~This might be a bit too much for you to handle alone, don’t you think?~ Tia said with a note of concern hidden beneath her mischievous tone.

“I already said it, haven’t I? I’m not alone. I have you,” Althea replied as she shifted into her Lesser Dragon form.

She wound her serpent body around the Golem’s thick arm and tugged it away. The construct followed the force she exerted but not without struggle. When it was going to smash its square fist into her scales, she slithered down, taking hold of its leg instead. Bit by bit, she dragged her opponent away from everyone, just like the others did.

A delicate sigh resounded in her mind. ~I appreciate the sentiment, truly, but I can’t exactly be of much help in my position, dear friend.~

“You are doing more than enough just being there, Tia,~ the Dragon lady stated. “Don’t talk like you aren’t using our mutual bond to supply me with energy at this very moment.”

There was no reply other than an innocent giggle, which made Althea smirk softly. The two had grown even closer than before, all thanks to a certain male they both found themselves enamored with. Who would have thought fate had something like this hidden for them in its cards?

After getting the construct in the right place, she focused on dealing with her part of the task. Slipping away from its close vicinity, she circled above the hulking giant and spewed a vicious stream of emerald fire at her target. It was meant to test the durability and resistance of its joints, just in case. While the general toughness of its frame was known to them already, some weak points could be hidden around.

The Golem swung its arms to protect itself from the fiery assault, its white surface getting charred here and there. But, as expected, the attacks didn’t do much more than that. It might have made things a bit inconvenient for the victim of the grilling, but it wouldn’t leave any lasting marks and injuries behind.

So, she dove down again and snuck on it before her opponent finished dispersing the last of her fire. Wrapping herself around its arm, she flexed her entire frame and tugged at it with everything she had.

Everyone knew how strong True Dragons were, or had been in realms where they were long gone, but people tended to underestimate their further cousins, the Lesser Dragons. Her kind might not be in the possession of powerful and muscular limbs, but what they lacked in that department, they supplied with their extremely flexible body.

When coiled around something like she currently was, Lesser Dragons achieved the peak of their physical strength. Using all her muscles and tendons, Althea was capable of stretching herself with unimaginable force, which transferred that power straight to the Golem’s arm, and especially its joints. It was like a tight spring unraveling, tearing everything tied to its spiraling shape.

Yet, while such a move would certainly pulverize the toughest trees and crush any normal boulder, things were different with a meticulously crafted and enchanted marble-like mineral. She managed to crack the limb here and there, forcing fairly concerning noises out of it too, but that was pretty much all. She didn’t get to rip that arm off like she intended to.

Unable to stay in one place for too long without risking a mighty smack to the head, Althea had to retreat, hearing the collision of stone behind her as the Golem missed the angry punch. Still, there was a chance that repeated attempts would work, wearing it down, so she turned around and captured its other arm.

One attempt after another, Althea picked at the construct consistently. She received a few scrapes, but they were regenerating fairly quickly as her Dryad companion was paying a lot of attention to her important friend. Yet, as much as this tactic was working, the results were way too slow to be meaningful. She would end up dead with a lucky shot before the joints gave in, even if it felt like they were almost there.

Therefore, she abandoned her efforts and increased the distance between her and her target. Switching back to her humanoid form, she reached into a pouch attached to her belt and grasped a handful of seeds stored inside. With an elegant flourish, she tossed them forward, the tiny kernels bouncing on the dark rocky ground. When she snapped her fingers, they dug down, penetrating the ominous soil.

The Golem charged right at her, intent on repaying the beating it had received in the form of somewhat painful stretching exercises. As it stomped over the cultivated patch, a bunch of fresh vines surged upwards. The green ropes slithered all over its figure and quickly tied the mechanical monster up, stopping it completely.

Flailing around, the construct ripped multiple cords with each movement, but with two or three torn out, six took their place. In just a moment, it was fully covered with the insistent nature. Then, the vines sprouted bulbs, which soon opened to reveal themselves as colorful flowers. Each of them released a lot of pollen into the air, which attached itself to the Golem and snuck into the gaps in its body.

A yellowish cloud surrounded her enemy as Althea kept the spell up. It looked quite cute covered with a thick layer of fluffy golden dust. And when enough of the powder gathered over its entirety, she opened her mouth and called in her flames once more.

The explosion that followed was much more intense than her previous attempts at cooking her opponent alive, even if it wasn’t exactly a living thing. Attaining a brighter shade of green, the fire burned mercilessly, sacrificing the vines in the process. It should be led inside the Golem through the traces of the pollen that had managed to infiltrate its system.

And while this approach was clearly more effective than her previous strategies, after all the makeshift fuel burned up, it revealed the construct’s blackened form.

It took a step towards Althea. A slower and more sluggish step, but a step nonetheless. It was still functioning, the damage not enough to fully immobilize it or kick it out of the fight.

~Looks like that won’t be enough.~ Tia sighed in their minds.

