The speechless Journeymen could do nothing but stand there stunned, not knowing how to respond. Technically, they were also quarantined just like the entire northern region of the city near the wall. They have not shown any symptoms but according to the healers, practically everybody was a carrier.
They did suspect that Journeymen would be completely safe as the quality or purity of their life force was so low that the plague couldn’t even survive if they consumed it. At the moment, no Journeyman showed up at the field clinic and it had been more than half a day. One of the Novice Knights ran back to get further orders.
Ebony had one of his Glacial Models turn as transparent as it could and sent it towards the city wall and another to escort the Novice Knight. With Glacial Model at its current level, the range he had manual control over them was more than 10 times the range of his mana sense. Past his Will’s range and they would act according to the last instructions he Willed into them. Once they were out of his mana’s range, he would no longer be able to cast any type of buffs or recharge their mana so they are more vulnerable.
He was trying to get a better grasp of what his Models sensed but that was still a work in progress. It was pointless to cast one of his old perception spheres with them at the centre if they were within his own sphere of influence and once they were out of his mana’s range he had to draw the Model’s mana to cast a sphere of mana to sense things but the feedback that goes back to him through the link of Will wasn’t really that precise.
The remaining Novice Knight briefly explained the message he was here to send. “My Commander said the new King of Trolls is making a move! The seers thought they were on the way but they were already here!”
The militia didn’t take the news lightly. Fortunately, Ebony silenced the report from the civilian’s ears. He used sound magic to warn the soldier of his mistake and he got so shocked he almost fell on his butt. Then he realised that the civilians acted as if nothing happened and continued to harp at the healers to heal them first.
Of course, the Trolls would want to attack the weakest border city. Ebony expected them to have done so long ago. Their numbers already didn’t matter when a limited number could launch attacks at the barrier or city walls at the same time. Most of them were close ranged specialists after all. He kept hearing the talk about other Tides having stronger warriors and he personally saw the increase of such Trolls in Fifth Tide but there wasn’t enough to make a large difference. He wasn’t sure how the Empire and Trolls played war but there was a balance being kept.
The Empire’s public ‘Emperor’ arrived and allowed Second Tide to have a breather but the Trolls did the opposite and also the logical option of bringing their strongest to invade through the weakest point. ‘Finally, a move that makes sense.’ Ebony had almost assumed that the Trolls were greatly lacking in intelligence and was glad to see that he understood at least one move they made. Putting aside whether the Empire allowed them to move like that.
Cap Dwarf was stronger than most Commanders present in Fifth Tide but he was only given a temporary Captain rank. Soldiers only had to listen to his commands if they were in a precocious situation with no official leader of a higher rank. Within the city, his words hold little weight to the military. He was still shown respect for his strength but that was about it.
The alcoholic Dwarf stayed silent as he stared at the sky before his mug dropped, spilling his ale. Ebony looked up along with those that noticed Cap Dwarf’s reaction. After two whole minutes of scanning the skies, the rest of the unit relaxed and complained to Cap Dwarf about the prank.
Ebony continues staring into the distance and looks for anything out of place. Korta wasn’t around and the skies were mostly clear above them. The corrosion cloud further past the walls was the only thing that was above them as there weren’t many birds that dared to come close to Fifth Tide and fly around the area with such unstable ambient essence.
‘Don’t tell me…’ Ebony watched the green cloud closely and was alarmed after another few minutes. The corrosion cloud was moving! Ever so slightly, the green skies were dropping down onto the battlefield and even begun to reach over the city.
The corrosion cloud had been a constant environmental effect for so long that they forgot that it was cast by someone or that it was just a lump of gas that couldn’t be blown by the wind. If that descended on the city, Ebony feared that he might not be able to protect Ning Xin for long enough to escape the range of the cloud. Going underground wouldn’t slow down the cloud at all, it put Topaz magic’s consumption to shame. Even his body wouldn’t last a minute before melting away.
