Ever since the order was put to place, everyone has done the best they could to follow it, even though it was rather sudden.
Word spread like wildfire in Lenora. The one they thought of as the most powerful since the Monarch Beast, is afraid of the consequences of their actions. The actions which were done for the future of monster kind. When one such us himself says that he fears, all will do the same.
Farms too far from Lenora were abandoned for the time being. Every monster and demi human that lived in Lenora never left the area. A barrier was installed that covered the whole city like an invisible veil.
It was a modified barrier. All the monsters can travel in and out of it as they wish, but nothing else can enter. As soon as it detects a new kind of mana, it triggers a defense mechanism where an alarm like sound could be heard from the inside notifying everyone of the impending danger.
The barrier will also try to fight back. The easiest and most effective way of doing this is by reverse absorption of mana. It absorbs all the mana in the surroundings, killing whatever threat had approached while at the same time, becoming stronger itself.
To avoid looking like I'm overreacting, I didn't make it too strong. Of course, making it that way would've given them confidence about their safety, but at the same time, if I made it that way, it would seem like I'm trying to protect them from something that's very strong, making them anxious about the fact that something big is about to happen. That brings about more bad effects than the good.
Feeling anxious would make them too aware of their surroundings. It might be a good thing, after all, they'll know when an enemy attacks much quicker and act accordingly, but they could even start doubting each other that they may be the enemies. The feeling does tend to cloud judgment and the way of thinking. If they start to do that, it'll be difficult for them to work together. And in the case that an enemy does appear, that won't be a good thing.
Being anxious can also make them less aware of what is around them. I feel like I don't have to explain that one.
So I went for a weaker barrier with the potential to become stronger if needed. I didn't know that it was also a mistake at the time. I didn't put into consideration that a stronger one would mean that nothing can go through it. With the power that I have, nothing would've gone through it. Nothing.
"You don't know, do you?"
"Know what?"
"How she feels about you. I could tell at first glance." This was an elf slave that Giselle and I freed together with others who were in a cage on a merchant's carriage. They were on their way to be sold but we were able to save them in time. This was two weeks ago. I was healing her wounds while we talked.
"You look a lot more calmer than the others who are still freaking out. For the better part of your life, all the humans you came across have always mistreated you. Yet here you are talking to one of them without any fear or resentment... Tell me, what does she feel?"
"When I saw you, fighting for my sake, what do you think I felt?"
"You thought that your finally going to be free?"
She giggled a little. "Wrong... I saw a man. A man who is willing to fight his own kind to save others. I saw, a hero. A knight saving the princess. The beginning of a love story."
"Like those in fairytales?"
"That's right. I saw the beginning of a fairytale where I'm the female lead."
"I don't know what to say to that."
"I do. That's what it looked like at first, then I saw her." She looked at Giselle admiringly. She was busy freeing and calming down the other elves. "That fairytale, it belongs to her."
"I don't understand where you're going with this."
"She thinks the same way every time she looks at you. In fact, she's already living in that fairytale."
"But I never saved her... She was already free."
"That's what it looked like to you, but its not how she felt... Do me a favor, make sure that her fairytale goes on forever."
"... Okay. I will." I will... I WILL!
At this time, Giselle was looking at the dark skies. The increasing wind speeds could be felt from even inside the barrier. She wasn't the only one who was looking at the sky wondering how the weather got like this.
'I don't understand.' She thought. 'Its been like this for days now. It should have changed by now and gotten a little more settled. But its gotten worse.' She got back into the castle to discuss with Nirvana and the rest about it.
After the barrier was put, I also modified the palace and turned it into a castle. In case something does happen, the sturdy build of the castle was supposed to protect everyone from harm. That was the idea. I made it a little bigger and also built underground living spaces for everyone. That last part, however, is only known by a select few.
Nirvana and Cassius were in a room discussing something when Giselle interrupted them by knocking at the door before opening it.
"Mind if I join you?"
"There's no reason not too. Is there something you wish to discuss?"
"Yes, actually. Its about the weather. Something about it makes me feel uneasy." They looked at each other worriedly. "Is there something wrong?"
"Well... Yes actually."
"Nirvana and I have some theories of what could be causing this."
"We believe that it isn't natural weather and that it could be..." She suddenly stopped talking.
"Is something wrong?" Giselle asked her. When she looked at Cassius, she noticed that he seemed shocked by something. Then Nirvana coughed up a large amount of blood and fell to the floor. While she was there, the floor began to slowly crack seemingly under her own weight. "Are you okay?! What's going on?!"
Nephilim burst into the room and reached for Nirvana. Then he carried her by his hands and shouted. "We have to move! Now!"
"What's happening?"
"You probably can't sense it." Cassius told her. "Try focusing on the mana in the vicinity."
She did as she was instructed. Closing her eyes and standing still, she felt her surroundings. Then a familiar feeling came to her. Tears started to swell up in her eyes when she remembered a day she never wanted to think about. The day her mother died.
"It feels... empty. Just like on that day."
"Its an anti magic barrier. The whole city has been covered by an anti magic barrier."
"And since Nirvana is a dragon, she uses magic to make her human form withstand her true weight. But because of the barrier, her form can't withstand the pressure." Nephilim added.
"We need to get out of here." As soon as Cassius said this, screams could be heard from outside. Then a bright light covered the window.
They ran out to check what was going on. When they came out, a golden light shone on them from the sky directly above the city. They were stunned for a while, just like everyone else, then came back to their senses and told everyone to hurry out of the city.
"Everyone needs to leave now! The city is in danger! We need to get out!" Considering the significance of their status, they knew that there really was danger. So everyone started to panic and run as far away as the can, even Nephilim and Cassius. Grendel was helping with directing the large number of monsters through the quickest way out.
