Once the enemy mage disappeared between the smoke, Velvet looked at Alrai, thinking.
He looks in a bad state already, and using all those spells in succession tired him out even more.
Mages that fought in direct combat were very powerful, but they tended to run out of steam and magic very fast. On the opposite, support (or debuffer) mages like Velvet carried and used diverse items and charms to maintain a good state for a longer time. The magic needed to use and make charms was very little, and the only thing she did that used more magic was exploding her paper figurines.
Alrai still tried to look good and dandy, a smirk on his lips. She spoke.
“How does the money from winning a battle get distributed if we are two?”
“It splits in half.” Velvet's look towards him became slightly dangerous, so Alrai raised his hands. “Hold your horses, teaming up is better in the long term. Or were you really planning on fighting everyone on your own?”
“Velvette versus the world.” He mocked.
Why are you making my name longer…?
“I wasn’t planning to. Just winning enough money for stuff it’s fine for me.”
Still, she had the Skull of desire, who, matched with Alrai’s own passive abilities, made them become the metaphorical version of a light in the dark.
They possibly had to fight everyone else, and, since Velvet didn’t care about victory, only benefits, the longer she could drag Alrai to fight, the more she would end up winning.
“I’m going to dig up my stuff. Help me.”
“Shouldn’t I watch for ambushes instead?”
“I don’t trust you enough for that. Start digging, comrade.”
Velvet made it so that she was digging the charms in the safest zones, controlling Alrai’s movements, and Alrai the ones in the most difficult to control zones.
Never trust a Gambler.
They worked in silence, and ended up catching another stray mage, who stepped on a still buried weakening charm.
“Tough luck buddy.” Said Alrai, before swiftly dispatching them. Velvet saw him moving his foot over something.
“Stop, give me that.” She extended her hand, like she did when the kids grabbed a lizard or some fancy bug.
“Oh? Are you now even stealing spoils?”
“If it’s not dangerous for me, I’ll give it back.”
“It’s not dangerous.” He saw Velvet not lowering her hand. “Miss you’re treating me too roughly.” She still didn’t lower her hand. “This is clown abuse.”
“You are not a clown, you are the entire circus. Gimme that.”
Alrai scoffed, before kicking something in her direction. It was a piece of wood.
Velvet picked it, turning it around. Some words were written.
“Hahahahaha! Oh, you should’ve seen your face!” He dodged when Velvet threw the piece of wood to him.
I’m really going to blow him up…
“Let’s move out, we have mages to hunt.”
“Ladies first.” Alrai made an exaggerated motion with his arms.
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“After you.” Velvet mimicked his movement.
“After me.” They started walking, and Velvet sent two figurines behind her, to warn against surprises.
A few notices sounded here and there on her necklace, of the fights that happened. Velvet used the few minutes of calm to make charms of the Gambling Paradigm. Not for her, since the risk of losing was big, but for Alrai, in case they found a strong opponent. If, IF he behaved.
The Knowledge Paradigm was specialized in playing a supportive role, so it was stupid to let some… difference in morality prejudice her skills. Velvet could play solo, but she definitely shined as a team player!
That’s what she told herself, at least.
Also, the more Alrai lasted, the more benefits she would get. So supporting him was a long term plan.
So what if he’s Ethra’s… whatever their relationship is. As long as it benefits me, I’ll even team up with Siberina! … Well, maybe not, depends. I still should get ready to get rid of him, gamblers like backstabbing too much.
“What are you scraping back there?” He asked, stopping whistling.
“Something to betray you later, do you have any preference? I take requests.”
“Not hitting my face, or my crotch.”
“You do have a very punchable face…”
“Yes, he definitely does…” Someone softly hissed in front of Velvet… and behind Alrai.
Both of them jumped in different directions, away from the stranger.
The stranger, a woman with sharp eyes, sharp nails and sharp… everything, actually, seemed to uncoil herself from the ground and part of the wall, until towering over them, at more than two meters and half.
Velvet flinched, she had no idea about what Paradigm she was from.
The long woman looked at Velvet, licking her lips with a long, sharp tongue.
“A fellow Ophidia, cute. Not that it will help you now.”
Ophidia?
Champion? Thanks for the warning, I guess…
“Oh, madam, was I waiting for you!” Alrai shouted, extending his arms. “My ticket to recovering my ranking.”
“Sh-sh-sh” The woman laughed. “Cute Alrai, always so feisty.”
Feisty, yes, cute… I guess there’s tastes for everyone.
“Yes to both of those. Now, check this out.” He extended his hands, but this time he made them face down.
Vibora turned her body all the way, facing him.
Boom!
She crouched, first dodging Velvet’s figurine that exploded next to her head, and then crawling up the wall, making Alrai’s knife cut miss.
“Putting yourself just in the middle of the moment we were having…” Velvet caressed her face with a fake, disappointed sigh. “Overconfidence only looks good on me, you know?”
Vibora scoffed at that, just before using a tendril that came from her body to hit Alrai, who had sneaked close to her.
Alrai rolled on the ground, and then he raised three fingers at Vibora.
She squinted, not wanting to fall in another tra-
Boom!
The tendril she used to kick Alrai exploded, another figurine gone.
Six remaining. Velvet thought.
Vibora hissed, deciding to crawl all the way up, away from them.
“C’mon, don’t be a bad sport. Get down here.” Alrai mocked, getting close to Velvet.
“What do you know about her?” She asked.
“She’s a friend of my father.” Velvet’s mouth twitched at that.
Vibora started… mutating, her body becoming brack tendrils that covered the ceiling, and started running down the walls.
A hissing sound surrounded them, and then, the tip of the tendrils parted, a mouth, fangs and eyes on every single one of them.
There were around a hundred snakes… Until something rang, and they became half.
A penalty? So she has an Esca more open than us…
That meant more experience.
“We need to take her head to get rid of those.” Alrai whispered in her ear.
“So? Do I distract her and you knock her out?”
“You don’t trust me nowhere enough for that, dear. So get up there, or get her down here, but you’re the one doing the coup de grace.”
Velvet scoffed, before giving a stack of charms to Alrai.
“They are luck charms. Use them to your own discretion.”
“Oh, I just love being pampered!” He laughed, before activating a few and jumping at Vibora’s tendrils, chopping some of them with his knife.
Velvet looked upwards, towards the dark center from where the snakes were being born. She had made a few charms with the two dream symbols, and she was ready to use them.