The whole time, from the moment he sat down, Bao had one of his hands on the grip of the sword, ready to draw it at a moments notice.

"It has been a pleasure talking with you, David." Githmo held up his magic staff, a big gristly stick with a colourful gemstone integrated on one of the ends.

Before the mage could cast any spells, Bao tossed the cup containing the boiling hot tea in the direction of the mage, while he stood up and drew his sword, all in the same breath.

"Fuck! Hot!" Githmo shouted as the tea spilt on his hands. "Didn't your mother teach you not to waste food and drinks!"

They stood about five steps apart, the table between them.

"We don't have to risk our last avatars Githmo! Just dispel the magic and halt the stampede, you can always take over another city," Bao wanted to avoid a fight at all costs, he knew that the success rate was way too low for him and his companions.

"As if I would let my work of the past weeks be for nought! Besides I'm not risking anything here, we both know that I'll win this fight! In fact, I don't even know what you're trying to accomplish by attacking me."

Again Grithmo held up his staff, but the cast time was too short for Bao to interfere in any way, leaving him no choice but to observe how multiple violet magic missiles formed in front of the mage and were launched in his direction.

Bao jumped to the side avoiding three of them, which crashed into the bookshelf behind him. One made a curve hitting him right into the back. Even though thin, the armour stopped some of the damage but at the cost of it being rendered useless, given the big hole.

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Despite the burning pain, he kicked against the table which slid towards the mage whose staff already started to glimmer in a faint blue shimmer again, bringing him down to the ground and interrupting the cast.

"Goblins!" Screamed Githmo whilst lying on there his cloak spread over the floor.

Bao heard steps coming from somewhere underneath him and it didn't need to be a ranger to recognize that it was more than just one or two goblins.

"Ahahaha you forgot that I'm also a tamer didn't you!"

In panic Bao looked around, searching from where the tamed monsters would storm in. The moment he noticed the hatch peeking out from underneath the dirty carpet, it was already too late.

The pile of books resting on it flew through the room in the same second the small wooden door was opened.

A small green head peaked out of the hole in the floor which Bao drove back by poking towards it with the tip of his sword. While doing so he grabbed the nearest shelf and pushed it down on the open hatch. Disgusting screeches could be heard from the tunnel underneath it.

Githmo had already come back on his two feet by now and stood with his staff raised, engulfed in the same blue shimmer of before but this time it seemed that the mage was already about to finish it.

"Fuck!" Bao had no time to stop him nor to avoid whatever was about to come and so he let his shoulders lump down and awaited his fate.

A white, light blue fog flew from the staff right towards him.

Cold.

Freezing Cold.

Bao could move neither his arms nor legs.

Every breath he took felt like swallowing thousands of needles.

"What... What is going on?!" He screamed, the smoke still blocking his vision.

"Simple, your time has come David. It's over." Bao saw how Githmo walked towards him as the blue-white screen gradually faded away.

His whole body, starting from the neck downwards and the room behind him has become a giant block of ice, only his head peaked out.

With a fast chanting spell, the mage melted the ice around his sword and stripped it from his clenched fist.

"Nothing personal David. Maybe, one day you'll get a new avatar and we'll meet each other again."

Bao closed his eyes as the blade hissed through the air, pointed right to his neck.