I Refused To Be Reincarnated

With his limitations shattered, he finally obtained what he longed for: freedom. Adam knew the puppet's possession was only the tip of the iceberg because now, he could move as he wished without Julius! However, confined within the beautifully carved wooden block, he had lost his sensations in exchange.

Despite the inconvenience, joy brightened the puppet's youthful face. The two odd gems serving as his eyes sparkled azure and emerald while noises of wood and bones rattling echoed in his soul's sea. His heart lightened, free of the crushing burden weighing on it for a minute before the Ashfords' looming threat registered, staining his positive emotions with gloomy spots.

His face darkened with concern, and anger burned in his eyes. Those pests had never given up, even after five years and a half.

'I must rescue Julius.'

War drums reverberated in compelling beats in his heart as determination blazed within him. But could he defeat two adepts? Or would there be more? He didn't know.

Despite his confidence hitting rock bottom, fresh ideas sprouted like greenery in his mind. After a moment, his lips stretched into a smirk.

"The copy knew about Prometheus' choice and acted all along. Hahaha."

Laughter reverberated, and a realisation settled gently. During their fights, he had been forced to develop techniques on the spot under pressure. Yet, he had subtly been guided to design supportive ones instead of offensive ones. That's what the copy tried to teach him, all to save Alina after possessing the puppet.

After all, he could now protect it with a dense mana armor instead of the towering suit, which consumed too much energy.

By adapting the mana claws, he could limit his consumption further, becoming a nightmare for mages as long as they couldn't breach his defenses. Because in the end, no matter their tier, they would run out of mana. At that moment, he could behead them like defenseless chickens.

After pondering the idea, his smirk stretched onto his somber face, giving it a sinister allure as he recognised its feasibility.

"I'll save the two of you and obliterate those snakes!" He declared, snapping his eyes shut and leaving the dream place to confront the hateful marquisate.

****

Simultaneously, Gabriel Ashford's pupils constricted. Pushing himself off his luxurious chair in a flash, he glared at the unconscious boy.

"Did you feel it?"

His question cut through the silent room as ominous shadows danced on the bright magic symbols covering the ground.

"Yes. Mana is growing erratic by the second... He is finally coming out!" Enjoy new adventures from empire

Reynard's excited voice responded. They had been waiting for hours, and he wasn't known as the kingdom's most patient man. All this wait annoyed him, especially after he suffered humiliation when capturing the boy. Now, he wanted nothing but to shred his body and steal that soul Gabriel wanted so much.

Yet, his trembling fists suddenly froze the next moment. Everyone's eyes enlarged in shock as a bizarre spectacle unfolded before the boy. Unlike the ghost they had expected to see, forms weaved themselves from thin air in a gradual dance.

Exquisite leather boots appeared first, followed by dark pants adorned with a clinking large belt. Then, a stylish red coat ending in tight brown leather gloves reaching the elbow fluttered amidst the mana. And finally, they saw a youth's charming, almost feminine face.

Alarmed, they eyed the intruder suspiciously. Despite Nathan's year-long investigation, they had no information about the young, odd-eyed kid.

"Who are you?! State your name and purpose!" Raynard commanded, already preparing his spells to attack the intruder.

Meanwhile, Nathan shook his head in disdain. This uncle of his was smart but too stubborn and impatient. He would have realised it could only be Adam by taking five seconds to ponder instead of flaring.

On the other hand, he understood what transpired in a flash. Well, the most significant part, at least. His plan had failed. The moment they threatened Adam, he disappeared only to return inside a bizarre body a few hours later, which could only mean one thing: he had fixed his flaw. And with it fixed, he couldn't assimilate him to make his crippled mana circuits recover.

As Nathan pondered his next course of action, Adam's scornful voice resounded.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"I'm Julius' big brother, an apprentice, and... your death! Today, the Ashford family will cease to exist. Let it be a warning to the likes of you not to mess with me!"

He was tired of losing against bastards like them. But it was fine. Now, he'll ensure he will never be defeated again.

Adam's threat hung in the air, his eyes blazing in defiance. Without another word, he channelled his mana, weaving a complex armor of pure billowing energy around him. Simultaneously, he summoned his Blade of Adaptation and Luminous Wildblade, clutching and encasing them in elemental mana.

Like a magical beast of the fourth tier, he leapt, aiming for the family's head.

"Humph. A kid still wet behind the ears, dares?!"

Gabriel's outraged snort echoed in his ears as the wind whipped against his clothes. Then, he saw the old bastard who made Julius suffer so much channel mana in response.

"Crashing Tide!"

Echoing Gabriel's call, a torrent of violent water materialised, rushing towards him and threatening to shred his body into pieces.

However, what could water do against his righteous fury?

"Freeze!" He roared, a surge of pale blue mana leaving his hand and darting towards the billowing water.

CRACK

The noise of liquid freezing reverberated for a second as the lowering ambient temperature sent icy shivers down everyone's spines. Like a river in winter, the spell stopped dead in its tracks as he landed on it, shattering the ice into glistening blocks before resuming his charge.

Simultaneously, Reynard moved into action behind, using his most powerful spell to stop him.

"Sonus Obstupefaciens!" He roared, clapping his hands with all his strength.

CLAP

The noise reverberated through the air, shattering the ice blocks in a rain of shards as a terrifying shockwave expanded around him at the speed of sound.