System Breaker: Surviving Apocalypse with Nine-Tailed Kitsune-Chapter 9: Black Ice

"Just like that..." Kitsune’s voice purred in his left ear.

He felt mana flow through his arm as she ran her slender hand across his forearm. Her heels clicked across the bloodied street, and her fingers trailed down his raised arm.

"Focus now, you can stare at me all you want later, but for now... Let’s focus."

Damon’s eyes suddenly widened just as Kitsune’s hand reached his own. His mana moved on its own, or rather, it was as if it listened to her.

Her finger circled around his palm, and his mana, as if captivated by her movements, followed. Damon paused for only a moment longer before shaking all his questions away.

A third of his mana was already gone, he couldn’t waste another opportunity.

With a slow inhale, he focused on the movement of his mana.

"You don’t have to force it, mana wants to listen," She said as black ice materialised at his palm. Her fingers continued to shape the form the ice had taken, creating an edge as sharp as a needle.

She didn’t have to say another word as she pulled her hand away, Damon already knew what to do.

With a burst of mana, he sent the shard of black ice hurtling through the air.

It whistled through the street for only a moment before it struck the body of the slain Undead Colossus.

Damon’s eyes widened as black ice tore a hole as big as a basketball right through the monster’s body, before it came off on the other side and dispersed under the heavy rain.

He ignored the tug pulling at his core, now two-thirds of his mana gone, as a satisfied smile curved across his face.

"Am I not the best teacher?" Kitsune’s voice cut through the heavy rain. Her heels clicked two more times as she took two small steps toward him. Her slender arms wrapped around his neck like a pair of serpents.

Her feline gaze studied his face with great intensity, but then, just as her lips twitched, her true form vanished. In what seemed like an instant, she turned back into her fox form, dropping to the street with a faint thud.

’Huh?’ Damon’s gaze followed after her, his heart pounding against his ribs.

"Carry me," Her voice rang in his head, "I’ve stayed in my true form for too long."

Damon lingered for a moment, his mind in disarray, before he quickly knelt down to pick her up, placing her on her usual spot, his shoulder.

Then, as his gaze lifted up, ready to head back to the store, he saw Ivy stare at him with a bewildered expression on her face.

***

"You’re dating a fox?" The words left Ivy’s mouth the moment he arrived in front of the store.

"We’re not dating, and she’s not a fox... well, she kind of is, but that’s not-"

Kitsune giggled in his head as he tried to explain the situation.

But Ivy suddenly raised her arm, cutting his explanation short.

"Nevermind, I don’t think I wanna know", she replied with a defeated, almost petrified expression on her face, before stumbling back into the store.

Damon let out a defeated sigh as he followed her inside. Only now did he realise that his clothes were completely soaked.

"My family home is not too far off now," Ivy said, just as he sat against the same wall she was sitting at.

"Same," He admitted.

The building he and his best friend, Kade, lived in wasn’t too far off either.

As Damon turned toward the girl, he saw a worried expression on her face. But there wasn’t much he could say. Most of the outskirts were in ruin, and saying her family had probably survived felt meaningless.

His thoughts then moved toward Kitsune, the way she manipulated mana within his body. Was it because of their bond? Or was it some kind of unique ability she possessed?

The idea of someone else manipulating mana inside of his body was almost terrifying.

’Good thing she’s on my side,’ he thought to himself, before catching himself mid-thought. His gaze drifted toward Kitsune, who was now sound asleep.

A faint smile eased onto his face as he realised she was asleep. Otherwise, she would’ve probably teased him endlessly if she heard his thoughts.

The three of them rested for an hour more before deciding to head out.

The rain didn’t stop, but luckily, they found some raincoats in the back of the store earlier.

The march through the remaining part of the main street was slow. Following the heavy rain, a strong wind had also picked up. It was almost as if the weather, just like everything else around them, had been affected by mana.

But despite the bad weather, it was only when they reached the end of the road that they came to a stop.

"My family home is this way", Ivy said, standing in the middle of a three-way crossroad.

Damon frowned slightly. "My destination is that way," he said, pointing toward the opposite direction.

A moment of silence passed between them before Ivy suddenly spoke up.

"Let’s meet here in two days, at sunrise."

’Two days... Should be enough to get there and back.’

"You sure you can manage on your own?" Damon asked with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

He wanted to lighten the mood before they would part ways, but Ivy’s reply was not so enthusiastic.

"My mana’s almost recovered. I can manage." She said, already turning around.

"In two days... I will see you then," Damon said as he turned around and made his way toward his old apartment complex.