Before Theodore were two opponents, one with condensation type Aether-form and the other with a long-ranged precision type. In terms of combat, the former would be difficult to deal with at close range and the latter specializes in launching long-ranged attacks.
More likely than not, the two were going to be a fearsome pair to deal with.
(Not that it matters much.)
With a swing of his arm, Theodore smashed an orb he had pulled out from one of his pouches. Once smashed, a thick cloud of smoke was released into the air, consuming Theodore making him disappear.
There would be no fighting today... Or so Theodore thought.
From above him, as well as his left and right, Theodore could sense the spatial distortions and understood immediately that he was at the very center of it. This wasn't just some randomly launched attached. His location within the smoke was being pinpointed.
Invisible talons converged on Theodore's location, tearing up the soil upon where he once stood. However, Theodore himself was able to nimbly avoid the attack. Had it been against ordinary mages, this would have been a deadly strike. For Theodore, however, so long as he was able to detect it beforehand, he should be able to dodge it. Even so, his opponent appeared to know that as well, immediately launching another attack right after Theodore dodged the first one.
(This might get troublesome.)
With a leap using his enhanced leg muscles, Theodore rose above the cloud of smoke. The moment he emerged, his sight locked onto Henrich, their eyes meeting in that very instant.
(His eyes, they're following me. It's as if he's looking right at me this whole time, even through the smoke.)
Without missing a beat, Theodore hurled a sizable pebbled he had grabbed randomly in this garden towards Henrich. It was no simple toss either, as Theodore had used his threads of Aether to form a sling with which he launched the pebble at a terrifying speed, powerful enough to put a dent in Henrich's skull.
Disappointingly for Theodore, the pebble smashed into a thick wall of Aether just as it was about to reach Henrich. Barnaby had intercepted the projectile. It was as they had practiced. While Henrich would attack at long range with his streaks of needle-like Aether, Barnaby would defend him using his high-density Aether-form.
Disappointed, Theodore fell back into the cloud of smoke. Right upon landing, Henrich launched another attack, accurately on the spot where Theodore had landed.
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Theodore was convinced now. Henrich could definitely see him through the smoke, the smoke with traces of fine Aethervoid sand, obstructing the use of Aether-sense.
***
If Theodore recalled it correctly, there was something called the Eyes of Aethersight. It was a mutation that allowed a person to see the light given off by Aether even at their weakest. To those with this mutation, even the smallest speck of Aether would be as bright as a brilliant star in the night sky and could see them even through certain obstacles, be it walls, smoke, or even human flesh.
By looking at the flow of Aether within a human body, an experienced enough possessor of these eyes could even predict what the person in their sight would do before the action was even taken.
For Henrich, it was difficult to master this gift at first, with this world of Aether being so incredibly blinding to him. But eventually, he learned to control it, to turn it on and off at will, and be able to focus on specific objects at a time. Once mastered, the abilities he gained granted him a powerful edge as a battlemage against his peers and allowed him to quickly rise to become one of his master's most favored apprentices.
***
One after another, Henrich kept launching attacks with his catalyst wand, expending his Aether without care. It appeared that he desperately wanted to take Theodore out due to reasons unclear to Theodore, not yet realizing that his opponent was a Demon Lord Larva, just like himself, something that Henrich had already grasped.
As he dodged the attacks, Theodore tossed out another smoke bomb to keep the smokescreen thick. Though it would be useless against Henrich's Aethersight Eyes, Theodore thought that he might still be able to use the lack of direct sight.
Having no intention of prolonging this fight, Theodore slowly moved towards the walls. So long as he could escape, it would be his win for the night. Not to mention, Henrich's attacks were becoming predictable, allowing Theodore to dodge them with increased ease.
Things were looking up for Theodore, yet, he could hear alarm bells ringing at the back of his head. Something was not quite right.
Then, before Theodore could figure out what was wrong, from behind him, he heard the rustling of the finely trimmed grass of the garden.
(He got me! I was played like a fiddle!)
Turning around, Theodore found Barnaby waiting for him. Henrich's attacks weren't getting predictable. Knowing that Theodore was gradually heading towards the walls, the attacks were aimed specifically to guide Theodore to this spot, all so that Barnaby could launch a surprise attack, one that Theodore would not be able to sense in advance as it did not involve spatial distortions.
With his fist covered in a ball of highly concentrated Aether, Barnaby slammed a punch directly into Theodore's chest.
It was a punch with a devastating force, one that few apprentices could defend against. In terms of force, it was roughly equal to that explosion Theodore had set off to destroy the mother slime's core, the same explosion that shattered his ribs despite being covered in his Aetherweave Armor.
Theodore was sent flying, crashing eventually into a carefully pruned bush several meters away. And just as he landed, with expert timing, a streak of dense Aether tore an Abyssal Rift right on top of Theodore.
Without mercy, the unseen talons struck.
***
End of Chapter 113
***