novelraw Chapter 179: That Isn't Haeren Anymore
Chapter 179: That Isn't Haeren Anymore
Elliot stepped back, wiping his hands on a clean cloth as he examined his work. The bandages around Lyris’ shoulder were tight, precise, the salve beneath already working to knit flesh and ease pain.
"Aight…" He exhaled, rolling the stiffness from his own shoulders. "I think you should be healed by next week."
Selene would’ve done better—faster, cleaner—but countless times of watching her work had left their mark. He’d picked up just enough to keep someone from bleeding out.
Lyris tested the bandage with careful fingers, then nodded. "Thanks…" Her gaze drifted to the infirmary door, where distant shouts still echoed like thunder. "We should go back. I believe the trouble should have stopped."
Elliot’s lips quirked. "Yeah." He didn’t voice the rest—Towan better not have done anything stupid while I was gone.
But he wasn’t worried.
Not really.
"I’m sure he’s fine," he said instead, pushing the door open.
The hallway beyond was littered with signs of battle—scorch marks, shattered stone, the occasional smear of violet-tinged blood.
Elliot’s steps didn’t falter.
Lyris matched his pace, her breath steady.
Somewhere ahead, the others were waiting.
Rellie’s instincts screamed before her eyes even registered the movement.
Her dagger left her hand in a flash of silver, streaking toward the shadowed figure crouched beside Haeren’s fallen form.
"Be careful!" she shouted, the warning tearing from her throat.
The woman caught the blade mid-air—bare-handed.
Steel bit deep into her palm, blood welling dark and thick, but she didn’t flinch. Didn’t even glance at the wound.
Alira’s voice cracked like a whip. "What—? Who’s that?"
Len didn’t wait for an answer.
Water and fire erupted in unison—a beam of pressurized liquid from Len, a roaring fireball
from Alira—both streaking toward the stranger with deadly intent.(No questions. No hesitation.)
The woman lifted her other hand, fingers splayed.
Earth Essentia surged.
The ground heaved upward, a wall of blackened dirt and stone exploding between them. The attacks slammed into it—water scattering harmlessly, fire snuffing out on contact.
Corruption pulsed through the barrier, veins of violet and black writhing across its surface like infected roots.
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Towan forced himself upright, his grip on his shoulder white-knuckled.
(Damn it—!)
The woman tilted her head, her eyes glinting from behind the corrupted wall.
"Interesting," she murmured.
A sudden breeze sharpened into a whisper—then a roar.
A compressed orb of wind, no larger than a fist, streaked through the air with terrifying precision. It didn’t just hit the corrupted wall—it sliced through it like a blade through parchment, the force detonating on impact.
BOOM.
Dirt and stone erupted outward, the shockwave kicking up a whirlwind of debris. From the chaos, Sylra stepped forward, her silver hair whipping around her like a banner, her palm still outstretched from the attack.
The smoke cleared.
The woman stood—half her torso vaporized, ribs glistening where wind had sheared through flesh and bone. Yet, even as they watched, Corruption surged, tendrils of violet-black Essentia knitting her back together with grotesque efficiency.
"Sylra?" Towan rasped, his voice raw with disbelief.
She didn’t look at him. Not yet. Her smirk was all teeth, all challenge.
"I’m not too late, right?"
Len let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding.
(Thank god.)
The strongest person she knew had finally arrived.
"Tsk."
The dark figure leapt backward, her form blurring into the treeline like ink spilled into water. In seconds, she was gone—swallowed by the shadows of the forest.
Sylra didn’t hesitate.
"Sorry, guys," she called over her shoulder, already turning. "But I can’t let that thing get away."
Her eyes snapped to Ryn, sharp and assessing.
"Let’s go—you know how to track people, right?"
No greeting. No explanation. Just cold certainty. They’d only had a brief encounter before, but she knew—knew the slums carved certain skills into those who survived them. Knew he’d understand.
Ryn nodded once, his usual guarded expression replaced by grim focus. In an instant, he was moving, vanishing into the undergrowth without a sound.
(Finally—something I can do.)
Wind coiled around Sylra’s boots, the air itself bending to her will.
"I’ll be right back."
Then—she was gone, her form a silver streak tearing through the trees.
Silence hung heavy for a heartbeat.
Then—
"What the hell was that attack?" Alira demanded, gesturing wildly at the shattered remnants of the corrupted wall.
Towan winced as he adjusted his shoulder, but his voice was steady. "Elemental compression. Sylra explained it to me a while ago." A pause. "It’s… not easy to do."
Len nodded slowly, her scholar’s mind already dissecting what she’d seen. "I’ve read about it. I knew she was good with wind, but this is just…" She trailed off, shaking her head. "Something else."
But Rellie wasn’t listening.
Her gaze remained locked on Haeren’s motionless form, her fingers twitching at her sides.
(Something’s… wrong.)
A shiver clawed up Towan’s spine—sharp, instinctive, the kind that precedes a predator’s strike.
"What the—?"
He turned.
Haeren stood.
Not the smirking, taunting rival from moments ago. Not even the reckless vessel of Corruption they’d fought.
This was something else.
His eyes were void of pupils, the sockets filled with pulsing violet light. His mouth hung slightly open, but no breath escaped. No words. No sound at all.
Rellie’s hand trembled violently at her side.
"That… that’s not Haeren anymore."
Her voice was barely a whisper, but it carried the weight of absolute certainty.
This thing had no intent. No anger, no hatred, no purpose she could grasp.
It was just… empty.
And that terrified her more than anything.
Alira and Len whirled, their bodies tensing—
—only to freeze.
"No. Fucking. Way," Alira breathed, her fingers tightening around her axe. But for the first time, her usual fire flickered.
Len’s stance was perfect, her water Essentia coiling defensively around her arms. But even she couldn’t stop the tremor in her knees.