Alessandro jumped back and out of the cloud, followed by the enraged monster barreling in his direction. Alessio, Sara, and I quickly got out of the way as the two moved away from the area chased by the rank B behemoth and the remaining members of the pack.

Alessio shared a nod with Sara and then with me. I Mana Stepped before the rank C behemoths, taking hold of as much mana I could and fuelling into my next spell.

“Song of Protection; 3rd Poem; 5th Stanza—Flame Wall,” I chanted, summoning the magic before riding a stream of unclaimed mana to Mana Step away as quickly as possible. Flame Wall wasn’t meant to stop the beasts after all, and I had no doubt that the four could and would trample me if I remained where I stood.

Surely enough, the monsters smashed through the magic as if it hadn’t even been there. Their massive armored body allowed them to shrug off the flames and heat generated by the spell without much—if any, difficulty. I had reached my objective though—after running through the flaming curtain, the behemoths had stopped.

Being experienced delvers, Alessio and Sara chose that moment to assault the monsters. Alessio moved in front, while Sara followed in his steps.

Taking advantage of the behemoths momentary confusion, Alessio bashed his shield in the face of the closest creature, smashing its head sideways and following it up with a chop to the now unguarded neck. The sword bit deep in the less protected appendage, eliciting a cry from the monster.

While Alessio drew the monster’s attention, Sara danced to the creature’s flank. Her long knives briefly flared with a blinding, white light as she charged them with qi and sank them both in its abdomen.

The remaining three behemoths turned to their companion, ready to assist and defend against the attackers. I wasn’t about to let that happen. I Mana Stepped between the monster Alessio and Sara were besieging and the remaining three to cast a second Flame Wall. The beasts, having already faced the spell, weren’t too concerned by it, however. They stampeded forward, charging headfirst into the flames—which was precisely what I wanted them to do.

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“Grow without control. Scorch and render to ash. Lick. Consume. Bring life to that which follows your beliefs and lay punishment onto those that defy them. Song of Destruction; 4th Poem; 6th Stanza—Conflagration,” I ended the chant right as the nearest of the creatures dived into the flames.

The magical fire turned from a deep red to an intense white, crowned by an array of colors of varying shades of yellow, orange, and blue, before eventually petering out on its own.

Conflagration was a powerful spell. A testament to that was the first half of the monster: in less than a second, the magic had reduced it to a charred and smoking mess. The only downside I could find with it was the speed at which the Stanza went through the flames it had access to.

The other behemoths stopped just short of the range of the magic. I had been too hasty in my casting. Had I waited a just bit more, I could have gotten all three. The two watched me warily, thoughts of helping their companion all but forgotten as they split and started circling me as lions would.

I diverted as much mana to the area around me as I could so that I could be better prepared to respond to their attacks. The one on the left moved first. In spite of its size, the behemoth lunged with startling speed, covering the distance between us in less than a second.

I dived out of the way just as the creature’s jaws were about to clamp down on my shoulder. I rolled on the ground twice before hurrying to my feet and Mana Stepping a few meters back to put some space between the beast and me. When I regained my footing and took in the two monsters, I was surprised to see the second behemoth stand where I had been but an instant before—had I not used the arcane magic, I could have been gored by it.

“Waning light,” I started chanting, not feeling like spending too much time on the thought of almost dying—distractions could be fatal. “Dying sun. At dusk, shadows encroach upon our land. While those who have sinned fear their judgment, the pious needn’t, for they will be left untouched. Imprison. Song of Imprisonment; 3rd Poem; 5th Stanza—Dark Nails.”

The familiar human-sized nails of liquid darkness appeared out of thin air, getting both creatures inside their area of influence. I imbued the spell with as much mana I could, yet it was already failing. With their powerful bodies, the behemoths were tearing through the restrictions of the magic with surprising ease.

I spared one look at Alessio and Sara. They were doing fine; their behemoth was holding on by a thread. Seeing the opportunity, I relinquished the control I had over the Song of Imprisonment, pointing a finger in the direction of the exhausted beast.

“Song of Destruction; 1st Poem; 4th Stanza—White Lightning!” I cried, forcing as much power in the magic as I safely could.

The beam of white electricity impacted it on the left cheek, scorching the scales around the area and momentarily blinding the eye as well. Sara didn’t waste the chance. With a fluid step, she positioned herself in front of the blinded eye and plunged her knife inside.

With a strangled wail, the behemoth died—its corpse crashing to the ground immediately after.

Feeling Dark Nails finally fail, I Mana Stepped to Alessio and Sara’s position, remembering how the monsters had managed to cover an even greater distance with incredible bursts of speed.

“Great job keeping three of those at bay,” Alessio said, sounding sincerely surprised as he took in the defeated monster. “It’s no wonder Mr. Scacchi and Mr. Notari want you in their team despite your rank.”

Sara nodded, echoing Alessio’s compliments.

If only they knew.