They might be quick on their feet but these clouds went so deep that he was sure it even covered the Troll’s territory. Bubble Hills, Trailane Plains and even a large portion of the Glades would be within range
‘It’s moving extremely slowly, no cause for concern.’ Was his final verdict. The clouds would take a month to touch the city’s barrier if they maintained their speed. Perhaps 3 months before it reached the ground floor where he stood.
“We’ve got no time to lose! Before I move, you have 10 minutes to decide if you want to continue fighting or stay here and wait till you’re no longer quarantined or have no one to quarantine you but yourself. I’m fighting!” Cap Dwarf roared. No one understood his sudden attitude change except Ebony. Ning Xin was sneaking snacks into her belly in her room or something along those lines.
There was a bit of talk going on but the others quickly understood that the fight was going to downscale despite reinforcements each side was getting. Actually, a lot of soldiers were already beginning to talk about packing up and going home. This wasn’t their battlefield anymore. The Masters in the group didn’t even consider, they might be stronger than some Grandmasters but they just didn’t have to risk their lives. This included Hayec and Ayla. Ebony wasn’t sure what was there to motivate the other Grandmasters from staying, if they wanted levels they could find a dungeon. Patriotism? He didn’t believe that these freelancers were so patriotic.
Ebony no longer worried about Arcta that much, the village was in far better hands. He would usually just go with the flow and stay for no particular reason. But now, a strong desire to contest the Trolls’ greatest warrior welled up in him. He wanted to challenge all the strongest fighters he could. Perhaps due to the growing insecurity in his heart as he met stronger people. Building confidence that he wasn’t completely helpless would have to start somewhere and he felt like this was an opportunity he shouldn’t miss. He had confidence when it came to staying alive.
Needless to say, Ning Xin burned with a fighting spirit.
The only reason he wasn’t keen on her fighting was that she was infected with a plague that can grow.
“Boy! Has the battle started?” Cap Dwarf roared with his aura pounding on the young soldier.
“I--I heard they started exchanging spells bu-but I don’t know the specifics.” He was affected quite a bit by the sheer pressure coming from their unit.
‘I don’t feel any violent vibrations, nothing should have hit the barrier or walls.’ A hard impact would cause vibrations and violent shocks would travel far and wide. By entering his range of senses, he could identify where the shocks came from and even how far or heavy the impact was. He guessed that the army absorbed the attacks and met spell with spell. Or thrown rocks…
‘Maybe they throw entire hills or mountains with their strength.’ In the end, only less than 10 of them remained. Athena would likely stay, he sent a Glacial Model to look for her. He knew that she wasn’t far and would pass the message to her. From her reactions, she might be afraid of the plague. She must barely meet the Constitution mark, maybe less. 3000 Constitution was just a rough estimate after all.
The Model that escorted the messenger was noticed by the Journeyman’s Captain. Many of them already learned that his Models weren’t some kind of ice golem so there haven't been any more accidental attacks. The Captain was clearly very busy and vexed about the situation but he still tidied loose ends before dashing over at full speed.
Cap Dwarf didn’t play around like he did with the novice knight. The quarantine was for a large part of the city, after the report that the symptoms could be suppressed there was no problem with them walking about. Frontliners also began to show symptoms of the plague a few hours ago so the plague probably reached further than they imagined.
The Imperial Captain was dismayed to hear that so few were volunteering but it was obvious that he expected it. Getting down the list of people that would join the fight on the condition that they get diagnosed and possibly healed by the crown princess before they were posted out. Mallory had become famous not just for being the crown princess. He already heard many different rumours about how she had both the talent for arcane barrier magic and healing. She was practically a legend in Fourth Tide and stories of her feats and achievements floated all the way here.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
For soldiers, she was far more respectable than any strong mage or knight. He was aware that people talked about him and Ning Xin as well but not to the extent that a Captain was visibly glad to see that they were going to go out front.
His ice magic has got to the point where most Trolls had trouble defending against him. The only other ice mage, the fox lady was a protected individual but while her spells were far reaching and wide area, they didn’t work that well against enhanced life force that shielded a Troll’s skin.
