Chapter 22 - Improved Magic
Ronald crept up to Agatha and peered down.
Below were two groups of people facing off.
One side were burly mercenaries built like bears, while the other was a woman in a cloak.
The situation was very unfavorable for the cloaked woman. Relying on their greater numbers, the mercenaries had surrounded her.
The cloaked woman tried to break out of the encirclement, but was blocked each time by the mercenaries' archers, taking many hits in the process. Some damaged parts of her cloak revealed glimpses of red blood underneath.
However, it's worth noting that the cloaked woman's sword skills were very sharp, combining explosive power and agility. None of the mercenaries could last more than a few exchanges against her.
This was also why the mercenaries didn't dare engage her directly, as Ronald witnessed when a heavily armored brute wielding a spiked club charged at her with a roar, only to collapse lifeless to the ground a second later like a dead dog.
In a split second opening, the cloaked woman spun and dodged the club's swing, then smoothly counter-slashed to slit the mercenary's throat.
From dodging to killing, the cloaked woman only shifted a small step. Her motions flowed like water.
The mercenaries clearly knew the cloaked woman was a tough nut, so they no longer engaged her in close combat. Instead, they adopted a tactic of keeping her surrounded while firing arrows from a distance.
Under this shameless assault, the cloaked woman's stamina dropped rapidly. Her motions grew stiff and her footsteps lost their agility. The blood spattering from her body increased.
Sensing victory was at hand, the mercenaries began taunting and jeering their opponent.
"Little lady, I suggest you conserve your strength and surrender. Don't blame me for not warning you about what's coming."
"I swear this is the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. Even the noblewomen in Dragon Fortress aren't as pretty as her. Her skin is as smooth and lustrous as jade... I can't wait to get my hands on her."
"Our luck is really great today to come across such a prize. We'll definitely fetch a huge sum if we sell her to the Elven House. But before that, let's have our fun breaking her in first, hehehe..."
Listening to the increasingly vulgar cries from below, Agatha's face was as cold as the bone-chilling winter frost of the Northern Lands.
The female thief signaled Ronald to go get help, then released her fighting spirit and charged into the battle as a black shadow, too quickly for Ronald to say a word.
After Agatha beheaded a mercenary, the group attacking the cloaked woman also noticed her.
"That wench has help, grab her quickly!!" Accompanying the roar, Ronald saw a squad break off to charge at Agatha.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Agatha was at a high apprentice level of strength. In a 1v1 against any mercenary, she had confidence in victory. But her opponents were no gentlemen, surrounding and wildly hacking at her to prevent her from vanishing again.
A thief's strength was naturally weaker than a swordsman's. Agatha defended with great difficulty, like a small boat in a raging sea, in danger of capsizing at any moment.
Seeing his teammate in dire straits below, Ronald sighed helplessly.
With a stir of his mind, a sphere of light quickly gathered in his palm. When it grew to basketball size, Ronald raised his hand and shot it skyward.
The light bolt trailed flames as it climbed upwards, then at its peak it exploded into three colorful characters spelling out Agatha's name.
This was the newest elemental micro-manipulation technique Ronald had learned. He only needed to construct a shaped cavity within the warning light bolt, fill it with solidified elemental matrix, and the elemental light bolt would take whatever shape he desired.
It was just a small manipulation trick, so Ronald didn't feel too accomplished. After casting the spell, he drew his ceremonial short sword and joined the battle.
What Ronald thought nothing of, appeared as an unimaginable miracle to others.
The first reaction of all teams near the battle site was to look up at the sky.
The mages among them especially had shocked expressions, repeatedly exclaiming "How is this possible?"
Seeing the blossoming light matrix in the sky, Anderson's usual arrogance vanished, leaving a dazed and lost look on his face.
To be honest, Anderson would rather be an ignorant plebeian who knew no magic, so he wouldn't feel this awful.
He clearly recognized it as a basic first order warning spell, but couldn't grasp how the light bolt formed three elemental characters on detonation.
There was no record of such usage for a warning spell in the magic books.
The academy teachers never covered modifying spells this way either.
Who had altered this spell?
Deep bewilderment took root in Anderson's heart. He desperately wanted to meet the caster, and try bargaining for this knowledge...
The moment Agatha's name appeared in the sky, Lagren led his team towards the light matrix's point of origin.
By the time Blazing Rose arrived, the battle was nearly over.
The mercenaries who had given Agatha so much trouble were barely a step above wild beasts in Ronald's eyes.
Ronald didn't even need to summon his mithril flying swords. Just casting Haste and Spider Climb allowed him to dance those mercenaries into screaming for their mommies.
Then he could pick off a straggler, Blinding Light their face, and finish them off with his ceremonial short sword. Lather, rinse, repeat.
After easily dispatching a few mercenaries, the boss decided a tactical retreat was wise. By the time the team arrived, he didn't even need to give the order before his men were scrambling over each other to run.
That was a mercenary's instinct etched into their bones - cocky when the wind's at their back, but fleeting as a fart in the wind when it changes.
The group reunited. Ronald feigned collapsing in relief while ignoring Agatha's complex gaze.
Archer Belinda shot the slowest fleeing mercenary, then drew her dagger to pursue, but was stopped by Captain Lagren.
The captain hauled priestess Carlotta over to check Agatha's injuries.
Though the whole fight lasted barely five minutes, it had been an extremely nerve-wracking experience for Agatha. She narrowly avoided paying dearly for her recklessness, saved only by their formidable new member's timely intervention.
Thinking of this, Agatha glanced complicatedly at Ronald.
As Carlotta healed Agatha's wounds with restorative magic, the last straggler Anderson finally rejoined the group.
He didn't care about his teammates' injuries.
Though Agatha had a nice body, she wasn't his type.
Despite being a woman, her skin was too rough, her hands calloused - only fit as a subordinate in his eyes, certainly not lover material.
Having no interest in Agatha, Anderson dropped the act and directly asked about the earlier spell.
Agatha was confused and could only shake her head quizzically.
Anderson already considered the "modified warning spell" his property. He envisioned being featured in the Magic Bulletin, becoming a mage coveted by noble houses...
Yet now the caster claimed ignorance, shattering his beautiful dreams. Blinded by impatience, Anderson disregarded manners and grabbed Agatha's shoulders, desperately yelling "The spell used to warn us earlier! The warning spell!!"
Oblivious that Agatha was still injured, his grip lacked restraint until her pained cry made him belatedly let go.