“Aurum… What are you...”

Yvette’s words resonated in the air for a good ten seconds, only for the man in question to ignore her altogether. No, he didn’t ignore the elf. Aurum didn’t hear her in the first place. Still damaged, the man wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings. Rather, his five senses were attached to the being that caused his injury.

“What the hell… What is that?!” Aurum bit down on his lip, showing his frustration.

“That’s what I wanted to ask you!” Aria replied with a similar high-tone. “What is that thing, and why is it targeting you?!”

“I don’t know!” The man honestly replied. “Still, for it to damage me… It can’t be something simple.”

Aurum ignored the fact that he’d just brushed off a mortal wound as if it were a breeze in the wind and stood up with wariness in his eyes. His fists were clenched, and his face was turning beet red. Ever since awakening, Aurum had never been threatened by anything. Nothing that Yudonia did could harm him after all. Even the S-Class Metamorph of Raklius was unable to pierce through his thick skin.

Yet, that Black Knight had done so all too easily.

“Perhaps… It comes from the same time as me.” Aurum theorised. “Aria, we should capture that thing! It’ll unlock some clues about who I am!”

“Easier said than done!” Contrary to Aurum’s suggestion, Aria yelped in response. “That thing is as strong as the Guardians we’ve fought in the dungeon! Capturing it? If anything, it would be capturing us! We need to get the hell out of here, pronto!!!”

True to Aria’s estimation, the Black Knight wasn’t fazed in the slightest by Arius’ onslaught. The Guardian Paladin stormed his way in front of the unknown being with his full might. Coated in dense mana, the S-Ranker was releasing a flurry of attacks, each one strong enough to level Aria ten times over. However, no matter what Arius did, the Black Knight stood firm.

It took all of the hits as if Arius was a mere child that was throwing a tantrum. Each strike would bounce off its armour like a spring, and that wasn’t all. The bodyguards were releasing a torrent of magical attacks from the rear in support of Arius’ cause. Unfortunately, just like Arius, they were powerless against the Black Knight’s defence.

The Black Knight stood silently, not caring in the slightest that an S-Ranker was attacking it head-on with everything that he had. Heck, the Black Knight didn’t even see Arius as a significant threat that was worthy of a parry. All it cared… was the man that it had targeted.

Or to be more precise… the wound that it had inflicted upon him.

The Black Knight remained motionless. Although no one could see its eyes, they could tell that its attention was still firmly on Aurum’s abdomen, where its attack had landed. It looked at the wound meaningfully, before raising its gaze to meet Aurum’s.

No one could tell what it was thinking. Did it want to attack Aurum one more time? Or was it dissatisfied with the result of its hits? No one could tell. However, everyone was on red alert. Given the Black Knight’s powers, it could easily target Aurum once again; any resistance be damned.

Aria, knowing that an attack was imminent, readied her stance. She was still overwhelmed by the deathly aura that the Black Knight was coated in, but her skills as an S-Ranker managed to take over. Cooling herself down, the S-Class Archmagus went into combat mode. A golden light moved from her inner core and onto her fingers, and Aria started to draw something in the air in front of her. The light continued to shine brightly until a construct, one that could only be described as a Golem, morphed itself into existence from Aria’s mana.

“Creation Magic - Defence Guardian!”

Using her trusted new magic, Aria created a Golem whose sole function was to protect. It had thick platings and two large shields on each hand that were twice as swole. The Golem rushed and slammed both its shields into the ground, creating a barrier between the Black Knight and Aurum.

‘Defence is secured… Time for countermagic...’

Aria raised her arm over her head and closed her eyes. For her next magic, even an Archmagus like her wasn’t able to instantly cast it. Gathering mana from her core, Aria focused everything that she had into changing the phenomena of the world. Blue light circled out from the centre of her palm and crackles of lightning snapped onto the earthen soil.

Lightning bolts continued to jump out from Aria’s palms, enveloping the earth around her like they were her soldiers waiting for war. Aria’s spell continued on without any hindrance. In a mere ten seconds, everything within a ten-metre radius had traces of lightning within them.

“Chain Cast - Lightning Swarm!”

Aria shouted the name of the most potent lightning spell in her arsenal. She turned the palm that transmitted all of the lightning bolts upwards, and as if responding to the call of their sovereign, the countless crackles on the floor stood upright. They were responding to Aria’s will, and one could only imagine what would happen if Aria unleashed all of that power onto a single target.

‘Now… Let’s see you attack!!!’

Aria’s black hair that would normally flow to her waist was now in a haphazard state. She looked like an incarnate of Einstein in his older years or Tesla when he was manipulating electricity for the first time. But that matters nought to Aria. In this life or death situation, her appearance wasn’t a priority. What mattered… was for Aria to blow the Black Knight away should it follow up with an attack on Aurum.

Fortunately for Aria and Aurum… the expected attack never came.

The Black Knight’s gaze never left Aurum’s visage. It continued to switch from the formerly wounded place to the wet and heated face of the ancient man. From that action alone, Aria could tell that the being was acting on intelligence rather than instinct. It could have attacked at any moment, given how many openings there were… but it remained silent.

And then… for just a brief second… Aria felt a soul-piercing gaze.

‘This feeling...’

Aria had a premonition. She could guess what had caused her to feel this way, but she didn’t want to admit it. Aria’s head cranked robotically, seemingly in slow motion as she followed the source of her unpleasant feeling and sure enough...

The Black Knight… was staring right at her.

Just by that action alone, Aria was frozen. The greatsword which held the epitome of death within its blade was enough to strike fear into the Archmagus’ heart, let alone the overwhelming presence that the Black Knight had. If it wanted to, it could have slaughtered everyone in the bay. That was the impression that Aria had gotten.

