Chapter 21: Chapter-20

 Aquilae sprinted towards Alenor, ignoring the somewhat raging commander. The chicken was angry that she killed his puppy. What did he expect? At least that arrogant chicken did not follow her; she had no intention to go up against the mass of chaos that his army would become after his death. 

Aquilae did not expect Alenor to make such a decision, even though in hindsight it was blatantly obvious. She should have picked her up and put her somewhere far from that suicidal point. A part of her wanted to let her go, in no future would she live a happy life. Or even a life at all. Yet the contract binds her to protect the girl. And they both had no choice in it. Alenor jumped into the chasm. Not that she could have stopped her from this side. But she trusted her aunt too much. ‘She would have to ask her.’ 

Aquilae reached the edge of the chasm. And watched into the depth, Alenor was falling, silently, lifelessly. Aquilae wondered if she was dead. But she was not; her yearning for death smelled like rotten dead bodies and irked Aquilae like nothing else. From the first meeting, the only thing that stood out about her was death and misery, except for her unnatural beauty. She was the most broken thing alive if Aquilae had to put it in words. Her body, her will, her soul—everything was broken or was breaking apart. Her eyes, lifeless and hollow yet so clear, it yearned for one thing. Alenor yearned for one thing, and that was death, unlike her. She had clawed her way through hell to live and came out on the other side as a warlord, and here was Alenor running towards death. Why? Her mind yelled at her, drowning out all other thoughts. She clenched her teeth; she didn't like this situation or her desire for death. So she would not allow it. She made her a promise that must be fulfilled, whether Alenor wants it or not. 

"Now, how will I get her out? The good news is that no one knows how deep these chasms were. So I should theoretically have plenty of time, but if she falls for too long, her lack of breath would kill her. Or shock from mana influx." 

Aquilae said to herself. She was more of a battle-focused mage. If she had to cut her into pieces or something along those lines, it would be easier than drinking water. But saving was not her forte, not that she could ask the commander if he had any utility mage. An outrageous thought came to her mind, but she was not sure if it would work. Most likely would not. But it looked cool in her mind, which means she must try it.

Aquilae walked back a few steps, enough to make a long jump. and ran toward the chasm. She pushed her foot against the edge and jumped as far as possible, but not so far that she crossed the gap and reached the other side. She began to fall as she got halfway across the chasm.Now, to the second part. She charged her sword, channelled mana into her hand. She needed to calculate the correct trajectory so as not to miss Alenor. After a somewhat rough estimate of where to throw her sword, She tightly gripped her sword, using its weight to generate momentum, and threw it in Alenor’s direction. Not on her, of course, she did not want her to die. She let go of the sword, and its cloth flew through her grip. Aquilae tightly held it and traveled the chasm as if holding reins of a wild bull. 

"WOOHOO" echoed through the chasm, shocking everyone outside. Aquilae cheered as she flew, she actually pulled that off, and fairly easily. 

And in a matter of moments, she was already upon Alenor. Aquilae let go of her sword. Her momentum still kept her going. Now that she was beside Alenor, her back faced her. She looked like a doll entangled in its own string. Aquilae shouted at her, but it was not loud, or was it? She could not tell; the only thing she could hear clearly was air. Alenor heard it, and she turned her head toward her. Her face in all its distant expression, was she thinking she would meet someone if she died? Aquilae wouldn’t say she did not think of that sometimes. Her eyes widened in surprise. She opened her mouth and closed it again and again. Then she tightly clenched her teeth. She was in pain. Not any pain but Spirit’s blood. Aquilae could tell just by seeing those cracks. How she was not mentally shut down was beyond Aquilae. 

"I AM HERE TO SAVE YOU" Aquilae answered to the unheard question that she thought Alenor was trying to ask. series of expressions reflected on her face, starting from surprise to anxiety and worried. 

"ALENOR!" she shouted again. Her name was funny and sad. They were swimming in the air, Aquilae tried to swim towards her, but it did not work. She imagined it would. What now? She channeled mana through her body, making the sparkling colors of mana visible to her. She concentrated on the one that was far enough for her to make do and charged it with mana; it glowed. She, after some embarrassing tussling, flipped and She channeled mana into her legs as she stepped on a glowing speck, and it created a shock wave that sent Aquilae hurtling towards Alenor. She waved her hands and legs as if she were actually in the water, which she did just for fun. She looked into the depth of the chasm, dark and never-ending, as if it were a way into the abyss. It felt unearthly. Not out of fear, but at the thought of how many people could actually jump down the deepest depths of paradise? and here she was trying to swim for fun. Maybe a few people she knew could do that, but they are too uptight and disciplined to do that. So she did not know anyone other than... She looked toward Alenor. How much courage did she have to jump down? She wondered if she could try this again with her. Throw her down and then save her. Now that she thought of it, it sounded sadistic. ‘FOCUS’. 

Aquilae could grab Alenor if she reached out, but she was injured. No, it was more like she was broken. She can't handle her carelessly. Alenor looked at her, her initial surprise faded and her distant face returned. She really had disinterest written all over her face even though she is falling down the deepest depths of paradise. If nothing else, she could have been excited.

"So, I'm curious why you jumped, Alenor… tell me?"

Aquilae could see conflict in her eyes, her teeth clenching. Aquilae knew if she asked her again, Alenor would answer. Yet it felt wrong. 

"Okay, I will have my answer after we stand on solid ground. Now, do you have any idea how to get out of here?" 

Aquilae asked with a smile, and she did not get the expected reaction. That’s sad, she said to herself. But seriously, how would she get her out of here? Alone or if Alenor were healthy, it would have been easier. But currently, it was not so easy. She did not know how the spirit’s blood would react to any magic she used. Or even if she touched her while channeling mana in her body. Aunt Celine’s magic was the softest and warmest magic anyone had in the whole paradise, and yet Alenor pretty much died at that time. So using spells was out of the question.

After thinking of every possible way out, she had only one way she could get herself out without using mana. ‘I will not hear the end of this; oh well, I will cross that bridge when I get there.’ For now, saving Alenor was a priority. She channelled her mana through her body and…

"Ǎi"