“I know.” Althea mirrored her sentiment. “That’s why I’m going to try something different. And new.”

~New?~ She could feel the tree lady frown inside Ast’s soul. ~What do you mean by that?~

“Remind me what’s the core of Nature Magic that we make use of?” the wise mentor asked.

~Well, that’s obviously life. It makes things grow, develop, and thrive,~ the ancient Dryad summed up. ~But, I don’t see how this can help your current—... No. There is no way.~

Althea chuckled warmly. “There is always a way.”

~Do you have any idea how dangerous that’s going to be?!~ Tia raised her voice, getting quite heated. ~And painful, at that?! Every spiritually sensitive being has an affinity for a very important reason! You can’t just ignore it on a whim!~

“I have you by my side,” the Dragon Lady countered fondly. “Not to discredit the achievements of our feline friend, but if she can bear what’s necessary for her to get stronger, should I really be afraid of something much less destructive? Even if lesser, I’m still a Dragon.”

There was no immediate response as Tia chewed on her spiritual lip. With a wave of her hand, Althea threw more seeds around her and slowly backed away. This time, six sizable trees sprouted from the ground and formed a circle around the Golem. Their branches shot towards their prey and restrained it with even more strength.

“If not for the arrangement we have found ourselves in, I would have never even given thought to such a thing,” Althea continued, addressing her distressed friend. “But, contrary to all my expectations, I let myself be bound to a True Dragon. And not just as some insignificant pleasure slave. No, as a real mate. With actual feelings forming the connection. From an individual who shares his love as much as he receives it, if not more. This changes a lot of things.”

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A charming smile snuck onto her graceful lips.

“I’m stronger than ever, more supported than ever, and as mentioned multiple times before, I have this incredibly profound bond with you that has been formed through the male we have accepted and embraced together. You can’t physically stand by my side, but you can spiritually aid me with all your power, just because he doesn’t monopolize it, instead sharing it with everyone who he holds dear,” she added, gaining more confidence with each word. “So, I ask you to make use of this connection to look after my well-being while I finish this once and for good.”

Silence hung in the air for a little while before any response arrived.

~You are insane,~ Tia stated bluntly.

“I prefer the term madly in love.” Althea grinned, sensing the other female shaking her head in amusement.

~Be careful,~ the affectionate Dryad requested.

Nodding, the Dragon lady sat down in a meditative pose. Diving deep into her mind and trusting that her dearest friend would keep watch over her outside, she reached for the very aspect of nature and embraced it. The energy of life coursed through her circuits, swirling lively inside her Dragon’s Heart. It was ready to be utilized for spells, techniques, and any other assignment.

However, Althea was going to do something extremely frowned upon with it.

Drawing on about a fifth of her entire reserves, she separated the cluster from the rest and locked her Heart up. With the proverbial walls put in place, she gathered the extracted fragment in one spot and pressed onto it with her will. As expected, trying to go against one’s affinity immediately hit her with flashes of profound pain, evoking a few grunts of agony.

Tia didn’t sit idly and nullified as much of it as she could, giving her all to supply Althea with regenerative and soothing energy. Thanks to Asterios linking them together, she didn’t struggle with it in the slightest. She wasn’t able to remove all the pain since what her friend was doing hurt her on an almost cellular level, but she made it much more bearable.

Meanwhile, Althea worked on the gathered energy and forcefully converted it into the polar opposite. The greenish mana switched its color to ashen gray and released an ominous chill instead of comfortable warmth. More and more of the accumulated cluster transformed, until it was all changed.

On the outside, the trees lost their natural radiance. Their vibrant shades bleached and their bark turned dark. In just a moment, the Golem was restrained by spooky, withered trunks and thin menacing branches, which weren’t any weaker than the healthy ones.

The difference was jarring, though.

Satisfied with the results, Althea invoked the same spell she had used earlier with the flowers, which were now all withered. A dark rot began spreading from the dead buds and crept onto the Golem’s surface. It threatened to swallow the construct whole, quickly covering its white surface.

The erosion worked wonders, slowly eating at the enchanted stone and external pathways. But, the keyword there was slowly. Since it was something Althea wasn’t used to, it required much more focus or conscious guidance. Not to mention working through the pain and discomfort that plagued her, no matter how much Tia’s constant aid helped.

That was why the construct, most likely noticing its imminent demise if things continued as they were, was still able to display one last struggle and push out of the slightly weakened trees. It broke through the wooden blockade and stumbled forward towards its opponent, who sat on the ground ahead with no real protection.

Tia was about to warn Althea that her plan had failed and it was time to retreat when some kind of force descended onto the Golem, pushing it to its knees. The air around it seemed distorted with whatever energy was weighing on its shoulders, the ground beneath the construct cracking from more than just its weight.

