Talios-Chapter 50: Grasped Aura

And just like that, Linh found himself back on the third floor. A dry, mocking laugh escaped him. "So it wasn’t my imagination, after all."

His aura flared at his feet as he leapt upward, returning to the floor that had sent him plummeting six stories below. This time, he kept his distance, studying the so-called Grade 14 puppet more carefully. Recognition dawned, and a smirk crept across his face.

"So it really was you," he said, amused. Then his voice rang out, sharp and accusing. "Hey, kid—why didn’t you say anything if you knew you were the one there?"

Znoh raised his head to meet the man’s face. How silly. Just to confirm it, he had used the same move three times.

A bulge surfaced on Znoh’s temple. He had been enjoying his day before some nuisance decided it wasn’t his portion. And now he was being asked why he hadn’t said anything?

Say what—when he was the one attacked out of nowhere?

Before him stood a middle-aged man—Linh, General of the North East. So he was the one responsible for robbing him of rest. Linh’s voice cut through the air.

"Hey, kid," he said, cracking his neck with casual menace. "My target was supposed to be a couple of well-graded puppets. But who would have thought you’d be served up on a platter?" A smirk curved his lips.

Znoh’s eyes lifted slightly. So he was an offering now?

Like mist in brittle air, a presence emerged at Toah’s side—neither too near nor too distant. Its control was flawless; most would have missed it, but Toah noticed instantly, tilting his gaze. Her hands clasped a fan, folded neatly. Lady Eihpos, stood there, her long, dazzling robes flowing in the rumbled chaos of the training ground where two combatants faced each other.

After Linh hurled the second puppet through the wall and lunged toward it. Toah spotted something strange about the supposed puppet—but the knucklehead had already flown past before he could speak. What puppet had hair that shimmered so brilliantly and wore a black robe? Unless someone had been dressing it like a doll—but he was certain that was out of the equation. Moments later, a heavier tremor shook the entire room. Curious, he moved closer, entering the space to examine this warm-up.

Mirroring the other room, now a scene of wreckage, this chamber was vast. Its central expanse lay bare, stretching meters from walls and ceiling—ample space to host a handful spars at once. He positioned himself at the spectator stands, eyes sharp. As Lady Eihpos glided into the room, perfectly composed, he tilted his head in acknowledgment. "General."

She returned his gesture, a serene smile playing on her lips. "General."

"What brings the great General Yoab here?" His voice carried the calm assurance of a seasoned man, steady and composed.

The smile never left her lips as she spoke, light and composed. "With tremors of that magnitude, isn’t it only natural to notice?"

"So you came to watch?"

"I’m merely passing through," she replied—serene, unreadable.

Across from him stood the Harbinger of Death, the unrivaled number one General—the formidable Znoh. Linh’s lips curved into a predator’s grin; chances like this were rare.

"Hey, kid," he said. "Brace yourself." Instantly, his aura flared, ignited, warping the air around him. Eyes bloodshot, gaze hungry, he radiated pure predatory intent. His blue aura stretched meters outward, crushing the air like a mountain pressing down on the earth. The smile on his face betrayed none of the lethal precision he now embodied—the commanding presence of a General leading a million souls into war.

This was the staggering might of a kingdom’s apex fighter, the full power of a Late Stage 3 Awakener unleashed.

In the next instant, he moved—vanishing completely, as if erased from existence. Then reappeared in a blur, above, his hands held a drawn bow, as tall as a person. He released. The force, like amplified lightning, moved faster than the eye could follow, ignoring the very bounds of space, striking directly above Znoh’s head. The crushing power disintegrated the air itself—and connected. The aftershock obliterated the walls into jagged fragments.

Even the sidelines weren’t spared the shockwave’s wrath. Toah activated his aura, standing calm as the force hit. Facing General Yoab—she remained perfectly still, flicking her fan to cleave the oncoming energy. The motion was brief, almost imperceptible, yet it radiated complete mastery. Calmly, she spoke, her voice cutting through the chaos.

