Rylan's mana roiled and revolved, coating his sword while crackling like lightning, fluid as the wind and as fierce as a storm. An ethereal blade took shape above the sword, one made of his mana and will alone. Simultaneously, his mana circulation was pushed to its limits.

Rylan swung his sword.

Snowfall's speed and balance were added to the Movement. The blade landed square on the Golem's right cheek. The moment they collided, the atmosphere was split in half alongside the flow of the blade's edge. Rylan put as much power as he could into the attack, but the material the Golem was made of still held up for a bit over a second. In the next moment, however, it gave way. Silver Twilight sliced through it, allowing Rylan's mana to reach the Golem's insides. The construct reacted almost immediately, raising its other hand to grab Rylan, but he acted as if he couldn't even see it.

Suddenly, Rylan pulled the blade out of the 'wound' and held it as if he were about to stab the Golem.

Stormcaller Sword Style, First Movement: Thunderbolt.

Like a lightning bolt, his sword dug into the gap Tempest Break had created, the mana around it sharper than a razor, seeking only to reach the enemy's inner core. Rylan glanced to the side and made a decision in a split second. He pulled the blade back and used Snowfall to jump backward. In the next moment, the Golem's upper right wing went through the space where he had just been, as if trying to stab him with its tip. Once it missed, it stopped. Rylan narrowed his eyes and continued to use Snowfall to move in the air. The wing extended itself, trying to slam into him with its outer side.

Rylan twisted his body and pointed his feet toward the ceiling. He pushed against the air, shooting downward to avoid the wing's attack, right toward the Golem's enormous right knee. His muscles tensed up as he gripped Silver Twilight's hilt with both hands.

Mountainpeak Swordsmanship, Final Movement: Mountain's Collapse.

It was as if his sword had become much heavier, like it carried the weight of an entire mountain. The mana around it changed, becoming denser and sturdier. It was an attack that sought only to crush the enemy with brute strength. Supported by his speed, the vertical slash landed on its target with the power of a crashing, crumbling mountain range that focused its destruction in a single point.

The Golem's knee unceremoniously cracked and bent under the Sword Art's pressure, then crumbled entirely. The Golem's leg caved in on itself, throwing it off balance and making its incoming punch miss again. Rylan immediately shot upward once more, quickly rising above the construct's eye level, then looked down. He felt as if time were moving more slowly.

Its defenses are great, but not impenetrable.

Both Tempest Break and Mountain's Collapse could overcome them. Even though both were still exhausting Sword Arts for even his current self, he only needed to play his cards right. He had created a large gash on the enemy's face, close to where its core was, and also ruined its sense of balance. Rylan smiled.

I can do this.

Not that there was ever any room for self-doubt in the first place. He tensed up his body in mid-air once more, then pushed against the atmosphere with Snowfall. The wind whistled past his ears, almost as sharp as a blade, but he didn't even blink.

At the same time, the Golem's four wings moved as its head spun in place to look at Rylan, completely unnatural. Rylan smiled like a beast baring its fangs. The first wing arrived, thicker than the Flameheart estate's walls. A thought crossed Rylan's mind in a split second.

Let's see how my Strength is holding up.

He merely swung his sword at the incoming attack. The wing's feathers, each sharper than a weapon and longer than his entire body, met Silver Twilight's blade, which was almost comically smaller in comparison. However, the small blade was enough to stop the attack in its tracks. Rylan used the air for support and to avoid being flung away due to the sheer difference in weight class between himself and his enemy, then only relied on his muscles to hold up. For almost an entire second, he was only slowly pushed back, his muscles complaining with deafening cries. In the next moment, the second wing arrived.

Rylan looked at it with a clenched jaw. It was coming at him diagonally, unlike the first wing, which had met him straight on. Was the Golem trying to smash him into the ground? Not that it mattered. He had no reason to let the enemy do as it wished.

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Strength is good enough, so let's test my speed.

It made sense for the Golems to be stronger than him, due to the difference in weight and size. In fact, it was amazing on its own for him to be able to stop a direct hit, even if only for a second, and only once he was supported by the entirety of his mana circulation. To begin with, he wasn't only supported by his Strength. He suddenly stopped channeling Snowfall. The atmosphere's support disappeared, making him almost immediately be flung away for dozens of meters. Naturally, the second wing missed him completely because of this. Rylan grinned at the Golem, which was still struggling to rise to its feet.