Orren’s party showed the true difference in ability with ice magic and they were far from the strongest Frost Elves. Ebony’s ice magic seeped into his opponents and was hard to remove. The Trolls could cut affected limbs off but not all of them can survive losing a head or heart. Firm Path increased the power and speed of all physical and some magical projectiles. As an artillery mage, he was one of the best support present. He lacked Radiance Envoy’s destructive capabilities and range but that was to be expected. That light mage was very specialised and pretty much built his entire skill set to be as destructive and long-ranged as possible.
As for fire mages, there were plenty amongst the army. Ning Xin had a high affinity for fire magic and her Fortifications let her cover the gap by quite a bit. After 4 months, she pretty much caught up with some of the best fire mages when it came to destruction. She lacked the sheer explosive impact but her cast speed, control and heat of flames were not matched by anyone. She didn’t have a very high Intelligence stat compared to pure mages and her skill levels were low when they just arrived.
Wind and lightning magic felt slightly neglected but he knew she usually used those elements for enhancements and close range only. She didn’t seem too bothered about not having many spells for them at the moment.
Ebony wasn’t bored in half quarantine. Controlling tens of Models to help the civilians while they marvelled or got scared by the ice golems. The healers were thankful to have helpers calm the civilians. In small amounts, his leaked mana was relaxing to others.
Ning Xin tried to hide it but the slightly saltier breakfast and her lighter footsteps told him that she was beginning to fall sick. He let her act tough without saying a word when they had their morning bout.
“Sit here.” He stopped her after the spar and before their individual conditioning. There were stone ledges around the trees at the side of the training field. He usually sat under the tree for tea time. He would have permanently left chairs and tables if they weren’t at a high risk of getting destroyed.
She took a seat at the tall ledge without complaining, “I’m not tired yet.”.
“You’re planning to play around with your new wings right?” He heard her plans more than once already.
“Mmm, so?” Sweat trickled down her neck as she caught her breath after their duel.
“You got a few strands of hair cut when you fought those birds, let’s tie up your hair.” He might have been focusing on Korta’s spell but he didn’t stop checking if she could handle their attackers.
“Wha--! How do you know that? Is your perception that good?”
“I counted the number of strands of hair you have…not last night.” He felt like he had to clarify that he wasn’t staring closely but he realised how it didn’t change anything. In his defence, he was training the sensitivity mana sense and sparring with her hair whipping around just naturally gave him a number over time. He didn’t exactly count them by hand.
“Why, that's...nasty. My hair’s no longer as bright...” Her voice didn’t have strength or anger but she tucked the bundle of hair on her shoulder and furiously ran her fingers through them over and over again.
Ebony was a bit surprised that she wasn’t really bothered by him knowing the number of hair strands she had despite what she said. Her hair colour had changed as soon as she started to play around with compressing her blood. Her bright crimson hair was now closer to the colour of blood and she had been a bit depressed over that. It was still getting darker in colour as days passed.
“I think it’s beautiful. I used to have black hair.” Like her aura softening on the outside, her enhancements cause her hair to glow even brighter than her old natural hair colour. As if there is an on-and-off switch for the combat version of her and the domestic version. He liked both versions very much.
“You think so?” She swung her feet and he took it as a good sign.
“Mmm.”
“Then go ahead. How are you going to tie them?”
“I can do a simple braid.” He knew more than a few methods but he was going for a French braid.
“You know how to braid hair?”
“My father taught me how.” He was actually being taught how to tie rope knots when his father made tying braids a side lesson. Apparently, it was a skill he wanted to have learned earlier in life.
“Let’s see you put it to good use then.”
“It's my first time in a long time.” His mother used to let him play with her hair.
Ning Xin had extremely voluminous and thick but soft and silky hair. It took more time than he thought due to the length of it but he was more adept than he imagined. Must be the dexterity he gained from controlling threads of mana and fabric.
“How does it look?” He conjured a reflective board of ice.
