Kieran's eyes sharpened.
"How?" he asked.
'If there's even a chance that Iron-ranked Awakened is close... I have to find them. I need to get out of here, train, grow stronger—then come back prepared.'
Because right now?
He didn't even know how to use his powers properly.
He couldn't control mana.
And the first god candidate he'd encountered was someone strong enough to 'terrify' Alexa.
'Fuck.'
This was way out of his league.
'I have to leave. This isn't cowardice... it's survival.'
If he died now, everything—the system, his goals, Alexa—would all be for nothing.
If Alexa were at full strength, maybe this fight wouldn't feel so hopeless.
But she wasn't.
And throwing themselves into a suicidal battle wouldn't help anyone.
"I would've told you to use Aetheris," Alexa continued, "but at your level, you'd burn out almost instantly. Wasting Aetheris now would be reckless. So... you'll have to use 'mana'."
