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Chapter 458: Now I Can Shine. (2)

‘Belinda….’

Ghislaine taught everyone new mana circulation methods and techniques, but for Belinda, she only created a space for her to practice.

The mana circulation method and techniques she used were nothing short of extraordinary.

The only thing she lacked was one thing.

‘She spent her entire life supporting me and Elena. She hasn’t even been able to train properly.’

In the past, she didn’t have time to train because of childcare. Now, she was working as a butler in Penris, supporting others.

No matter how great a Mana Convergence Circle Ghislaine made, it was all Belinda could do to find time to train occasionally.

‘Even so, her skills are on par with Gillian, who has spent a lifetime on the battlefield.’

Just that alone showed how outstanding Belinda’s talent was and how incredible the techniques she used were.

However, from a young age, she had given up honing her brilliant talents to take care of Ghislaine and Elena.

‘Sigh….’

That’s why Ghislaine always felt her heart ache with guilt every time she looked at Belinda. Out of the sacrifice she made to raise two young siblings.

Surely, she and Elena must have felt like her children. Even if it all started as a promise to their late mother.

‘So now, just live a little easier.’

Ghislaine’s honest feelings were to repay her for such sacrifices.

‘Maybe… I could help her….’

Suddenly, a thought popped into Ghislaine’s mind as she observed the battle, and she began to spread threads of mana everywhere.

She didn’t intend to intervene directly in the battle. She simply wanted to help Belinda gain a realization.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Sharp energy shot out in all directions. The shining lights in the darkness looked like a constellation of stars.

However, that light was gradually diminishing. Belinda’s body was covered in wounds, and all the daggers had fallen to the ground, leaving only one in her hand.

“Huff, huff….”

Belinda, soaked in blood, gasped for breath. In contrast, Melchir only looked slightly out of breath, showing no major injuries.

Melchir glanced at Ghislaine again.

‘Is she really not going to intervene?’

If she waited a little longer, he would know. Melchir was slowly deciding to cut off Belinda’s breath.

‘Yeah, keep acting cocky like that.’

Skwak.

The dagger in Melchir’s hand, infused with more mana, shot out like a flash of light. Belinda kicked off the ground, trying to dodge backward.

At the same time, Ghislaine’s voice rang in her ears.

— Move a little lighter.

Boom!

In an instant, Belinda’s body moved back farther than she intended. She felt Ghislaine’s power intervening.

‘Young Master…’

— You’re moving too heavily, Belinda.

‘What….’

Belinda couldn’t complete her thought as Melchir, failing his attack, sent the dagger flying at her again.

“Ugh!”

Belinda bent over, evading the attack once more. Again, an invisible force intervened.

Hearing Ghislaine’s words, she tried desperately to increase her speed a bit more.

But Ghislaine’s voice halted her.

— It’s not just about being fast. You need to move lighter. That should be the right way.

No one had ever seen all the techniques Belinda could use. She had never fought openly using all her skills before.

No matter how much Ghislaine observed, she couldn’t perfectly grasp the high-level techniques used by Belinda in a single glance.

But as she continued to watch, Ghislaine felt she understood the ultimate direction those techniques were aiming for.

— Belinda must know what to do. Remember. You’re not lacking in mana. You absorbed a part of the Dragon Heart, right?

Swoosh!

Belinda’s cheek was cut again, and blood spurted out. But she concentrated on Ghislaine’s words while dodging Melchir’s dagger.

Thanks to Ghislaine’s intervention, it became a bit easier to move.

‘Not faster than now, but lighter…? Remember?’

— If Belinda is truly the sole heir of that group… then you must have seen the ultimate form of that technique at least once, right?

She understood Ghislaine’s meaning and started to rummage through her memories.

Now was not the time to reflect on the mana circulation methods and techniques written in letters and pictures, or what had only been passed down through words.

She recalled the scene from her childhood that was most vividly etched in her memory.

‘Anette….’

A beautiful blonde woman danced. Brightly shining stars swirled around her.

The stars, embroidered in darkness, moved this way and that according to the blonde woman’s touch, dancing along with her.

Young Belinda had watched the path of the stars with a look of ecstasy.

She wanted to reach that level too. That was her wish.

But she couldn’t reach it.

Skwak!

Belinda’s arm was cut again, and blood gushed out. Yet she continued to move.

Now, she gazed at that dance with vacant eyes, a sight she could no longer see.

Ah, she remembered. Something she had completely forgotten while living a busy life.

The memory of Anette smiling and saying.

— See? One day, you’ll be able to do it too. Don’t forget this feeling.

After absorbing the Dragon Heart, Belinda practiced whenever she found time to learn Anette’s secret techniques.

But even when she invested every spare moment between her duties, she could never implement them. It wasn’t due to a lack of mana, nor was there a problem with the flow of the mana road.

She couldn’t understand why, so she half-gave up, thinking she needed a bit more time and experience.

Ghislaine’s voice rang out again.

— Your movements feel a bit different from before. I’ll help you.

Boom!

Belinda’s feet kicked off the ground as she moved back again. She was still too busy dodging Melchir’s daggers and sustaining injuries.

But thanks to Ghislaine’s intervention, she was moving farther than she had anticipated. It felt as if her body had become as light as a feather.

‘Could I… move like this?’

It felt possible. She seemed to understand the sensation. It wasn’t just about speed in movement.

But why hadn’t she done this before? What had been blocking her?

Ghislaine’s voice echoed in her ear again.

— Belinda’s heart is too heavy.

