688 FAFO 4

Aron stood unmoving as his shield effortlessly tanked the barrage of attacksfireballs, wind slashes, earth spears, magic missiles, and lightning boltsall basic but potent spells.

Despite the shield's ease in absorbing the hits, the surrounding landscape bore the brunt of the onslaught, with the damage inflicted on his surroundings telling a very different story.

The fireballs, each the size of a bowling ball, detonated against the shield, leaving behind craters several meters wide, some with glassy reflections at their centers from the intense heat. And that was just the beginningother attacks gouged the ground, leaving deep fissures and scorched earth, revealing the true power behind the seemingly basic spells.

"Each of them should be at the level of the strongest known awakeners," Aron mused, assessing the power of their attacks as the first barrage subsided. He hadn't just tanked the attacks for the sake of it; he was using this initial round to gauge how much mana each strike drained from his reserves, allowing him to determine the strength of each humanoid's assault accurately.

"Time to get to work," Aron said, shrinking the shield until it was skintight and then immediately springing into action.

He vanished in an instant, and by the time the sonic boom of his movements echoed through the air, seventeen of the nearest humanoids had already collapsed to the ground. Some of their bodies were engulfed in flames, others frozen solid, but all shared a common fate: each had been sliced into at least seven pieces.

As the remaining humanoids quickly spread out, they continued their barrage of attacks, each one more desperate than the last.

"Futile attempts," a few of the humanoids taunted, their voices carrying a forced calmness. "No matter what you do, you won't be able to take down all of us. We brought more than enough to overwhelm you, and anything you've destroyed can be replaced."

Despite their confident words, the tree folk controlling them were beginning to feel the weight of doubt. Though the situation still appeared to be in their favor, and they remained convinced of their eventual victory, they were now forced to consider the possibility of losing more than they had originally anticipated. Their calm faade was cracking, revealing the underlying tension as they watched Aron slice through their forces with unnerving precision.

What gave them pause was seeing Aron effortlessly slice through the first seventeen humanoids, despite the fact that they were shielded at maximum strength. It was as if those powerful shields were nothing more than paper to him. Even more troubling was the realization that their humanoids couldnt keep up with Aron's speed.

This forced the tree folks to take action, using their main consciousness to guide the humanoids attacks.

Yet, even with their intervention, the humanoids still had limitations, and despite their increase in awareness compared to previously, Aron was quick enough to evade and counter every strike, proving that their efforts were still not enough to stop him.

What stunned them was that Aron was relying on magic for his incredible speed, while he used his sword and raw physical strength for the attacks.

They could tell that he wasnt using magic for the cuts themselves because the mana fluctuations in his surroundings only spiked when he ignited the pieces to prevent the humanoids from healing. This clear distinction highlighted just how formidable his physical prowess was in addition to his magical capabilities.

.

Any chance of figuring out how his magic system works? Mangroves main consciousness asked Oak after failing to decipher it on his own.

I think hes created a system unique to himself, Oak replied. This realization had also intrigued him. The magic system Aron was using was entirely different from anything their children or even the imperial personnel employed.

This unfamiliarity meant they could only react to Arons actions after they occurred, making it difficult for their humanoids in the meeting to anticipate or counter his moves. The unpredictability of Arons system rendered their attempts to respond effectively nearly impossible.

It doesnt matter anyway; we can study his system after we deal with him, Oak said. I only need about ten minutes to be ready to start the next plan. What about you?

About the same amount of time, Mangrove replied, his senses still focused on Aron, who was tirelessly engaging their humanoids. It seems he believes he can handle us alonewhat a fool. But why havent the other three made a move?

Perhaps theyve chosen to stay neutral, waiting to join whichever side emerges victorious, Oak speculated, returning to his task.

Cowards, Mangrove said.

..

Nova, any update on the information gathering? Aron asked while slicing through his four hundredth humanoid.

{They are still answering some questions. Do you want me to wait until they finish all of them, or provide you with the information as it comes in?} Nova replied.

Give me what you have so far, and continue to update me with new information as it comes in. I dont have time to waste; they might be planning something more. This cant be even half of what theyre capable of.

{Heres what weve gathered so far: The so-called Timeless Meadow is where they gather mana, meaning their actual consciousnesses are spread far apart from each other.

Their bodies are structured with layers of roots, categorized into outer roots, inner roots, and core roots. The strength and number of humanoids they can create depend on which root is used.

The more powerful the root, the fewer humanoids they can create at once, as theres a limit to how many times they can split their consciousness.

The outer roots are the weakest, and the humanoids youre fighting are from this layer.

Additionally, they can use magic through their actual bodies, which would be stronger than what the current humanoids are using. We dont yet understand why theyre not using their actual bodies to deal with you}

Upon hearing the last part of her explanation, Aron paused and said, Ask if the humanoids need to be controlled by the main consciousness or if they can act independently, as he grabbed a humanoid and used it as a shield against an incoming lightning bolt.

{She said that the humanoids can act independently. But, they can also shift their focus to directly control the humanoids with their main consciousness.}

They must be planning something, Aron said as he processed the information.

Find out where the core roots of the two are located, he instructed, preparing his sword.

As he held the sword with both hands and swung it in a horizontal, circular motion, he declared, Severance.

Before the humanoids could react or question his unusual movements, all those at his altitude were sliced in half.