Fran focused her mana.
Come on, Fran.
“Hm! Flashing—”
But Amanda cut her off before she could finish. “Invocation: Vaisravana!”
“—Thunderclap!”
With a crack of her whip, Amanda dispelled everything on the field. All the thunder and typhoons disappeared. Soon, a hurricane was closing in on us. It tore up the floor under Fran’s feet, sending bits of rubble flying all over the place. Meanwhile, our mana pool was drastically draining.
“Hrmph!”
Tch!
Even accelerating my perception with Timespace Magic only let me catch a glimpse of what was happening. Amanda lashed out so rapidly with her whip that it produced hurricanes. Her whip looked like it had multiplied by ten.
Physical Immunity was working overtime, and our mana was draining fast. There was nowhere to run. To make matters worse, each lash produced a shockwave as sharp as a knife. It reminded me of the whipmeisters back home who made sonic booms by cracking their whips at the right speed and angle. I was pretty sure Amanda had already broken the sound barrier. She suspected Fran of being faster than her, and her tactic of rapid-fire lashes served to seal off every escape. It wouldn’t be long before our mana ran dry.
Teacher, warp!
Short Jump!
Fran was right—getting out of there was better than having our mana exhausted. I teleported us a short distance, ignoring whatever damage Fran was suffering. We were supposed to teleport behind Amanda, but she was gone. She had already run off to the other side of the arena. We’d pushed our luck too far. She knew our warp habits. A second was all she needed to dodge a blink strike, as long as she could read it. Gaudartha did the same thing, although he was slower. But here was something she’d never seen before.
“Vernier!”
With teleportation unviable, Fran boosted herself towards Amanda. Beloved of the Spirits hadn’t activated yet, so she couldn’t use her Black Lightning. We had to get that first hit in!
“Haaa!”
Fran charged through the storm. She was too fast. Amanda couldn’t dodge.
Claaaang!
We did it! Beloved of the Spirits blocked my killing blow, but that was enough. Fran was close enough to hit her. She turned her blade and swung.
“Tsch!”
I charged myself with my remaining mana. You’re going down, Amanda! I closed in on her as her eyes widened in shock.
Haaaaa!
“Aaaaah!”
Aside:
Amanda
I SCREAMED AS I WATCHED Fran fight Gaudartha. She was so much stronger now. I couldn’t believe it. I knew that she would grow up strong and beautiful, but thought it would take at least ten years. I’d honestly thought she would lose. I certainly would’ve had trouble facing the rhino.
Her growth was abnormal. I had met talented adventurers with potential in the past, but Fran was on another level. She must have been fueled by her desire to evolve, and fought with that burning desire.
And then there was Teacher, her strange sword. I’m sure he must’ve provided Fran with guidance, as well. Teacher himself looked stronger than when I last saw him. His skills were leveled up, and I sensed the great mana inside him. I couldn’t let my guard down.
Fran showcased some strange skills during the Gaudartha fight: Timespace Magic, Thunder Magic, and the ability to rapidly cast one spell after another. And most impressive of all, Black Cat Evolution.
I found Physical Immunity to be her most surprising skill. I only noticed it because I’d fought someone who had it once. She took Gaudartha’s axe head-on without flinching, an impossible feat for even the strongest of barriers. If it wasn’t Physical Immunity, it must be something similar. A dangerous skill, but not without its weaknesses. I could tell that Fran consumed a lot of mana to activate it. Once she ran out, crushing her would be a cinch.
“Not that I think I’m in for a walk in the park…”
I needed to prepare myself. I was actually fighting her and Teacher—I didn’t know where one’s power started and the other’s stopped. The nobles around me shouted as they watched her fight.
“That girl is very impressive. Adventurer?”
“Oh, but she’s a beastman. She must be from the country.”
“I want her in my army. Such strength.”
“I won’t let you get first dibs, old chap.”
“I can think of many ways of employing her beauty.”
“Ho ho ho, like under my—”
Fran was strong and young, after all. Still, I couldn’t just let these disgusting men say whatever they wanted. Which of my spells should I use?
“She would do nicely in the Imperial Guard.”
“She could keep my daughter safe.”
At least some of these people had standards. I’d hold off on burning the entire room. Oh, but Fran had grown up so much…
A Black Cat couple happened to visit me one day over ten years ago. They were adventurers who’d been under the care of my orphanage a few years before. Their names were Kenan and Framere, and they’d come to show me their newborn baby.
We’d parted on unfriendly terms, so I was happy to see them again. It was my fault. I’d prohibited them from pursuing Evolution and becoming adventurers. They just didn’t have the talent for it. They didn’t have much mana, and possessed only an average mastery of weapons. Since they grew up around me, they thought adventuring couldn’t be too hard. But it wasn’t quite so easy that the natural talents of a beastman could get you through. The only future I saw for them was death.
I could’ve handled that conversation better. I should’ve listened to them before voicing my objections. That was why I was so happy when they introduced me to their baby: Fran.
That baby shared the same name, and would be about the same age as my Fran. I’d thought she was dead. I’d heard news that Kenan and his family had died, but baby Fran was nowhere to be found. That’s why I didn’t recognize her when I first met her in Alessa. I thought that little