‘Heavy?’

— Like our father, always worrying about me and Elena.

‘…But Young Master, my duty is….’

— You need to become a solitary, noble being, like the stars in the sky. At least for this moment.

‘I… am….’

— Don’t bear any worries, burdens, or responsibilities.

‘Young Master….’

— I’m always sorry and thankful to you. You’ve taken care of me and Elena for your whole life. Even giving up your own life.

‘No, that’s what I wanted. I never regret it.’

—I understand how you feel. But for a moment, let that feeling go. It’s blocking your growth.

Thud.

Belinda kicked off the ground, evading an attack. Unlike before, her footsteps barely made a sound. They left no trace.

As if she was floating, her movements began to change.

‘This feeling….’

Thanks to Ghislaine’s mana, she could now move with very little force. The tension in her body gradually faded away.

It felt as if someone was supporting her body, giving her the sensation of defying gravity for just a moment. No resistance could hold her back.

‘This is….’

It was precisely this feeling. The dance she had witnessed from Anette seemed to embody a freedom that floated among the stars without restrictions.

The group she was part of had protected the Ruthania Kingdom from darkness for a very long time.

However, the secrets of that group had to be obtained by breaking free from the constraint of needing to protect someone, overcoming contradictions.

‘Ah… so this is it….’

Upon realizing that feeling, the state she had wished for so dearly seemed to appear before her eyes.

Now, even Ghislaine’s mana, which had helped her movement, felt uncomfortable.

In that moment, Ghislaine’s mana vanished. Belinda’s body began to move even lighter and faster.

But it wasn’t perfect. She needed to step further and fully enter that state.

Still, something remained in her heart, blocking that path.

Just then, Ghislaine’s calm voice echoed in her ears again.

— Belinda.

Despite being able to shine more than anyone else, she had lived in hiding. She had suppressed everything she had for the sake of Ghislaine and Elena.

Thus, she poured out infinite affection and dedication from behind them at all times.

Ghislaine could only feel gratitude and guilt for that heart.

— Now take it easy. Don’t worry too much.

It wasn’t easy. For someone who had lost everything, Ghislaine and Elena were everything in her life.

So how could she just watch over them calmly?

As if Ghislaine understood that heart of hers, she smiled and spoke with more confidence and strength than ever before.

— I’m all grown up now, right? So it’s really okay.

Belinda smiled. Tears welled in her eyes.

But those weren’t tears of sadness; they were tears of joy tinged with pride.

Skwak!

Melchir’s dagger cut through the darkness again.

Belinda tilted her head and waist, narrowly avoiding it. At the same time, her hand moved slightly.

Thud, thud, thud….

The daggers that had fallen to the ground, their blades dull and broken, began to tremble.

Melchir felt something unusual. The flow of surrounding mana was strange.

“You bitch! What the hell have you suddenly done?”

Skwak!

Again, as Belinda dodged the dagger, she moved her other hand. Her movements began to resemble a dance.

Thud, thud, thud….

Gradually, the trembling daggers began to rise slowly into the air. Melchir’s eyes widened as he witnessed Belinda’s movements.

“You, you’re not….”

Melchir infused more mana and swung the dagger at tremendous speed. Maybe he was pushing himself too hard, as black smoke began to billow from his mouth.

Still, he could not graze even a hem of Belinda’s attire.

It was as if he were facing a ghost. With every attack, Belinda evaded lightly like a feather pushed by that force.

‘This, this movement!’

Melchir realized that Belinda had surpassed a barrier. That movement was strikingly similar to Anette’s movements, which had once killed him.

In that moment, Belinda’s lips parted, and a soft voice escaped her.

“Waves that shake the starlight.”

Swoosh!

Melchir, who had been pressing Belinda, turned and swung his dagger.

Clang!

One of the daggers, missing its blade, flew through the air surrounded by intense blue light. Even as Melchir struck it away, the dagger did not fall to the ground but continued to push against him.

“This, this crazy….”

Melchir was at a loss for words. He was now locked in a battle of stamina with a dagger floating in mid-air. More astonishingly, he realized.

“An aura… blade….”

He couldn’t believe it. The dagger attacking him was wrapped in a short aura blade.

Belinda was now emitting an aura blade without holding any weapon.

And that wasn’t all.

Whoosh!

Daggers enveloped in aura blades flew out from all directions. Their numbers increased from one or two until eventually, dozens of daggers that had fallen on the ground surged toward Melchir.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

Melchir hurriedly dodged and deflected the daggers, but there were too many.

The power of each one wasn’t strong enough to be deemed master-level, but all were emitting aura blades. It was like facing dozens of top-tier knights.

Melchir muttered with a fearful gaze for a moment.

“This, this girl… is really using this technique….”

Blinding trails of light cut through the air in countless directions. Melchir found himself trapped within that space against his will.

This was the melody that shapes moments and the ecstasy of infinite space.

The technique of Anette, once known as the strongest in the kingdom and leader of the Shadow Knight Group, was being perfectly manifested right here.

Clang, clang, clang!

The daggers moved at incredible speed, asserting their dominance over the space. Melchir was surrounded by the trails of light created by the daggers.

“Gaaah!”

Unable to block them all, Melchir was cut and torn all over his body.

Belinda’s movements came to a halt. She glared at Melchir with blazing eyes.

Clang!

Two daggers hidden at her waist were gripped tightly in her hands.

Before her eyes, Anette’s face, now smiling after finishing her dance, was drawn vividly.

— Like the stars in the sky, now you can shine.

 

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