It was at this point that both Nick and his soon-to-be-unmasked opponents came to learn an interesting fact. Not only had the power of his spells been amplified by his new trait, but for reasons he had yet to understand, his wand’s output had been magnified as well.
Before the hunters could react to his abrupt change in behavior, a cone of rippling force so intense that it warped the atmosphere erupted forth, flattening the grass in an expanding hemisphere, like a wave breaking over the shoreline.
The closest beast took the brunt of the blast straight in the face. Before Nick could get a good look, it went rocketing backwards across the earth, revolving head over heels in an uncontrolled tumble.
The other two creatures were caught in the periphery of the shockwave, bracing themselves with heads bowed low like they were standing in a hurricane gale. He only had the blink of an eye before the grass rebounded with verdant resiliency, but it was long enough for him to catch a glimpse of what he was dealing with. Predators unlike any he had seen before.
It turned out that Nick was being stalked by a trio of frogs. Bright red, black-striped arrow frogs the size of golden retrievers.
If their sheer size, bulging muscles, and the strangely angular cast to their features wasn’t sufficient to let him know that these were unlike any frogs of Earth, their jet-black exoskeletons were enough to clue him in. Contrasting against the frogs’ vivid vermillion flesh were glossy black bands of what appeared to be chitin or bone, rising about an inch past the glossy hides below.
It must be some kind of armor to protect them against claws and bites. The ridges and plates will deflect slashes from bladed weapons. Even thrusting between them will be tricky. Nick analyzed the information he had obtained while backpedaling toward the hillside, the boundary of the tall grass now only a few steps away.
The battle had already begun, and he adjusted his strategy on the fly, incorporating the existence of the beasts’ armor into his plans.
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The strange onyx material was embedded into their skin, and likely continued all the way down to the bone, forming an interlocking framework anchored to their skeletons. In addition to protecting their torsos, the beasts’ natural armor formed ridges along the front of the frogs’ limbs. The biggest problem was the series of plates running along their chests, backs, and the top of their heads.
Nick turned to run, processing these details while sprinting toward the hillside, taking advantage of the beasts’ surprise to relocate to favorable terrain. Fortunately, the hilltop was well suited to his style of fighting.
As soon as he had enough room to maneuver, Nick spun around while returning his wand to its holster. He assumed a defensive stance while gripping his sword in both hands, certain that his show of force hadn’t been enough to convince the beasts to give up the hunt.
Unfortunately, on this occasion, his hunch was right on the money. Five seconds later, two of the armored frogs burst out of the grass, stopping for a heartbeat as they prepared to launch what would surely be some manner of ranged attack, given the distance between them.
Letting his opponents fight on their own terms was a poor plan at best, and he had no intention of surrendering the initiative he had won. Before the frogs could complete their attack, he took aim and visualized his trajectory, sending a silver mana dart streaking for each of his crimson assailants.
The first dart struck the closest beast right between the eyes. The predatory frog fell flat on its face, letting out a pained croak while convulsing in the dirt. Nick felt a surge of satisfaction at the sight, proud that his darts were finally packing a real punch.
Half of the wind left his sails only a heartbeat later, when his second spell impacted its target. It seemed that Nick was in for a tough fight after all. Although his dart struck true, instead of hitting skin, the missile collided with the frog’s black breastplate.
To his dismay, instead of penetrating the material, the chrome missile deflected off the mysterious substance, angling down and disappearing into the ground between the beast’s feet.
He wanted to summon another round of darts, but the uninjured amphibian didn’t give him the chance. Its maw pointed straight at his chest and then cracked open, unleashing an attack so fast that it would have ended him then and there if he hadn’t already begun throwing his body to one side. Luckily, size up had gone nuts the instant that the frog’s mouth parted.
As a result, an onyx-spiked tongue as thick as Nick’s wrist went tearing through the spot that his head had occupied a fraction of a second prior, streaking past his shoulder with the force of a battering ram.