"Is there a reason for this fight? Was Linh coaxed into this?"

He had to have been coaxed, cause she saw no clear reason why this fight had to happen, that was Znoh—and that said a lot. Had Znoh said something to Linh, prompting him to engage?

Toah shook his head, fully aware of Linh’s temperament. "No, he probably initiated this entirely on his own."

Eihpos nodded. "I suppose so" If she remembered it was the same when he also challenged that Man. "Did he have to bother though."

"Isn’t he handling it impressively though?" Toah added. "Even with the power of my Bloodline it wouldn’t be of any good to me if I take that attack head on if it were aimed at me—and isn’t it defense that I thrive in? He’s clearly serious."

She chuckled softly. "Not to undermine your bloodline traits, even accounting for your aura type, but you can’t measure Lucai on such level. There’s a reason he’s a Znoh. Being a Ruby is remarkable enough, but that monster isn’t even holding back. His stage was already above the rest, yet he still reached into another Layer."

Roah’s breath caught as his eyes widened, disbelief hardening his expression. Another Layer?

How could Eihpos not have noticed? She had already sensed it when he walked into the courtroom yesterday—that the monster had once again shifted the balance. Znoh had long been regarded as the strongest in the known world, even before reaching the highest Aura stage. Eventually, his Aura had caught up, attaining the peak—and still, she had remained only one layer behind him. Now, unmistakably, she felt it. He had climbed again.

The fourth layer of Late Stage 3.

An achievement thought impossible.

These calculations, of course, excluded him—that Man. Perhaps it was that unreachable presence that continued to drive Znoh forward.

"So now you understand?"

Toah’s shock lingered, unyielding. The hierarchy had always been clear: the three Generals of the North, Northwest, and East stood equal—Late Stage 3, first layer. On paper, the gap between them and the remaining two Generals was manageable. Yoab’s single-layer advantage had already been remarkable. Znoh standing two layers above them—despite his youth—had been written off as another anomaly, like that god-Killer General.

But did he truly have to prove it so thoroughly?

It had been a comforting excuse—that there couldn’t be another like that. If Znoh truly stepped into the fourth layer... what did that imply?

Linh’s smirk lingered—until the moment of impact. Then it vanished.

What was he looking at?

Impossible.

That strike was never meant to be endured. It flattened terrain when unleashed. He had used it precisely because this kid was far from ordinary.

So why—

The shockwaves dispersed, erasing everything in their path—and then Linh saw it.

Caught.

Absurd.

Catching his fist was one thing; that hadn’t even been his strongest suit. But this—this was his strongest domain.

Aura was not something one grasped. Especially not his.

It was akin to launching a burning, explosive arrow—only for the target to close its fingers around it.

The attack dissolved as if it had never existed, breaking apart like mist under sunlight.

When the dust settled, only one thing remained—

a single outstretched hand.

Linh’s expression hardened, his features tightening. In a flash of lightning-fast movement, he struck again—same power, different angle. Just like before, the attack unraveled on contact, Znoh’s hands nullifying it entirely. Linh’s expression twisted darker still.

Again.

The speed and resilience of the General were commendable, Znoh thought. But what was his fixation with repetitive strikes? If it didn’t work the first time, why would it the second? And now he was attempting it a third time?

The General’s attacks weren’t weak—far from it. But after Znoh’s breakthrough, after unlocking a new Aura Fount and stepping into the Fourth Layer of the Late Stage, he had gained insight into the Flow of Aura itself. An enlightenment. Against that understanding, such direct, heavy-handed attacks were... exposed.

Like the first two, Znoh extinguished the third strike with ease. As the residual winds dispersed, a shadow took shape. The attack had never been meant for him directly—it was a feint. With Znoh’s left hand extended, his unguarded side became the real target, the arm kept hidden throughout the exchange—as one would expect from a man with only a single functioning limb.