Another way

{We could add limiter and mana breaker runes to the construct,} replied Arya grimly.

{There's no way we can squeeze two more runes into the construct, that would require another dime...}

{It's exactly what it sounds like. The only other way for me to use magic, is to design a heptagon construct with 14 runes,} clarified Arya, already putting plans into place.

{Arya, I don't mean to burst your bubble, but what you're trying to do is...}

{Imposible? You got a better idea then?}

{No, it's just that even with the help of your eyes, as well as all the knowledge we got from Argen, Cassandra, and their books, we only just recently got comfortable with hexagram constructs.}

{It could take years for us to understand how heptagonal constructs work, and with it being completely new territory, those years could easily be decades,} replied Esla, a sort of pity in her voice.

{Then we'll just have to ask someone who already knows.}

"Ah Leon, are you done?" asked Cassandra as Leon stepped out of her bedroom.

"Yes, thank you," he bowed in gratitude, before handing her a piece of paper.

"Very well then."

"Step back please," warned Cassandra, before using her teeth to draw blood from her thumb.

"What are you doing?" asked Arya, audibly confused by the sudden turn of events.

"I forgot, neither I nor Argen have any books on summoning, do we?" she replied, using her blood to draw a hexagon on the ground. It was about the size of a small table, enough for a small animal to fit in.

"Vocate Noctua," she chanted once she was done, causing the hexagram to glow black. It began exuding a black mist, completely hiding the hexagram from view.

"Is that an owl?" asked Arya once the mist had dispersed.

"An owl? I've never heard of that sort of magical beast," replied Cassandra, giving the black owl-looking creature that had appeared from the mist the paper that Leon had written.

"You really can summon a Noctua! I heard that bonding with magical beasts is difficult even for high-rank mages," fawned Leon, admiring the beast from a distance.

Although it looked similar to an owl, it was actually far from it. The bird stood at 1 meter tall -from head to talons- and instead of feathers, it was covered in black scales.

Both its beak and eyes had a crimson red color, and at its chest was a patch of white scales that looked almost like a star.

"Is that really a magical beast?" asked Arya, studying the beast's features.

"Of course it is, what else would it be?" asked Cassandra, before looking the beast in the eye.

{It's been a while, hasn't it Errol?} said Cassandra via mind link.

{Indeed it has human. Why did you summon me? I thought you quit taking missions,} replied the owl in a deep voice via mind link as well.

{It's nothing like that. I just need you to deliver something. I wouldn't have summoned you if it wasn't necessary, however, I lost my titles and without a proper envoy, the person I wish to send this to would never accept it.}

{You lost your titles? Have the human nobles gone mad?} asked the beast, a sort of indignant tone in its voice.

{Leave it, Errol. It was a long time ago. Again, I'm really sorry for calling you after all this time just for this.}

{Your apologies are unnecessary Cassandra, after all, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't be alive right now. So to whom shall I deliver this to?}

"What's going on?" asked Arya, after Cassandra had been quiet for more than a minute.

{When did you adopt a nestling?} asked Errol as he turned to look at Arya.

{He's not mine.}

{What an odd beast,} it said, looking at his blood-mana system hybrid.

Although there wasn't any actual interaction between them, Arya felt as if his body were being violated.

{You feel it too, huh?} asked Esla, her voice squirmish.

{Deliver it to the Count of Elden, I trust you know the way,} instructed Cassandra finally.

{Very well then. It shall be in his hands in the next hour,} said Errol, before walking towards the door.

"I've never heard of a magical beast that can shapeshift. Are you perhaps from another continent?" asked Errol as he passed by Arya.

"What?" exclaimed Arya in reply, falling onto his bum in surprise.

"Well, it's not my business. This isn't my territory anyways," replied Errol, using a base magic spell to open the door.

"Also, you should get rid of parasite before it becomes a problem," warned Errol, before spreading his wings.

He took off like a jet, leaving gusts of wind in his trail. In a few more seconds Arya heard a sonic boom, before Errol disappeared from view.

"I-I never knew magical beasts could talk," stuttered Arya, finally regaining his composure.

"Yeah, they can talk via mind link to the people they bonded with," replied Leon in excitement, still thinking about how he had seen a real-life Noctua.

"What? That was a mind link? I could've sworn that voice was coming from outside,"

And Arya would know, after all, he spoke via mind link all day.

"What do you mean? You heard it speak?" asked Leon, a skeptical look on his face.

"Didn't you?"

Leon shook his head slowly, trying his best not to look at Arya as if he were a nutcase. Cassandra on the other hand gave a more thoughtful look to him, wondering if what he was saying was actually true.

{I'll have to ask Errol about this later,} she decided, before showing Leon and Arya out.

***

"Captain, the sentries have detected something moving at incredible speeds towards the manor," reported one of the city guards out of breath, his body donned in blue armor.

"Incredible speeds? Is it a dragon?" asked the Captain in a grim tone.

"N-No Captain. They've confirmed that it's the size of a small animal,"

"A small animal?" asked the Captain in disbelief.

"It's an attack, put up the barriers," shouted a few guards outside, to which the Captain dashed out of his office to see what was going on.

A pitch-black creature came swooping down, its figure but a black blur due to its speed.

"Barin" chanted several mages adorned in blue robes, creating a giant blue hexagram over the Count's manor.

"Humans and their trivial magic," scoffed Errol, using a counterspell to break the construct.

"T-The construct," stuttered a few mages as Errol flew past it, into one of the manor's windows.

"All guards head into the manor. The Count is under attack," announced the Captain, putting the entire city into a state of emergency.