“Fire!”

A barrage of explosions shook the city.

Krullu impatiently tapped his two pronged foot. He observed countless of magic barriers cushioning his cannon fire before impacting. Though the cannonballs shattered the Dragonkins fortification, they couldn’t be as destructive as they were normally because of magic barriers made of light to reduce the impact.

“They’ve got very experienced spellcasters. This isn’t good. We’re running out of ammunition. Why did I send Ainig back?”

Both sides fought a fierce battle. Since the clash between the Dragonkins and Scalemen began, neither forces gave their foes a inch.

“Krullu, we’re ready for the next batch!”

“It’s by your feet, dingus. I already told you!”

He was fed up being worked to the bone. It was do this, do that and after accomplishing one, another task would be assigned to him. He would come up with methods to finish his work quicker, but it only tired him out quicker.

Krullu observed the main path infested with Dragonkin Zealots. He looked at a street plaque, only noticing the Scalemen army hadn’t moved as far as he intended. This was going to be a long fought battle.

Krullu returned to his duty, thinking how he could find time in between battle to rest his eyes. He dutifully scooped fire medicine into readily available batches for the cannon operators. As he passed baskets to the operators, a pillar of light crashed into the line of his defenders.

“So this is where you cowards hid your machinations!” Justiva roared.

The Alven Crusader’s shield absorbed magic, shining brilliantly bright then unleashed a shockwave capable of knocking back Krullu’s defender.

Justiva’s astral body faded like a ghost and reappeared in front of Krullu. She reeled her lance and thrusted.

“Eek! Wait- wait! Wait just one second! Help me!”

Two Lizardmen lunged forward to defend him. Their spears stopped short against the Crusader’s heavy plated armor. A shield hovered over a Lizardman and crashed down, crushing its spine.

Krullu immediately secured his barrel of fire medicine and wheeled it away. Aware it was the ‘other’ Oracle’s companion, no one guarding him had the power to confront her.

“Defend my babies, don’t let her destroy them!”

Just as Krullu gave the order, a crescent wave of magic demolished one of the five cannons. Everyone in its trajectory were sliced in half by magic Justiva hurled.

“No! How could you! Did you know how much time and effort I spent to make one?!”

“Such devious devices must be destroyed.”

“They’re not devious! They’re revolutionary!”

“They are dangerous and must be put down. For that, I must sever the root before the method of creating them spread!”

Justiva performed another [Phantom Step] and landed in front of Krullu. Before the Alf was able to turn Krullu into skewed lizard, she sensed the slicing wind approaching. She raised her shield to block an arrow, but when she looked down another one had pierced thigh from the opposite side.

“I thought Rogus had gone to take care of the Archer.”

Justiva side eyed Krullu, knowing she must claim the chameleon’s life. She twisted her heel and dragged her lance.

Two arrows came at her from different trajectories. Fortunately, [Astral Body] did not return any physical harm to the main body and possess a strong physical defensive barrier around the projection. However, it was fragile. If the defenses were breached and the projection was hit a certain number of times or with enough force, it would be forcibly dispelled.

Justiva was close to accomplishing her task, but she knew she wasn’t quick enough. To save the long recast time of [Astral Body], she used [Phantom Step] to stand at a safe distance.

“I’m saved!” Krullu cried. “I got to hurry and get my babies away! Hey you, start moving my precious cargos! Can’t you see there’s an enemy here?!”

“You won’t escape!” Justiva raised her shield against an arrow drilling the surface of it. She took a deep breath and her voice echoed over the battlefield. “Lidian, I have located the site of the enemy’s cannons, but I am under barrage! I request assistance!”

At her beckon, an invisible wall intercepted the next projectile.

Under the covers of her ally’s protection, Justiva hurriedly chased after Krullu and the Scalemen fleeing. Her [Phantom Step] could close the gap, but it was her only means of escape if another arrow blindsided her. She raised her sturdy shield, ramming down the wall of Scalemen trying to slow her down.

“Over here!” A young girl yelled at her using the language from Xu, Zuxin.

