This ability could also be called World Magic, but a more appropriate name would be World Mana, especially because World Magic was already the name of the magic of a certain powerful character in the story.
When activated, her ability increased the amount of mana the user possessed by constantly absorbing the magic of the world. With each circle, that amount increased even more. It was so powerful that if she reached the tenth circle, Valença would have an amount that surpassed several evil gods. Even so, that wasn't everything she could do—this was only the beginning of why it was considered one of the strongest abilities in the world.
"Volcanic Explosion."
From the ground beneath the five of them, lava began to rise. Val'Drakar seemed to sense something, perhaps because he also had fire mana. He grabbed Saitya, pulled her upward, and threw her out of the area. A moment later, a pillar of mana made of lava erupted beneath the four revived ones. The lava mana seemed purer and stronger than normal. That was because the unique ability World Mana enhanced the characteristics of any affinity the user possessed—even those that were not originally theirs—and with each circle that improvement increased.
The three skeletons were almost completely destroyed. The only one who took less damage was Val'Drakar, who covered himself with lava magic and activated his fire affinity to strengthen his defense. Even though he had resistance to that type of magic, the attack had been too powerful to risk taking at full strength.
"Revive."
Saitya used her magic to repair the skeletons. The staff-bearing skeleton, once revived, used illumination magic to blind Valença for a moment and then summoned a wave around the battlefield to increase the abilities of the other revived ones and Saitya herself. Pointing his staff toward Valença, it was expected that she would be blinded—but her eyes remained open, staring directly at him as she pointed her staff and released an Incandescent Ray that shattered him into pieces.
Valença had noticed the spell meant to blind her and used temporary protection over her eyes with fire magic. Since her unique ability also improved her control over magic, it was easier to use abilities exactly as she intended. The best part of this ability was that it continued to gain more capacity as her circle evolved.
'He already did the work to increase our power, so I don't need to revive him and waste more mana.'
Now Saitya would focus completely on exhausting her opponent. Reorganizing their formation, she prepared to advance on the battlefield that continued trembling beneath the Volcanic Crown Field. The ground was still cracked, with veins of magma running between the broken stones of the ruined castle. The heat was so intense that even the air seemed heavy, distorted as if the very space itself were burning.
Val'Drakar landed beside her after throwing her out of the lava eruption and immediately advanced again without hesitation. His black sword carved an arc through the air while fire and lava mana still burned across his dead armor—something Saitya had asked Sairao to grant him.
"If I don't win this, it will be a great humiliation for me, so finish her."
Marvud advanced at the same time from the side, his speed increased by the magic still surrounding his skeletal body. Cescud raised his cracked shield and charged forward like a battering ram, each step crushing molten stone beneath him. Valença did not retreat. Her body was still wrapped in the explosive barrier while red steam continued escaping from her skin. Her ruby eyes followed the movements of the three undead simultaneously while the staff in her hand glowed with concentrated mana.
Val'Drakar arrived first. His sword descended in a heavy strike carrying wind and fire together. The moment the blade touched her explosive barrier, another detonation burst around Valença's body, pushing both of them back several meters while pieces of stone and magma were thrown into the air.
"Marvud."
Hearing his master's voice, Marvud seized the moment and appeared behind Valença with another descending slash aimed at her spine. The blade tore through her clothing and opened a shallow cut across her back before another explosion erupted from her body, launching the skeleton backward again while violent flames spread across the ground.
Cescud arrived next, slamming his shield into her body with crushing force. The impact made the ground sink a few centimeters, but another defensive explosion pushed the skeleton back along with a wave of fire that melted part of the shield.
Even so, they continued advancing relentlessly. Saitya's necromancy did not allow hesitation or pain. The three undead attacked in sequence, trying to wear down their opponent while Saitya remained further back, controlling every movement.
"Fire Columns."
Valença spun her staff and the ground beneath the three skeletons erupted with several smaller columns of lava. Cescud raised his shield to block while Marvud leapt aside and Val'Drakar pushed straight through one of the eruptions using his own fire magic to resist the heat and continue advancing. The black sword collided with Valença's staff in a heavy metallic clash. The shockwave scattered flames in every direction while the two pushed against each other briefly at the center of the destroyed battlefield.
Marvud reappeared from the side and tried to pierce her flank with his sword, but Valença turned her body and released a concentrated explosion directly into the skeleton's chest, shattering several ribs and launching him dozens of meters away across hardened magma.
Cescud advanced immediately after, raising his shield to crush her again. But this time Valença lifted her staff before the impact and released a compressed wave of fire that struck the shield like an invisible hammer. The entire skeleton was pushed backward, his feet dragging across the ground while cracks spread throughout the shield.
'What humiliation…'
Saitya narrowed her eyes as she watched the absurd pressure her opponent exerted even while fighting three enemies of the same circle. For someone so praised and blessed by Sairao, this situation was both humiliating and desperate.
'Damn it.'