“I know what the drawbacks are,” the Dullahan continued. “I know that you’ll be defenseless during that time, and once you’ve fired your spell, you’ll become a frail little girl.”
“Are you sure?” Misty asked. “I’ll be completely useless afterward.”
“I’ll say it again. The World Tree of Gluttony is going all out without much forethought. If we hold back in fear of what the future could bring, we’d only lose. At this point, we’ve got little choice but to rely on the legendary Elder Lich.”
Misty nodded. “I won’t be mad that you called me a ‘frail little girl.’ It made me a little happy to think that you still viewed me in such a light.” After she joked a little, she flashed a melancholic smile. “I’ll do my best to hasten my preparations, but I’ll need a little more time.”
“Take all the time you need. I’ll buy plenty for you,” Ramza replied, putting on a tough face before he turned to his trusty subordinate. “You heard us, Marco. Can you still fight?”
“You needn’t even ask. As long as my body can still move, I shall fight by your side, captain.”
“Well, aren’t you reliable?”
The Dullahan rummaged through his pockets and took out a pair of magic stones. He bit through the first one like he was munching on a ripple and absorbed its magical energy as he handed the other to Marco. The Living Armor used the tip of his blade to shatter the stone and absorbed the magical energy that flowed out.
“All right, one final push,” Ramza said. “You ready?”
“Of course! Your wish is my command!” Marco replied.
The two knights rushed forward as Misty began to chant her aria.
“The draconic scythe that rules power.”
The concept of an aria was nothing new. It’d existed for many centuries, ever since the birth of magic itself. The chanter had to name their aria and make a declaration to accompany it. The words that flowed out of the chanter’s mouth were laced with magic, transforming this spell into the physical manifestation of one’s magical power. It was very much a magic meant for use in battle.
“It’s the story I heard long ago, when I was still a skeleton,” Ramza murmured.
Of course, magic could still be used alongside an aria. In recent years, the ancient art had become less popular and scarcely seen. However, this didn’t mean that arias had lost their effectiveness or meaning.
“I heard that before Misty became an Elder Lich, she had a teacher who was like a mother to her,” Ramza said.
By chanting an aria, one could wield power that was far above their means. Naturally, this relied heavily on the user’s raw potential as all magic did, but arias depleted an immense amount of magical energy and in exchange, allowed the user to soar past their limits.
“I gaze upon the sun that exists within my dreams, and count the sins which lie in the corpses of my kin.”
This wasn’t really the way that arias were meant to be used. They generally served to confirm the casting of a spell along with acting as a way to calm one’s heart before they unleashed their magical energy. Still, the fact that arias strengthened one’s abilities was no secret.
“I heard that she learned countless spells and mastered them all, barring one. Misty claimed that even after a millennium, she was still unable to use that one spell,” Ramza said.
And yet, many shied away from using arias simply due to the amount of time they took to prepare. No one had the leeway to leisurely ramble off a long chant when faced with a monster, and even if they could, it didn’t automatically boost their magical power. Furthermore, there weren’t many situations that forced one to use a spell that was well above their punching weight—only when they were in a situation of life and death did that opportunity arrive, but it was likely after they’d blown through all their mana, rendering any desperate attempt practically useless. In any case, the use of arias was extremely limited.
The two knights continued to hack away at the roots and vines that assaulted them, desperate to protect the chanting Elder Lich.
“I hadn’t heard that until now,” Marco remarked. “I’d never thought that there was a spell Lady Misty couldn’t use.”
“I doubted my ears when I first heard it too,” Ramza replied. “In fact, it’s equally shocking to learn that there was someone who taught Misty magic. So protect her! That’s our only role here!”
Slowly, slowly, the seconds ticked by. They were able to protect her, but time was going by way too slowly. Even ten seconds seemed far away, and buying more than that felt like an impossible feat. The knights were tempted to give up, but they refused to turn back and placed their trust in Misty.
“This body, layered by fragments of shattered mirrors, requests wisdom from the Goddess of Time.”
She raised her staff to the heavens, and the two knights were convinced that the aria would soon be completed.
“Shall my prayers be heard...”
Her staff transformed into a scythe enveloped in blinding light; it resembled a beautiful jewel made entirely from crystal.
“For I have sinned. I beg that the day that I atone for my crimes shall never come.”
There was a flash of light that resembled diamond dust. The attack danced through the air and raced across the ground, silencing the atmosphere around it. The dirt surrounding the trio began to crystallize as she ended her aria. Misty swung down her scythe, and it pierced through the earth before her attack turned into light and disappeared.