Justiva spun around and deflected the point of a sword away from her face with her gauntlet. She caught an eyeful of the Archer’s appearance.

Black silky hair, emerald eyes and a broken blood colored horn, a Devil Folk confronted her. The Devil Folk owned two types of bows slung over her back but carried no quiver.

“Who are you? Name yourself!” Justiva brandished her lance to create some space.

“You don’t need to know. I don’t plan on getting acquainted with you anyways!”

The Devil Folk quickly vanished right in front of her. No, her foe ducked and used an unfamiliar footwork to land at Justiva’s flank in a split second. While Justiva powerlessly stood in one place, the Devil Folk unleashed a flurry of slashes passing by.

Luckily, they were shallow strikes. The magic shielding provided by [Astral Body] endured the attack.

“Be careful Justiva!” Lidian’s telepathic voice echoed in her head. “She’s the Archer Elius wants gone!”

Before Justiva could reply, the Devil Folk retreated and reached over her shoulders. A handful of arrows were seen drawn from an invisible space and was soon found to be loosened at Justiva. Two of the projectiles erratically zipped around in various impossible angles.

Justiva caught glimpses of small flashes around her. A shield facing only to the front was useless at the hands of this tricky enemy. The Alf found herself expending more magic than needed to defend herself. She tanked the fan of arrows then [Phantom Step] to dodge the two projectiles aimed at the back of her neck and closed the gap.

Once she put the Archer in range, three arrows appeared in front of her as if they were reactivated from stasis. Justiva leaned her head as far right as she could, barely dodging the three soaring at her. However, one arrow managed scrape her face.

“Curses!” Justiva grunted, quickly recovering her posture.

The Archer swapped to her sword as did Justiva after tossing aside the bulky lance. The two clashed blades.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Justiva was one of the Crusaders of the Paladin Orders. As such, she was most familiar wielding spear and swords. They were a crusader’s main weapon of choice and trained with them extensively before they were allowed to expand their expertise in other weaponry.

She was battle hardened by many Easul’s crusades. She would not be defeated by a young girl who focused on Archery in a sword fight.

“Allow me to state my name, nameless Archer. I am Justiva Lawainberth. Chancellor Elius has commanded me to claim your life!”

“You’re the one who attacked us with the Ogre. Where is he?” The Archer asked.

“Are you after Haku?”

“Haku. En. I am looking for him.”

“I’m afraid I cannot inform you of his whereabouts.” Justiva replied, unleashing a spurt of strength to shove her foe back.

The Alf tightly grip her sword and thrust forward, chasing after the Devil Folk. She saw the Devil Folk leaned to the left, with the blade on her backside, leading Justiva’s sword away and took a step forward.

Her attack was parried, but thankfully Justiva blocked the counterattack by a hair. If she had pulled her shield arm back a second too late, the Archer would’ve cut through the physical barrier and ended her [Astral Body].

Without missing a beat, the Archer closed in and wailed at her shield. Countless strikes battered her with little to no openings for Justiva to take the offensive. They were sloppy strikes and without form, perhaps trying to buy time.

“Tomoe, get clear!” Krullu shouted.

“En, leave rest to you!” The Archer, Tomoe, suddenly turned tail and fled.

Justiva wanted to pursue her, but the sound of hollow containers snatched her attention. She could not react to small explosives dazzled and loud noises deafened her. Two of her most dominant senses were robbed, leaving her to turtle up from being peppered by countless arrows.

“Where has your honor foregone using cheap tricks like this?!”

“Tell that to the Dragonkins for tryna bully us out of Stusis!” Krullu shot back. “Hit her with everything you got tenfolds! She destroyed one of my precious creations!”

“Tch. It seems I won’t be able to end this here.” Justiva dug into her satchel for a talisman trinket. “O’Light Elemental! Eminence of the Holy Creator, hear me! Deliver judgement upon the unfaithful. In exchange, this vessel of under your blessing shall sacrifice its body to rid of plague known as evil! Ank, Ulos, Pik, Cirk, Exlas, Bast, Ruh!”

