I Refused To Be Reincarnated

"..."

'What happened?!'

Reinard and Alexander thought, their lips curling upwards as their mission had just become incredibly easy.

They wouldn't have to overpower the ghost without killing him now that he mysteriously disappeared into the boy.

Meanwhile, Julius asked the same question. However, the tone was entirely different. The words rumbled in his mind, presaging a devastating cataclysm. Icy sweat covered his body, making his clothes stick to his skin. The dim light reflected on them, revealing his firm, aesthetic but trembling muscles as he closed his eyes.

Loud drumming hammered against his chest, accompanied by the dark fingers of terror encroaching on his heart with icy dread.

He couldn't contend against a mage without careful planning, assistance, and specific equipment to counter him. But now, for whatever reason he had no time to ponder, he would have to fight two adepts alone. Even if he had just reached the Golden Core Realm, making him equivalent to an apprentice, he was still two tiers lower.

'I'm sure big brother is fine!' He thought, puffing his cheeks to exhale the stale air he had been keeping in. If he could stall them until his brother returned, they could turn the tables on the attackers... perhaps. Anyway, he would never accept defeat, not again...

Memories he didn't want to remember filled his mind for a moment. But he shook them away, his eyes focusing on the threat ahead. He drew his deadly gladius with a fluid movement, tensed his muscles until they shook under the strain of his flowing Qi, and took a battle pose.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

On the other side of the room, Alexander mobilised his mana, mouthing his spell with a troubled expression. Everything felt so confusing to him. His mission, duty, family, and... What he desired. Everything entwined in a chaotic ball of multi-colored strings he had to untangle his mind. But time was too short.

He only met the boy a few months ago. He couldn't bet his country's future on uncertain deductions. Thus, he steeled his heart and activated his spell.

Dark tendrils billowed in the air, absorbing the ambient light like tiny black holes before turning into sharp needles. With a movement of his hand, half darted towards the training Aurelius, who didn't notice a thing.

The other half zoomed in, cutting the air with surgical precision towards Julius, causing his eyes to constrict.

Fire Qi flooded into his meridians, alimenting his muscles with incredible explosive strength as he swung his gladius to deflect the tiny projectiles.

However, mid-movement, his pupils trembled. The projectiles' trajectory shifted mid-air, aiming for... his shadow. An ominous premonition gripped his heart as he strained his muscles, making their fibers groan and crack under their own momentum. Then, he hurriedly threw himself to the side, his movements leaving deep gouges on the elegant stone floor.

The needles pierced through the rising dust in the next second, impaling the ground for a few centimeters before dissolving into ominous, dark whips.

Julius raised his head, gazing towards his roommate in panic. Yet it was too late.

The damage to Aurelius' shadow mysteriously appeared on his body, riddling him with tiny holes.

Relief washed over him for a moment. The wounds weren't lethal. But his expression shifted into an ugly grimace as invisible white tendrils. No. Threads entangled the youth, infiltrating his body.

However, he couldn't focus on the training maniac as Alexander's movements alerted him. It was only a light shake of his hand, yet he prepared for the worst. He also constantly kept a wary eye on the passive Reynard. He couldn't rush him before understanding their affinities.

That was his first mistake.

A sudden impact shattered his concentration. His head jerked back, and his brows creased as confusion filled his eyes.

'Is there a third enemy?' His heart sank. But he recovered the next moment as his confusion deepened. The impact had been too weak. In fact, he didn't feel it at all.

At that moment, he saw a tanned fist outstretched on his left... Aurelius' fist. The boy's eyes had turned blank, and his veins protruded like ugly worms under his skin as if trying to fight back something.

'The spell!' He understood the situation in the blink of an eye.

The most probable scenario he theorised was for Alexander to combine his two affinities into a terrifying and unavoidable spell capable of stealing his adversaries' control over their own bodies. After all, no one would consciously protect their shadows, making it insidiously fatal.

Now, at least, he had a basic grasp of the adept's field of expertise. Yet Reynard kept eying him, his blue eyes glinting with mockery, forcing his tense nerves to remain on edge and questions to flood his mind.

'Is he waiting for an opportunity, or just watching to have fun?' He thought, weighing his options with utmost care.

Unfortunately, the answer came to him faster than he would have wanted as he saw the man's lips part open.

"Cantilena Quietis."

His words shattered the room's imposed silence, followed by a cacophony of bizarre noises for a second.

Gradually, they harmonised into peaceful music, and a soothing voice he yearned to hear again filled his ears... Alina's voice.

The air swirled around him, taking the form of his mother, chanting the familiar lullaby he liked so much in his younger days.

'N-No.' His heart rate hastened as he felt his body relax against his will and his own mind rejoice, betraying him for the promise of a tender reunion with her. His eyelid sagged, threatening to close at any moment under the vicious spell's influence.

In a hurry, he mobilised all of his Qi, making it bubble in his Dan Tian to resist the comforting sleepiness assaulting him and understanding that analysing their abilities had been a terrible mistake. He had to go on the offensive, as futile as it seemed, to have a chance to stall them.

However, before he could, a tremor shook his body as minuscule holes gushed blood around his articulations.

Filled with dread, he gazed at his shadow, his face decomposing in despair. Alexander's needles had pierced it.