Chapter 19: Strange First Mission (2)

[Third Person's PoV] 

"This village is in the Forsaken Realm, the last of the realms between the Common Realm and the Noble Realm. The Forsaken Realm is where all the commoners and inferior breeds inhabit the land. The only magic they can use is pitiful, everyday-use magic.

They're like animals, unable to use tools. These dumb beasts could rob me of my time—I was simply trying to clear them away earlier. You have enough magic to join the Magic Knights, don't you? You're only trying to save them because it's your mission. Don't they look like pathetic animals to you, even now?" the man with the watch said, looking at them apathetically.

"THOSE PEOPLE ARE THE ONES I NEED TO PROTECT!" Asta declared, gripping his sword tightly.

"Very well, then…" The man glanced at his watch. "Die together with these beasts."

At his words, he extended his hands, surrounding the entire area with sharp icicles, while one of the hooded men extended his hands and released a powerful mist—the same one that had been obscuring the village earlier.

"Noelle, watch my back, would you?" Stephen said, ignoring everything around him as he focused on the old man's wounds.

"Wha—" Noelle stopped herself and looked at Stephen. She saw him commanding the sewing needle with a finger, carefully stitching the old man's wounds with concentration.

A little girl then walked up and grabbed Noelle's hand, tears in her eyes. "Please help us, Magic Knight!"

Noelle's eyes widened slightly. 'They're all depending on me… I can't let them down!'

Her grimoire responded to her emotions. It glowed brightly as an empty page began to fill with words. She crouched down and touched the ground, and mana began forming a dome around them.

"AS ROYALTY AND A MEMBER OF THE BLACK BULLS, I WON'T LET YOU DOWN!"

[Water Creation Magic: Sea Dragon's Lair]

A dome of water with swirling whirlpools formed protectively over them as icicles rained down.

The ground beneath Asta splintered slightly as he cut and deflected the spells back at their enemies with the flat side of his blade. Magna kept rapidly throwing fireballs, creating explosions in the sky.

As Stephen sewed the last stitch on the old man, he slowly closed his fist. A sizzling sound was heard, and smoke rose from the wound, causing the old man to grunt in pain from the burning sensation.

"Grandpa!" his grandson shouted in worry.

"That should stop the bleeding," Stephen muttered, "but he's still lost a lot of blood…"

Noelle turned back, saw the burn mark in the shape of stitches on the old man, and then looked towards Stephen as he began floating upward.

"I'll have to finish this soon," Stephen said as Tao Mandalas formed by his fists.

He made a small swiping gesture to the side, and the water dome opened a small door for him to exit. As he floated out, the dome closed itself behind him.

'He so casually interfered with my spell… without even damaging its integrity,' Noelle thought in surprise.

Some of the icicles changed direction midair, aiming toward Stephen, but he enlarged his Tao Mandala to block the attack. It then shrank back to fit his fist once more.

Stephen began performing rapid hand signs. "Asta, Magna, can I leave the hooded man to you while I deal with the leader? Noelle will protect the civilians."

"Leave it to us!" Magna said with a large grin, forming fireballs in both hands.

"It'll be over and done with!" Asta said, holding his swords on his shoulders.

Stephen floated in the middle of them, then thrust his hand to the side. "The Flames of Faltine!"

A blue flame enveloped Stephen's hand just as a massive icicle glacier erupted from the ground, hurtling toward him.

Both Magna and Asta took that as their signal and charged in opposite directions toward their opponents.

Stephen's cloak wrapped around him, swiftly moving him out of harm's way before unwrapping. With a wave of his hand, Stephen sent forth a blaze of blue fire toward his main opponent.

The man waved his hand, summoning a wall of icicle spikes that quickly melted under the intense heat of Stephen's spell, leaving him scrambling in horror. He made a desperate swiping motion, turning the ground beneath him into ice and sliding out of the way.

Stephen poured more mana into his spell, intensifying it. As he landed beside his opponent, he made an upward motion, creating a ring of blue fire around them, isolating them from the ongoing battle.

His opponent scoffed. "Do you think isolating us was a smart move? Now your friends can't help you. You're stuck in here with me."

He spread his arms, summoning more icicles that shot toward Stephen. With a casual wave of his hand, Stephen's flames melted the ice into water, causing his opponent to click his tongue in frustration.

Stephen smirked, noticing his opponent step back as he advanced. More ice spells came flying toward him, but Stephen effortlessly flicked them away, his flames reducing each one to nothing.

Stephen was walking slowly inside the ring of fire that surrounded them. His Cloak billowed behind him with every step he took and waves he made with his hand. His black, obsidian eyes turned blue, matching the color of the spell he used. 

Now face to face with his opponent, Heath Grice, Stephen stood tall. Heath, unable to retreat any further, felt the smothering heat radiating from the flames, their power overwhelming him.

"Who did you say was stuck in here with whom?" Stephen teased.

"You're the one stuck in here with me!" Heath declared, conjuring an ice sword and thrusting it toward Stephen with a grin.

But as the sword neared, it simply melted, turning into water that dripped to the ground. Heath looked down in shock and saw Stephen's hand raised before him. Each time the sword approached, it disintegrated.

Heath looked back at Stephen in surprise, who stared at him with an unimpressed expression. "I dislike you. You see magic as nothing more than a tool to wield—a weapon to reap lives and make others suffer. Magic is supposed to improve lives, not make them worse."

"I will not stand here and be lectured by a child!" Heath spat coldly, swinging a fist toward Stephen.

Stephen leaned back, easily dodging the punch. "I wasn't lecturing you… I was telling you why I'm going to burn you now. And it's simply because I don't like you," Stephen said with a smile as he grabbed Heath's face.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH! IT BURNS! IT BURNS! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Heath screamed in agony as Stephen's flames seared into his skin. After a moment, Stephen unsummoned his flames and backhanded Heath, rendering him unconscious.

A large burn in the shape of Stephen's palm was imprinted on Heath's face, now disfigured, with steam and smoke rising from his flesh. Parts of his skin had melted off, leaving a gruesome scar as he lay motionless on the ground.

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