Justiva’s body illuminated brighter every passing second until enemies surrounding her were hit by a blinding light. Visible cracks appeared over her spectral body when she discarded her equipment and dashed towards Krullu.

Lily quickly pulled down her goggles to dim the surroundings. Though her view of field had drastically shrunk, the tainted and smudged glass allowed her to roughly locate Justiva.

She launched a flurry of arrows under the explosion of light. Unfortunately, layer of magic barriers interfered with each of her projectiles.

“Krullu, flee!” Lily shouted before sliding into a building for cover from a barrage of tiny stars.

The area was painted in white light as Krullu’s life flashed before him.

A boulder suddenly ruptured from the surface, catapulting Justiva high into the sky before her [Astral Body] exploded like fireworks in the sky. Powdered sand rained down.

Hit by a shower of sand, Krullu came to his senses and touched parts of his body for injuries. He was alive.

“Krullu, are you sssafe?” Hilaqi hissed. “I’ve come to enlisssted my aid.”

“Hilaqi, you bastard! You saved me!” Water bawled out of his eyes. “Thank you-!”

“I however, request your asssistance! The vanguards are being threatened by-!” Hilaqi stopped mid sentence.

He pulled down his blindfold, casting his cursed gaze at a Dragonkin shooting straight at him.

“False Valiant! I not know how you came to possession of those eyes. I shall bury that accursed glare of the Azure once and for all!”

“Is that…- Kaz’Bruk?!”

“Krullu!”

“I need time!” Krullu waved over to a group of standby Lizardmen. “Hold off the enemy until I get back! I need a few minutes!”

Hilaqi clutched his staff close, but the Naga was beaten around. He found it difficult to go on the offensive after being handicapped from his last encounter with Kaz’Bruk.

The Naga swiftly chanted a spell, scraping his staff along the ground and hurled a buckshot of stalagmite straight at the Dragonkin. He quickly slithered through debris. His elongated body trashed empty stalls, using them as cover from the the Dragonkin’s glaive and lunged at Kaz’bruk.

Kaz’Bruk blocked the bludgeoning blow. Embers sparked out of his mouth.

“I ssshan’t allow it!” Hilaqi’s gaze met Kaz’Bruk’s. “Now, attack!”

The Scalemen rushed the lone Dragonkin with weapons.

“Foolish Heretics! Burn in Crimson’s fire!” Kaz’Bruk’s glaive radiated with scorching air. “Sei, Ulos, Larv, Gruk, Exlas!”

He shoved Hilaqi off and after thrusting the tip into the ground, a blast of fire centered on him knocked everyone back. The flaming shockwave burned the scales of unfortunate victims caught within its radius.

Kaz’Bruk watched many of his foes burn in agony. He swung his glaive indiscriminately, beheading and severing limbs as he rushed towards Hilaqi.

“Fall, false Valiant!”

The air suddenly cracked. A sharp pain grazed his shoulder.

“Dammit, I missed!” Krullu cursed. “The next one won’t miss numbskull!”

The Chameleon aimed a replica of Kihet’s firelance at Kaz’Bruk. The burning wick in his hand hovered over a second loaded one.

----------------------------------------

After the blinding flash of light engulfed the skies, Lily found herself taken cover in buildings. She lifted herself off the ground with a nearby table supporting her.

Lily surveyed the state of the building as the battle continued outside. Curious, she gently touched the dusty counters and spotted worn sculptures of animals, people and a set of building resembling a farm.

“I wonder what it was like when people used to live here.”

“I too wonder. Devil Folk, would you be so kind as to indulge yourself of my thoughts?”

Lily drew her bow and aimed it at a Fairy revealing herself from the quarter next door. Tiny wisps of light flutter around the Fairy like fireflies. She boldly strode into the room as Lily and reached for a small frame on a bookshelf.

As she didn’t pose an immediate threat, Lily glued her eyes on the Fairy with her bow still drawn.

