Samantha looks at the scene with her binoculars. “Mercenaries are going in.” She says, describing the scene. “Looks like there's a welcome party.” She says with a smirk.

The mercenaries approach the camp and a man, accompanied by several others, was there to greet them.

“Hello.” The man says to the mercenaries.

“Hi. Don't mind us. We're just travelers hoping to ask a few questions.” The mercenary says with a friendly smile, but his friends were immediately on guard. If things went South, they were ready to act.

The man smiles. “I hear you’ve been asking around about a group of mages. Who were you asking about specifically? And which college sent you to inquire about them?” He asks.

The mercenary lets out a bitter smile. “If you must know, it’s the Red River College.” He says as his hand hovers near the hilt of his sword.

The man continues to smile. “That’s all we needed to know. Well, since you came, you might as well stay. Buried in the ground, that is.” He says before waving a hand.

The group of people behind the man immediately take out their wands and staves and in a moment, a barrage of magical energy was sent shooting forward.

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“Shit. Defend!” The mercenary yells as he raises his shield and steps back to form a defensive barrier with the other mercenaries.

Samantha smiles. “That’s our signal. Send in our people.” She says before waving her hand.

As the people behind them began to shuffle and prepare to charge, Serah grabs the binoculars from Samantha’s hands. “Let me see.” She says before taking a look. “Hmm, magic missiles, fireballs, ice spears. These guys aren’t too tough. They’re probably an even match for the students on our side. Even without the mercenaries.” She comments, not too impressed.

“Don’t let looks deceive you. For the moment, they’re dealing with a small group of mercenaries. Some of those students have even gone through three years at the college. I wouldn’t underestimate them.” Samantha replies.

Serah puts the binoculars down. “Whatever. Let’s go down and see what they’re made of then.” She says before beginning to follow the crowd.

…

…

“Shit! We’re being attacked!” One of the mages calls out. “Start using area of effect magic!” He calls out before beginning the spell for a Fire Storm.

Other students immediately catch on and begin to fuel their magical energy into man’s spell.

“Halt!” A mercenary calls out. He very much didn’t want to walk into the red cloud forming in the sky. “Bowmen, ready! Fire at will!” He calls out.

A group of arrows were immediately shot out, one after another, in a semi-steady stream.

Mages from the opposing side began to take hits, as arrows caught them unaware and as they broke through barriers.

The fire cloud in the sky becomes unstable, and it wasn’t long before it imploded into itself before all the gathered energy exploded outwards.

Several mages immediately felt the backlash and were sent to the ground, blood leaking from their noses.

We can’t take any more of this. One of the men thinks to himself. He forces himself to stand and he throws his staff to the ground. “We surrender! We surrender!” He calls out, not caring about what his fellow group members thought.

“Fuck!” Another mage exclaims before throwing his wand on the ground. “We surrender!” He shouts, albeit reluctantly.

Eventually, the other mages saw the trend, and saw that there was no stopping it now. With a sigh, they also threw down their weapons.

“Take them as prisoners!” Samantha calls out. “I’ll interrogate them myself…” She says to those around her.

Serah smiles. “I’ll join you.” She says. Serah had her own plans for these mages…