Turning Chapter 969

Like a giant beast rising from its crouch, the colossal wave opened its maw above their heads.

The previous waves that had struck were by no means small. But this—this one rising before them now—no longer resembled a wave. It looked like a living monster, a towering wall of blue that could never be overcome.

And within that deep blue wall, dark shadows twisted and wriggled as if they were swimming—monsters.

It was as if the sky and sea had flipped sideways. In the face of that overwhelming sight, humans were nothing but specks of dust. What could they possibly do against that? What good would it do to fight? The only thought filling their minds was that they would be crushed and killed—pure instinct screamed in warning. A suffocating dread, and a desperate will to survive, alternated wildly, making their bodies tremble uncontrollably.

They knew they had to act—but couldn’t move.

Breathing became difficult. How were they supposed to face this?

In that terror—so thick it felt like even twitching a finger might bring the whole world crashing down—a voice rang out, cold and sharp.

“What are you doing? Snap out of it!”

Even Steber, who had just been joking around, stood frozen. Only Yuder Aile remained calm, facing reality and summoning his power. Instantly, the water beneath him surged, and even ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) as he stood still, his body began to move on its own.

He didn’t retreat from the wave. He charged straight toward it.

“Yuder!”

Like someone riding a sled or skis made of water, Yuder surged toward the water wall. Just as he reached it, he bent his knees and unleashed even more power without hesitation.

–SPLASHHHHH––!

The others watched in stunned silence as Yuder soared up the wall of water with smooth, fluid motion.

He hadn’t even used any extraordinary force. It was the same water-based technique supporting their feet—he had simply used it to ride the wave upward.

The members recalled the local Sharloin villagers who would ride waves on hand-carved boards for fun. The only difference now was the size of the wave they had to climb. Riding a wave wasn’t something exclusive to Awakeners. Even non-Awakeners could do it—with nothing but a board underfoot.

“Right... If we get to the top of that wall, we won’t be crushed by it...”

They could do this. Their power was enough. But they had been so overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the sight before them that they froze—like helpless bystanders. Now, realizing that, the water-users quickly began to draw on their strength again. The wind-users as well began to press down on the air below their feet, lifting off. They couldn’t fly for long like Elpokin could, but any Awakener trained in wind had learned from Yuder how to step on air.

The massive wall of water still felt terrifying, still looked insane to charge at—but they clenched their fists and steeled themselves.

“Damn it! This is really the last one!”

“If I’m going to die, better to go out charging!”

“Cavalry! Let’s move!”

Their shouted rallying cries reignited their courage. One by one, the members followed Yuder, launching themselves toward the wave. In moments, a breathtaking scene unfolded—dozens of people soaring up a monstrous wall of water.

So vast that it was visible even from the surface, the final current would later be called “The Blue Wall of Despair at the Sharlama Sea.” Thus began their battle against the fourteenth wave.

***

A field clinic tent on a hill just off the coast of Sharloin.

The medical tent—manned by the only two medics in the entire Cavalry—was now a full-on war zone. Those injured in battle, those collapsed from exhaustion, and even clerics who had passed out after depleting their divine power filled the space.

If not for Inon, calm and unshaken as though long-accustomed to this madness, chaos would’ve broken out long ago.

“Inon-nim... are you alright? You must be exhausted. I think I can get up and help now...”

Lusan, still pale from divine power depletion, mumbled with an awkward expression. Inon clicked his tongue and pressed the young priest’s forehead to force him back down.

“Shut it. When it’s time, I’ll put you to work whether you like it or not. Just stay still like I said.”

“But I really think I’m fine now... There are still so many people to treat...”

No matter how desperately Lusan begged, Inon didn’t budge. Eventually, Lusan gave up and lay back down. It was his first time experiencing divine power burnout—it still made his head spin and stomach churn like he might vomit.

Yet when he looked around, there were people far worse off. Wounds from monster battles were nothing compared to what the collapsed Awakeners were dealing with—those who had pushed their powers to the very limit and paid the price.

Lusan had seen people brought in during training collapses before—but never this many, and never this varied.

The side effects of maxed-out Awakener abilities were wildly different from person to person. Some, like Kanna Wand, began bleeding from every facial orifice. Others lost their sight, or control of their limbs. One was even convulsing on the ground, his ability flaring on and off uncontrollably. Since his power was bodily transformation, a wide barrier had to be erected to protect those nearby.

Then there were others whose symptoms defied any logic. If someone only suffered symptoms similar to mundane exhaustion, they could count themselves lucky.

To outsiders, these scenes might have looked like something out of a horror tale. But Lusan didn’t fear them. Nor did he pity them. He knew they’d become this way for the sake of protecting the South. When ordinary clerics—those assigned to assist the Cavalry—showed signs of fear or disrespect, Lusan would clench his jaw in anger and drive them out if necessary.

It was hard to believe he was the same man who had endured years of mistreatment at the Grand Temple without a single protest. Now, for the Cavalry, he found himself ready to get angry at the world. Lusan realized once again—he truly liked this place.

And perhaps that was why, even collapsed, he still wanted to stand up and help.

“Pharmacist, can I leave now? I’ve been here too long.”

From not far away, Kanna’s voice called to Inon. Technically phrased as a request—but more like a quiet declaration.

Her face was half-covered by a handkerchief soaked with blood, and beneath the dried red stains, her original skin tone was hard to see. She hadn’t had time to properly clean herself, but she stood tall, leaning on a staff, looking down the hill.

Far below, she could make out Kachien directing the members and maintaining communications. Normally, that distance would have been too great to sense anything. But Kanna, having pushed herself to the edge of a power overload, was currently unable to regulate her ability.

Data poured into her head indiscriminately, from any distance. It hurt like hell, but at least it meant she knew Kachien’s condition. He was doing everything he could to fill the gap left by Kishiar and Kanna’s own absence—straining himself just as hard. Watching that, Kanna couldn’t bear to stay lying down.

“If you go now, you’ll collapse again.”

“I still have to go. I’ll do my best not to use my power. I just want to help Kachien.”

Her tone was firm. Inon looked down at her, sighed (or maybe cursed), and handed her a small pill.

“Of course you'd be his friend... Take this and go.”

“Yes.”

Kanna didn’t even ask what it was. She took the medicine and swallowed it without hesitation. She worried for a moment that she might accidentally absorb some information through contact—but strangely, nothing came from Inon.

‘...Wait. Isn’t it always like that around Inon?’

When Kanna was near people more powerful than herself—like Kishiar, Yuder, or Nathan Zuckerman—her ability rarely worked. That strange incident with Yuder’s gloves had been a rare exception. One that drove her into frenzied training.

Now that she thought about it, the pharmacist standing before her might fall into the same category. If that was true... did Inon possess some kind of power as well? The thought barely formed before a new wave of random information forced itself into her mind, making her stumble and gasp.

Fortunately, the pill was already dulling the pain—its effects were astonishingly fast.

“Thank you. I’ll be going now.”

Kanna turned and left the field clinic. And just like that, the thought of Inon faded from her mind as naturally as if it had never existed.