“Perhaps a sudden disaster forced the people to evacuate. Perhaps a plague had killed them off. Who knows? All they left behind were memories, but sadly even those have been defiled by the Towers.”

The Fairy tossed the frame at the counter next to Lily. Lily took a quick glance and saw the faces of a family who once happily lived here covered in black ink.

“Who are you?” Lily asked.

“I am Lidian, my dear. As Justiva had failed to defeat you, the mantle of responsibility of your death have been donned onto me. Fortunately for you, I do not find myself besting you with my abilities.”

“Are you going to attack me?”

“Yes. Even if the result is the end of my life. It is because Elius desires so, I am willing to sacrifice myself for his happiness.” The Fairy’s cynical smile stretched ear to ear, wider than any smile Lily witnessed. “For his sake. Please die.”

Lily shuddered. She loosened her arrow to test the Fairy’s reaction speed when suddenly her arrow phased through her target. She heard footsteps rushing her from the shadow and raised her sword to block a dagger emerging at the last moment.

She took a swing, but Lidian’s figure sank back into the shadows of the darkest corner before her blade reached. Little wisps took the place of the Fairy and buzzed towards her.

Lily rolled for cover as projectiles hammered furniture where she last hid. As Lily moved, she expertly saw a chance to thread an attack within the storm of magic. She prepared her sword as she inched closer to Lidian, finally kicking off the wall and went in for an overhead slash.

“Ank, Maks, Ashent, Exlas, Val!”

Ank for the element. Maks, solidifies and Exlas for expanding the summoned elemental. Lily was unsure of the meaning of other magical words, but she interpreted Lidian’s spell was to conjure a barrier.

She quickly landed on the invisible screen with her feet and leaped over it.

“Chain magic! Dupil!”

Lidian managed a second barrier to stop herself from being decapitated. Lily’s sword stopped short from beheading her.

“So very close. Here I thought you weren’t acquainted with the ancient words of magic.”

“I’ll show you.” Lily scattered her Origamis in the air.

Many cranes and dragonfly shaped paper figures suddenly flocked around Lidian.

Using this chance, Lily ambushed the Fairy using [Waning Moon, Falling Petals]. Before she could end the battle, Lily noticed a tremor closing towards her.

A golden shield suddenly crashed through an opening, throwing splinters and wood chips into the room. Amidst the chaos, the intruder brandished her lance, targeting the supports until the second floor of the building collapsed on them.

While Lidian was sheltered under Justiva’s protection, debris buried Lily.

“See? Just as Elius said. Trap the Archer within confine space and she would be unable to utilize her bow to her full capability.”

“I have never doubted the chancellor’s words. Let us capture the Archer before joining up with the Scalemen.”

“I’m too fragile to do labor work. You do it.”

“You can do the minimum but watch my back.”

“You got it~.”

Unbeknownst to both of them, their conversation was being eavesdropped.

Lily snuck away behind ruins and repositioned her orbs. She was lucky the alleyway exit was close by, allowing her to escape before it all crumbled down on her.

With her orbs in position, she aimed for Lidian being lax at her surroundings. If the Fairy was eliminated, the bulwark of the Dragonkins’ defenses would shatter under Krullu’s cannon fire.

She drew her bow and observed her enemies. Their guard was down, making it the perfect opportunity to launch a sneak attack.

Or supposedly she thought.

After revealing herself, would she be able to defeat Justiva on a head on fight? Lily only won their last battle because of Krullu’s support. Also, she never fought against a caster without Kihet’s help. Who knows what other tricks the Fairy had?

Lily decided a tactical retreat was her best option. Keeping her breathing to a minimum, she tiptoed away.

“That’s enough. She escaped.” Lidian smirked. “I’m surprised she didn’t bite.”

Just as Lidian was about to report to Elius of her encounter against Lily, the ground below violently shook, and a column of thick smoke rose from the bottom of the Tower.

“Justiva, order all Dragonkins to cease attack and withdraw to the Tower immediately! My dear is in trouble!”