"Huuu..."
Aurora inhaled slowly.
The entire battlefield seemed to be quiet with her breath.
Her stance shifted almost imperceptibly.
Her left foot slid half a step forward as her spine straightened.
The sword lowered slightly, angled toward the ground as though she were abandoning aggression instead of preparing it.
For a moment, nothing happened, but just then, the air around her changed.
It was subtle at first.
The faintest distortion curling around her silhouette, like heat rising from stone.
Her auburn hair lifted slightly even though there was no wind. Her red eyes sharpened, and in that gaze, something changed.
Swish...
A thin strand of strange grey energy began forming along the tip of her sword.
It was not bright and did not glow like common Sword Qi.
It clung to the steel like ash carried by breath, flowing slowly, wrapping around the edge in a narrow stream.
Gray felt it before he fully saw it.
