My legs gave out just as I was about to make my way out of the jail cell. Dane quickly came to my aid and helped me stand. I needed his help, even just to walk. We moved through the halls and into other rooms together. To my horror, all of the guards and officers lay dead on the floor. They must have murdered each other based on the fact that their weapons impaled each other.
Dane retched at what he saw, the horror of it all too much for him to handle. Even though I was already familiar with the harsh reality of battlefields and murders, the sheer scale of carnage here still sent chills down my spine.
Who was behind all of this? I found it difficult to believe that the mysterious being from my dream could cause all of this.
"Are you alright?" I inquired softly, leaning on his shoulder.
He swallowed hard, his gaze flickering over the scene before us as if attempting to make sense of the senseless violence that had occurred. He muttered, "I don't know," his voice barely clear. "Oh, my Lord. What just happened?"
I gave him a gentle squeeze on the shoulder, trying to console him as much as I could in the face of such horror. "I'm not sure myself, but we'd better move on," I said, attempting to calm the turmoil within him. "There is a chance that this chaos will occur outside. But worry not, I have a plan; simply follow my lead."
With heavy hearts, we continued making our way outside to face the chaos that awaited us. As we emerged into the open air, the true scope of the madness became painfully clear.
People were fighting in the streets, their screams echoing through the air as blades clashed and spells flew. Magicians, warriors, guards - it appeared that everyone had been drawn into the conflict, their faces contorted with fear and rage. However, among them, I saw civilians cowering in terror, their eyes wide with disbelief as they struggled to make sense of the chaos around them.
"It's a massacre," I said quietly, my voice heavy with sadness as I took in the scene before me. "We have to move, Dane; we're getting out of here."
Then I noticed a pitiful sight across the street. A woman, clutching her daughter tightly, pleaded with the attacker, her voice shaking with terror and desperation. "Please have mercy, sir! Spare us; we don't mean you any harm!"
The attacker, unmoved by her pleas, raised his massive war hammer, ready to strike both mother and child without hesitation.
"Madam, move!" I yelled, urgency in my voice, as I prepared one blaze pearl with my left hand.
I took advantage of the attacker's hesitation, which was caused by my warning, and acted. I fired my blaze pearl, and it detonated on impact, engulfing the attacker's face in flames. With a scream of agony, he stumbled backward, dropping his weapon and clawing at his burning flesh.
Luck was on my side this time. The pain in my body was so intense that it blurred my vision, making it impossible to concentrate enough to add another command to my pearl. Each step was agony, but I couldn't let it show. I needed to press forward until I met Gareth and Erina.
As the chaos of battle raged on around us, I spared a fleeting glance at the woman and her child, relieved to see them safe. But there was no time for celebration, no time to dwell on the lives I had saved.
Dane asked me, “Why don't we ask them to come with us?”
I weighed my options, torn between the choices. I could barely walk and had to rely on Dane to walk. However, upon holding my necklace’s crystal pendant, I could feel a flicker of Gareth and Erina’s mana not far from here, seemingly approaching me at a slower pace.
With this information, I decided to agree with Dane. But, we’re not going to take an active approach to finding Gareth and Erina, as it would be dangerous for all of us.
As they expressed their gratitude, relief washed over their faces. “Thank you,” the woman whispered, clutching her child tightly.
“Eric, this person. He’s one of the guards. Look at his sigil,” Dane pointed to the body of the man I had incapacitated earlier. “This is madness. Why would he threaten this woman?”
I shook my head, unable to offer a clear answer. “I'm not sure what happened,” I admitted, suppressing the suspicion that dark forces were at play. “Maybe there has been a coup d'état. I'm not sure myself either. Let's just focus on getting to safety.”
We continued to move carefully through the chaotic streets, eyes peeled for any potential hideouts. The stench of smoke and blood filled the air, making it hard to breathe. I wiped the sweat from my brow and scanned the surroundings, my eyes landing on a small stone building that appeared to be an old tavern. Its sturdy walls promised a degree of safety.
“Let's try that building,” I suggested, my voice strained from the effort of walking. The prospect of a momentary refuge was enough to spur us forward, despite the chaos that raged around us.
As we made our way towards the tavern, suddenly, two combatants burst out of an alleyway, locked in a fierce duel. Swords clashed and sparks flew as they fought, oblivious to their surroundings. The party was caught in the chaos, unable to avoid the fray.
One of the fighters, a tall man with a bloodied face and wild eyes, swung his mace at Dane and me. Dane tried to block with his arm, but the force was enough to knock us both back. The impact sent Eric sprawling to the ground, and Dane barely managed to stay on his feet.
The woman and her child screamed, drawing the attention of the other attacker, a fierce woman with a gleaming blade. She lunged at the mother and child, ready to strike them down.
