Chapter 134: Need Of Defiance

Elias’s heart beat faster as he looked at the Sword Spirit floating above him, and a spark of hope immediately returned to his eyes.

[Are you implying that you can help me awaken my Aura?] he asked through Mental Whisper.

Just as the Sword Spirit was about to answer, Stella turned to the right, freeing his arm and sprawling on the bed while drool dripped from the corner of her lips.

Both looked at her, then the Sword Spirit shifted lazily in the air, her crimson hair drifting around her shoulders as she considered his question. After a moment, she mumbled, "Aura... so that is what they call it now... hmm... Nope, I cannot."

’Huh?’

The excitement that had appeared on Elias’s face vanished instantly, and he asked the next instant, [Why?]

The Sword Spirit shook her head and clarified, "Do not misunderstand, human. It is not that I cannot help with awakening your Aura. The problem is that you cannot awaken it."

Elias’s expression darkened as he stared at her.

’What do you mean I cannot awaken Aura?’

She flew closer until her face was barely an inch from his, and then she reached forward and tapped his forehead with one finger.

"Do you even know what Aura is?" she asked.

Elias kept himself from becoming overwhelmed by the heart-wrenching revelation and nodded faintly before answering somberly, [Aura is the combination of a person’s will and understanding of the sword...]

The Sword Spirit stared at him for several seconds, and then her brows furrowed with utter confusion.

"What kind of bullshit are you spewing?" she asked.

Elias blinked.

’Huh? Is that not what Aura is?’

"Obviously," she said, as though the answer should have been self-evident. "Aura, or what I used to call bad sword energy, forms in swordsmen when they begin to unravel their mortal limits."

[I do not get it...] Elias admitted.

His entire life, Elias had been taught that Aura was born from a swordsman’s will and understanding of the sword. It was something he had accepted without question because everyone around him had believed the same thing.

Yet now, the very spirit of swordsmanship was telling him that the world itself had misunderstood the foundation of Aura.

How was he supposed to accept something like that?

The Sword Spirit floated backward and folded her arms behind her head before explaining, "We swordsmen walk the path of omnipotence. We wish to transcend the world, so we defy the current one and break away from it. The world does not like that, however, because it tries to stop us. To protect ourselves from that resistance, we awaken Aura."

Elias blinked as he tried to process her words.

"The very foundation of Aura is defiance," she continued, her sharp gaze settling upon him. "So how could you, who cannot even defy a few humans, defy the world?"

Elias’s eyes trembled.

He had no answer.

The revelation struck far deeper than he expected because it was not simply a matter of learning that his understanding of Aura had been wrong. Instead, the Sword Spirit had just told him that the very trait he possessed was the reason he could never achieve the dream he had spent years chasing.

His weakness had never been his body alone.

His lack of talent had never been the only problem.

It was him.

His personality.

His inability to stand against others.

His habit of lowering his head whenever someone stronger appeared.

All the training he had endured, all the studying he had done, and even the power he had received from the system suddenly felt meaningless. He had spent so much time trying to become stronger, believing that enough effort would eventually allow him to step beyond the limits placed upon him.

But if Aura itself required defiance, then his path had already been sealed from the beginning.

Elias’s heart sank, and his chest gradually became heavier as though something enormous had settled upon it. His breathing grew shallow, and he struggled to draw enough air into his lungs.

"Haah... haah..." he breathed, his eyes losing their focus as his fingers trembled. "W-What... i-it..."

At that very moment, Natasha stirred beside him.

It was around the time they usually woke, and the first thing she saw after opening her eyes was her husband staring blankly at the ceiling while struggling to breathe.

Her expression immediately darkened with worry.

Natasha reached toward him and shook his shoulder, but Elias did not respond. His eyes remained fixed on the ceiling, and his breathing continued to come out in short, uneven bursts.

Fear appeared in Natasha’s eyes as she shook him again, this time more urgently.

When he still failed to react, she immediately wrapped both arms around him and pulled his head tightly against her chest, holding him as firmly as she could.

Elias’s body stiffened for a moment, but the warmth surrounding him slowly began to reach through the fog in his mind.

Natasha could not hear his breathing, could not hear his thoughts, and could not understand what had happened, yet she instinctively held him closer as though refusing to let him face whatever was tormenting him alone. ℯℯ𝑙.

The warmth gradually eased the pressure in his chest.

His breathing became slightly steadier, and his trembling fingers slowly relaxed against the bedsheets.

Elias closed his eyes and took another shaky breath before finally mumbling, "W-What do I do then?"

The Sword Spirit remained floating nearby, seemingly unshaken by the state he had fallen into. She watched him for a moment before answering in a calm voice.

"What else?" she asked.

Her crimson eyes narrowed slightly as she looked directly at him.

"Defy the men and the world."

Elias’s body trembled at those words, and his eyes sharpened.

He knew it would be hard, but he needed to change.

Letting out a deep breath, he turned slightly and pressed his head deeper into Natasha’s chest while his hand slipped over her waist.

[Please hold me for a little longer...]

Natasha didn’t know what was happening, and she didn’t need to; she simply held him and patted the back of his head.