The Beginning After The End novel Chapter 269

Chapter 269

Chapter 269: More Than a Weapon

I dug my heels, the barren earth splintering from the pressure as I prepared for the long sprint.

“Wait!” a familiar honeyed voice called out from behind.

I looked back over my shoulder, locking eyes with the brown-haired caster that wanted me to join her team. “What is it?”

Daria flinched under my gaze but steeled herself and glared back at me. “Assuming that everyone here follows you, by the time we reach the power source, most of our mana will be too drained to face the guardian.”

Impatience bubbled as I counted the wasted seconds spent talking any further. “So?”

“You don’t seriously think you’re strong enough to take on the guardian by yourself after sprinting a marathon, do you?” Daria snapped, stomping toward me. “You’re going to need all of our help. Hell, even if you see all of us as dead weight, at least you’ll need to be at full strength, right?”

“Just get to your point.”

Her brows furrowed and she opened her mouth to talk back but stopped herself. “To be honest, I have no confidence in being able to get past whatever monstrosity is waiting for us after fighting against the last carallian wave.”

Daria turned around to face the rest of the ascenders listening in.

“Therefore, I have a proposition, but I’ll only do it if he accepts,” she said while pointing back at me. “I have a way that allows all of us to travel while the burden of mana usage falls solely on Orid and myself. We will get everyone there in top condition at the fastest possible speed only if our safety is prioritized.”

Immediately, a few ascenders started protesting until I finally spoke up.

“I agree.”

Judging by how many of the ascenders were willing to tail behind me, my usage of aether would be limited. And with my only weapon gone, it was safe to assume that this final stretch was going to be a drawn out battle.

Daria whipped her head around, her large eyes glimmering as she smiled. “Great!”

I honestly didn’t know what to expect. Daria had seemed like a capable mage and even if Alacryan mages weren’t very flexible with their elemental manipulation, I had hoped for something...more.

Instead, I seemed to be staring at what looked to be a large...sled...made entirely of ice. At the center was a large tarp hanging off a tentpole as a makeshift mast.

“You expect all of us to ride this?” Taegen asked, towering over the ice sled.

“I’ve condensed the ice several times so it’s sturdier than it looks. I got the overall structure shape from the oceanriders and I’ve tested it several times myself,” said Daria with a hint of pride.

Everyone waited for me to get on the sled first while Daria stood on top of the ice vehicle, expectations high as I walked toward her.

Placing my hand on the surface of the ice, I pushed down with adequate force in order to make sure it could also hold my weight.

“Are you seriously questioning the integrity of my spell right now?” fumed Daria as she threw back her mage robe, letting the luxurious cloth slide down her exposed back to reveal a series of tattoos. “I have four crests and two emblems, you jerk!”

I climbed atop the panel of ice, facing my back to her. “We’ve wasted a lot of time. Let’s move.”

One by one, the rest of the seven ascenders aside from Daria and myself began boarding the large sled until we were all squeezed together and holding onto the railings that Daria had so helpfully conjured.

I was skeptical that she would be able to get the sled moving, but with an updraft taking some of the weight off of the sled and a gust directed at the mast, the eight of us began sailing over the barren dirt plains.

Cool winds brushed past my cheeks as we began accelerating. Despite the weight of nine fully grown adults—ten, because Taegen counted as nearly two people—the oversized sled never faltered or showed signs of breaking. I couldn’t help but be impressed at Daria for continuously managing three spells in order to keep the sled moving.

She used two wind spells for movement while her feet, clad in ice, that anchored her to the sled to keep from pushing herself off, and an ice spell to keep the ice sled from melting or degrading as it slid over the dirt.

Daria’s remaining teammate, Orid, used his earth magic to steer us and smooth particularly uneven parts of the ground that could potentially damage the sled.

After about thirty minutes of travelling, the rest of the ascenders had grown confident enough in Daria that they began to relax and actually enjoy the ride.

I was sitting in the back of the sled, leaning forward against the rear railing that Daria had conjured and simply stared out mindlessly at the vast expanse of unimpressive dirt and the clear blue skies. I had long since accepted the fact that I was looking up at a sky within an ancient ruin that was supposed to be deep underground. With everything that had been going on since waking up here and becoming more acclimated toward aether as I grew stronger, I had long since accepted that the realm of what was achievable using this godly power was far beyond what mana could do.

Growing bored of the bland scenery, I turned around. Aside from Daria and Orid, who were concentrating on keeping us moving, the rest of the ascenders were doing their own things. It seemed that Caera’s group seemed to be the only group left unscathed by the last wave.

The ascender named Keir, who wielded a quarterstaff and controlled motes of electricity to defend and attack, was polishing his weapon, using a thin cloth to dig out the grime that had accumulated in the engravings of his wooden staff.

Trider had his eyes closed, leaning back against the railing with his arms folded and legs crossed while another ascender was reapplyieding bandages around his left leg.

My eyes continued to wander until they landed on Caera, who was sitting near the front left side of the sled. Arian satwas besidenext to her while Taegen had situatedwas by himself alone on the other side, most likely to keep the sled balanced.

Arian was meditating and while I wasn’t able to feel mana anymore, the pressure he gave off was enough evidence. Caera, on the other hand, was staring at the white dagger in her hand, still in its sheath. Her expression looked almost indifferent as shewhile gazeding down at the weapon, as if she was studying it.

Suddenly, a tear rolled down her cheek. She immediately wiped it with the back of her hand before suspiciously peeking around to see if anyone saw.