“You had the right idea.” Abyss suddenly stood by the Dragon lady’s meditating form. “The Theory of Opposites. Living beings aren’t limited to just one specific affinity. Yes, we can use all of them to some extent, but outside our specialization, it’s not that effective. However, there’s always one aspect that we can learn to harness at almost the same level. The polar opposite.”

Althea opened her eyes to look at the mocha-skinned goddess, who gazed upon her calmly.

“You are wise. To some venerable. Experienced. But, not experienced in this enough,” the mysterious lady continued. “Your end result is correct, but your method is wrong. You are trying to convert one type of energy into another, which puts immense strain on your source, especially when you are not used to handling two warring aspects side by side.”

Abyss brought her hand up and conjured a fairly shapeless ball of darkness.

“The Paired Universe Thesis,” she said smoothly. “Every aspect is made of two fragments. Just like the Theory of Opposites dictates, they are polar. There can’t be death without life. There can’t be lightning without earth. There can’t be cold without warmth. It might sound illogical, but if you study the truths deeper, you will understand how the elements interact. That is a topic for another time, though.”

Grasping the dark cluster from both sides, she started pulling it apart.

“Instead of forcefully converting one element into another, you can force them to split and return to their origins. We do not have names for those particles, so they inherit their elements from the parent subjects. And no, you can’t infinitely generate them by splitting one element again and again. Each split makes them smaller and you lose the majority of their energy. Nevertheless, that is not a concern when you need just a bit for your technique,” Abyss explained.

With a surprising ease, she yanked the energy with a quick motion and divided it into two. Now, a sphere of darkness and a sphere of light hovered over her palms, smaller than their original versions, as she had mentioned.

“It will take practice to achieve mastery of this profound art, but I believe you shouldn’t have long-term problems with it if you are already familiar with the Theory of Opposites and converted the energies successfully,” the dark lady complimented Althea. “After you become proficient with it, you can consider sharing this knowledge with your mate and other bonded. Now, observe.”

Turning to the immobilized Golem, Abyss nonchalantly hovered closer. The construct was slowly pushing back against her gravity zone, gradually rising itself back to its feet. It wasn’t surprising considering the fact that its golden circuits were working overtime to fight against the weighty oppression. The resistances of its enchanted base mineral were still a tad troublesome for her.

But, not when she was going all out.

Flying up to its right shoulder, she rested her palm against the joint. Sparks flew from the connection, and even more of them flashed between them as she pushed her will into the circuits. A powerful spiritual aura exploded from the point of connection, hitting Althea like a typhoon, and golden lightning discharged from the Golem, jumping to the ground.

The Dragon lady watched as those discharges gradually changed color, from golden to violet. This change spread to the circuits and the stone itself too, turning them from yellow and white to purple and black respectively. Spreading like Althea’s previous withering energy, the altered mana covered the entire limb before something peculiar happened.

With a lot of effort, the Golem reached for the blackened arm, grabbed it around the elbow, and pulled. Its structure weakened, not much was needed for the limb to come free, and with a faint cracking noise, it was removed completely, thrown to the side, and abandoned. It looked like the construct didn’t like the thought of being contaminated.

Therefore, Abyss floated to its other arm and repeated the process once more. Spreading even faster, the dark taint swallowed its target in just a moment. Same as before, it unsettled the Golem, but it had a much tougher time to separate itself from the compromised limb. For obvious reasons.

Yet, the troubled entity found a way. With its posture still lowered due to the increased gravity, it managed to slip its cubic fist underneath its foot and use that leg to rip the second arm out. The released limb flew a fair distance away before dropping to the ground.

The Golem was now basically unarmed.

So, it couldn’t offer any resistance when Abyss moved to its chest and pressed her palm to the very center. A stronger pulse of spiritual energy emanated from her as she attacked the very core of the Golem, undoubtedly being able to find the correct location of the power source. Separating the elements took her a bit longer, but in about a minute, the whole torso was black.

The Golem lacked any means to part with it, and even if it didn’t, doing something like that would most likely not be possible anyway. Thankfully, its input wasn’t needed. Shortly after the process wrapped up, more crackling lightning and sparks of violet shade danced over its entire frame as it shook in place.

Abyss retreated to Althea’s side and the pair watched together as the construct suddenly blew up from inside, a sphere of purple dust and flames forming around the epicenter of the explosion. The ancient woman protected the Dragon lady from the blast, extending her palm ahead, parting the cloud of debris like it was her everyday thing.

When the dust settled, the Golem was no more. Some leftover parts remained on the ground, but they were heavily damaged and crumbled, revealing open passages sizable enough to have been the corridors they had ventured through previously. These constructions truly had been part of the fortress.

“Well, thank you for the lesson, ancient one.” Althea slowly stood up and offered the other woman a polite bow. “I shall meditate on this wisdom when we find ourselves in the comfortable safety of our home once again. For now, have bigger problems to—”

She paused after turning around to check on the other battlefields. One of them was not like the others. The one where Asterios stayed behind with his own opponent.

“Yes... Much bigger…” she whispered in disbelief.