Chapter 413: Chapter 413 - Push
Point-of-View: Satan
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"I believe that’s enough, Vorph. There’s no point in overdoing it," I remarked, as I evaded an incoming Negative Energy blast.
"N-no, not yet, I...I’m not done. Please, uncle, just a little while longer, I still have plenty of energy to spare," She responded with a grimace.
"You said that half an hour ago. We have less than two days left before we make our move, the best way to spend this remaining time is to rest...there is simply no sense in wearing yourself out at this point," I replied objectively.
"I-I know, but still, I...I just-..."
"I suppose I should address it...look, I’m aware that you feel responsible for Aratron’s demise, but you needn’t blame yourself for what happened. We knew from the beginning that this was a battle where we would undoubtedly suffer casualties...and I’m sure he was aware of that as well. The only ones to blame for this are the Vampires, so this is not a burden you need to shoulder."
"Even so, I..."
"Alright, then, I shall spar with you, Vorph. But only if you promise to rest for the entire day tomorrow," Chimed in Lucy, as she walked over.
"I-...okay, I promise."
She has been harboring immense guilt ever since the battle, and despite the rest of us assuring her that she isn’t to blame for Aratron’s death, she is still plagued by that guilt.
I suppose that is something she needs to work through herself. To a lesser extent, Lucy has also been feeling some guilt...the human girl with the powerful Soul Weapon, Mysst, Lucy failed to prevent her from being killed by Sirius.
But it wasn’t her fault, none of us were aware of what his Unique Ability was. Her lover, Ilex Sarralot, has been rather consumed with hatred and rage, but even he has not blamed Lucy for what happened...rather, he blames himself.
I then turned my attention forward as Vorph flew up and swooped down towards Lucy, firing off a rapid Negative Energy arrow at her.
Lucy swiftly countered with a Negative Energy blast, before springing back as Vorph closed in on her and swung her claws across, narrowly missing as her claws whizzed past the front of Lucy’s face.
Vorph’s eyes then widened in alarm as Lucy raised her hand towards her, unleashing her Repel ability and firing out an intense pushing force towards Vorph, who quickly crossed her arms in front of herself defensively.
She grimaced as the attack slammed onto her arms and pushed her back several meters through the air, before she quickly flew up as Lucy came charging towards her with immense speed.
As Vorph zipped up into the air, Lucy lifted her gaze before whipping her arm across to fire out a rapid slashing wave of Negative Energy towards Vorph, who quickly veered across to evade it, gritting her teeth as it grazed the side of her right arm, inflicting a shallow cut across her skin and drawing out a couple of trickles of blood.
Vorph then took aim before unleashing a fierce volley of Negative Energy blasts down towards Lucy, who swiftly shot away as the blasts came raining down, peppering the ground as she weaved across to evade them, before spinning around and firing off her Repel ability again.
Vorph moved across as fast as she could, just barely evading the attack before her eyes widened in alarm as Lucy came shooting up towards her with immense speed the instant her barrage of Negative Energy blasts ceased.
Vorph tensed up and went into a defensive stance as Lucy closed in on her, before stiffening as Lucy disappeared from her line of sight and reappeared behind her, lightly pressing her claws against the side of Vorph’s neck before she could react.
"What, did you forget that I can teleport? Come on, you need to loosen up, you’re way too tense...where’s your usual feisty-ness that comes out when you fight?" Remarked Lucy with a smile.
"I-...y-yeah, you’re right. I...I need to calm down," Nodded Vorph with a grimace, still looking quite tense.
This isn’t good...she usually thrives in battle, even I have trouble against her when she’s at her best. But right now, she’s far from her best.
Her confidence has taken a serious blow thanks to her battle against the Elder Vampire Jagger, and it’s making her doubt herself and second-guess every move she makes.
"Maybe you should take a break and-...," Lucy began to suggest.
"N-no, I-...no, let’s keep going. I won’t be of any use in the upcoming battle if I can’t figure this out...and I don’t have much time to do it, so I need to exert myself past my limits, if that’s what it takes. So, please...keep sparring against me."
"Hm...alright, if you’re really sure, then okay."
I watched on with a sense of concern as they resumed sparring...it would be great if Vorph is able to work through her mental block, but I doubt it’s going to be that easy.
The guilt she feels isn’t going to disappear overnight, but the real problem is how she’s letting it cloud her so immensely.
Ilex Sarralot asked me to spar against him yesterday, and while his guilt was even deeper than Vorph’s, not to mention his rage and hatred, it seemed like those emotions were fueling him in combat instead of hindering him.
That’s what Vorph needs to strive for...hm, perhaps I should go find him and ask him to spar against her. Seeing someone in a similar mental situation to her but managing it so differently may be just the push she needs...
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