Meanwhile, Giselle was still standing in the room in a complete stupor. For the first time in so long, she felt the same way she did when her mother died. Her memories were flashing before her eyes. Memories of that day. It was painful for her.
The light kept shining brighter and brighter and snapped her back to reality. Then she realized she was the only one left. She broke the window and jumped down from the great height of the room landing perfectly on the road. She wasted no time and ran as fast as she could.
The dark clouds in the sky began circling around the light. Nirvana noticed that Giselle was still behind. She wanted to tell Nephilim and opened her mouth, but the words didn't come out. Nephilim noticed her distressed face and asked what the matter was. She tried telling him telepathically but the anti magic barrier prevented that.
Giselle began slowing down. Elves mostly rely on mana to maintain their physical abilities. But since she couldn't use mana, she became tired really quickly. Eventually, she fell on the ground.
When she lifted her head, she noticed that she could never make it out in time. Then she saw how Nirvana looked at her from the hands of the running Nephilim. She saw how she tried to tell him about her.
When she got up, she looked at the sky and noticed that it was too late. Tears rolled down her eyes while looking at Nirvana.
"Hey Nirvana."
"What is it?"
"Well, I've been wondering this for a long time. Are you... possibly...ah...in love with Nerezza?"
She looked at her with a disgusted face. "Ew. Why would I fall in love with a human? That's disgusting. What even made you think of asking me that?" She noticed her disappointed face and felt pity for her. "If I were to fall in love with someone, they should be a dragon, one that's even more powerful than me. But seeing how the odds of that are unlikely, it looks like I have a lonely future ahead of me."
Giselle giggled when she said that. "I never thought you're the type to say things like that."
"I was always normal back in the days. You know, before 400 years ago... But my life was shattered instantly. That includes some of my emotions... Hey." Giselle looked up at her. "Don't let your life get shattered just like mine. And If it does, then don't let your emotions get destroyed along with it. If that's how you feel, then don't listen to me. Just be you."
Giselle admired her then turned around and crossed her hands. "You told me not to listen to you."
"Huh? Wait. No. That's not what. Huh?" Giselle then laughed when she lost composure. For a few seconds, Nirvana seemed upset, but she later on joined her and they laughed together.
Nirvana tried her hardest to tell others, but she couldn't inform anyone. She wriggled around in Nephilim's hands, then, after some time, she was able to kick herself out of his hands and onto the ground. Because of her weight, that slight kick was able to send Nephilim far away towards the side, close to the edge of the barrier. When you think about it, how was he even able to lift her?
The anti magic barrier had shuttered the one I put before it. Still, some were able to make it out of it. That's because anti magic barriers aren't physical. So anything that gets trapped in it can still walk out. That's how some of them made it out safely. But it seemed like the rest would suffer the same fate as Giselle.
She suddenly remembered something from her childhood. She remembered how her mother told her about a secret power of the elves that is passed down in her bloodline. Then she remembered how her mother teleported her out of the village to save her, even though they were in an anti magic barrier.
"Listen up, little one. Today I'll teach you how to use our family's power."
"Huh? What does that mean?"
"Its the ability that has been passed down through elven generations in our bloodline. Remember, what does the color of our hair symbolize?"
"What does that have to do with it?"
"Just answer the question."
She looked at the running monsters and spoke out loud. "Sacrifice. It symbolizes sacrifice." Then she felt like a small fire was lit inside her. It was the feeling of mana returning into her body.
"Nerezza worked hard to try and save everyone. All the slaves and monsters. Now they're about to die. No. I won't let them die just like that."
She then put her hands together. "Now, repeat after me." She remembered her mother's instructions. Then she started speaking in another language and a white glow shone from her hands.
At this time, the light in the sky descended. It moved by the slightest bit but incredibly fast. When it did, that's when I felt the mana coming from it. I immediately realized that Lenora is in danger. But I was in Farglade.
The first thing I did was use Maximum Thought Acceleration. Then I tried making a skill that allows me to protect everyone from where I was. I was thinking of making the barrier more powerful. But the barrier no longer exists. Not only that, but there's an anti magic barrier there so I can't use any other skill.
Dammit.
I tried to use a teleportation skill to go there. But the anti magic barrier prevented that. That meant that if I teleport outside it, I still have to move inside. And because of how big it is, it'll take too long.
But I still needed a way to get there fast. So I made skills to move faster. It still felt like it wasn't enough. When I was about to use growth, I remembered that it needs time so that it could work. My mind was in too much of a hurry and I decided to move the way I was.
As soon as I turned off Maximum Thought Acceleration, I instantly disappeared. I came to the conclusion that running into it faster than the speed of teleporting would get me there just as quick. Not only that, but I'll also run into the barrier with enough speed to get inside even without using any magic.
That was the original idea. But I hadn't even thought of what I was going to do once there or why I was even doing it or what the danger is. It felt like something told me to just go and started pulling me along.
I ran so fast that delayed shockwaves were left behind. A trail of dust and fallen trees appeared through the straight path I was following. Even the recent wall I built got a hole in. Yet I still didn't know what I was going to do.
A distance that would've taken me days to get to by foot, maybe even a month, I ran in a time so short that I wouldn't even call it a split second. I did that only to get there at the exact same time a golden beam of light fell from the sky.
I thought that all the speed I had would've flung me inside the barrier. But instead, I stopped as soon as I touched it. All that force was absorbed into the barrier and I fell directly Infront of it. After that, I realized that something was wrong, I couldn't see. I couldn't see anything around me. So I missed it. But the others didn't.
The beam of light fell directly onto the city. A blinding explosion occurred. Everything became white.