Chapter 45: Art (2) (2/2)

Aina's hand trembled beneath Leonel's tender actions. Then, she could only watch blankly as he set her hand down and drew the first slice of flesh across the back of his left hand.

Leonel's memory was frightening after awakening his ability. Without a single pause, he drew the complex Force Art across his skin, the only sign of his pain being his tightly clenched jaw.

Force Arts could be made stronger with both depth and size. However, the Art Leonel drew was barely deeper than a usual paper cut and was a fraction of the size of Nicolas'. But, Leonel was confident that his own ability could amplify this Art's would-be potency, while also mitigating the risk he put himself in.

Even so, blood flowed continuously from Leonel's hand, dripping down and ricocheting off of the stone beneath their feet. The dull echoes rebounded across the walls of the underground sewage system, giving the atmosphere an eerie and damp feel.

Leonel's coordination stat was exceptionally high. It took him not more than a few minutes to etch the Force Art into his skin.

He had been expecting a grand showing when he finished, but the reality didn't have much fanfare. There was a faint wisp of light and a subtle comprehension clicked in Leonel's mind. What was once gibberish became as clear as a text of English to him.

'So that's how it is… Aina was right. Drawing Force Art is like an author writing down a story. But that also means that if you want to influence a Dimension, you must be applying pressure from a higher Dimension. This isn't just good news… It's excellent news!'

Leonel grasped on a very simple fundamental concept like it was his last beacon of hope.

The bad news was that whoever it was truly had placed some failsafes in place, failsafes that made Leonel tremble to his core. He didn't know exactly what they were, but his analytical mind could already see through the parts of this Force Art that contributed nothing to its main ability of passing down this power of understanding. It didn't take a genius to figure out that these parts were where the hidden danger lied…

The good news, however, was that this Force Art was an attempt of the Fourth Dimension to influence the Third. However, Leonel's body was a half-step above the Third Dimension and was on its way to evolving toward the Fourth due to Earth being in its Metamorphosis and him having lit his first Force Node.

As a result, the contingency plans this mysterious person left, had barely a portion of their effectiveness left.

This also meant that the knowledge Leonel was gaining was also severely hampered, but it was a worthy trade-off, especially considering Leonel's calculative abilities!

”LEONEL!”

Leonel snapped out of his thoughts, his head sharply turning toward Aina.

”Don't scare me like that!” She pounded the side of her fist into his chest, a move that would have likely sent him flying in the past.

Leonel grinned. ”Aina… That's the first time you've called me by my name…”

Aina blinked for a moment then blushed profusely, turning her head away.

Leonel's expression turned more serious with Aina distracted. He could feel the subtle workings of energy chains trying to worm their way from his left hand into his body. He had no choice but to send a steady stream of Force to crush it time and time again. The drain on him was immense.

'We need to finish this mission as soon as possible. Only by going back to the present will this Force Art completely lose its effectiveness…'