Chapter 284 - A Stronger Ally (1/2)
”Decadence of the Five Hyacinths,” Argentum could not help but repeat the name of the trial in a whisper, wondering what kind of trial Horell was about to face. Although the name of the trial gave off the feeling that it was easy, there were multiple meanings and interpretations when it came to names, hence the reason why Argentum was pondering over how the trial would go.
'With the word 'Five' in the name of the trial, we could at least expect five bolts of lightning,' he thought to himself as he pondered over it. As an aura of enlightenment surrounded him with that thought currently in his mind, this aura instantly changed to that of uncertainty as he thought, 'But then, 'Five' could also be interpreted as five rounds of lightning bolts instead of five individual bolts.'
'As for 'Decadence', how would that affect the trial?' he continued to interpret the name of the trial as more and more thoughts surfaced in his mind. 'Does the word 'Hyacinth' refer to the color of lightning that Horell is about to face? Or does it refer to the type of lightning that's going to hit him, just like how the word 'Blossoming' affected the type of lightning that struck me in mine?'
Eventually, Argentum formulated a plausible hypothesis in his mind that dictated how Horell's Power Baptism would go. Of course, he only formulated that thought as a reference since Power Baptisms were known for their unpredictability. With that in mind, he could not help but remember how he was hit by a dark blue lightning bolt at the end of his Power Baptism, only for it to turn into a hundred purple lightning bolts.
”Should I go ahead and buff him up right now?” After finishing up with his speculations on the specifics of the trial, his train of thought then changed to that of helping Horell out in the terms of buffs. Although he muttered to himself a while ago that he was going to buff Horell up to reduce the relative difficulty of his trial, he had a feeling that buffing Horell up would instead become detrimental to him once the end of the trial comes.
Then again, he was not sure if that truly was the case, only referring what happened to him in his Power Baptism with a ton of buffs enabled. In the end, he decided that the pros outweighed the cons, making a note in his mind that he would buff Horell up before the first round of lightning bolts came.
Rumble…rumble…
At this point, the dark clouds had now congregated, spanning a couple of kilometers in both length and width. A few seconds later, red lightning bolts started to manifest within the dark clouds before darting around the clouds. Concurrently, a red light emanated from the dark clouds as well. To Argentum, this was now his preparation period before the bolts of lightning came crashing down on the trial candidate.
Noticing the red lightning bolts manifesting inside the dark clouds, Horell could not help but look at Argentum and ask, ”What are those red lightning bolts doing in those clouds?”
”That's more or less your trial,” Argentum responded without delay. He then continued, ”Once the amount of energy contained within them has reached their peak, they will eventually come down from the clouds to smite you. At that point, you must do your best to defend against the lightning bolt, or dispel the lightning bolt, whichever works best for you.”
”Oh? Is that the case?” Horell replied as an aura of understanding radiated from him, which was soon replaced with that of ease and slight elation as he soon muttered to himself, ”In other words, I could just treat this Power Baptism like my Existence Tribulation, then. Good to know.”
”Hm?” With the help of his enhanced senses, Argentum picked up Horell's whispers, giving him a new perspective on what Existence Tribulations were. In his mind, he thought, 'So Existence Tribulations are just harder Power Baptisms? Wait a second…I did explain a while ago that Power Baptisms are weaker Existence Tribulations...why am I so surprised?'
'I guess I just feel more at ease thinking that Existence Tribulations are going to be familiar to me,' he soon thought not long after as he let out a light chuckle. Just as he was about to engross himself in his thoughts once more, Herellia, who was beside him, prompted Argentum to look at the dark clouds as she said, ”Hey, Argentum. The lightning in the clouds changed color.”
”Oh?” Argentum uttered in response to Herellia's reminder before taking a look at the dark clouds. Instead of the red lightning bolts from before, the lightning bolts darting through the clouds this time were of a purple hue, which Argentum could not help but think of it as weird. Wondering as to why purple lightning had manifested instead of stopping at the red lightning bolts, Argentum unceremoniously commanded the system in his mind to identify Horell, bringing up a small holographic screen in his mind not long after that detailed his stats.
Ding!
As a notification sound resounded in his mind, Argentum hastily glossed over the screen. A few seconds later, a brief aura of confusion surrounded him as he questioned himself in a mutter, ”His current stats are around the same level as mine when I first attempted my Power Baptism, so that means the lightning he has to face should be red at most?”
”Why is it purp-” Just as he was about to ponder even more on the topic, a thought related to the question surfaced in his mind, eliciting him to radiate an aura of understanding as Horell's current case was the same as his in his second attempt. With a slight sigh of relief, he muttered to himself, ”It's got to be his skills. I wonder how powerful his skills are?”
Rumble…
As the sound of thunder resounded throughout the area, the trio could not help but look at the clouds, with each of them having different thoughts racing through their mind. For Horell, the sound of thunder meant that the first bolt of lightning was going to strike down soon, prompting him to use his usual buffs when it came to fighting. As for Herellia, hearing the sound of thunder prompted her to be more vigilant over the course of the trial, activating a few buffs of her own just in case she needed to make a move. And for Argentum…
”[Higher Zephyr Magic: Zephyr Burst].”
”…”
”…”
”[Higher Zephyr Magic: Zephyr Magna Acceliaris].”
”[Higher Ignis Magic: Ignis Burst].”
”…”
”…”
”[Higher Ignis Magic: Ignis Fervor Maxima].”
Hearing the sound of thunder resound throughout the area, Argentum went ahead and cast all of the spells that boosted one's attributes without hesitation, aiming all of the spells towards Horell. In less than an instant, multiple balls of red and green hue, that were of various sizes, soon arrived near Horell before being absorbed by his body.
Not long after, the aura he was radiating, which was already boosted with his usual buffs, was enhanced even further, making Horell give off the feeling that his combat power was no less than that of Chonk's. Sensing this aura, Herellia could not help but become shocked as she focused her vision on Argentum. Surprisingly, the reason why she was shocked was not because of Argentum's spells, but rather…
”You can actually help those who are taking Power Baptisms before it starts?” Herellia could not help but ask as this question surfaced in her mind. In response, Argentum looked at her and responded matter-of-factly, ”You can. In fact, you can even help them out while they're undergoing a trial. I don't know if the same thing applies for Existence Tribulations though.”
”Hoh…” Herellia uttered as a response to Argentum's words, radiating an aura that gave off the feeling that she had become enlightened. Soon after, Herellia then went ahead and muttered a few incantations as multiple red tendrils manifested on the surface of her body. A few seconds later, these red tendrils were then fired towards Horell, which was absorbed by his body at the very instant it collided. In less than an instant, the aura radiating from him had taken on a light crimson red tinge, increasing his combat power a bit more.