Dane, seeing the imminent danger, sprang into action. He threw himself in front of the mother and child, blocking the attacker’s path by holding her arm tight. I, despite the pain, managed to shoot a small blaze pearl from a short distance. The projectile grazed the woman’s shoulder, exploding and causing her to cry out in pain as her right arm was blown off.
But the other combatant, seeing me as a threat, tackled me to the ground. The man raised his dagger, ready to stab me. Summoning my remaining strength, I touched the attacker’s stomach and released a substantial explosion. The man’s stomach burst open, killing him instantly.
Dane, meanwhile, was struggling against the one-armed woman. Despite her injury, she was still a formidable opponent. She swung her left arm, slashing at Dane with surprising strength. He tried to hold her back, but she began to overpower him, her blade inching closer to his throat.
"Eric!" Dane yelled, desperation in his voice.
Recovering from my battle, I took a moment to catch my breath, the weight of exhaustion pressing down on me. Dane’s desperate shout snapped me back to reality. I couldn’t let him die.
Summoning every ounce of strength left, I conjured another blaze pearl, my hands shaking as I aimed carefully. I fired it with precision, and it hit the woman in the chest. The explosion knocked her back, sending her crashing into the wall of the tavern. She slumped to the ground, finally defeated.
Breathing heavily, Dane and I quickly gathered the mother and child. We rushed into the tavern, slamming the door shut behind us. Dane found a heavy table and barricaded the entrance. We moved deeper into the building, finding a small back room that offered additional security.
"We should be safe here for now,' Dane said, his voice trembling with exhaustion and a hint of doubt. He glanced at the mother and child, huddled together with wide, fearful eyes. “At least for a little while,” he added, trying to offer them a reassuring smile.
Stolen novel; please report.
"We’ll stay here until Gareth and Erina find us," I added, hoping that they would arrive before other problems arose.
Dane nodded, feeling a mix of relief and lingering dread. The sound of battle outside still raged on, but for the moment, they had found a fragile sanctuary.
Why are healers so difficult to come by? I muttered under my breath. In a world where magic could destroy or save lives, healers were always in short supply.
I sat and leaned on the wall, thinking about the next move. Dane was talking to the mother and her daughter, seemingly giving reassuring words.
I asked Dane to look around for some supplies. There’s nothing better to do in this situation than try to fill our bellies with extra energy. He searched meticulously as he rummaged through the clutter, hoping to discover something edible hidden away.
The mother and her daughter joined in, scouring the pantry and the storage barrels, eager to assist in the hunt for a meal.
After some thorough searching, to my gratitude, they found a loaf of bread and some cheese and began preparing a simple but satisfying meal. Dane tried to alleviate the tense atmosphere by talking and cracking a few jokes, hoping to bring a smile to our faces.
The daughter of that mother came to me and handed me a piece of bread. I thanked her and asked for her name. “Mira,” she replied with a shy smile. It warmed my heart that a kid her age was willing to help and showed kindness.
“Mister, I saw you defeat the bad guys with your magic; why don't you heal yourself now?” An innocent question punched me in the gut, reminding me that my inability to perform healing magic properly turned out to be detrimental from time to time.
I chuckled and replied with an awkward joke. “You know, Mira. Those bad guys would be too easy for us if I’m in my best condition, so I stayed like this on purpose.”
She leaned her head to the left, signifying that she was confused at my response. Not long after, her mother, who was talking to Dane, came over, thinking that she bothered me. However, despite my assurance that I didn’t mind her question, she still took her away from me.
Dane came over while nibbling at his bread. “How’s your condition, Eric?”
“Do I look okay to you, Dane?” I chuckled while also nibbling on my food. Honestly, I didn't feel like eating at that moment, but I needed the energy to recover my mana.
“Besides, you should start worshipping me now. The moment you met me, you got a second chance in life.” I continued laughing despite my heavy breath.
He remained silent for a moment; perhaps my statement reminded him of his previous crime. "You have a deal, Eric. So long as we get out of here alive. He responded shortly after.
"It proves you haven't known me long enough, Dane. I have a secret weapon; I guarantee we'll all come out unscathed." I replied, assuring him.
We spent the time conversing, trying to distract ourselves from the chaos outside. Every noise made us flinch, our nerves on edge. I held my crystal necklace once again and I could sense Erina and Gareth’s mana nearby. Relief washed over me; they were coming. Soon, we’d have the firepower we needed to escape this madness.
Suddenly, I heard an explosion from a nearby building. Dane rushed towards me after checking the windows. “Eric, bad news. A crazy group just exploded that house, it looks like at least one of them is a magic user.”
This could be bad because one of them might have a detection spell to find out our hiding spot. However, seeing that they worked together, I believed they were still sane and not affected by whatever befell most people in this town. Thus, there’s a possibility that we could bargain with them.
“Let’s mo-” As usual, before I managed to finish my sentence, the wall behind me exploded, knocking me and Dane forward.
“Whoa, we found something!” One person in that group shouted, and I had a feeling that he was their leader. As Dane mentioned before, there were three melee weapon users, yet I saw no magic user, only one archer behind them.