However, the Black Knight never did rampage. It just silently looked at Aria as if it were examining an interesting subject. Of course, Aria was unable to tell the Black Knight’s intentions, but that was what her magician instinct was telling her.

And then…

The Black Knight pivoted its heels, turning its massive back towards the foes that aimed to tie it down. Arius was gobsmacked by the sudden move and was unable to react for a good three seconds. When he came to his senses, however… it was far too late.

Whoooooooooooooshhhhhhhhhh!!!

The Black Knight leapt back into the ocean and descended faster than a sinking submarine. No, it dropped faster than anything that man could manufacture. By the time Arius gave the order to chase, the Black Knight had disappeared into the darkness of the oceans.

Just as quickly as it had appeared, the Black Knight had vanished.

“W-what?” Aria wasn’t able to bring words to her mouth. She looked at the gentle waves and feared a surprise attack, but it never came. Other than the marks left behind by the Black Knight’s greaves and the residue mana ejected out by the guards, there weren’t any signs that an invincible being had just launched an attack on Aurum.

“It... just left?”

Aria wasn’t the only one that was astonished by the chain of events. Yvette dropped her jaw and was sweating profusely. Arius was unable to put two and two together, and the guards were rooted to the ground. Only Aurum was putting on an unsatisfactory look as if he had just swallowed a bitter pill.

“That thing just comes up, attacks me, and leaves? What the hell?!” Aurum bit his bottom lip in anger.

No one was looking at him at the moment, but if Yvette saw his actions, she would instantly see Aria’s image in him. The man had just come out from a long hibernation, and his memories and mental state weren’t complete. Most of Aurum’s emotions, his desires… They were all in disarray, and the man himself was unable to comprehend the bubbling feeling in his heart. If not for Aria’s influence, Aurum would be nothing more than an empty shell that knew how to think.

So, it wasn’t odd that Aurum’s actions would mirror that of Aria’s, the one person that he was connected to.

“I say we chase that thing! We should capture it for research! Maybe even question that fucking thing!” Aurum cursed.

Just because Aurum inherited Aria’s memories and feelings, it doesn’t mean that his thinking would exactly mirror that of Aria’s. Aria had one thing that Aurum did not have. Reason.

“Don’t be foolish,” the woman sighed as she calmed down. “Giving chase to something like that? We’re nowhere near prepared. Furthermore, it is much stronger than any of us present.”

“If I was prepared, I could have taken it on!”

“Says the man who got taken out in one strike.”

“That!” Rendered speechless, all Aurum could do was flail his arms in the air like a spoiled brat.

“Hah… What a mess.” Aria rubbed her forehead, stifling a sigh. “First things first, let’s head to somewhere safe. Then, Aurum! You’re going to tell me all about all of your abilities! No more hiding! You really had me worried there for a second!”

“Ah… I’m sorry...”

“Don’t be! Just tell me all about it later.”

Aria led Aurum by the hand, dragging Yvette along as well. To her, escaping as far away from the Black Knight was the ideal. Aria wanted nothing to do with that monster that could match the power of the Angel and Demon Guardians.

Little did she know…

Aria’s story with the Black Knight was only just beginning.

❖❖❖

“What did you say?!”

A mere minutes after the Black Knight was pushed back into the ocean, the Association President was screaming at full volume at his assistant.

“The ancient man, Aurum… He was attacked by an unidentified creature that came out from the ocean,” Jessica sighed. She knew that the President was under tremendous stress lately and didn’t blame the man for raising his voice at her. Instead, she so patiently read the report in her hands.

“He was attacked, and according to witnesses, his invincible body had taken significant damage.”

“The beast of a thing? There was something that could actually harm him?”

“Positive. We have video confirmation. Do you want to view it?” Jessica reached into her pocket and pulled out a terminal, ready to play at any moment’s notice.

“Later, perhaps. So, how is he doing?”

“After Aurum had been attacked, our guards instantly tried to pry him loose to protect him. However, none of their magical or physical attacks worked on the Black Knight. Fortunately, Guardian Paladin Arius was nearby, and he was able to push the unidentified creature away from Aurum. Once he appeared, the creature escaped and ceased its attacks on Aurum.”

“Thank god for Arius...” The elderly man felt his stroke subsiding and leaned back on his chair. “What is the extent of Aurum’s injuries? Is the elf lass able to treat him? Would we need to bring an expert in?”

“About that...” Jessica adjusted her spectacles, not knowing whether to reveal the next piece of information without fact-checking it first. However, she also knew that the report came from the credible team that the President had hand-picked for Aurum’s protection detail. There was no need to doubt their words.

After fighting a short mental war, the secretary resigned to her fate and spoke: “There’s no need for any aid. Apparently, Aurum has shown a tremendous ability to recover. According to Healing Saint Yvette, his wound was healed the moment the blade was pulled out from him. Other than the tears in his clothes, it was as if Aurum had never been injured in the first place.”

“No way… It really is one thing after another with that guy.”

The President slapped his hand on the table, landing right on a file with a ‘Top Secret’ certification labelled at the top.

“Really, they aren’t going to give me a break. First the matter with Gondor and now this...”

“Gondor? Is that report from them?”

“Yeah,” the President nodded and didn’t get into the details. “Tell the minister that the meeting later is cancelled. No, just cancel all of my appointments for the day. I’m returning to Aria’s home to check on them. Sheesh, and I just got back from there...”

Begrudgingly dragging his heels out, the Association President left his important matters behind to tend with the one constant thorn by his side.