25 – Flames

"Watch out!" Charles jumped forward and pushed Renee away.

Renee tumbled backward again, then the roar of the falling rubble echoed.

The woman coughed from the rising dust. Before long, the fog thinned, and finally, she saw Charles, whose body was already under the big logs and building frames.

"We were so absorbed in fighting that we forgot that this place was on fire." Charles laughed, then coughed. His mouth splattered red blood.

Renee froze with her mouth open. She only intends to incapacitate Charles and take him to the police. There was no point in killing the man.

"Charles!" Renee crept up to the man, then tried to free him. However, the rubble on top of Charles was too much and too heavy. Not to mention the fire that burned some of the ruins.

"Forget about me, Renee." Charles coughed again. "I can't be saved anymore. Go."

"No!!!" Renee kept trying to lift the rubble, but it was to no avail. The woman was crying and screaming. "I will save you!!"

"No, Renee. You have to get out of here." Charles insisted. "I believe you are destined for something greater. You may not become a high wizard, and maybe you have tried to forget your roots as a martial artist. However, that doesn't mean you can't be great. By learning magic and remembering the teachings of your father, you created something new…."

Charles coughed a third time and spurted more blood.

"Shut up! Don't talk anymore! Save your energy to run!" Renee's cries grew louder.

"Please, Renee. If you die here, then your struggle will be in vain. The magic and martial arts you learned will be meaningless." Charles' voice grew hoarse.

"I'm not that great." Realizing that her efforts were in vain, Renee finally chose to withdraw. She couldn't even look at her father's disciple and just cried.

"Maybe you already have a feeling…. The feeling in your heart that you will make something great like this…. So, you can't forget the martial arts teachings…. You're still training…."

Renee closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she tried to speak in a calmer tone. She didn't want Charles to spend the last time looking at her remorse. "Well, I guess because I'm used to it…. Even when I was in the magical academy, I still practiced that damn martial art every morning, even if only a little…."

A wide grin formed on Charles' mouth. "We've been chatting too long, Renee. You better go now. Ah, and remember this, you managed to beat the greatest disciple of your father. You really are great."

"It turns out that you are still arrogant." Renee crouched down in front of the leader of the thugs, then forced a smile, though tears were still streaming down her face. In a very hoarse voice, she said again. "It's been a long time since we talked like this."

***

Alain and Pierre were already running towards the city for help. Meanwhile, Lauren was near the burning building, keeping an eye on the situation. Only Elise was still where she was.

"Shit! Is it possible that she is still alive?" Raymund sounded so worried.

Elise's body shook violently. The massive blazing fire seemed hazy in her tear-stained eyes. She remembered her house, which was also severely burned.

Even though this was Raymund's suggestion, Elise also played a role in getting Renee to come here. Her lie might have killed Renee, and she was so frightened that she didn't want to go near the place, let alone help.

What kind of friend is she?

Elise clenched her fists tightly, then forced her legs to run.

"If you want to help her, forget it!" Lauren, who noticed Elise's arrival, gave a warning. The sorcerer was already quite far from the fire. "The fire is too big! If you insist, I will stop you myself!"

Without being told, Elise still stopped. Her mentality wasn't strong enough for her to run toward the fire. It was the fire that took her life.

"Boss…. Has my boss been able to escape?" A thug who was behind Lauren asked. His tears were already flowing. Along with his friends, he could do nothing but lay on the grass. Their hands and feet were bound by something black that came out of Lauren's staff.

" I don't know," Lauren answered.

Elise's tears rolled down her cheeks. The warrior knelt down and looked at the huge warehouse that had begun to crumble, feeling its heat.

Suddenly, the wooden seal on a large window in the building shattered when Renee jumped from inside. The woman then landed on the grass with a roll. Elise widened her eyes and immediately came to her friend. "Renee!"

Renee coughed and writhed in the grass. In addition to the injuries from Charles' attack, she also suffered burns to several parts of her body.

"Are you okay?" Elise asked frantically when she realized the wounds.

" Dunno." Renee sighed. "At least I'm still alive."

"We have to get her away from here." Lauren walked over to the two women, then pulled out another black thing from her staff. That thing has a smoke-like consistency but looks much denser.

Renee winced in pain as that thing crawled behind her back, transformed into a stretcher-like shape, then lifted her body and floated, carrying her away.

"Did I tell you why I wanted to become a mage?" Renee raved while Lauren and Elise walked beside her.

"Not yet." Elise shook her head as she wiped her tears.

"When I was 13 years old, my parents and I had to go far away. However, there was a lot of attack from the big winged monsters at that time. Long-distance travel is not recommended."

"Ah, that phenomenon that happened 9 years ago?" Lauren replied.

"Yes." Renee nodded slowly. "Well, we usually go with my father's students, who are the best at martial arts. However, my father felt that it was not enough at that time. So, he hired the services of high-level adventurers." A small chuckle escaped from Renee's mouth. "I remember, at that time, I protested. I felt that our people alone would be enough."

"Could it be the legend of the scarlet wizard and her party who managed to kill many of those monsters?" So shocked, Lauren could not breathe. "At that time, they were guarding a travel group. Is that your parents' group?"

"Yes, we are guarded by the scarlet wizard." Renee flashed a smile. "I was amazed when she managed to fight those monsters with her friends. Her magic is wonderful and elegant but still deadly."

Lauren put Renee some distance away from the thugs. Not long after, help arrived, and some government magic users came to put out the fire while the police started checking the thugs on the ground. There are too few of them. The officers would obviously have lost if the thugs had not been neutralized.

"I have to explain things to them." Lauren walked away after examining Renee's wound. "Don't worry. The wounds on your body won't kill you."

"Do you still want to listen to me, Elise?" Renee asked as her body began to be taken care of by a healer.

"Of course." Elise, who was kneeling near Renee, smiled faintly.

"A year after seeing the scarlet wizard, I ran away from home because my father didn't want me to become a mage. I was fourteen at the time and decided to go to a magic academy with forged papers." Renee explained. "But, I was unable to follow the lessons there. Six years after studying there, I was expelled because I couldn't master the basic techniques." The woman started to tear up again. "Fortunately, to become an adventurer, I don't have to have a certificate or anything like that. There are so many successful adventurers without formal education... Ah, I sound stupid, don't I? That's why I've never told anyone about this."

"No, it's not." Elise wore a faint smile, gently stroked Renee's hair.