Falling Snow Steps: Snowfall.

The air became solid once more. Rylan shot forward, then abruptly jumped again, rising. In the next moment, he dashed forward and then downward. His movements were erratic and almost nonsensically random. The first wing attack arrived, but because of Rylan's movements, it was avoided by a hair. Rylan looked at the metal appendage, which was less than ten centimeters away from his face, then back at the Golem. He pushed against the air once more.

The next attack by the wings was avoided in the same fashion. One after the other, the four wings stabbed and swung at his position, but none of the attacks connected.

Rylan twisted his body as he jumped over one wing, around thirty meters away from the Golem. Upside down, he nodded at the construct.

I'm faster than them.

Now, he had a firm grasp on how powerful the Golem was compared to himself. They were stronger and more durable, but he was still much faster, and their defenses weren't insurmountable. All he needed to do was avoid taking a direct hit.

So, let's start doing what I came here to do.

Rylan brushed his fingers against the wand on his waist, but didn't grab it. He pushed against the air with Snowfall and widened the distance between himself and the enemy. The Golem tried to keep up with his movement, but stumbled because of its destroyed knee. Once he was around forty meters away from the Golem, Rylan allowed himself to land on the monotone floor.

Focus.

He started moving his mana like he would if he were going to cast a spell while also maintaining his mana circulation. Naturally, it was difficult.

Relax. Just keep your mind clear.

Those were his last thoughts before all of them vanished like a flame in the wind. The world around him seemed to become blurrier, with only the Golem remaining clear. Within him, his mana tried to complete two different movements at the same time. It was something he had already become familiar with since fighting Evenon, and had later developed in the Basilisk Wilds. What he was trying to do now, however, was to use his mana circulation to amplify his spells' power and characteristics. Simultaneously, he was trying to get used to starting the spellcasting process without needing to use a wand, as he had done against Evenon.

The first time, the movements became too incompatible the moment they started to merge and ended up both ruined. Rylan tried again. Another failure. Again.

The Golem looked at him. Standing only on one leg, it started approaching him, using its wings as crutches to move forward. Rylan didn't even react.

Again. Another failure. Again. Another failure. Again.

The Golem progressively got closer and closer, but Rylan remained rooted in place. The moment the Golem got close enough, it raised all four of its wings and pointed them at Rylan, as if they were spears.

It was then that Rylan's eyes lit up once more.

He dashed to the side with Drifting. The Golem kept up with his movements with its eyes, but its wings were too slow to do so. Rylan smiled at it.

A breakthrough.

He hadn't figured out how to cast spells with his sword or how to reliably cast them without his wand. That said, he had found the starting clue to amplifying them with his mana circulation. It wasn't a great improvement – it consisted of nothing but the seed of possibility.

But it was enough.

Let's end this.

Rylan lowered his center of gravity, sliding on the floor, and looked at the scar on the Golem's face.

Falling Snow Steps: Snowfall.

He shot forward, stepping on the air to avoid the wings and another punch. The massive fist almost grazed his right arm, moving the atmosphere enough that it felt like he was in the middle of a storm. Almost. Rylan stepped on the Golem's arm itself and ran along its surface, rapidly approaching the construct's shoulder. The Golem looked at him and raised one of its wings, but it was too late. Silver Twilight was devoured by crackling mana and an ethereal blade.

Stormcaller Sword Style, Fourth Movement: Tempest Break.

This time, Rylan almost jumped inside the scar, then swung his sword. The vicious storm of mana tore its way through the inside of the Golem's head before reaching the very core of its mana signature. Rylan put as much power as he could into the attack. In the end, the inner core was destroyed completely.

The Golem stopped moving immediately, then collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. Rylan jumped backward and stood on the air, looking like he was floating as he watched the Golem's fall. It landed on the floor with a loud noise that echoed throughout the room. Rylan sheathed Silver Twilight and nodded to himself.

"Yeah, this might work," he muttered.

He then looked at the System notification in front of him.

[You have reached Level 49.]

He grinned, but his expression was tinged with worry. Was his growth going to be enough to overcome the challenges that were coming his way? There was only one way to find out. All he needed to do was keep trying his hardest.

He looked at the opposite end of the room, where a stairway led to five different pathways, then looked at the one that emitted the most mana.

Silently, he started walking on the air toward it.

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