TBATE - Brother's Once More

Something New

I grabbed my face mask, pulling it down to my neck.

"What a rare sight. Welcome back, Ryu."

"Yes. It was about time I finished adjusting to this body."

Oh boy.

A single glance at Ryu said everything. He's stronger than me. Way stronger.

"You sure had fun. I see you've developed something new."

He wore a fitted military attire I hadn't seen before, adorned with an unfamiliar crest I couldn't recognize.

"Your new sense of style aside, what the hell have you done?

For some reason, I can't sense a mana core inside of your body at all, which leads me to believe you've messed with my mana core.

Also, you've apparently got a mana flow coming from your heart? Mind giving me a few clues or are you just gonna leave me in the dark?"

With a light chuckle he walked over  to me, placing a hand on the Hydra's corpse.

"What a waste. The Hydra is a beast known for its extreme abundance of mana."

As if on cue, mana flowed from his hand into the Hydra's body, which began to glow a flurry of color.

"What the-!"

Through what little I could see despite shielding my eyes with mana, I knew I could see the corpse begin to crack.

Cracks formed more cracks and those cracks formed even more cracks that continued on until it became a fragmented cloud of white particles visible even to the eyes.

"What in the world..."

Before I even realized it, I could feel my body greedily taking in what mana it could, somehow already having been refined, yet extremely potent.

I had to admit it: Ryu's insight far exceeded mine. It was to the point that I seemed like a child who hadn't even learned how to walk yet in comparison.

He knew what he was doing; for him, it was like looking at the back of his hand, I could tell even if he didn't say it.

The majority of mana particles gravitated slowly towards Ryu, sinking into his body as if directly absorbing it.

"Now for your question. Why don't we return to your brother? We have much to catch up on."

**

"So... lemme get this straight.

Using the knowledge of your time under Zalam, you somehow took out the mana core I artificially implanted into your body...

Crushed it, and forged your very own, what was it... 'Mana Heart'?"

To say this guy was insane sounded like an understatement, even if it was coming from me.

"There are more effective methods that allow me to exert more power, but the integrity of this world's physical realm would-"

"Tear itself apart," I finished, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"Of course you chose the lightest means possible of gaining monstrous amounts of power. You know what, I won't bother anymore. We're almost there.

Try to at least look like one of the good guys and bring your mana down, alright? I'd rather not have you blow the ceiling off the roof and square up with everyone."

**

Arthur Leywin

"Gotcha."

I grunted, tugging at the spherical orb that sat inside of the Strikethorn Hollow's corpse.