“I like it!” She spun on the spot and burst out her blood wings of flames. The braid almost reached the back of her knees and she was moving laterally by flapping one wing. She felt that she lost altitude with this motion and wanted to practise it but her braid whipped at speeds that caused a terrifying sound in the air.
‘What have I done? That’s a weapon…’
Ebony felt bad for the tree as it had a lot of leaves burnt before he managed to stop the fire from spreading. He leapt in to strike at her after half an hour of watching her fly around. She braked and evaded backwards with two flaps but he frontflip and had a platform conjured to push himself off.
She wasn’t able to traverse the air the same way as her mana platforms weren’t solid or stable enough to carry or stop her explosive speed. Ebony’s platforms were more than durable enough but they would be pushed back if his physical body was enhanced. By moving the mana enveloping him, he can assist his own flight but kicking off solid platforms gives far more speed than gliding along. His 3-dimensional manoeuvrability was better than Ning Xin but that may change as she got more familiar with her wings.
Icicle’s heavy strike descended on her. Her blades were dragged towards receiving the blow and she shot down, barely stopping herself before she hit the ground. With her back facing the ground her emergency brake pushed her to the side. She flew horizontally for a few flaps before righting her body again.
She accelerated back up to him but a reversed Gravity Vortex pushed everything away from him. Nothing a bit of speed and power couldn’t fix. Gravity Vortex quickly settled and turned into magnified gravity to pull her back down and disrupt her charge. Her precise thrust missed and she had to work her wings harder to stay afloat. She charged up for another burst but he flipped magnified gravity the other way and she got sent flying higher than she expected. He then used Firm Path to pull her in any random direction he thought of. This tactic wouldn’t work on the ground as she had good footing, immense physical strength, complete bodily control and her godly intuition.
After 10 minutes of back and forth, “You bully!”
“It’s good practice, right? You should use wind manipulation more, you wouldn’t have lost 7 strands of hair if you used them as often as on the ground.”
“You actually counted!? Wind manipulation is harder with greater disturbance in the surroundings due to physical movement.” The faster she got, the more disturbance in the air caused by her movement and the harder it got for her to manipulate the wind around her. Having large wings flapping on her back must have made it impossible for her to have full control.
The barrier over the training field made her feel constrained so they didn’t continue for long. They couldn’t drop the barrier or stray spells and projectiles would hit a random building in the city. There were only a few others training but now that they were ‘quarantined’ the barrier wouldn’t be shut down. They were still targets with the highest risk of spreading the plague. It was surprising they let Athena out. It might be another quarantined building close by but it was still a risk. As for Korta…Ebony did not know how he burst through without damaging the barrier.
“How are you feeling? Do you want to visit the healers?” He noticed her forcing a cough down more and more often.
“I don’t like their mana poking around me. I’m feeling fine, only a bit hungry.”
“I hope you won’t fight if Mallory can’t heal you.”
“What! No, I can still fight with you!”
“I’ll call Sister Jing and have her bring you to Yvette.”
“I don’t want that! You have to be by my side or you’ll get kidnapped!”
“I’ll go with you. The plague seems weak and Sister Jing can bring us around fast. Who knows, we might be back here before any real battle begins.”
“It has already begun…”
“I doubt it’ll end soon. With Sister Jing having greatly improved her space travel and Yvette’s skill, you’ll be back before the week ends.”
The city-wide alarm rang. Their rented camp had a loudspeaker equivalent magic equipment ringing at max volume.
“We need every able-bodied fighter out the walls, NOW!”
“...” They stared in silence.
Cap Dwarf dropped the barrier and stomped on the ground to summon his giant snakehead and he rode out in style.
“Hey!” Ebony called out to Ning Xin who burst out the moment the barrier dropped. Shouting out loud and without sound magic was a rare occurrence but the masked one didn’t turn back or stop.
The moving Glacial Models stopped what they were doing and ran to the field with giant boxes. Each of these boxes had 8 Models stored in them. Ebony already chased after the naughty girl while hoping his Models knew what “Carry as many boxes to the wall” meant.