, so none of them will ever reap the fruits of their efforts. Why suffer now, never to see tomorrow? It has sent her down a spiral of reliance on yggdrasil's simulation. Even if it only brought her up a single rank, from B to A.
Was this really the way she should keep going?
She summons her weapon with {Swap} and dives straight in. Her natural parameters were already at A rank, though an arbitrary rating by Lastia with no sense of reference, it meant that she could take on any Trace alone unless it was at the level of a demonic heavenly king.
The dull looking blade in her arm sliced through the smoke with extreme precision, carving up whatever was supposed to be on the other side. However, nothing had changed. The smoke continued to swirl around at the location where the wall was destroyed, hovering above the ground. A sudden impact slams into Sariel's body, sending her flying.
Climbing up from the debris, Lastia regained control over her rapidly beating heart with deep breaths. She spots Sariel body being flung into the distance, but she was too far away to catch her.
"Tch! How... How are we supposed to fight this thing..." (Lastia)
It couldn't be seen, wherever it was present, the smoke was present. Yet, this smoke was strangely durable and resilient...
Amorphous brownian entity - haze type Trace, Mistelain.
The wind pressure from her punches and kicks weren't enough, slash attacks from Sariel's blade did nothing. By all accounts it was immune to physical means of attacking, unless the attack could blow away the entire building and gas with it. Lastia had to think of a solution quick, inside there... Arin was trapped inside.
Arin usually has contingencies that would extend her life in situations like this, but Lastia can't count on it with definite certainty. Running in would just endanger herself... Once more, she needed to rely on the magical aspect of her skill, the aspect that handles energy. She could use it to sap magic out of the Trace with {Feed}, which wouldn't risk hurting Arin. The alternative was to indiscriminately shoot magical energy in, but that might hurt Arin on accident.
From a far off distance...
"{Feed}!" (Lastia)
Dark tendrils shot out of her palm, crashing into the smoke and getting obscured out of sight. Sariel recovers her footing and observed the situation, meeting a similar impasse on a way to save Arin. If this Trace was simply A rank due to their physical strength, it would have been an easy job like the spectral gorilla Trace they defeated last week.