“Hold on. We’re harmless here. We don’t want any unnecessary trouble.” I responded to them.
“Ah great. We’re kind of bored killing all those mindless people anyway. So, cut to the case, we want something of value.” He replied as three of them were approaching toward us.
“Alright. I have a pouch of gold here. I don’t know how much gold it contains, but trust me, you’re going to like the amount.” I got up and started bargaining.
The leader stopped and talked to the guy on his right. “See, I like this man. He understands his situation, and proposes to us something of value,” That guy chuckled, responding to his statement.
Turning his attention to me, he said, “First of all, I appreciate the kind gesture, my man, and I could say, I accept it wholeheartedly to avoid further and unnecessary casualty.”
“Great, catch th-” I responded quickly, but again, my sentence was cut.
"Uh, uh, uh, I wasn’t finished. See, we need something else from you to make this whole business exchange fair.” He tried to smile, but it came off as a menacing grin.
“Alright, just say it. I can offer one spell book that I have, you can also sell it for a fortune.” I replied, conjuring my spell book in my left hand.
“Yeah, not really. To be honest, we’ve got a lot of gold from those lunatics that we killed and plundered; what we want now is a bit more… primal,” He paused a bit before continuing. “You have a fairly pretty woman over there with her daughter. Hand her over, and we’ll call it even.”
I didn’t like where this was going, and my worry turned out to be true.
“Let’s make it fair; we need her, you know, for a specific purpose by us three men here. There’s no way we can do it with our sister, right?” His blade pointed towards the archer far behind.
“I understand,” I touched my crystal necklace and smirked a bit upon hearing his proposition. “But before that, catch this, big guy!”
With a flick of my right hand, I snapped a quick blaze pearl, but to my surprise, the guy on the left deflected my pearl, changing its trajectory and exploding on one of the buildings across the street.
"What was that?” The leader snapped, his eyes narrowing. “Just a demonstration,” I replied quickly, forcing a smirk. “My spells are robust, and I could be valuable to your group. I was planning to take them out of town myself and sell them. We could split the profit. I’m talking a fortune here.”
“So you want a cut after we’re done with her?” He said, his interest piqued, but suspicion still laced his tone.
Dane looked furious at my interaction with those raiders. “Eric, what is wrong with you?” He pulled me by my collar. Mira and her mother were visibly shaken, and tears started falling as well.
“You better back off before I burn your pathetic body to ashes,” I pressed my left palm to his torso. Instinctively, he backed away from me and joined Mira and her mother.
“Good, and stay that way. I told you you haven’t known me long enough, didn’t I?” I said that to him again.
“Alright then, let’s not keep this negativity, Eric, right?” He seemed to have caught my name from Dane. “Just throw the coin pouch as a downpayment. We can sort out the rest later.”
I did as instructed and threw the gold pouch towards him. Upon contact, the gold pouch erupted in flame, as I had placed a flame rune trap on the gold pouch beforehand. Yes, I am that good to be able to use any form of fire spell without any incantation.
In an instant, I jumped to the side to evade the magic arrow from the archer. The arrow exploded next to me, but I remained unscathed.
Then, the two guys, who had been silent all this time, sprang into action and rushed towards me. I quickly fired a blaze pearl towards them, but with their instinct, they were ready to deflect the pearl again.
However, this time, before it came into contact with their shield, I exploded it on command, engulfing them in fire. Three down. Well, this was easier than I thought. However, surprisingly, the leader came out of the explosion and darted towards me with extreme speed.
He grabbed me by my neck, held my right arm, and twisted it to my back, dismantling my movement in an instant. “This is too bad, Eric. I thought we would be happy business partners.” He released my neck, took his sword from his back, and was ready to plunge it into my back.
I quickly motioned my left hand to the back and released another blaze pearl, which he blocked in with ease with a rushed magic barrier, shattering it instantly and creating a shockwave, knocking both of us in different directions.
Without realizing it, the two big guys and the leader were closing in fast, ready to strike me down at the same time. Dane was ready to throw his body in my direction, and I shouted at him, “Stay back, you moron! Now I’ll show you why I won't die easily.”
“Erina, charge!!!!” Erina shouted, signaling their arrival. With extreme speed, Gareth tried cutting in between the three guys and me with a spearhead materializing from his right hand. Reacting to this, the leader grabbed me and used me as a meat shield against him.
He quickly grabbed my collar and pulled me as hard as he could, and the leader had no option but to release me. Clearing my position and throwing me away, Oh crap. Gareth then materialized two complete spears in both hands and smashed them in both directions.
All three of them backed off to avoid the fatal blow. When I looked at Erina, I laughed because she was strapped behind Gareth in a piggyback position. She quickly released herself, went over to my side, and hugged me.
“How’s your condition, Eric?” She asked me innocently
"Do I look okay to you?